LadyWYT

You can, it's just tough. The best way to get a respite is: For this boss, you don't actually need mobility. The arena is small, and most of his attacks are easily blocked or dodged. However, plate armor is a poor choice unless you're playing with friends, since the bandage timer penalty for that armor is rather steep. With the recent changes to healing, it's important to make sure that incoming healing is worth the time it takes to bandage.

I would say that if you still have no success after further trials, try disabling your mods and testing on a vanilla world to see if you still have the same issues. If you do, then you've likely found a bug with the base game, and should go report it on the Github bug tracker. If not though, then it's probably a mod interfering with the gameplay somehow. In that case, you'll want to double-check your mods carefully, making sure they're up-to-date(or otherwise still working properly on the recent game version), as well as double-checking mod descriptions to make sure there's not one altering animal behavior(that you might not have noticed when installing it--hey it happens). Worst case scenario is that you can reinstall mods one by one, testing as you go, to see exactly when the issue crops back up. It's a tedious process, to be sure, but the most effective way for figuring out what's causing the problem, when there's no obvious suspect otherwise.

Maybe, but I think just the variety alone might be enough. One of the most popular mods of all time is Expanded Foods, and many of the foods that mod offers don't offer any extra benefit than vanilla--just more variety.

The first question I have is, are you using mods? Those are a prime suspect when it comes to performance issues, especially if you're trying to run a lot of mods at once, mods that are outdated, or mods that add a lot of items/entities to the game.

Well...it is a boss fight...a boss fight where the boss is: Unfortunately I'm not aware of any mods that reduce boss HP, though there does seem to be at least one that gives bosses more health. So for the modded route, you'd probably have to create your own mod to tweak the value, which should be fairly easy since it's not a big change. Alternatively, you could also just crank up your damage for the fight, then turn damage back to normal when you're done(although this will require a couple of world reloads). I will note though, that the boss fight itself(at least, the first one), doesn't actually take that long--a couple of minutes or so. It does, however, feel like quite a long time, since there's quite a lot happening, and standard fights are significantly shorter in comparison. Of course, you could always play Blackguard, assuming you're not already. However, while that might give you an easier time on the first boss, you're probably in for a rough time later...

Ironically, despite their name and appearance, musk ox aren't bovines. They're more closely related to goats. That being said, I would like to see bison and bovines added to VS someday. It would be cool, however... Not really. In theory it would, yes, but the issue is that to build something like a cart, or chisel, or even to trap elk efficiently, you're going to need an anvil and forge, as well as a LOT of other materials(like logs and planks). So the nomad part isn't really something the player could do until much later in the game, given they'll need to set up at least a small base of operations to build/acquire the things needed for a nomad lifestyle. To me, that really defeats the purpose of a nomad playthrough, since the idea is to stay on the move from the very beginning. I think perhaps a better option for a nomad playthrough, is once wolf taming is implemented, have a craftable travois for your canine friend(s). It won't have much inventory, but it would be relatively easy to craft, and possible to craft with just stone age tools. In that case, paired with the pelt tents/shelter the OP proposed, a player could opt for a nomad lifestyle and slowly work their way up the tech tree, although that does mean staying in the stone age for an extended period of time.

I did think about this, however, we can already do this to some extent with the current chisel system. The drawback is that the furniture isn't always usable(you can sit on anything, but can't lie down on anything, or use anything as a container, etc), and has a blocky appearance instead of the polished look that premade furniture has. The other big drawback I see is...how do you determine what's a chair versus a bed versus a table, etc? I once watched a "let's play" of some MySims game, and though I don't recall the title, I do recall that one of the features of the game was building custom furniture--not just choosing textures, actually building the model. Which was pretty cool, however, it did mean that throwing a bunch of parts together into what was essentially a junkpile, still made functional furniture...albeit furniture that looked horrendous and had broken animations due to the design. I think perhaps a better way to handle custom furniture like that, is perhaps to include something like a "seat cushion", that can either function as a decorative(but usable) pillow, or be added to chiseled chairs and other furniture to allow them to easily function like their namesakes. For wardrobes, it's possible to build an aesthetic shell around trunks and store clothing within. Beds are pretty much the one thing you can't really chisel, but I think in that case the bed system itself could be tweaked a bit so that the player has to build the frame separate from the mattress. In that case, the mattress quality is what determines how long the player can sleep. For extra decoration, the player can place different styles of blankets, or perhaps some extra pillows.

