What would you add to the game

[CastIronFabric]

13 hours ago, KishiWolf said:

If there was one thing I'd want to add, it would be more realistic genetics. Different sizes, colours, patterns, all based on real genetics for that animal. There's already a little taste with albinism in the elk and kind of with the wild grey pigs with the larger variant.

I just like the idea of being able to selectively breed animals for multiple purposes from the same " source " animal/species.

It might be easily abused depending on how it's implemented, but at the same time, it could be very hard or even impossible to get the " perfect " domestic animal outside of cheats ( not unless you spend several years in a world ) since you'd have to find animals with these genetic traits, and even breed and test to see if an animal may have a desirable recessive trait in the first place. It would be a very long standing project, but I feel it could make the domestication process a lot more interesting and interactive. There's also room to being penetlties for inbreeding, like animals being weaker, or more prone to sickness, or even have the ability to just die on you prematurely as opposed to animals that would live indefinitely if otherwise healthy. It could also add some interest for multiplayer servers with interesting coat colours and patterns for animals like rabbits or chickens, maybe even extend it to wolves and foxes, to keep around as a sort of pet. It doesn't even have to stop at livestock and pets, pibald deer are really pretty. It would also add interest in taxidermy with the different patterns and colour and also sizes.

I know that they want to work on a more interactive system with husbandry, but I doubt it'll ever be implemented like this. So yeah, this is what I'd add to the game if I was given full rein and full freedom. Other than that, I'd add trains. I could not tell you why. I just like VS could do with trains. I doubt they would get used all that much though m, at least in singleplayer. they'd probably be very resource intensive, but they would safely be able to take you from point a to b in a relatively fast place. again though, the resources it'd probably take would probably make then not all that useful unfortunately. still, I would like them.

Wurm Online does this.

In fact, a lot of the ideas brewing up in this game exist in Wurm in high level of detail, its a good model to look at for ideas

[Novadegree]

8 hours ago, CastIronFabric said:

then the answer is obviously yes. 

So I will state my opinion again, in my view the travel distances to other biomes is borderline to far as it is so I do not support longer travel times than what already exists. Nor do I support making the map smaller if that is what would be needed to 'match' reality.

I think its fair to assume that a statement regarding the 'distance' to the equator would be an assertion that would affect the travel time to said equator, OR make the map about 1/5 the size it defaults to. 

thanks

 

Well what fucking difference would it make to you? You did not even know there was more than one equator.  It wouldn't make any difference in your light travel distance worlds to find redwoods. You want a million block world for what? So you can say you have one? You can assume what the fuck ever you want. I'm just going to assume your fucking stupid.

[Chuckerton]

Hunting overhaul. Ranged weapons cause animals to bleed, and can cause injuries that slow down the creature or debuff it in some way. Maybe ranged hits to the body cause more bleeding but hits to limbs cause these debuffs. 

I feel like hunting just feels bad. I dont like having to chase a deer across a biome just for 1 kill, AFTER hitting it with a spear the length of its body. Even a crude one, while it may not necessarily be an instant kill, would cause an injury that the creature cant just shake off and run forever after receiving. I would prefer have to sneak up on the creature, but be able to deal a decisive wound rather than have to chase it across a field for 15 minutes. 

There was a previous discussion about hunting, and the 'game design' perspective as i understood (or, preferred) for how this kind of hunting could be balanced is that upon taking a lethal hit (lethal due to eventual blood loss), the creature might still be able to run quite far. That the total damage dealt in one hit determines the severity of the injury, with larger animals being more resistant to bleeding/injuries, so deer<boar<moose.
A crude arrow will cause much slower blood loss than a steel one, therefore a creature might be able to run many hundreds of blocks further before eventually bleeding out than if it was hit by a higher tier weapon (hunter might have blood trails be more visible). This also applies for less immediately life-threatening injuries, like limb shots. A crude arrow might not slow a creature enough to let you outrun it, but a steel arrow will. This lets crude weapons still be capable of hunting provided the hunter is precise, while still making higher tiers worth using during hunts, as higher tiers can make for a more controlled hunt and a smaller chance the creature falls into a cave or off a cliff or runs into a bear or something, which would ruin the hunt. The goal isnt to remove the early game struggle, but to change whats actually engaging about hunting. 

