Albert is the Plague Doctor, and he is the reason you can do alchemy at all. The node that opens the whole branch costs nothing, has no prerequisite on the tree, and asks only that he thinks well enough of you.
He is also the most present character in the game. He finds the Factory for you, he walks you into the writing basement, and the hardest single request anyone makes of you is his.
Ten reputation opens all of alchemy
This is the one worth knowing early, because it is invisible on the tree. The starting alchemy node has no sphere cost whatsoever and exactly one parent, which is a reputation lock asking for ten with Albert.
Buying it hands over the 
Dream Dust formula and the blueprints for both 
Laboratory I and the Flask shelf, and Alchemy Distillation and Battle Potions I sit directly behind it. Until he likes you, none of that exists.
Reputation moves in flat tens, so a single quest that pays Albert is the entire price of the alchemy branch. He is the cheapest reputation gate in the game by a distance, and the one with the largest thing behind it.
The zombie with eight red skulls
At some point he asks for a good zombie, one with eight red skulls, to place in a particular spot in his lab. It reads as a fetch quest and it is not one.
Albert, why are you so obsessed with turning a zombie back into a human?
You really want to know? Alright then… We don’t get many visitors here.
This is Aleksta. My sister.
What’s the point of all this knowledge… if I can’t even save my Aleksta?
Albert, on what the zombie is for
Eight red skulls is a real ask, because red skulls are the sum of the six organs inside the body and most arrive nowhere near it. The collar does not add any: it sets the ceiling and nothing more. Improving the organs is the answer, and an 
Organ Improver (Red Skull) at the 
Formulation Bench takes one organ to the best red version of its type.
The cough, and why it becomes urgent
His cough is in every scene he is in, and late on it turns into a questline. What changes is not the illness but his reason for minding.
No… I don’t have a plan. But for the first time, I want to live. cough-cough
I used to envy the healthy and the strong… But now I’d settle for breathing without pain.
Linda… I think she cares about me. And I want to be there for her.
Albert, on finding a reason
How to raise it
Ten at a time, from fourteen quests, and he has no shop at any tier. His chain runs from the Abandoned Tower early on to the Dockside Club at the end of the game.
| The powder | Ask him in the Abandoned Tower how the powder is made |
| Sweet Dreams | Bring the Dream Dust to the Abandoned Tower |
| Into the lab | Follow him through the hatch in the Alchemy Lab |
| The varnish | Bring wood varnish for the violin |
| Linda visits | Ask whether Linda can come and see him |
| His sister | Bring a zombie with eight red skulls |
| Coughing it Up! | Speak to him about his health |
| Heal the Healer | Bring him the remedy once you have it |
| Bottles | Bring Bottles to the Dockside Club |
| Lust and Envy | Ask him and Linda to help restore the portal |
Questions about Albert the Plague Doctor
How do you unlock alchemy in Graveyard Keeper 2?
Reach 10 reputation with Albert. The starting alchemy node costs no spheres at all and its only prerequisite is that reputation lock, and it is what grants the Dream Dust formula and the blueprints for Laboratory I and the Flask shelf.
Where is the Plague Doctor?
The Abandoned Tower early on, then his lab in the dungeon under your house, and the Dockside Club by the end of the game.
What does Albert want a zombie with 8 red skulls for?
His sister Aleksta. He is trying to turn a zombie back into a human, and the quest is the point where he tells you why. It is the emotional center of his line rather than an errand.
How do I get a zombie to 8 red skulls?
Not with a collar, which only raises the ceiling. Red skulls are the sum of the six organs in the body and each tops out at three, so improve the organs: an Organ Improver (Red Skull) at the Formulation Bench returns the best red version of whichever organ you feed it.
Does Albert sell anything?
No. He has no shop at any tier, so everything he is worth comes through his quests and the reputation they pay.
More People
The Crossroads Nun. Every corpse, and the graveyard and church lines.Agatha the Nun
Head of the guards. Planks, bronze gear, and the graveyard as morale.Herbert
The workshop foreman, and three technology locks.Jack
Twenty seven formulas already mixed, the only Philosopher Stone, and every embalming fluid.The Alchemist
The rune shop, and the three that cost nothing to unlock.The Apothecary
Quests for the Astrologer.The Astrologer
