I was actually gonna start a thread to rant about elixirs too, but this one is good enough!
One solution to this would be for the XP elixirs to be for plat but the ones that give a combat advantage be for gold (dmg, armor, etc.) That way, STS still gets money but we will be able to afford combat elixirs that "give an edge" in dungeons. Maybe have elixirs for gold that last only half the time that elixirs for plat last. (1 hour for plat or 30 mins. for gold). Gold should be used for elixirs.