[b]Greetings! [/b] The Age of Heroes is coming soon, so how about pulling up a chair and sharing a meal with the hard workers at your base? Living Settlements is a new feature which will breathe new life into your buildings! All crafting thralls will ~get a life~ and try to fulfill their needs when they are done with their duties. [h2]Living Settlements [/h2] Prior to this feature, your workers were mere items at their assigned workstations. With Living Settlements their new life is about to begin as they will be freed from their restraints. [img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/25298994/5172fb08eed21d9cc8340bc376741c821d685a20.jpg[/img] [h3]Needs [/h3] Each worker will have their own internal needs to simulate dynamic behavior. While their workstations will still display their bonuses and recipes, their behavior will take on a new flavor with animations based on their needs. Every "need" determines what your followers will be looking for in your base: [list][*]For hunger, they will be in search of a campfire, chairs, or communal benches. They'll sit down and enjoy their meal or a drink. [*]For rest, a cozy spot by the fire will do the trick. [*]For sleeping, they will need beds, so don't be cheap, bed rolls won't do the trick! [*]For the work “need”, they will seek available workstations. [/list]Additionally, if your base comes under attack, worker-followers will have the instinct to flee or join the fight. Their instincts should match their profession, but you won’t know who’s willing to die for your clan until they are tested in battle. While this new feature will add some spice to your constructions and help improve the immersion, you don’t have to worry about managing resources for their needs. Your workers won’t pull items from your chests or food from your preservation boxes. Their new behaviors are designed to enhance role-play and evoke a sense of vitality within the village setting at no cost to you! [h3]Workers will become followers [/h3] Workers are no longer items you place in a slot on workstations. Once they join you or your clan and live on your base, they'll apply available bonuses and recipes to all stations relevant to their profession and tier within a 140m radius (about 54 foundation blocks). An updated crafting station interface lets you choose which thrall bonuses you want. Once the update is deployed, your workers will remain in their previously assigned workstations. You can then select the ones you want to place on the ground, just as you did before with any fighter, archer, or performer. Set them to follow you, move them around, and place them on chairs, beds, and many other interactable placeables made available in this chapter. But remember, they will prioritize their needs and may insist on moving accordingly. [img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/25298994/5143ac91e7af86627144f7fa0fec5606ec417001.jpg[/img][i]New bonuses and worker selection UI[/i] [h3]New interactions with placeables [/h3] To make sure they have what they need, we also expanded the interaction between NPCs and placeables. For example, you will now have thralls grilling food, stirring pots and mixing potions, and you may find your workers taking a nap in your bed! While moving your followers, walk around your base looking for green ghostly figures – each ghostly outline shows you where a thrall can be placed! [img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/25298994/752531199fb80f518a54838ec8c881ffaa024ba2.jpg[/img][i]New interaction possibilities[/i] [h3]Dress them up! [/h3] Your workers deserve more than potato sacks and fiber wraps as they do the heavy lifting around your base. With Living Settlements, we are also unlocking a long-awaited feature requested by our community: to dress up your workers! As well as any fighter before, workers will now have equipment slots where you can change their clothing and weapons. Style them according to their profession, or not! It’s up to you how you want them to dress for the occasion. Exile, get ready for a brighter Age! Tidy up your base, add more seats to the table, and cozy resting spots! Will you provide a good life for your followers or lock them in a damp dungeon dressed in rags? [i]Age of Heroes Chapter One is coming in October with Living Settlements, free will to your crafter thralls, new animations, new UI on workbenches, and much more! Don't miss out on the comprehensive FAQs that give you all the details on the latest content coming with the update. [/i]