# Way to diagnose parasites in game

**URL:** <https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/way-to-diagnose-parasites-in-game/23612>\
**Category:** The Bunker\
**Tags:** spoilers\
**Created:** [May 11, 2020, 1:26am UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/way-to-diagnose-parasites-in-game/23612 "2020-05-11T01:26:06Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 15\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Tinn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/59ef9b/32.png) [@Tinn](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/Tinn)\
**Post date:** [May 11, 2020, 1:26am UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/way-to-diagnose-parasites-in-game/23612/1 "2020-05-11T01:26:06Z")

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Is there any way to diagnose fungal infections and parasites other than the blood analysis CBM?

I ask because my own experience was a little immersion-breaking. See, when I started getting “your skin itches” messages for one of my characters, I checked by @ screen for conditions; finding none, I assumed that it was just a flavour message and moved on with play. It wasn’t until I’d played for a while that I started thinking it was weird I was getting the same message over and over again - but, since there was no obvious way to find out what it meant from inside the game, I alt+tabbed to my browser and googled it.

_That_ was how I found out that parasites were a thing, and that my character needed anti-parasitic drugs: By alt+tabbing away from the game and looking it up on the game wiki. It was a rather immersion-breaking way to find out.

Of course, I also learned from the wiki that you can use the blood analysis CBM to diagnose this condition, but I couldn’t help but feel there should’ve been some other way to diagnose it - like, maybe the condition should appear on your @ screen if you have enough ranks in the First Aid skill to recognise the symptoms, or there should be books in the world that mention the itching symptom and explain what it might mean, so that players can learn to recognise the condition in themselves.

Then it occurred to me that maybe there already _are_ ways to learn about these conditions from within the game, and that I should probably ask before making a new feature request. Are there any?

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**Author:** ![Ragno](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/discourse.cataclysmdda.org/ragno/32/5935_2.png) [@Ragno](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/Ragno)\
**Post date:** [May 11, 2020, 2:51am UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/way-to-diagnose-parasites-in-game/23612/2 "2020-05-11T02:51:02Z")

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AFAIK, just the symptoms and the message you get from then, like always hungry, itches, or in the case of the feared brain worm, hallucination and then death

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**Author:** ![mentos046](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/discourse.cataclysmdda.org/mentos046/32/11932_2.png) [@mentos046](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/mentos046)\
**Post date:** [May 11, 2020, 3:02am UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/way-to-diagnose-parasites-in-game/23612/3 "2020-05-11T03:02:21Z")

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I don’t know about ways to explicitly diagnose, but fungal infections will always tell you “You smell and taste mushrooms” at early stages and “You vomit up a thick, gray goo” at later stages. If you get any other messages and _don’t_ get one of those two, and there’s nothing in @, it’s probably a safe assumption that it’s a parasite. Or radiation. I haven’t seen radiation in quite a while though, so I don’t know about what it does these days.

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**Author:** ![Trigon](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/discourse.cataclysmdda.org/trigon/32/2668_2.png) [@Trigon](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/Trigon)\
**Post date:** [May 11, 2020, 4:25am UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/way-to-diagnose-parasites-in-game/23612/4 "2020-05-11T04:25:21Z")

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Rango’s answer is correct. You just have to keep an eye out for symptoms. I _think_ there are survivor notes that describe being infected with parasites or fungus, but those are entirely random.

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**Author:** ![Valase](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/discourse.cataclysmdda.org/valase/32/6972_2.png) [@Valase](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/Valase)\
**Post date:** [May 11, 2020, 4:50am UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/way-to-diagnose-parasites-in-game/23612/5 "2020-05-11T04:50:00Z")

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> [@Trigon](#):
>
> I _think_ there are survivor notes that describe being infected with parasites or fungus […]

I was going to state the same thing, but apparently (searching the code for “parasite”) there’s only a bogus one (“apply sand and vodka”).

Also, there’s a reference in the game’s internal FAQ (`ESC`, `0` View Help, `4` FAQ).  
But yeah, the game basically forces you to check outside of the game for the source of those symptoms. And seeing that, I do agree; there should be at least some reference (survivor notes, flyers/fliers, newspaper, computers, descriptions on antiparasitic drugs) in the game pointing out that you…

1. can get parasites by consuming raw meat/vegetables, and
2. may have parasites if you feel symptoms like … .

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**Author:** ![Zhilkin](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/discourse.cataclysmdda.org/zhilkin/32/3749_2.png) [@Zhilkin](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/Zhilkin)\
**Post date:** [May 11, 2020, 6:18am UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/way-to-diagnose-parasites-in-game/23612/6 "2020-05-11T06:18:07Z")

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Game did nothing to break immersion. It was completely the opposite.

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**Author:** ![Tinn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/59ef9b/32.png) [@Tinn](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/Tinn)\
**Post date:** [May 11, 2020, 10:44am UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/way-to-diagnose-parasites-in-game/23612/7 "2020-05-11T10:44:17Z")

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From what you’ve all said, it sounds like there really isn’t any way for a player to know what these messages mean without leaving the game, thus breaking immersion. Thanks! I’ll file a bug report.

