Special Herbalism

Herbaria

The White Rose of Gerantia

Any attempt to take cuttings or seedlings of this rose will fail unless performed by a Rank 6+ Herbalist.
Once established, however, the rose is hardy and needs very little care. The plant will grow about 10 metres per year, in any condition of light so long as there is some natural light available. It prefers an arid environment, but will still thrive in humid conditions, so long as the soil is appropriately drained. In terms of maintenance, the plant requires 160 hours of care a season, divided by the Herbalist's Rank. The least amount of time that must be spent cultivating the rose is 4 hours. If this maintenance time is not met or exceeded, the plant will wither and die.
The rose will tend to grow around upright structures, and are generally planted just outside the walls of dwelling places. If the roses are allowed to grow over the graves of the dead for a year, then no attempt to raise the interred as undead will succeed.
The hips, which may be harvested in Autumn, are said to be useful in the production of Herbalist draughts that restore virginity. The petals, when appropriately prepared, are said to act as a sovereign against Charms or Seduction.

Adventure	Season	Plane of Origin	Aura	Nature of Magic	Value	Cursed etc.?	GM
			Living Plant	Discipline			Jim Arona 021 076 9376

The Marist Rose

Any attempt to take cuttings or seedlings of this rose will fail unless performed by a Rank 6+ Herbalist.
Once established, however, the rose is hardy and needs very little care. The plant will grow about 10 metres per year, in any condition of light so long as there is some natural light available. It prefers an arid environment, but will still thrive in humid conditions, so long as the soil is appropriately drained. In terms of maintenance, the plant requires 160 hours of care a season, divided by the Herbalist's Rank. The least amount of time that must be spent cultivating the rose is 4 hours. If this maintenance time is not met or exceeded, the plant will wither and die.
The rose will tend to grow around upright structures, and are generally planted just outside the walls of dwelling places. Undead may not enter a place entirely encircled by its branches. The hips, which may be harvested in Autumn, are said to be useful in the production of Herbalist draughts that restore hope.

Adventure	Season	Plane of Origin	Aura	Nature of Magic	Value	Cursed etc.?	GM
			Living Plant	Discipline	Quest		Jim Arona 021 076 9376

Whitethorn

File:Whitethorn.jpg‎

Any attempt to take cuttings or seedlings of this bush will fail unless performed by a Rank 6+ Herbalist.
Once established, however, the bush is hardy and needs very little care. It cannot abide a humid environment, and requires a heavily sunned position. In terms of maintenance, the plant requires 80 hours of care a season, divided by the Herbalist's Rank. The least amount of time that must be spent cultivating it is 4 hours and if this maintenance time is not met or exceeded, it will wither and die.
The branches sprout wicked, white thorns, which are supernaturally sharp and hard, but the withes, themselves, are wiry and supple. If a stake can be made from the withes, and plunged into the heart of a vampire, it will instantly destroy it as if it had been exposed to sunlight.
If a crown is made of these vicious thorns, the wearer can buy 1 WP (at the normal cost). The crown must be worn for at least a season, and the pain will permanently reduce their EN by 2 (which may be bought back in the usual way). This increase is beyond the normal 5 allowed but

1. Racial maximums may not be exceeded and,
2. Only 1 point of WP may be bought in this way.
   

The Herbalist can produce Rank withes of whitethorn per year. A stake, if the means of production is known, requires 1 withe, a crown of thorns requires 2.

Adventure	Season	Plane of Origin	Aura	Nature of Magic	Value	Cursed etc.?	GM
			Living Plant	Agonistes	Quest		Jim Arona 021 076 9376

London Plane Trees

Any attempt to take cuttings or seedlings from this tree bush will fail unless performed by a Rank 4+ Herbalist.
These seeds take 5 years to grow to mature height of 60 feet. They are hardy and need very little care, preferring moist soil and a sunny position. They should not be planted closer than 15 feet and very little else will grow in this area. In terms of maintenance, the tree requires 40 hours of care a season, divided by the Herbalist's Rank. The least amount of time that must be spent cultivating it is 4 hours and if this maintenance time is not met or exceeded, it will wither and die.

Immolation Berries

If an Adept eats one of these berries as part of their Preparation Action, and then Casts Immolation, then they will take the EN damage, but damage from the spell is increased by 1 D10 for 10 Pulses.
Each application weighs 1 oz.

