Author Topic: An exercise in potions  (Read 1944 times)

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Drammor

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An exercise in potions
« on: October 20, 2011, 02:02:49 PM »
I've got a list of potion descriptions which has been sitting in my hard drive for quite some time. These are just the descriptions, though, and not their effects. I'd like to share these potions with you, and get your opinions on both the descriptions and the potions themselves. Not only their aesthetic values, but also the effect you think each potion should have, based on its description. These descriptions were made in part by using material taken from random potion generators, but were spruced up and polished more than a bit by my own efforts.

The more people that could participate here, the better, as I'm very interested in seeing which potions people tend to agree about, and which ones people tend to disagree about. As it's getting pretty late in the evening (9 am) and I should be getting to bed soon, I'm just going to skip to the potions. If you have any questions, I'd be more than happy to answer them... when next I am awake.

...potions! Also, I numbered them for convenience. The numbers are nothing but markers for which is which.

1. A tiny, three-footed iron cauldron with a latched-on iron lid. It is filled with a steaming, murky scarlet liquid the consistency of a thin syrup. It smells and tastes like cream and lime.

2. A cut crystal bottle in the shape of a bulbous ink well, filled with a smoking, opaque cerulean liquid as thick as cream. It smells like caramel, but has no taste.

3. A very small glass bottle with a steel and rubber stopper. It is filled with swirling green liquid, which turns luminous white and fizzes wildly when exposed to the air, and back to green and calm when not. It smells like milk, but tastes like almonds.

4. A clear crystal bottle with silver filigree, filled with a pearlescent black elixir that swirls and moves on its own. It smells like vanilla, and tastes like lemon.

5. A pear-shaped glass decanter with nickel accents. It is half filled with a translucent, oily amethyst elixir with silvery accretions on the bottom. It smells like tea, but tastes like mead.

6. A thin, urn-shaped steel bottle with a round cork stopper on a thin chain. It is filled with a glowing, clear orange potion the consistency of warm honey. It smells like copper, and tastes like fire roasted pheasant.

7. A shallow, off white ceramic jar with a rubber-fitted glass lid. It is filled with a thick amber liquid which constantly boils with gold bubbles. It smells like freshly baked bread, but tastes like walnuts.

8. A thick, bright green leaf that has been folded and sewn into the shape of a pitcher the size of a chicken's egg. Its lid is another leaf which must be torn off its top. It is filled with a brightly glowing pink liquid. It smells like cherries and vanilla, but tastes like rum.

9. A teardrop shaped bottle braided from three crystal decanters, with a single brass stopper that resembles a section of honeycomb. Each is filled with a translucent, red nectar that glimmers when it moves. It smells like raspberries, but tastes like white wine.

10. A cut crystal flask braced in copper, with a cork lid on a hinge. It is filled with a snowy white liquid with flecks of silver in it. It smells like oak wood, and tastes like subtly spiced tea.

11. A long necked sky blue bottle wrapped in a fitted net of fine platinum chain. It is filled with a metallic violet potion that sparkles brightly, but only in moonlight. It has a very faint smell of honeysuckle, but tastes like caramel and oranges.

12. A thick glass bottle with a bulbous body and a short neck. A ceramic cap is sealed to its mouth with wax, and it is bound in brown hempen cords that have been worn smooth. It is filled with a slimy, bright green liquid that clear snakes seem to writhe and swim through. It smells like roses, but tastes like salt water. When quaffed, it feels like drinking thick, slippery cords.

13. A polished copper bottle in the shape of an apple, with a crystal window on one side. It is filled with a bright golden liquid which ruby flashes sometimes appear inside. It smells like smoked hickory wood, but tastes like coffee.

14. A small, simple glass vial with a stopper shaped like a toadstool cap. It is filled with a thick, frothy gray tonic with blue sparkles. It has no smell, but tastes like white flour.

15. A crystallized red bellflower with closed petals, the size of a robin's egg. It is filled with a swirling white nectar that sometimes causes the flower to roll around. It smells like chocolate, and tastes like cream.

16. A tiny silver cauldron with a crystal lid that twists on with a three-quarters turn. It is filled with a bubbling, pulsing indigo elixir that causes the cauldron to quietly ring with a musical tone. It smells like licorice, but tastes like rose tea.

17. A small, blocky red porcelain bottle with a wide mouth and a solid gold stopper. It is filled with an oily black tonic with the viscosity of a thin syrup, which vibrates constantly. It smells like dirt after a short rainstorm and tastes like cinnamon. It feels like burning embers when quaffed, but not when tasted.

18. A crystallized white strawberry tree flower with closed petals. It is filled with a boiling yellow liquid that causes the flower to jump around slightly.  It smells like sulfur and black pepper, but tastes like vanilla and honey.

19. A small, thick black porcelain carafe with a long, tabular silver stopper. It is filled with perfectly clear grains of a crystallized liquid, which move like water. It smells like citrus, and tastes like pure alcohol.

20. A tall, thick crystal ewer braced in gold with copper chains and a hammered iron lid on a hinge. It is filled with a murky blue potion with violet bubbles, the thickness of buttermilk. It smells like spice and lemon, but has no taste. When quaffed, it evokes strong feelings of despair, regret and shame.

21. A five-inch tall gray ceramic amphora decorated with swirling blue lines. It is filled with a reflective silvery potion as thick as buttermilk, which constantly boils with black bubbles. It smells like the chilled air after a snowstorm, and tastes like cranberries. When quaffed or tasted, it feels very cold.

22. A thick, four-inch tall stirrup jar cut from translucent black crystal. It is less than half filled with a glowing, watery red and orange potion, with steam that swirls and moves like a flickering body of fire. It smells like cinnamon and lime, but tastes and feels like carbonated cream.

23. A three-inch tall teardrop shaped bottle carved from bone. It is decorated with angular black patterns and a has a ground stone stopper. It is filled with a clear liquid as thick as salt water, which emits a pure blue light. It tastes like clean snow, and has no smell.

24. A seven-inch tall, stocky glass bottle of crystal quality, with a silver lid that twists on with two full turns. It is filled to the neck with a murky pink elixir, with deep black accretions that have collected on the sides, but not the bottom, of the bottle. It smells like almond, and tastes like lemon.

25. A nine-inch long white and gray drinking horn with a three-quarters twist. It is clad with copper bands and has a steel cap that can be removed with one and a half turns. It is filled with a deep indigo liquid as thick as crude oil, that sparkles with viridian color. It smells like spices and red wine, but tastes like earwax.

veekie

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Re: An exercise in potions
« Reply #1 on: October 21, 2011, 11:12:57 AM »
9 seems like one of the stronger Cures of some sort

12 feels like Water Breathing.

13, Fire Shield?

Quite hard to tell really.
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