LadyWYT

Nah, I just ready my shortsword and get ready to start stabbing when it starts trying to maul the hunter.

Honestly, it's not even a concept limited to game design, but rather it's an impossible task. There's absolutely no way that everyone can be pleased, because people have varying tastes, and some of those tastes directly conflict with the taste of others. Pretty much, though it's not just Minecraft that's suffered from the "gotta please everyone" mentality. Skyrim, as popular as it is, also suffered from it, as did other titles. That's not to say they're bad games, and they've obviously sold very well for a reason, but they're very shallow games and leave a lot of players wanting. Which I don't think Vintage Story has those problems. The devs have a clear vision for the game, and while it is a bit niche, it does a very good job of appealing to its target audience. The level of customization available also makes it very easy for players to "season to taste", so if the presets aren't quite right for someone, it's easy enough to tweak a few things to achieve it. Obviously, there's been some controversy over certain aspects of the game, but the game itself doesn't seem to be hurting, but rather still growing, given the increase in new players showing up on the forums.

Or I mean, just apply heavy penalties to work speed while submerged in water.

Are you referring to CO stats here, or vanilla? In vanilla, having tier 2 armor like gambeson will make bear attacks mostly a non-issue(aside from hitboxes), since bears have tier 2 attacks. In any case, just checking, because I got confused by the preceding paragraph and thought you were talking vanilla armor mechanics, until I realized you were still referring to Combat Overhaul. Silly me! This is 100% a CO change. To my knowledge, the only things in vanilla that allow for AoE attacks, are bombs. And those are quite situational in use. I do want to note that while this is true, it's not really a problem for Blackguards specifically, unless they have very bad aim. Blackguards are able to oneshot locusts, provided said Blackguard is decently armed.

I dunno man, I go toe-to-toe with bears fairly often, though generally I avoid picking the fight until I'm ready for it. As for hitboxes, I don't know that most players would notice any changes about them specifically, but I bet that most players would notice something in combat had changed for the better if they feel like all of their hits are landing as expected. I do agree on the tweaking versus testing though--tweaking numbers is fairly easy, but what's not so easy is testing thoroughly to make sure the changes were the right ones.

Welcome to the forums! @Thorfinn has covered most of it, in that the handbook covers pretty much all the information you need/could want to know about various game items and systems. It has a Guide section that includes a brief summary of different progression "tiers", and the general steps of how to advance through them. The handbook is also good about cross-referencing things, so there are often links on one page that will take you to other relevant game items and concepts. It's a lot to handle at first, but reading through the Guide section and picking simple first goal from there is a good place to start. I will also note that there is an optional tutorial upon first creating a world, that will walk you through the process of learning basic controls and acquiring your first set of handbaskets and starter tools. It's not much, but if you haven't played the game in quite some time it could be a handy refresher. Overall, I would say that the general vibe of VS is that the player needs to learn to think quickly on their feet, as well as get good at planning certain activities well in advance. Death happens a lot, especially for newer players, however, I will note that the game is rarely unfair about it. Most of the time, there was something the player could have done to avoid death, so when it does occur it's important to review the circumstances and figure out how to improve in order to avoid similar situations in the future. As for in-game hints...there aren't any for standard gameplay, at least if you exclude the handbook. You can learn certain bits about the world through simple observation, but the handbook is still going to be the primary source of information when it comes to learning gameplay systems themselves. In-game hints apply more to the game's main story and lore--a lot of the storytelling is done via various clues hidden in location design and certain flavor texts for certain items, and the player is often left to draw their own conclusions. I will note though, that if a lore item/NPC makes a point of describing something as dangerous, you should absolutely pay attention, as those warnings do actually mean something.

Honestly, this is a situation best solved by mods and special rules for the server(s) in question, instead of changing the base game. The game's story and basic progression still needs to be easily completed by any class in singleplayer, without needing to disable class-exclusive recipes. I do agree on this point being weird. Really, the shortblade option shouldn't even show up as a forging recipe unless the player in question is a Blackguard, or class-exclusive recipes are turned off(so it's an oversight). Aside from just disabling the recipe for non-Blackguards, I think a better fix would just be to add a plain shortsword that utilizes the same forge pattern, but has worse stats than the Blackguard blade. That way, players have a "normal" sword option they can craft and use, while still letting Blackguard equipment retain its advantage, while still letting the falx have its niche advantage with the autoloot feature.