[CastIronFabric]

17 hours ago, Novadegree said:

Well what fucking difference would it make to you? You did not even know there was more than one equator.  It wouldn't make any difference in your light travel distance worlds to find redwoods. You want a million block world for what? So you can say you have one? You can assume what the fuck ever you want. I'm just going to assume your fucking stupid.

people in these forums really need to calm down.

Every game play I play I go from the North to the south to collect various things that grow that for the Cooking Mod. This is a core pillar of my gaming experience.

All I am saying is that I do not approve of this game having longer travel time than it already does. I think the travel time to get to different biomes in this game is far enough if not arguably too far. That is my opinion. If you think the travel times to different biomes should be longer than that is fine, that is your opinion. Its just not an opinion I share, my view is the exact opposite. Considering I have been building a road to the South which currently sits at 10,000 blocks, yes it matters to me.

More over, if it 'does not matter' then why even change it? If you think the vast majority of people do not travel including the person making the request then why make the request in the first place if one never travels anyway?

and Yes I have known there was more than on equator for more than a year now.

 

Edited September 20 by CastIronFabric

[metsavana]

On 9/20/2026 at 1:08 AM, Chuckerton said:

Hunting overhaul. Ranged weapons cause animals to bleed, and can cause injuries that slow down the creature or debuff it in some way. Maybe ranged hits to the body cause more bleeding but hits to limbs cause these debuffs. 

I agree with you that the hunting needs an overhaul. Well, maybe not a complete one, but at least some additions or rethinking.

Right now hunting boils down to throwing as many spears as possible while your pray just runs in a straight line away from you. I wish we could track animals, whether by their inprints on the ground or by other means.

Also I'd greatly appreciate if injuring an animal would leave some blood on the ground so that you could pursuit it. Because right now I very often hit an animal, it runs away and disappears in the foliage. I think that leaving small trails of blood and broken sticks/branches would be cool.

[VANTABlack2000]

2 hours ago, metsavana said:

I agree with you that the hunting needs an overhaul. Well, maybe not a complete one, but at least some additions or rethinking.

Right now hunting boils down to throwing as many spears as possible while your pray just runs in a straight line away from you. I wish we could track animals, whether by their inprints on the ground or by other means.

Also I'd greatly appreciate if injuring an animal would leave some blood on the ground so that you could pursuit it. Because right now I very often hit an animal, it runs away and disappears in the foliage. I think that leaving small trails of blood and broken sticks/branches would be cool.

That reminds me. I think the roadmap said something about a status system being put in place, so a way to make status arrows would be interesting. That way you can use statuses to make a hunt easier and improve the ranged experience.

[Novadegree]

On 9/20/2026 at 6:48 AM, CastIronFabric said:

More over, if it 'does not matter' then why even change it? If you think the vast majority of people do not travel including the person making the request then why make the request in the first place if one never travels anyway?

I don't know how you got that from this.

On 9/19/2026 at 4:55 PM, Novadegree said:

Well what fucking difference would it make to you? You did not even know there was more than one equator.  It wouldn't make any difference in your light travel distance worlds to find redwoods. You want a million block world for what? So you can say you have one? You can assume what the fuck ever you want. I'm just going to assume your fucking stupid.

 

[CastIronFabric]

11 hours ago, Novadegree said:

I don't know how you got that from this.

 

long distance travel to get to redwoods and peanuts is my primary objective in my game play (for mods), so for me personally distance does matter and to repeat, I have known there is multiple equators for more than a year now.

The thing is, why do you think travel does not matter to me but DOES matter to the person making the suggestion? Bottom line though, there is only two options for this suggestion 1. longer travel time or 2. smaller generated maps. 

