Just a thought.... but these requirements for long rest may affect what kind of classes folks have in the party. Don't need long rests as a thief, or warlock (the two classes I enjoy most in EA anyway) so can use potions and scrolls instead of clerics and mages. This saves me having to deal with Shadowheart (after I steal her box), and Gale (and his annoying need to eat magic items). And just run the party with two Thieves (make Astarian a caster thief), a Warlock, and a Fighter. Though optimally if I could, I would run a 3 thief party with one warlock (as bait) and skip the fighter altogether.
Classes in D&D are ALREADY balanced to have different degrees of maintenance/power outburst. Most of the "low maintenance classes" (like rogue, fighter, warlock, etc) that benefit just marginally from having to take long rests pay the price of that convenience by not being able to unleash the same amount of "mayhem" offered by classes like mages, who are all about their spell slots.
One of the problems many had with the unlimited long rests was precisely that it was an implicit buff for certain classes, making other less appealing in comparison.
