How does one get a potion of Heal if you are limited to 3rd level?
I suppose that players won't be bothered if they find a high level potion or two in the next hoard.
You already can create potions of higher level spells. You just need Craft Wondrous Item for it.
[Create a one-use item based on the spell that is use-activated by drinking it...and you have a potion.]
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See Steev42's comment and the various 'Elixir' wondrous items. Pathfinder brought back some of the AD&D potions which didn't fit in the v3 and later 'up to 3rd level effects' paradigm by casting them as wondrous item elixirs instead. Even the 'Sun orchid elixir' is basically a variation on the v1 'potion of longevity'.
I'd consider giving the basic craft potion feat for free for all or most spellcasters and allow potions of higher level by the craft wondrous item feat (even though I think that feat is a bit too much of a catch it all).
* Personally I would like to give all the craft wondrous item feats for free but have them cost 100% of their market price and allow access like 4 levels later than the standard, drop in a few feats/archetypes to make crafting cheaper or more easily accesible. This would work well in my campaign where items aren't as readily available compared to the standard.
See Steev42's comment and the various 'Elixir' wondrous items. Pathfinder brought back some of the AD&D potions which didn't fit in the v3 and later 'up to 3rd level effects' paradigm by casting them as wondrous item elixirs instead. Even the 'Sun orchid elixir' is basically a variation on the v1 'potion of longevity'.
Actually multiple elixir woundrous items were available in 3.5 as well (no potion of longevity, however).
So wait... that works for wands too, doesn't it? So you can just emulate any other crafting feat with a creative use of Craft Wonderous? So i've just been wasting my feat slots taking anything else?
Pretty much. As a bonus, the "wands" created by Craft Wondrous item can be used by anyone. Command word activated, 50 charges wondrous items are possible by the rules.
Craft Staff still has uses, as staffs can scale with the weilder (use the wielders caster level if higher then the staffs). Scribe Scroll still has some use (Can copy the spell into a wizards spellbook). You would still need Craft Magic Arms & Armor for armor/weapons.
But anything Craft Rod, Brew Potion, Craft Wand, and Forge Ring can do, so can Craft Wondrous Item.
You also must know the spell to make a potion out of it, but make it an elixer made by Craft Wonderous Item, you can just raise the craft DC by +5 to no need it. Now, Wizards can make elixers of Cure Light Wounds.
I don't think you are allowed to make weapons or armor with craft Wondrous items.
As a DM, I am considering allowing creation of potions from spells that are higher than 3rd level (the limit set by the rules).
What are the disadvantages of this...and would they wreak havoc upon a normal campaign?
I would like anyone's thoughts on this.
Thanks!
Well if you have an alchemist in the group it would be well worth his while buy/make a potion of mind blank, Moment of Prescience, Statue and others and use them every day with Alchemical Allocation. It would be worth using all his 2nd level slots and maybe his 3rds as well.
In 3.5, there was a prestige class (Magic of Faerun, I think) that could make higher level potions. I don't see a problem with allowing it, to be honest, though you might require a feat (could be Skill Focus: Alchemy or Brew Potion, Greater).
It was the Master Alchemist from Magic of Faerun with is a 3.0 book.
For the ultimate potion maker, you combine 5 levels of Wizard or some other potion-making class (Witch would be good, or just Alchemist), 10 levels of Master Alchemist, and 5 levels of Alchemist Savant from the 3.5 Magic of Eberron. At level 20 you end up with a character who can instantly make a potion of any level spell.
Note that this will require a slight amount of GM permission as it doesn't work by the precise RAW since some of the books had been written before others, but once you decide that it's possible/plausible, it works extremely well.