fsmcas: So does this mean that I have to gather the required contents for bombs, oils etc. only one time to "unlock" the specific alchemic thingy and from then on everything gets refilled just with alcohol?
Woo didn't guess it at all, just believe it was a weird incimplete message.
fsmcas: So does this mean that I have to gather the required contents for bombs, oils etc. only one time to "unlock" the specific alchemic thingy and from then on everything gets refilled just with alcohol?
WildHobgoblin: Yep, that's exactly what happens :)
It does make herb collecting rather pointless later on, sadly, but it certainly is less hassle for those who never liked that part of "hunting and collecting" to begin with...
Of course, ingredients that you have to craft yourself, like Rubedo, Albedo etc don't replenish (in case that wasn't obvious).
The herbs collecting is rather weak/uninteresting because of the unlimited resources.
Alyosha: Coming off of Witcher 1 and 2, this mechanic threw me at first, too. I agree that it isn't well explained, although I may have missed a tutorial message or two.
I've assumed that Geralt's potions are partially infusions, and he just leaves the solid material in the bottle and refills it with alcohol. I do the same with vodka and a vanilla bean pod. I don't have an explanation for the bombs, though! :)
WildHobgoblin: Yes, I actually still prefer the potion making mechanic from TW1, where the usage of potions is merely limited by toxicity, the crafting by the amount of ingredients as well as the availability of a fireplace. I also liked the "learn about ingredients" (via books etc) first, since that was a nice and fun pursuit in and of itself.
I'm not really sure why they went with this mechanic in TW3, it seems a bit strange, but what can you do... What is funny is that really one bottle of alcohol will be enough to replenish all your supplies, even if you have used up a lot of potions, bombs, etc.
The TW2 mechanic was mostly alright, except for the somewhat confusing crafting screen, and, of course, the fights all too often occuring after cutscenes, so that sometimes you were simply not able to use potions.
Well TW1 was tedious with the special potions with a dominant element providing an additional advantage, I quickly stopped bother with that.
TW2 was totally incoherent with the inability to use potions during combats, thankfully TW3 fixed it. I'm not sure for oils but even if not realistic the game should allow apply one during a combat.
The auto replenish of bombs and potions (not oils apparently) is probably a good feature just not very well explained inside the GUI (with good messages/good tooltips).
