Complete Guide to Dungeons and Dragons Narcotics

[@joshuakirkham9593]

I am far more excited by this video then I should be. My players are going to love some of this lore.

[@APWildWoods]

As a huge fan of Ravenloft, I gotta throw it out there. Dream Pastries are absolutely narcotics. Plus there's already a very basic addiction mechanic in the Curse of Strahd.

[@lexington476]

This was a cool video. How about a video on non-magical healing or medication?

[@theshockmaster3781]

There is also Traveler's Dust in the Forgotten Realms which when used would heighten one's perception while also just giving a sense of euphoria. It is highly addictive and prolonged use would lead to death. Those who use the dust were said to walk "the crimson road" as their eyes turned red from the dust and users would describe seeing a blood red road when the effects of the drug wore off with the end of the road being a drop to what seems to be the abyss.

[@Wintermute909]

I really, really loved the novel trilogy "The Abolethic Sovereignty" which had a warlock addicted to the crimson road and he used his pact to an ancient arch-fey to stave off the final stages of his addiction. He would have died years earlier otherwise. Great novels too!

[@mikewaterfield3599]

By the gods! I thought I knew the drugs of the Forgotten Realms. I frequently worked drug dealing into the criminal underground along with prostitution and thievery rings. Hell in one campaign a large package of recovered devil weed became the “quest item” to get a rogues help. There are four times the drugs I thought there were, and I’ve still got the original “Book of Vile Darkness”.

[@Paul-nn9oj]

AJ Pickett is my most highly recommended D&D Lore Expert🏆

[@Willynelsonthe69th]

this should be put up on the wiki. also ty for doing this.

[@D--FENS]

These are narrative descriptions accompanying drinks served in the Smoldering Corpse Bar, in Sigil (from Planescape: Torment). Elemental Water [The barkeep] moves back to a keg on the wall and turns the spigot. The clearest water you have ever seen pours from the nozzle into the glass he holds underneath it. He sets it down in front of you, and you take a deep draught. It is the purest thing you have ever tasted, a coldness inherent to the water itself, a feeling of air that passes over your tongue and into your stomach, where its coolness calms even the raging of your passions for a moment. "From the heart of the Elemental Plane of Water." Barkis snorts. "Any other water you ever drink's going to taste dirty by comparison." Arborean Firewine & Fireseeds [The barkeep] passes you a glass of deepest red wine and a handful of brightly-colored seeds. "Stick the seeds in your mouth," he advises, "and take a swig of the wine. Don't be surprised when the seeds catch fire; they won't do you any harm. It's a taste like no other." He's right. When you pop a seed into your mouth, it mingles with your saliva and bursts into a tiny flame. You quench it with a swallow of firewine, and the taste is indescribable. Barkis smiles. "You want another?" Curst Heartwine [Curst is the gate town to Carceri] [The barkeep] passes you a glass of Curst's famous heartwine. The bouquet is breathtaking, and the wine itself is full-bodied and fruity. The aftertaste leaves nothing to be desired. "Made from real razorvine, that is. Wish I knew the secret." The barkeeper nods at the empty glass. "You want another?" Baatorian whiskey [The barkeep] places a shot of some steaming substance that looks like boiling urine in front of you. The fumes that waft your way, however, are exquisitely tempting. The taste, though nearly unbearably hot, is as smoky as the scent - the feel of the liquor burning its way to your gut is nearly painful, yet even this pain is sweet. The barkeep's eyes widen. "Still standing? Most folks can't even make it halfway through the first shot."

[@D--FENS]

Razorvine is a plant that is... well, exactly what it sounds like. It is most closely associated with Sigil, though it can be found elsewhere in the Outlands and the Lower Planes. It is a particularly tenacious weed, with a single transplanted cutting capable of overtaking a town in weeks. In Sigil, the dabus keep it in check.

[@NoOne-nm4ng]

Gotta say I think these kind of complete guide videos are some of my favorites. Loved the one you did on metals and loved this one just the same.

[@mediaaddict3997]

Where can i get a pipe like the one from the thumb nail. I can't be the only one who's wondering ?!

[@JAY-gl5xd]

26:49 Sannish Kinda glossed over that one. In the first Dungeons and Dragons movie, with Jeremy Irons, Marlon Wayons and other, Sannish wasn't mentioned specifically but was eluded to. One of the villains had blue stained lips.

[@AJPickett]

He had bigger problems than a Sannish addiction, that's for sure.

