LadyWYT

At the very least, switching the default prospecting symbol from the circle to the actual prospecting pick symbol would be handy. I was wondering just the other day why that wasn't the default.

I do like my fantasy stuff, but one of the refreshing details of Vintage Story is that the game is primarily grounded in realism with the fantasy stuff as a garnish. The fantasy is explained just enough to get the player immersed in the world's lore, but isn't saturating everything to the point that it starts producing too many contradictions and thus shattering the player's immersion. As for the realism factor, it's done tastefully enough so that the game provides a good challenge for players, while still being fun. One example--torches extinguish if you dunk them in water and rain will put out fires that aren't under some kind of cover. At the same time, you can hold lanterns, candles, and oil lamps under water and they still work perfectly fine. Despite the latter not being particularly realistic, it gives the player a way to explore underwater for ores and things, and is thus more fun(despite there not being much to see under there currently). I think the important key in balancing fun and realism is whether or not the end result is plausible. Having a pair of wings you can wear and fly around like a bird may be fun, but isn't very realistic. Likewise, having no flight at all might be realistic but not the most fun if you want more travel options. The glider covers both areas in that its flight characteristics are limited, but it offers a fun travel option for players that want it. Could it realistically work in real life the way it does in game? Maybe, provided you built it with light enough materials, but it would likely be more underwhelming if it were 100% realistic. Is the way it's implemented plausible though? Absolutely, and I view the elk/horse debate in much the same fashion. It may not be 100% realistic, but it sounds both plausible and fun. This would be a really cool way to relocate wild animals, without having to domesticate them first or getting them to chase you. It would also be a cool hunting option for the tropical regions. If they make frogs actual entities that can be caught like butterflies, you could catch dart frogs to poison your darts and arrows with too.

Going back and rewatching the 1.19 feature trailer; 1.19 reworked the ruins and made them a little bigger and more interesting. Since you confirmed that the marble ruin is a vanilla feature, I suspect it's either been removed from the game entirely due to no longer fitting the lore's direction, or it's been reworked so much that it's unrecognizable now. It's still also possible that it's a very rare spawn, although this seems unlikely for a ruin that is rather simple. It could also still be in the game files but just be prevented from spawning in worlds as it awaits a rework later. Hard to say for certain. I did see them frequently in 1.18 though. They reminded me of those little star shrines from a mod for a different game. I dug under the pillars on the first one I found and was disappointed to find no treasure.

I've seen standard limestone ruins, I think, in the biomes where limestone is the predominant rock type. I know the kind you're talking about though--I had a four pillar altar thing on one of my old worlds. That world was modded, and I've since removed the mods adding ruins and have not seen one like it since. So I'm guessing it's either a very rare vanilla ruin, or something modded(probably the most likely). Do you run the Better Ruins mod? I'm thinking that one was the likely culprit. It could have also been something from Primitive Survival, although this one seems a bit less likely.

Lately I've started collecting screenshots of drifters in odd places or doing goofy things. Thought it might be fun to post and see if anyone else has any pictures of the little grey goofballs and their antics when they think no one is watching! Just a drifter, out for a swim. It's a warm climate here and I guess they get hot too. A Cool climate in this world. There's a cave right next to my house they'll occasionally creep out of when I'm not looking. Soliciting donations, or selling cookies--you decide! Even drifters like nice places to live. The cave wasn't actually that deep inside, but it's a manicured mansion compared to what others have to live in! Not a drifter exactly, but I guess even Dave enjoys pranking them from time to time. Whoever spawns up there isn't going to have a good day.

Technically we have boilers and gas lighting in the game, but that level of tech is currently unattainable. I don't know about trains--while they are cool, we can just teleport thousands of miles in an instant via the translocators. I could see a much smaller version though being used to push around minecarts, and minecarts would be nice to have for transporting things in and out of dedicated quarries and other mining locations. A mini version like this could also serve as a lazy seraph's way to travel short distances as well, provided they're willing to build the infrastructure for it. Another idea that just crossed my mind--some sort of little steam-powered paddle wheel attachment for boats. I would expect it to be difficult to craft, but it could offer a steady source of power, assuming that standard sailing works similar to how Valheim handles things.

I'd certainly like to see more options for mechanical power(such as watermills or even using large animals to power querns), as windmills are not always operational and not always the most viable option in certain climates. It'd also be nice to have more late game machinery to tinker around with. My main concern though would be making things too automated--it just doesn't feel quite right for the more handcrafted vibe that Vintage Story currently has. The lore setting, as I understand it, is supposed to be Late Middle Ages, post-apocalypse. So while machinery does exist it's not to the level of what the Industrial Revolution brought, and whatever level of tech there was in the world has to be built back from scratch. The other thing about automating everything is that it cuts out a lot of the gameplay loops that are supposed to engage the player, and many of those gameplay loops benefit each other in some way. Some players do enjoy playing this way, and a few tasks greatly benefit from automation(like querns), but automation doesn't feel like it should be the end goal for every loop.

