Anybody else finding the Temporal Storms too difficult?

[tonechild]

I’ve been hooked on the game since I picked it up a couple of weeks ago—can’t put it down! I’m currently in the bronze age, with about 60 tin bronze ingots ready to go (plus 20 in storage), full bronze gear, and a decent food supply and livestock. Even though I’m two in-game years in, I like to take things slow, so I don’t mind feeling a bit behind.

Back in 1.19, I actually looked forward to temporal storms. I built a big arena with a surrounding wall, a central pyramid, torch-lit platforms, and walls lined with spears and supplies—like a boss arena from DOOM. Running around, throwing spears, and navigating that space was tons of fun. But in 1.20, it’s a whole different story. Shivers are everywhere, and I can’t outrun them. My open arena design is suddenly a nightmare since they’re faster than I am. I tried running to heal but died before I could even finish bandaging.

I really don’t want to rely on “cheese” tactics, but it feels impossible otherwise. Maybe I’ll build a long tunnel with trapdoors to keep them at bay. However, if bowthorns come into play, that setup could be a lost cause, too.

It reminds me of 7 Days to Die’s “horde nights,” where players either cheese the system or disable the feature. Once devs ramp up enemy strength, players just find new exploits. Rinse and repeat. I love the idea of a temporal storm, but if it’s just more enemies that spawn and hunt you, it may always boil down to the same meta. I’d much rather see something new—like special areas or items only accessible during a storm—so it’s not just a combat slog. Otherwise, we might end up in a never-ending arms race of new mobs vs. new cheese tactics, which I’d hate to see happen.

 

[LadyWYT]

16 minutes ago, tonechild said:

Back in 1.19, I actually looked forward to temporal storms. I built a big arena with a surrounding wall, a central pyramid, torch-lit platforms, and walls lined with spears and supplies—like a boss arena from DOOM. Running around, throwing spears, and navigating that space was tons of fun. But in 1.20, it’s a whole different story. Shivers are everywhere, and I can’t outrun them. My open arena design is suddenly a nightmare since they’re faster than I am. I tried running to heal but died before I could even finish bandaging.

I really don’t want to rely on “cheese” tactics, but it feels impossible otherwise. Maybe I’ll build a long tunnel with trapdoors to keep them at bay. However, if bowthorns come into play, that setup could be a lost cause, too.

Welcome to the forums! I think the new mob spawns in temporal storms got tweaked in the most recent release candidate for 1.20. Haven't yet experienced one since the change, but the new mobs are supposed to spawn less frequently during temporal storms now.

[tonechild]

9 minutes ago, LadyWYT said:

Welcome to the forums! I think the new mob spawns in temporal storms got tweaked in the most recent release candidate for 1.20. Haven't yet experienced one since the change, but the new mobs are supposed to spawn less frequently during temporal storms now.

Thanks for the welcome   I just looked and yeah I have rc6 and looks like the latest version (as of a couple hours ago) reduced the new mobs spawns in temporal storms.  Downloading now.  Will have to see how it goes, thanks for the heads up!

[Maelstrom]

On 1/3/2025 at 1:14 PM, LadyWYT said:

Welcome to the forums! I think the new mob spawns in temporal storms got tweaked in the most recent release candidate for 1.20. Haven't yet experienced one since the change, but the new mobs are supposed to spawn less frequently during temporal storms now.

Last night had a medium temporal storm.  Bunkered in a vertical glass coffin and watched as nearly every single mob spawn was a shiver.  Didn't see any bowtorns and only one drifter.  I hope that storm mob spawning gets tweaked some more.  Would be nice to have around 80-85 percent drifters, 10 - 15 percent shivers and 5% bowtorns.

[LadyWYT]

11 minutes ago, Maelstrom said:

Last night had a medium temporal storm.  Bunkered in a vertical glass coffin and watched as nearly every single mob spawn was a shiver.  Didn't see any bowtorns and only one drifter.  I hope that storm mob spawning gets tweaked some more.  Would be nice to have around 80-85 percent drifters, 10 - 15 percent shivers and 5% bowtorns.