[@TheHornedKing]

All right! Time to chase a different kind of dragon.

[@Swolfman123]

Ah the classic, D&D&D (Dungeons and Dragons and Drugs)

[@TheCraigWilson]

A few specifically from Eberron: Dreamlily is an iridescent psionically active liquid from Sarlona. Absentia allows the user to experience the world through another’s senses. And Dragon’s Blood enhances innate magical abilities of Dragonmarks and sorcerers. See Sharn: City of Towers from 3.5 for more info.

[@kennek1976]

one campaign my party was on the Half/elf druid/rouge kept a fairy dragon on hand for hand fixes

[@AJPickett]

I hope that dragon ate all your treats and more than a few gemstones.

[@kylienielsen6975]

I don't know if "hand fixes" was the best wording

[@VaxistheWindow]

AJ your timing could not have been more perfect. At almost the exact time you released this video we started playing Eve of Ruin with my new character, a western inspired cardslinging wizard from Sigil who smokes a bunch of different drugs from across the planes! I had to make some stuff up but now I can find some legit stuff! Incredible

[@AJPickett]

Happy to be of service

[@chadlynch1551]

A thieves guild whose main source of income is trading in narcotics makes a lot more sense than one that makes it money via burglary, spying, and assassination. There's only so many people worth robbing in a given area, and you can only rob people so many times before the law comes down on you. There's only so many people who are willing to pay for information and murder. But addictive drugs? Oh man, not only is that a sustainable business model, it's so profitable and easy that any organization that is successful at it can influence politics, the law, buy politicians and religious figures, etc. The whole community will rise against a serial thief, brigand, or killers. But get enough people using your drugs, and suddenly your criminal activity doesn't seem so threatening, and in fact many will quietly look the other way since so many either secretly use or benefit from the trade somehow. If you bring narcotics into the game, and you know damned well eventually the party will end up involved in making, selling, or moving the stuff.

[@ajmeyers5661]

@chadlynch1551 - imo this business model has downsides to it that are perhaps worse than traditional thievery. The black market that comes with thief activity helps a community thrive in a lot of ways. Taken too far tho and the cops will have to get involved, as you said. The illegal drugs trade likewise can have economic benefit. However, go too far, get the whole community hooked, and watch the economy crumble...and your customer's ability to pay along with it. I like to see both in a good criminal campaign

[@PhoKingHell]

Phenomenal. One of my players is a super straight laced dude who never does any drugs but in DnD he loves to be the character who's constantly partying and doing fantasy durgz and now I can bring in some more stuff for the campaign.

[@karljeffries4848]

“Devilweed” is what we call the good stuff around these parts.

[@just_a_tophat5759]

You mean... The Skunk

[@karljeffries4848]

@@just_a_tophat5759 If it doesn’t have the infernal reek of sulphur it ain’t the good stuff.

[@razzlebazzle420]

The devils lettuce

[@trajanfidelis1532]

Nothing beats smoking some green and watching an AJ video ;)

[@Shnoidz]

'this azuldust aint shit.' and then i woke up in luskan 7 days later, on trial for crimes i absolutely did commit.

[@MoonGoblin]

So the Bigwig Mushroom is just the Super Mushroom from Mario 😂

[@haydenbsiegel]

