Timberborn News

Hello everyone!

The experimental Timberborn update has just been pushed to the main branch. Before we dive into the full patch notes, let’s talk about what’s going to happen a bit later today.


World’s Earth Day is just two days away and today at 7 PM CEST (10 AM PT), a very special Steam sale event begins. Earth Appreciation Festival is a collection of 100 released and upcoming games that showcase the beauty of nature and our home planet, or warn us all about what can happen due to climate change, lack of sustainability, conflicts, and other perils. We'll add the link once the sale is live.

This event has been organized by us so it won’t surprise you that Timberborn and its OST are present with a 20% discount. What’s important is we’ll donate 15% of all our revenue during the sale to Viva!, a trustworthy animal welfare organization from Poland (KRS number 0000135274).



One of the initiatives we’ll support this way will be an expansion of a fox asylum located in Korabiewice, Poland, where foxes and raccoon dogs saved from fur farms find peace and security. Beavers building a shelter for foxes - how cool is that! :3

To celebrate, our game designer Jon has recorded a special Earth Day-themed Timberborn challenge. Can they turn the entire map green again? Find out on our YouTube channel at 7 PM CEST (10 AM PT)!

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

And if you’d rather watch some hot live action, watch the mighty Sean “Day9” Plott take on Timberborn on Twitch today at 10 PM CEST (1 PM PT)!


Alright, onto the meaty part. The experimental update has gone through several iterations and has now been deployed to the main branch of the game. As a reminder: this is not Update 2. Our major futuristic patch is still in the works and we hope to start unwrapping things soon-ish.

[h2]New day/night visuals[/h2]
[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]
We’ve made a series of tweaks to the lighting to diversify how the game looks depending on the time of day, whether the drought is in progress, and so on. To get an idea of what to expect, watch the video above but please note that it was recorded before several tweaks to the fog etc.

• Added dawn and dusk to the day/night cycle, each with unique lighting effects.
  
• Adjusted the lighting’s colors and intensity across the day.
  
• Added variable length to in-game shadows – it changes depending on the time of day.
  
• Added unique fog effects to droughts and temperate seasons, most visible during dusk and dawn.
  
• Added a new skybox that gradually transitions between day and night.
  

[h2]Settlement panel and job priorities[/h2]

Per popular request, we’ve added a panel that lists all beavers and buildings in one place (in six tabs). This allows you to control the colony, and that includes setting the newly added job priorities! You can browse global or, which probably makes more sense, district-based lists.

• Added job prioritization. Similarly to building prioritization, there are five priority levels, which affect where your beavers go to work first.
  
• Added population panel to the game. It contains data split into six tabs: Characters, Housing, Workplaces, Storage, Power, Attractions.
  
• The population panel is accessed with a new button in the upper left corner or with a hotkey (“G”). While the panel is open, the game is paused.
  
• Using the panel you can pause buildings, change their recipes, mark the building as a priority for the haulers etc. Most importantly, you can pick a job priority for the building.
  
• Clicking an object on the list shows its location in the game. Each tab contains information about currently active status effects such as “Building paused”.
  
• The panel also displays data such as workplace productivity and how attractive your colony’s attractions actually are.
  
• The upper left panel now contains only key information such as population count.
  
• As part of panel-related changes, we added clickable district indicators in individual building and beaver panels.
  

[h2]New map: Beaverome (192x192)[/h2]

Beaverome wasn’t built in a day, and neither will be your settlement here. This brand new map challenges you to follow the steps of the beaver pioneers who transformed seven water-filled craters into the heart of the modern beaver civilization.

• Beaverome (192x192) is now a part of the built-in map roster.
  
• With this map, we’re trying a more challenge-like approach. The available areas are narrow and the slopes steep, and it’s not that easy to find a strong water current – but hey, at least there’s enough to drink for everyone, right?
  

[h2]New(-ish) map: Helix Mountain (256x256)[/h2]

The map co-created with the community and used in our city-building contest turned out to be so popular we wanted it permanently in the game! To ensure smooth gameplay, however, we made a series of changes to the map, including moving the mountain.

• Helix Mountain (256x256) is now a part of the built-in map roster.
  
• The map underwent significant changes, including moving the mountain closer to the map’s center. The mountain is also larger, which makes creating your settlements a bit harder, as the water takes longer to flow down.
  

[h2]New decorations[/h2]

We have added two new faction-specific decorations.

• New building: Wind Gauge (Folktails) helps you measure wind speed.
  
• New building: Bell (Iron Teeth) signals the start and end of the workday.
  

[h2]Balance changes[/h2]
We have realized that the number of gears needed to grow your colony is too dam high.

• Wood Workshop: Gears cost reduced from 50 to 40.
  
• Mud Bath: Gears cost reduced from 50 to 40.
  
• Mine: Gears cost reduced from 500 to 350.
  
• Efficient Mine: Gears cost reduced from 600 to 450.
  

[h2]First-time language prompt[/h2]
After you launch the game for the first time after the update, you will be prompted to pick your preferred language. As a reminder, Timberborn is now available in 12 languages: English, Polish, Ukrainian, Spanish, Brazilian Portuguese, French, German, Italian, Russian, Simplified Chinese, Korean, and Japanese.

