no worries! I tried it several times, maybe my luck is just awful haha. I can try it again but I never found a potion, never had enough gold to buy one or anything else, just kinda stuck in a loop of getting enough gold to buy a map and using it to go back to town and buying a map again.
The maps are a waste of money. As long as you have cleared the boss of one dungeon, you can farm that for gold. Don't buy anything, just go through and gather enough bandages and food to survive. Do it often enough and you will accumulate wealth, maybe 4-6 gold per run. Only save very seldomly, as it is also very expensive.
I have never seen a potion drop either.