Survival Mode

Last updated for version `1.8.0-BETA-7`

*Main article:* Horizon Wiki

"Survival Mode", sometimes called "Survival Difficulty" or "Survival System", is the gameplay mode, that FO4 Horizon is built on. Its essential upon installation to toogle it to "On" in the FO4 settings menu and recommended to be played together with Desolation Mode. Horizon was released on August 20, 2016 and early version were called "Horizon - Survival Mode Expanded" from v0.9 up to v0.999e2.

## General

Survival mode must be accessed in the options menu of FO4. This mode can be set before a new game but can't be toggled freely. Once activated, turning it off will permanently disable it from being reactivated for the given save file. Deactivation is irreversible, but by entering the following console command `cgf "Game.IncrementStat" "Survival Denied" -1` it can reactivate in the Settings Menu.

Any saving options have been altered in Survival Mode. Autosave and manually saving from the menu is disabled and so are console commands. However, unlike Vanilla FO4 (which forces the player to save the game via bed, mattress, or a sleeping bag), the player has many saving options: auto-save via the Horizon Holotape, Portable Memory Devices but also via console command any time. The exit save function, a temporary save, is still available but (like vanilla) deleted automatically upon loading.

Ammunition has a weight, per cartridge and per ammo type. Overencumbered, alters agility by -5, as opposed to vanilla endurance is not reduced anymore. Enemy and loot respawn time in Horizon has been altered and can be changed any time in the Horizon Holotape. As opposed to Vanilla FO4, the 35 in-game days for non-cleared locations and 80 in-game days for cleared locations have been changed to standard 7 and 20 days respectively.

While fixed enemy locations have increased repopulation times, the occurrence of random enemy encounters is two days or less. Additionally Horizon puts the player under pressure with Dynamic Encounters and Dynamic Traps.

### Comparison Chart

Below is a comparison between vanilla Fo4 with and without survival mode and Horizon with survival mode. Horizon is based on survival mode and is not recommended to be played without survival mode.

### Food And Water

Food satisfies more hunger and water quenches more thirst than it does in Vanilla FO4. The value of these items in caps corresponds to the amount of nutrition points.

Bottles of Purified Water now grant a buff of +10 Damage/Energy/Rad Resists for 15 minutes. Cooked meals in general require a lot more ingredients to craft. Some cooked meals have different versions now that require extra meat/crops, but give more value. Most foods that give radiation damage, now give more radiation damage.

In the Cooking Station, all food is categorized in 3 main groups (basic, common, exotic) based on skill requirements. Drink any Beverage, will give back an appropriate empty bottle. Nuka-Colas are supposed to reduce a small amount of thirst, increase hunger slightly, and give rads.

### Survival Statistics

The Survival Statistics Menu shows current hunger/thirst points and Revival Mode stats. The Horizon Holotape can toogle 3 options (Every Use, Stages Only, Off) to show the exact amount of nutrition left per stage or the total amount left even if the stage hasn't changed.

### Timescale Addon

The timescale is reduced in half to 10 instead of 20. Sleep deprivation debuffs are more severe doubled in most cases, since being awake is always half the time. While sleeping, hunger/thirst now advance at normal rate (was 75%). Hunger/thirst advance at 1.5x the normal value per hour.

### Status Icons

Icons for all debuffs can come in varying degrees of color. Yellow/Orange/Red icons are based on how severe the debuff is. Beneficial buff icons will remain as the normal UI color, the color it is set to. Hunger/Thirst ranges from: yellow, orange, orange, red, red. It's recommended to use a pale color UI to get the most out of any text colors.

## Status Effects

### Healing

*See: Health*

Healing on level ups is impossible with Horizon. It is active from level 1.

Sleeping doesn't cure health anymore and health pools are fixed in Horizon. Healing rates are altered and require time, healing is not instantly aynmore. Other status effects like hunger may reduce healing rate even more. Healing effects from foods and drinks have been nerfed so that none of these will allow to heal anymore.

Healing is affected by medical skill. 40 to 180 skill points improve healing for Bandages, Stimpaks, and RadAway. Every 20 skill gains 10% healing (80% max).1.8.0.BETA-1:156

Visiting a doctor to restore health, removing rads, and curing addictions still carry no side effects[*citation needed*].

