Alchemy Jug of Potent Spirits (5e Equipment)
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Wondrous item, very rare (requires attunement) The alchemy jug of potent spirits is a tweaked and altogether more interesting version of the alchemy jug found in the 5e DMG, a conglomeration of a variety of sources. The following is intended mainly as a framework for your users to add flavor, nostalgia, and variety - in the hands of power gamers, it can very easily unbalance your campaign, so consequences can and should be added to those users who drink/utilize the jug's abilities excessively. In essence, it is a jug that provides a variety of liquors and spirits instead of the mundane liquids in the standard version. The bulk of these liquors were inspired by the passive bonus system of the Supergiant game Bastion; with a few tweaks to the liquors provided to the protagonist in that game, the alchemy jug of potent spirits can bring the Bastion's favorite brews to your adventure. The jug can be generated in your campaign with as many or as few of the following spirits as you wish, you can drink the jug as an action, unless stated or pour the liquid into or inside something, weather that be a cup or a creature's mouth, it doesn't matter. This jug reproduces all effects that come from the jug within 3 days but you can drink from the jug twice before a needed refill, if you drink it once then, the timer is cut in half. The duration times listed are suggestions. SPIRITS Dreadrum ~ For one hour, you critical hit range is increased by 2 (18 to 20 for crit)
Stabsinthe ~ Upon being hit with a melee attack, you may use your reaction to, no save required, deal 2d6 piercing to the attacker
Cinderbrick Stout ~ On your turn, you gain an additional 20 feet of speed and you may choose one of the following actions to use as a bonus action for that turn: Dodge, Disengage, Dash, or Help. This effect ends at the end of your turn or at the end of the combat encounter.
Lunkhead liquor ~ For one hour, you gain proficiency with shields, if already proficient, you gain an extra +1 to AC when using shields.
Lifewine ~ For 24 hours, the next attack that would drop you to 0 HP, instead drops you to 1 hit point
Squirt Cider ~ Roll half your hit dice = to the amount of levels you have, (ex: you are a lvl 3 fighter, you gain 3d10 temporary hit points but cut the total hit points in half) to gain temporary hit points for 8 hours. This rolling of your hit dice does not take away from your current hit dice total
Mender Mead ~ When you are attacked and that attack misses, as a reaction you gain 4d4 + 4 hit points
Bastion Bourbon ~ On your next combat encounter, you may mix healing potions together. This process requires 1 action and can mix up a maximum 3 potions. The potion becomes drinkable on your next turn and has the effects of all healing potions combined. E.X. Mix 2 commons healing potions = 2D4+4 hit points restored
Doomshine ~ For 1 hour, whenever you roll a critical hit, you add two damage dice instead of 1 extra
Bull Brandy ~ For 10 minutes, gain damage resistance against all types except psychic and radiant
Cham-pain ~ For 1 hour, gain an extra damage dice to roll on hits. Additionally, when you make death saving throws, 4 failures are required for death instead of 3.
Any number of the other alcoholic beverages, either homebrewed or from previous editions, mundane or magical, can be added to the list of potential candidates as well, as can any potion that could conceivably be alcoholic. Consider adding spirits that shore the drinkers courage and provide them with advantage against being charmed or frightened, beverages that shore the drinker against the effects of poisons, or drinks that increase the capability of the drinker to perform certain spells #such as Spaciems wine, which increases the chance of success for many of the Divination class spells#. Administration of these benefits is varied slightly from Bastion as well; instead of being truly "passive" benefits, make it so that the jug can output so many servings of each drink per day or week, depending on your preference. I had a PC that started a campaign at a higher level start out with this jug with his starting equipment; I let him pick five or six of the liquors from this list that he could have as usable options, and then had him roll a d4 several times to see how many servings of each he could get out of them in a day and/or week. Then, as an action, he can drink one and experience the benefits for as long as the DM feels fit they should last... some effects may last only a round or two, others may last about a minute #i.e. Stabsinthe# and some may last several hours or all day (establish those durations in advance as you see fit# In addition, to give the player some motivation, I gave him the option of adding new alcoholic beverages as he encounters them in the course of play, each with a suitable cost in resources or side quests... that way, he has the incentive to seize hooks that I plant along the main storyline, as he is eager to expand the repertoire of both mundane and potion-like liquors he encounters. For example, they recently encountered an enemy who used a potion of fire breath against them; he managed to find some, discovered it was alcoholic, and went through the hoops I put up for him to enable him to pour himself an occasional glass of "Wyrmswill" and gain the effects of a modified potion of fire-breathing at will. He now has the ability to get one serving's worth a week from his jug, which he is very happy about. Potential rules to consider: -> As in real life, consider setting a hidden limit for the amount that a character can imbibe before total intoxication sets in ~ drink too many in too short a time frame, and they should find themselves suffering from random status effects, especially if they are attempting to stack many different kinds for a host of benefits. Frightened, charmed, incapacitated, poisoned, blinded, restrained,increasing levels of exhaustion, unquenchable thirst/hunger, insomnia, etc... be creative and intuitive with the detrimental effects as well as their severity ~ in this way, the PC can feel overpowered and yet remain reigned in by the DM to maintain a balanced game. -> "regular" drinking of these spirits imparts cumulative forms of long-term madness at random from the chart in the DMG on Madness. Saving throws can be made against this imparted madness with a DC of the DM's choosing on a weekly basis. -> regular drinking drains the available pool of ki, spell slots, etc... -> The jug requires attunement, is sentient, and slightly malicious ~ going without a drink for too long inflicts short &/or long-term madness against a Wisdom, Constitution, or Charisma saving throw. The saving throw can be repeated daily at dawn. |
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