Jump to content

The "Drugs have no benefits" Argument is Weak


DLimit

Recommended Posts

Unless you're planning on RPing a full-time bum who puts their welfare and handouts towards buying meth, it's unlikely someone's going to RP a hardcore addiction or dependance, it serves no purpose for their character and limits their roleplaying prospects. 

 

IRL, dealers target drug dens and low poverty areas, people already addicted to what they want to sell, basically like a honey farm. There's no-where like that in this server, everyone (hyperbolic ofc) wants to be the dealer not the buyer, they want to make money not lose it. 

 

You can't buy a house or rent that nice flat, or buy that expensive car when you're trying to portray a druggo that can't hold down a job because his addiction is dominating his life. Too many dealers, not enough buyers and that won't change until drugs provide some sort of actual benefit to a player other than as a prop for their character backstory. 

 

I'm not sure if it exists already, but an addiction system would be good. Coke, heroin, meth etc should all be addictive and inflict long lasting negative side effects on characters who consume them, that way there's some sort of cycle as opposed to the trying it once in a blue moon scenario we have now. 

  • Upvote 1
Link to comment

I think there are two key aspects of the drug system that needs to be addressed in-game: Intensive and availability. This to be a very simple concept to grasp. if something is both useful and easy to acquire, people will involve themselves in it.

 

Every role-play function needs to be propped up with in-engine insensitive, else it be entirely left to player discretion. In a perfect world, player discretion would be all that is required, but this is not the case. Secondly, drugs should be both realistically and conventionally easier to acquire in-game considering the levels of drug-related arrests in California. Both of these subjects go hand-in-hand, as one cannot be pragmatically achieved without the other.

 

In the case of drugs there is very little in-game incentive to partake, resulting in few players deciding to tread that line and indulge in what realistically would be a massive Los Santos drug culture. Understanding that I speak in general terms; people use alcohol on server because it has a social aspect and is very easy to attain. In the case of drugs, the social aspect and open availability is missing on this server.

 

I believe drugs will become more sociable if they are easier to attain. A very easy way to increase the amount of drugs on server without adding more suppliers would be the addition of a drug cutting agents. It is no secret that real-life dealers use such methods to increase their profits. Drugs become more and more diluted at each stage of distribution until it reaches the end-user. In many cases a drug user will only get 10%-15% of pure heroine or methamphetamine by the time it reaches them. On server you either have the substance or you do not, and I feel this eliminates many of the nuances of the drug business in general. Cocaine could be lased with flour, baking soda and drywall. Meth can be mixed with baby powder and caffeine powder. Heroin can be diluted with talcum powder, and even laundry detergent. Adding similar items to the game with the ability to dilute drugs will increase the overall supply of drugs on server, and as a result their availability. 

 

There is potential for a player to be scammed on a major drug-deal because they assumed they were buying 90% pure heroine, when in reality they are buying 85% sucrose. This could be an excellent incentive for players to find better and better dealers who have purer drug connections. Maybe the addition of fentanyl lased into drugs will radically increase both addiction and chances of over-dose. Maybe a end user assaults his dealer because he got ripped off on shitty coke. Maybe the LSPD raises an eyebrow when they inspect a car and find 75% pure cocaine in the glove-box, signalling that this individual might have some deeper rooted connection to the drug trade. This could also give forensics something to do; looking into the exact contaminants of drugs lifted from the streets. Perhaps bulk drug dealers could buy or have some sort of "kit" that could tell them the specific potency of a drug before they buy it.

 

Of course, if you are going to add percentages to drugs, there will need to have some sort of in engine effect tied to that percentage. Purer drugs will have to somehow be superior, while diluted drugs will have to be somehow inferior. From a script perspective, I do not know how this could  be achieved. Perhaps tie the duration of the drug screen effects as well as the health and weight benefits to the drug's potency. Players who smoke extremely well-grown weed from a very experienced grower will reap more benefits compared to those who smoke skunk weed grown out of a motel bathroom.

 

As for the affects themselves, I believe that it is beneficial to reference preexisting drug systems in video games such as the Fallout chems system. Jet, hydra, buffout, psycho, turbo, steady; all of these when cleverly utilised can create a much easier player experience, yet the counter balance to this system is that these substances come with the possibility of addiction which brings it's own consequences. The game designers are simultaneously encouraging and discouraging the use of these substances which balances the player experience. I believe that this is a very good example of an in-game system temping the player to do something that has overlaying benefits with the possibility of repercussions.

 

Perhaps a more interesting addiction system could be added. A player who uses repetitively gains improved benefits, but runs the risk of experiencing negative withdrawal symptoms when they do not use for a certain amount of time. This could result in players always chasing the next line of coke, or spike of heroine, which in my opinion will render a more realistic portrayal of drugs on server compared to the current, and also improve the market in general, since there would be a base of repetitive users.

