We’ve got a new Dev Blog up today with a preview of the Alchemy Discipline. Read all about it here:
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Is it possible you might lose an eyebrow or two or turn your skin green in the process?
Thats actually a feature, right? 
Basically since I think you’re going to end up with a lot of ruined potions, I am just going to assign a lot of crazy effects to them. Like, drink it and you might get a chance that it gives you some super heal. But it’s more likely it will blow up on you or turn your skin green or something like that. I haven’t had a chance to implement all of that just yet so I’m not sure if it will be in for this test, but I definitely have big plans for that, haha…
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Guys, if ruined potion effects are making it into the next test, we are all having a potion roulette at the tavern. I expect to see you all there on Friday with as many ruined potions as possible.
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You know Riley. At least just once could you let me wait for the test in peace. Every. Gosh. Darn. Time. Getting me too excited to properly work through the week. For shame sir.
(Alchemy looks sick. Great job implementing some amazing ideas)
Very cool! Will anyone be able to craft any potion as long as they know (or stumble upon) the recipe, similar to how Runemages can cast anything they know the runes for, or will you actually need to acquire some recipes in-game before you can successfully brew them?
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This looks awesome, I love the idea and complexity of parts like potion ageing. If (provided potion ageing is in this test) we leave a potion on the rack between tests will that continue to age and be nice and ripe for the next test?
I’m actually not totally sure yet. Right now you can just craft it if you know the recipe, but we may do some actual locking behind “knowing it in-game” depending on how the Player Journal feature we’re working on shapes up.
If it makes it in, then yes!
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Damn right.
Edit: Im dumb nvm
Could you age a ruined potion to produce more potent negative effects?
I feel like its better if you cant, that way you can pack all these wacky stuff into one single potion.
This looks really amazing! I love the complexity, detail and investment involved. I really like how the different harvesting comes together here, and the continuation of the crafting-by-doing style.
A couple questions (mostly dealing with messaging):
-How will I be able to tell the difference between potions? Including between an aged and non-aged version?
-How will I know if an potion in the aging rack has been successfully aged? Do I need to pull them out periodically to check? Does pulling them out reset their aging process?
-Similarly, how do I know if a potion goes bad? Can an aged potion go bad after I take it out of the rack? IE, is there an expiration date in general or just in the rack?
-Given that combat is pretty fast paced, and at least for non-tanks, you can go from full health to dead in a heartbeat, what scenarios do you see non-tanks using healing potions?
-Given that we have two tool slots, does this mean we can have two potions equipped at the same time or does it just change the side you are on, but you can only have 1, like weapons?
-Will the long duration potion buffs show up alongside existing buffs and debuffs on the health bar?
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They are separate item types. So an “Aged Healing Potion” would show up as such in your inventory.
I haven’t actually done the aging rack “interface” yet but the general idea is that you will have a rack of potions, with a set of slots (basically the same way that the crafting tables work). You put a potion into a slot, and then once it’s in there it’s ‘aging.’ You can go open up the rack and hover over the potions to check on them and see their status (e.g. “Aged for 1 day”). As the potions age, they will automatically change, so for example a “Healing Potion” would turn into an “Aged Healing Potion”, and then if it’s left on the rack too long it would turn into an “Over Aged Potion” or something like that.
If you take them off the rack, then it ‘locks it in’ to whatever it currently is. So if you take out a regular Healing Potion before it becomes an Aged Healing Potion, when you put it back in there the timer would start over again. There is no spoilage once it’s off the rack, so an Aged Potion would stay at that same place indefinitely in your inventory.
The vast majority of the potions in the game are not “split second use” type potions for the very reason that it takes longer in VR to take a potion than it does just pressing a button on a keyboard. I think the Healing Potions are really more for “Oh I stepped in something bad and now I have a moment or two of breathing room to heal up” than they are something you would try and take in the split-second between when you pull boss aggro and in-between the two hits it takes the boss to kill you. But we’ll see how that plays out. It takes around 2 seconds to drink a potion in my testing.[quote=“Draven, post:12, topic:1655”]
-Given that we have two tool slots, does this mean we can have two potions equipped at the same time or does it just change the side you are on, but you can only have 1, like weapons?
-Will the long duration potion buffs show up alongside existing buffs and debuffs on the health bar?
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Yes, that means you can have two types of potions equipped. Keep in mind they do stack in the tool slot just like a normal inventory slot, which means that for example you can equip 20 Healing Potions to your tool slot and wouldn’t run out until all 20 were gone.
Right now they’re all shown in the same spot, yes, but I’m working on some changes to the health bars and whatnot in general and I doubt that will be the case long-term.
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I don’t think we’ll do aging Ruined Potions, but I think we will have a basic “Ruined Potion” and then an “Over Aged Potion” or something like that, which might have different effects on them.
