Crimson salt crystals

Main article: Animate Dead (730)

A bunch of crimson salt crystals are used to prepare dead bodies for animation. Crystals are hand-made alchemical compounds composed of three different ingredients mashed together, and then catalyzed. Crystals affect the duration of animates, increasing the initial duration from a flat 600 seconds without crystals to 1200 seconds + 15 seconds per level of troll blood when the crystal is spread on the body prior to animation. Thus, the higher level the troll, the better the crystal.

Note: Any massive troll king or grimswarm troll blood gathered (or crystals made) prior to the update made on 2016 Jan 12 (post #3449) will have the former maximum level 63 restriction still applied.

Usage

• SPREAD CRYSTALS ON {target}

Necessary Components

One time purchases at any local alchemist's shop:

• mortar and pestle

These are required in order to mix the other ingredients together. Mortars cost about 4,000 silver, pestles roughly 1,000. Pestles can be placed inside the mortar for storage. *Note: Mortars need to be CLEANed to go between alchemy tasks and making crystals.

• glass vial

At least one vial is required to collect liquids with and then dose them out from the flask, roughly 12,500 silver.

• small crystal flasks to store large quantities of each liquid

Two flasks are recommended, each flask holds 20 vials' worth of one type of liquid. The cost is approximately 1,000 silver each. Liquid can be transferred with a vial using the POUR (verb).

Collecting Ingredients

Obtaining each ingredient can be a time-consuming task, it is recommended that one obtain multiple amounts each time they venture forth. One of each of the following is required for each batch of crystals:

• a vial's measure of sea water

Appropriate water can be collected in parts of Mist Harbor, Kharam Dzu, River's Rest, Solhaven and Wehnimer's Landing. Holding an empty flask or a flask partially filled with salt water in one hand HARVEST WATER WITH FLASK. 20 doses of sea water can be collected at once when using a small crystal flask.

• a vial's measure of troll blood

Blood can be collected from the bleeding corpse of any troll. Holding an empty vial in one hand HARVEST BLOOD FROM {troll} WITH {vial}. Use crimson salt crystals to preserve the troll's corpse while collecting blood. This small sacrifice makes the task immensely easier.

Troll blood effectiveness no longer caps at massive troll kings (level 63).

• a moonflower

Moonflowers can be foraged only during night hours in certain parts of Icemule Trace and the center room of the garden in Veythorne Manor.

Creating the Crystals

• Place all three ingredients into the mortar. Be sure to use a single measure of each liquid, and a single moonflower.
• Holding the mortar in one hand, and pestle in the other, PUSH MOONFLOWER WITH PESTLE. If the mortar has been updated to work with alchemy, the GRIND verb should be used.
• GRIND MOONFLOWER then GRIND MASH twice then GRIND SOLUTION
• PUSH MASH WITH PESTLE repeatedly until all of the ingredients are blended to "homogenous uniformity."
• PREP 719/CAST AT SOLUTION.
• Wait until the "dark flames around your mortar die down." The heat has fully cooked the solution, evaporating the remaining liquid. GET CRYSTALS FROM MY MORTAR, and they're ready to use.
• If at any time you need to abort the solution, use TURN for old-style mortars and CLEAN for converted mortars to dump out the solution.

See Also

• Animate Dead (730)/saved posts
• Moonflower on Roomdata