The Witcher 3 Alchemy System

[Snake9027]

The Witcher 3 Alchemy System

Lock if it is old.

"The potions will work in a different way than in The Witcher 2. So now you will prepare them, you will drink them before a fight, but you can release the effect of those whenever you want. So it’s not like you’ve drunk the potion and you have 30 seconds of boost and then it wears off. You can start the fight in the moment it suits you, and if the fight proves hard, you can just release the effect through your metabolism. But if the fight is easy, you can preserve that and use it in the next fight "

http://www.worldsfactory.net/2014/02/16/the-witcher-3-potions-system-detailed

 

[HeelPower]

Can someone explain to me the point of this change?

It seems to me like just being to drink at anytime makes more sense than "holding and releasing" :dizzy:

 

[ReptilePZ]

I'm afraid it's nothing new, but thanks for sharing. May I also suggest that you use this thread next time you find an interesting article
@alyza Well, the idea behind the system is that you have to learn about what situation you're about to get yourself into. It encourages research and preperation before battle - TW2 was similar in that regard. However, in TW2 potions had a fixed amount of time of being active, so you could end up wasting the potion effect before reaching the fight you were preparing for (e.g. boss at the end of chapter 2). Now, you'll be able to active that effect when it matters, making potions more useful than they were in previous title, while still retaining that added layer of complexity that preperation prior to an encounter introduces.

Apart from the benefit of an added tactical challenge, drinking potions before instead of during battles is also more consistent with lore.

 

[Bellator Pius Gratus]

Yep. Nihil novi sub sole, but thanks for sharing as ReptilePZ said. Though the 30 second effect duration I must've forgot. I thought that we could at least get a minute or two before the imbibed effects wore out.

 

[gregski]

TW2's system definitely added to the tension.

 

[ReptilePZ]

Though the 30 second effect duration I must've forgot. I thought that we could at least get a minute or two before the imbibed effects wore out.

You must have misread something, "So it's not like you've drunk the potion and you have 30 seconds of boost and then it wears off."

 

[Bellator Pius Gratus]

You must have misread something, "So it's not like you've drunk the potion and you have 30 seconds of boost and then it wears off."

Aye, clearly I did. Have an ice cream and a thanks! :ice:

 

[ReptilePZ]

Oooh, I love ice-cream.

 

[HeelPower]

I'm afraid it's nothing new, but thanks for sharing. May I also suggest that you use this thread next time you find an interesting article
@alyza Well, the idea behind the system is that you have to learn about what situation you're about to get yourself into. It encourages research and preperation before battle - TW2 was similar in that regard. However, in TW2 potions had a fixed amount of time of being active, so you could end up wasting the potion effect before reaching the fight you were preparing for (e.g. boss at the end of chapter 2). Now, you'll be able to active that effect when it matters, making potions more useful than they were in previous title, while still retaining that added layer of complexity that preperation prior to an encounter introduces.

Apart from the benefit of an added tactical challenge, drinking potions before instead of during battles is also more consistent with lore.

Yeah the preparation aspect of the game is really important and interesting.

But I don't understand the difference drinking whatever you want and "holding it" in TW3 vs just being able to drink it whenever you want like in TW1.You still have to prepare potions either way.

I mean isn't TW3's system essentially the same as TW1 ?

 

[Geralt_of_bsas]

Yeah the preparation aspect of the game is really important and interesting.

But I don't understand the difference drinking whatever you want and "holding it" in TW3 vs just being able to drink it whenever you want like in TW1.You still have to prepare potions either way.

I mean isn't TW3's system essentially the same as TW1 ?

What ReptilePZ meant was that preparation, besides creating the potions, also involves investigating the monsters and clues properly so you know which ones you should take appropriately for each encounter or monster hunting activity.

 

[ReptilePZ]

But I don't understand the difference drinking whatever you want and "holding it" in TW3 vs just being able to drink it whenever you want like in TW1.You still have to prepare potions either way.

Means that you must learn as much as you can about a fight before starting it. That way you can drink the right potions before battle. Say you're about to explore a cave. If you're allowed to consume potions mid-battle, you just enter the cave and do your thing. With the system in TW3, it would be wise to look around for signs of what dangers you might face, maybe ask around a nearby town to see if you can find information about any dangerous beast that might lurk there, or use your "Witcher Senses" to see if you can spot anything that could give you a clue as to what you're about to face. Only then do you drink the potions you think might come in handy, pray that you've done your research right and enter the cave.

