Primal Root

Primal Root:

Primal root? Yes, that's a good amount...fresh, too. 'Fraid I can't pay you too much for it, though. See...potions made with primal root have a strong tendency to have very long lasting effects. Permanent, often enough. Combine that with the tendency to render consumers comatose for a few hours...and it's just not very useful for a joke shop like this, yeah? You'll have better luck with the fuddy-duddy across the street.

-Selzo, fairy dragon alchemist

Looking nothing so fancy as it sounds, the so-called primal root appears as an unassuming yellow-orange flower. Growing primarily in regions of heavy rainfall, this uncommon plant is valued almost exclusively for its disproportionately large roots. While they seem to have no special properties on their own, primal roots are very magically reactive, making them a potent and versatile ingredient in potion making.

Dryad's Wine:

So potent are the root's dormant energies that merely using it as a robust flavoring to an otherwise mundane alcohol has has rather dramatic results. Made using the primal root in combination with ordinary grapes. 10-30 minutes after being drinking, the imbiber grows drowsy, and soon falls asleep. During this sleep, which lasts 2-5 hours and cannot be woken from prematurely, the imbiber undergoes a transformation of sorts.

If female, the drinker finds that any scars, blemishes, and imperfections they find unsightly vanish. They also gain a slight improvement to their natural dexterity and charisma. This effect is permanent.

If male, the drinker becomes biologically female. This transformation lasts 2-5 weeks, and has a 20% chance of leaving the drinker in a permanent intersex state afterwards.

If one drinks more than one dose within a twelve month period, there is a 50% chance of overdosing. In males, the overdose simply makes the gender change permanent. In females, however. Their skin takes on the texture and appearance of smooth bark, their hair is replaced by thin, leafy branches, and their life force is bound to the nearest tree. So long as the tree lives, they will return to life within the week should they die, but will begin to sicken and die should they travel more than a mile from the tree. Additional doses of dryad's wine negate this dependency for one week.

Elixir of Photosynthesis:

A somewhat more complex concoction that should only be made by actual alchemists, upon ingesting this elixir, the imbiber will fall unconscious for 20-60 minutes while their metabolism radically alters. Their skin turns a deep green, their hair becomes leaves, and they gain the ability to photosynthesize. Their food requirements are reduced to 5% of their previous needs, but must spend at least six hours a day in indirect sunlight. Direct, intense sunlight cuts this need in half. Water needs are not negated. The drinker is cured of any pollen allergy they may suffer from.

Potion of Sprouting:

This simpler potion was originally used by scouts and spies, but fell out of favor upon an unfortunate side-effect being discovered. Upon drinking this, the drinker gains the ability to transform into a large but otherwise mundane shrub and back at will, their equipment melding with them. They retain this ability for an impressive 2-20 days. Due to reasons alchemists have still not discovered, 10% of these potions instead force the imbiber to transform as soon as they're standing upon soil, and prevent them from returning to normal until the potion's effect expires. While in shrub form, the user is vaguely aware of sights and sounds within thirty feet.