# Needful things (simple additions to improve the game)

**URL:** <https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/needful-things-simple-additions-to-improve-the-game/5570>\
**Category:** The Drawing Board\
**Created:** [March 23, 2014, 10:36pm UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/needful-things-simple-additions-to-improve-the-game/5570 "2014-03-23T22:36:07Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 20\
**Page:** 58

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**Author:** ![wilson7755](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c89c15/32.png) [@wilson7755](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/wilson7755)\
**Post date:** [December 24, 2014, 5:20am UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/needful-things-simple-additions-to-improve-the-game/5570/1141 "2014-12-24T05:20:06Z")

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Make potato chips flammable.

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**Author:** ![system](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/uploads/cataclysmdda/original/1X/21b5d044e8473b25d0bf905d60477e25f6fbe0cf.png) [@system](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/system)\
**Post date:** [December 24, 2014, 11:20am UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/needful-things-simple-additions-to-improve-the-game/5570/1142 "2014-12-24T11:20:03Z")

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A description of the Japanese clothing found in dojos for people who aren’t weeaboos.

Allow the disassembly of collar pins. Rings, tie clasps, watches, and just about every other pieces of jewelry in the game can be disassembled. For some reason only collar pins can’t be. (On a similar note, the game needs cuff links.)

To go with the cuff links, some formalwear:

- Opera glasses (small, fancy binoculars)

- Opera cape

- Evening gown

- Black wingtip shoes

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**Author:** ![KA101](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/278dde/32.png) [@KA101](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/KA101)\
**Post date:** [December 24, 2014, 12:13pm UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/needful-things-simple-additions-to-improve-the-game/5570/1143 "2014-12-24T12:13:07Z")

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Only problem is that opera glasses have to be wielded (they’re the ones with the handle), so would need a tweak to the Stylish handling.

But yeah.

FWIW: tabi are socks, gi is more or less a workout version of traditional Japanese clothing, and geta are wooden shoes. IIRC an obi is a sash-sort of belt.

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**Author:** ![system](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/uploads/cataclysmdda/original/1X/21b5d044e8473b25d0bf905d60477e25f6fbe0cf.png) [@system](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/system)\
**Post date:** [December 24, 2014, 1:54pm UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/needful-things-simple-additions-to-improve-the-game/5570/1144 "2014-12-24T13:54:17Z")

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> [@KA101](#):
>
> Only problem is that opera glasses have to be wielded (they’re the ones with the handle), so would need a tweak to the Stylish handling.

Only lorgnettes have the handle. Not all opera glasses are lorgnettes. Possibly two different game items?

edit: Also, a telescope and a spyglass as alternatives to binoculars. The latter probably found in pawn shops, museums, and antique shops. And maybe a spotting scope for military bunkers/zombie soldiers.

> [@KA101](#):
>
> FWIW: tabi are socks, gi is more or less a workout version of traditional Japanese clothing, and geta are wooden shoes. IIRC an obi is a sash-sort of belt.

It would be helpful to add this to the object descriptions.

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**Author:** ![system](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/uploads/cataclysmdda/original/1X/21b5d044e8473b25d0bf905d60477e25f6fbe0cf.png) [@system](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/system)\
**Post date:** [December 24, 2014, 6:39pm UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/needful-things-simple-additions-to-improve-the-game/5570/1145 "2014-12-24T18:39:05Z")

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Duct tape clothing: duct tape jacket, duct tape pants, duct tape shoes, duct tape dress, duct tape backpack. Not very warm, should be encumbering, but early game it may be useful if you find a cache of duct tape in a drawer.

String bag: 0 volume when not in use.

Hibachi barbecue: Found in backyards and basements, small enough to be transported, can be used for cooking and heating like a small, portable wood stove. Powered by charcoal.

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**Author:** ![Okiemurse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/e79b87/32.png) [@Okiemurse](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/Okiemurse)\
**Post date:** [December 25, 2014, 6:25am UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/needful-things-simple-additions-to-improve-the-game/5570/1146 "2014-12-25T06:25:24Z")

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> [@wilson7755](#):
>
> Make potato chips flammable.

wha…w…

they’re not???

