More updates like this, please

[-Variant]

Yes, you heard me read that right. 

I. Love. This update.
This is everything I want in these smaller sized updates, I love EVERYTHING that's come with this one update alone.

This update is FULL of changes to older/existing content that was either desperately needing a change, or was fine, but is now doubly enhanced.
Everything new in this one update is some change or addition to an existing concept that serves to further flesh them out.
I've just been exploring everything with a huge grin.

Let's start with the smaller things like these...

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• Increased yield on all Mad Scientist Lab potions.
• Added new spooks when mining rocks and digging graves..
• Added Moon Shards to the Possessed Vargs loot table.
• Geothermite can be scanned by Wx-78’s Bio Scanalyzer for the Thermal Circuit.
• Multiple sources of lunacy will increase mutation chances for applicable creatures.

Amazing QOL, most of these. I'll gladly take more potions, and the spooks are cute. I love the worm one, new favorite of mine...
The rest are mostly self explanatory, I want to talk about the Lunacy one at the bottom. Love this change.
Before, it was mostly a gamble of sorts if something would mutate, but now multiple sources of Lunacy (I.E Lunar Island, Enlightened full moons) have a bit of meat to them impacting these chances. This is awesome, makes exploring during those times a bit more eye opening.

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• All mutatable corpses will mutate when unloaded, instead of being deleted.
• Mutated Merms and Shadow Merms can only be interacted with by a Wurt of the respective alignment.
• Mutated Merms thorns damage is halved towards players.
• Added a new World Settings category for Lunar Mutations.

Also changes I like. The Wurt stuff is mostly consistency, and the thorns being halved is nice.
World settings are great for people who'd rather not mess with this if they truly don't want to.

Now... the real meat.

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• Carvable Pumpkin Heads that can make you less afraid of the dark and other spooks during Hallowed Nights
• Crystal-Crested Buzzards that roam the world after Lunar Hail
• More creature corpses can now mutate into their existing lunar counterparts
• New spawn mechanics and combat behaviour for Inimical Gestalts

Pumpkin heads are adorable. Super fun. I gave my spiders plenty! 

The Inimical Gestalts are the ones I'm most mixed on, but that's just because I don't use the crown much myself. They spawn when groups of 3 Infused Shards are nearby when wearing a fully jeweled crown. You can instantly turn them off by taking the hat off. Very nice if you just want to opt out of seeing them ever.

And yes... my favorite change of them all. The Buzzards.
Literal coolest mutation by far, actually changes how you approach the game on EVERY front. That's something so rare these days! I love it!!!

Watching them mutate and stalk players in real time, in groups is just... SO wicked. Watching the chaos unfold when they swoop down on your own kills and turn them against you. This is it! This is a proper survival threat. There's ways around them, ways through them, they're not isolated in a small bubble, this is everything I've been wanting in a mob/threat for SO long. They could go for some tuning changes but its literally day 1, I can forgive wonky numbers.

Watching the existing mobs mutate in real time is awesome. It gives extra depth to both those mobs, AND lunacy zones as well. Both get a bit of new stuff for the price of one.

Literally all of the new stuff ties into existing stuff in such an amazing and actually impactful way, I'm genuinely blown away. I've spent all day since I got home just killing things and watching the world respond to the new mutants. Feels very alive, I want more updates to follow in this ones footsteps. This is how you add new things and touch up existing stuff at the same time.

[HowlVoid]

I just wish they made it so wormwood got the full effect of potions. Ive asked so many times... its a POTION not food... the initial healing doesnt do anything only the heal over time works.

Klei please 

Edit: The healing one.

Edited October 28, 2025 by HowlVoid

[crushcircuit]

OH MY GODDDD YESSSSS THE VULTURES ARE SO HYPE. im so excited that hail has a real threat now, and such an exciting one at that. it sounds so delightfully chaotic and im SO stoked to try it out 

[Milordo]

I still don't like their design. Too fantasy and less don't starve-like.

44 minutes ago, -Variant said:

The rest are mostly self explanatory, I want to talk about the Lunacy one at the bottom. Love this change.
Before, it was mostly a gamble of sorts if something would mutate, but now multiple sources of Lunacy (I.E Lunar Island, Enlightened full moons) have a bit of meat to them impacting these chances. This is awesome, makes exploring during those times a bit more eye opening. 

I don't get it. Wouldn't hounds and pengulls already mutate on Lunar Island?

[Edible Coal]

39 minutes ago, HowlVoid said:

I just wish they made it so wormwood got the full effect of potions. Ive asked so many times... its a POTION not food... the initial healing doesnt do anything only the heal over time works.

Klei please 

Edit: The healing one.

i mean he still consumes it so is food

[-Variant]

11 minutes ago, Milordo said:

I don't get it. Wouldn't hounds and pengulls already mutate on Lunar Island?

Yes, they were chance based though. Said chance goes up, so you're more likely to run into them. It makes being under several sources a bit more dangerous in that aspect! Also this update lets Pengulls mutate in real time, before they could only appear like that in specific instances.

[lovegrooove]

3 hours ago, -Variant said:

Yes, they were chance based though. Said chance goes up, so you're more likely to run into them. It makes being under several sources a bit more dangerous in that aspect! Also this update lets Pengulls mutate in real time, before they could only appear like that in specific instances.

Just to wrap my head around this - the pengulls always either spawn as pengulls or moonrock pengulls (depending on lunacy), it's not really a chance.

So it's just about the hounds? You get a few more turning into horror hounds, if you have miltiple sources of lunacy. Or am I missing a creature?

I guess the birds mutate aswell now, but that's depending on hail.

[Jakepeng99]

Yeah that’s the kind of stuff I would want from riffs

[Mike23Ua]

I’m going to go ahead and throw this one out there: there is a leaked animated concept art for some sort of “Snowman” creature in the DS/DST unused assets, Klei has stated that they plan to add new content alongside the seasonal events (Hallowed Nights is indeed wicked) BUT!!! WintersFeast would be in line next for an update and I want to suggest that overtime: the snowballs that can accumulate can start to become “Snowmen” on their own without the player creating them, only these would be mutated, and likely possessed by shadow hands or something. Anyway the point is: I think WintersFeast should add cool new content too.

And on that note: I want a reindeer skin for Woby where she is wearing antlers, and a huge wreath around her neck.

[Milordo]

5 hours ago, -Variant said:

Yes, they were chance based though. Said chance goes up, so you're more likely to run into them. It makes being under several sources a bit more dangerous in that aspect! Also this update lets Pengulls mutate in real time, before they could only appear like that in specific instances.

So they buffed the chance or the longer you stay on lunar island, the higher the chance becomes? I'm confused

Ye, knew about pengulls and the change is very appreciated.

[Evelo]

While the buzzards aren't particularly predators, they are close enough that they certainty do get in the way of a lot of things, which I love. Actual danger just for existing in the world. Something I've longed for finally delivered. More please.

[lovegrooove]

14 hours ago, -Variant said:

Yes, they were chance based though. Said chance goes up, so you're more likely to run into them. It makes being under several sources a bit more dangerous in that aspect! Also this update lets Pengulls mutate in real time, before they could only appear like that in specific instances.

Never mind, figured it out. ^^