[h2]Model updates[/h2]

• All models in the game have had their models updated to reduce the number of polygons and improve the game’s performance.
  
• Updated all flag models with cute little lamps. We’re doing the below just for consistency’s sake. Totally.
  

[h2]Misc.[/h2]

• Windmill, Large Windmill: Shafts can be connected from any side now.
  
• Added missing flavor texts to buildings and resources.
  
• Resources have received updated panels to better communicate what, when, and how they yield.
  
• Many panels are now available during the construction stage. Most importantly, the warehouse inventory panel – you can micro your warehouses right after placing them!
  
• Builders now use the Working Speed bonus to put up constructions faster.
  
• Added the names of new team members to in-game credits.
  
• You can now hear them… those little, jumping, green frogs.
  

[h2]Bug fixes[/h2]

• Beehives no longer work underwater.
  
• Crops affected by the Beehive are now correctly highlighted.
  
• Fixed the torches not lighting up in the Temple.
  
• Fixed a bug with water becoming too bright at the deepest levels.
  
• Underwater buildings and plants are now correctly highlighted when selected.
  
• Fixed the collider in Mechanical Water Pump.
  
• Fixed a bug that allowed building a Mine in the middle of two adjacent Underground Ruins.
  
• Fixed a bug that prevented beavers from using books directly from the Printing Press.
  
• Fixed a bug with stock counts in the district distribution panel calculated differently than in the top panel.
  
• Fixed a bug that allowed Farmers, Gatherers, Lumberjacks and Tappers to pick up goods not belonging to their workplace.
  
• Fixed a visual bug where Smelter’s worker would not sit in the door when there was nothing to do.
  
• Fixed the camera switching places when the game was paused or unpaused with a beaver selected inside the building. Uh-oh.
  
• Fixed a bug where moving a cursor slooowly over buttons broke their highlighting and the ability to click them.
  
• Fixed a bug with attractions not accounting for Power Efficiency.
  
• Fixed a bug with hot single beavers in your area not pairing with each other in Lodges.
  
• Fixed a bug forcing children to grow up only in the morning.
  
• Fixed a bug with water not being hidden after selecting a construction site.
  
• Fixed a crash when trying to connect two districts.
  

[h2]New decorations[/h2]
Surprise! We have added two new faction-specific decorations.

• New building: Wind Gauge (Folktails) helps you measure wind speed.
  
• New building: Bell (Iron Teeth) signals the start and end of the workday.
  

[h2]Irrigation changes[/h2]
Having reviewed the player feedback, we realized that the experimental irrigation changes, while helpful, created a different set of issues. We’re working on another iteration of the fix but for now, we’ve reverted the irrigation mechanics to the pre-Experimental state.

• Reverted changes to irrigation mechanics.
  
• Reverted changes to Irrigation Tower. One Tile, One Dump is back on the menu, boys.
  

[h2]Misc.[/h2]

• Builders now use the Working Speed bonus to put up constructions faster.
  
• Added the names of new team members to in-game credits.
  

[h2]Bug fixes[/h2]

• Fixed the mismatched Harvesting and Planting icons.
  

Hello everyone!

This update is a little different. The war is raging in Ukraine – that’s right behind the borders of our studio’s country of Poland. Everyone deserves life in peace, and we’re still shocked by the horror happening right there, in the heart of 21st century Europe.

We’re just a studio making a game about beavers but we want to stress the fact that Ukraine is a sovereign country with its own rich culture. That’s why today, we’re adding Ukrainian to the pool of available in-game languages, along with a little nod to our neighbours’ beautiful folklore.

Ukraine needs more than gestures, though. To support victims of the Russian invasion, at the end of February we donated $50.000 to Polska Akcja Humanitarna (Polish Humanitarian Action). We encourage you to contribute too.

[h2]Patch notes: 2022-04-07[/h2]


While this update is now live on the main branch, the new content such as the settlement panel and the new day/night cycle remains on Experimental Branch only as we continue iterating on it.

[h3](Main Branch) In-game languages[/h3]
Timberborn is now officially supported in 12 languages. You can change the language in the game’s settings.

• Timberborn is now available in Ukrainian.
  

[h3](Main Branch and Experimental Branch) Resources[/h3]
We’ve added an additional crop your farmers can grow.

• New crop: Sunflowers. Sunflowers yield seeds that are eaten raw.
  

[h3](Experimental Branch) Visual[/h3]

• Updated the skybox to reduce banding.
  

[h3](Experimental Branch) Bug fixes[/h3]

• Removing trees (High priority) is now correctly prioritized over building (Low priority).
  
• Fixed a crash on macOS.
  

Hello everyone!

Timberborn comes with 9 maps (with two more already on the Experimental Branch) but with the magic of Map Editor, there’s always more to get. Until we add Steam Workshop support, it requires a few additional clicks but getting the new map is as simple as downloading a file.

