Rattlesnake Jim's Sarsaparilla Plant
A small settlement built around an old Sarsaparilla plant that welcomes many ghoul transients and unwanted mutants. It is never a good idea to give offense here, as Rattlesnake Jim is pretty handy with his pre-war tech and is as quick to anger as he is to humor. His grounds are patrolled by a robotic security force and watched over by several turret emplacements, all set to murder indiscriminately on one of his impulses. Those that laugh at his jokes and help him hold up his facade however receive the best of his hospitality.
Jim's claim to fame in the Dust Bowl is his signature cocktail 'Sarsaparilla Green'. As the name suggests, his ‘soft drink’ has had a few changes due to availability of pre-war ingredients. It uses filtered and flavored water from the Reservoir but is still quite radioactive. With ghouls being his main customers, this is perfectly acceptable, however humans that make the mistake of drinking this beverage will likely end up needing medical intervention.
Certainly an acquired taste, it has gained popularity throughout the Syndicate for several reasons. Jim’s ingredients do actually provide a bit of sustenance in the form of calories, they are bottled conveniently for long trips, and probably most importantly, he adds a little cocktail of chems to each batch. At least one original ingredient from before the war has survived in bulk, the chemical preservatives stockpiled underground still the same general composition as the day they were synthesized. This Sarsaparilla secret ingredient is what keeps the beverage 'fresh' while traveling the baking sands without refrigeration.
Main Sources of Sustenance
Jim's Ugly Gumbo: Jim claims to have learned this special recipe when he was visiting Louisianna on his trip through pre-war America to 'get a little culture'. It seems much more likely that he took the name to simply mean 'whatever you got soup' and took advantage of another recognizable name. Though the chewy bits are usually snake or lizard, in desperate times it not unheard of for him to supplement the pot with boiled shoe leather. The medley of weeds that grow near the outhouse and 'septic pit' adds some fiber to the concoction, while the flavor often comes from jalapenos to cover the other tastes.
Sarsaparilla Green: RJ's signature blend of irradiated water, banana yuca syrup, and a cocktail of chems. Dangerous to humans, it is a perfectly safe pick-me-up for ghouls and mutants across the Great Dust Bowl. He has automated much of the bottling process so he has more time to drink and tell stories about the world before the Great War.
- Population- <50
- Motor Pool- A few dilapidated industrial vehicles used for clearing sand
- Security- Pre-War turrets and robots
- Leadership- Rattlesnake Jim runs a Dictatorship as the sole member of all 'official' positions
- Caps are taken for most services, including access to overnight beds and clean water. Services to non-ghouls are conveniently doubled in price to offset the cost of sourcing and maintaining radiation free supplies.
- Greenbacks can be traded here but only at five caps per bill.
- Empty Bottles are an easy way for desperate scavengers to earn a few extra caps. RJ exchanges two caps per bottle if they are in good condition. This means no cracks or chips and it can never have been used as a spittoon.
- Pre-war Money is sometimes the only currency accepted, but this is usually when Jim is having his 'waking feral dreams' and in a bit of a fugue state. Those that manage to catch him in this mood must tread extra careful, (denouncing the non-existent American government is usually a good idea), but can get a nice stash of supplies for practically nothing in exchange.
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