It's not a unique location, or special to any particular biome. It's just a small compound that's roughly the same size as those trader camps you find on occasion, though perhaps slightly smaller. It's also not unusual for these treasure hunter shacks to generate within strolling distance of world spawn. Probably the most "realistic" place for manual placement is somewhere within walking distance of your base(so not right next door), in an open area so the trader could feasibly spot approaching threats as needed(so not in dense forest, though they can spawn there). I've not measured the structure specifically, but it should absolutely fit in a 20-block diameter area.

I mean, I'm not saying that's what's happening, but it's not something I can rule out either, as there have been some newer players through the forums that did pretty much exactly that--picked the hardest gamemodes, and then were shocked it was so hard. Though I also expect it's just players who have gone looking for iron(probably magnetite specifically), dug at a high reading, and been disappointed because it's the first time they didn't find what they were looking for. Which is understandable, but digging at a different location usually produces better results. I think in this case, it's not really the fault of the prospect system itself, as much as it is a mismatch of what the system is and the particular player's expectations. The current system is simple enough to understand up front and jump in and start using, but also complicated enough that there's plenty for the player to study in order to figure out what ores are easier to find, where they appear, how big are the clusters, etc. Most stuff that's required for progression is pretty easy to find with a bit of digging; the hard-to-find stuff tends to be things like gemstones, cinnabar, alum, etc., which are mostly just vanity ores at the moment. In some cases, like alum, there are easier to find substitutes like cassiterite.

Not really. If you look at real warhammers and maces, they aren't the monstrosities often depicted in movies and videogames. It's one thing to have the supreme spooklord of evil swinging a mace the size of a Volkswagen, but it's another thing entirely for your average Joe. I'm not saying that a sledgehammer-type weapon wouldn't do a lot of damage, but it takes a lot more effort to swing, and does not swing very fast. Not only will it wear out the user a lot faster, but said user is also at a higher risk of death since their opponents have plenty of time to counter the attack. A real mace or warhammer, on the other hand, isn't going to be that heavy--probably somewhere around 2-5 lbs(roughly 1-2 kg). It's not so much the weight itself that is dangerous, as much as it is the force the weapon is swung with, and the design of the weapon itself. They have spikes or flanges that are designed specifically to dig into armor, and the lighter weight means the weapon can be swung around efficiently at higher speeds. Heck, even the "really big" weapons like greatswords don't weigh very much--they're usually around 5 lbs(2kg) as well. As for armor, thicker plates are more protective, yes, but the user still needs to be able to function while wearing said armor. The heavier the armor is, the faster the user tires, and the less agile they are due to the weight. Incidentally, this is also why full armor started being phased out towards the late Middle Ages; the introduction and improvements to firearms meant that armor was getting thicker to stop bullets. Eventually, it was too thick for full armor to be practical for warfare, thus the cuirass took its place. A cuirass could easily be made much thicker to withstand gunfire and protect some of the most vital areas of the body, while also being light enough for a soldier to feasibly wear into battle. Yeah pretty much--it's a matter of finding that sweet spot in regards to the physics. The speed is also a critical factor in reaction time, as I mentioned above--slower speeds means the opponent has more time to react.

You'll probably be interested in this mod: https://mods.vintagestory.at/meteoricsteel Otherwise, I have to partially agree with @hstone32--the current tiers of stuff are fine, and if something new does get added it should really be for reasons more than "just because". Personally, I do expect another tech tier to be added beyond what steel offers, but this would be the realm of Jonas tech, and likely not a tech tier required for story chapters other than perhaps the very last ones.

It's not just that, iron is also lighter than bronze, with the exception of aluminum bronze(which to my knowledge, is a modern alloy and not something that was known in medieval times). When it comes to making weapons, tools, and armor, heavier does not mean better. Armor needs to be light enough for the user to function in for long periods of time, without getting worn out. Lightweight tools and weapons allow the wielder to use them more effectively for longer periods of time. https://www.coyotesteel.com/assets/img/PDFs/weightspercubicfoot.pdf Yeah, just a quick browse of the internet suggests that medieval smiths had access to tech that allowed proper iron smelting--late 14th century, roundabouts, which tracks with the setting of Vintage Story. I wouldn't be too surprised if options for iron and steel casting were added later, but I'd wager the reason that the current design(in terms of how to refine the ore) is the way it is, is that the iron blooms were both easier to implement at the time while also being different from the earlier metalworking gameplay loops. https://metalcastinginstitute.com/iron-history/

