Trapdoor vine (and other changes)

[Ivydoom]

So recently this plant got a change and now spawns more often and also closer to the school.
Which theoretically would make it more dangerous because it likes to strangle mages.
However, these mages have no reason to go anywhere near the vines, and the ones closest are safely harvested by ghost staff and shattered.
Sculpstone is so easy to make that I have never had to get staff out there to mine it.
The crystals get mined by quilted. The proceeds are hauled by quilted.
I look for nature 2 shattered and only that mage and the ghost ever get to go to the red zone.

I hit the button before I was done..
The other change is the drop rate from crystals. It's really brutal to almost completely remove the chance on potions and meals, and make smokepearls drop like acid rain.
In time, I would like a more extended crystal system. Maybe some of them can contain a multiple battle like on the way to the burrower larva. And while the fog creeps closer, veiling the crystal, the crystal would not get destroyed. Next repel it would still be there and then you can go into battle prepared. Or maybe the repel after that depending on where you stand.
After only 2 big repels I only find 4-skull battles. Those will one-shot my current line-up so I ignore them.
I will need to summon more students, either by getting lucky (and being patient), or by manipulating the game I can eventually get a strong enough team to get further into the underschool. Gather the scrolls to research all the alchemy for the potions that will give us the edge we need in those 4-skull battles..
Potions that before came to us too easily and now not at all. I think we can find a middle ground in this.
Yes, it's ridiculous to have stacks of strength and retaliation potions while you're still completing your tier 2 staff. Your students can easily conquer the underschool carrying a good selection of those pots. Probably not entirely as intended.
But the drop chance of those higher tier pots might get decreased and pots like basic recharging and rejuvenation could have a bigger dropchance. Maybe add some bitter gruel and gutberry soup in the mix instead of lowering the food drop chance.
Getting mostly smokepearls from the crystals now doesn't feel like an upgrade. It just moves the challenge.