Dangerous molten metal casting

[Wahazar]

Currently metal casting process seems to be "easy peasy", just don't forget about (immortal) wooden tongs and pour molten metal into the mold. 

I saw some discussion of young players engaged in game so much, that they started fantasies about casting brass or bronze in real life. Such casting is very dangerous, especially for inexperienced user. One unit of water would rapidly evaporate into 1700 units of steam, therefore any moisture residue violently pushes molten metal like a geyser.

I propose to improve casting process to make it more realistic and immersive, by adding "humidity" value to any mold. Right after removing from pit kiln, or after preheating above 200 degC, mold have 0% of humidity. It gain some humidity each day, capped at 10%...60% depending on rainfall climate in given area. If exposed on rain, humidity quickly increase to 100%.

This humidity value, divided by 10, gives probability of "explosion" of molten metal after each 10 units are poured into mold with moisture. This explosion will create as many metal hot nuggets as there are metal units divided by 5 in mold. If temperature of metal is above 1000, explosion would also remove 0.5 HP from entities within 5 block range, additionally will set on fire two random blocks within range 3 around mold. Mold humidity would be set back to 0%.

Mold would not break - this is another mechanism of abrupt cooling, already implemented.

Edited July 15, 2025 by Wahazar

[LadyWYT]

As a mod, sure. As an addition to the vanilla game? No. Realism does not always equal fun.

1 hour ago, Wahazar said:

I propose to improve casting process to make it more realistic and immersive, by adding "humidity" value to any mold. Right after removing from pit kiln, or after preheating above 200 degC, mold have 0% of humidity. It gain some humidity each day, capped at 10%...60% depending on rainfall climate in given area. If exposed on rain, humidity quickly increase to 100%.

This humidity value, divided by 10, gives probability of "explosion" of molten metal after each 10 units are poured into mold with moisture. This explosion will create as many metal hot nuggets as there are metal units divided by 5 in mold. If temperature of metal is above 1000, explosion would also remove 0.5 HP from entities within 5 block range, additionally will set on fire two random blocks within range 3 around mold. Mold humidity would be set back to 0%.

Yeah...all this is doing is punishing the player for playing the game correctly, as well as force players to cast their metal at very specific times. No more running off to do other things while waiting on molds to finish firing, no more creating molds well in advance of what you need...unless of course you want to be hurt while trying to cast.

Currently, metalcasting is fine for what it needs to do. If the player steps on piping hot metal, they'll get damaged a bit. If the player is impatient and trying to use water to cool a mold faster(or otherwise leaves it exposed to rain), then the mold has a good chance of breaking. Both of those outcomes have a very clear cause and effect, so players that make those mistakes can quickly learn from it. The metal explosion you've proposed isn't so obvious, and will likely confuse players in addition to frustrating them with extra time constraints.

1 hour ago, Wahazar said:

I saw some discussion of young players engaged in game so much, that they started fantasies about casting brass or bronze in real life. Such casting is very dangerous, especially for inexperienced user. One unit of water would rapidly evaporate into 1700 units of steam, therefore any moisture residue violently pushes molten metal like a geyser.

I mean...videogames do not work like real life, nor should they be expected to. There are plenty of things players do in videogames(not just Vintage Story!) that are very dangerous to do in real life, but that's a big part of what makes videogames fun in the first place. You get to do things you maybe couldn't do otherwise. 

I will also note that if a videogame mechanic like metal casting or blacksmithing, or something similar, inspires players to pursue a new wholesome hobby IRL, that's great! Logically, they're also going to take the time to research the subject appropriately and acquire necessary materials/tools before they attempt it, but if they don't? That's not the fault of the videogame.

[Teh Pizza Lady]

I like the idea of preheating the molds, especially since it's a task you can do while the metal is melting in the crucible.

3 hours ago, LadyWYT said:

Yeah...all this is doing is punishing the player for playing the game correctly, as well as force players to cast their metal at very specific times. No more running off to do other things while waiting on molds to finish firing, no more creating molds well in advance of what you need...unless of course you want to be hurt while trying to cast.

I disagree based on his wording that heating the mold above 200c would evaporate any moisture it may have gained while sitting. It's a relatively quick process that only takes a few minutes IRL to just add some heat to drive out moisture right quick before pouring. Given that his proposed change would only give, at max, a 10% chance of an explosion at full humidity I feel like this is a good trade-off for not heating your molds right quick before casting metal. This also tracks with how the developers added the breaking mechanic if you attempt to cool your molds down too quickly by sprinkling water on them. In fact, I have always felt that mechanic didn't go far enough when pouring molten metal into cold molds, but I assumed they were testing a proof of concept and didn't want to push it that far just yet.

5 hours ago, Wahazar said:

I saw some discussion of young players engaged in game so much, that they started fantasies about casting brass or bronze in real life. Such casting is very dangerous, especially for inexperienced user.

I mean, honestly, I tire of the "kids will re-enact what they see in video games" argument. Parents should just parent better. Or sign their kids up for metalworking classes when they get older.

Overall I like the idea, but I think it might need a few tweaks, but I could see it being a solid addition to the game if implemented correctly. 

[Wahazar]

1 hour ago, traugdor said:

I disagree based on his wording that heating the mold above 200c would evaporate any moisture it may have gained while sitting.

Surely not, I proposed such temperature to simplify things, it is a game, not foundry simulator. I just wanted to implement fact, that molds should be preheated before casting.

About preheating, would be nice to have lost-wax casting mechanics to be able to produce some complicated 3D stuff, like chandeliers etc. Wax would be used to create voxel model, similar to clay, then clay will be add, and after firing in pit kin, single-use mold will be created.

[Teh Pizza Lady]

3 minutes ago, Wahazar said:

I just wanted to implement fact, that molds should be preheated before casting.

Yes, and I agree.  

EDIT: being able to use lost-wax casting would also give another use to beeswax. I like this idea as well. Single-use molds for OP items like chandeliers definitely incentivizes the player to be careful with how they're using their clay and and also prevents a build up of items (like molds) that might not be used again. Though for reusing old molds, I like the mod that allows you to turn them into flowerpots.

Edited July 15, 2025 by traugdor

[Never Jhonsen]

Quote

Tweak: Anvil mold must now be destroyed to get the anvil

Version 1.21 will make the anvil mold be single use, so a single-use chandelier mold isn't too far fetched.

[Wahazar]

Single-use anvil mold absolutely makes sense, no way to remove such shape from clay mold without breaking.

BTW, in Terrafirmacraft all molds has some chance of breaking during removal of metal item, it is already implemented in some mods, for example Tear@Wear mod.

[Facethief]

2 hours ago, Wahazar said:

Tear@Wear

Are you sure @ means and? ‘Cause that would make & look silly & all.

[Thorfinn]

22 hours ago, traugdor said:

Parents should just parent better.

This. Show your kids how to make an off-the-books lower from aluminum cans. You should also show them how to anodize aluminum.

[Thorfinn]

19 hours ago, traugdor said:

Though for reusing old molds, I like the mod that allows you to turn them into flowerpots.

While I used that one a few times, I was partial to the one that let you turn them into grog. Albeit a little OP.

Edited July 16, 2025 by Thorfinn

[Teh Pizza Lady]

35 minutes ago, Thorfinn said:

This. Show your kids how to make an off-the-books lower from aluminum cans. You should also show them how to anodize aluminum.

I meant more along the lines of "Hey kiddo, not everything you see in a video game is real. If you want to try this, let me know first so I can make sure you don't do something stupid and get hurt", but what you suggested works, too.