A few months ago, a new update arrived to V2: the introduction of a brand new State Park. With this, the Department of Boating and Waterways was abolished to make way for a new agency (this time with law enforcement powers!), the Firestone Park Service (FPS), to take over and police the jurisdiction.
Per the decree of the Founder, FPS remains a “primary” department. In effect, this restricts those employed within the Park Service from joining any other major law enforcement agency, including municipal departments, the Firestone State Patrol, and Stapleton County Sheriff’s Office without resigning their position as a Ranger.
The thought process behind this decision appears to be clear: FPS is a law enforcement agency and, as such, is treated as any other department. Here’s some practical problems with that, though:
Limited Land Jurisdiction
While departments with a limited jurisdiction are certainly no stranger to V2 (see every municipal department!), the jurisdiction of the Park Service (whether it be the “primary” or “extended” variant) is incredibly small, even in comparison to some municipalities. This problem is further exacerbated when one considers that the area of the map in which the State Park and surroundings areas reside is likely one of the least used and traversed parts of the game.
While those factors would be bad enough, the effect is only compounded by the State Park’s lack of attractions. The sole factor that drives anyone into the Park is fishing; a gameplay component that doesn’t tend to allow for much engagement between the civilians and police. Other municipalities all have their special draws: Redwood is the main hub with plenty of businesses and departments, Arborfield has the bike store, Speedway, and Postal Service (a feature that is much more likely to result in law enforcement interaction), and the RAGE storage in Prominence alone makes the city an attractive venue for civilians and criminals alike.
In addition to all of these draws and many more (mainly including businesses), the cities also have car dealerships. This forces players to interact with the city they spawn in at least a little bit, even if they have no intention on staying— something that the State Park does not benefit from.
It takes no genius to understand the underlying problem; there are significantly less attractions bringing people to the State Park (and even Hillview, which FPS members are currently allowed to access as part of their “extended” jurisdiction), resulting in a less exciting and engaging gameplay experience for members of the Park Service overall.
“But wait!” you may say. “FPS legally (and per Fedlaw) has statewide jurisdiction!” While this is legally true, FPS is restricted per policy to primarily stay within the State Park and surrounding areas such as Hillview. In effect, this bars FPS Rangers from going anywhere outside of those assigned regions without receiving a specific request for mutual aid.
Lack of Pursuit Abilities
Pursuits are an integral part of V2 and the State of Firestone’s system overall. Criminals like to flee from the police, particularly in vehicles, and it happens all of the time. As a law enforcement agency, FPS is allowed to pursue fleeing vehicles— but, as often with this department, there are caveats.
The most glaring issue in this case is the lack of a rambar. Most departments (barring Prominence District Police) have a wraparound bar that allows them to pop the tires of fleeing vehicles when engaged in the pattern 3 light setting. Even the Prominence Police vehicles, which are a notorious cause for complaint among PDP members, still have a small pushbar to disable tires. Try this but ten times worse: the FPS vehicles have no rambar whatsoever. To my knowledge, this completely prevents the Park Service from popping any tires, regardless of pattern or how the vehicle collides.
Per another Fedlaw (see: Discord), FPS is also restricted in their ability to pursue. They may only join pursuits if they receive a specific request from an outside agency— much akin to the municipal departments. Furthermore, Park Service policy currently stipulates that Rangers may only pursue if a crime has been committed in the jurisdiction of the State Park or for the period of time in which a pursuit passes through FPS jurisdiction.
These two factors create an environment in which the FPS has similar authority to the municipal departments with pursuits, while having less ability to stop vehicles from fleeing. This makes it incredibly difficult for Rangers to engage in one of the most basic and frequent actions in V2.
Opportunities
Most primary departments have special divisions that may help define career goals or objectives for its members to work toward. The municipal departments have K9s, SCSO has SWAT, and FSP has ASU and ESU.
I’m sure you’ve guessed the problem by now: FPS doesn’t have this. There are no opportunities outside of the standard duties of a Ranger (bar the normal ones that every department has, like training and public relations) that Park Service members may strive toward or work with.
