Natural Disasters {Hardmode}

Discussion in 'Suggestions' started by Delillah, Mar 16, 2016.

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Good or bad concept?

  1. Great!

    1 vote(s)
    25.0%
  2. Horrible!

    1 vote(s)
    25.0%
  3. Good, but needs work.

    1 vote(s)
    25.0%
  4. Bad, but has potential.

    1 vote(s)
    25.0%
  5. Neither good nor bad.

    0 vote(s)
    0.0%
  1. Delillah

    Delillah Space Spelunker

    In less than three days I've went from skeptical to addicted to this game, and late last night I found myself 'dreaming up' a Hardmode of sorts that would be interesting and challenging and add new things to the game. The main concept? Natural disasters!
    Just a note, nothing here should be spoilery, but read with caution! I'm in late autumn of season one.

    The Basics
    Hardmode would be entirely optional - either as something you could enable in your current save (not sure when or how - maybe it'd be a pop up at the end of the main story line (assuming there is one)? Or you could start a clean save and select it in the options. Either way, it'd never be forced on you.

    It would involve 'seasons' for various natural disasters within the normal seasons. Such a week of season x being known as 'hurricane season'. The calendar could warn this with a little icon, or the weather channel (or a special channel, like an emergency broadcast channel) could.

    Disasters would have to work on a certain percent of chance (possibly influenced by the day's luck) and be highly randomized, to try to prevent constant waves of things going wrong.

    Hurricane Season
    Roughly an in-game week of heavy rain, winds, and storminess. Every day could be like that, with a brief day of peace in the midst (the 'eye' of the hurricane). Side effects could be wind damage, flooding, fallen trees, and lightning-caused fires.
    Wind damage could uproot crops, knock down trees, and in severe cases damage structures.
    Flooding could cause areas to be temporarily blocked off, but could have a chance of leaving sea-related items (like shells or seaweed) in unusual places, like along the river.
    Fires could damage trees, and potentially spread to crops and buildings if you allow them to grow too close. Lightning rods could prevent crops and buildings from catching on fire, but without them, that could occur too.

    Tornado Season
    Probably another in-game week in another season, where there's a chance of tornadoes, which like wind damage could destroy crops, take down trees, and cause structural damage to buildings.

    Earthquake Season
    A time when earthquakes would have a chance of occurring. Buildings would run the risk of damage, but the most likely result would be areas being blocked temporarily, such as the mines. Ideally, you would be able to assist in clearing blockages (chopping broken trees, mining fallen rocks, etc) or wait it out - your choice.
    These could also cause mine collapses, which would make certain levels inaccessible for a day or two (maybe with the option to manually reach that level and clear it, with a chance of a few less common goodies hidden among the rocks?)

    Damaged Structures
    If a structure is damaged, ideally you'd have two options: hire Robin to fix it (costing money/resources and taking a little time - the cost/resources/time would probably be about half of what it takes to make the structure, or less), or repair it yourself. The latter would be a 'DIY' skill of sorts. You'd need to use energy and resources, but it'd be free and you could work on it off and on (meaning it could take less time - if you had the energy and skill - or longer, if your skill was lower and you took breaks for energy).
    Structures containing animals could result in escapees (though no animals would die or leave your farm), and you'd have to go and find them, then interact to return them home. If the structure isn't repaired by the next day, in the morning they'd be out again.

    Floods
    Floods would need to dry up on their own. They would cause the loss of nearby resources (such as washing away foraging materials), but would have the chance of leaving shells, seaweed - even fish on occasion. While you'd likely loose access to an area for a day or two, you'd be rewarded later with goodies you'd need to go to the beach or fish for. Rarer things, of course, would be less likely to spawn.

    Fires
    Fires would occur from lightning (though if a 'dry season' was added, they could also occur naturally) and would, well, burn things. Trees kept too close to buildings or crops would have the potential to spread to them and cause damage. Fires occurring in other areas would simply destroy the trees and plants then burn out. You could find charcoal as a result. The burned trees would drop their seeds, and new trees would start sprouting quickly. Likewise, the area would be a hotspot for foraging goods, which would spawn at a slightly higher rate. Fires could be put out with a upgraded watering can if caught quickly.

    Blizzards
    Blizzards would have a chance of occurring in winter and would likely just block areas briefly. Maybe with the option to hoe or shovel your way through at a small energy cost?

    Blockages
    Three types of blockages could occur - rocks (ranging from the basic one-hit rocks to the large ones requiring upgraded tools), trees (fallen logs ranging from the small one-hit logs to the large ones requiring upgraded tools) or a combination of both. You'd have the option to help clear it, working away at it like you do the junk on your farm.. or wait a few days, and it will be cleared.

    NPC Impact
    NPCs wouldn't be immune to the events. A NPC's house or store could be damaged or blocked off, complicating their life for a few days. A damaged house could leave them homeless for a few days while they have it fixed. With a high enough relationship, you could ask them to stay at your farm. If they agree, they'd move in for a couple days, and would help out around the farm (assuming they didn't have any jobs to do at the time - if their work was still functional, they'd go about that as normal), and offering a small discount on their store (if they own a business). The discount would end once they returned home. If they can't help out due to work, but don't own their own business, they could also give you a tiny bit of rent a day. Any help, payment, or discount would be small - just a little perk for helping out and encouragement to befriend everyone.
    On the otherhand, if they refuse due to a low relationship, they simply move in with another npc for a few days.
    The damages would be repaired by Robin, and she might be seen at the damaged locations fixing them.

    In Conclusion
    It would likely take quite a bit of work to implement such a mode, but I imagine it could be quite interesting. More little rewards to balance out the downfalls would be good too (ie. floods block areas but when clear can leave fishing/beach exclusive items), but the core concept would be to add an extra challenge for anyone who's beat the game and wants to try something harder. Unique achievements and items would be interesting too.

    If anyone has any suggestions, feel free to post them, and I'll add them in with credit!
     
      Last edited: Mar 16, 2016
    • Palaxar

      Palaxar Void-Bound Voyager

      I think that this would go against the developer's intent behind the game.
       

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