Animal Ranching and Skill Trees

We're well in to summer (if you're in the northern hemisphere, at least), and this month I’ll be sharing updates on animal ranching and skill trees.

After completing a quest from Mrs. Brown, you’ll be able to purchase chicks, lambs, piglets, and calves. Given time, food, and attention - these younglings will grow into their adult forms. Adult animals can produce goods, like eggs, wool, milk, etc.

Once animals reach adulthood, they gain a set of traits. Traits are special modifiers that are unique to individual animals. Some of these traits are beneficial, like Gourmand - This animal eats more, and produces more. On the other hand, some traits are less desired: Stinky - This animal gives off an unpleasant odour.

Adult animals can mate with each other to produce offspring. Offspring get their own traits but can also inherit them from their parents. Beneficial traits are more likely to be inherited, so go wild in trying to cultivate the perfect breed.

The livestock purchased from Mrs. Brown will have randomized traits, that way you won’t be stuck with unwanted traits forever.

Here are some of the traits for example:

• Chatty - This animal is more vocal than others.

• Magnificent - This animal rewards more experience when checking for produce.

• Stinky - This animal generates more dirt.

• Poopy - This animal generates more poop.

• Hyper - This animal is faster than others.

• Shiny - This animal has a higher chance of producing higher quality produce.

• Sluggish - This animal is slower than others.

• Night Owl - This animal doesn’t sleep during the night.

• Sleepy - This animal sleeps more during the day.

• Snob - This animal eats less and produces less.

• Glutton - This animal eats more and produces more.

• Big Boned - This animal eats more, and produces faster.

• Melancholic - This animal tends to be in a poor mood.

• Jovial - This animal tends to be in high spirits.

• Mellow - This animal doesn’t get affected by mood swings as much.

I’ve also spent some time improving the current XP system. Previously, doing a certain activity e.g. chopping a tree would reward you with woodcutting experience, which you then could use to unlock woodcutting talents.

I've reworked it so that experience won't be siloed to the specific activity your doing, so you'll be able to gain experience from everything, and the talent points are global so you can use it for any skill tree you want to advance.

Here’s a look into the talent tree for woodcutting skill 🌲

• Backcut II - Energy cost for using axes reduced by 1 (requires Backcut I)

• Second Wind I - After felling a tree, instantly restore 10% of the energy used to cut that tree.

• Second Wind II - After felling a tree, instantly restore 20% of the energy used to cut that tree. (requires Second Wind I)

• Second Wind III - After felling a tree, instantly restore 30% of the energy used to cut that tree. (requires Second Wind II)

• Timber I - Swing axes faster. (requires Second Wind I)

• Timber II - Swing axes even faster. (requires Timber I)

• Aboreal Aptitude - Chance of receiving loot whilst chopping a tree increased by 10%. (requires Timber I)

• Treesplitter I - Chance of getting an additional drop increased by 25%. (requires Timber I)

• Treesplitter II - Chance of getting an additional drop increased by 25%. (requires Treesplitter I, Second Wind III)

• Treesplitter III - Chance of getting an additional drop increased by 25%. (requires Treesplitter II)

• Treehugger I - Stumped trees have a regrowth rate of 50%. (requires Timber II)

You can gain experience from harvesting blood from humans, chopping trees, fishing, and serving guests. The skills you can spend your talent points on are woodcutting, farming, fishing, mining, and vampirism.

There have been loads of updates since I first put the Steam store up, so I thought it was a good time to update some of the gameplay screenshots. If you've been following the blog every month (you're amazing ✨) these will look a little familiar:

Thank you to everyone that’s shown interest in playtesting the demo! I’ll be reaching out accordingly on Discord when the time is right. As always, if you're interested, please join our Discord and let me know!

Boris

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