I think creating a decent and interesting Alchemy in the game that already have crafting system will be a great addition to the gameplay.
Dragon Age: Origins suffered from constant gathering of components and getting N vials, X concentrators, Y elfroots etc, DA2 had the opposite problem - the system was too simple. Just click on resource and then use money to
create potions.
Maybe there's a middle option that can remove both disadvantages?
Crafting have several serious problems:
1. Almost everyone i know are sick of carrying 99 elfroots 99 vials and 99 concentrators. Gathering this garbage everywhere is anooying to no end.
2. You get a lot of potions just lying everywhere, and crafted ones are too expensive to be effective.
3.As for awakening - to make a potion, you have to buy required ingridients, exit location and choose a party member with herbalism skill, craft potions, go back and choose party member with which you will go adventuring.
4. Most potions are not worth it.
Mule NPC
I suppose the best solution is to follow Diablo III experience and implement NPC at your camp who can brew potions and potions for you. You can upgrade him via various quests, bring him new recipes etc.
This will solve the problem of a "mule" party member.
99 elfroots
The problem of 99 elfroots. I don't know how to solve it but can brainstorm some ideas, such as
- Reduce their weight and implement separate inventory slot, like a "Ingridient bag" for them.
- Reduce number of ingridients on the maps and make them abdurant - i.e. get N elfroots from one bush. this will eliminate annoying "corner-searching".
- Keep $-for-ingridients system, but make it...reasonable. Example: Have a mage NPC at your camp\\town square\\another easy accessable location where you would not run half a map or make 3 transitions to get there. The mage can use "quick growth magic" if you bring him\\her seeds. Basically, like DA2 but not as dumb. You can "upgrade" NPC and get more ingridients for the same price.
Potion limit
Tricky part. I see there's a way to make potions matter by implementing a potion limit, i.e. no more than 5 healing potions. This will make them more valuable and actualize the skill. For example, higher levels of skill will add to potion limit. but this should be approached very carefully as this may be balance-breaking.
Make Alchemy(or potion making) skill matter.
Make potions have: quicker cooldown, stronger effects, additional effects depending of skill level. Make this skill affect gameplay and quests, i.e. PC can recognize poison of some victim if his Alchemy skill is high enough. Or can heal someone, like with dwarven cure in DAO.
Make potion effects significant
+3 poison damage is nice, but not worth it, when you have to waste 5 minutes to gather ingridients and brew it. Make potion effects important. +20% damage, +30% resistance, +armor, immunity to knockback\\stun and other. they will
be expensive, but make potions worth their price.
Modifié par Cultist, 08 avril 2012 - 10:32 .
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