I think it's time invention was made more forgiving

I think once you make a perk (Aftershock 4 Eruptive 2, for example), you should be able to 'remember' how to make it and choose that perk with the same materials.

Especially with the upcoming combat changes, with potentially different/new perks becoming viable or best-in-slot, this would be a very welcome change. I think it's a much better gameplay loop; you still have to chase these BIS perks, but once you get it once you're set.

Edit: A lot of comments mentioning the item sink aspect of invention. A valid point, but I would not be surprised if 80% of all items sunk were from people perking their favourite style. I think the number of players perking all styles is probably very low. Might be nice to see the data on that