Suggestion The Drug Overhaul

[Ket]

Drugs. They're bad, but Willard makes them comical. Let's be real, let's get REAL.

Remove funky drugs, replace them with real drugs. Understand, educate and experience what it's like to get high. Street drugs should get you high, make you feel messed up and should FEEL addictive in game. Provide benefits but at the same time some major downsides. The peak of roleplay comes with those willing to step into drug addiction, as it should be one of the deepest things a character can act out.

Lets start with a few things:

Replace all current drugs with real life drugs. I'm talking Cocaine, heroin, meth, mushrooms, cannabis etc. Overtime, if people roleplay creating new shit just like in real life then so be it. Crack cocaine as a cheaper alternative, PCP, acid whatever. All of these should provide positives and negatives fundamentally from a gameplay perspective.

IE: Cocaine for instance could give you a strength but, but a decrease in intelligence & perception. It's a party drug (usually), but also causes people to do ridiculous shit, and is addictive on so many levels.

I'm an avid fan of gritty nitty RP, and so are a lot of others. Take away from the gamey aspect and focus truly on the RP part.

Please consider this in taking the next step towards realism and allow us to play truly desperate sad pieces of shit characters. Lots of love.

 

[McGee]

I was planning on making this suggestion because I found out after my application that 'oh, yeah, you're a drug dealer, but you're selling goofy shit that makes you look retarded', and immediately, I thought to myself, can I maybe get a different flag, because the drugs on the server as so juvenile it removes any inclination I have to drug deal.

In fact, I was so wiped out by it, I started distilling instead.

Also, staff should appoint a BMD lead.

I would argue this is one of the most underdeveloped aspects of D1 and there could've been so much more in terms of drug dealing. A wasted opportunity. If this isn't done by launch, idek what I'll do.

 

[joe moter]

Cocaine should be ridiculously expensive, primarily because the coca plant only grows in few locations and the Combine certainly didn't help with getting coca leaves (or cocaine directly) from point A to point B.



Also, make amphetamines a powder rather than a syringe, or do both. I personally believe pure chemical drugs should be the cheapest on the market because the potential for anything organic lowers by the day.

I will have to say, I like the idea of drugs being only producible with an auth and roleplay, it actually makes them a commodity rather than something you can cook up with a higher end medical skill.

 

[Ket]

I was planning on making this suggestion because I found out after my application that 'oh, yeah, you're a drug dealer, but you're selling goofy shit that makes you look retarded', and immediately, I thought to myself, can I maybe get a different flag, because the drugs on the server as so juvenile it removes any inclination I have to drug deal.

In fact, I was so wiped out by it, I started distilling instead.

Also, staff should appoint a BMD lead.

I would argue this is one of the most underdeveloped aspects of D1 and there could've been so much more in terms of drug dealing. A wasted opportunity. If this isn't done by launch, idek what I'll do.

Absolutely agree with you, a BMD lead is being discussed within server management but moreso for main's grand opening for V3 as opposed to the prologue.

 

[RedHotGinger]

Really what the drugs are is mostly irrelevant to the fact that nobody takes them seriously. I mean replacing RAVE with acid will make absolutely zero difference. As you say, the only way to make them really good with debuffs when you are not on them. Beyond that, it's all onto the RP of representing them, which is out of anyone's hand. Very few drugged up characters even approach representing it well.

I don't even know if I want real drugs flooding into the server because it almost feels detractive to the setting. As mentioned above, it's harder to believe a citizen can get his hand on cocaine, as opposed to Rave. Theres no infrastructure for this sort of thing anymore. So, you'd have to represent that with fitting, or modernized substances that could actually be obtained consistently.

IE: Cocaine for instance could give you a strength but, but a decrease in intelligence & perception. It's a party drug (usually), but also causes people to do ridiculous shit, and is addictive on so many levels.

I think there is also a practical concern for balancing here. Willard skills are really, really badly balanced when you get into their functions. Min-maxxers are always looking to abuse this, which could lead to some awkward realities when the toughest characters walk around high as hell, dominating every S2RP encounter with +20 bonuses to strength. Or when your local meth head is the handiest crafter because he reaches skill breakpoints. In neither case will these characters represent the downsides to this, just judging off how it's been in the past.

So, it comes down to if having massive debuffs between the highs will balance this out and encourage better RP from those who engage. Only thing I'd be against is going full realism with drugs - in terms of names and substances. I'm open to expanding it otherwise, but drugRP has always been very weak in Willard, so I am a bit skeptical.

Understand, educate and experience what it's like to get high.

Also I like to think that part of this suggestion is that Devs should do copious amounts of Cocaine in order to better understand its effects.

 

[Atom]

This, but add resistance levels to drugs, if you take them quite a lot you will get reduced effects until you just don't, I was thinking to add roleplay effects to overuse (addiction), but i think that will be better left to the players freedom to roleplay

 

[Ket]

Also I like to think that part of this suggestion is that Devs should do copious amounts of Cocaine in order to better understand its effects.

All devs should do cocaine and meth to increase output.

Realistically, I suppose I never thought about the setting. Although, I feel stuff like spiked apple, milkyway etc just doesn't really sit right. I'd be really happy with drugs more in line with Rave, amphetamine etc. The culture piece around people not roleplaying drugs is entirely point proven and you are correct.

Honestly, after thinking, I'd just completely remove any stat buffs/debuffs and make it entirely roleplay based- people who choose to be drug addicts do it. No downside, no plus side. But maybe some addition to the medical system would be the best way to balance it and or force some cohesion with the deeper dive into drugs. I think balancing real life vs in-game will always be hard, same thing with alcohol. Only more people on the server have actually been intoxicated than been high, beyond marijuana that is, so generally no one knows how to RP it out.

Difficult topic, but something needs to change because drugs can be extremely indepth for characters that choose to take that path, how sad it may turn out for them all in the end.