I’m fairly excited about the potential of the new step in starting a campaign. The most interesting part to me is the general store. Part of the reason for that is the potential to start play in different ways and in different parts of the map.
Items you can buy
So far there hasn’t really been much said about what you’ll be able to buy, except that there will be some tools, some pets and probably some resources in packs. I have some suggestions!
- There should very definitely be a starting tool which you can choose from a list of 3 tools which will allow you to eventually get any other tool. Arguments for this are below (it’s kind of long).
- A secondary tool: Stuff like a Farmer’s Hoe, Trapper’s Knife and such which you can’t unlock other classes with. You could potentially get a couple of these if you didn’t mind gimping your other choices.
- Pets: I’m guessing kittens and puppies and wyverns will be included here for Kickstarter backers, but it would be nice to see some other choices for other customers.
- Food pack: Enough food to last your 7 hearthlings about 3 days. Buy this if you want to start on top of a mountain or something. Probably a mix of jerky and “cheap” food like Berries, Carrots and Turnips.
- Wood pack: Enough wood to get started on the basics of happiness. At least enough to produce 7 mean beds, 7 chairs, 4 dining tables, and a farmer’s hoe. So probably about 20 wood. You’d probably buy this if you wanted to start in the middle of an open plain.
- Stone pack: Enough stone to get started on the basics of happiness. Probably 20 stones. Useful if you want to start with a Mason really early.
- Ore pack: Enough ore to make some tools, but not enough to go making a bunch of armor and weapons. I’m thinking something like 6 pieces of iron ore, 4 of tin, 4 of copper and 6 pieces of wood.
- Weaver’s pack: Something to kickstart a weaver with. 8 bundles of wool, 8 silkweed bundles and 4 pelts.
- Anything money you don’t spend: Turns up as a gold of that value.
Potential for choosing a starting tool
Currently, you don’t have very attractive choices in starting location beyond the most obviuos.
If you start on the grey higher elevations, you can’t farm or trap animals locally, you have to go down the mountain to do it. There are also very few trees. Similarly, if you start in the middle of a plain you have to dig down quite a bit to start getting into rocks and ore to start your mason and blacksmith. You are also stuck starting with a Carpenter’s Saw and a couple pieces of wood for you “starter’s kit”, so it makes sense to start next to a good supply of wood.
So the current optimal solution is to start in the woodline next to a mountain. Then you can chop down some trees, make a Farmer’s Hoe and start a farm and then dig into the mountain side for stone and ore. With a bit of luck, you might even start near some berry bushes for a first day food supply.
With the addition of the general store, there is a chance to add some flexibility to that start.
For instance, you could choose to start on a mountain. Because of your choice of location, having a farmer is not immediately useful, nor is a carpenter (not a lot of wood). So instead you take a mason, dig into the mountain and build everything with stone. With your mason you can get a blacksmithing tool and your blacksmith will be able to supply tools for a trapper and a carpenter. Along with the mason you’d probably choose to buy a small supply of food to last until the first food stall turns up and you can buy what you need.
Side note: It would be nice if the Trapper could operate on a mountain so you could eventually have something of a food supply. It’s actually really strange that they can’t right now, although I can imagine there being less animals there. It’s not like the current mountains in game go up past the tree line.
If you start in the middle of a plain, you’d stick with your carpenter, but might choose to buy a supply of wood instead of trekking across the map to harvest trees.
Practically speaking, there are three different tools you could start with that will allow you to eventually get every other tool in the game. The Carpenter’s Saw, the Mason’s Hammer and Chisel and the Blacksmith’s Hammer. To me at least, it makes sense to have a “starter pack” for each of these including the tool itself and the minimum supplies required to make that jobs workbench. You’d also allow the player to supplement that job with some additional supplies for that job. Like wood for the carpenter, stone for the mason and some ore for the blacksmith.
I think the blacksmith needs some work on recipes to fit this idea though! You should be able to make a Carpenter’s Saw and Trapper’s Knife with iron, not steel and they would be level 0 instead of level 1. The iron and steel weapons and armor should also require higher levels so it takes a bit longer to get to them and you are encouraged to progress through the types of gear. Currently only the longsword and full plate require any level higher than one.