Nice timing! My party, "Big Pharma", and I just finished Out of the Abyss. I played a Variant Human Artificer subclassed as an Alchemist named Heydan Seegil with the Far Traveler background because he comes from Maztica. The campaign started with Lost Mines of Phandelvin and I had no armor or weapons but because I had proficiency (or would by level 4) with Alchemist Supplies, Brewer's Supplies, Glassblowing Tools, Herbalism Kit, and Poisoner Kit allowing me to make all things Alchemical and I had a Pipe of Smoke Monsters and an Awakened Shrub flavored as a Ginyak (D&D weed) bush. I was just a traveling apothecary who decided he was bored in the caravan and joined the party on a whim. I never picked up armor even when we transfered into Out of the Abyss so my AC was always a 10 and I was never downed once. I did pick up a +3 Hand Croswbow and for whatever reason I was sort of the front liner. I know it's weird but I would run in and shoot some poisoned bolts and then Disengage burning a turn while hopped up on drugs and potions high as Mt Celestial. Oh, and when we went into the Underdark.. that is when I got to start experimenting. I brewed a cocktail of: a philter of love to charm it, a potion enhanced attribute to make it intelligent enough to speak, a potion of tongues so it would know a language, and a potion of telepathy so it could communicate then doused a Gelatinous Cube with it convincing it to spawn part of itself into a bottle. We then raised a baby Ooze who became a neutral adventurer fighting its natural evil impulses. The next experiment I stole Themberchaud's Red Dragon egg and incubated it. Since Dragon eggs must be hatched near a dragon we took the egg to Themberchaud but before I brewed a cauldron of both a sleeping and invisibility potions then we doused Themberchaud with it so they were asleep but invisibile. Thus when the egg hatched it saw only me imprinting me as it's parent. Afterwards we kept the dragon on a regiment of calming psychotropic drugs and therapy to curb its inherent violent nature as a red dragon. Finally, I incubated a Purple Worm egg and based it in Growth Potion so it came out twice the size of a normal one. We tagged it too so later on we can kill it, gut it, and collect all the rare components it mined up for us. Learned it from the Druegar! In our last session of the campaign this past weekend we killed the Demon Lord in three rounds. I had a flying carpet and so I fly above it and drained a cask of oil on it which is 53lbs according to the DMG. Then tossed Alchemist Fire down igniting it dealing 1d4+265 fire damage which was resisted for 133 (our DM rounded) because the demon occupied the entire 20ft circle the oil pooled into and one flask is 1 lb so 53lb cask has the power of 53 flasks of oil. Idk it was awesome and we had enough fun already. So, I blew up a demon. And with that I retired to operating Big Pharma pushing drugs and curatives around the Realms from my headquarters in Menzoberranzan. Oh, I should have mentioned I married into the Drow nobility and I am a Harper too.

[@Vampster19CockedD20]

You should look into grim hallows plague doctor wizard. You can use your spell slots and make the spells into potions if certain things are met like target only one creature. They have an awesome fighter called the living crucible that is pretty close to that as well and a cool poison ranger too. I just got the books so I'm kinda tweeking out over them.

[@haydenbsiegel]

@@Vampster19CockedD20 That sounds pretty cool. I want to get Grim too.

[@dominictaylor6759]

YES PLZ !! Part 2!?!

[@shakescan]

I remember Lotus Powder from the original Conan books (Robert E Howard) Stygian Wizards were very strange. ❤

[@StrangeCreed]

Another fun thing about Luhix is one of the sample villains in the Book of Vile Darkness is a blue dragon who has become possessed by a demon. If that weren't bad enough, said demon used its time as the dominant personality to get the dragon physically dependent on the drug, meaning the fiend has a potent tool of control in the form of addiction and the pain of withdrawal, since the dragon's fix is delivered by a quasit who serves the possessing demon. I've considered doing something like this in a game, since it comes across as a truly wicked means of making possession so much worse.

[@codychavez9839]

Dude I’ve been waiting for this for ages!

[@LivelyGhost42]

Thank you for this!! I had made up weir-root for one of my games years ago. It damaged perception scores while greatly enhancing nature and survival skills. It was D&D psilocybin haha

[@Pyre]

"Milk them for their infamous death cheese." AJ sneaking in extra lore tidbits just, as you do. I'm running a soace-age game currently. One of the NPCs is a doctor. This video spibs out a whole bunch of thibgs a developed pharmaceutical industry would know and use. I am, thus, delighted.

[@Pyre]

Hecking, space* and spins* and things*.

[@euseicoisas_]

THE BEST. THE MOST COMPLETE. THIS CHANNEL IS AWESOME!!!!

[@AJPickett]

You're awesome.

[@AngelusAnsell]

I've been chomping at the bit for this video for a long time, and it's everything I'd hoped for. I for one cast my vote in favor of the homebrew drug video.

[@HeavyTopspin]

Great video! A shame you missed my favorite, Agony a.k.a. liquid pain, distilled via various forms of torture. Just the concept of evil outsiders willingly stunning themselves at the time of ingestion in exchange for an hour-long Charisma boost and a few hours of "intense pleasure".

[@AJPickett]

I considered it

[@Fredrickwolfxiii]

I had a necromancer that used it in a drinks as a minor addictive substance

[@newtonjay72]

Adding the Exhaustion Levels (revised) to my hippy commune, as I'm sure narcotics will be present

[@chriscalvin5083]

Your opening was hilarious hopefully youtube leaves you alone

[@AJPickett]

So far so good thanks Chris

[@chriscalvin5083]

​@AJPickett I'm glad very useful for a writing source

[@DeanNatheos-eq3hl]

Outrageous I love this kind of lore it's excellent for these little things in an adventure that are extremely important when you put an adventure together thank you and please have a good day.😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊.

