Steady Hands Sarsaparilla
 | |
| Type | Vending Machine |
|---|---|
| Family | Map Furniture (Interactive) |
| Brand | Catastropop™ (Endtimes Bottling Co.) |
| Product | Steady Hands Sarsaparilla™ (Vanilla Smash) |
| Tagline | “Because accuracy is sexy.” |
| Interact range | 16 units |
| On-screen prompt | Press [E] to upgrade handling for {cost} |
| Interact time | Instant |
| Cooldown | None |
| Cost formula | 1000 * (perks.handling + 1) |
| Rounding | round(cost / 25) * 25 (to nearest 25) |
| Scaling vars | Current Handling perk (same as uses) |
| Effect | Increases the Handling perk by +1 (reduces recoil, spread/drift, and screen shake) |
| Effect expression | perks.handling += 1 |
| Limits | No explicit max set (practically capped by cost curve) |
| Stacks? | Yes (linear perk increments) |
| Sounds | sndBuy, sndPowerDrink |
| System hooks | Spawns drink entity (sDamageDrink); consumes Score |
| Appears on | All current maps |
| First appearance | DEAD (v1.0) |
| Notes | Applies globally to all weapons via the handling perk in firing math. |
- Steady Hands Sarsaparilla
- “Because accuracy is sexy.”
Overview
Steady Hands Sarsaparilla buffs your **Handling** perk, smoothing out weapon behaviour across the board. Each purchase adds **+1 Handling**, which reduces recoil kick, tightens bullet drift/spread, and tones down camera shake — turning rowdy boomsticks into well-behaved lasers.
Mechanics
- **Interact range:** 16 units.
- **Interaction:** Instant; spawns a drink entity and applies the perk immediately.
- **Scope:** Handling perks affect **all weapons**, including Beast variants.
- **Audio:** **sndBuy** on purchase, **sndPowerDrink** on drink.
Cost
- **Formula:** `
cost = 1000 * (perks.handling + 1)` - **Rounding:** `
cost = round(cost / 25) * 25` → price is a multiple of **25**. - **Scaling:** Linear with your current Handling level — pricier the steadier you get.
Effect
- **Per purchase:** `perks.handling += 1`
- **In practice:** Reduces weapon **recoil**, narrows **drift/spread**, and lowers **camera shake** via the game’s firing calculations.
- **Global:** Benefits every gun you pick up afterward.
Strategy
- **Tames heavy hitters:** Makes high-recoil weapons (LMGs, battle rifles, hand cannons) far more viable, especially at range.
- **Point efficiency:** Better accuracy = fewer wasted bullets → **fewer shots per kill** → **higher point yield** under your scoring rules.
- **Order of operations:** A couple ranks of Handling before big Beast upgrades can multiply their value (all that new power stays on target).
- **Pair with:** Kaboom Kola (damage) to convert steadiness into lethal TTKs; Fleet Feet Fizz (speed) for safer kiting while ADS.
Trivia
- The drink entity currently uses the sprite **`sDamageDrink`** — the handling and damage drink sprites were **swapped in development** because the art “fit better the other way around.” The internal names just never got renamed.
- Early names on the whiteboard included “**Grip Juice**,” “**Laser Hands**,” and “**Calm-A-Cola**.” Steady Hands Sarsaparilla won for maximum yee-haw energy.