Since I love recruiting NPC followers and keeping them alive, I always try my best to boost my trust values with them. Going into 0.G with this playstyle, I have noticed a couple of things:
- Keeping my followers around me while I craft some gear or perform constructions could help speed up the process a bit (or maybe that was just my imagination?) while also training them in the necessary skills needed for expanding the base. However, PC’s morale gets low as he/she tires out.
- Certain post-thresh mutations either make the player “lone wolf” (culler) or “group” oriented (pack hunter).
- Interacting with NPCs (giving them food or just chitchatting with them) gives morale boost and increases trust.
So, what if we combine them? Most survivors are looking to band together to increase their chances of survival after the cataclysm, and if they get together to build a base or craft a gear which they believe would help them at surviving, then they should all be happy about, which raises their mood. Even if getting tired decreases morale, at least maybe make the punishment weaker by working together?
Could this relate to real life? I’ve worked in maintenance for three years. My coworkers and I spend hours working outside maintaining large machinery, and we get tired out especially during harsh weather conditions. But hey, occasionally cracking a joke, talking about family, or even just sharing the thought of going for a drink together after work could help loosen up the stress. If the setting was in the game, most of the group work (constructions, crafting, etc.) no longer have a strict deadline, so maybe survivors tend to enjoy it more when they get to work together instead of working alone?
Furthermore, by looking into the mutations, I thought maybe the fish and insect categories could gain a post-thresh mutation that benefits from being in a group. I still remember the description for the insect category talking about being a queen or something. Maybe have something like “Hive family” for insects, and “School of fish” for fish? (I know, my naming skills are horrible). The effects could probably be something like: the more friendly NPCs around you that share the same thresh mutations like you are, the more morale you get?