Typically, the map will have a sort of hand-drawn appearance by default. Water will be marked as a light blue, with the landscape being various shades and blotches of light tans and browns. Enabling the Color-Accurate World Map switches the hand-drawn look for actual block colors, which makes it easier to pick out things like ruins, trader wagons, peat and clay deposits, rock types, etc. One drawback of the color accurate map though is that it will only update the colors when you actually visit the chunks in question, so it often ends up a weird hodge-podge of color. The default map appearance has a more consistent appearance, and is somewhat more immersive thanks to the hand-drawn style.

Welcome to the forums(and the game)! Ultimately, the choice is up to you, but since you've not even played the game yet, I highly recommend playing just vanilla for a while and just focus on figuring out the basics first. Doing this will give you a much better grasp of the game overall, as well as allow you time to figure out which parts of the base game you'd most like to change. Regarding vanilla options, I would recommend picking Standard or Exploration as the starting difficulty. Standard is tough, but fair, and also the intended developer experience. Exploration is less challenging, but may be the more attractive option if you find yourself struggling too much while trying to learn. Wilderness Survival and Homo Sapiens are both the hardest difficulties, and while it is possible to start learning the game on these difficulties, it's definitely not something I'd recommend for brand new players unless they really really want that kind of challenge. One important thing to note about vanilla options, is that most of them can be changed via console commands after creating the world(though you may need to reload the world for the changes to take effect). A couple of options you might consider tweaking, are enabling the Color-Accurate World Map under the Survival Challenges tab, as well as setting a brief grace period for monster spawns under the Player Spawn/Death tab(in this case, rifts will still appear if enabled, but won't spawn monsters until the grace timer is up). You may also wish to enable the "keep inventory" option for Death Punishment, if you find yourself dying a little too often.

So it occurred to me earlier that, instead of trying to always loot decorative furniture from ruins, or buy it from traders, or stare in wistfulness at all the fancy stuff NPCs have and you don't...why not add something like a woodworking workbench to allow the player to craft a selection of nice furniture themselves? The workbench can act similar to the anvil and sailboat roller logs. The player simply interacts with the workbench to bring up the interface and a list of options, picks the option they wish to make, and then supplies the appropriate tools and materials as needed(planks, saw, cloth, nails and strips, etc). Doing it this way offers a more immersive way to craft decor, without the need for a lot of clicking or memorizing grid recipes(or otherwise needing to look them up in the handbook). As a bonus, the player also gets to see the item in question take shape before them, similar to watching progress made on sailboat construction. But I changed my mind and want to craft something else! Not a problem! If the player changes their mind before the project is complete, they can scrap the project and get the raw materials back, before picking something else to make. Further customization: Use colored cloth on chairs/upholstered seats in order to change the upholstery to that color. The bolt of cloth will be consumed in the process. Some pieces of furniture could probably have special "slots" that the player can use to place additional pieces to further customize the look, such as re-purposing sailboat figurehead carvings to decorate fancy chairs, or socketing gemstones into fancy furniture for that extra bling.

Now that I'm not sure. It's worth trying, given that the worst that happens is it doesn't work. Bear in mind though that grafting has an even lower chance of success than standard cuttings.

Welcome to the forums! Unfortunately, I'm not sure that there's currently a way to adjust the stability aside from turning off the mechanic entirely. The best fix is to just move your smithing setup to a more stable area, or else be prepared to burn a lot of temporal gears and healing items to keep your stability topped off. If you're willing to mod, you could try one of these, though bear in mind that mods aren't guaranteed to be maintained, and may have unintended consequences. Older mods will sometimes work on a newer version, but best to make a backup of your world just in case something goes wrong. Temporal Amulets: https://mods.vintagestory.at/temporalamulets Temporal StabiliTea: https://mods.vintagestory.at/show/mod/27496 Chunk Stability Override: https://mods.vintagestory.at/chunkstaboverride

Given it's possible to fistfight a wolf and win...I'm not even sure one needs to have gear, or even be a Blackguard. Both qualities do, however, greatly increase survival chances.

