I think it's been mentioned before, will just reconfirm.

I was on a 4x elixir hour and noticed it in the Catacombs map (I think it's the same for any map though).

I took the damage orb, 2x damage, so my damage converted into 2x from 4x, understandable. However, after the orb expired, my damage went back down to 1x despite my elixirs.

It reactivates after you change map, but the orbs still remove the more potent elixir even after it disappears.