/the-game/pvp
The ⚔️ tab is where Dealers.sh becomes a player versus player game. While the deal tab pits you against NPC traders, the PVP tab lets you attack real dealers who are currently in the same area as you. Successful attacks pay out in cash and stolen drugs, and the outcome moves both your reputation and your infamy.
Unlocking the tab
PVP is gated by reputation. Until your dealer hits the minimum threshold (currently 200 rep), the tab is read-only: you can browse and scout, but you cannot commit an attack. See /progression/reputation for how reputation is earned. The tab is also disabled while you are in jail or while you are sitting in a Safe House, since neither of those locations is appropriate for picking a fight.
How an attack plays out
Hitting a target moves through three short stages. First, you browse the list of nearby dealers and pick one to inspect. Second, you spy on them, which shows you what they are currently carrying and gives you a sense of the matchup. Third, you commit the attack, the transaction resolves on chain, and the chat log writes back the result.
A win pays you a portion of the target’s cash, a quantity of one drug type from their stash, an increase to your reputation, and an increase to your infamy. The exact amounts scale with the difference between your dealer and the target.
A loss is exactly what it sounds like. You walk away with nothing from the target, you lose reputation, and your infamy drops. Either way, attacking always costs you one heat and rolls for arrest at heat × 0.7% — picking fights is loud, and the cops are listening. The defender stays clean: only the attacker takes the heat.
Why infamy matters
Reputation and infamy play different roles. Reputation is the long, steady score that drives ranks and gates progress. Infamy is the PVP-specific score that controls your loot quality and your jail risk while attacking.
Better drops. On a PVP win, the attacker rolls a separate drop table for exotic items — Goods, Contraband, and Jewels — which can later be sold to Carl at the Black Market for outsized cash. The drop table is gated by infamy: the higher your infamy, the lower the no-drop chance and the higher the odds of pulling a rare item.
| Infamy band | Drop odds (none / common / uncommon / rare) |
|---|---|
| 0–9 | 40% / 60% / — / — |
| 10–19 | 35% / 50% / 15% / — |
| 20–29 | 30% / 45% / 20% / 5% |
| 30–39 | 25% / 40% / 25% / 10% |
| 40–49 | 20% / 35% / 30% / 15% |
| 50+ | 15% / 30% / 35% / 20% |
More PVP jail risk. On every PVP attack, the arrest roll picks up an extra floor(infamy / 10) × 0.5% on top of the usual heat × 0.7%. The infamy bonus caps at +2.0% once you cross 40 infamy, so each step on the loot ladder also raises the jail tax. The infamy bonus only applies to PVP attacks — PVE rolls use heat alone.
A larger target. A dealer with high infamy is a tempting target. Players actively scout high-infamy holders, because beating one is worth more reputation than beating an unknown. Infamy is therefore a tradeoff: it unlocks better drops, but it also paints a larger target on your back.
PVE vs PVP: where the value sits
The two loops are deliberately weighted against each other.
- PVE is the faster reputation lane. Every attempt resolves, you can grind up to your daily attempt budget, and a clean session walks your REP up the rank ladder steadily.
- PVP is the slower reputation lane but the only loot lane. Attacks are rate-limited by your daily attack budget (3 per day) and by the dealers actually in your area, so raw REP per session lags behind PVE. The compensation is the drop table above — Goods, Contraband, and Jewels only come from PVP wins, and the higher your infamy the better they land.
Pure PVE players climb the rank ladder fast and quietly. Pure PVP players climb more slowly but stack the exotic items that pay out at the Black Market. Most players end up doing a mix, and where you sit on that spectrum is part of how you play the game.
Etiquette and revenge
You cannot be forced into a fight. Targeting is always your decision, even if someone else attacks you first. When another dealer hits you, the event is logged into your pager so you can find them and decide whether to retaliate at a time and place that works for you. Some players track the dealers who hit them and pick them off later. Others ignore the noise and keep grinding. Both are valid.