Ifoz already beat me to the punch on this, but it's heavily implied that rusty gears are leftovers of temporal gears, whether they've had their energy expended or been otherwise corrupted. We also don't currently have the ability to craft temporal gears themselves, though it may be added in later updates. As it stands now, it's a lost art, and prior to the worldwide calamity crafting temporal items seemed to be limited to only the most skilled craftsmen(hence a large part of the reason that common folk seem to revere these items). In other words, it's like comparing a kindergartner's art project to Michelangelo. Pulling straight from the wiki: According to the wiki, they can stack to 1000. I don't know if the information is accurate or not, as I've not yet had more than about 100 at any given time, but the stack size seems fine as it is given that the idea is to spend them. Storage shouldn't be an issue given they can be somewhat difficult to acquire; the only issue I can think of on that is trying to store them on the ground(they only stack to five in this case). As for how big they are...given the model size I'd say they're about the size of a human hand, which doesn't seem the most practical to carry around. On the other hand(pun not intended...mostly), it's a videogame, and it's a cooler idea than just straight coins. Being able to carry ridiculous amounts of currency around is a plot convenience that most games use in some way or another. The example I'll cite is Legend of Zelda--the rupees are gems that are a similar size to the gears, but Link can still carry a few hundred in his wallet. And now I want to put my rusty and temporal gears on a string and wear them as amulets. I mean, we can do it with tree seeds! The temporal gear might not be the most comfortable to wear though given it constantly spins... What if machine teeth were a drop from mechanical enemies? It could be a somewhat esoteric part that clockmakers could use to craft a gizmo or malefactors could use to improvise a booby trap. If there is some sort of rival "monster hunter" faction added later I could also see machine teeth being used as currency for them, or used to craft some of their stuff. Of course, if you take "machine teeth" literally...drifters aren't exactly machines but are part metal, and given some of their existing art... I could also see the teeth being a rare drop from some of the higher level drifters. It would also explain how they make short work of their prey.

I don't think that's a vanilla feature, as if it were that would be a fairly serious bug. So I'm guessing it's probably due to a mod. Before you go uninstalling things, one thing you could try is right-clicking or shift-right clicking a different block that is close to the one you shift-right clicked to begin with. Try it with an empty slot and/or the rope slot highlighted. I'm hoping that will tie off the other end of the rope and free your character, as the "tetherball effect" seems like it's probably an unintended side effect of something allowing ropes to be placed similar to how beams are. Alternately, you could try breaking the block that the other end of the rope is tied to, and see if that removes the rope. The next option would be as Maelstrom said--starting investigating your mods to figure out if one is the culprit.

Oh, I like the sled idea. Plus there could also be dog sleds too if/when wolves can be tamed. As for the elk, I think they will have a different function from the horse. I would expect horses to be a good all-purpose mount, maybe easy to find and tame but maybe have issues in steep or brushy terrain. Elk could be better in harsh terrain, maybe not need to be fed as much, but be harder to find and tame. In any case, I'm happy with multiple options. I like creature collecting and letting them have different strengths and weaknesses makes them even cooler. It's a similar vein to how the game handles armor--steel plate is currently the best in regard to overall stats, but it may not be the best choice for every scenario. One thing I do hope though--if the elk is indeed going to be the main mount of choice, I hope they're a little easier to find. I have yet to see one in-game and while I don't mind scouring the world for stuff I feel that the "main" mount should be relatively easy to find and tame. The stronger, more niche mounts should be the ones that are harder to get.

Oh man, I hope not! I like my nice, somewhat safe campfire. That being said, it's a cool idea and the devs also indicated that the new mob(I'm gonna call it the Rot Beast for now) is going to be a somewhat uncommon encounter. So having it be attracted to light wouldn't be that bad, although it's a bit counter to the nature of what drifters seem to be given they tend to avoid daylight. It would also help the world feel more like the one described in the lore--one where common folk just don't venture into the wilds due to the monsters lurking about. Maybe the Rot Beast would also be an entity that only spawns at higher levels of rift activity as well? It also reminds me of the idea that was swimming around in my mind earlier when running away from bears. Why doesn't fire have a chance to scare hostile wildlife away? Or have there be a craftable item or two to frighten some of them away to aid with early game survival(like a noisemaker to scare away wolves and black bears). I'm guessing it's probably due to lore and balance reasons that those aren't options right now though. However, if there was a bonfire that was bigger than the campfire and able to keep hostile wildlife away, I think that could possibly be balanced by a Rot Beast that will be more attracted to a roaring flame!

There's a weird shadow scarecrow that creepily appears in the distance when I play Valheim sometimes. Always disappears whenever I try to get closer. Never seen anything like it in Vintage Story though.

https://mods.vintagestory.at/show/mod/329 It doesn't make the patterned pots craftable, but it does add more colored pottery options.

Because I forgot to answer this question in my original post, and can't figure out how to edit it in: I don't think there's a way to achieve the desired results for a specific region, without attempting to make a mod yourself. Any world settings you change or mods you install will apply to the entire world itself.