Edited September 24 by CastIronFabric

[Zaph42nd]

16 hours ago, metsavana said:

I agree with you that the hunting needs an overhaul. Well, maybe not a complete one, but at least some additions or rethinking.

Right now hunting boils down to throwing as many spears as possible while your pray just runs in a straight line away from you. I wish we could track animals, whether by their inprints on the ground or by other means.

Also I'd greatly appreciate if injuring an animal would leave some blood on the ground so that you could pursuit it. Because right now I very often hit an animal, it runs away and disappears in the foliage. I think that leaving small trails of blood and broken sticks/branches would be cool.

Yeah, blood trails feel very appropriate for hunting, it'd also play nicely into predator/prey systems, perhaps if you injured but did not kill an animal, wolves might also follow blood-trails too, leading to an eventual battle between the player and wolves for the same prey? Far as other hunting options go, I'd also love to see more traps and baiting options available (cages and pit-traps are the main options), snare traps, deadfall traps, etc... would fit nicely. Same goes for using prey-animals to attract predators, would be a neat way to encourage hunting more dangerous creatures such as wolves/bears using prey-animals as bait.... 

On a progression level, trapping also fits well since could easily upgrade your traps to more advanced and deadly equivalents (from a deadfall to foothold in the steel or post-steel stages?) and perhaps maybe even fit into the class system (hunters already seem to excel at archery and ranged combat, perhaps clockmakers could excel at making advanced traps?)

[LadyWYT]

Adding to the hunting pile, I would really like to see traders buy pelts, horns, antlers, and other miscellaneous trophies(if added). Or at least, some of the nicer or harder to acquire hunting byproducts, since most settlements are going to have hunters producing a steady supply of hides. But I do enjoy hunting in this game, and it would be nice to have an option to sell stuff like raccoon, fox, and bear pelts, as well as the nicer sets of antlers and horns(it seems a shame to always grind them into bonemeal).

[VANTABlack2000]

8 minutes ago, LadyWYT said:

Adding to the hunting pile, I would really like to see traders buy pelts, horns, antlers, and other miscellaneous trophies(if added). Or at least, some of the nicer or harder to acquire hunting byproducts, since most settlements are going to have hunters producing a steady supply of hides. But I do enjoy hunting in this game, and it would be nice to have an option to sell stuff like raccoon, fox, and bear pelts, as well as the nicer sets of antlers and horns(it seems a shame to always grind them into bonemeal).

Yeah that would be fun as another way to let hunters get gears. I know it's possible to sell Leather and Fat (Not rendered IIRC), but it would be interesting to be able to sell pelts just to give another use to them. Same goes for the horns since they don't really have a use right now other than displaying them in whatever ways you can.

[ifoz]

12 hours ago, Zaph42nd said:

On a progression level, trapping also fits well since could easily upgrade your traps to more advanced and deadly equivalents (from a deadfall to foothold in the steel or post-steel stages?) and perhaps maybe even fit into the class system (hunters already seem to excel at archery and ranged combat, perhaps clockmakers could excel at making advanced traps?)

Personally I'd have trapping belong to the Malefactor, given they're already related to foraging and stealth. That isn't to say Clockmaker couldn't get more advanced/mechanical traps later into the game, but for early game trapping I think the Malefactor would be a better thematic fit.

[Juwan Alexander]

The curse mechanic from One Hour One Life would a great way to permanently brand cheaters, trolls, hackers, and other such types of degenerates. The way that it works is that at least 2 (or 3, I don't remember) players must curse the bad actor with a chat command and that curse will mark them with a black username, so that immediately after and when they join another multiplayer session, the rest of the community can easily determine whether or not they deserve to be kicked, banned, or otherwise.

It is basically a blacklist with a democratic twist. Also only slightly effective since you'd basically need only a VPN to bypass it in that game (I think), but in VS you'd have to buy an entirely new account to remove the stain on your reputation. Dedicated trolls might be willing to spend $1000 just to keep having their little fun at others' expense, but it would definitely incentivize normal people to act on their best behavior. 

