Cleaning/Sorting zone (is it possible?)

Stonehearth is a anti-micro game, that’s why we haven’t really had any priority system. However, the most thing I’ve wanted from a priority system has often been dealing with lots of hauling jobs to be done. Those moments when there items all over the ground, clogging up the AI.

Introducing: the clean-up zone.
This keeps in style with stonehearth by giving high-level orders: I want this cleaned up, similar to how you order swats of forest to be felled. That means that it’s a non-micro solution to the problem. As for how it works, I’m not sure it is more efficient, because I don’t have the knowledge to determine that, but here goes anyway:

When you set a cleaning zone, you delete all the hauling jobs within that zone from the AI to-do list, thus de-clogging the AI. Instead of that, it adds one to-do action that says:

  1. Go to the zone with as much storage capacity as you can get (empty backpacks, a stray crate).
  2. Find things to haul inside the zone (the pathfinder doesn’t have to work as hard here.)
  3. Put them in your storage
  4. Repeat step 2 and 3.
  5. Do not leave until
    a. All your storage is full
    b. There’s nothing left to haul
    c. There are more pressing matters (hunger, fights, etc.)
  6. Take the storage with you when you leave, of course.
  7. If you had a crate, sort all its contents in the appropriate place.

What do you think, would it work, would it be a good idea?

5 Likes

Yes please! I have loot, logs, and ore scattered over half the map, despite chests placed nearby. I’m ok with micro on the logistics aspect.