There do seem to be different patterns to them now. I had one medium storm that was just drifters, no bowtorn or shivers. Another medium storm was a handful of shivers and bowtorn. The shivers can still be a bit aggravating, but the bowtorn numbers feel a lot better now. Overall, I'd say the tweak is working as intended.

What I really would like though, is some Jonas parts. I've been having the worst luck getting my hands on those, outside of seeing them in the story locations. At this point, I'd probably have been luck cavern delving and hoping I run into a sawblade or two.

[Maelstrom]

I'm still working my way to iron in my first 1.20 world.  As mentioned in another thread, I haven't attempted a temporal storm since getting absolutely annihilated in the first one.  Nightmare level bowtorns are not to be trifled with when sporting flint spears and no armor, or is a skill issue regarding my ducking and weaving.  

It was funny that I got 4 temporal gears the first night I went drifter hunting on a medium rift activity night.  Hadn't been out at night until that first foray in August or Sept.  I wonder if all those nights of no hunting led to an over abundance of gears dropping that first night.  But it could just be the RNGods blessing me as well.

 

Edited January 9, 2025 by Maelstrom

[Apocalypse_Andy]

@trashsouls It would be nice if they increased in difficulty.  I see no reason why a day 11 temporal storm is just as deadly as a day 110 storm.

[Hells Razer]

19 hours ago, Apocalypse_Andy said:

@trashsouls It would be nice if they increased in difficulty.  I see no reason why a day 11 temporal storm is just as deadly as a day 110 storm.

Or, and hear me out, they could not do that and just leave it as a mod option for those who really want this kind of escalating challenge.

It is getting quite tiresome nowadays that every game has to have this "race against the clock" kind of escalating difficulty that prevents you form actually ever feeling that yes you have actually achieved something and you are not always 2 mistakes from death if you stop running up the tech tree, or the skill tree, or the exp curve to stay ahead of the game enemies.

If I want a rat race I have my job for that thank you.

[Teh Pizza Lady]

20 hours ago, Apocalypse_Andy said:

@trashsouls It would be nice if they increased in difficulty.  I see no reason why a day 11 temporal storm is just as deadly as a day 110 storm.

Does normal weather get worse the longer you play?

[gomodo]

(1.20rc6)
With a light temporal storm, I can go out for a few moments but it's very dangerous for me (but maybe I suck).
I prefer to farm by hitting with my spear from above (a small walled balcony with a hole above the door entrance).
The loot is rather generous ( rusty and green gear).

But with an intense temporal storm, it's unplayable for me.
Much too dark, I can't see anything, I don't understand what's happening.
So I put my seraph in a small room and I go have a coffee (in real life) while waiting for the storm to stop..
.. waste of time, not very fun, boring.

[Thorfinn]

It's still eminently suited for arena. Just not a wide-open arena like E1M7. Think more of those popular Deathmatch WADs with pillars and overlooks and such. Design your arena more with the idea of breaking up lines of fire and limiting mobility. Pay special attention to the range at which bowtorn will flee and flog it. I think shivers need a full 2 blocks to get through. A fencepost here and there really messes up their day. Step between a couple fenceposts and now they have to pathfind all the way around, while you can harry them with missiles or step through to hit them a time or two, then disappear back to safety.

It's amazing how much paths help here.

Edited January 11, 2025 by Thorfinn

[ifoz]

On 12/14/2024 at 2:48 AM, trashsouls said:

I've tried so many times to pick this game up long term and I just had my first temporal storm ever. They are the worst implemented, most disjointed mechanic I've ever seen in a game. I just had to console command my way through it because they are absolutely unbearable. The enemies they spawn massively outclass you at that point in the game and there's basically nothing you can do except die over and over. They've honestly killed my enjoyment of the game completely and I don't even know if I want to commit to playing any further. I have very limited time to play games and I don't want to waste my entire day's progress just to create a new world with different settings. Genuinely disappointing since so many other mechanics are so well implemented and thought out. 