Adventure	Season	Plane of Origin	Aura	Nature of Magic	Value	Cursed etc.?	GM
			Living plant	Immolation	250sp		Jim Arona 021 076 9376

Flamecap

These brightly coloured orange mushrooms may be used as a reagent for spells that do damage by burning (i.e. Hellfire, Dragonflames, Fireball, Burning Magma, Bolt of Fire etc) to enhance damage. The enhancement is an additional 1D10 fire damage and +5 to the Cast Chance .
Each application weighs 1 oz.

Adventure	Season	Plane of Origin	Aura	Nature of Magic	Value	Cursed etc.?	GM
			Living plant	Flames	250sp		Jim Arona 021 076 9376

Golden Century Blossoms

These flowers are edible when prepared by the arts of a Rank 8 or better Herbalist. Otherwise, they are painfully lethal, killing whoever eats them by the stroke of midnight on the day ingested. On the occasion that a sentient mortal eats one of them, they can advance their FT by one at half the normal experience cost. They may only benefit from eating these seeds once for every century of life expectancy. Most short-lived sentients can only benefit from the blossoms once. Those whose life expectancy exceeds millenia cannot benefit from them at all.

Adventure	Season	Plane of Origin	Aura	Nature of Magic	Value	Cursed etc.?	GM
			Previously living	Enhancement	10,000sp		Jim Arona 021 076 9376

Recipes

The Recipe of the Tincture of Aconite and Passionflower

Rank 7 Herbalism

The Herbalist gathers aconite and passionflower in sufficient quantities to produce as much tincture as will fill a wine cup. These common herbs are macerated with spirit of roses and left to stand thus for the passing of seven days. At the end of that time, spikenard sufficient to fill a silver thimble is sprinkled over the mass, and a distillate collected in a glass vessel.
Steeping the preparation in alcohol prevents this Herbalist draught from degrading over time.
The aromatic tincture changes the perceptions of whoever drinks it so that everything they see is more beautiful for Rank hours. Add two times the rank of the Herbalist who prepared the tincture to the PB of anything that they look upon. It can be added to wine or other liquor, thus diluting it's effect. Adding it to a bottle of wine would reduce the effects to about a quarter of the usual bonus and a quarter of the duration. Thus, a Rank 8 Tincture (+16 to PB) diluted in this way would increase PB by 4 for 2 hours. All fractions are truncated.
The recipe is teachable, but whoever teaches it must expend 11,100 Experience for each Herbalist taught.

Adventure	Season	Value	GM
		8,000sp	Jim Arona 021 076 9376

The Recipe of the Decoction of the Singing Bees

Rank 7 Herbalism
This is the recipe for a Herbalist draught that renders the imbiber's blood invisible until the last day of the Full Moon. Sufficient wings of the Singing Bees to fill a wine cup must be gathered and pressed gently until a fine oil is released. Nineteen of the blackest berries of belladonna must be macerated with the oil and left to stand from at least one Full Moon to the next when a liquor will be produced. Steeping the berries for longer does not improve the liquor or generate more, nor does it degrade being preserved by its own venoms.
The liquor can be drawn off and a single draught made taking eight hours of work .
To benefit from this draught, the imbiber must not cast any magic from the dawn of the day they drink it to the dawn following. If the imbiber rests or sleeps, they may experience visions and sensations that may well be prophetic and are definitely vivid. While they are awake, they will feel tired and listless. At the end of this time, their blood and anything written in it will be Invisible. Only those whose Witchsight, Wizardsight or Enhanced Vision is greater than the Rank of the draught can read anything written in it, although they may notice odd marks if their rank is equal or lower.
The formula is teachable, but the teacher must expend 11,100 Experience for each Herbalist taught.

Adventure	Season	Value	GM
			Jim Arona 021 076 9376

The Recipe of the Scent of Fortune

Rank 4 Herbalism

The Herbalist gathers a four leafed clover (a rare herb), three star anise (an uncommon spice costing 25 sp each, when available), a whole nutmeg (an uncommon spice costing 20 sp, when available), the root, stalks, leaves and flowers of a peppermint plant (a common herb, costing 5 sp). All of the peppermint must be macerated, and steeped, with the spices, in enough twice refined spirits of apple wine to fill a beggar's cup. This will cost an Artisan Distiller no less than 125 sp, and they may charge as much as 250 sp without attracting the attention of their guild.