Oh there is--how else are you going to make delicious redmeat-mushroom stew? Or "stew surprise" to feed to your friends? You can also stick shrooms into flowerpots and use them as decoration. They're also handy to have around when you're out on an expedition; bring a cookpot and just forage some ingredients to cook with instead of bringing your larder with you. Yep, that's the one I was thinking of. Ironically, I don't play with it myself, but the way it implements the mechanic seems like it would be a good way to add more depth in a way that isn't frustrating.

I wouldn't mind having some pelt options for bedrolls or quick lean-to shelters; it would be great for hunting camps or traveling around. However... In my opinion, the stone age tier should remain rather basic, since this is just a brief stepping stone to the meatier portion of the game and not a tech tier at which the player is intended to linger. The stone age tier has just enough for the player to survive, and that's it. Also keep in mind that it takes time to actually process a hide into a pelt, and crafting something like a tent is going to require several large pelts--medium or smaller pelts just won't do here. In the time it takes the player to acquire all the suggested resources to make the tent, they could have built a small house from packed earth and thatch, and possibly even acquired their first pottery and metal tools as well.

Maybe, but I think it's more along the lines of, most every time someone brings this topic up, the suggested method they lay out is essentially equating realism to fun, which ends up requiring the player to spend the majority of their time just caring for their farmland if they want a good harvest. While that is realistic, it's not really fun, unless that's all the gameplay the player is interested in. For me personally, I do think farming could use a bit more depth, but while I do enjoy farming in the game I would quickly grow to absolutely hate it if I felt like I had to be constantly checking my farms or following very specific maintenance constraints to keep it going. With the current system, I can make my farms as big or as small as I like, without care requirements changing too drastically. Likewise, I don't have to be constantly battling weeds to ensure I get a harvest; I just need to deal with the weeds before I can plant new crops. I don't like dealing with fertilizer either, especially since I like to use compost and saltpeter for other things, so I sink more time into carefully rotating crop types. And though farming can sometimes be a bit of a time sink, it's not so much that I can't easily take breaks and go mess around with other gameplay when I wish to. Yeah pretty much. As noted above, I do like to putter, but I want to be the one choosing to putter, and what I putter around with and when. There are certain requirements for progression, and time limits to certain activities(like you can't grow crops in the cold), but as a general rule the game is still fairly lenient about giving the player plenty of freedom to pick a method that works for their playstyle. I think this is also a good chunk of the reason that some gameplay aspects, like fruit trees and animal husbandry, feel "worthless" at the moment: there's only two of a planned eight story chapters implemented. If the player is completing roughly one chapter per in-game year, that means the player will take about eight years to complete the story, which is a few hundred hours worth of gameplay and easily enough time to make things like animal husbandry worthwhile. Going back to this bit, I think a better way to smooth out farming progression, is instead of adding weeds or more "busywork" for the player to manage, perhaps just tweak how the player acquires seeds. Make wild crops a lot more scarce, so that the player can't just gather a couple stacks of the main seed types within a day's travel spawn. Instead, the player needs to either scavenge vessels for seeds, purchase seeds from the agriculture traders, or otherwise manage their crops carefully to acquire more seeds if they don't wish to spend days scouring the landscape. As for how to get seeds from crops, now the player needs to choose between harvesting their crops for edible food, or letting them go to seed in order to have seeds to plant for next harvest. The main exception to this rule is grain, since...well...grains are both the edible food part and the seed part. In any case, a change like that would slow down early farming a bit, and make it more of a process the player needs to actively build up, much like metalworking or livestock.

This is what I do--have two barrels going for the same liquid. One set of barrels is meant for fresh batches, where each barrel contains 50L of appropriate solution and I stuff as much hide as possible in. If there is any solution left over, it gets dumped into the secondary barrel and used to process smaller batches of hide(or dye cloth, in the case of strong tannin).

Welcome to the forums! I'm guessing you messed with the world generation settings in order to get this. I wouldn't trash the world, but I would start over on a new save file, with something closer to standard world generation, as that will make it easier to learn gameplay basics(you'll have an easier time actually finding resources you need to progress). Once you've got more of the basics down, then then you could come back to this world for a more challenging playthrough. That's not to say you can't play this one as your first world, but...an island that small is going to be incredibly restricting, and if the only land out there is tiny islands like this, it's going to be much more difficult to secure critical progression resources. Even more so if you don't even have cattails, as those are needed to make rope, which is used for the raft(the first water vehicle). You can use vines to make rope as well, but I'm guessing there likely aren't enough vines for that here(and vines don't regrow like cattails).