 

The specifics of my message do not have to be deployed, but If the drug system is overhauled, it is my belief that it should aim to achieve:

- A general buff to drug screen effects and their in-engine utility.

- A general increase in users.

- An increase in general drug availability.

- Heavily motivate repetitive use with repercussions when the player fails to do so.

- Allow for a more dynamic environment for those engaging in drug-based roleplay.

- Add a possibility of overdose.

- Be a more lucrative boon for organised crime on server.

 

 

 

 

 

Link to comment

As everyone mentioned availability, this wasn't the case before. Currently there is a few factors that makes drugs crazy difficult to get and that is a lack of drug suppliers.

Also the cutting up script should be introduced soon which would allow for people to play with bigger quantities of drugs. A "high" system should also be introduced where if you use weak stuff that isn't really pure it wouldn't get you as high so that more would have to be used and so on.

Link to comment

Personally feel like there needs to be a reason behind drugs and alcohol itself, for instance. If you drink way too much (so all these people who go to bars and down about 20 vodkas and act like nothings happened) have a price to pay, for instance. If you drink alot your character begins to rely on it, it deteriorates your character and you spawn with slightly lesser hp depending on how much you drink, same for drugs, and to for it to be stopped you have to seek rehabilitation or medical help.

Link to comment
1 hour ago, Kizzy said:

Personally feel like there needs to be a reason behind drugs and alcohol itself, for instance. If you drink way too much (so all these people who go to bars and down about 20 vodkas and act like nothings happened) have a price to pay, for instance. If you drink alot your character begins to rely on it, it deteriorates your character and you spawn with slightly lesser hp depending on how much you drink, same for drugs, and to for it to be stopped you have to seek rehabilitation or medical help.

Or even makes your character throw up, fall over etc. 

 

I've been working security on this server for months and I've never had to help a drunk person out of a club because they can't walk straight. 

  • Upvote 1
  • Applaud 1
Link to comment
42 minutes ago, Duke said:

Or even makes your character throw up, fall over etc. 

 

I've been working security on this server for months and I've never had to help a drunk person out of a club because they can't walk straight. 

Exactly, it literally has zero affect, same with drugs. It'd bring alot more role-play if there was an actual proper affect to it, for those whom work in hospitals, FD, local police dealing with it, security guards dealing with it and generally everybody so I couldn't see why it wouldn't be added, it adds alot of purity to the role-play. Like if you're gonna sit there and bash a load of oxy pills or cocaine and drink till the night ends there's a price to pay where as you'll find if you do that now barely anybody role-plays accordingly to harder drugs & alcohol, besides marijuana because it doesn't have a massive affect.

  • Upvote 1
Link to comment
On 10/28/2019 at 11:05 PM, Max3 said:

Ok don’t at me like that. 

Jokes aside, I don’t know a single teenager, well, besides one person, who smokes marijuana. The odor stains into your clothes and yourself. I believe there should be a way to have “dab pens” or THC vapes, using “carts”, or cartridges. Same goes for cigarettes. Only one of my friends smokes cigarettes and it’s because they are an immigrant from a country where it is very common. Most teens use them because less hits get you higher, it’s easy to conceal, it doesn’t smell, and it, honestly, looks cooler. I think that it’s kinda odd for kids and people to rp smoking weed in cars and just not rp it smelling. Every single time someone’s so much as brought unbagged weed into my car it’s left a smell for a few days. 

 

My point, it’s more common for teens and youth to use electronics to consume drugs than it is for them to smoke it, or where i’m from at least. 

 

I know this isn’t the topic at hand but just something i’ve been wanting to say

Better role-play dying from a lung disease a year or two later then if you don't know what's in it. I think that would be a cool edition but it's a pretty in depth process on creating a THC-vape and you can create them in multiple ways, some more sketchy than others. If we're talking about this from the illegal side of view, how would you get this vape? Would you need to combine the ingredients to make one or just have items spawned in labeled as a vape with THC?

Edited by Sinister
Link to comment
49 minutes ago, Sinister said:

If we're talking about this from the illegal side of view, how would you get this vape?

I live in a state where the legal age is 21. I am not above 21. I walk into the local vape shop “sup can I get pods” works every time. 

 

It could literally be an item like that at the smoke shops

Link to comment
2 minutes ago, Max3 said:

I live in a state where the legal age is 21. I am not above 21. I walk into the local vape shop “sup can I get pods” works every time. 

 

It could literally be an item like that at the smoke shops

Those are most likely black market vapes as the cannabis industry is very shady and still in a huge gray area, just because they're packaged and sold at a shop does not mean it wasn't illegally made and packaged, that's becoming the new thing that the illegal market is taking advantage of. Depending on who made them it can be loaded with bullshit or other additives and not much THC.

 

If we're looking at it from a server point of view now (where cannabis is illegal) then how would you obtain those vape carts? The same way a lot of the people are getting theirs, through people who make these things illegally.

Link to comment
Guest
This topic is now closed to further replies.
×
×
  • Create New...