I would recommend just turning them off. There's no shame in it, as long as you are having fun playing the game. 

[Maelstrom]

1.20 rc8 - heavy temporal storm earlier today - Nothing but bowtorns spawned.  I counted about 24 bowtorns at one point.  Ain't no way I would try that even if I were a blackguard in steel plate with steel falx.

 

 

[Hells Razer]

On 1/11/2025 at 7:14 PM, gomodo said:

(1.20rc6)
With a light temporal storm, I can go out for a few moments but it's very dangerous for me (but maybe I suck).
I prefer to farm by hitting with my spear from above (a small walled balcony with a hole above the door entrance).
The loot is rather generous ( rusty and green gear).

But with an intense temporal storm, it's unplayable for me.
Much too dark, I can't see anything, I don't understand what's happening.
So I put my seraph in a small room and I go have a coffee (in real life) while waiting for the storm to stop..
.. waste of time, not very fun, boring.

 

On 1/11/2025 at 11:39 PM, ifoz said:

I would recommend just turning them off. There's no shame in it, as long as you are having fun playing the game. 

Another option is to enable the ability to sleep through temporal storms. This gives you the choice whether you want to engage with them or not on a per storm basis.

[ArrayPointer]

On 12/11/2024 at 11:35 AM, Krougal said:

Not cheesy at all, that's just good tactics.

Indeed. I remember the first time I played in multiplayer and traded with a Malefactor player for a sling.

Sling + dirt elevator = piece of cake combat.

Strategic tactics are not cheesy, they are resourceful if they utilize existing game physics without creative cheats.

Regards,

ArrayPointer

[A_British_Lass]

Yeah… I've found a lot of the drifters spawning mechanics in the game to be a little subpar, my first ever experience playing the game me and friends build the nice little base, but drifters seems to spawn inside of it constantly. Our fault for building it into the side of a mountain, but the temporal storm was a miserable time for those of us online at the time

I do think drifter spawning needs to be tweaked somewhat so play bases and cellars can have some form of safety (though take my opinions with a grain of salt as I suck at this game big time)

EDIT to add more onto my thoughts: ultimately I'm unsure how'd I'd change the storms my self as I'm not a game dev and my ideas are quite sucky, but I feel there needs to be some form of gameplay tied to them other than a "go outside and die simulator" it'd be nice to see some way to end the storm early by killing enough drifter type mobs or attacking a rift or something ... overall my issues with the storms probably boil down to my lack lustre opinions on combat and the spawning mechanics on drifter type enemies

Edited January 15, 2025 by A_British_Lass

[gomodo]

It depends on the gameplay objectives of the storms (which I don't know).

If the objective is to terrorize the player, the enemies that appear anywhere, then yes it works: I wait in a small corner (but after 5 storms I am no longer terrified, I wait quietly).

If the objective is for the player to fight outside, it doesn't work for me (I don't locate the danger = I don't fight).

Personally I would prefer real storms that make trees fall, collapse blocks of walls or parts of the roof. This simulation of a real storm can be reused in different modes:
- in "sapiens" mode (without enemies)
- in normal mode: temporal enemies can enter the breaches of the building. Even better: enemies come out of visible cracks (and not from anywhere).

[Voldemort]

On 1/3/2025 at 8:56 PM, tonechild said:

I’ve been hooked on the game since I picked it up a couple of weeks ago—can’t put it down! I’m currently in the bronze age, with about 60 tin bronze ingots ready to go (plus 20 in storage), full bronze gear, and a decent food supply and livestock. Even though I’m two in-game years in, I like to take things slow, so I don’t mind feeling a bit behind.

