This suggestion is designed to expand on the ‘already existing’ sandstorms in the game. Currently, they can blind or nearly blind players. But in real life, sandstorms have multiple effects on people, objects, and the environment.
1. Movement and Combat. Sandstorms are generated by strong winds. Can we get some ‘wind effects’ to actually push the players, thralls, and animals? For example, if you are walking in the direction of an oncoming sandstorm, it slows movement. If walking away from the direction of the sandstorm’s winds, it may actually push (increase) movement a little. If walking perpendicular to the sandstorms’s winds, the winds may make walking in a straight line difficult. In some cases in real life, winds have been so strong that one had to crouch to make any forward movement to keep from being ‘blown over’ and ‘knocked’ off one’s feet. These winds may also carry debris such as small objects, broken tree branches and fronds. Getting hit by a tree branch in a strong sandstorm could cause damage. Furthermore, archers in a sandstorm would be relatively useless. Arrows would certainly not ‘fly straight’ with such strong winds blowing about. 2. Agriculture. Sandstorms strip the top layer of soil. This makes agriculture difficult unless one’s gardens are protected. Thus, it would be good to have some kind of effect like this on plant growth (or re-planting after a sandstorm). Plants may lose some of their leafiness (sandstorms can strip plants fiber and animal flesh) - reducing their ability to photosynthesize (and may need to be nurtured back to health). The soil itself can be stripped of its potassium and phosphorous nutrients by sandstorms. 3. Disease. When topsoil is removed and scattered as particulate matter, it frequently carries with them virus spores that interact with the air. Because of these sandstorms, diseases spread (such as silicosis - lung fibrosis caused by the inhalation of dust containing silica). 4. Crafting. Sandstorms also carry dust and silica into machinery. Thus, something like a Forge or Blacksmith working outside, unprotected (outdoors, not indoors), could have sand introduced into the smelting and smithing process. The corrosive silica would weaken (or at least, hinder) the crafting processes (as extra time would be needed to remove those undesired ‘extra’ elements). 5. Water Purity in Bases. Sandstorms also affect water quality in the same way. This doesn’t have much of an effect on large bodies of water such as rivers, but it would be important to cover water wells either with a wooden lid or housing them in some protected structure to limit sandstorm impacts. 6. Jungle Biome. The iron and phosphorus which is carried with the sand have helped compensate for the inadequate nutrient levels of rainforests and jungles; the frequent rain in these rainforests and jungles would normally have leached out their nutrients were it not for sandstorms. So having the sandstorms blowing in the direction of the new jungle biome would make geologic sense. 7. Graphic aesthetics. Sandstorms often leave silt behind. Having sand piled up next to walls, doors, and objects caught in the sandstorms would really look good. Also, it would be good have include tessalation - so that when a player walks through the recently collected silt, they leave footprints in the sand.
And as an interesting side note: Sandstorms make for very interesting sunrises.
Sandstorm winds can be fierce, I’ll give you that, but I don’t believe they would be strong enough to completely destroy T1 sandstone structures. If these were thatch huts, I’d say yes. Gale force winds can easily rip off a thatch roof, blow away tents, and demolish simple lean-to shelters. But wood and stone are more resistant. They might be damaged, but I wouldn’t go so far as completely destroying them.
But I do agree with your idea of some kind of ‘clean up’ to improve server performance. Maybe instead of the typical sandstorms, a special weekly tornado or something (‘the finger of God’ kind of storm). That would be something really cool to watch as it passes through abandoned bases and unused ‘land grabbing’ players. Perhaps have players paint the doorposts and lentils with the blood of a sacrifice so that the massive storm will Passover occupied player bases?
If sandstorms can cause such destruction I vote for lighting strikes in rainstorms and blizzards with hail and severe cold. The storms of all kinds should cause destruction and have negative affects throughout each biome respectively.
but in that case we would need som sort of mass repair. For example i love to use t1 just for some basic building around my main base. I use t3 rarely and while i agree that game would use sandstorm as the way of clearing out abandoned bases or buildings made from what ever reasons and not use for “living” it should be effective against buildings that has not been used for some time
your suggestions are great, but some of them may be relatively way too detailed and technically hard to achieve, here are some of my views
1.1. movement push is too much work, and hard to determine, but slow characters down is good. make non over encumbered char to be over encumbered, and the over encumbered char to be super over encumbered, i think it’s a easier way to make sandstorm perform better.
1.2. combat should cost more stamina, as you won’t able to breath as normal
1.3. arrow spread is great, hope they can do something with arrow spread in accuracy system in the future
i agree with Sethox. not only agriculture block should be affected, but all t1 building structure. i think that not just t1 building, but also any item placed in a non sheltered area should receive a durability impact from sandstorm. while agriculture should only grow when its not placed at a sheltered area. also give agriculture placement a relatively low durability would be very immersive for all circumstances.
3.disease is too much i think. character already lose hp in a sandstorm. long term/permanent damage to character is not a feature included for the base game, it would be very hardcore though.
affection to crafting can be the same as the damage to durability thing like we talked about in 2. agriculture.
water purity is what i would like to call “way too detailed”. again, well that placed in non sheltered area should be damaged. and for already gathered water, they would be fine even in real life, as it would be stored in a container, which we also do in game.
i haven’t explore the jungle area, so, have no ideal about this, to be honest.
graphic change you mentioned may means a huge work or impacts a lot server performance, and pile up sand next to walls and so on is probably not even achievable with unreal engine, would be easy to have this feature in a 2D game, where dev only have to change some sprites, but not a 3D game, and my lame laptop won’t endure this kinda setting anyway.
good for private servers, but in case of official servers this would mean independent server type => dividing your player base => possible lower server population all across the board
you have the point, to maintain a big settlement is a pain, and don’t mention that sandstorm can happen all day long and the player really don’t have none obligation to login every day to do this “job”. a bad idea i admit.
Sandstorms should NOT be able to damage structures. I mean Ive seen a sandstorm in Africa before. Believe me it can cut your flesh open but damaging structures? Neigh. I do think that you shouldnt be able to outheal it that fast though or make the effect stronger that if you are out there, you will die withouth a mask or beeing in a shelter.
A sandstorm can be quite deadly, construction in areas prone to them are built to withstand great force, even the doors and shudders are reinforced. I would suggest making them far more deadly. “Seek shelter soon or risk life and limb”, sounds fun. Same goes for blizards, not what southerners call blizards, I’m talking about such cold tears freeze on your cheeks, and your temperature drops to terminal in less than fifty minutes. I’d love to see that.