Edited September 25 by Juwan Alexander

[HAPPIE]

I desire SEA MONSTERS! I had a base on an Island, and have to swim to shore regularly. The water it is so deep it scares me. I look down, and startle myself sometimes at shadows deep below. We NEED MONSTERS TO LURK IN THE ABYSS. Wouldn't even have to be a lot just one every now and then would be enough to fuel the paranoia. It would go so well thematically with the monsters already in the game too.  Might be a fun project. 

[Juwan Alexander]

13 minutes ago, HAPPIE said:

I desire SEA MONSTERS! I had a base on an Island, and have to swim to shore regularly. The water it is so deep it scares me. I look down, and startle myself sometimes at shadows deep below. We NEED MONSTERS TO LURK IN THE ABYSS. Wouldn't even have to be a lot just one every now and then would be enough to fuel the paranoia. It would go so well thematically with the monsters already in the game too.  Might be a fun project. 

So VS RLCraft?

[VANTABlack2000]

4 hours ago, HAPPIE said:

I desire SEA MONSTERS! I had a base on an Island, and have to swim to shore regularly. The water it is so deep it scares me. I look down, and startle myself sometimes at shadows deep below. We NEED MONSTERS TO LURK IN THE ABYSS. Wouldn't even have to be a lot just one every now and then would be enough to fuel the paranoia. It would go so well thematically with the monsters already in the game too.  Might be a fun project. 

I don't know about Sea Monsters, but something like sharks just to make the water a little more dangerous could be fun and/or interesting. Of course Sea Monsters works too if you want to add new enemy types.

[Zaph42nd]

11 hours ago, ifoz said:

Personally I'd have trapping belong to the Malefactor, given they're already related to foraging and stealth. That isn't to say Clockmaker couldn't get more advanced/mechanical traps later into the game, but for early game trapping I think the Malefactor would be a better thematic fit.

Fair, yeah would make a lot of sense for primitive traps to fall under malefactor, something like deadfall traps could easily get implemented and behave as class-exclusive, it'd fit nicely into primitive/Stone Age hunting options.... Clockmaker I think as a class makes the most sense for late-game/high-tech items/equipment.

But for me at least, I'd love to see all classes have at least some unique/class locked tool/item in each stage of the game (primitive/Stone Age, copper and Bronze Age, steel age and beyond), right now each class (aside from commoner) fits into either early-game benefits or late game benefits, not having unique-crafts in all ages/stages of progression.... Hunting is a good case-study for this, trapping, archery, and other skills all could fall well into the class-system where each class has uniques as this already sort of exists (malefactor's sling, hunter's crude bow + crude arrows, etc...) only classes lacking in this regard are blackguard, tailor, and clockmaker of which I think each could get at least some primitive item(s) locked to them (tailors for example could have unique hide-based armor and clothing, blackguards an early-game melee option, clockmaker I'm not sure on). Oddly the inverse seems true in late-game as blackguard gets unique armor, tailor gets tailored gambesons, and clockmaker gets a unique spear-type weapon, hunter has recurve bows but malefactor gets nothing in this regard

[ifoz]

8 minutes ago, Zaph42nd said:

blackguard gets unique armor

Any class can find and repair Blackguard armour, it's just that the Blackguard class gets the exclusive matching sword and shield.
 

8 minutes ago, Zaph42nd said:

hunter has recurve bows

You can also buy recurves from traders, so they aren't necessarily class-locked.



That aside, Malefactor does lack a proper latergame exclusive. I think something related to treasure/ruin hunting would be fitting, since that is part of their incentivised gameplay. I had the idea a while back for the Malefactor to be able to make upgraded (probably around bronze tier) versions of the current scrap weapons that are already in the game. That way there'd be something of a loop of 'go ruin hunting -> inexpensive weapon breaks -> make new one from scrap found in ruins -> continue'

[Zaph42nd]

1 minute ago, ifoz said:

Any class can find and repair Blackguard armour, it's just that the Blackguard class gets the exclusive matching sword and shield.

