Real O2

Design Principles

Minimalism

All effects are applied independently, and no vanilla records are touched except notifications. Additionally, there are no external requirements for basic functionality. As far as design philosophy, the systems are designed to feel like they were always there, as much as possible.

Realism

This part is simple: You have a set amount of O2 in your pack. If you run out, you will eventually suffocate and die.

Mechanics

O2 Reserves

Your Pack now holds a set amount of O2, varying per category. Categories are as follows: • Survival - Holds just enough O2 to avoid instant death in vacuum. • Balanced - Suitable for short on-foot traversal, or vehicular exploration. • Standard - Suitable for combat encounters or light exploration. • Exploration - Holds tremendous O2 for extended planetary expeditions. Note: Removing or switching your pack while in vacuum will cost you a majority of your reserves.

Travel Restrictions

When you are drawing on Reserves, Fast Travel is no longer available in Simulation mode. Switching to Streamlined mode or disabling the mod will revert Fast Travel characteristics to vanilla.

Constant Drain

When you are in a location without breathable air, you will use O2 at a set rate. This rate is influenced by your Aerobic Fitness.

Exertion Drain

Running and sprinting will cause varying amounts of O2 usage.

Adverse Condition Drain

Extreme weather or adrenaline from combat will cause varying amounts of additional O2 usage.

Boost Uses O2

When this is enabled, Boost Jumping when in zero-atmosphere uses O2 instead of 'boost fuel'. This varies depending on the Boost Type where Power packs use the most and Skip packs use the least, as expected. Taking Boost Pack Training reduces this amount.

Punctures

In Simulation mode, taking gunfire or being bitten can cause a Puncture - instantly draining a certain amount of O2. This is mostly combated by installing Hypercure Sealant or, if Suit Up is present, using an Assault suit.

Aerobics

Aerobics is a new meta-skill derived from vanilla perks like Boxing, Fitness, Gymnastics, Wellness, Sniper Certification, and the Spaced trait. All drains will scale down to ~70% of their original as your Aerobics meta-skill increases.

CO2 Buildup

When you are drawing on your Reserves, CO2 will slowly build up over time. Improving your Anaerobic Fitness reduces CO2 buildup rate. The rate of buildup becomes higher the lower your O2 meter falls.

Asphyxiation

At very low levels of O2, you will begin taking Environmental damage. The only way to recover from this is to either enter somewhere with environment, cast Personal Atmosphere, or use an Emergency Reserve.

Kickstart

When you enter a breathable location, your O2 is quickly replenished to full and all behavior reverts to normal. All systems will be paused until you next enter an environment without breathable air.

Vehicle Interactions

While in a vehicle, O2 will (very) slowly Regenerate. If your O2 is Low when you enter the vehicle, a Kickstart will be triggered for safety.

New Items

Consumables

Heliox can be made at Pharmaceutical workbenches and will reduce O2 consumption and allow some CO2 replenishment. Emergency Reserves can be created at Industrial workbenches and will instantly replenish a large portion of your O2.

Craftable Suit Mods

Experimental Scrubbers for Packs will allow slight O2 regeneration when sitting, standing, or walking. Hypercure Sealant for Suits simply reduces the amount of O2 lost when a Puncture is caused by incoming gunfire.

Compatibility

Compatible with anything except for mods with overlapping features.

Recommendations

Atmospheric Audio is highly recommended to enhance the zero-atmosphere experience! Smarter Spacesuit Auto-hide or Configurable Spacesuit Auto-Hide are fully compatible, as are most similar mods.

Installation

Simply install with your mod manager. The mod will initialize the first time you exit your ship after installation.

Uninstallation

Simply set both Gameplay Options to Disabled before uninstalling. It is recommended to be somewhere with breathable air (e.g. inside your ship) when uninstalling.

Configuration

[SIMULATION]: Considers all modifiers and effects, and care must be taken when entering zero-atmosphere environments. [STREAMLINED] Disables all auxiliary systems - like Fast Travel restrictions - and relaxes the general scaling of O2 drains. [DISABLED] Disables the mod entirely. The Boosting Uses O2 setting is self-explanatory: on or off.

Credits

Bethesda for Starfield and the Creation Kit. TommInfinite for Real Time Form Patcher. RenamonNonaka’s Ash & Adoring Fan for accompanying me in a convenient savegame for testing.