Mechanism: Midnight Cycle
The Midnight Cycle is the game’s primary heartbeat. At exactly midnight, the server processes all global changes, resets specific player stats, and calculates the town’s survival.
1. The Survival Toll
The most critical part of the cycle is the survival check.
- Hunger Drain: Every player loses 40% (4 bars) of their hunger.
- Thirst Drain: Every player loses 40% (4 bars) of their thirst.
2. Monster Activity
The darkness becomes active at midnight:
- Horde Spawning: Corrupted tiles may spawn new monster hordes.
- Horde Progression: Marching hordes move one hex closer to the town base.
- World Damage: Hordes consume ground loot and destroy Power Poles on tiles they enter.
- Horde Gathering: Newly spawned hordes spend one night in place before marching.
3. Town Siege & Defense
The final check of the night is the town’s security. Detailed math can be found in Combat & Defense.
- Attack Calculation: All hordes on the base tile contribute to the total Attack Strength.
- Defense Check: If Attack Strength > Town Defense, the town is overrun and the game instance ends for all players.
4. Production & Logistics
- Facility Yields: Resources from the Well and Hydroponic Patch are added to the Town Bank.
- Fabrication Completion: Any items currently being fabricated on specific tiles (like Industrial or Electronics) are produced and placed on the ground at that tile.
- Power Drain: Daily town power drain is deducted from the generator.
5. Global Scaling
- Spawn Bonus: The global monster spawn bonus increases every night, ensuring that newly spawned hordes are larger and more dangerous over time.