Colonists

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Your Colonists are the inhabitants of your colony, the (un)fortunate survivors who have lived to witness the aftermath of the apocalypse and must now work to survive through it as well.

Colonists are individual persons with varying needs and skills. They consume Food.png Food and Water.pngWater to stay alive to work and procreate, keeping the colony going and growing. Having their basic needs taken care of is a critical part of the game.

Workers and carriers[edit | edit source]

You can see the distribution of carriers and workers from the top left.

Colonists can be divided into two categories: workers and carriers.

Workers are colonists assigned to buildings. As you cannot directly control the colonists, you might also need to guide them by setting Work Areas. The colonists attempt to automatically hire the best person for the job whenever you construct new buildings or edit the work slots within.

Carriers are vital for moving resources and doing construction work. If you find yourself in a situation where work does not progress, check that you have enough free carriers to carry out the tasks at hand. If not, temporarily free up some by closing some Work Slots in your buildings.

Children unable to attend school and workers assigned to some buildings (e.g. Gate, Scout Tower, growing Field) will also help out as carriers.

Conditions[edit | edit source]

Colonists will need medical assistance from time to time.
Taking care of colonists cleanliness with an Outhouse makes them less prone to catching diseases.

The many dangers of a post-apocalyptic world affect the colonists the most. They can get sick from radiation, contract diseases or injure themselves. All of these conditions will cause penalties to a colonist's health, happiness and work performance.

Physical conditions can be treated by healing them within a Medical Tent or a Field Hospital. This is crucial for a thriving colony as an untreated condition will eventually prove fatal. Having medical buildings active and a Specialist scouring the World Map for Health.png Medication can go a long way toward keeping your people healthy.

Possible Conditions[edit | edit source]

Name Effect Cure
Condition injured.png Injury Health loss, Happiness loss Medicine.png Medicine, Medical assistance
Condition radiated.png Radiation Sickness Health loss, Happiness loss Iodine Pills.png Iodine Pills, Medical assistance
Infection Health loss, Happiness loss Antibiotics.png Antibiotics, Medical assistance
Condition mutated.png Mutation Health loss, Happiness loss Health.png Medical assistance, Antibody.png Antibody (DLC)
Condition starving.png Starving Health loss, Happiness loss Food.png Food
Condition dehydrated.png Dehydrated Health loss, Happiness loss Water.png Water
Condition despair.png Desperate Risk of leaving the colony Fun Box.png Entertainment
Condition hostile.png Hostile Loss of control Firepower.png Combat
Condition malnutrition.png Malnourished Happiness loss, health loss Food meal mixed.png Meals
Condition unclean.png Filthy Happiness loss, more prone to diseases Topic water.png Hygiene buildings
Condition tired.png Exhausted Happiness loss Tired.png Rest
Condition homeless.png Homeless Happiness loss Shelter.png Shelters
Condition notools.png No tools Slower working speed Tools.png Tools
Condition noclothes.png No clothing More prone to diseases Clothes lvl1.png Clothing
Condition no weapon.png Unarmed Weaker to enemies Weapons.png Weapons
Anguish (DLC) Turning hostile Antistress.png Antistress, special medical assistance

Living conditions[edit | edit source]

Build shelters for colonists to raise their happiness.

Your colonists need somewhere to live in. Homeless colonists sleep on the ground but will slowly lose Happiness level 3.png Happiness and even health, if they're exposed for long. Having enough Shelter.png Shelters for everyone is a top priority. Without a bed to sleep on, colonists will get Tired and eventually Exhausted due to lack of sleep, and they can also get sick, requiring Health.png medical attention.

Shelters range from simple Tents all the way to (circumstances considering) comfortable Houses. Upgrading to sturdier houses improves people's Happiness and provides better protection against the harsh conditions and even Catastrophe.png Catastrophes and disasters. They also encourage your populace to have children as they feel more secure and private in a proper home. Colonists move to the closest available shelters to where they work, so spreading out housing reduces the time people walk back and forth.

Ageing[edit | edit source]

A colonists life cycle includes three phases: Child, Adult and Elder.

Child.png Children: Children grow slowly and help the colony by carrying stowaway boxes and committing simple scavenging tasks. Children who have gone to School for long enough will gain the trait Educated.

