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Depends on what you want to do with your PC.
Alchemical creations do take longer than potions, but its apples and oranges, the two do not compare.
Most GM's I imagine will consider the lab to be your MWK tool.
Potion weight is insignificant (until a PC tries to abuse that description by carrying dozens.)
I've found for lower levels, Craft Alchemy is handy if you do not already have an Alchemist in the group. Not just for saving gold on cut-rate alchemy items, but for the doors it opens in roleplay.
I had a rogue with Craft Alchemy that hatched a plot to use an alchemical defoliant to kill off swaths of crops in a community of Asmodeans near Cheliax. Pitted rival farmers against one another and stirred things up. Would not have been an option without that skill.
Never underestimate the distraction power or joke potential of many alchemical creations.
recall that Craft (alchemy) is also used to make poisons. So, if that is a thing your character uses or has a market for...
If you don't mind spending a feat on Master Alchemist and/or being a 3rd level or higher Alchemist and you want to make a bunch of interesting little items for clever mundane solutions and character flavour, then yeah, it's worth it! I can't wait for my Kobold Pistolero to reach 5th level and get the feat.
You cannot craft potions unless you take the Feat and are a caster, ANYONE can take Craft:Alchemy. They do COMPLETELY different things so yes, comparing them between one another based on price IS comparing apples and oranges.
/out.
If you're worried about carrying things, put the ones you will need in combat in a bandolier, and put your backups and ones you won't need in combat in a Minor Bag of Holding, a Pathfinder's Pouch, or a Handy Haversack. You'll want a Handy Haversack anyway if you plan on carting around a Portable Alchemist's Lab.
Also yes, an Alchemist's Lab is masterwork tools already. A full lab gives a +2, while the portable variant gives +1. You can, however, get a Cauldron for Brewing for 3000gp which nets you a +5 circumstance bonus on top of the competence bonus from the lab.
recall that Craft (alchemy) is also used to make poisons. So, if that is a thing your character uses or has a market for...Isn't that just for alchemist class?
No, Craft(Alchemy) is used for poisons. For some reason a couple of books list Craft(Poisons) as a prerequisite for things, but that skill is not used to create poisons.
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Thays odd as there's a specific FAQ that asks of alchemists have poison as alchemical items for the purpose of their class. Which would imply that for other classes it is not.
An alchemist gets a bonus to create alchemical items using Craft (alchemy). The FAQ clarifies that he gets this bonus when crafting poisons.
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@Bloodrealm
Craft (alchemy) is almost too general skill to be used for all alchemical creations, so that's why Craft (poisons) skill exists in those feats as prerequisite. A good prerequisite if you ask me.
That on side, you can have many different versions of Craft skill, besides those listed in skill description. Craft (poison) can be used to create poisons in that retrospect. You could also use Craft (bombs), Craft (medicines), Craft (powders), etc., but all of that is already covered by Craft (alchemy) skill.
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I might be biased because I'm the type of person who would drop everything in Skyrim to chase butterflies for crafting components, but Craft (Alchemy) is a great skill to have.
That said, I wouldn't recommend it to anyone who hasn't already read up on the kinds of things you can create with that skill. Archives of Nethys has some great collection of things you could make. If none of those things appeal to you then skip it.
Personally I think it's a great thing for noncasters to invest in and offers some interesting roleplaying opportunities if you want. Just don't expect any of the things you make to replace magic items, especially potions.
Also, for identifying things it can be situationally helpful. I have used Craft (Alchemy) to test what a substance was made of, including poisons but that seems like a GM's discretion thing to me based on the disagreements on that here.
The crafting rules are all wonky, maybe to avoid abuse. I have theories but they are wonky too. For the time the crafting takes, it just isn't useful for a player character. When crafting alchemical items there is also the matter of the DC's being set. They do not scale with level. This means that by the time the crafter gets really good, the items are not useful anymore.
The crafting rules are all wonky, maybe to avoid abuse. I have theories but they are wonky too. For the time the crafting takes, it just isn't useful for a player character. When crafting alchemical items there is also the matter of the DC's being set. They do not scale with level. This means that by the time the crafter gets really good, the items are not useful anymore.
That's why I mentioned the Master Alchemist feat. The higher you get on the craft check compared to the price, the faster you make it.
In addition, whenever you make alchemical items or poisons using Craft (alchemy), use the item’s gp value as its sp value when determining your progress (do not multiply the item’s gp cost by 10 to determine its sp cost).
If the check succeeds, multiply your check result by the DC. If the result × the DC equals the price of the item in sp, then you have completed the item. (If the result × the DC equals double or triple the price of the item in silver pieces, then you’ve completed the task in one-half or one-third of the time. Other multiples of the DC reduce the time in the same manner.)
So let's say you're trying to craft a Smokestick, which has a price of 20gp and a Craft DC of 20.
Now let's say you're 5th level, have 5 points in Craft(Alchemy), have a +3 Int modifier, and are using a full Alchemist's Lab (a +2 bonus). You multiply the gp price by 10 to get 200sp price. If you Take 10 on the check, you'll exactly meet the DC (10+5+3+2 = 20). Now we multiply the check by the DC (20x20 = 400). That means it's twice the cost of the item in sp, so it takes you half a week. That's a stupid amount of time to take off just to craft a Smokestick.What if the character had Master Alchemist? The price is now 20gp instead of 200sp. Instead of 1/2 of a week, it takes you 1/20 of a week (or, if we're making checks by the day and there are 7 days in a week, 400 divided by 7 makes the result of the check about 57, meaning it takes a bit more than a third of a day of crafting). You could make one on the side and still have a fulfilling adventuring day. If you're a 3rd level Alchemist, the Swift Alchemy class feature cuts crafting time in half, so it takes you 1/40 of a week.
A Tanglefoot Bag has a 50gp price, a Craft DC of 25, and is useful to any level as long as you can make the ranged touch attack to throw it and the target isn't immune to Entangled and is smaller than Huge size (there's no save for the 2d4 round entanglement effect, only for being glued to the ground, and the target still moves at half speed on a successful save). You can make Tangleshot Arrows even faster than Tanglefoot Bags due to the cheaper price. How's that for practical use?
Any recommended books for alchemical items? The core rulebook's list is a bit small.
Archives of Nethys' Equipment section has pretty much everything you need and cites the source for each item.
if a BOOK is asked for, the Ultimate Equipment guide is the most complete reference work I know of...
Arm an entire militia with flasks of alchemists's fire/acid and wait for initiative on that big baddie coming to town. AKA the fantasy firing squad.
if a BOOK is asked for, the Ultimate Equipment guide is the most complete reference work I know of...
Yeah, Ultimate Equipment has a lot, if not most of it, other books of note are probably Kobolds of Golarion, Goblins of Golarion, and Black Markets.
It seems crafting poisons takes a horrendous amount of time unfortunately
That's why you look up a few cheap ones with a decent effect, and use abilities to boost their DCs. Drow Poison is nice for a save-or-sit-out, and Bloodwine is fantastic if you can convert it from ingested to injury or contact and use Toxicological Timing to change its frequency to rounds instead of minutes (DC25, 2 saves to cure, 100gp per dose, makes the target sickened and deals Wis damage).
Alchemist and Daggermark Poisoner both have abilities to cut the crafting time in half, and the Master Alchemist feat lets you craft multiple doses simultaneously.