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**Author:** ![M1nks](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/discourse.cataclysmdda.org/m1nks/32/8247_2.png) [@M1nks](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/M1nks)\
**Post date:** [May 13, 2020, 7:22am UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/way-to-diagnose-parasites-in-game/23612/8 "2020-05-13T07:22:12Z")

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How on earth is it a game bug for you not to magically know exactly what’s wrong with you when you start feeling a little strange?

When I have a upset tummy or start having dizzy spells or getting headaches irl I don’t consult am internal status window to find out what the problem is; I think over what I’ve been doing/eating recently and try to figure it out. The symptoms are your warning system and it’s not like you need to be a Sherlock Holmes to figure them out. There’s only so many things it can be. Experience would teach you or you can go and look online if you want to know without doing the research yourself.

The game doesn’t ‘force you’ to go and check it on Google. If you do that it’s entirely on you.

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**Author:** ![Tinn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/59ef9b/32.png) [@Tinn](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/Tinn)\
**Post date:** [May 13, 2020, 7:53am UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/way-to-diagnose-parasites-in-game/23612/9 "2020-05-13T07:53:15Z")

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> [@M1nks](#):
>
> How on earth is it a game bug for you not to magically know exactly what’s wrong with you when you start feeling a little strange?

I agree, it’s _not_ a game bug for you not to magically know exactly what’s wrong with you when you start feeling a little strange.

The bug _isn’t_ that the player doesn’t get the information _for free,_ it’s that the player can’t get the information from the game _at all,_ regardless how many characters they make and lose or what avenues of investigation they pursue.

To handle these conditions, a player needs to be able to:  
A) Identify or guess the condition they have, and  
B) Identify or guess a cure for that condition.  
To achieve A), there need to be sufficient clues in the game for them to narrow it down - and in the case of some diseases, there currently aren’t. Similarly, to achieve B), there need to be sufficient clues in the game that allow them to connect the condition they think they have with whatever curative method it requires.

Let’s take blood worms as an example, since that’s the one I’m most familiar with. The only clue the player gets as to this specific disease is the message “your veins itch.” A player will probably surmise guess that this message indicates something, and might even guess that it’s caused by an illness of some kind, but there’s no further information available about what specific illness it is, as there’s no information about illnesses and their symptoms in the game. The cure for bloodworms is anti-parasitic medication - but there’s no clue in the game that suggests that this particular illness is caused by parasites, and so no clue that the player could use to identify that medication as being the correct cure.

Tl;dr: The bug is that even Sherlock Holmes couldn’t identify these diseases from the clues the game provides. Even knowing the answer in advance, I can’t come up with a chain of reasoning that starts with “your veins itch” and ends with “I need to take anti-parasitic medication” and doesn’t involve checking Google.

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**Author:** ![games\_and\_glory](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/discourse.cataclysmdda.org/games_and_glory/32/9543_2.png) [@games\_and\_glory](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/games_and_glory)\
**Post date:** [July 15, 2020, 9:47am UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/way-to-diagnose-parasites-in-game/23612/10 "2020-07-15T09:47:46Z")

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I for some reason can ALWAYS see my EXACT amount of radiation in @ menu

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**Author:** ![GiggleGrassGatherer](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/discourse.cataclysmdda.org/gigglegrassgatherer/32/7743_2.png) [@GiggleGrassGatherer](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/GiggleGrassGatherer)\
**Post date:** [July 15, 2020, 10:05am UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/way-to-diagnose-parasites-in-game/23612/11 "2020-07-15T10:05:03Z")

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It is an old bug.  
(Post must be at least 20 characters)

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**Author:** ![Valase](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/discourse.cataclysmdda.org/valase/32/6972_2.png) [@Valase](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/Valase)\
**Post date:** [July 15, 2020, 10:10am UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/way-to-diagnose-parasites-in-game/23612/12 "2020-07-15T10:10:30Z")

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This should no longer be the case as of some newer versions (just (re-)verified, I can’t see the radiation anymore).

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**Author:** ![games\_and\_glory](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/discourse.cataclysmdda.org/games_and_glory/32/9543_2.png) [@games\_and\_glory](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/games_and_glory)\
**Post date:** [July 15, 2020, 10:12am UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/way-to-diagnose-parasites-in-game/23612/13 "2020-07-15T10:12:23Z")

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It happens with me for some reason I’m not even using experimental maybe one of my mods did that but all of my mods are content mods with the exception of 2 that are installed by default so I dunno

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**Author:** ![Valase](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/discourse.cataclysmdda.org/valase/32/6972_2.png) [@Valase](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/Valase)\
**Post date:** [July 15, 2020, 10:13am UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/way-to-diagnose-parasites-in-game/23612/14 "2020-07-15T10:13:53Z")

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> [@games\_and\_glory](#):
>
> […] I’m not even using experimental […]

Well, there’s the problem, since it’s fixed in experimental…

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**Author:** ![games\_and\_glory](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex016/user_avatar/discourse.cataclysmdda.org/games_and_glory/32/9543_2.png) [@games\_and\_glory](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/u/games_and_glory)\
**Post date:** [July 15, 2020, 10:17am UTC](https://discourse.cataclysmdda.org/t/way-to-diagnose-parasites-in-game/23612/15 "2020-07-15T10:17:06Z")

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well I’m using stable as there are less bugs in total and the ones there are are less gamebreaking (The bug with it counting you as always running in terms of calorie usage (yes I know that was fixed in later experimentals, but It would have ended my run If it happened during the period that bug was around))