Let me go on record first to say, THANK YOU. The Phial improvements were sorely needed after the salvage nerf in particular. I mention these things not in a note of "OMG back off!," but instead a list of things you may need to work on for January if you didn't take these into account for the December update.
1. PHIAL STACK BUG:
This has been present for years, but hasn't been an issue since the stack size of phials was raised to 250 some years back. The problem comes into play when the craft size and the stack size are equal. If one has a stack of phials inventory that matches the stack of wielded phials and one attempts to remove the wielded stacks, they will NOT unwield and instead COMBINE until the wielded stack is 250 (stack size limit) or the stack in inventory disappears.
This not only deals a sever jolt to play flow, but it removes the CURRENT TARGET and instead targets the newly-joined stack of phials.
The workaround for this has been to not have extra stacks in inventory, which is very easy to do when the craft size is 50 and the stack size is 250. If the craft size is equal to the stack size, then one will either perpetually hit this bug or be required to be completely out of a type of phial before crafting more. (WHich means crafting IN COMBAT and LOSING THE MISSILE SKILL BONUS on the last phial.)
If this can't be directly fixed, then the stack size needs to increase to once again be larger than the craft size. 500 would be optimal, but even 300 would be sufficient.
2. WEIGHTLESS REAGANTS?
This might just need clarification. One line of the alchemy notes says "Burden of phial components reduced to zero." Another line says "Burden of components reduced to zero."
If SPELL REAGANTS have their burdens reduced to zero, then the old reagant system will be BETTER before one gets the augs for no-foci magic, and SITUATIONALLY BETTER than getting the augs - pack space versus weight, especially if prismatics aren't also reduced to zero weight. Void can't use old reagants, so it if course would always be better with foci / augs, and generally with up to three more schools on top of void. But any other 2-4 school magic user would very often do better with reagants.
3. WEIGHTLESS ARROWHEADS
This is less ambiguous in the fletching notes, but we already have cases where one will spec fletching, load up on S/P/B arrowheads from the spec fletcher, then sell back to trained fletching. Making these arrowheads WEIGHTLESS makes pack space and pyreal cost the only restraints to this process.
2 and 3 are just balance issues, and if you choose not to fix them, it wouldn't be an actual problem to most players. But you need to fix the phial bug, or at least do the quickie workaround of increasing stack size, if you haven't done this already.
1. PHIAL STACK BUG:
This has been present for years, but hasn't been an issue since the stack size of phials was raised to 250 some years back. The problem comes into play when the craft size and the stack size are equal. If one has a stack of phials inventory that matches the stack of wielded phials and one attempts to remove the wielded stacks, they will NOT unwield and instead COMBINE until the wielded stack is 250 (stack size limit) or the stack in inventory disappears.
This not only deals a sever jolt to play flow, but it removes the CURRENT TARGET and instead targets the newly-joined stack of phials.
The workaround for this has been to not have extra stacks in inventory, which is very easy to do when the craft size is 50 and the stack size is 250. If the craft size is equal to the stack size, then one will either perpetually hit this bug or be required to be completely out of a type of phial before crafting more. (WHich means crafting IN COMBAT and LOSING THE MISSILE SKILL BONUS on the last phial.)
If this can't be directly fixed, then the stack size needs to increase to once again be larger than the craft size. 500 would be optimal, but even 300 would be sufficient.
2. WEIGHTLESS REAGANTS?
This might just need clarification. One line of the alchemy notes says "Burden of phial components reduced to zero." Another line says "Burden of components reduced to zero."
If SPELL REAGANTS have their burdens reduced to zero, then the old reagant system will be BETTER before one gets the augs for no-foci magic, and SITUATIONALLY BETTER than getting the augs - pack space versus weight, especially if prismatics aren't also reduced to zero weight. Void can't use old reagants, so it if course would always be better with foci / augs, and generally with up to three more schools on top of void. But any other 2-4 school magic user would very often do better with reagants.
3. WEIGHTLESS ARROWHEADS
This is less ambiguous in the fletching notes, but we already have cases where one will spec fletching, load up on S/P/B arrowheads from the spec fletcher, then sell back to trained fletching. Making these arrowheads WEIGHTLESS makes pack space and pyreal cost the only restraints to this process.
2 and 3 are just balance issues, and if you choose not to fix them, it wouldn't be an actual problem to most players. But you need to fix the phial bug, or at least do the quickie workaround of increasing stack size, if you haven't done this already.
