Quote from: mcbobbo;755126http://m.timesofindia.com/city/hyderabad/Cure-all-cow-urine-finds-many-takers/articleshow/19421684.cms

...and that's with presumed desirable properties.   Let alone obvious magical ones.

Are you suggesting that drinking cow urine isn't absurd, just because some people do it?  People do absurd things all the time, doesn't make them less absurd.

Quote from: Brander;755195Are you suggesting that drinking cow urine isn't absurd, just because some people do it?  People do absurd things all the time, doesn't make them less absurd.

I'm suggesting that people would jump at the opportunity to drink magic.  Or really, I'm stating it outright.

Quote from: Brander;755195Are you suggesting that drinking cow urine isn't absurd, just because some people do it?  People do absurd things all the time, doesn't make them less absurd.

If cow urine could make me fly, I would give it a shot.

Quote from: mcbobbo;755199I'm suggesting that people would jump at the opportunity to drink magic.  Or really, I'm stating it outright.

Quote from: Old One Eye;755211If cow urine could make me fly, I would give it a shot.

It might also cause you to die a horrible death, since we are discussing sipping some random liquid found in a dungeon (referenced in my original IIRC).  That's the absurd part here.  You don't actually know if you are sipping magic or death.  Comparing it to drinking cow urine from someone you trust isn't really comparable, even if that is absurd as well.  I never suggested that potions themselves are absurd, it's the sipping random shit (possibly literally) in a dungeon (or from some random strangers bag).

Quote from: Old One Eye;755211If cow urine could make me fly, I would give it a shot.

Nice.

It also really depends on the tone of the setting too. In my Amherth or Ravenloft campaign PCs wouldn't dare take sips but in my Mystara or Greyhawk game they would.

Back in the day, I don't recall doing anything special with potion descriptions. Nowadays, post-Nethack, I would do the randomized assignment of descriptors to effects, one sip causes fleeting effect, although it hasn't actually come up yet when I run games. No potions found, yet.

Quote from: Brander;755221It might also cause you to die a horrible death, since we are discussing sipping some random liquid found in a dungeon (referenced in my original IIRC).  That's the absurd part here.  You don't actually know if you are sipping magic or death.  Comparing it to drinking cow urine from someone you trust isn't really comparable, even if that is absurd as well.  I never suggested that potions themselves are absurd, it's the sipping random shit (possibly literally) in a dungeon (or from some random strangers bag).

I think the point being made is that all magic items, and many dungeon features, are equally randomly deadly or malignant. If you take out all dungeon tricks and traps, monsters with uknown "surprise" powers, and magic items, you may as well play Taverns and Turtles instead.

But what I don't get is why your monsters wouldn't have potions because you think a PC behavior is absurd. Does your evil sorcerer say to himself "if my enemies kill me, they might sip any potions in my possession and suffer ill effect! I'd better not have any potions, then!" Surely, just making potions easily identifiable without drinking would make more sense...

I do the one-second effect from a sip, as a general rule.

However, I also include one potion in every dungeon that I design that I as the GM have no idea what it does, rolling a random potion effect the first time it's drunk.

I would think that unlabeled potion vials found in an enemy's backpack are probably safe to use.  They're being carried for a reason, and said enemy probably knew what they were.  There's a possibility that it is poison, sure,  but it's nearly certain that the potion isn't just an inert vile fluid.

Quote from: mcbobbo;755286I would think that unlabeled potion vials found in an enemy's backpack are probably safe to use.  They're being carried for a reason, and said enemy probably knew what they were.  There's a possibility that it is poison, sure,  but it's nearly certain that the potion isn't just an inert vile fluid.

Pray those vials aren't from the pack of one of my PCs... enjoy your carrion crawler ichor.

Quote from: talysman;755279I think the point being made is that all magic items, and many dungeon features, are equally randomly deadly or malignant. If you take out all dungeon tricks and traps, monsters with uknown "surprise" powers, and magic items, you may as well play Taverns and Turtles instead.

There's endless rooms full of excluded middle between what I said and "take out all dungeon tricks and traps..."  It's one thing to pick up funky looking stick or dagger (or whatever else).  It's a WHOLE nother world of stupid to stick it in a bodily orifice...

Quote from: talysman;755279But what I don't get is why your monsters wouldn't have potions because you think a PC behavior is absurd. Does your evil sorcerer say to himself "if my enemies kill me, they might sip any potions in my possession and suffer ill effect! I'd better not have any potions, then!" Surely, just making potions easily identifiable without drinking would make more sense...

It's entirely possible they did have potions,and all you find are the empty vials after they used them.  I didn't/don't object to their existence, I object to the whole idea that any idiot would taste them while in the dungeon after slaying their owner (or finding it in some dusty chest).  If you come across "Mad Jack's Motivating Liquid" and you have indeed been a customer of Mad Jack, then maybe it might be understandable to give it a sniff and trust that it is indeed a potion of speed.  But that's because you trust Mad Jack's line of potions. (i.e. trusted alchemist, from my original post).  Of course, they may have already used their potion of speed and used the vial to gather some Fire Beetle spittle to sell to Mad Jack too.  It's the potion tasting game I mainly object to. Please leave potion identification to the professionals.

Quote from: mcbobbo;754820I don't remember where I picked this up,  but when I hand out potions I always only describe what you can see and/or smell.  Bubbly red potion.  Smokey blue, etc.  

Could you have picked this up from Nethack/Hack/Roguelike games?

So I was watching Penny Dreadful the other day (very good by the way) Dorian and Vanessa are walking though a conservatory (looked like the orchid house at Kew but may have been crystal palace).
Dorian shows Vanessa a plan and asks her to inhale its scent. She does and describes the fantastic aroma the fact it smells so good it makes you want to swallow the whole thing (she was far more poetic).
He then pointed out it was Deadly nightshade.

Reminded me of potions.