Carrying Smallbirds

[Doomfan64]

Right now, the problem with smallbirds is that you can't go anywhere interesting. Go to hunt koalefants? Can't do that, the koalefant will wound the smallbird. Wanna go to the swamp? Nope, it's certain that something will murder your smallbird in cold blood. Hell, it's risky even to cut down trees without burning them first, because of the treeguard. So, with the new addition of the starvation meter for animals that are in your inventory, I think that this concept would work well.

 

To do this, you need to shift-click on a Smallbird. The character will walk to it, and put the Smallbird on his or her back. This does not take any slot in the chest, but it slows the player down, and every melee weapon except for the Bat Bat or the Spear does less damage. They also can't use darts. The Smallbird appears in a new "Back Slot" which appears over the Chest Slot only when the Smallbird is in it. The smallbird has a hunger bar here, and can be fed like normal. 

 

You can put the smallbird into a backpack so that you don't move quite as slow and can also use any weapon now, but it takes up a 2x4 area in your backpack, so unless you have a Krampus Sack, it takes up every slot.

 

Smallish Tallbirds cannot be carried because they are too large and can hold their own in a fight.

[joulesFect]

I love the idea. If they were to implement such a thing though, I think it would be fitting to make raising your smallbird more rewarding... Maybe it could keep following you as an adult ? Or you could tell it to guard an area and it would put a nest there and start guarding it without attacking you  ?

 

In due time, you could raise your own army of tallbirds to defend your base and compete with the mighty strenght of giants

[Doomfan64]

I love the idea. If they were to implement such a thing though, I think it would be fitting to make raising your smallbird more rewarding... Maybe it could keep following you as an adult ? Or you could tell it to guard an area and it would put a nest there and start guarding it without attacking you  ?

 

In due time, you could raise your own army of tallbirds to defend your base and compete with the mighty strenght of giants

Nah. We already have pigs for defending ourselves against the giants. I wish it wouldn't attack you, but I don't like the idea of it being able to set up defenses in your base.

[joulesFect]

Nah. We already have pigs for defending ourselves against the giants. I wish it wouldn't attack you, but I don't like the idea of it being able to set up defenses in your base.

 

Well I still wish there were more ways to defend ourselves, a deerclop destroyed my whole base and the pig village I was living next to before I killed him.

 

But anyways yeah, it's quite a letdown to have it following and feeding it for so long only to have it turn hostile, kill it and get two pieces of meat :S

[Jebidijed]

To do this, you need to shift-click on a Smallbird. The character will walk to it, and put the Smallbird on his or her back. This does not take any slot in the chest, but it slows the player down, and they cannot use any melee weapon except for the Bat Bat or the Spear. They also can't use darts. The Smallbird appears in a new "Back Slot" which appears over the Chest Slot only when the Smallbird is in it. The smallbird has a hunger bar here, and can be fed like normal. 

 

Why can't you grab any other weapon besides the Bat Bat or Spear? What does the Smallbird do to prevent you from using these weapons? What if someone who mainly uses a Tentacle Spike has to pick up his or her Smallbird to flee from battle? Unless you have a ludicrous amount of Tentacle Spikes handy, then that's gonna be a problem. This is the only gripe I have about this idea, and I don't think anything else needs to be changed.

[Doomfan64]

Why can't you grab any other weapon besides the Bat Bat or Spear? What does the Smallbird do to prevent you from using these weapons? What if someone who mainly uses a Tentacle Spike has to pick up his or her Smallbird to flee from battle? Unless you have a ludicrous amount of Tentacle Spikes handy, then that's gonna be a problem. This is the only gripe I have about this idea, and I don't think anything else needs to be changed.

Well, the player is hunched over while it is on his back, and can't aim shorter weapons. The Bat Bat is still selectable because the damage from it appears to be magical, as the bat wings aren't exactly the strongest material. You can have a spear carried in your inventory, or put the Smallbird in a backpack.

 

 

Maybe being able to carry backpacks in your inventory would be good too because you could have a special one for your smallbird.

[Sporb]

Being able to pick up smallbirds sounds like a good idea, but the way you want it implemented sounds overcomplicated. Too many rules and new mechanics just for this one idea.

I think it should be something simple: the smallbird can be picked up and it takes up a single regular inventory slot or the torso slot.

Or the smallbird could be a hat.

[An Artifact]

Or the smallbird could be a hat.

This.

 

Also, you should at least be able to have your smallbird turn into a proper Tallbird with a new nest. My idea would be that a Smallbird sheds downy feathers when it turns into a smallish tallbird, and with this, a bit of beard hair, beefalo wool and grass, you can make a nest for it (you would need the downy feathers so you can't just put a nest anywhere) When you set up the nest, the closest homeless Tallbird, so in this case your pet Tallbird, would be assigned to that nest. It would then live in this nest and respawn there if it dies, and since the nest has the scent of your beard, it would tolerate you in its area as long as you don't steal its eggs. Or something similar like that.

