Feedback Requested on Alchemy Updates

I would support Option Number 2 (Boss Reagents), but as noted it would need some address.

Currently, many bosses are limited in the number of drops; Dragons, for example, supply exactly enough hide that each player can make exactly one set of the armor of their choice - no more and no alternate equipment (such as multiple armor weights, or differently modded sets). The most straight-forwards solution I can see would be to have multiple bosses that drop the reagents or additional resource types specifically for rare mods; perhaps both the Black Dragon and the Toxolith drop 'Toxic Bile' that can be used for limited acid-related elixirs and mods, BlueDrag and Diver could drop 'Charged Ivory', etc. rather than the scales themselves being consumed. If we wanted to stick with the scales, it would warrant another dragon of each type, which might make the bosses less unique (or require more teirs. Anyone wanna fight a pair of mated dragons?). While increasing the resource complexity makes it more, well, complex, I think it makes it more rewarding as well - so long as the method is not arbitrary and inconsistent (looking at you Frog Toes). It would also reduce propagation time of 'rare-mods' generally, rather than going from 'Unavailable' to 'Factory-line' as soon as one person hits 100% learned.

Another concern is limiting use: as has been noted and thrown around on Discord, free refreshing potions would seem attractive to mass and save in the long-run over buying normal potions. However, we already have a similar situation in the form of Guns-vs-Thrown. On one hand we have a consumable based weapon, and on the other we have a combat-comparable time-limited weapon. the consumable based weaponry is by far the preferred option on the server despite its constant maintenance cost for a few reasons I can see:

1) Quantity-Limited vs Use-Limited; obviously, this is discussed in the initial intent for Elixirs, but the prevalence of Hunting Rifles, Double Pistols, and Jezails over Carbines, Handguns, and Thrown Weapons is the ability to use as many as you have right *now* without restraint. While magazine weapons have higher burst capacity, and thrown weapons have a theoretically zero upkeep costs, they both have a finite number of shots that require out-of-combat micromanagement to restore. Direct-loaded weapons by comparison can just keep firing until you literally run dry on ammo and thus are perceived as having a higher per-combat sustainability.
2) Small Upkeep vs Large Up-front costs; all weapons have a large investment, but once you have a rifle or pistol, it is a relatively minor but constant price to improve your damage per combat by buying more bullets or magazines. Thrown weapons, on the other hand, have no such upkeep, but must be purchased additional times for the full base-price to improve total available shots per combat. Each additional weapon beyond the first substantially decreases the relative cost-efficiency when compared to a single rifle and its comparatively negligible ammo costs.
3) Micromanagement; touched on in point #1, Thrown weapons (and magazines to a seperate degree) require micromanagement that a direct-load weapon does not. Thrown weapons need to be switched manually if you run out (assuming you went by #2 and invested another few thousand into a second set), and re-equipped when out of combat to reload. Comparatively, a Hunting Rifle just keeps working (due to reload autoqueue) unless you tried to shoot someone and have no ammo at all - in which case your char will complain from a (hopefully) save distance instead of run into melee to try punching some dude in the face. This also affects resource management, as equipping a completely new weapon is often more disruptive to stamina conservation than reloading (though not by much).

I have found damage between most such unmodified weapons to be on par, and thus not a significant factor to compare here.


With that in mind, I think all three of these factors can be addressed when comparing Potions to Elixirs:
1: Use Limits - We have already addressed that Elixirs will have finite uses per rest, but without other limitation would be easily subject to abuse by quantity. I would be inclined to put Elixirs as a piece of slotted equipment - either in the Amulet or Ring slots upon which their benefits can be accessed like any other gear-ability. In turn this would make it easier to implement either a Cooldown on use, or limit a character to using only one or two Elixir items per rest if the charges are only reset if the char rests while it is equipped. With either (or both) implemented, normal potions would still be desirable when quantity is preferable to quality, and 'just one potion' isn't sufficient.
2: Large up-front costs - Rather straight-forwards, and one I expect will already be in play. While stockpiling and inflation will make it probable, it should not be an economically trivial matter to have multiple elixirs, particularly redundant ones. This would be greatly strengthened by the requirement of boss-reagents.
3: Management - Covered mostly in #1, where having them as equipment items would permit greater control on the use-economy of multiples, without significantly impacting individuals using only one or two.

If these aspects are addressed, I think it would be effective and appropriate for Elixirs to have significantly greater impact than their Potion siblings.
I think that having them as trinket items would also pave the way for other similar things, like Blacksmithing Whetstones and Gunsmithing Powderhorns that can increase damage or accuracy temporarily, or other limited use temporary item-based perks.