Great Desert Settlement

[CHOO CHOO]

So I want to build my base in the Great Desert. Because it's pretty there.
And I don't want to settle in some low-lying hole just because there's easy access to water there!

My plan is to just pick the prettiest, tallest dune that has reasonable access to iron, copper and stone, and then slowly build up enough wind generators to draw enough water from my 10%-efficient wells to supply first a cactus farm and, later, a hemp farm. Which will also be at terribly low efficiency, but that's the price I have to pay for settling where I like the view instead of where it's practical.

Other than needing to build a hundred wells and the wind generators to power them, and disregarding obvious nitpicks like taxes and slaver raids, is there anything else I should take into consideration before trying to build in such a manner?

[cougar206]

There are spots in the desert where there is 12% water so be on the watch for that. Also I would never let copper be a factor in a base location. You can find or buy electrical components easily enough. In my experience small wind generators almost never lose wind in the desert, so that is all that I use (pretty much all I use anywhere).

What you are thinking of is very doable, one of the largest bases I ever built was in the desert and we were able to house and feed over 100 freed slaves.

[CHOO CHOO]

There are spots where there is 30% water in the desert, but the more water, the lower down you are, the worse the view is - so I'll be stuck with 10%. Do those 2% really make a significant difference?

[bunny de fluff]

I was like you once. Then I went and got the Moisture farming mod, to make water from air, and suddenly a lot of new base locations opened up to me.

[CHOO CHOO]

Thanks for the input gents. I'll be off to determine which dune is the prettiest!

[VayneVerso]

I love the desert, as well. Please share some screenshots once you find your dune!

[Ametist_RF]

Yes, there are a lot of snatchers, a lot and there are even more hungry bandits and slave traders. but mostly hunters.

[tikiman572]

You want pretty? Look no further than Vain, my good friend! Lush vegetation! Exotic creatures! Friendly neighbors! And water as far as the eye can see!

Act now, and the first Beak Thing visit is free! Oh, who am I kidding? ALL the Beak Thing visits are free!

[CHOO CHOO]

Originally posted by TheWatcherUatu:

I love the desert, as well. Please share some screenshots once you find your dune!

https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/1756936259779177868/EA1F5585EAF3C9B4857FF72CF5CC18544427E4FC/
Alright! Here you can see my current outpost, nestled into a nicely crescent-shaped dune in the center of which lie all kinds of useful stuff. Except for water; I have to live with 10% here. From here you can see the Arms of Okran, the Sea, Bast and Sinkuun. It's a short way over from Sho-Battai. However, it's in truth a little too low-lying and shady for my taste, and in the future I'll relocate to the high dune you see in the background. There's no fertility up there, though - so I'll only do that once I get my hands on another AI Core to research hydroponics. Or maybe I'll just import food and forego agriculture for a while. Huh. Might just do that!

Originally posted by tikiman572:

You want pretty? Look no further than Vain, my good friend! Lush vegetation! Exotic creatures! Friendly neighbors! And water as far as the eye can see!

Act now, and the first Beak Thing visit is free! Oh, who am I kidding? ALL the Beak Thing visits are free!

Thanks for the invitation, but I like my local area sterile and clean of life, and with as much sun as possible :P

[VayneVerso]

I'm impressed you're even capable of attempting this with a single character. I'm kind of jealous about the set-up. And I love the idea of being some weird hermit who lives in a shack in the middle of the desert.

It seems like probably a waste of time to try to grow anything as long as you're close to Sho-Battai, though.

[CHOO CHOO]

I do intend to get a small crew to handle the menial work, somewhere down the line. But only once the outpost is self-sufficient and somewhat defensible. Then they can produce food and resources while my original character goes spelunking for AI cores and the like. He's a veteran of several imports who so far never lost a fight he couldn't crawl away from with all his limbs still attached - lucky! Beats up skimmers with his bare hands, and whenever he's enslaved he just breaks himself free. Almost feels like cheating. So it's really no trouble at all to have him live in a shack in the desert.

But yeah, growing food (chewsticks, let's face it) seems like an extravagance out here. I just want to be able to leave the base alone for a week without having to worry about the workers starving.

[Stealth]

Have you considered Shem? It's a desert with 70% water, stone, iron and copper and looks pretty nice. It's fairly central as well.

[CHOO CHOO]

I have! In fact, I considered absolutely every last zone in the game. But none of them look as pretty as the Great Desert does, to my taste. Those gently rolling yet very big orange dunes in contrast with the blue sky just do it for me. Shem just looks like a wet sandbox, like a bunch of puddles, to me :P

That said, I ended up sneaking into Narko's Trap (tense, but it worked) to steal an AI Core and research hydroponics, so I can just ignore fertility ratings. Now I'm eyeing a Mesa on the border between the Great Desert and Heng - it's got a great view and is itself a nicely eminent position, while still maintaining the visual simplicity of the high dunes.

[bunny de fluff]

Originally posted by CHOO CHOO:

I have! In fact, I considered absolutely every last zone in the game. But none of them look as pretty as the Great Desert does, to my taste. Those gently rolling yet very big orange dunes in contrast with the blue sky just do it for me. Shem just looks like a wet sandbox, like a bunch of puddles, to me :P

That said, I ended up sneaking into Narko's Trap (tense, but it worked) to steal an AI Core and research hydroponics, so I can just ignore fertility ratings. Now I'm eyeing a Mesa on the border between the Great Desert and Heng - it's got a great view and is itself a nicely eminent position, while still maintaining the visual simplicity of the high dunes.

Do you like Blue ground in contrast with red sky? Go take a look at the Gut. It has water and good soil too.

[CHOO CHOO]

I can actually see Gut from my new Mesa home. Gut is just a little way off to the South. And no, blue ground and red sky would get me all confused - I'd think myself upside down! :D

Still, thanks for the recommendations!

[Wanted111who]

Originally posted by TheWatcherUatu:

I'm impressed you're even capable of attempting this with a single character. I'm kind of jealous about the set-up. And I love the idea of being some weird hermit who lives in a shack in the middle of the desert.

It seems like probably a waste of time to try to grow anything as long as you're close to Sho-Battai, though.

It's doable allying with UC and TG. Left only natural enemies rebel farmer.

Ninja, manhunter, slavers United hero will leave the player alone.