Confusion Bomb Will DC

Question

I am playing a level 10 alchemist with the confusion bomb discovery, and the saving throw against it is a will throw as it affects the target with confusion spell. So I went to see what the DC of the throw is, and it says:

A saving throw against your spell has a DC of 10 + the level of the spell + your bonus for the relevant ability (Intelligence for a wizard, Charisma for a bard, paladin, or sorcerer, or Wisdom for a cleric, druid, or ranger). A spell's level can vary depending on your class. Always use the spell level applicable to your class.

But they don't say anything about alchemist. I believe it would be intelligence, as I use it for pretty much everything: bombs per day, damage, craft (alchemy), etc. What is the relevant ability for alchemist?

Answer 1

An Alchemist throwing a Confusion Bomb is not the same as a spellcaster actually casting confusion on a target. It's just that the effect is the same. Instead, like every Alchemist Discovery, a confusion bomb is a Supernatural (Su) ability. Therefore, Spell Save DCs do not apply here. The DC is instead given in the description of the Discovery Class Feature:

Discovery (Su)

[...] The DC of any saving throw called for by a discovery is equal to 10 + 1/2 the alchemist's level + the alchemist's Intelligence modifier.

This follows the general "class feature save DC" rule that is applied to the class features of many classes. In your example, the DC would be 15 + your Intelligence modifier.

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Do note that your extracts do follow the general rule of 10+Spell level+Spellcasting Modifier, as detailed in the Alchemy class feature. Your spellcasting modifier in this case is Intelligence, as you had thought. The key difference is that extracts always behave like spells, while discoveries might not.