Rimworld: Colony 1 - Part 2 - Gourmand

Fox Note: For some inexplicable reason, Imgur is no longer functioning in the UK, which removes all the screenshots on my site, as I embedded them from Imgur to save space. I'm unable to access my account, so I apologise to my readers. I'll look into alternative image hosting solutions for future reviews and content. Fun times. I did lose a couple of screenshots as I uploaded them then deleted them figuring they were safe on Imgur. Won't make that mistake again.

Day 6

Current Objectives:

• Cold Storage: Fridges for storing food long-term to stop it from going bad were essential for long-term survival, though this objective alone meant others were needed to see it realised.

• Power & Power Storage: Options for power would be needed, though the colony had limited components to make use of, meaning a wood-fire generator, solar panels or a wind generator were needed for the time being, if not several. Batteries to store excess power would also need to be researched.

• Begin Research Projects: While a lot of them would be needed, batteries were the priority, followed by beer production to improve people's moods and tree sowing to ensure a steady supply of wood for the planned generators.

The day started as the previous ones had, a stable routine emerging among the three reluctant colonists, yet there was one big difference. What would they do about the feral human being wandering around just to their north? Should they attempt to adopt him or let him get on with his business? There was also the worry about whether he'd turn hostile if provoked to contend with, sure they needed more people, but would it be worth the time, effort and potential risk to try and convince him to stay with them and teach him what he needed to know to function among them?

It being an extra mouth to feed and another bed needed when they'd barely gotten onto their feet ensured the decision was easy. They needed a stockpile of food, a larger and sturdier main structure and a whole lot more besides just to ensure the three of them survived, much less adding a fourth person to their new home.

The need for space for generators and a place to put them so they were shielded from the elements became their next concern. The steel ruins just south of them seemed a good spot to salvage and then build up a new place to act as a shelter for whatever early sources of power they could manage.

Their next visitor was much less friendly, a raid from a club wielding tribal sort, which proved Bowman's caution in not assuming everyone on the planet was going to be above killing you and taking your stuff. The battle was almost hilariously one-sided; the firearms wielded by Ara and Bowman brought the bellowing charge of the aggressor to a rather abrupt end long before he ever had a hope of swinging his club at anyone. Bowman's biggest concern was how they'd deal with similarly armed aggressors rather than those armed with clubs and crude bows. They needed walls, weapons and even traps, in Bowman's opinion, to make sure that anyone with hostile intent was at the very least given pause.

They needed weapons, better defences and a means to reduce injury like armour and helmets, but making all that would take time, resources and a whole lot of time at the research bench. A concern for the distant future, they hoped as Hermine dug a grave to bury the body of the fallen raider, not wanting to attract predators to their home in search of an easy meal. They had enough potential problems to handle without inviting the means for more to rear their heads.

Day 7

Plans for a new structure using the abundant slate around them were drawn up at the start of the day. They knew they needed somewhere to keep their generators safe and somewhere to store their food long term, and they needed power to do that. They laid out all the resources they'd need, and Hermine began to build but Ara decided to do something which felt like a serious problem. She began to binge, eating several of the survival meals in quick succession, which she excused, saying she'd make sure the harvest was good and they could all eat a lot.

Bowman said nothing but clearly began considering hunting some of the local wildlife as soon as the cold storage area was complete. Knowing they'd need to have plenty of supplies is Ara was going to be prone to binge eating when stressed out.

Fox Note: Okay, gourmand is a trait that is a lot worse than I anticipated it being, and it brought the colony's food supplies to a low level, meaning at this point, I was very much against the clock. I did a quick sweep to harvest nearby berry bushes just to supplement the limited food supply and Bowman would need to hunt sooner rather than later as the crops needed more time. In total, Ara consumed 7 survival meals, almost 2 days' worth for a person.

With Ara's unwise and selfish feasting seemingly only being stopped by a sizeable food coma sending her to sleep, the colony's future was very much uncertain. They had lost almost a day's worth of food to Ara's ravenous appetite. To make up for it, another field of potatoes was planned.

Day 8

Objectives Completed: Power and Cold Storage.

While the previous day had very much thrown the proverbial wrench into their plans for survival, Hermine was spurred on by the very motivating need to survive and she managed to finish the new structure, three wood fired generators, three batteries, a fridge, a cooling vent and wired up both structures for power ensuring the odds were very much shifting back in their favour.

Even if they had depleted most of their stockpile of components, there were enough chunks of their ship strewn about that they could at least stockpile some spares. Not to mention, there were a few areas of tightly packed machinery embedded in the various rockfaces and outcrops around them. They'd need a lot more later and likely the need to make more of their own for good measure.

It was thankfully a more uneventful day for the colony though progress was made in their battle for survival despite taking a critical hit to their food stockpile. They did at least have the means to rectify that in the near future.

Day 9

Bowman began the day early, hunting some of the smaller wildlife lurking around the colony, such as rats and squirrels, while Ara started to harvest the first of the crops. Rice, while quick to grow, wasn't exactly known for its abundant yields. However, some food was better than none, and between that and Bowman's hunting and the foraging Ara was doing in between harvesting, they hoped they'd scrounge enough food together to last until the corn and potatoes were grown.

With a cold storage area completed, power, batteries and a once again slowly building food stockpile, Ara's impromptu and ill-advised binge eating had largely been negated. They were still far from out of the woods, yet they were in no immediate danger of starving even if Bowman was merely a passable cook, practice made perfect.

Steel became the problem more so than the components mainly due to the fact they didn't realise how quickly they consumed the small cache of it that had been strewn about near where they had landed. Luckily, there was a large vein of it close by, ensuring they'd not run out, though only Hermine had any real skill for mining, and even then, it was far from her forte.

A visiting trader proved a curiosity, though none of them really felt the need to spend the little silver they had just yet. So, their largest worry by the day's end was a Warg napping in the rice field; if it didn't move on, they'd have to deal with it and hope none of them were injured or killed by it should an attempt be made to end it.

Day 10

Aside from the Warg, the wild-man they'd ignored whom they dubbed Hayden, began to become a little bit of an issue, a gap in the wall for the cold storage area, they'd made for a cooling vent allowed him to get inside, helping himself to a meal before falling asleep in one of the potato fields a few feet from the warg.

That once again raised the question of whether or not they should try to 'civilise' him or simply hope he wandered off. That was a difficult decision for all kinds of reasons as well. Firstly, there was the risk and the cost. He would be an extra mouth to feed, and they'd likely have to use food to get his interest in the first place. Also, they couldn't even be sure how he'd react, and if he turned violent, they risked injuries to themselves. Lastly, there was the issue of space and building him a room; sure, they needed more structures and space for the things they were planning, yet they hadn't expected to need it so soon.

Fox Note: I was afraid of this happening, days when nothing out of the ordinary occurs. I have a feeling that won't happen much later on though, once I have more people, bigger raids are happening and the AI director decides to throw more events my way. So, keep your fingers crossed.