Always forget about that, but yes just sword and shield are uniquely for blackguard crafting-wise. Then again for me I always prefer going for light-armor (my main armor since I usually play tailors is the tailored gambeson)

2 minutes ago, ifoz said:

You can also buy recurves from traders, so they aren't necessarily class-locked.

True, it's one of few class-items you can get without specializing into a class, which is conceptually balanced I think? Although without story content it'd be impossible to make (and I think that's also coincidentally where some classes like hunter and tailor stand out) unless disabling class-exclusive recipes.... 

4 minutes ago, ifoz said:

That aside, Malefactor does lack a proper latergame exclusive. I think something related to treasure/ruin hunting would be fitting, since that is part of their incentivised gameplay. I had the idea a while back for the Malefactor to be able to make upgraded (probably around bronze tier) versions of the current scrap weapons that are already in the game. That way there'd be something of a loop of 'go ruin hunting -> inexpensive weapon breaks -> make new one from scrap found in ruins -> continue'

For sure, if trapped ruins get added, I'd think it'd be nice for malefactor to have some way to mitigate or disable traps, although perhaps that'd lean too much into the high-fantasy realm? I've always envisioned them as aligning loosely with rogue and thief archetypes so something like lock picks or trap-mastery would be nice too. Upgrading scrap weapons to some higher damage, low durability equivalent could also be nice as well especially when exploring procedural dungeons/ruins, perhaps this'd encourage malefactor to explore ruins and keep a more nomadic gameplay style since that's somewhat implied with their increased foraging yields (I always read that buff as designed to make players consider scouting out and exploring more as it does at least somewhat reduce food-related worries during spring/summer)

[ifoz]

6 minutes ago, Zaph42nd said:

I've always envisioned them as aligning loosely with rogue and thief archetypes so something like lock picks or trap-mastery would be nice too.

The devs have discussed adding a lock/key system for dynamic dungeons (and I'd guess potential future ruins/story locations too), in which case I think some way for the Malefactor to make and use lock picks could be fun. They're a stealthy outlaw whose playstyle encourages hunting ruins, so lockpicks to get past finding keys or into special locked rooms without having to break down doors would be quite fitting!

[LadyWYT]

10 hours ago, Juwan Alexander said:

The way that it works is that at least 2 (or 3, I don't remember) players must curse the bad actor with a chat command and that curse will mark them with a black username, so that immediately after and when they join another multiplayer session, the rest of the community can easily determine whether or not they deserve to be kicked, banned, or otherwise.

I don't think it's the kind of thing that should be left entirely to a community vote. Players should be able to make reports, yes, but someone should be able to review those reports to determine if there's legitimate bad behavior by the reported individual or not. A system left entirely up to a community vote is way too easy to abuse, because that allows mob rule.

 

5 hours ago, VANTABlack2000 said:

I don't know about Sea Monsters, but something like sharks just to make the water a little more dangerous could be fun and/or interesting. Of course Sea Monsters works too if you want to add new enemy types.

I'd rather this, when it comes to water threats. I'm not sure that monsters should be absolutely everywhere, and given what the monsters potentially were to begin with, I'm not sure it makes sense to add aquatic varieties, outside of a mechanical type or two. Sharks and other natural creatures would be much better, and there's plenty of natural oddities in the sea that look spooky and/or are vicious enough to be a serious threat(like Humboldt squid).

There is the potential for the water to turn into a safe haven from monsters, however, I do think there are several factors about a life at sea that counteracts this. Chief among them being...you actually need water for that sort of "haven" to actually be viable, and not everyone just wants to live on the ocean either. Likewise, there are a lot of resources the player will need, that cannot be obtained while out on the ocean, so the player will have to return to shore sooner or later in order to resupply and complete certain portions of the story.