[@lucasolesen8194]

The video we all have been waiting for

[@windalfalatar333]

You are a master of suspense. You give me so much inspiration and so many adventure ideas as the gamemaster.

[@FEWFWEF-z2x]

hell yeah, this is the video i needed all this time

[@docbaker3333]

Ah yes one of the best thing to do in a DnD campaign. Getting High.

[@Vampster19CockedD20]

Narco homebrew please. This was an amazing video hope to see another.

[@Lngbrdninjamasta]

I already knew a lot about narcotics on the world of Exandria. But now i know about Torel's as well Thank u so much ❤

[@OuttaMyTree]

Honestly I was not expecting a topic like this, but this might be one of my favorite videos that this channel has produced!

[@zacharyweaver276]

35:32 I see what that owl is thinking

[@rjjone2853]

Thank you for all the hard work that goes into making all of your great content

[@TheScreamingMime]

I've been wanting to build a mutant bloodhunter/ battlesmith artificer build, and this is very helpful. Thanks 😀

[@tomkerruish2982]

Terran Brandy: Is that what Gargamel was trying to make out of smurfs? I mean, when he wasn't trying to eat them, or turn them into gold, or whatever.

[@AJPickett]

He had many sick and twisted schemes in mind for them, no doubt.

[@grimwaldsilverpipe4326]

This is one I have been waiting for, thank you AJ!

[@ericaltmann5711]

I remember a large list of various herbs and flowers from Role Master RpG. Many of those were psychotropics. Including some VERY magic mushrooms.

[@trajanfidelis1532]

27:15 always trust your local snake oil salesman

[@yosakie]

I love this channel. Let's go, A.J.P.!!!! Keep up the good work. I have been here since 2019-2020, and I am glad to come back again and again for a new video!🎉

[@lazaroslinley-simon]

oh hell yeah, my group is gonna love this

[@anathema1828]

OOOO knocking its out of the park with this one!

[@nightflame69]

Did anyone notice how nearly all of these are from older editions of dungeon/dragon magazine, which are out of print. Of mostly 3rd edition sourcebooks.. which are also out of print?

[@AJPickett]

I have many resources

[@normanfranklin4784]

Well this one got my attention and you a new subscriber for whatever comes next!

[@patrick5270]

I'm in love with this video cause now I actually have a reference for a poison master I wanna build

[@michaelmoes6378]

Aw, no Dream Mist? The one drug a character of mine has actually used. She went to the Astral Plane, took a dose, and went to work creating a custom spell: Ilucenya's Soul Seeker! A reflavoured version of 3.5's Discern Location.

[@basementmadetapes]

It’s there. Mordayn Vapor is the other name. 21:55ish mark

[@michaelmoes6378]

@@basementmadetapes Oh! Thanks dude!

[@Grimlore82]

I love Diablo 1 above and beyond all others. Love the soundtrack ;-) Another gem of a video 🤘

[@dereksutton2671]

Fantastic as always. Any chance you have a sheet with the effects and saves per edition for all of these? Thinking traps are about to get a lot more interesting.

[@AJPickett]

Such a sheet would best include stats for every edition of the game... however, I have more vids to make! Honestly, just get chatgpt to work out the stats for you, its good at that.

[@Kevin3826]

I have a player that likes to crush up astral diamonds into a dust and then snort it. It kills him every time, but he's at the level where death is only an inconvenience.

[@NanoMayTry]

Legendary substance? Imagine the herb provided by Willie Nelson is a legendary substance... no doubt some druid would have to start a circle simply to contain its power.

[@tsifj]

Great stuff for my corruption-filled teslapunk setting

[@zacharyweaver276]

19:08 sounds like a perfect poison for githyanki to use on mindflayers perhaps during interrogation to locate an elder brain or mindflayer community

[@AJPickett]

indeed!

[@fromachat]

Great video! I personally prefer when power has a cost and this should apply to consumables as well in my opinion

[@panchromatic242]

So cool. More please!