Ahem...the specific timeframe is somewhere between 1200 and 1400, due to the existence of both the Hanseatic League and the Byzantine Empire. If you go earlier than that, the Hanseatic League doesn't exist, and you can't go later than 1400(1453, to be precise) or the Byzantine Empire no longer exists. Since both are referenced in the Old World history, the events of the Old World took place somewhere in that timeframe. As for the current year in the game? The only thing that's really known for sure is that some sort of catastrophic event took place to end the Old World, and a few hundred years have passed since, at least. Very little of humanity is left, and the ones that are left have had their hands full just scratching out their own survival. In other words, that's pretty much the in-lore reason that technology is locked to the late Middle Ages. The Old World had an early leap in tech thanks to the efforts of a certain character, however, that progress has pretty much been lost to the ages and only specific individuals still have any clue how to create it. I don't think it's a matter of "couldn't", but more a matter of that the focus of the game is on medieval tech, with some steampunk thrown in. The stone age is just a brief phase that the player is in at the very start of the game, and not the tech level intended to be the main focus. I'd also note that "pre-Columbian" tends to refer to the Americas, but the game's setting is predominantly central Europe, with references to some of the other nearby areas relevant to that region at the time(near East, far East, North Africa and the Middle East).

Honestly, with as irate as some players get over "sleep at night" as a solution to deal with monsters, good luck convincing them to take a nap as a solution to intense heat.

Not really, since the traders will still sell elk. It's only important for the Homo Sapiens gamemode, where purchasing isn't an option at all. On normal gamemodes, the only advantage to capturing and taming wild elk calves is that you won't have to pay the trader for one(though you will have to go through a LOT more work). I think when it comes to creature spawns, it's kind of both. Generally, I play temperate starts, and it's not unusual to only see moose in the wintertime, or at high altitudes; same goes for brown bears. I've even seen the odd polar bear roaming around on mountaintop glaciers outside of the arctic. So I think the creature spawns are tied mostly to the year-round temperatures, as that determines the overall climate of that particular area. In the cases that current temperature might be influencing creature spawns, I think the creature spawns are still limited to what you could realistically expect to find for that climate zone, hence why you might find a moose or two in temperate regions in winter, but won't find polar bears. As for elk and where to find them...generally it's best to look in cooler climate regions. The arctic is too cold, and temperate is generally too warm, so the cool climate zone is overall the best place to look. For the default temperate start, you'll want to be looking in highland areas, since these areas are cold enough to count as taiga due to the elevation. Grasslands are the easiest places to spot them. If you're seeing spawns like mountain goats, ibex, and larch/pine trees, you're likely at a high enough elevation where you could expect to find elk. To my knowledge, it's not possible, outside of certain modded creatures, or vanilla creatures that require specific elements present(like forest floor) in order to spawn. I think the best you could hope for here is finding some elk first, and then killing them all if no babies spawned, in the hopes that a baby elk will spawn in later(you could try breeding the adults, but I'm not sure that this is possible currently). Honestly though, the easiest way to get a tamed elk currently is to just buy one. Raising a baby elk and then saddlebreaking it will save you the gears, but it also requires a significant investment in time and resources, even moreso if the spawn RNG isn't kind.

Except iron is already incredibly abundant in VS--all the player has to do is find one and they're set for the rest of the game, essentially. The only ore deposit that might be bigger than iron ore deposits, is quartz deposits. Iron ore can be a bit tricky to find sometimes depending on what kind the player is searching for, and also because I think iron deposits have more distance between themselves than other ores due to their sheer size and importance. In any case, if you nerf iron to bronze tier, then all that's really accomplished is pushing players to stick to bronze since there's less effort required to obtain/work it and no upgrade for durability/damage output by upgrading to iron. It also hurts story content pacing; tier 2 is required for chapter 1, meaning that bronze is sufficient in most cases, but players in singleplayer or playing at lower skill levels may need to opt for iron instead in order to have a more manageable time. Tier 3 is the minimum required for completing chapter 2, which means that players will need to have obtained iron or better on default settings, unless they're very skilled. If iron is the same as bronze though, then story content essentially becomes locked behind steel unless the player is highly skilled or otherwise has friends to play with. Mind you, I don't think locking some story content behind steel is a bad thing, but that should be reserved for later chapters, and not the entire story itself.

Well...there's a beloved part of my childhood that I had forgotten about.

As modded multiplayer instances? Yeah, I could see it, and would honestly be surprised if vampire and werewolf mods weren't created someday(I know someone over in the mod development section was asking about creating a werewolf one recently). As an addition to the actual game itself? Heavens no! The main focus of the game's setting is realistic survival at the late Middle Ages tech level, with some eldritch horror elements in the background to add some mysterious spook factor.