Survival mode adds two different antibiotics, rare items, craftable, also obtainable from some doctors and vendors, which unlike to vanilla FO4 don't cure all diseases anymore and only cure infections. Antibiotics have been replaced by Advanced Cure-X a powerful chem which can cure all diseases instantly.

Herbal remedies can be applied to resist various diseases but at a cost, all of them required purified water as a basic ingredient. The herbal remedies are preventive rather curative: they must be taken prior to exposure, or prior to sleeping.

### Crippling

Crippled in any form, can be cured with a Trauma Kit, Glowing Blood Pack or First Aid Kit slowly over time. To some extend a Combat Stimpak can cure a small amount of leg crippling instantly. Sleeping doesn't cure crippling anymore. If the player is unable to cure himself from crippling effects, visiting a doctor for medical treatment is recommended. Ranks in Adamantium Skeleton can decrease crippling chances up to -50% (at rank 3), but don't cause any immunity anymore. Vanguard (specialization) can help to reduce crippling chance by another -15%.

### Hunger

*See: Food*

While beeing hungry, the players healing properties is suppressed. Beeing "well-fed" will neutralise any debuffs. The caps value of food items corresponds to the value that can be satisfied. In Horizon not eating cooked food applies rads and can cause illnesses from very to high risk.

The cannibal perk can help quenching hunger but interfer with leadership skill and cause addiction similar to alcohol and chems.

The time it takes to reach the first hunger level is ~16 hours (up from 6 hours). The food points required for the first hunger level is 4 times higher (roughly 96 food points, i.e. caps value). The total amount of "food points" (which is based on the caps value) that is needed to stop hunger per hour, remains exactly the same (1:4). The total time it takes to reach the last "starve to death" level is slightly extended to 3 days (up from 2.6 days). Hunger reduces the amount of healing received when using medical supplies.

* "Fed" → "Well Fed", since that level range effectively lasts much longer.
* "Peckish" → "Hungry"
* "Hungry" → "Very Hungry"

The lack of hunger will now display a warning perk on the top of the perk tab explaining the debuffs. The Hunger Pains debuff perk is now more descriptive for each stage, so its more apparent that the debuffs are different. The first stage of hunger no longer reduces Charisma by 1.

### Thirst

*See: Water*

Thirst will negatively impact Intelligence, Charisma and Luck in Horizon. Drinking dirty water can cause an illness and unlike vanilla FO4 open water sources are always contaminated. Purified water is obtained from water purifiers, vendors and few locations.

Nuka-Cola (and variants) decrease thirst but increase hunger instead.

The time it takes to reach the first thirst level is 16 hours, up from 8; the max level remains the same; water per hour remains the same. All thirst levels are pushed up by 8 hours, but everything still requires the same amount of water per hour of time passed. Sleeping reduces thirst accumulation (1/hour instead of 4). While entering Combat, checks happen faster, 15m in-game each time.

### Adrenaline

*See: Primal Instincts*

Unlike vanilla FO4, Adrenaline now decays at 1 stack per 30 in-game minutes (15 min for the Timescale addon). It is still automatically applied to the player. For every 5 enemies killed, 1 more rank will be rewarded. This perk in- and decreases proportionate and maxes at 10% damage resistance as opposed to vanilla FO4 bonus damage. The bonus is reduced upon sleeping. In addition the healing rate of Aid items is significantly slowed, reducing the ability to offset health damage by using Aid items in mid-combat.

Adrenaline Injectors now give +5 adrenaline stacks per use.1.6.0:123

 ...

### Addiction

*See: Chem*

Addiction can be viewed on the Pip-Boy "STAT" page by choosing "Show Effects". After taking numerous addictive items, the player character will become addicted to it. Addiction cause the player character to be % more susceptible to damage, damage resistance decrease.

* Alcoholic Drinks: Beer, Bobrov's Best moonshine, Bourbon, Rum, Vodka, Whiskey, Wine, Gwinnett ale, Gwinnett brew, Gwinnett lager, Gwinnett pale, Gwinnett pilsner, Gwinnett stout and all ice cold variations.
* Chems: Taking mixed chems will cause addiction to the main Chem (e.g., taking Bufftats can only lead to becoming addicted to Buffout).

