Fungus Farm (Patreon)

It could be said that nothing grows in Kuserra.  Anyone that says that is only mostly correct.

It's true that living, photosynthesizing plants are rare enough in the city to be thought completely extinct, however mosses, molds, lichens, and breeds of fungus CAN be found in certain places of the city, if you know where to look for them.

The same toxins in the soil that prevent most plants from growing also get absorbed by these fungi, however, so they make for a terrible and often deadly meal, but fungus still forms the foundation for a thriving industry of drugs and narcotics.  Handled by a carefully practiced and knowledgeable harvester and treated properly by a careful distiller or apothecary, mushroom caps can be crushed into a must and fermented into a mildly pleasant fizzy booze that has only mild and (usually) temporary side-effects. This is where most of Kuserra's booze comes from, brewed right in the city.

Using other techniques, different varieties of fungus can also be tweaked to induce or emphasize other effects.  It can be made into a painkilling concoction, a sleep aid, a paralyzing drug, a steroid (of sorts,) and some breeds are even powerful hallucinogens if treated properly.

Most of these drugs are dangerously addictive, however, even in small doses.

When fungus is mishandled, the imbiber risks the horrible and catastrophic symptoms usually associated with acute poisoning, up to and including rapid brain death.

(Anyhoo, kind of a rough sketch today.  Trying to get the house ready for the parents' visit this weekend!  Speaking of which, probably no comic next Wednesday, since I'll be hanging with the folks!)