More varied changeling stings

[colossusqw]

A bit back, we had a short lived solipsizine sting, which was quickly found to be 'UH-OH' due to people stacking it with the capu sting and that being very powerful.

I really like the idea of a solip sting, and think that just having LSD and capu can feel a bit repetitive, so i have an idea:

- Make all changeling stings share the same coolodown.
- Changelings start with the regular capu/neurotox sting and one extra sting of their choice(from a predetermined list).
- Changelings can unlock further sting options with increasing DNA cost if they so choose(still sharing one cooldown).

This would both increase the variance between changeling stings, and reduce the predictability of "oh, it's a changeling again, cool" the moment the capulettium effects kick in.
I've seen people come up with sting options quite a few times on discord, and from a quick search, i've compiled some options that showed up in conversation (Edit: loosely following the theme of stuff that generally is in animal stings for most of them):

- Capu or neurotox (as the standard knockout option)

- Tetrodotoxin (as a more silent, if slower lethal option)

- Hemotoxin, Cytotoxin, Neurodepressant (as more debilitating combat options)

- LSD, Solipsizine(could still be op??), Mimicotoxin, Rajaijah(maybe???) (as options for mind messing and confusing effects)

---

Thinking about some options maybe being stronger than others:
- There could be some bigger cooldown at play when using something stronger, so you take a while to recharge from it as a balancing measure

[Lefinch]

It seems when discussing changelings I'm in a very much dissenting viewpoint, so I won't speak to the idea itself, because I appreciate discussing the changeling sting is a regular topic of conversation and it's good to talk about ideas!

One thing I'd say to remember that unless you change stings to only ever be directly on victims, changelings can (very slowly) store, poison food and drink, and/or other things with any sting chemical they get given. That could be extra fun, that could be extra "uh oh", but removing that facility entirely doesn't feel like a fun thing to do personally.

[Glamurio]

I think having a changeling specialize and "upgrade" their sting with DNA points could be a good alternative.

[Kotlol]

I would love to see different ways of the changeling chems being employed then just stinging.

Like insted of just "stinging" their more harmless stings can also be "stung" into the ground and "detonate" a gas bomb later.
Making it obivious there is a changeling, but less obivious then: "this person stood next to me when it happened."

So essentially LSD would be such a "trap"

It doesn't make sense in theming but it makes stealth more logical and makes LSD stings less a "dead give away" too.

[Silent Majority]

i would love to see sting variance

[Frank_Stein]

Hivemind Sting: Inject a member of your hivemind into someone. Their perspective stays on the person, while they can continue to use hivechat

Detectable under a health scanner as a foreign object.

After a certain time, The hivemind member can choose to eject themselves from their new host body in the form of a limb spider, stealing the hosts in the process. The longer they remain in their host without detection, the more choices they get

[freedo5]

More chemicals to play with sounds pretty good, i'm not sure about giving the sting a evolve cost though, i feel like having a single sting with multiple chems you can choose from the start could be a good way to open new playstyles for people. This way changelings would also keep the same amount of "buttons" as they already have a messy amount of abilities.

[JOELED]

Hivemind Sting: Inject a member of your hivemind into someone. Their perspective stays on the person, while they can continue to use hivechat

Detectable under a health scanner as a foreign object.

After a certain time, The hivemind member can choose to eject themselves from their new host body in the form of a limb spider, stealing the hosts in the process. The longer they remain in their host without detection, the more choices they get

This is dope

[Cal]

a needle you stick on someone that passes to the next person to touch them would be great for the whole subterfuge thing and facilitating blood tests

[Kotlol]

I do like the whole "spread the sting" thing.

A changeling that "infects' another to set off a false alarm increases tension.

Especially in RP where a single Capu sting can go super wrong with changelings as outting themselves.

I would love to see medbay having to deal with a changelings "infections" as well.
Just like the chapel and chaplain is the worst enemy of a vampire/wizard.
I would love to see Medbay being the worst enemy of a changeling and when one is arround that doctors need to go around preventing the spread.

Eitherway I do think the changeling needs more ways to mislead and cause distrust along others. Since the only way they can do it now costs quite some DNA and is too easily countered by a bloodtest and the person saying who they are. (Aka changing skin injections)