Scribe station. Let us learn the runic alphabet via runestones, craft boons that are mechanic enhancers spent at the runestones. This solves extra item trash and mechanic disputes can be resolved by the player here.

I.e Deer incantation spent at a runestone will spawn more deer in the area for 3 min. Dwarven incantation: when in inventory, will consume 1x and allow portal travel with ore near the runestone. Troll boon, unarmed damage increase.

You'll meet end game, experience the reason the mechanic the boon affects is in place by the time you get the spinning wheel after Moder, and have found enough runestones around to set up a camp near one to give it a purpose. Make a new portal room near a runestone, spend an incantation there and you'll get ore access for awhile to push ore through it. It's a win win. Doesn't completely change the foundation of the game for one particular group.

I think this would serve as a bouncing board of an item that gets introduced at Moder and provides alleviation of the early game tribulations, still have to farm and prepare your playstyle but you at least this way you don't escape the original design of the mechanics but now instead get to farm and increase or circumvent your favorite or least favorite mechanics. If you put in a little work.

I think it's a really fair compromise, and a point for more content to be strung to. Doesn't detract from anything already in place, gives a new thing to do and adds more personal objectives to seek after. Maybe higher levels of scribe stations will increase the duration of boons.

Lv 3 Workbench station req.
3x silk thread
1x bloodbag
Misc. Item pertaining to the boon.

Dwarven Scroll:
3x silkthread
1x bloodbag
1x Ymir flesh
Can transport Ore through portals for 15/20/25 min

Deer scroll:
3x silkthread
1x bloodbag
1-3x deer trophy (I have so many pls)
Spawn more/less/higher star deer for 15/20/25min

Troll scroll:
3x silk thread
1x bloodbag
2x troll hide
Unarmed damage bonus for 15/20/25 min