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At the top of the board, Nihka wrote out a single word: Liniment.
Technically, a liniment was topically applied medication, usually a lotion or an oil. Generally speaking, it was meant for pain relief. However, given the flexibility of alchemical science a liniment could be designed for many different purposes.
She stepped back and tapped her lip. They might be able to win this on a technicality. Both products, hitherto, had been marketed almost entirely as orally ingested medicines. The fliers for competition specifically called for a “Tournament of Liniments.†If they called him out on this particular fact, they might be able to end the competition before it even began, before anyone had to drink the clearly addictive substance. The trick was in finding a way to turn literal engine grease into workable medicine.
Step one: identify what she was working with. There were at most two parts to any Bronco Grease formula. The base, airship lubricant, and the optional elemental shard thrown in for “premium†products.
In her workshop she had set up a blackboard for notes and cleared out a work bench. On the bench were three jars of Bronco Greaseâ„¢ and two of the vials of Horse Oilâ„¢ that Anstarra had purchased moons ago. There was a whole crate stashed away at the Dubious estate. Could probably sell it for a fortune on the black market, which is exactly why it was in Thanalan and not here in the Shroud.
Nihka frowned a little, eyeing the jar of grease. She didn’t want to deal with Horse Oil yet, so she’d investigate the grease first. Bronco Grease was just that, the grease used to lubricate a bronco style airship. It had no special additive save the elemental shard that Spahro had put into it. Otherwise, it was a plain oily substance derived from…
What was grease derived from?
Reverse engineering a substance was incredibly difficult, particularly once alchemy got involved. By definition, alchemy changed the very nature of the materials on which it was applied. Determining the method was possible, but not easy. However, something like grease would not require any major alchemical changes to create. Â Grease could be found in any book on chemistry and material sciences, and she kept a big library in her workshop for just such a purpose. After a little research, she determined: Grease was normally an emulsion of glycerin or soap into a mineral or vegetable oil.
Bronco Greaseâ„¢ was something of a misnomer, though. It was more of an oil, which is to say, it was more liquid, enough so that it would flow and pour. A grease, most often, would remain semi-solid until applied upon with some significant mechanical force. Of course, even though technically topical, her formula still had to be capable of being consumed.
Nihka picked up one of the jars, and began to pour measured amounts into smaller vials, the thick liquid struggling to dribble down into the slender glass cylinders. One by one, these samples were inserted into the massive furnace built into the floor.
Looking over a list of the boiling points for different carrier oils, Nihka adjusted her glasses and stepped around to the other side of the furnace. With a flip of a lever, the heat intensified. Inside, the grease remained unperterbed. High tolerance to heat; this was expected from something used to lubricate an engine and she was unsurprised.
heat tolerate high
slick
viscous
stick / spread (adhere surface)
While she waited for the results of the burn test, Nihka tilted a vial, watching the contents dribble out, thinking about how it coated the throat, or really anything it touched. As a carrier oil, it might serve well to soothe a sore throat if prepared properly. So, she wrote on the chalkboard under the heading requirements:
Edible
soothe throat
pain ease
Somehow, the grease/oil itself was technically non-toxic. It would make you sick and incredibly queasy, but you would survive and remain in relatively good health. She knew, she’d tried it. The taste was still on her tongue. She added another note to the board for requirements:
Flavor (optional)
She thought for a moment, with a grimace. The advertising for the product did leave her in a little bit of a bind. She added another note to the board, in hopes that she could have the eventual product match the claims:
energy
Water crystals to help dilute. Lightning crystals to split. Fire for heat. Earth to bind. Wind to cut. Ice to congeal. An old book from a far away land listed these qualities of the different crystals, and to find a way to turn engine grease into something she would need to use all of them.
She lay out the herbs and began to grind them down into a small powder, then pulled out a small vial of blood. Beastkin for verve, she let a single drop fall into the vial and resumed grinding until the lavender and mint formed a paste. Letting the mixture to sit and acclimate to itself, she turned to a new bowl and added a sprinkling of goat horn to the bottom, a carefully prepared powder she’d picked up while in Ul’dah.
