An explosive cocktail(combat use for aqua vitae)

[LadyWYT]

The only use I'm aware of for aqua vitae currently is high tier bandages, but the drawback is that the alcohol evaporates too quickly for those to be useful for anything other than a quick remedy at home. And even that utility is heavily overshadowed by the fact you can get the same job done faster with the cheaper bandages, for a lot fewer resources.

However, given that aqua vitae is a very strong alcohol, it would be cool if we could fill a jug up with it, and then stick a fuse in said jug(such as a piece of twine or strip of linen) to create a firebomb to use on drifters and other enemies. I think this would be a fun, albeit dangerous, weapon for later in the game that would also provide a good incentive for players to actually brew aqua vitae. The materials aren't so expensive either that it becomes not worth crafting, or unattractive to use when actually needed(which can happen with expensive items).

In regards to balance, its strength is also its biggest weakness. It explodes in an area and sets targets on fire, thus doing damage up front and an additional amount over time. The issue with a fiery explosion though is that it also tends to set things other than the intended targets on fire as well. So this wouldn't be a good weapon choice to use when fighting with melee-focused allies. Likewise, it's also not the best choice to use around a lot of flammable things(like trees, grass, or a thatch roof!) Rain is also going to put a literal damper on this weapon as well.

I think the most optimal scenario for a firebomb is likely underground when dealing with more than one or two drifters. It could also be handy during temporal storms, with the risk of setting some other stuff on fire if you are above ground.

As far as throwing it...maybe you'd need to hold a torch in your offhand in order to light the fuse, and then have a set amount of time to throw it? It could also just be a throwable object, no lighting required, but I feel the fuse lighting might be a bit more engaging and allow players to fiddle with the throw timing to pull off some potentially crazy stunts.

[Thorfinn]

I wouldn't put too many disadvantages. It's already fairly late game, and setting drifters on fire is a terribly slow way to kill them. Something like 1/2 point every second, vs. a flint spear at a nominal 10 points per second if you are reasonably accurate. Presumably you are suggesting area denial, so there's a fire for 5 or 10 seconds or whatever.

Will require update of pathing, too. When I'm bored, I'll lead drifters, bears, wolves, etc. through my pit kilns. 

[Maelstrom]

I love it!  Let's combine it with beenades for an incendiary explosion of comedy!

Edited May 23 by Maelstrom

[LadyWYT]

6 hours ago, Thorfinn said:

I wouldn't put too many disadvantages. It's already fairly late game, and setting drifters on fire is a terribly slow way to kill them.

True. Too many disadvantages and then we're right back to square one.

6 hours ago, Thorfinn said:

Presumably you are suggesting area denial, so there's a fire for 5 or 10 seconds or whatever.

That's one of my thoughts on it, yeah. Although I'd rather have a good burst of initial damage and then a bit more damage over the next few seconds, provided it's an entity that actually burns. The main drawback I see is potentially setting your own stuff on fire, however, the better option might be just reducing the drop chances of burned corpses. That way it's still a solid option for players to use when dealing with groups of enemies(without constantly starting fires!), but not to the extent that it can be used to farm them easily.

In regards to the firestarter side effect, I think that might be something that could possibly be added later, after there's a good way to put out fires.

2 hours ago, Maelstrom said:

I love it!  Let's combine it with beenades for an incendiary explosion of comedy!

I like your thinking! I finally tried the beenades the other day. A little underwhelming for what I was hoping for, but still fun to use. The problem is they aren't craftable so when I find them I end up not ever using them because it's difficult to get more.