(ideas for fireproof potatochip fabrications)

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**Author:** ![Logrin](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/discourse.cataclysmdda.org/logrin/32/209_2.png) [@Logrin](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/Logrin)\
**Post date:** [December 25, 2014, 12:54pm UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/needful-things-simple-additions-to-improve-the-game/5570/1147 "2014-12-25T12:54:07Z")

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Crop tops and netting style ‘shirts’.

Rave basements complete with foam machine and neon zombies

Spotlights for eyebots to find you with

Siren for cop bots to illuminate you with

Muzzle flash from guns to draw monsters your way

A few flavor of nether-creatures that will chew on buildings/cars/items if you leave them alone

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**Author:** ![RAM](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b9bd4f/32.png) [@RAM](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/RAM)\
**Post date:** [December 25, 2014, 7:09pm UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/needful-things-simple-additions-to-improve-the-game/5570/1148 "2014-12-25T19:09:17Z")

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Events similar to the random corpse events where the various cataclysms have been fighting each other.

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**Author:** ![razor](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/discourse.cataclysmdda.org/razor/32/398_2.png) [@razor](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/razor)\
**Post date:** [December 25, 2014, 11:38pm UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/needful-things-simple-additions-to-improve-the-game/5570/1149 "2014-12-25T23:38:46Z")

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Make chain smoking an option, for those of us who have a nit fit doing any kind of crafting that takes more than a half hour.

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**Author:** ![Alasnuyo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Alasnuyo](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/Alasnuyo)\
**Post date:** [December 26, 2014, 11:43am UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/needful-things-simple-additions-to-improve-the-game/5570/1150 "2014-12-26T11:43:59Z")

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Fruitcake recipes; especially the long-lasting ones that you get by dipping in booze.

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**Author:** ![Okiemurse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/e79b87/32.png) [@Okiemurse](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/Okiemurse)\
**Post date:** [December 26, 2014, 7:01pm UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/needful-things-simple-additions-to-improve-the-game/5570/1151 "2014-12-26T19:01:28Z")

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> [@Alasnuyo](#):
>
> Fruitcake recipes; especially the long-lasting ones that you get by dipping in booze.

Seasonal!

Sugar is actually a decent antimicrobial preservative in high enough quantities. Some molds can tolerate high sugar environments but those typically can just be cut away and the underlying food is still good.

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**Author:** ![RAM](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b9bd4f/32.png) [@RAM](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/RAM)\
**Post date:** [December 26, 2014, 9:16pm UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/needful-things-simple-additions-to-improve-the-game/5570/1152 "2014-12-26T21:16:44Z")

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Fruit and vegetable irradiator.  
Jars of formaldehyde to store corpses in.

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**Author:** ![KA101](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/278dde/32.png) [@KA101](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/KA101)\
**Post date:** [December 26, 2014, 11:53pm UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/needful-things-simple-additions-to-improve-the-game/5570/1153 "2014-12-26T23:53:20Z")

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[quote=“RAM, post:1152, topic:5570”]Fruit and vegetable irradiator.  
Jars of formaldehyde to store corpses in.[/quote]

Food irradiation has been considered and rejected as requiring more energy than available to a survivor. Corpse jar, well, not sure why but wev.

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**Author:** ![mdtexeira](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ecb155/32.png) [@mdtexeira](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/mdtexeira)\
**Post date:** [December 27, 2014, 1:35am UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/needful-things-simple-additions-to-improve-the-game/5570/1154 "2014-12-27T01:35:25Z")

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But…we have plutonium cells. It seems like, assuming we’d be willing to spend some number of plutonium cells, we could justify the power output. After all, they allow us to displace ourselves in space, which I imagine requires considerably more power than irradiating a bucket of apples. That being said, running a food irradiator is pretty specialized equipment, and would definitely eat power cells.

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**Author:** ![bugsniper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e95f7d/32.png) [@bugsniper](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/bugsniper)\
**Post date:** [December 27, 2014, 2:29am UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/needful-things-simple-additions-to-improve-the-game/5570/1155 "2014-12-27T02:29:28Z")

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An explanation of how to use a sleeping bag, a sheet, a blanket, and a pillow in their description would be nice to have. Is it more useful to wear them or to drop them before sleeping?

