An unlabelled potion is one of the best hooks in tabletop play — do the players drink it, sell it, or throw it at the goblins? This generator brews a complete potion with a name, appearance, smell, effect, and a quirky side effect to keep things interesting.
How it works
The tool holds separate lists for name adjectives and essences, colours, smells, effects, and side effects. Each brew picks one entry from every list at random and assembles a description. The independent choices mean thousands of unique potions, while the colour and smell give you ready-made sensory clues to describe before the players decide whether to drink.
The five parts of every potion
Name — built from an adjective and an essence noun (Glittering Potion of the Owl, Murky Essence of the Viper). The name is what would appear on a label, if there is one. Names intentionally use nature-inspired imagery rather than describing the effect directly, mirroring how herbalists and alchemists historically named preparations.
Colour — the first thing players perceive. Colour can hint at the ingredient or the school of magic if your game system has associations (red for healing, green for poison, blue for divination). The generator draws a colour independently, so occasionally you get unexpected combinations that create more interesting mystery — a healing potion that looks disturbingly black, for instance.
Smell — the second sensory clue. Players with good Arcana or Medicine skills might be able to narrow down the effect from smell alone. The smell list includes both appealing and unsettling options, so not every beneficial potion smells pleasant.
Effect — the mechanical outcome when consumed. Effects are written using familiar conventions (dice notation for healing, named conditions for buffs, familiar durations) so they slot into D&D 5e and similar systems without translation.
Side effect — the unexpected catch. Side effects are generally cosmetic or mildly inconvenient rather than campaign-breaking, so consuming an unidentified potion is a gamble worth taking. The tongue-turns-blue, voice-disappears-for-an-hour variety of side effect creates memorable moments without punishing curiosity too harshly.
Running potions at the table
- Read the colour and smell aloud the moment players acquire the potion. Then pause. Let them speculate.
- Ask for an Arcana or Medicine check (DC 12–15) before revealing the effect — players who succeed get a confident identification; players who fail can still guess based on the sensory clues.
- The side effect should not be revealed until after the potion is consumed. Describe it as a surprise, even if benign.
- When stocking a shop, price potions by effect tier: minor effects cost little, powerful effects cost significantly more. Unidentified potions should be priced below their identified value to reward adventurous buyers.
Example
Glittering Potion of the Owl — a deep crimson liquid smelling of fresh rain on hot stone that grants 60 feet of darkvision for one hour, though the drinker’s tongue turns blue for a day.
Generate five or six at once to stock an apothecary’s shelves with a plausible variety.