Short answer
Alchemy is rune maths: study each ingredient at the Study Table to reveal its red, green and blue values, then combine ingredients in the Laboratory until they match the formula's exact totals. You also need Alchemy Flasks on the lab's flask shelf — one per result — or nothing can be crafted at all.
The Astrologer's Tower
View full-size image ↗Official promotional screenshot · © Lazy Bear Games / tinyBuild · Official media kit · Material credits
How alchemy works
Every alchemy formula asks for an exact amount of red, green and blue alchemical properties, shown as runes.
Your job is to pick ingredients whose runes add up to precisely that total. Too many of one colour fails just like too few.
Discovered formulas are recorded in the Folio, so check it before choosing ingredients.
Study first, or the ingredient won't appear
An item has to be studied at the Study Table before the lab will accept it. Carrying it is not enough.
One guide lists the study cost as 1 Faith point plus 1 Science point per item.
If an ingredient is missing from the laboratory's selection menu, this is almost always why.
The flask shelf
This is where most new players get stuck. Inside the lab's interface there is a small shelf for Alchemy Flasks.
Every crafted result uses one flask, and without flasks on that shelf the lab will not craft anything.
Fuel is also consumed alongside the ingredients, so keep both stocked before a long session.
Laboratory I vs Laboratory II
Laboratory I has two ingredient slots; Laboratory II has three.
A third slot matters more than it sounds: you can build complicated rune totals out of cheap single-colour ingredients instead of hunting one perfect item.
If a formula looks impossible with two slots, it is usually meant for Laboratory II.
The tech tree from the official media kit. Alchemy stations are unlocked through research like everything else; this is not a laboratory screen.
View full-size image ↗Official promotional screenshot · © Lazy Bear Games / tinyBuild · Official media kit · Material credits
Useful base ingredients
Community testing has mapped common ingredients to rune values: Clay is 1 red, Stone 2 red, Leaf 1 green, Berries 1 green and Flour 2 green.
Blood is 1 blue, Peat is 1 green plus 1 blue, and Salt gives 1 of each colour.
Fat, skins and the Alchemy Flask itself carry no runes, so they are useless as ingredients.
Always confirm the value in your own game after studying, as community tables are still being filled in.
The three alchemy stations
The Laboratory is the rune-matching station, where early quest items like Dreamdust are made — our zombie guide covers that quest step by step.
The Distillation Cube handles distilling, including Alcohol from wine, clay urns and fuel.
The Formulation Bench charges Hypno-devices and makes candles and incense for the church.
Reanimation Liquid, which every new zombie needs, is listed by Fextralife as Clay plus Alcohol plus Salt.
