Poison saving throw DC

[Voltumna]

Has anyone come up with a system of crafting poisons where the saving throw DC can be increased by the skill of the poison maker? In other words, where the skill check to create the poison would have an effect on the potency depending on the check results?

 

[DimitriX]

In "The Assassin's Handbook" by Green Ronin press, they had a series of feats that one could take that would allow a crafter to modify the poisons they created in various ways.

You could create a feat that lets the crafter increase the save DC by +2.

Another option is to increase the crafting DC +3 or +5 per +1 save DC. Then, anyone can do it but only if they are really good (or really lucky). If you want to go down this route, then you could also say that the 'poison use' ability does not apply because the crafter is having to work with more concentrated ingredients.

 

[Teriudin]

If you wanted to go this route, I'd use a flat bonus of +1 on the first save for every 10 points higher than the DC.

It is small, but it is something. There isn't much you can do to make a poison more potent by itself. Poison will still react with the imbiber's cells in pretty much the same way, unless you increase the quantity. The hgh roll says maybe the player could eek out that little bit more from the bottle, or knows a trick to make it work more quickly and effectively.

 

[Vortigern]

I disagree. While someone may not be able to make a given already existing poisonous substance any more effective you can certainly have a better understanding of both what makes it poisonous and effective to begin with and the processes of manufacture. This knowledge together can allow you to concentrate your production efforts into, say, the specific parts of a plant that provide the substance you want to put into your compound as well as distilling or concentrating processes to render purer or more uh concentrated substanced which would accumulate to give you more effectiveness per dose.

Remember this isn't a modern 'standard' manufacturing type of production. Individual methods of producing these substances can vary wildly and thus so can the effectiveness of the product you get from vendor 'A' from vendor 'B'. Really that is still the case today with products of different manufacturers, but perhaps to a lesser degree.

Several options occur to me. I think perhaps an interesting way to go would be to allow a person of greater skill to be more efficient with the source materials used to make the poisons, getting more base doses per unit of materials. Then produced doses of the poison could be concentrated/distilled into fewer doses to increase the DC, based on the number of doses that are concentrated and by what factor they are reduced.

This allows a poison maker of greater skill to choose between simply getting more doses for the same effort or making more effective poisons, with greater effort.

 

[Voltumna]

Those are interesting ideas Vortigern. Something occurred to me from your comments. Crop breeding to increase their desirable properties could also come into play. Maybe a knowledge skill like nature, could be used in the form of some kind of synergy, that increases the potency of the product. Maybe for every 5 total points in Knowledge (nature or agriculture?), you could get a bonus in the effect of the product manufactured using purposefully bred crops.

 

[Vortigern]

Another very good point. Raising the plants ( or critters ) properly can also be important in producing a more potent compound.

Especially when you are dealing a sorcerous garden that requires some kind of funky substance/ritual/whatever on it's own to establish and maintain the arcane stuff therein. There is story potential there.