Finally, after 18 alphas, infection is actually dangerous now. I just had one of the most intense playthroughs of my life due to the infection mechanic.
I got infected on day 3. At first I looked everywhere for honey, thinking it would cure it no problem. I look for "honey" at the trader's, but can't find any in his inventory. After doing 3 buried supplies quests and looting some houses, I found one jar and realised it only cures 5% (I was at 20% already, I think).
"Oh crap", I think. I need antibiotics. How in the heck do I get some? I had looked through 2 towns and found no pharmacies. I was panicking in a bookstore when I suddenly found the antibiotics recipe. I was so damn relieved, until I realised that I needed 10 frigging sham sandwiches.
I then spent the next 3 days looking for sandwiches. I looked through several houses, many garbage dumps and barns. I had only found 6. It was already horde night and I was at 60% infection already. I tried, in my agonal situation, to loot a shamway's factory I had found, but couldn't bring myself to go too deep inside. Waaay too many zombies, it was impossible.
I climbed the building up to one of the towers to hide from the hordenight. While up there, I did think of jumping, but luckily I found the big stash which had 3 sandwiches. I had 9 in total. There was still hope. The horde came and the ♥♥♥♥ers managed to get to the base of the tower and break it down just as I was getting off of it. After getting cornered by some zombies and a vulture, I got out with a little over 10 hp and a broken leg.
I then spent the following 2 days looking for a sandwich that never came. I had 9 sandwiches, I was at 80% infection and I had given up any hope. Ready to die, I decided to just walk away into the distance to either find a miracle or disappear forever.
Then the miracle happened, as I was staring into a giant red cross painted over a small, oval-like metal structure in a military camp. Indeed I managed to find one antibiotic in there, after fighting the locals. Problem was, that antibiotics only cure 25 frigging % of the infection...
I was bummed, not gonna lie, but it did give me hope and time to find the second miracle. A giant blue cross not too far from where I was. Yes, a damn hospital was there. I couldn't believe my eyes. It took me around 2 days and many arrows/bullets to scavenge it all. It was painful, it was dangerous and intense, but I did get out with 2 antibiotics.
If you believe God makes miracles, you have to wonder if Satan has a few up his sleeves. Even after all of that, I realised the antibiotics were only gonna cure the infection down to 2.3%, and I had nothing else to cure it completely. I had scavenged 4 towns and there was nowhere else to look. I could look for that last sandwich, but I really didn't want to waste more time looking for a damn rotten sandwich. I head home, almost ready to kill myself, but I decide to check the trader out first (just in case).
The ♥♥♥♥er had a jar of honey with him since day 3, when I got infected. I had looked for "honey" instead of "jar of honey", and that's why I hadn't seen it. I head home to get my money, come back and I was back at 3.1%. I buy the jar, sell it again accidentaly because I'm so damn nervous, buy it again and finally, after 12 days of agony, cure the damn infection.
Never have I ever had such an experience in this game. I'm sure I'll immediately get killed by a cougar or something next time I hop in, though.
BTW, the suggestion: For the love of all goodness, make it so sandwiches are a bit more common. It's ridiculous to have them spawn in shamway boxes only, especially when you need 10 if you have a chem station and 40 if you don't...
Thanks to anyone that sat through my story!