Act 1(maybe 2 & 3) Free Rare Weapon/Equipment

As the title says i think the best adjustment for early game is when you get the smithing tools for Renly he should grant a reward that is a rare weapon of each weapon type and you get to choose one like how you get to choose a free rare belt in act 3 from Servi when you go and touch the gravestone.

I personally never had an issue progressing during the story but i know others have and i honestly think having quest rewards giving rare equipment is a lot better than getting skill gems or support gems. They should add a vendor that restocks skill gems all throughout the acts and replace the quest rewards with equipment.

Not only will this not break the balance of the game but it will drastically improve the QoL for i would say everyone even if you were not bothered by current progression.