Finding Safe Water
Water is everywhere; water you can trust costs fire, containers and time.
- Prototype complexity
- Who plays
- Solo decisions
- Design focus
- Planning · Risk
No.114The Long Dark01The core loop
Action → feedback → next choice- 01Find a water source
- 02Judge if it is safe
- 03Boil or purify, then bottle
- 04Carry it onward
↻Feedback changes the situation — the next round starts from there.
Walk through one round
A simplified design example. Situations and numbers illustrate the mechanic, not exact rules from a reference game.
- T1
Turn 1 · The situation
Thirst at 25%, two sticks left, a frozen river nearby.
- T2
Turn 2 · The player chooses
Burn both sticks to boil 1.5 L, drink 0.5 L, pack 1 L.
- T3
Turn 3 · The feedback
Thirst rises to 60%, load +1 kg, firewood gone.
- T4
Turn 4 · The next decision
Gather wood before the next camp or face the night without fire.
How it plays
Raw water quenches thirst instantly but risks illness; purifying needs fuel, tablets or tools. Container capacity limits how much you carry and thus how far the next leg can go.
What the player weighs
- Gamble on raw water or spend fuel to boil
- Carry more water or travel light
02Start small
Scope is an editorial estimate for the minimum prototype, not the reference game or a production schedule.
03One mechanic, different implementations
The Long Dark
Melting and boiling snow needs fire and a pot; unboiled water risks dysentery, while purification tablets skip the fuel cost.
Green Hell
The jungle has plenty of water but most is dirty; coconuts and rain collectors give safer sources, while raw water can bring parasites.
The difference worth noticing
The Long Dark bottlenecks on fuel; Green Hell on recognizing which sources are already clean.
Case notes are Yoroll editorial summaries; rules may change between versions.
04What could you combine?
Count water against a carry-weight budget: a full canteen displaces a tool, so long trips force a water-versus-gear call.
Prototype this combo in Yoroll→Follow the next idea
Stop the Bleeding
A wound is bleeding out the clock; use whatever is at hand.
- Prototype complexity
- Who plays
- Solo decisions
- 01Take a bleeding wound
- 02Break from danger
- 03Bandage with cloth
- 04Change or treat later
Juggling Survival Needs
Hunger, thirst, cold and fatigue all drain at once; you can only fix one at a time.
- Prototype complexity
- Who plays
- Solo decisions
- 01Read every need meter
- 02Pick the most urgent one
- 03Spend time and supplies on it
- 04Others slide meanwhile
Planning Around Sleep
You must sleep when tired, but the world keeps moving while you do.
- Prototype complexity
- Who plays
- Solo decisions
- 01Activity builds fatigue
- 02Find a safe place
- 03Choose how long to sleep
- 04Wake to a changed world