The operation must be begun by noon on a Tuesday, the spirits being drawn off into a clean glass vessel by noon of the next Friday, and then gently heated, the vapours to be trapped in one ampoule (+ one for evert three Ranks in Herbalist) by the arts of an Artisan Glassblower of Rank 6 or more. They will charge no less than 100 sp for their labours, up to 200 sp before they will attract the attention of their guild.
The formula is teachable, but the teacher must expend 4,350 Experience for each Herbalist taught.

Scent of Good Fortune

Rank 4 Herbalism
This ampoule weighs 1 oz. It is fragile and must be crushed to release the volatile scent within. This requires a Free Act or a Pass Action at the discretion of the wearer, the effects lasting for 6 Pulses or until used.
Whoever breathes in the scent reduces the value of the "10s" die on their next percentile roll, so long as that would make the result 0. If the die cannot be reduced to 0, it has no effect at all. The die must be reduced to 0 if it can be, for example a result of "10" will become "00".
If the Rank of the Scent is 10, then the "1s" die may be modified, in addition to subtracting 9 from the "10s" die. Thus, the highest value that might be rolled would be "09".

Adventure	Season	Value	GM
			Jim Arona 021 076 9376

The Recipe of the Fumes of Night

Rank 9 Herbalism
The Herbalist gathers sweet flag, aspalathos, camel grass, black myrrh and cyperus tuber in sufficient quantities to produce incense that will burn for an hour or so. If the season is wrong for gathering, enough black myrrh can be bought for 200 silver pennies. The other herbs are common and can be gathered by the Herbalist's own labours.
On a night when there is no moon, they must all be heated in an athanor that their vapours may be released . These will collect upon a paten beneath which they are set. The process must stop before dawn and may continue on another of the dark of the moon. For three nights, the Herbalist must labour, taking care that the herbs do not take flame, nor daylight burn the delicate vapours.
Before dawn, the paten must be bathed in shadow wine and black honey. The suspension should be allowed to reduce by half, but no heat or light may be applied to it thus to hasten the process which seems to take two days. When it is ready, it will be of the same consistency as treacle, and should be laid upon pure charcoal and allowed to rest for a day.
It must be kept from strong light or lose its virtue.
If the incense is burned as part of the ritual casting of a Darkness Spell, then from horizon to horizon, night will last longer or fall earlier by Herbalist Rank hours.
The formula is teachable, but whoever teaches it must expend 14,500 Experience for each Herbalist taught.

Adventure	Season	Value	GM
		3,000sp	Jim Arona 021 076 9376

The Recipe of the Draught of Unwritable Thoughts

Rank 6 Herbalism

This is the recipe for a Herbalist draught that defends the imbiber's thoughts from being read or written.
The pollen from the stamens of 9 black lilies (very rare) must be collected under the light of the Full Moon. Sufficient malachite to fill a wine cup (costing 20 gs) must be ground to a fine meal, which will take 8 hours of careful work, then dressed in the finest virgin olive oil (costing 20 sp). On a Monday before dawn, the pollen of black lilies should be added thereto. The root of a green and unripe mandrake (rare), which can only be drawn safely on a night when no stars can be seen, should be collected and macerated in a wine of pansies (costing 20 sp). Any attempt to draw a green mandrake when there is even one star in the night sky will require the Herbalist to Break 100 + EN + Herbalist Rank or die instantly. This will cause the operation to fail.
The ink of a Calamar should be harvested, and steeped for five days in the worm-like spaces of its brain, who may have cause to resent this, and may therefore charge a premium for the service. Haggling is not allowed.
After this time, the ink may be decanted from the brain and into the liquor of mandrake and pansies, which will cause the root to blacken and dissolve. This should be filtered twice at a heat of the temperature of human blood, the fluid becoming becoming reactive so that black and green fumes are given off. The odour is pernicious, and a Herbalist must Break 100 + 2 x MD + Herbalist Rank to avoid succumbing to the fumes and losing consciousness. This will cause the operation to fail.
The draught will be ready after it has been left to settle in a dark and cool place for three days, and if all steps have been successfully completed, is entirely safe to drink.

Draught of Unwritable Thoughts

This draught is contained in robust vessel that weighs 4 oz. It must be Prepared before it can be taken.
The effects of the draught last for an hour per Rank in Herbalism, and over that period, the imbiber's thoughts may not be read or written by any magic or the Book of Dantalion. It has no effect on the working of ESP, Mind Speech or Empathy, however.