[jbeetle]

I think the bigger problem with smallbirds is that they're pointless, possibly remnants of an abandoned idea.

 

I mean, unless they give sanity like pigs do. Do they?

[brummbar7]

I think the bigger problem with smallbirds is that they're pointless, possibly remnants of an abandoned idea.

 

I've heard they're useful for feather farming.  Don't know if that's still true or not.  I do find myself making more darts than I used to, in order to prepare for deerclops (and the other giants).    Still seems like too much work though, compared to boomerang.

[Doomfan64]

I don`t see why the smallbird can't rest on your helmet.

 

But yeah, I suppose it would be fine without all the debuffs associated with it.

 

Or make the Smallish Tallbird more desirable.

[An Artifact]

http://www.deviantart.com/art/don-t-starve-347886182

 

This picture sums it up. Put a Smallbird on your head and get a slight sanity boost!

[Jebidijed]

Well, the player is hunched over while it is on his back, and can't aim shorter weapons. The Bat Bat is still selectable because the damage from it appears to be magical, as the bat wings aren't exactly the strongest material. You can have a spear carried in your inventory, or put the Smallbird in a backpack.

 

 

Maybe being able to carry backpacks in your inventory would be good too because you could have a special one for your smallbird.

I can understand that the player would be hunched over because of the Smallbird's weight, but all you have to do is swing your weapon at the enemy, requiring little aim. The only aim you'd have to do is to aim at the general direction of the target, find the preferred area of bludgeoning/stabbing, and bam, you hit your target. Maybe instead of weapon limitations, it would just do less damage?

[XirmiX]

I think tallbirds should have a lifecycle that doesn't involve your character. Say, a smallbird hatches and it follows its mother (tallbird) and lrotects it if you or any other mob/monster attacks the mother and the other way round. Once the smallbird grows into a tallbird it would leave its nest place, move forward and make a nest to start its life as a tallbird. How's that?

[ossiemaine]

I think tallbirds should have a lifecycle that doesn't involve your character. Say, a smallbird hatches and it follows its mother (tallbird) and lrotects it if you or any other mob/monster attacks the mother and the other way round. Once the smallbird grows into a tallbird it would leave its nest place, move forward and make a nest to start its life as a tallbird. How's that?

 

That's the best idea so far.. this game is about surviving and being able to make tall birds as defense is just nonsense. I think it's a good idea from klei that they made the small bird that grow to tall bird hostile. You can't trust animals in don't starve. Just like pigs who will change in full moon. The tall bird eggs are very useful to me cause they don't spoil so make a good food for my resurrection stones. Haven't grown any small birds cause to grow it you use a lot of food and in the end only get 2 meats. Pointless!

[An Artifact]

I think tallbirds should have a lifecycle that doesn't involve your character. Say, a smallbird hatches and it follows its mother (tallbird) and lrotects it if you or any other mob/monster attacks the mother and the other way round. Once the smallbird grows into a tallbird it would leave its nest place, move forward and make a nest to start its life as a tallbird. How's that?

I don't know about that. That would completely eliminate the point of breeding Smallbirds. If they would only make new nests when you breed them up, it would be slightly more rewarding, but the way you describe it, it would just feel like a pointless nuisance.

[WillPwn4Food]

This.

 

Also, you should at least be able to have your smallbird turn into a proper Tallbird with a new nest. My idea would be that a Smallbird sheds downy feathers when it turns into a smallish tallbird, and with this, a bit of beard hair, beefalo wool and grass, you can make a nest for it (you would need the downy feathers so you can't just put a nest anywhere) When you set up the nest, the closest homeless Tallbird, so in this case your pet Tallbird, would be assigned to that nest. It would then live in this nest and respawn there if it dies, and since the nest has the scent of your beard, it would tolerate you in its area as long as you don't steal its eggs. Or something similar like that.

 

Flawless

[XirmiX]

This.

 

Also, you should at least be able to have your smallbird turn into a proper Tallbird with a new nest. My idea would be that a Smallbird sheds downy feathers when it turns into a smallish tallbird, and with this, a bit of beard hair, beefalo wool and grass, you can make a nest for it (you would need the downy feathers so you can't just put a nest anywhere) When you set up the nest, the closest homeless Tallbird, so in this case your pet Tallbird, would be assigned to that nest. It would then live in this nest and respawn there if it dies, and since the nest has the scent of your beard, it would tolerate you in its area as long as you don't steal its eggs. Or something similar like that.

Cool idea! Thought when you said that tallbirds shouldn't have their eggs hatching whilst in nest and tallbirds owning their own smallbirds and smallish tallbirds is kind of a shame. Remember that the game should really reflect on life cycle a hit as well for some of the animals.

Btw, I thibk the slurpers should have a mating season, just like many other animals, especially volt goat which still have no mating season!