@Riley_D Any plans to add potions that do damage or that can portal? I would love to throw a portal potion at @Logan to port him elsewhere:)
Ahahahah I love this idea! Thrown potions add a whole new area of possibilities.
Before Robert crushes my dreams in Discord, Ima post the list I compiled of possible ruined potion effects. I tried to make it so that the bad heavily outweighed the benefits, while usually being “harmless”. I have no idea the feasibility of most of these, so it’s only that, a list of possible inclusions if deemed fit. 
Inspired by the Deck of Many things in feel in a way.
I also wanted to differentiate between effects I felt the player should be given a hint to what they got from those that they would be given no information on by including a snippet of text that could be incorporated to what the player was thinking, somehow. Anyway here’s the list.
Good (10%)
“You feel rejuvenated.” Full heal
"You feel empowered." Stat boost
"As you drink the potion, you mind tingles. You get the feeling that you next attack will deal massive damage." Does not affect bosses, instantly kills most foes under level 20.
“You feel a slight spring in your step.” Player’s movement speed by 30% for X seconds
Player creates a lifewell at their current location.
“Your pockets feel heavier.” You find X-Y coins in your inventory! (Not a ton, maybe enough to buy a basic healing potion at the most.)
“You foresee future attacks against you.” You receive a premonition, granting you X% reduced damage for the next hour as you foresee attacks.
Potion has no discernible effect. (Upon receiving fatal damage, player is fully healed. Unlimited duration until activated.)
Potion has no discernible effect. (Player’s special bar fills twice as fast for 5 minutes.)
Neutral(80%)
“You feel funny, but cant quite place your finger on why.” Changes the color of the user’s skin for 1-X hour(s)
Polymorphs the player for 10-20 seconds
Player Shrinks to half their size.
Potion has no discernible effect. Nothing happens.
Potion has no discernible effect. (after a short duration, a fly flys by your ears every Y seconds for 1-X minutes)
“You see a dense fog roll in.” Player’s view distance reduced by 50% for X seconds
Players hands burst into harmless flames for 10 seconds.
“You feel an icy chill down your spine.” Player feels an icy chill, slowing the movement speed by 30% for X seconds
Player’s vision changes to Sepia for X minutes
Player’s vision changes to Monochromatic for X minutes
Player’s vision changes to Near-Infrared for X minutes (I.E, low light vision black and white)
Player’s vision changes to Inverted for X minutes
Player becomes invisible for X seconds
"The potion tastes disgusting, but you keep it down" Nothing happens.
“The potion tastes disgusting, but you keep it down”. The time until you can drink your next potion is doubled.
“The potion tastes disgusting, but you keep it down”. Hallucinations of enemies appear around others that only you can see.
“You hear faint whispers on the wind…” Allows you to hear the whispers of ancient beings for 10-30 seconds.
“Huh, that was apple cider, not a potion.” Nothing happens.
“You feel like you’ve gotten brighter! Wait a minute…” Player emits the Light spell for 1 minute.
Bad (10%)
Trigger a level 3 Arcane Explosion damaging all creatures and allies in range.
Teleport the player to a random portal location
Potion has no discernible effect. (Player is poisoned and will die in X period of time. I was thinking a week of actual time. The long game effect.)
Potion has no discernible effect. (Player’s next attack will generate increased aggro)
Potion has no discernible effect. (Player’s next X attacks do no damage.)
Potion has no discernible effect. (Player takes 10% more damage for the next hour)
Potion has no discernible effect. (The next standard potion drank will produce the opposite effect.)
"You feel a dark presence…"A dark cloud appears behind the player, moments later they die as the cloud dissipates. Cannot be resurrected.
“You feel time ebb and flow around you” Degrades a random piece of gear to broken.
“The potion tastes disgusting, but you keep it down.” You take 1% of your max health as damage every 2 seconds for 5 minutes, after 2 minutes. When the effect takes hold: “You feel darkness flowing through your veins.”
“The potion tastes disgusting, but you keep it down.” Your max HP is reduced by 25% for 6 hours.
“The potion tastes disgusting, and you cant keep it down. You suffer no damage, but your pride is badly hurt.”
It was fun making these so im gonna keep adding to a new list.
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Haha, that’s quite a list. I was thinking of having more like 4 or 5 effects, not…100. Haha. But, I will say that these are really good ideas and some of them I might make into specific potions, and who knows maybe I’ll do something like try and add a new effect to the Ruined Potion every patch or something and before you know it we’ll have a ton of different effects…
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Im glad you like them!
I assumed it would be over a long period of time, I didnt expect all that by next test! It would be fun to see “Added 5 new effects to the Ruined potion” at the end of patch notes with no indication if they are good or bad.
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Awesome! Thanks for all the additional details!