So, this means that if you underprepare, you might just die. But it also means you're wasting potions if you drink them "just in case." The whole point is that it requires the player to put more thought into the whole potion-drinking process, while still allowing them to be flexible.

 

[paulthu]

I don't even care if that works well as a gameplay mechanic, because it makes no sense.

"you can just release the effect through your metabolism" ...lol. And you can just puke the stuff back to the potion after you've drunk it? Wat...

Why not just let the player drink whenever they want and have a minute or two delay on the effect. That would reward planning ahead without being too limiting while actually making a tiny bit of sense.

 

[Pajkes]

Means that you must learn as much as you can about a fight before starting it. That way you can drink the right potions before battle. Say you're about to explore a cave. If you're allowed to consume potions mid-battle, you just enter the cave and do your thing. With the system in TW3, it would be wise to look around for signs of what dangers you might face, maybe ask around a nearby town to see if you can find information about any dangerous beast that might lurk there, or use your "Witcher Senses" to see if you can spot anything that could give you a clue as to what you're about to face. Only then do you drink the potions you think might come in handy, pray that you've done your research right and enter the cave.

So, this means that if you underprepare, you might just die. But it also means you're wasting potions if you drink them "just in case." The whole point is that it requires the player to put more thought into the whole potion-drinking process, while still allowing them to be flexible.

Yeah but what about the nonsense of activating it later...it wasnt precisely described in that article but does that mean that Geralt could for example drink potion and maybe 3 in-game days and 40 min. in real time later activate it....cause that's just let me be polite....silly IMO

Also how many potions you can drink at once and keep them what....in cloud or on your server in stomach lol Does that mean that you can drink 15 different kinds of potions and just you know use stomach brain to access them at your whim....cause again that would be silly

 

[ReptilePZ]

@mpayo @Pajkes http://forums.cdprojektred.com/thre...icles-on-TW3?p=1245918&viewfull=1#post1245918

 

[Dprelate]

I'm afraid that this "holding & activating" would destroy the idea of preparing before combat. because in this way you can always be prepared ! wish they decide to increase the potion duration instead and thus the alchemy would be much more reliable than TW2.
potion duration could be splinted into different parts. the first phase with extra bonus, second phase with normal effects and in some cases a third phase with extra negative effects. brewing the same potion with different phase relation could also be possible. for example increasing the first phase at the expense of lower total duration or longer third phase.

 

[Dprelate]

Also how many potions you can drink at once and keep them what....in cloud or on your server in stomach lol Does that mean that you can drink 15 different kinds of potions and just you know use stomach brain to access them at your whim....cause again that would be silly

Maybe a witcher can keep them on his dick and shot it back to his mouth when needed !!!

 

[ReptilePZ]

I'm afraid that this "holding & activating" would destroy the idea of preparing before combat. because in this way you can always be prepared ! wish they decide to increase the potion duration instead and thus the alchemy would be much more reliable than TW2.
potion duration could be splinted into different parts. the first phase with extra bonus, second phase with normal effects and in some cases a third phase with extra negative effects. brewing the same potion with different phase relation could also be possible. for example increasing the first phase at the expense of lower total duration or longer third phase.

They never say you can stop releasing the effect once you've activated it once. As long as they keep a longer timer that stops you from activating the effect 2 days after taking a potion, it should be fine.

 

[Dprelate]

@ReptilePZ I didn't mean that.
drinking a potion and activating it whenever we want doesn't make sense, even for a fantasy game.

 

[ReptilePZ]

@ReptilePZ I didn't mean that.
drinking a potion and activating it whenever we want doesn't make sense, even for a fantasy game.

Don't you think that having an effect that lasts a short amount of time with an extended timeframe of when it can be activated would be better than having the effect last a very long time? I think this adds more purpose to drinking a potion, you're consuming it with one specific fight in mind, not just in case something happens.

 

[Dprelate]

Don't you think that having an effect that lasts a short amount of time with an extended timeframe of when it can be activated would be better than having the effect last a very long time? I think this adds more purpose to drinking a potion, you're consuming it with one specific fight in mind, not just in case something happens.

I'd prefer longer duration but not very long. this activating mechanic is similar to drinking during combat. but please keep in mind that this is just my personal opinion. I'm not trying to convince others that it's better.