Agreed, I'd like to see sentient beasts too... as a playable race. Would be fun to live without being able to use 80% of loot.
And in my opinion anthropomorphic animals and common humans are equally boring.
In my opinion, Ingredients are for "ritual magic", so as long as it is "soul-based magic" there should not be ingredients.
Exception could be for high-grade spells, such reagents should be somehow soul-connected, like sacrificing something living.