Hello, this is my first post here, so please excuse me if I overlook an obvious detail or a clear flaw in my idea.
I’ve looked around for a while on the forums, and, to my surprise, I haven’t seen any suggestions on item rarity. Now, this is a relatively minor feature that of course will be implemented at a later date, so, as a sucker for rarity tiers, I would like to propose a rarity system for Unturned II. Now, at the moment, I am leaning more towards an item-type specific rarity, instead of a universal rarity.
What I mean by this is that rarity typically denotes power, but both a Matamorez and a medkit are of legendary rarity. However, they are not anywhere close to the same value. This, however, makes sense because the Matamorez is a “Legendary ranged weapon” while the medkit is a “Legendary Medicine”. They serve completely different purposes, and thus cannot be compared without making all single-use items of a lower tier. Essentially, even a Hawkhound has more overall uses than a couple of Medkits, so one could reasonably argue, with a universal system, that medkits should have an uncommon rarity.
Below is my idea for rarity tiers, loosely based on Terraria and Unturned 3.0’s system.
Broken/Compromised (Gray) - Weapons, foods, materials, etc that have reached under 5% quality will have this rarity. If this is too much of a pain to code, it could apply to junk that can occasionally be fished up, like in Terraria, or just could be found looting in trash cans and whatnot. These materials could eventually be melted down into more useful things, however, making them a little more than just inventory filler.
Common (White) - Some basic melee weapons and possibly the lowest tier of makeshift weapons (Such as spears, bows, slingshots, etc) have this rarity. Small snacks such as raw vegetables, candies, as well as basic medical supplies (ex.rags) will be considered common. Only stamina-powered vehicles like scooters and bicycles have a common rarity.
Uncommon (Green) - Basic civilian weapons such as .22 rifles, makeshift guns, and most bows would be in this rarity. More filling foods or raw meats (Though possibly less nutritious, should that system be added), such as cheese, eggs, etc, as well as cooked vegetables and bigger snacks such as chips are of this rarity. Things like bandages and basic over-the-counter medicines (Cough syrup, painkillers, vitamins, etc) are also uncommon. Basic structures like tents and the weakest tier of wood structures would be considered also fall into this tier. Basic vehicles, such as bicycles and motorbikes, would be in this category.
Rare (Blue) - Most pistols, as well as some rifles and shotguns, would be rare. In addition, more advanced foods and materials would also have this rarity, such as hardwood building materials, basic furniture, cooked meat, and bottled drinks and such. As for medical items, things like low-grade antibiotics and possibly splints or whatnot would be in this category. In addition, this category could house mid-tier clothing, like civil servant-grade shirts and vests (Firefighter, police, etc). Simple gas-powered vehicles such as civilian cars and motorbikes would be in this category. Simple furniture and structures made of hardwood would be rare.
Very Rare (Purple) - Low tier SMGs, low-tier semi-auto assault rifles and carbines and mid to high-tier shotguns would fall into this category. This grade of weapons would only spawn in high-risk locations, as to prevent players from getting them too early on. As for food and medical supplies, most canned foods and high-tier hospital medicines would be in this category. Vehicles in this category would mostly include better civilian vehicles, race cars, offroaders, and other non-military ground vehicles. As for structures, bricks and electric lighting would fall into this tier.
Epic (Magenta) - Most assault rifles, carbines, and sniper rifles would fall into this category. Only very satiating and long-lasting foods such as MRE bags and 4.0’s equivalent of a medkit would be epic. As for vehicles, military vehicles like trucks, AFVs and jeeps, as well as unarmed helicopters and planes would fall into this tier. For buildables, this rarity would include concrete materials and generators, as well as most machines.
Legendary (Yellow) - Exceptionally powerful weapons overall superior to their epic counterparts fall into this tier. In addition, most explosive weapons like rocket launchers and other raiding weapons are also Legendary. Vehicles with a legendary rarity would be similar to the ones in 3.0, like military helicopters, tanks, jets, and anti-air vehicles. Only the highest tier buildables, such as reinforced or composite structures and advanced industrial machines would fall into this tier.
Mythical (Red) - A tier reserved for only the rarest and most powerful items and vehicles. Guns in this tier would be very powerful, but would be difficult to use and very situational, unlike 3.0 (CoughShadowstalker Mk.II* Cough*) Vehicles in this tier would be very special, like transport planes, MLRS systems, advanced fighter jets and maybe, just maybe, bombers.
Unique/Exotic (Amber) - One of a kind items for quests or given as rewards. This rarity does not denote power, it simply means that the item in question is one-of-a-kind on a singleplayer world, as it can only be obtained through a quest, such as the Olive Hecate on France or the Shadowstalker Mk.II on Russia. (Save the railguns for the mods please, the Shadowstalkers are dope but they really don’t fit in a more survival-oriented game.)
Again, it’s obvious that an MRE is not equal to a Maplestrike, even though they are of the same rarity. However, as a food, an MRE is very effective, just as a maplestrike is very effective as a gun. Thus, as they both do their jobs well, they will both share the same rarity tier.
These rarities may feel a little D&D like, so if you don’t like them make sure to give suggestions in a reply!
Also, please notify me of any typos. I’ve been typing for quite a while now, so there may be some errors.
. MRE’s actually contain a huge amount of calories, up to about 1250 or so depending on the flavor, and do contain a drink mix like you said, as well as one main entree, a side entree, a carbohydrate, a fruit of some kind, and usually a dessert. The main entree and drinks (such as a coffee) do take time to heat (the entree takes 10-15 minutes for full heating) so we should have some kind of prep time, but 10-15 minutes would be kind of ridiculous (for realism’s sake 
). I like the idea of using them as storage, but I’ve genuinely tried that and they don’t hold much, or keep it in very well. The main thing you can hold with them is literally the trash that the meal creates and that’s a tight fit.