[@basementmadetapes]

Party was in a situation where we had a roc locked us down on a shoreline but my character had happened upon a stash of dream mist he got from a room we were investigating way back in like the early game. But w some checks my guy was able to mage hand the whole bag into the roc’s nostril. DM made a bunch of rolls for it, but it didn’t do so well. Fucked em up so bad he couldn’t fly and we were able to make the escape

[@AJPickett]

Smoked an 8 ton Roc like you had Tiger Blood.

[@just_a_tophat5759]

I need that pipe in the thumbnail

[@DEMONOFLOVEANDDEATH]

Bless the Mighty GlueStick

[@aaronnoisey3754]

Delightful creativity

[@leo9.online701]

Great stuff AJ!

[@johntheherbalistg8756]

"I don't know where you'd but this stuff..." he says, as if we're supposed to believe him. Stop that, and give me the hook up, man 😂

[@craigray7519]

(Grabs coffee to learn about D&D drugs)😅

[@Mr_GoR_]

This particular lore is more useful than I'd like to admit...

[@Mr_GoR_]

Also, I need to hear more about catoblepas death cheese 🧀

[@Kargoneth]

Pretty nifty ideas. On to your homebrew video!

[@Kargoneth]

Thanks, AJ!

[@vodkalord6941]

Our DM not onily imported stuff from fallout(jet,psycho,etc) but had a barbarian artificer( im aware of the oxymoron) refine jet into Super Jet. Long Story Short our Barbarian could now jump 1000 ft into the air and our warlock is the tank

[@geophrie8272]

I really wish consumables where more common in dnd. Something like how monster hunter uses consumables.

[@guttyjip]

In a strixhaven campaign one of the students peer pressured the players to try polymorphine.

[@erroneous6947]

Yes do the hobebrew drugs video. Please and thank you.

[@mmardh799]

thank you!

[@zacharyweaver276]

34:23 perfect drug for my friend's game with a large secret criminal organization gotta make sure they see this video

[@Hollowbarista]

Oh now I need to bring a cultist of ecstacy from world of darkness to Toril. Lol. Planeswalkers!

[@rouxe1]

Do you spice?

[@seanpinkey2188]

Time to give Khajit wears

[@TheAndrian463]

Great compilation so far. Have to dig out my magazines to look these up. Is there a compiled list with references anywhere?

[@AJPickett]

I shall update the timestamp list with the sources in a little while. Thanks for the feedback

[@TheAndrian463]

@@AJPickett Super! Thanks for the quick response.

[@AJPickett]

@@TheAndrian463 All done!

[@eisenwulfe]

Useful stuff! I personally would like to see some drugs from Eberron, as that is my setting of choice, but if that's not possible, no problem.

[@kevangrenda7746]

Powdered tobacco - snuff - kinda fits an Eberron vibe.

[@Kargoneth]

Alchemist's Mercy is useful!

[@DkKombo]

HELLLLLLL *YEAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH*

[@wesmaass4669]

Great video, and yes would love to see your homebrews.

[@brotherhoodz97]

I love that you gave me drugs AJ. Thanks buddy

[@lowesgameing2003]

What about white resin from the Yuan-ti.

[@derekstein6193]

Swiftsleep would be better than a gold mine in the real world. Multibillion-dollar business, easy.

[@MrJudeWanamaker]

About to get stoned and watched this whole thing

[@MrJudeWanamaker]

I have been sentenced to witchcraft in my hometown and am currently being stoned to death....

[@AJPickett]

Free exfoliation treatment, old school style.

[@tehfenor]

I ended up using Blinkmoth Serum from MTG and turned it into a drug in my homebrew world.

[@guuspot923]

An interrestingly spicy treat to be sure. Something something, we must cook? :D Edit : ... And I wasted the perfect opportunity to make a joke about sniffing glue, too.

[@coreycoffell6219]

Colts foot, and first flush hawthorn leaf?

[@FaerieDragonZook]

I hear you're looking for a good, fun, trippy time? You don't need all those expensive, hard to find, and potentially dangerous substances... no, you just need a good sense of humor and some apple pie.

[@itzybitzyspyder]

I was told there would be drugs...

[@nomas5082]

Everything in moderation, even moderation.

[@Reddotzebra]

Devilweed, heh heh heh...

[@DavidRybka]

Where is Luiren the halfling narcotic cheese?

[@AJPickett]

Luiren spring cheese? We try not to talk about it.

[@joshuazane3210]

I get that the point of creating fictional narcotics for a ttrpg is for them to have a mechanical risk/reward gamble, but as casual recreational drugs, these suck. Think I'd rather stick to weed and whiskey. 😄