Despair Pills
- Template
- Artifact
- Status
- Canon
- Kind
- Substance
1. Summary
Despair Pills are an experimental medication developed by Schwarzwald researchers as a partial pharmaceutical approximation of the Indigenous preparation. They help control the despair and perceptual deterioration caused by exposure to hazardous information, but they never remove the knowledge that caused it.
2. Origin
Schwarzwald initiated research intended to reverse engineer the indigenous substance. The objective was to identify and reproduce the properties that improved tolerance to dangerous information. The research produced an imperfect approximation. This result eventually became the experimental medication known informally as Despair Pills.
These compounds were investigated partly for their potential to alter resistance to extraordinary experiences and related anomalous hazards.
Despair Pills are not identical to the Indigenous preparation.
Their effects, risks, and pharmacological mechanisms are subjects of separate research. Friedrich's part in this research: See: Characters › Friedrich.
Their partial protection against the Skull Helmet: See: Artifacts and Technology › Skull Helmet.
2.1 The Name
The nickname originated among personnel working in sectors associated with memetic hazards and psychological distress. The name reflects their purpose: helping personnel control the despair and perceptual deterioration associated with exposure to hazardous information.
3. Nature and Properties
Despair Pills are a treatment for the consequences of dangerous knowledge, not a method of forgetting that knowledge. They reduce current hallucinations without removing acquired knowledge, and their effect is not fixed.
Unlike the original indigenous preparation, which is drunk and transforms tolerance, the pills only control the symptoms.
4. History and Custody
The pills were used by Schwarzwald personnel working in sectors associated with memetic hazards. Some remain in the Emergency Refuge Chambers where people tried to survive the disaster.
See: Systems › Persistent Consequences
Where else Edmund may find them: See: Systems › Information Hazard
5. Role in the Game
Despair Pills are the principal early- and mid-game intervention against hallucinations, including recovery after terminal information collapse. Their probabilistic effect, their use as consumables and their place in recovery are rules of the information hazard system.
6. Open Questions
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