One could argue that this is negated by the fact that FPS would have special powers to enforce certain laws pertaining to the park system. The problem? This just… isn’t a thing in V2! To my knowledge (and feel free to correct me on this), there’s no specific law or area of specialty that Park Rangers are exclusive in their ability to enforce.
This isn’t the largest problem FPS faces: I’d elevate the two issues mentioned prior much higher on the priority list, but it’s still an important aspect to mention.
All in all, FPS faces some serious problems when it comes to its in-game implementation in V2 that restricts its members from enjoying the same level of engagement that may come with other primary departments. Rangers are stuck in a box, they can barely pursue, and there’s just not a whole lot to work to other than a basic rank.
Wait, though! There’s another large section of the department and its duties that I have failed to mention thus far:
The Maritime Aspect
What does make FPS unique in V2 is Ranger’s abilities to patrol the county’s waters and enforce maritime laws. No other primary department has this feature.
The problem might rest in that exact point, though: “no other primary department has this feature”. This is because the departments that have maritime abilities are NOT primary!
Take, for instance, the Coast Guard. As it falls under the National Guard, it is a voluntary position. This is despite its members being able to enforce maritime law, assume control over tactical situations involving watercraft, and even respond to calls on land! In its current use and implementation in V2, the Coast Guard feels like a buffed Park Service— and it doesn’t even count toward the department cap!
The other maritime enforcement unit is the Department of Corrections’ Marine Division. I feel like this is actually the most pertinent comparison to FPS. Like the Park Service, DOC: MD has a limited land jurisdiction as well as the ability to enforce the law on a certain portion of the county’s water. In power and ability, FPS and DOC:MD are incredibly similar: the difference? The Marine Division, as part of the Department of Corrections, is… secondary!
By this point, I’ve been blabbering on for way too long, so here’s the conclusion:
The Firestone Park Service is a very limited department. Its jurisdiction is small (even if you consider the maritime aspect, considering boats are not nearly as frequently used as vehicles), FPS vehicles are barely capable of pursuit in the first place (let alone before you factor in policy and Fedlaw), and there just isn’t a whole lot unique or interesting to strive for in the department.
This doesn’t mean FPS is bad, though! Even with its current implementation in V2, I have had some very fun and engaging moments as a member of the Park Service. Boating has become one of my favorite features, and sometimes the laid-back environment of the land jurisdiction can be a nice reprieve from the chaos that takes place in other parts of the map.
It should stay just that, though: a reprieve. As a primary, FPS serves as a restriction, as its members have no other options to expand their career into any other major law enforcement venue without having to resign their post in the Park Service.
As a secondary department, this problem would be mitigated. Those employed with the Park Service would be free to join whatever primary they wish for when they want to be more involved law enforcement officers, and could switch to the Park Service team whenever they’re looking for a more laid-back environment. (or just if they really feel like using the boats, like me!! 
)
There was long rumor among the members of the Park Service that some sort of loophole allowed FPS members to treat the department as two secondaries instead of one primary. This was a desperate bid from Rangers to stay employed in the department while also being able to branch out and try new, exciting ventures in other primary departments. Unfortunately, though, Fed has recently made it clear that this is not the case. (see: Discord)
While it may make more sense come V3, I hope I have made it clear that, in its current V2 implementation, there is no reason for FPS to be primary. The only thing holding the department to this standard seems to be an arbitrary idea of being a “law enforcement agency”, which doesn’t hold much water once you point out the stark contrasts between FPS and any other primary agency. It’s not like it hurts anyone, either— nobody loses. Everybody wins. Why not make the Park Service a secondary department?
The only person that can make this decision, though, is the Founder himself. So Fed, if you ever read this— please consider making FPS a secondary, at least for the rest of V2.
For the rest of you, I appreciate any support (or critiques!) regarding this topic.
Thanks for reading!
also sorry if this is written in a terrible way to read lol i did NOT revise it because i am LAZY!!
support