Right now, the go-to place for all Timberborn cartographers is this player-made collection of maps big and small (and medium). Other than that, you can check the Map section of the mod repository you already know, browse our forums, subreddit, and/or the dedicated channel on Timberborn Discord.


Download the map file from the repository of your choice and copy it to the Maps folder located in C:\Documents\Timberborn\Maps. Start a new game and pick the map normally – it will have a [Custom] prefix in its name. You can use both new (.timber) and old (.json) custom map files.


For this showcase, we chose 10+1 amazing maps. Each uses a very different layout and was designed around a specific experience. All maps we picked were created or adjusted after the release of Update 1 in December, which means they feature Undergrounds Ruins and are Mine-compatible.

[h2]Quest for the Ancient Aquifer (32x256) by Mulien [/h2]



Mulien’s creation tasks the player with reaching the source of life-giving water located at the end of a very narrow map. This challenge is not for the faint of heart: your starving colony has to beat several “stages” before getting there. “Quest…” is one of the coolest challenge maps we’ve seen created for Timberborn, and Mulien has recently modified it to add Update 1 content.

[h2]Jagged Islands (128x128) by Oombalol[/h2]



Creating this map took Oombalol a lot of time – not just because of all the small details but also due to the carefully planned out water flow. Here, it changes direction back and forth over the course of the game, so account for it as you make plans for a drought. By the way, if you enjoy the intricate map design like this, check the author’s pre-Update 1 creation, Pinewood Hills.

[h2]Trapeze Gorge (40x80) by billyocracy[/h2]



At a first glance, surviving on this map may seem like an impossible task – your beavers begin trapped in a small area cut off by high walls. Can you get them out before the resources run out? And once you do, will it even get easier? The margin for error is small in the beginning but once your beavers put their paws on the upper level, you’ll find some relief… for a moment.

[h2]The Valley of the Breeze (250x250) by SweetButter[/h2]



Timberborn’s water physics is put to a good test here as the map was designed to mimic how real-life ecosystems form. Water sources are located at higher elevations, surrounded by thick forests, and the cascading waters spread out, “eroding” the terrain to create a large riverbed in the map’s centre. Just be careful – the metal sources are scarce in the wilderness like this!

[h2]Horseshoe Bend (256x256) by exvalidus[/h2]



This is just one of the many maps our players have crafted based on real-life locations - in this case, a famous canyon on the Colorado River. For dramatization purposes, we took the screenshot during drought but when the river is there, the large flat areas make for well-irrigated future fields where early power management is easier thanks to strong water currents.

[h2]Chess Board Artificial River Trainer (256x256) by delirium[/h2]



We love all these wacky, unpredictable maps… but why not create an in-game chessboard that serves as a training tool? This flat creation allows you to experiment with the concept of artificial rivers that can keep the drought at bay even in Hard Mode. When this unique setup is properly adapted, you get a bidirectional river that continuously powers up water wheels and even makes the water management semi-automatic. Now, that’s the clever use of game mechanics.

[h2]Wonderlust (128x128) by heyitshatty[/h2]



Wonderlust’s author calls it a beginner-friendly map, and having several water sources right behind the hill helps indeed. The challenge is still there, however, as you need to be careful about where you put your first fields and water wheels. The starting area’s elevation results in tighter green areas and limits the access to the riverbank, at least until Stairs™ are discovered.

[h2]Apollo Island (256x256) by sukunabikona[/h2]



Can you tell which rather popular game served as a base for this map? By the way, it was really difficult to pick a creation from sukunabikona to feature. This author’s other amazing maps include areas from The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, renditions of real-life areas such as Hiroshima City and Taipei Basin, or even a “reversed” version of the basic Plains map. Respect!

[h2]Rising Tides (196x196) by dpqxo[/h2]



Beavers who land on this walled-off map sit on a ticking time bomb – except that bomb is actually the ever-increasing water level. This leads to a great twist – you are actually looking forward to the upcoming droughts as they give you some breathing room. Just don’t even think of blowing up a hole in the outer wall to escape. We’re not in a certain critically acclaimed Jim Carrey movie.

[h2]Paradise Lost (256x256) by dpqxo[/h2]



The paradise in question is waiting at the hill looming above the town - and if you get your beavers up there, the reward will be grand. We love the simple premise behind this map – and even though the goal is clear, each player may come up with a different approach.

[h2]Bonus: The Mad King (196x196) by TempMud[/h2]



The final creation is more of a save-map hybrid because the area has some structures prebuilt. Your beavers (Folktails only!) begin stranded in a dry wasteland where the only water sources belong to the titular mad King Ludwig. While he’s chilling there in his mud bath behind the ruin-filled moat, your colony desperately searches the desert for leftover resources and abandoned workshops. If you’re quick enough, you’ll build bridges over the moat to put an end to Ludwig’s tyrannical reign.

As you can see, there’s a lot our players can do with the map editor and Timberborn’s mechanics – and there are so many maps deserving a spotlight. After you go through the entire repository, let us know about the best maps you’ve found… or made!

PS Don't miss out on the previous Community Showcase where we focused on player-made mods for the game!

Until next time!
~Team Timberborn