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**Author:** ![KA101](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/278dde/32.png) [@KA101](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/KA101)\
**Post date:** [December 27, 2014, 4:06am UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/needful-things-simple-additions-to-improve-the-game/5570/1156 "2014-12-27T04:06:28Z")

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> [@bugsniper](#):
>
> An explanation of how to use a sleeping bag, a sheet, a blanket, and a pillow in their description would be nice to have. Is it more useful to wear them or to drop them before sleeping?

Drop 'em on your “bed” tile.

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**Author:** ![system](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/uploads/cataclysmdda/original/1X/21b5d044e8473b25d0bf905d60477e25f6fbe0cf.png) [@system](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/system)\
**Post date:** [December 27, 2014, 4:31am UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/needful-things-simple-additions-to-improve-the-game/5570/1157 "2014-12-27T04:31:06Z")

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Some deconstructible bric-a-brac for the largely empty labs. For example, a Jacob’s ladder, a mainframe console, panel of servers, chemical vent hood, eyewash station, emergency shower, et. all. A source of lots of scrap metal, power converters, amplifier circuits, antennas, and so on.

On the subject of labs, the desks in the warehouse rooms need some loot. I never bother to even enter the warehouse office because there’s nothing ever in there.

Since you have US flags already in the game, military bunkers, military outposts, and refugee centres should all have at least one.

More destructible salvage in general would be good: paintings which can be cut up for rags and planks, framed photos which can be disassembled for silver and paper, ashtrays which can be used as a bludgeoning weapon or smashed for ceramic shards, hargers (found in most closets) which can be cut up for wires, carpets (why are all houses hardwood flooring when carpeting is already a Thing in the game?), rugs (and bearskin rugs which can be cut up for hides), posters (of the funny, motivational, artistic, or promotional varieties) which can be cut up for paper or hung around your own base, and so on. Also, smashing walls in houses should have a chance of giving a small amount of copper wiring.

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**Author:** ![Alasnuyo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Alasnuyo](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/Alasnuyo)\
**Post date:** [December 27, 2014, 6:13am UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/needful-things-simple-additions-to-improve-the-game/5570/1158 "2014-12-27T06:13:30Z")

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Dimensional Engine: A byproduct of cutting edge research into dimensional sciences, this exotic variant of the UPS[size=7pt][1][/size] harnesses the energy differentials between realms to provide limitless energy. However, due to weakened fabric of reality in proximity of this device, the chance of incursions by extra-normal entities increases by magnitudes, stopping it from leaving the prototype stage. Now, in the dark days of the Cataclysm, it will never have the chance[size=7pt][2][/size].

[size=7pt]1. May also be installed in cars or turned into a CBM.[/size]  
[size=7pt]2. Thus, it is only found in lab finales.[/size]

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**Author:** ![blazing\_glory](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecae2f/32.png) [@blazing\_glory](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/blazing_glory)\
**Post date:** [December 27, 2014, 12:59pm UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/needful-things-simple-additions-to-improve-the-game/5570/1159 "2014-12-27T12:59:23Z")

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[quote=“Alasnuyo, post:1158, topic:5570”]Dimensional Engine: A byproduct of cutting edge research into dimensional sciences, this exotic variant of the UPS[size=7pt][1][/size] harnesses the energy differentials between realms to provide limitless energy. However, due to weakened fabric of reality in proximity of this device, the chance of incursions by extra-normal entities increases by magnitudes, stopping it from leaving the prototype stage. Now, in the dark days of the Cataclysm, it will never have the chance[size=7pt][2][/size].

[size=7pt]1. May also be installed in cars or turned into a CBM.[/size]  
[size=7pt]2. Thus, it is only found in lab finales.[/size][/quote]

Isn’t that much of a “Simple addition”.

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**Author:** ![Jakers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/3ab097/32.png) [@Jakers](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/Jakers)\
**Post date:** [December 27, 2014, 2:23pm UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/needful-things-simple-additions-to-improve-the-game/5570/1160 "2014-12-27T14:23:27Z")

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Hedge trimmer can be used to turn shrubs into decorative terrain, maybe some sort of seeds to plant shrubs for cosmetic usage.

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