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Black Desert Online is an MMORPG by South Korean developer Pearl Abyss. Set in a fantasy-inspired sandbox world, players can develop and fine-tune their characters to develop a skillset and play style in line with their preferences.
In addition to other skills like cooking, crafting, farming, and trading, alchemy is a fairly major part of the gameplay in Black Desert. Players can develop their alchemy skill to eventually create powerful elixirs that give various stat boosts and other perks. However, with such an extensive range of alchemy recipes available in the game, it can be tough to know which ones to learn first.
Elixir Of Life
Despite being a beginner-level alchemy craftable, players should absolutely not write off the Elixir of Life. This potent potion gives a +100 Max Health boost, with a duration of five minutes and a quick cooldown of just one second.
The Elixir of Life can be crafted with 1x Pure Powder Reagent, 3x HP Potions, 3x Silver Azalea, and 5x Fox Blood. Additionally, if the player has an Alchemy skill of 1 or higher, crafting the Elixir of Life also has the (albeit small) chance of crafting the even more powerful Elixir of Strong Life.
Elixir Of Wings
While it might not sound very exciting at face value, crafting the Elixir of Wings to create the player's max jump height can be surprisingly useful in a number of different environments and situations in Black Desert.
The Elixir of Wings is a beginner-level potion, so any player with an Alchemy level of 1 or higher is able to craft it. To do so, players will need 2x Silver Azalea, 1x Ash Sap, 4x Blood Group 4, and 5x Purified Water. There's also a chance that players will craft the Soaring Wings Elixir rather than the Elixir of Wings with these ingredients.
Antidote Elixir
One of the most basic and fundamental potions in Black Desert, the Antidote Elixir is essential for dealing with the effects of toxicity, a common and dangerous hazard in the game.
Players can begin crafting the Antidote Elixir from level 1 and above, and, to do so, need 1x Pure Powder Reagent, 3x Olive Oil, 1x Wild Grass, and 2x Pig Blood. As mentioned above, toxicity is a fairly frequently encountered hazard in Black Desert, so carrying at least a few Antidote Elixirs at all times is a wise move for players of the game.
Tough Whale Tendon Elixir
The name certainly doesn't sound very appetizing, but the Tough Whale Tendon Elixir is actually a powerful and very useful potion to have going into combat scenarios in Black Desert. When used, the Elixir grants a +100 reduction in all types of damage for up to 20 seconds.
Crafting the Tough Whale Tendon Elixir is a Skilled alchemy recipe, so not all players will be able to craft this particular item. The ingredients required are 1x Blue Whale Tendon, 1x Clown's Blood, 12x Ash Sap, 5x Purified Water, and 2x Clear Liquid Reagent.
Spirit Perfume Elixir
The Spirit Perfume Elixir is another highly versatile Skilled potion that gives players a powerful boost to multiple combat-related stats, making using it before taking on challenging enemy encounters a very wise move. To craft the Elixir, players need 1x Dead Tree Essence, 1x Fruit of Nature, 10x Loopy Tree Sap, 10x Power of Darkness, and 2x Violet Flower.
When used, the Spirit Perfume Elixir grants a +300 boost to the player's Max HP, as well as +5 MP/WP/SP +3 for every good hit landed. The effect of the Elixir lasts for 20 minutes, making it more than viable for most enemy encounters in Black Desert.
Perfume Of Swiftness
Perhaps one of the most valuable Elixirs in Black Desert, the Perfume of Swiftness represents excellent value when sold on the marketplace, in addition to being incredibly useful in a number of scenarios in the game.
Crafting the Perfume of Swiftness requires players to have 1x Blue Whale Oil, 4x Powder of Time, 6x Everlasting Herb, 4x Purified Water, and 2x Clear Liquid Reagent. Some of these ingredients are fairly rare and difficult to find, but the resulting Elixir is worth it. Using the Perfume of Swiftness grants players a +200LT Weight Limit boost, as well as Life EXP +20%, Movement Speed +5, Gathering Speed +5, and Fishing Speed +5 for a duration of 20 minutes.
Grim Reaper's Elixir
Another powerful, combat-orientated Elixir worth trying in Black Desert is the Grim Reaper's Elixir. To craft it, players will need 1x Oil of Fortitude, 4x Pure Powder Reagent, 2x Sky Mushroom, 4x Trace of Origin, and 2x Monk's Branch.
When consumed, the Grim Reaper's Elixir grants players +1 HP recovery per hit they take. This can just about turn the tide of any battle, enabling players to actually regain their HP when hit rather than losing it. Combine the Grim Reaper's Elixir with a powerful healing Elixir or spell and players can become almost impossible to beat.
Elixir Of Draining
If players are looking to maximize their offensive output, then they should definitely consider trying the Elixir of Draining in battle. A Skilled potion, crafting the Elixir of Draining requires 1x Oil of Fortitude, 4x Clear Liquid Reagent, 3x Hump Mushroom, 2x Trace of Forest, and 4x Birch Sap.
The resulting Elixir grants players a +3 HP boost for every critical hit that they land. So, if players are able to come up with a build that maximizes their critical hit output and then use the Elixir of Draining on top of that, they're almost guaranteed to become a force to be reckoned with on the battlefield.
Elixir Of Assassination
Any Black Desert player using a stealth build should definitely consider using the Elixir of Assassination if they haven't already. A Skilled potion, the Elixir of Assassination grants users a Back Attack Damage boost of +10%, with an impressive duration of 5 minutes once consumed.
Players will need 1x Oil of Regeneration, 5x Pure Powder Reagent, 4x Amanita Mushroom, 2x Trace Memory, and 2x Red Tree Lump in order to craft the Elixir of Assassination. And, if players have reached Alchemy Artisan Level 1 or higher, crafting the Elixir of Assassination has a chance of crafting the Elixir of Lethal Assassin.
Elixir Of Death
Players preparing themselves for especially tough enemy encounters or battles might want to bring an Elixir of Death along with them for the ride. Granting +5 Defense Nullifying Damage per Critical Hit, the Elixir is highly potent and can completely change the narrative of tougher encounters with evenly-matched foes.
To craft the Elixir of Death, players will need 1x Oil of Tranquility, 6x Clear Liquid Reagent, 2x Ancient Mushroom, 2x Trace of Death, and 7x Ash Sap. The Elixir of Death is a Skilled potion, so not all players will be able to craft it, unfortunately.
Black Desert is out now on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Android, Xbox Cloud Gaming, iOS, Microsoft Windows, Xbox Series S and X, and iPadOS.