32 minutes ago, Zaph42nd said:

Oddly the inverse seems true in late-game as blackguard gets unique armor, tailor gets tailored gambesons, and clockmaker gets a unique spear-type weapon, hunter has recurve bows but malefactor gets nothing in this regard

In fairness, the Malefactor's strengths are very much geared toward the early game, with the class itself falling off in the late game as a result. Blackguard is somewhat the opposite, where a lot of their strength doesn't show up until the late game, while their weakness can make the early game much harder if you aren't prepared to deal with it. So I'm not so sure that Malefactor really needs a late game gadget when it comes to balance.

 

3 minutes ago, ifoz said:

The devs have discussed adding a lock/key system for dynamic dungeons (and I'd guess potential future ruins/story locations too), in which case I think some way for the Malefactor to make and use lock picks could be fun. They're a stealthy outlaw whose playstyle encourages hunting ruins, so lockpicks to get past finding keys or into special locked rooms without having to break down doors would be quite fitting!

This is my general thought as well, and it would be a nice feature for the Malefactor to have to make them a more viable pick for adventuring. They'd still be a weaker choice in terms of late game power, however, lockpicks would be something cheap and incredibly useful in the early game, while still being an incredibly useful tool in the late game for easily getting extra treasure or bypassing traps/more dangerous areas in dungeons and story locations.

It could also add some interest in multiplayer if there is an option to allow lockpicks to work on player-made locks. It could make for some interesting RP scenarios, or be an interesting choice for PvP situations since you're sacrificing power for utility that other classes won't have.

[Archer472]

If it were up to me, areas that are naturally temporally unstable would have more purpose other than just being an area you generally avoid spending long periods of time in. 

Show how that instability is actually affecting the area like how it is depicted in the story locations. Have variants of flora and fauna that emerge from these areas, maybe even having resources extracted from these areas have unique properties that would add an extra layer to progression/ late game min/maxing by experimenting with altered material or finding an unstable area that is producing a specific desirable effect like altering the stat result of quenching.

Anything to make them more interesting than just a place you don't want to linger in.

[Zaph42nd]

32 minutes ago, LadyWYT said:

In fairness, the Malefactor's strengths are very much geared toward the early game, with the class itself falling off in the late game as a result. Blackguard is somewhat the opposite, where a lot of their strength doesn't show up until the late game, while their weakness can make the early game much harder if you aren't prepared to deal with it. So I'm not so sure that Malefactor really needs a late game gadget when it comes to balance.

Fair, agree on the scaling/payoffs, my thought is late-game malefactor becomes a lot more designed around pilfering dungeons and maybe engaging in outlawish things (stealing from other players, breaking into places, etc...)... Lockpicks fit this role nicely, maybe late-game you'd be able to craft more durable lockpicks which would keep the class relevant in the metal ages while not necessarily making them too powerful.... It's all down to specializations with tools and their utility, each class at least can shine in that regard in addition to their unique traits. In a DnD/fantasy archetypes sense this works well too, the blackguard being stand-in for knights/paladins, clockmakers for artificers, hunters for archers, malefactors for rogues, etc... 

[ifoz]

44 minutes ago, LadyWYT said:

In fairness, the Malefactor's strengths are very much geared toward the early game, with the class itself falling off in the late game as a result. Blackguard is somewhat the opposite, where a lot of their strength doesn't show up until the late game, while their weakness can make the early game much harder if you aren't prepared to deal with it. So I'm not so sure that Malefactor really needs a late game gadget when it comes to balance.

Honestly, I think personally that all the classes should get at least one lategame specialty. The way I see it is that no matter the balance for the earlygame, earlygame is always going to be temporary. Sooner or later the player will make it to the lategame, where their playthrough will then stay permanently unless they intentionally throw away their items or leave for distant lands with an empty inventory.

Malefactor's stealth and foraging bonuses are decently handy, but compared to other classes their exclusive item is noticeably more geared toward the earlygame. I also think it's a little strange the trait that gives them their exclusive recipe is named 'improvisor', yet they don't really get any perks to improvising anything.
I think it could be fun if they had alternate ways to craft certain things, which would better lean into this aspect. Maybe they are occasionally able to turn metal scraps into makeshift lockpicks, or maybe they can weave birch bark into a hat that gives good rain protection. Kinda just spitballing, but I think the 'improviser' trait has a lot of potential for changing up the gameplay in small but noticeable ways for the class.