Truth. Incidentally, I went and poked around on the mod database earlier to see what options there even were for prospecting. Prospect Together is by far and away the most popular, with a 200k+ downloads and easily in the top handful of mods(that's putting it mildly). And as already noted, all that mod does is allow players to share their prospecting data with each other in multiplayer, in addition to adding a heatmap grid to the vanilla system(which already has a heatmap, but the mod's grid might be easier to understand for some players). Better Prospecting? It's not even close, sitting at roughly 30k downloads. I had to scroll pretty far just to find it, and none of the mods I scrolled past to get to it were related to prospecting at all, save for Prospect Together, ProspestorInfo(which was rendered obsolete by 1.19), and Block Overlay(which is basically an Xray mod/mod to locate specific blocks/entities, and not so much for prospecting itself). Block Overlay easily has about twice the downloads that Better Prospecting does, which leads me to wonder if players who just want to find ore easier aren't just using this one so they can go straight to the ore instead of needing to hunt for it, which Better Prospecting still requires the player to do. Judging by the comments on Block Overlay's page, it seems this might be the case for some players, but many are also using that mod just for testing various things in the game. As for Better Prospecting's comment section, it seems that the mod still didn't make ore finding easy enough for some users, as some were complaining about the increased durability cost for the added propick search modes. In any case, I think it's safe to say that based on mod data, the prospecting system as a whole is fine, and tracks well with the overall difficulty implemented in the overall game design, but adding an option for players to share prospecting data in multiplayer is a good idea since there's quite a lot of support for that feature. Changing the entire system to be easier is much better left to the modded realm, so that the smaller subset of the playerbase that really wants to play that way can, without changing the entire game for everyone else. As a side note, I also have to wonder how many of the complaints stem from players who jumped into the hardest difficulties(Wilderness Survival and Homo Sapiens), without understanding what they were actually signing up for? Those gamemodes disable the map, which means prospecting data won't be recorded at all, so they'll either need a very good memory, or need to manually record the data themselves at the prospecting sites via signs. Likewise, those gamemodes disable the propick's node search, so they have no way to actually figure out what ore is there, aside from digging and hoping they stumble across it. Outside of those difficulties, multiplayer itself disables node search by default, so if the players in question only play multiplayer servers that kept that default, they're going to have a harder time finding ore even if the overall difficulty is set to something other than Wilderness Survival/Homo Sapiens.

It was one of the changes introduced in 1.20, I think, and to my knowledge it works for cookpots as well.

There's an option in the mod config to turn that bit off. Makes it much more bearable, if less realistic regarding carrying buckets of liquid around. Food is currently fine. Pies are my go-to and I cut them before venturing in. Crocks were recently changed to allow players to fill bowls from the inventory(you may be able to cut pies in the crafting grid too, not sure), rather than needing to place the crock, for that reason specifically I do believe.

It's probably simple enough to put some kind of colorblind option into the Accessibility settings. However, I think a bright teal would show up a very light color, while a dark red would show up as a darker color, so I'd expect there to be some definite contrast anyway in the event of colorblindness.

Oof, that's rough. Have you checked the log files to see if any memory leaks were being reported? To the best of my knowledge, there's still potentially a minor leak or two, but all the major ones should have been fixed. Of course, I'm not saying it wasn't a memory leak, just that it's possible there could be another cause, especially when using mods. It's possible one of the mods has a major issue, or the mods that you're trying to play with are too much for your hardware to keep up with. Mods that add a LOT of stuff, such as Better Ruins, tend to be pretty demanding on hardware. If you're sure it's a memory leak though, one thing you can do to help pinpoint the cause is go into the Interface tab of Settings, and enable Developer Mode. That will make a new Dev tab appear--go to this tab and enable VAO Dispose Debug, then load your world and play around to try to trigger the leaks. More details should be recorded in the logs when the leaks occur. If you're going to test over multiple sessions, you'll want to check that setting before loading the world each time, as it does seem to get switched off for new sessions. In any case, it's definitely a problem to report to the VS devs if it's a problem in the base game, or mod devs if it's a mod problem. Pretty much why I'm skeptical of adding thirst or climbing mechanics. Story locations weren't built with those in mind, and would need major reworks to account for such things.

You're probably going to have to pan for your first pick, hammer, and propick, since surface copper deposits occur extremely rarely in Homo Sapiens. You can still try looking around for them though--you'll know when you've found one by the copper bits lying on the surface. You won't want to pick up those bits until you have something to dig up the deposit with though, or unless you have someway to mark the deposit. Homo Sapiens mode does not enable the map(though you can turn the map back on via command), so the usual "mark the map" just isn't an option.

Don't worry, as soon as you get a populated skep back to your base, you will find the wild hive nearby that you previously missed.