Mechanism: Fear
Overview
Fear is a psychological status system added on March 5, 2026. it tracks the mental strain of exploring the darkness.
Accumulation & Recovery
- Darkness Increase: Entering dark tiles (no Power Pole or Base light) without an active Lamp increases Fear.
- Safe Recovery: Fear decreases over time when the player is Resting on a lit tile.
- Town Reset: Joining a new town correctly resets Fear to 0.
Penalties
Fear imposes significant penalties on player efficiency:
- Scavenging (Search): -10% success chance per Fear point (added to the base darkness penalty).
- Skill Checks: -5% success chance per Fear point for all non-search skill checks.
Fear Paralysis
The Fear meter default consists of 3 bars.
- Expansion: The Mental Fortitude skill can increase this cap by up to 3 points (total of 6).
- Max Fear: Reaching maximum Fear results in Fear Paralysis. The player is unable to move to new tiles until Fear is recovered in a lit area or through resting.
- Mental Strain: This represents the psychological block where the survivor is too terrified to step further into the unknown.
Technical Details
- HUD: Features a 3-segment Fear bar and a high-risk visual pulse near the limit.
- Persistence:
fear_currentandfear_maxare persisted in player data across sessions. - Sync: Fear levels are included in movement acknowledgements and state synchronization.