This mod should help with the drifter issue by making them only spawn underground. https://mods.vintagestory.at/show/mod/9700 There are other similar mods if you search "drifter" in the database as well, should this one not work or not quite be the solution you're looking for. https://mods.vintagestory.at/show/mod/6181 This mod may solve the issue of hares eating crops that aren't fenced in. It's for version 1.18, but to my knowledge nothing regarding hares really changed in 1.19 so it should still work. Turning the wildlife settings to "neutral" in the world config options should make bears and wolves(and other hostile wildlife) have a more peaceful disposition toward the player. I think they will still hunt prey animals though, and will likely still fight back should you attack them first. I'm not 100% certain though, as I play with hostile wildlife. If setting them to neutral isn't quite enough, there are mods to prevent them from spawning, as well as mods that tweak them in other ways. Shopping around with the keywords "wolf", "bear", or "hostile" seemed to pull up some of the best results, though the mods also seemed to be for older versions. Which, older mods can be used on newer versions, but it's also a bigger dice roll on whether or not it will work properly.

What about using clay to seal the doors?

Could just be in the literal sense; maybe horses won't be able to carry as much/have as many "upgrades", but might be faster than elks. Or elks might be much better on rough terrain than horses are, which would encourage players to use elks more(unless they sink in the time and resources to build roads everywhere). The update is still a ways away so a lot could change--we'll have a better idea closer to the release. It could also just be a story thing to help separate Vintage Story from the real world, similar to how the player isn't actually a human according to the lore. Outside of the temporal stuff and drifters/mechanicals, Vintage Story feels like a real world survival simulator. Which isn't a bad thing--there's even a game mode for that--but it also doesn't hurt to tweak a few things in order to tell a good story. As much as I like horses and look forward to their addition, it's also refreshing to see a different kind of creature available as a mount choice.

I would assume it's mostly due to the elk already being implemented in the game. It's probably a bit easier to work out the code for mounts with a creature that already exists than it is to add an entirely new animal to the game. Once the mount coding is in place, then the framework is streamlined for animals like horses and camels. I'm also assuming that horses will be coming in the update as well, given the horse is a staple of transportation. Of course, they may already have horses coded, but the models may not be finished enough to use in a spotlight video.

Correct. I tried this in one of my worlds, though I had a dirt block on the top instead of a trapdoor. Since the trapdoor has holes in it and the solid doors do not, I was hoping it would count as an airtight room. However, a couple days went by--more than enough time for charcoal to finish--and the pit was still smoking. I didn't hear it outright burning to ash though. Quickly removing the door and replacing it with dirt proceeded to allow the charcoal to finish cooking properly. It would be really nice though if we could build a more permanent pit with a door and trapdoor for access. Not that digging out dirt to access the goodies is hard, but it's a bit more time-consuming than just opening a door.

I don't think it's a bad thing to have "smaller" stuff worked in with the larger stuff. It helps provide more polish while keeping each update interesting. My observation is game updates(in general) that focus primarily on a lot of little stuff and have no big stuff end up being underwhelming to many players. Also it sounds like we might be getting proper kilns for mass-production of pottery items, if the devs are reworking brick-firing entirely. Only time will tell. Given that ships seem to be getting added this update, I'd wager there will be more aquatic content coming later, especially with the new story bits providing more incentive to go explore. Bright pink would look a little odd, yeah. I like the deep reddish-brown and Oreo colorations on some domesticated pigs much more interesting! I'd love to see more variations for the more "tame" farm-type animals, but I think it's something that should probably be limited to generation 10, perhaps. Currently the chickens are the only tameable animals that have more domesticated coloring. The roosters look similar enough to wild jungle fowl, but the hens look more like the chickens I grew up around on the farm. On the other hand, it's cool having wild animals as pets in the game.

Are those three separate deposits?! The iron fairy has been kind to you! Incidentally, I never thought about bringing haybales and walls with me to help navigate underground. I'll have to try that sometime.

I like the idea of using a standard model(s) as the base for the mounts/ships and having different slots for customization and upgrades. I wonder if some of the customization might be related to the player's class, such as an extra-fancy saddle for tailors or a clockwork harness for the clockmaker.

Well shoot, I'm gonna have to explore the surface ruins more thoroughly now. I typically don't bother with them unless I see a cracked vessel or bony soil. As for another angle on the scrap armor...what if instead of actual armor, the Malefactor could make a drifter disguise? It could have the same protection stats as the Improvised Armor, and utilize the scrap metal still, given that drifters seem to have rusty metal parts. The special effect the disguise could have is making low level drifters detect you from a shorter range, so it would give the Malefactor an option for sculking around at night during rift activity or in the shallower caves. The higher tier drifters(2 and up) wouldn't be fooled though, and animals/mechanicals will still see through the disguise.

Cave-ins are disabled by default, I do believe. Likewise, sand, gravel, and mud will automatically collapse if you remove the block underneath them, by default. I think you can change these settings at any time though via console commands

It seems to be an aesthetic variant. It may also be more prone to caving in without support, although I can't say for sure as I don't play with cave-ins enabled.