[MKMoose]

1 hour ago, Zaph42nd said:

But for me at least, I'd love to see all classes have at least some unique/class locked tool/item in each stage of the game (primitive/Stone Age, copper and Bronze Age, steel age and beyond), right now each class (aside from commoner) fits into either early-game benefits or late game benefits, not having unique-crafts in all ages/stages of progression.... Hunting is a good case-study for this, trapping, archery, and other skills all could fall well into the class-system where each class has uniques as this already sort of exists (malefactor's sling, hunter's crude bow + crude arrows, etc...) only classes lacking in this regard are blackguard, tailor, and clockmaker of which I think each could get at least some primitive item(s) locked to them (tailors for example could have unique hide-based armor and clothing, blackguards an early-game melee option, clockmaker I'm not sure on).

The malefactor's sling as well as the hunter's crude bow and arrow are arguably pretty disappointing, because both are overshadowed potentially within minutes of obtaining them. They can be useful in the early game, but they change little in the long run. Because of this, I generally have some strong doubts about class-restricted primitive items, as they easily seem somewhat contradictory and potentially even pointless - if it's simple or primitive then why should it be class-exclusive?

The one way that I think this can make sense is when the changes reinforce a specific playstyle or modify the progression path in a meaningful way - the malefactor, for example, could in some way get the ability to repurpose scrap found in ruins (not unlike what @ifoz has been arguing for) and potentially even use it as an alternative source of some metals instead of mining. Similarly, expanding on trapping and letting the malefactor focus on it particularly strongly would let them occupy a more distinct niche in the protein space, presumably with a particular focus on small game as a result of both trapping and the sling, which may have a range of additional implications as well.

I personally feel like no class will really be unique if it doesn't actually shake up the gameplay in a more significant way. As long as each class is just slightly better at one or two things, slightly worse at one or two things, and maybe has one or two unique items, the ultimate result is mostly just that some parts of the game feel a bit smoother and some parts are a bit more annoying or time-consuming. I could forget which class I'm playing and it wouldn't make much of a difference. This especially applies to singleplayer where there is no opportunity for specialization between players, so there's a lot of things (especially related to the main progression line) that the player simply has to do in the exact same way regardless of class traits or preferences. And it's not strictly undesirable, to be clear - it's certainly easier to design, and sometimes the flavor, lore or aesthetics alone play a large enough role to justify classes.

I was wondering if it would be desirable to group the playable classes into two primary buckets, or along an axis, with significant gameplay changes as a result of this - those who can survive in the wilderness on one end (malefactor and hunter especially), and those who rely strongly on infrastructure on the other (clockmaker and tailor especially). Some other distinctions of this kind could me made as well. This would have larger-scale effects on which mechancis different classes can use or use efficiently, for example:

• Some classes may be able to forge small quantities of metal relatively easily, others would be unable to do it and greatly benefit from an early-game tilt hammer.
• Some classes may know how to make crucible steel in small batches, others would prefer a large helve hammer and cementation furnace for steel processing.
• Some classed may be able to more readily survive off of foraged foods, others would rely on quickly establishing a garden bed and farm.
• Some classes may know how to quickly produce a variety of useful items from simple materials like cordage, sticks and tree bark, others would rely on special workstations and more advanced materials.
• Some classes may be able to dress an animal efficiently, others would need a butchering table.

A lot of this stuff could also be integrated into the game without any class distinctions, of course, leaving the player to choose their own strategy. But one thing I've found is that if there are some easy and universally useful strategies (not to mention mandatory progression milestones), then I have no reason not to use them regardless of the class I'm playing, so that's why I had the thought to integrate some relatively fundamental progression changes into classes.

Edited September 25 by MKMoose