Paired with an ice crystal and pure water, the goat horn would congeal into a semisolid glue. Water would help to dilute it to the proper consistency, something that would closely match the bronco grease. With the gel prepared, Nihka added a portion of the herbal paste and mixed them together, then placed that mixture into the furnace and removed the test sample of bronco grease to examine them. Five ticks later, while inspecting the grease, the goat glue combusted inside the furnace.
It took all night, and half of the day, before Nihka finally came up with a workable solution.
A full lightning cluster to split the oil, pulling out detergents to leave a pure oil. This was an incredibly difficult process: for each gallon of grease she started with she managed a pint of oil, several batches simply were ruined. Take a vial of beastkin blood and congeal with an ice crystal, then ground to a powder. Mix with the herbal blend and use earth aether to bind the active ingredients together. At this point they no longer resembled their original self, but a new substance, a dark powder that could be dissolved into pure water. Add just enough to make it the consistency of an egg yolk, then take the oil and paste and emulsify them together. It was like making mayonnaise, really.
The finished product looked the same as the grease she started with, and Nihka smiled as she dropped the crystal shards into the vials, sinking halfway into the fluid before floating. Bronco Grease, reformulated. She pulled one vial out and dabbed her finger into it, spreading a little onto her wrist. There was a little tingle, and she smiled. She was wary of trying it, but licked her finger anyway.
Topically, it would numb pain. When consumed, it would hopefully help to ease a sore throat. When consumed, it would be edible, and perhaps might…. help invigorate someone. When consumed, it would taste…. well, it would still taste awful, but there were limits to what you could manage in a week of work.
Her attention then turned to the Horse Oil. She wasn't going to drink it. Twelve above, she knew how bad an idea that could be, drinking a highly addictive substance… But, what did it do topically? Was it worth risking?
No.
Nihka packed up her supplies and the medicines, and headed out. It was already almost time for the competition; she wouldn’t let Verad lose. She also packed her plated gloves, just in case.
Technically, a liniment was topically applied medication, usually a lotion or an oil. Generally speaking, it was meant for pain relief. However, given the flexibility of alchemical science a liniment could be designed for many different purposes.
She stepped back and tapped her lip. They might be able to win this on a technicality. Both products, hitherto, had been marketed almost entirely as orally ingested medicines. The fliers for competition specifically called for a “Tournament of Liniments.†If they called him out on this particular fact, they might be able to end the competition before it even began, before anyone had to drink the clearly addictive substance. The trick was in finding a way to turn literal engine grease into workable medicine.
Step one: identify what she was working with. There were at most two parts to any Bronco Grease formula. The base, airship lubricant, and the optional elemental shard thrown in for “premium†products.
In her workshop she had set up a blackboard for notes and cleared out a work bench. On the bench were three jars of Bronco Greaseâ„¢ and two of the vials of Horse Oilâ„¢ that Anstarra had purchased moons ago. There was a whole crate stashed away at the Dubious estate. Could probably sell it for a fortune on the black market, which is exactly why it was in Thanalan and not here in the Shroud.
Nihka frowned a little, eyeing the jar of grease. She didn’t want to deal with Horse Oil yet, so she’d investigate the grease first. Bronco Grease was just that, the grease used to lubricate a bronco style airship. It had no special additive save the elemental shard that Spahro had put into it. Otherwise, it was a plain oily substance derived from…
What was grease derived from?
Reverse engineering a substance was incredibly difficult, particularly once alchemy got involved. By definition, alchemy changed the very nature of the materials on which it was applied. Determining the method was possible, but not easy. However, something like grease would not require any major alchemical changes to create. Â Grease could be found in any book on chemistry and material sciences, and she kept a big library in her workshop for just such a purpose. After a little research, she determined: Grease was normally an emulsion of glycerin or soap into a mineral or vegetable oil.
Bronco Greaseâ„¢ was something of a misnomer, though. It was more of an oil, which is to say, it was more liquid, enough so that it would flow and pour. A grease, most often, would remain semi-solid until applied upon with some significant mechanical force. Of course, even though technically topical, her formula still had to be capable of being consumed.
