Targetted research with specific workbenches, eg Electronics Workbench

[DarkUnderlord]

So I usually play solo and on a relatively high pop server. Also, I suck at PVP and my chances of finding items to research and getting them back to base is fairly limited. And I'm usually joining a few days after server wipe when there are already several high level clans who have all the guns and shit and are camping their roof bases with bolters around all the monuments.

And all I wanted was a pair of pants.

At the moment, research is random and fairly haphazard. There's no real research tree or way to target what you want to research unless you have managed to find the actual item itself. Without the item, you need one of the 3 workbenches... and 80 metric fuck tonnes of scrap.

My suggestion is, that instead of Workbench Level 1, 2 and 3, have:

Clothing Workbench - use cloth, leather, sewing kits, and scrap to discover new clothing items! What you can discover depends on what you put in. EG: Only cloth means you only get cloth recipes. Only leather means you only get leather gear. Obviously it needs space for all 4 items (cloth, leather, sewing kits, scrap). Make sure to fill up all 4 to research your various armoured bits. No-one (or maybe it's just me) wants to spend hundreds of scrap just to research pants. Pantsless role-players can then get the pants they want, while high level roof campers can happily go for their armour.

Electronics Workbench - use scrap (and maybe some high quality metal) to discover all the new electronic thingamajiggers in the game.

Weapons Workbench - Scrap, high qual, maybe gears and springs to find that weapon blueprint you're after.

Ammunition Workbench - Sulfur and scrap to discover everything from rockets to the different types of ammo.

Construction Workbench - Use the different building materials with scrap to discover armoured doors, traps, ladders, high stone walls.

Tools Workbench, Furniture Workbench, Medical Workbench...

... and so on for anything I've missed.

This way, the idea is you can build the workbench you want and depending on the resources you put in, target what blueprints you get. It'll still be random but it allows silly role-players like me the chance to get a table and chair blueprint (so we can use that nice skin we bought), while allowing PVPers to focus on guns and ammo and shooting us. With the only other option being to find an actual ladder, or table, or chair somewhere and research it.

Want to play with electronics? Build an Electronics Workbench - guaranteed electronics parts only. You still need to find scrap (and maybe other materials), but it at least allows you to target that area of research.

Mix up the research requirements as necessary so you still need to scavenge and leave your base, but it allows scrub useless noob players like me who can't shoot straight the chance to wear pants and maybe put in some armoured doors with a ladder hatch entry. Without having to spend thousands of scrap researching a hundred other things I'll never use properly anyway.

[hardcorefs]

Every so often a crack in the ground opens up and someone escapes from hell with a stupid idea.

you forgot:
a skinning bench to skin and harvest animals
a mining bench
a farming bench for food.

you would have to live in a 3 floor mansion just for the floorspace for all the benches.