First Hostile Raid

Lore & Background

In the distant future of RimWorld, humans are spread across the universe but cannot travel faster than light, causing planets and star systems to develop in isolation. As a result, societies range from Neolithic tribes to reality-transcending machine gods. The First Hostile Raid reflects this setting: stranded colonists must contend with both the environment and hostile inhabitants of the planet to survive. Raiders may be desperate survivors from other factions, driven by scarcity or opportunity, attacking to seize control of the colony's resources. The source notes that colonists can be captured after a raid, and that attacking other bases angers the attacked faction. This event underscores the game's core narrative of forming a functioning colony against constant threat, where every raid is a potential turning point in the colony's story.

In Their Own Story

The campfire had barely died down when the perimeter sensors screamed. It was only the third week since the drop pod had landed, and the colonists were still celebrating their first successful harvest of nutrient paste. The silence of the night was instantly replaced by the crackle of plasma fire and the guttural shouts of attackers emerging from the treeline. There was no time for strategy, only instinct as the settlers scrambled to grab their weapons, realizing that their new home had already drawn the attention of predators.

Reader's Guide

The First Hostile Raid is triggered by the game's storyteller algorithm, which analyzes the colony's current situation and selects events to create an interesting narrative. According to the source, the game has three pre-configured storytellers: 'Cassandra Classic,' who follows traditional storytelling techniques of rising and falling tension; 'Phoebe Chillax,' who allows for additional downtime between events; and 'Randy Random,' who forsakes narrative for randomness. There are six preset difficulties plus a custom option, influencing the severity and frequency of events. During the raid, players must defend by drafting colonists or building defensive mechanisms like traps and automated turrets. Pawns can duck behind cover such as trees, walls, or sandbags to reduce their chance of being hit. The game offers two save modes: 'Commitment mode' acts as permadeath, disabling manual saving, while 'reload anytime' allows free saving and loading. Surviving the raid may result in capturing raiders who can later be recruited, while failure can lead to colony destruction.

Did You Know?

• The game's three storytellers—Cassandra Classic, Phoebe Chillax, and Randy Random—each generate events differently, with Randy Random forsaking narrative for pure randomness.
• RimWorld was originally called Eclipse Colony before its Kickstarter campaign in October 2013, which earned $268,132 in 30 days.
• The game was inspired by Dwarf Fortress and Firefly, with its art style inspired by Prison Architect.
• The console version, RimWorld Console Edition, was developed by Double Eleven and released for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One on July 29, 2022.
• Pawns can have 'mental breaks' such as going into a daze, setting fires, or attacking other pawns if their needs are left unmet.