Feral Mutagen

[jozh]

Feral Mutagen wrote:

Finally, you can increase the mutagen’s penalty to AC from –1 to –2 and, in exchange, increase the damage die size of your claws and jaws by one step.

When do you decide whether to make this exchange? When you first take the mutagen? Round-by-round basis? Other?

[rainzax]

I would bet that decision is made during morning preparations (via Advanced Alchemy) or when using the single action in encounter mode (via Quick Alchemy).

Like, instead of whipping up a Mutagen, you whip up a Feral Mutagen.

Compare with the wording of Revivifying Mutagen, which explicitly mentions deciding mid-combat.

And we can infer that because it doesn't have an action symbol, that it cannot be "activated" except via using other abilities (such as Advanced Alchemy and Quick Alchemy).

It doesn't appear to clarify any further.

[jozh]

Seems reasonable. Thanks.

[Brew Bird]

I would argue it's when you drink your mutagen that you make the change. Making the decision during preparation doesn't really follow, since you're changing how the mutagen affects you, but not the mutagen itself. Any Bestial Mutagens you make will still affect anyone else normally, since you're not actually brewing a different mutagen.

[shroudb]

Brew Bird wrote:

I would argue it's when you drink your mutagen that you make the change. Making the decision during preparation doesn't really follow, since you're changing how the mutagen affects you, but not the mutagen itself. Any Bestial Mutagens you make will still affect anyone else normally, since you're not actually brewing a different mutagen.

That's what I'm also going with.

The choice of how to affect you relies on when you drink it, similar to how you can use Elixirs of life for either healing or Counteracts with feats.

You make a bestial Mutagen but bestial Mutagen can either give the extra option or not, but both versions are still the same item called "bestial mutagen".

[jozh]

Brew Bird wrote:

I would argue it's when you drink your mutagen that you make the change. Making the decision during preparation doesn't really follow, since you're changing how the mutagen affects you, but not the mutagen itself. Any Bestial Mutagens you make will still affect anyone else normally, since you're not actually brewing a different mutagen.

Also seems reasonable.

Thanks for the feedback, gang.