Addiction can be cured either by visiting a doctor or by using certain aid items such as:

* Addictol: Widely available from doctors or vendors.
* Radscorpion Egg Omelette: Craftable at a Cooking Station.
* Refreshing Beverage - Craftable at a Chemistry Station.
* Fixer - Cures Insomnia and lowers all addiction levels by a moderate amount (~70%) except dark craving, which is cured.

### Radiation

Radiation effects and counter-measures has been largely changed in Horizon. Radiation should be something to be avoided if possible. Food and water items that cause radiation damage now cause more radiation damage. All drinkable water sources now cause some radiation damage and are considered dirty water, which is everything except Purified Water bottles.

RadAway has been nerfed and will rarely drop from loot or containers, but continues to exist in static locations. It can only cures half the amount of rads, but the immunity debuff is reduced to 20 minutes. RadAway can be increased by medical skill. RadAway no longer dehydrates, causes starvation or benefits from perks such as Chemist or BioComm mods. Pricing has been increased accordingly.

* **Rad-X** – Lasts for 10 minutes.
* **Cure** – The price for curing radiation from doctors is increased, and scales based on the amount of radiation.
* **Resistance** – Radiation resistances on Hazmat Suits is reduced, "built-in" radiation reduction is reduced too. Radiation resistances on Power Armor is significiantly reduced. Rad resists on PA require item mods like lead lining and/or rad scrubbers. Rad Scrubbers no longer remove radiation from food.
* **Disease** – Insomnia reduces rad resistance by -100.

### Radiation Poisoning

A new mechanic, similiar to standard poison, puts a debuff and may add rads over time.

### Poison

Parasites reduces Poison Resistance by -30. Base resist is 10, going to 0 can potentially be really bad.

 The poison of a "mirelurk hunter" and special insects is nowhere highlighted (missing icon). Although the player is affected by the negative effects of the poison.

### Diseases

Everytime the player is eating uncooked meat, drinking unpurified water, taking damage from certain creatures, and using harmful chems a disease roll is triggered which can cause a contamination with a special debuff. Cleansing the body of negative effects like Radiation can suppress the immune system making the player more vulnerable against a disease.

Mole rat disease is special it can be obtained outside of survival difficulty.

Most diseases can be healed by chems (causing addiction chance), specialized remedies (requiring skills and materials to craft), Advanced Cure-X (difficult to craft) or a Doctor. Diseases can be prevented by avoiding melee hits from dirty creatures or taking immune-boosting consumables before a fight.

Most illnesses and diseases should be cured as soon as possible. They are reworked to limit avoiding them.

Mole Rat Disease is reduced to 2 hours and then it will wear off (that icon needed to go.)

#### Infection

 8
 12
 18

#### Types

Disease type is almost totally random. There is no correlation between the player's actions and any particular disease type. However, diseases can't stack and assign once. More than one disease can apply to the player character but only one can apply per game day. It is not possible to contract a disease on the first game day. Subject to this, it is possible to have multiple diseases at the same time, and it is theoretically possible to contract all disease types simultaneously.

### Sleep

Sleeping for at least 1 hour will save the game and can cause a disease check. Crippled limbs and hit points can't be healed anymore. It is possible to sleep for 0 hours by canceling immediately after bed use. The game will be saved, disease checks carried out, but tiredness won't be reduced.

In Horizon, a sleeping bag or dirty mattress can be used 9 hours, but only grant "Rested" and not "Well Rested" buff.

More frequent sleeping indirectly increases the risk of contracting a disease, particularly if there is exposure to disease risk events between sleep. Sleeping clears down the accumulated increased disease risk, a higher minimum risk is imposed by Fatigue (including hunger and thirst), and a disease check is forced each time the player goes to sleep, checked prior to any reduction in the disease risk pool.

Being asleep for any period of time, in any bed, of any type, will force a check for illness. It will then clear the disease risk pool down to the Fatigue-adjusted minimum, regardless of how brief the period of sleep is.

#### Sleep Timer

The sleep timer runs for 14 game hours after waking up fully rested. When the sleep timer has been reset, "You feel rested" appears after sleeping.

Minimum to sleep is 2 hours every 13 to 14 hours. A pattern could be to sleep 2 hours every 10 hours, for a total of 4 hours sleep in 24 hours.