Like @Zane Mordien already mentioned, it's just set design. Albeit poor design, since this would have been a prime spot just add some iron bars instead of invisible walls. That way, it would look like a built-in safety feature to prevent falls, instead of obvious game mechanics to prevent the player from cheesing the fight.

Oh yeah, cosmetic definitely aren't a solution to combat, that's just me getting sidetracked from the main topic. That tends to happen easily.

Eh, I have a similar outlook on farming, but I chalk the sentiment up to just having what's probably several hundred hours worth of gameplay under my belt at this point. Not everyone enjoys ultra hardcore, and given my time lurking the forums, it seems several players(usually newer players, but not always) tend to struggle with managing their food supply, which suggests to me that the standard difficulty is working as intended. The main reasoning I had for opting for an animal-powered plow, is that ties into the husbandry gameplay loop, as well as likely being more fun to use than trying to pull the plow yourself. It's also a little easier to steer it if you're behind the device rather than in front of it. Yeah, that's the main way I see a weed mechanic working, without it getting incredibly annoying. Weeds have to be removed before you can use the farmland again, but otherwise can be left alone to turn farmland back into standard grassy dirt. As for the hoe requirement...maybe the hoe can instead remove weeds in a 3x3 area, giving the player incentive to use a hoe over doing the work by hand. That is pretty much it, however, you do need to be careful about what crops you plant where, and when you plant them. Otherwise, you can screw up a harvest by planting too early/too late, or end up having no consistency between what nutrients are where(which makes management a pain). Mostly just because not every player wants that much farmland. Of course, the other problem is that the player doesn't need to expand their farms to get around crop rotation and fertilizer; they can simply go dig up dirt elsewhere in the world and replace the farmland dirt to restore nutrients entirely. Right, but the thing is, it's not uncommon for players to lean into the most efficient routes of doing things, or strive to get the best possible yields from things like farming. If the player isn't at the base to pull the weeds(or check to make sure there's no weeds to pull), that's something likely to pester at the back of their mind while they're away. I will note though, that this doesn't really dissuade players from just...ignoring the mechanic entirely, putting up with the weeds, and just making absolutely massive farms to counteract the crop loss from neglect. What the mechanic does do though, is make it more frustrating to maintain farms at a large scale, which isn't really ideal given that it cuts down on player choice(now they're going to feel forced into small gardens). Yeah pretty much. I still recall you telling the tale of your adventures with modded weeds. I do enjoy farming in this game, and while I do think it could be complex, I don't know that most other players would enjoy the same level of challenge that I do.

Yes and no...those "miracle elixirs" and useless trinkets could serve as interesting cosmetics or decorative items. Not exactly useful for practical gameplay, but for players who like roleplaying or collecting things, there would be a reason to frequent those traders. That's fair, and in fairness it's possible there are settlements out there, that aren't yet implemented, that lean heavily into that aesthetic. I forgot these were a thing as well. Typically I end up crafting one early, as it just seems a fitting knick-knack to carry around. For brevity's sake I'm just quoting this part, but yeah I don't disagree with what you said. I'm not against stuff like that getting added to the game, as those are fun cosmetic items to collect and decorate with, but it's also the kind of thing I'd want to be strictly cosmetic. Kind of...but as I understand it(spoilers just in case):

The recipes, yes, you'd have to write those down. But as to the basic properties of the spices involved, the idea is to have a "quick reference" for the player to figure out the recipes, just in case they couldn't write them down, haven't played in a while, or it otherwise slipped their mind.

Tagging on to this, if spices have inherent hidden properties, perhaps they could have an implementation similar to Elder Scrolls alchemy ingredients. That is, once you've successfully cooked with the ingredient in question, or sampled it to determine overall flavor profile, then the item tooltip will always list the basic properties discovered. That way, the player can easily track the basic ingredient properties and figure out better recipes, which is especially useful in the event the player hasn't played in a while.

Honestly, I could picture this too, although the implementation I see is the standard snake oil salesman . The charms don't actually do anything, and maybe the "miracle elixirs" being sold actually turn out to be poison, or perhaps the player gets "instant riches" only to find out that the shady merchant stole the goods from the local village and now the player gets the blame for it. Whatever the case may be, the player ultimately ends up several gears poorer, with nothing to show for it.