The Bar Bazaar, or: Wasted Space, Numero Uno

[Nnystyxx]

Okay, so. Nobody uses the bar tables. At least, not in their current configuration. They're grey and nasty lookin' compared to the bar itself and all I really use them for is to nick a spoon or something, or some salt for the wraith/making hobo charcoal. Step one: remove them. Just. . just remove them, first, before we do anything else. Roll with this.


For your consideration: the bar with no tables. Albeit, the carpet got a little fucked up and TVs are really annoying to remove since they work like camera computers, but don't mind that for now. 

That leaves us with a bunch of extra space on those carpets. Notably, there's prime real estate in those L-shaped blank areas against the walls to put stuff nobody would end up bumping into by accident when going any which way on the station. Wowee!! So, what do we do with it?

Lately, we've been talking about money and how the common spaceman needs way more ways to spend it. Who do you give money to? Vendors. Where are we? Space. Where would space vendors probably go, if they had a choice? Not the catering freezer aisle, nor the. . uhh. . bit sticking off of those bomb-making scientists' den, but a bar. A space bar. And we happen to have a space bar.


For your further consideration: the exact same screenshot with some shitty lines drawn on. Purple is tables, blue is telepads.

Basically, what I'm suggesting is: change the bottom corners of the bar into little trader posts. Possibly more open-air than this so that people can access the sale/receive telepad (or just put it outside the table itself), but still. Maybe put some cute tents/booths in there so it has sort of an eastern feel.

Traders would periodically spawn with similar or slightly higher frequency, yet potentially quicker turnover, than the merchant shuttles we have now. They'd sell similar items (+ an expanded range based on what the community could think of; go ahead and suggest stuff in the replies!) to the current merchants.

If you murder them, the rate slows dramatically, or they just stop showing up. The two 'pads are on asynchronous times, so you might have one, two, or no traders there at any given time, but they show up frequently enough to not be spine-numbingly boring waiting for them. 

To notify their presence, there could be a stationwide announcement, or some sort of mailbot all crew members could opt into by messaging it, causing it to ping them when a trader arrives or leaves at the bar.

The purpose of this whole thing would be to add some life & substance to the bar (other than, well, dying from drinking/eating weird stuff and getting bombed) and a purpose for people's money. The current traders are sort of prohibitive to reach without corporate sabotage/breaking & entering (being in that never-entered back area of catering and the research dock, respectively), and the debris field is very!! dangerous!!!!. So why not invite the cool guys in, let them have a drink? A drink that may or may not be poison, but is certainly on us?

Anyway that's all I wrote a lot more than I expected to about this.

[poland spring]

I am so down with this, I barely use the traders now because of their locations, and have never seen anyone do stuff with those tables.

[Noah Buttes]

I'd like to see this be in addition to the merchant shuttles rather than outright replacing them so we can have short turnover + long turnover merchants at the same time.

[Nnystyxx]

Yeah, I see no reason to remove the merchant shuttles (last thing we need is more unused docks, unless there was a real good replacement). We can't add money sinks and remove them at the same time, that'd be rude.

[Frank_Stein]

Personally, I like the design on the right better, but move it down one tile and add chairs. The bushes should be moved closer to the doors. 

I wish there was a good table for playing cards in there though. There's not enough gambling for a bar.

[Nnystyxx]

I will have another demonstration picture soon enough based on your suggestion, Frank_Stein

[misto]

the merchants coming here or somewhere nearer the qm/public market zone would be a big improvement. i doubt they get many customers with their current docks

[Nnystyxx]

How does this look? I couldn't get an admin to move the shrubberies and someone I think ate Bill but close enough. Is this what you meant, Frank_Stein

[Frank_Stein]

How does this look? I couldn't get an admin to move the shrubberies and someone I think ate Bill but close enough. Is this what you meant, Frank_Stein

Exactly. Gives the merchants space, keeps you clear of foot traffic, and the tables can still be eaten off of. 

Maybe the one table nearest the window on the right and it's mirrored side could be kept open so you can go back behind there easily, but perfect arrangement imo

[Nnystyxx]

I like it too because it gives another surface for people to lay out stuff and play around on that doesn't start pre-cluttered
I wasn't sure about having a way to go in the back but probably makes sense, people could hijack it as their own merchant stand possibly

Ideally I wanted it to use the bar tables but I couldn't get more

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Here you go, for your consideration
I disassembled the bar to get nice tables and couldn't put the light fixtures back on so it has mood lighting now

[Boon Yoon]

I like this design, and hey I'm in one of the screenshots! The addition of chairs is very necessary for bar fights.

My only concern over this redesign is I won't be able to cheaply use the bushes by the entrance to beat people up as effectively as before. Maybe move the bushes directly adjacent to the doors or somewhere not blocked from the paths of action.

[Nnystyxx]

Wooden chairs can't be picked up, regrettably. And yeah, I was trying to get those bushes moved to the doors, Boon, but they can't be moved by normal human powers and the admins didn't answer any of my prayers to scoot them around and also I don't feel like editing it.

So yeah. It'd be nice if we could unscrew bushes/shrubs/etc like we can other things (metal chairs for one), they clearly have to be in a plant pot of some sort.

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I wish there was something though, like a bar door, just a slight adjoining thing so the space wouldn't feel weirdly empty against the windows. Those ones that swing up/whatever.

[misto]

wooden chairs should be able to be picked up and smashed over ppl, and they break into wood planks and those "pieces of wood" decoration things you see around occasionally.

[The Grim Sleeper]

Counterpoint: these 2 are rarely used:
http://wiki.ss13.co/images/3/39/PublicMarket.png

I like the idea of making NPC traders more accessible, but overhauling the bar seems like a bad place to start.
And there isn't technically anything stopping Players from setting up shop in the bar, the Credit transfer device is right there on the bar.

[Noah Buttes]

Counterpoint: these 2 are rarely used:
http://wiki.ss13.co/images/3/39/PublicMarket.png

I use them for selling illegal contraband that's been mass produced in mechanics.