Back in 1.19, I actually looked forward to temporal storms. I built a big arena with a surrounding wall, a central pyramid, torch-lit platforms, and walls lined with spears and supplies—like a boss arena from DOOM. Running around, throwing spears, and navigating that space was tons of fun. But in 1.20, it’s a whole different story. Shivers are everywhere, and I can’t outrun them. My open arena design is suddenly a nightmare since they’re faster than I am. I tried running to heal but died before I could even finish bandaging.

I really don’t want to rely on “cheese” tactics, but it feels impossible otherwise. Maybe I’ll build a long tunnel with trapdoors to keep them at bay. However, if bowthorns come into play, that setup could be a lost cause, too.

It reminds me of 7 Days to Die’s “horde nights,” where players either cheese the system or disable the feature. Once devs ramp up enemy strength, players just find new exploits. Rinse and repeat. I love the idea of a temporal storm, but if it’s just more enemies that spawn and hunt you, it may always boil down to the same meta. I’d much rather see something new—like special areas or items only accessible during a storm—so it’s not just a combat slog. Otherwise, we might end up in a never-ending arms race of new mobs vs. new cheese tactics, which I’d hate to see happen.

 

I love that difficulty

The game should be challenging and have a horror aspect, not a sunny beach where you can jump around with drifters. lol

Edited January 15, 2025 by Adnyeus

[Zane Mordien]

Bumping and old thread, but I just did my next storm and I'm really not happy with the changes to the storms. Having so many Nightmare shivers and bowtorns is just stupid. It's just forcing people back into cheesing or turning off the temporal storms instead of really risking a fight. Unless they really want us to make these elaborate cheese fighting pits and risk nothing as we stand inside with pit kilns killing the mobs or we spear them from our little safe fighting spots.

I do like the idea of the new mobs in the storm if there weren't so many. It would add spice to the fight and more risk and not just instant death like it is now. 

Edited February 2, 2025 by Zane Mordien

[Thorfinn]

You don't necessarily have to cheese them. You just can't really find a flat spot and cheese them because they have weenie missiles and very slow movement, like used to be the case. Now they have missiles similar to yours, and movement similar to yours. True, the nightmares are quite a bit tougher, but that sort of makes up for the fact that you had the homefield advantage of creating the arena. You can design it such that it plays to your strengths and their weaknesses.

The only reason we were talking cheese tactics is that there are some people who don't like to design strategies and tactics, to whom the game is more of a builder. It would be nice to give them the chance of doing lore stuff without just  locking themselves in a closet for 10 minutes every 7 hours.

Edited February 2, 2025 by Thorfinn

[Zane Mordien]

I'm not trying to poo on people building ways to deal with it, which is why I didn't post on that thread and take away from the conversation. Yes, I'm annoyed, but I really do want to understand what is the intention of the making the storms that hard? To stop people from farming them for temporal gears or those ever so useful Junkas... I mean Jonas parts? I fought the storms to pass the time before really.

Jonas parts: No mater how many Jonas parts I got, I never had enough to build anything even with the easier storms. Was I missing something?

Temporal Gears: You definitely could get too many after fighting several storms, but so what? What can you do with them really besides repair translocators? I haven't done the new stuff in 1.20 so is there something super useful that is a spoiler? I'd accept that as a better reason. Otherwise so what you can translocate all over the place. While it's fun to do, it doesn't really help you that much. It just let's you explore more area of the map and now with the elk it's easier to ride there than try out 10 translocators to finally find one that goes the direction you want. 

 

 

[Thorfinn]

Storms: I do agree it went too far the other way. Then again, my first dozen storms in 1.14 (I think) were way too tough -- I died multiple times in each. Turns out it was just that I wasn't anywhere near as good as I thought I was at the challenge. It is possible that I will come to decide these storms are also too easy, though I kind of doubt it. I mean, I'm surviving them, with relatively minor amounts of arena prep. Pillars of packed dirt to hide behind, mostly. But there are a lot of times it's a close-run thing. Heavy storms, I'm still sitting out, unless they are drifters only.