Adult.png Adults: Adults are capable of committing every task in the colony. They can also reproduce, given they live in decent shelters and are at least somewhat happy.

Elderly.png Elders: Colonists cannot live forever, and will eventually pass from old age. Elders still carry out tasks as before, but cannot get anymore children. Elders are more fragile than their younger counterparts, and life may come to an unexpected end at this phase.

Death[edit | edit source]

Old or untreated colonists will eventually meet their demise.

An inevitable part of life, Death icon.png Death comes to us all in the end, one way or another. It can take the form of starvation, prolonged dehydration, untreated injuries or Bandit attacks. Dead colonists are a serious liability as their corpses can potentially act as vectors for and spread disease and having dead people lying around in plain sight will make living people unhappy as well.

To prevent any such issues from arising, dead colonists must be taken to a Burial Pit for their final rest. This ensures minimal impact on overall colony happiness and health as the bodies are brought out of sight and out of mind from the living colonists while also putting them in a place where they cannot spread disease.

Specialists, if they die, are either lost in the wilderness or quickly buried on the spot by their surviving comrades. Their belongings and any resources carried by them will likewise be lost.

Traits[edit | edit source]

Colonists can have a grab bag of traits that can give them bonuses or be hindrances.

Name Effect Description
Educated Production Speed +15% Has learned how to work in a post apocalyptic world efficiently
Hairy Cold resistance +30% Mutation has caused excessive body hair growth
Believer Max Happiness +20% Religious background helps to see hope where there might not be any
Former Hunter Damages Self when in full Health Was left permanently injured by a terrible hunting accident
Driven Production Speed +15% Trouble mind that might go ballistic at any moment
Hard Worker Production Speed +15% Works harder than average
Minesweeper Walking Speed -25% One of the lucky ones clearing old minefields. Lost only part of one foot and some toes from the other
Optimist Max Happiness +20% Seemingly resistant to the troubles in the world
Healthy Faster injury Recovery Picture of health despite adverse conditions
Sloth Resting rate -50% Sleeps longer than others
Clumsy Walking speed -25% Constantly tripping over their own feet
Lazy Production Speed -15% Just doesn't give a damn about work
Spiritual N/A Believes in something larger than the human kind
Reckless Production Speed -5% Dives headlong into everything without thinking first
Been there Max Health +30% A lifetime of hardship has made the body sturdy and durable
Comfort Seeker Max Happiness -30 living in a shelter with no power Aspires to minimize pain and maximize pleasure in life
Tough Max Health +20% Built like a brick house, able to endure many hardships
Daydreamer Production Speed -5% Has a hard time concentrating on the task at hand, dreams of better times
Clawed N/A An encounter with a ferocious beast left its mark; scars across the face and a mutilated nose
Suspicious Happiness penalty when survivors join the colony Distrustful of new and unfamiliar people
Loiterer Walking speed -25% Tries to take things easy whenever possible
Competitive Walking speed +20% Has to be first everywhere, best at everything, or at least the fastest
Punctual Walking Speed +20% Finds comfort in organization, punctuality and schedules
Farmhand +15% as a Farmer Loves to see things grow and blossom
Genetic Lottery Faster injury recovery Blessed with remarkable genes
Ritualistic N/A Has structured their day around strict religious routines
Picky Hunger rate -15% Very selective about what they eat, gets by with less
Martial Artist Max Health +30% Sees themselves as a professional fighter, aims constantly for maximum fitness
Glutton Twice as hungry Eats more than they should. Does not care if someone is left without food
Horrors of the Past Production Speed +5% It is difficult to think anything but the horrors they'e witnessed. Hard labour helps to take the mind off things
Obsessive Production Speed -15% Handicapped by compulsive thoughts and small rituals
Resigned Production Speed -15% Has completely given up and doesn't see the point in anything anymore
Paranoid Production Speed -5% Suspects everything and everyone, jumpy and irrational
Authoritarian Production Speed +15% with over five specialists in the colony Believes in control, leadership and discipline
Hyperactive Needs more time to get Educated Has a tough time focusing on one thing at a time
Green Thumb Production speed +5% Feeling dry dirt between the fingers is the best feeling in the world
Luddite N/A Prefers old ways and abhors new technology
People Person Happiness boost when survivors join the colony Enjoys meeting new people