Nihka picked up one of the jars, and began to pour measured amounts into smaller vials, the thick liquid struggling to dribble down into the slender glass cylinders. One by one, these samples were inserted into the massive furnace built into the floor.
Looking over a list of the boiling points for different carrier oils, Nihka adjusted her glasses and stepped around to the other side of the furnace. With a flip of a lever, the heat intensified. Inside, the grease remained unperterbed. High tolerance to heat; this was expected from something used to lubricate an engine and she was unsurprised.
heat tolerate high
slick
viscous
stick / spread (adhere surface)
While she waited for the results of the burn test, Nihka tilted a vial, watching the contents dribble out, thinking about how it coated the throat, or really anything it touched. As a carrier oil, it might serve well to soothe a sore throat if prepared properly. So, she wrote on the chalkboard under the heading requirements:
Edible
soothe throat
pain ease
Somehow, the grease/oil itself was technically non-toxic. It would make you sick and incredibly queasy, but you would survive and remain in relatively good health. She knew, she’d tried it. The taste was still on her tongue. She added another note to the board for requirements:
Flavor (optional)
She thought for a moment, with a grimace. The advertising for the product did leave her in a little bit of a bind. She added another note to the board, in hopes that she could have the eventual product match the claims:
energy
Water crystals to help dilute. Lightning crystals to split. Fire for heat. Earth to bind. Wind to cut. Ice to congeal. An old book from a far away land listed these qualities of the different crystals, and to find a way to turn engine grease into something she would need to use all of them.
She lay out the herbs and began to grind them down into a small powder, then pulled out a small vial of blood. Beastkin for verve, she let a single drop fall into the vial and resumed grinding until the lavender and mint formed a paste. Letting the mixture to sit and acclimate to itself, she turned to a new bowl and added a sprinkling of goat horn to the bottom, a carefully prepared powder she’d picked up while in Ul’dah.
Paired with an ice crystal and pure water, the goat horn would congeal into a semisolid glue. Water would help to dilute it to the proper consistency, something that would closely match the bronco grease. With the gel prepared, Nihka added a portion of the herbal paste and mixed them together, then placed that mixture into the furnace and removed the test sample of bronco grease to examine them. Five ticks later, while inspecting the grease, the goat glue combusted inside the furnace.
It took all night, and half of the day, before Nihka finally came up with a workable solution.
A full lightning cluster to split the oil, pulling out detergents to leave a pure oil. This was an incredibly difficult process: for each gallon of grease she started with she managed a pint of oil, several batches simply were ruined. Take a vial of beastkin blood and congeal with an ice crystal, then ground to a powder. Mix with the herbal blend and use earth aether to bind the active ingredients together. At this point they no longer resembled their original self, but a new substance, a dark powder that could be dissolved into pure water. Add just enough to make it the consistency of an egg yolk, then take the oil and paste and emulsify them together. It was like making mayonnaise, really.
The finished product looked the same as the grease she started with, and Nihka smiled as she dropped the crystal shards into the vials, sinking halfway into the fluid before floating. Bronco Grease, reformulated. She pulled one vial out and dabbed her finger into it, spreading a little onto her wrist. There was a little tingle, and she smiled. She was wary of trying it, but licked her finger anyway.
Topically, it would numb pain. When consumed, it would hopefully help to ease a sore throat. When consumed, it would be edible, and perhaps might…. help invigorate someone. When consumed, it would taste…. well, it would still taste awful, but there were limits to what you could manage in a week of work.
Her attention then turned to the Horse Oil. She wasn't going to drink it. Twelve above, she knew how bad an idea that could be, drinking a highly addictive substance… But, what did it do topically? Was it worth risking?
No.
Nihka packed up her supplies and the medicines, and headed out. It was already almost time for the competition; she wouldn’t let Verad lose. She also packed her plated gloves, just in case.
![[Image: MBLxxyE.gif]](http://i.imgur.com/MBLxxyE.gif)
![[Image: 1qVSsTp.png]](http://i.imgur.com/1qVSsTp.png)
