Recent changes to the professions in the patch notes haven't been all that nice to us Alchemists. We're losing much of our power, especially those of us who braved the Black Morass untold times to become Masters of Elixirs. But good things come to those who, um brew. Patch 2.1.0 will see the addition of something called a cauldron. It is similar in concept to the warlock's Soul well, but instead of healthstones your party will receive resistance potions. Each of these potions is a conjured item much like food or water, and their effects last between two and five minutes.

As you can imagine, reagents for the cauldrons aren't cheap. According to MMO-Champion, the cauldrons will require 2 Primal Mana, 7 Mana Thistle, and 1 Fel Iron casing to make. But it's certainly a far cry from the farming required to make a flask. I know I will be flirting up every engineer I know for my supply of casings. The potions created by the cauldrons cover the major schools of magic – fire, frost, shadow, nature, and arcane – which make them supremely adaptable to whatever situation you might face.

Personally, I am starting to relax a bit now, knowing that Blizzard is giving us something pretty cool in exchange for what we are losing. Yes, the flask system was powerful, but it also meant a great deal of time running around Winterspring after that blasted Ice Cap. I take this as a sign that the clouds are lifting. But then again, no word on when the discoveries will be back.

[via MMO-Champion, image via Mini Toons]