Alechemy for JADE

[spectre]

I've been thinking about how to better the ADOM alchemy system some time ago, and I though about sharing my thoughts with you guys.
I must confess that I was really satisfied with what alchemy looked like in the last two Elder Scrolls series games, so some of the inspiration comes from these. However, this is JADE and it can be done better than that (-:

As you remember, in ADOM you had the Alchemy skill, which gave you 1 recipe per 10 skill points, each one of these being a utility potion of sorts. The recipe usually consisted of two potions or a potion and a herb. Ingredients and the recipes were randomized (or rather, items were selected from a list).

Now, I like the bare bones of the system, especially the random factor, and I think this one would greatly benefit from expanding it.

So what do we need:
INGREDIENTS: Potions and herbs work well, but the herb list should be definitely expanded.
I would also suggest monster body parts to be used as possible ingredients. Whenever a -foo- leaves a corpse, you can use your Alchemy on it, to hopefully extract something useful. From bat's wings, to viper's venom to dragon bones.
Gemstones, when powdered, could also be used as ingredients. Base metals are also popular in this business.

While Alchemy shops seem a must, so that the PC has access to the needed tools and materials of his trade, it should be definitely possible to be able to find all of the ingredients on your own. That's where other skills appear:

Metallurgy & Mining: If you need to find that powdered silver for your Elixir of youth, one way is to find a good spot and start digging. Instead of simply identifying metals Metallurgy could be used to find ore veins.

Herbalism: So far it allowed to ID the herbs, and increase the chance of them being uncursed and blessed.
How about if it could be used like survival, in order to gather herbs from a wilderness tile.

Food Preservation: If you want to cut open monsters for ingredients, you need a corpse. FP makes it so that the fallen foe remains useful.

Some organization of these ingredients should be in order, so that the recipes do not seem entirely random, and some of these actually can make sense (like using fire beetle gland for fire-based effect, etc.)

RECIPES: Gaining recipes by increasing your alchemy skill represents the research you do on your own, and the deeper undestanding of the alchemical pinciples. This works, but we need more: recipes for sale in alchemy shops for you to learn (would work as a scroll of gain recipe), they could also be learned from books, npc, during quests.

There should be basic and advanced recipes, for beginners and master alchemists. There should also be recipes that allow more than two ingredients to be mixed, possibly for a more powerful effect.
There may be requorements to learning them (Alchemy, Literacy, maybe character level)

Oh, and I think there should be multiple reipes for the same thing. Wy not? You just learned that the recipe for the PoGA is PoCC + ! of Wonder? Tough luck, maybe you'll find an advanced recipe using plain water, devil's rose and dragon's teeth. Of course some moderation here, up to three different recipes for the same thing seems just about right.

TOOLS OF THE TRADE: Some things could be new, sometimes why not add a new use for an otherwise underused item. Some form of alchemy set would be the bare minimum requirement to conduct alchemy. We could have advanced sets for advanced elixirs. What else?
The good 'ole scalpel could be the tool to extract those precious things from fallen -foo-.
And the mortar & pestle for making powdered gems etc.

PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER:
So you have it there, the basic goal is to make the pure alchemist a viable class, on par with the other spell-slingers.
Also, all characters would benefit from alchemy to an extent. Oils that increase weapon's effectiveness? Thrown projectiles for thieves & assassins (Explosive, Confusing, Blinding).

Another wild thing, with a little magic and a little smithing, why not use all these ingredients for enchanting weapons.
There's already a request for item augmentations among the features, why not do it like this:
you all the smithing gear, a forge, the works. Now, instead of adding hit&damage bonuses to an item, you imbue it with the spell in your spellbook. You know Acid bolt? Then make your longsword deal bonus acid damage. Be sure to have a sample of viper's venom around, or perhaps black dragon gizzard for a greater effect.

Phew, got a bit long-winded. Might be a bit chaotic here and there.
Whaddaya think about it anyway?

EDIT: Ghrrr... way to do it, a typo in the title :-/