If the player isn't tired or worse, 2 hours sleep is sufficient to clear the sleep timer completely and permit up 14 hours before becoming Tired. However, if the player only sleeps for 1 hour, he risks entering the Tired state after waking up.

Per entered combat the sleep counter increments by 15 game minutes. There is a cooldown timer though.

Upon leaving Vault 111 the game forces the clock to 9.00 am and the player will become Tired at approx. 11.00 am, unless they sleep prior to that time. Sleeping prior tired state on the first day only, the sleep timer is fully reset, even if sleeping for zero hours.

#### Changes

The time while sleeping to check food/thirst is increased to match a standard 24-hour eating cycle. Being "Rested" gives a bonus to the amount of healing received when using medical supplies. Sleep deprivation also reduces XP gained. A sleeping bag or dirty mattress can be used as any other bed, for up to 9 hours and no longer have a penalty to block from getting "rested" status. Sleeping bags and dirty mattresses still don't allow to get the "Well Rested" buff.

The Iron Defender Perk reduces the amount of sleep to become "Well Rested", by 1 hour per rank for ranks 1-3 (thanks Pranj for the idea). The first stage of being tired from lack of sleep no longer has an XP penalty, this stage should be more of a minor warning, than an actual debuff. The first stage of being tired only has -5% AP refresh (-10% on the timescale addon)

Rocket: Cures Tiredness.

Addon: Timescale, while sleeping, hunger/thirst now advance at normal rate (was 75%). Timescale affect also SPECIAL attribute point by an additional -1 as well as overall effects by -5 to -10% on average.

#### Caffeine And Alcohol

Caffeinated drinks such as Nuka-Cola will delay the need to sleep for some time and temporarily reduce the current tiredness state by usually one step. However, caffeinated drinks have hunger increasing effects as well as reduced thirst-quenching effects. Alcoholic drinks will typically cause increased Thirst rather than reducing it.

### Waiting

Unlike sleeping, waiting (using an item of furniture) doesn't;

* reduce the rate of hunger or thirst increase,
* heal damage, and
* clear or reduce the disease risk pool.

Hunger, thirst, and tiredness accumulate normally while waiting. However, disease check(s) and periodic damage, e.g. from hunger or thirst, or "Infection" won't occur while waiting, similar to sleeping. Same applies to rad storm, waiting (similar to sleeping) completely skips any effects.

### Over Encumbered

Being over-encumbered no longer cause damage, but reduces Agility by -5.

## Developer Notes

* I chose to reduce the first stage of Hunger to 0 CHR, only because its one of those things where it can accidentially screw over your speech checks if it just rolled over and you didn't notice it (which is annoying.) I think the first stage of conditions should mostly just be a mild "warning" like how I already have the thirst/sleep ones. So now, all 3 conditions should have very mild 1st stages, so you don't have to frantically worry about it ruining your choices, or make it completely necessary to eat/drink down to 0 food value. You can leave it at like 16 food value if you want, and it won't be that bad now. The 2nd stage of hunger is not nerfed though.. so it jumps up quite a bit if you let it go.

## Technical Issues

* Survival Mode must be checked manually with Horizon. Horizon doesn't add the check mark by itself.
* The poison of a "mirelurk hunter" and special insects is nowhere highlighted (missing icon). Although the player is affected by the negative effects of the poison.
* Neither sleeping nor waiting take "periodic damage" into account. The player can wait and sleep forever without fearing death.
	+ Same applies to "radiation damage", a radstorm can be circumvented by either sleeping or waiting. There is no difference in beeing in an exterior or interior cell, covered by a building object or not.
* Exploit, sleeping can be forced to "0" hours, which in turn can be used to avoid the "tired" state added soon after leaving the Vault 111. This can be used to gain a serious advantage at the first day of "surviving".
* Disease: Except for overfatigue (yellow), all other diseases are represented by a red icon and have to be looked up manually in the Pip-Boy. Using different colors on screen and/or icon might help in that regard.
* Poison: not all poison appear as an "icon" on screen. It can be noticed by the "poison effect" around the character model though.
* Poison: although the player is affected by poison, he takes no damage. the cause is unclear.

## See Also

* Food
* Water
* Guide/New Player
* Guide/Hunger & Thirst Management
* Guide/Cell Respawn

## References

1. ↑ https://steamcommunity.com/app/377160/discussions/0/364042063118984299/#c1489992080506019040