Jonas tech: Yeah, it's basically impossible to assemble any device, let alone any particular one, in any reasonable amount of time. Then again, IMO, Jonas tech is mostly useless. Currently. My guess is that it will come into its own in future chapters. But even so, being hostage to the RNG for however long it takes to farm the right parts does not give me a warm fuzzy.

Temporal gears: Definitely agreed. Particularly since I'm a permadeath kind of guy. I still hoard the things, but I'm not sure why. It has been a long time since I've repaired a translocator. Possibly as long ago as 1.18. I've always found what I wanted without taking the crap shoot of popping out somewhere I have no idea how to get back if I couldn't get to the TL.

 

Upshot, there is no good reason to bother with the storms, IMO. I do it mostly because Tyron thinks it's important to the game experience he wants to produce, and I'm interested in getting that experience.

[EDIT]

It is possible that the current storms would be fine after the RA. Not sure, because I hit the RA early, but it's quite common for people to do RA with at least iron and sulfur-honey, so maybe?

Edited February 3, 2025 by Thorfinn

[Zane Mordien]

10 minutes ago, Thorfinn said:

I still hoard the things, but I'm not sure why. 

Haha, that's exactly how I feel when I open my chest that is full of them. Why do I collect these anyway?

[LadyWYT]

21 minutes ago, Thorfinn said:

It is possible that the current storms would be fine after the RA. Not sure, because I hit the RA early, but it's quite common for people to do RA with at least iron and sulfur-honey, so maybe?

The storms feel mostly fine with iron gear; at least, I've not really had too much trouble on the standard difficulty. Iron soaks up most of the damage, and good footwork and reflex is still warranted for tier 4 enemies. I do still need to go inside where it's safe a time or two, depending on the enemies the storm throws at me, in order to strip my armor off and heal though. If I have iron gear though, I also generally have some bandages and alcohol on hand to make healing a cinch.

Steel gear is even better, of course, but I do still find myself needing to pop back inside at least once in order to heal.

25 minutes ago, Thorfinn said:

Jonas tech: Yeah, it's basically impossible to assemble any device, let alone any particular one, in any reasonable amount of time. Then again, IMO, Jonas tech is mostly useless. Currently. My guess is that it will come into its own in future chapters. But even so, being hostage to the RNG for however long it takes to farm the right parts does not give me a warm fuzzy.

I would say that the rift ward has more value now, given that an active rift in your base during a storm can mean stronger monsters that won't just disappear as soon as the storm is over. After playing through chapter 2, I think the terminus teleporter will become even more valuable as more story chapters are added. Granted, one can just reset their spawn with a temporal gear, but you don't always want to carry gears on you. I think 1.21 is rumored to be an update to Jonas tech options, so I'm guessing there will probably be even more uses for Jonas parts and temporal gears soon enough.

As for Jonas parts...I feel like the drop rates for them during temporal storms got nerfed, given I used to get a Jonas part most every storm and now I seem to never see them. That being said, it could just be really bad luck on my part, and I'm also not sure that buffing the drop rate for storms is the right answer given there are other places to acquire the parts that are "safer". Or at least, more predictable. Some major story locations have several as loot, which encourages the player to explore those locations thoroughly. Likewise, Jonas parts can drop from locust nests, bells, sawblade locusts, and other nasty things found underground, which gives players a good reason to delve into the deep regions of the world.

What would be nice though, perhaps as a future option, is being able to trade in parts that you don't want/need, for parts that you DO need, rather than relying on RNG to acquire what you're after. There's an NPC in chapter 2 that would believably be able to offer that kind of service, and that's probably also an opportune time to make higher level tech more accessible to the player before they get further into the story, if they haven't already managed to acquire the tech.

[gomodo]

Yes, storms bring an atmosphere of fear that makes the experience interesting... except that we are not afraid at all after 5 storms. I lock myself in and get bored (but it gives me a break).

I agree that storms should have more meaning:
- for offensive players
- for defensive players

I also suggested that storms force you to build with stone.