Two-Mode Realistic Breeding System

@TinyYin, heck yeah! I've been really pleased so far with wolvden's game-based difficulty compared to lionden, but I get where you're coming from on wanting even more of a challenge. When I tried out Lioden... I found that the game itself wasn't super difficult in terms of gameplay, but that the real difficulty came from trying to break into the upper echelons of super fancy high stat high marking lions, which felt pretty impossible without gold. So far in wolvden, I've been really happy with how the game itself does require some effort, if you're serious about it! That said, I think the system I'm proposing would open a new, higher, and totally voluntary level of difficulty. No one has to use the casanova model -- but if they decide to do so, keeping pups alive gets so much harder! Players uninterested in that playstyle, or uninterested in that level of difficulty, could basically just opt out without any effort or penalty. Meanwhile, players who want a challenge or who want to reap the benefits of a wider breeding population can pursue that pretty easily!

I meant being able to have other wolves breed outside the pack. With that said 

If they could breed willy nilly inside or outside the pack, males and females, I feel like thatd be over kill. Like females can already breed to studs,  but having everyone being able to breed to other wolves outside the pack just seems too exhaustive. Idm the lower pup chance survival but I think itd be better if other males could breed only within their pack. 

I'm sorry but I dont support an entire rehaul. I like the breeding male being able to breed and stud, and I feel like a good compromise is just being able to have nonstud males breed within the pack so the stud system stays intact.

The dev's explained why they set up breeding males like they did, so I dont see them completely overhauling the system they chose. 

I kind of like red’s compromise! Only allowing one stud per pack will prevent the stud market from being flooded, and it allows people to have non-monogamous wolves if they so desire. I also kind of like that fertility depends on the females and survival on the males? Two different but balanced mechanics that synthesize well and lead to interesting strategies. 

Well I also support a similar system for female studding as with LD, and I think the combination of main breeding male, casanovas who can also breed within the pack, and the possibility of selling female's heats would even it out some so that males aren't just "the breeders," yknow? And I also think that adjusting pup survival chances for pups the pack wouldn't necessarily feel the need to work together to care for is also an excellent idea. (Maybe they can't get as much protection from sitters, instead of the stuff about the survival chances when they're born? Idk, much to play with.)

I definitely think there's a solution to be found somewhere, a middle ground to all the current suggestions. I think most systems proposed are better than the current but I've yet to find one I fully agree with, nor one I think the devs will really go for. 

More brainstorming for us all!

Ooh I like the balance Badger pointed out of female's fertility affecting muts and male's sluttiness (read: main breeding male status) affecting survival. 

@red, Right? Badger made an awesome point. I am really glad that you like the "breeding mode impacts pup survival rate" thing, it's one of my favorite parts of this idea.

(Honestly, I'm still just crossing my fingers that the devs are interested in changing the breeding system at all. Like, the current system isn't... as bad as I was fearing? But it still feels so much like a big damn transplant from Lioden, and not in the fun way.)

I don't think staff is (completely) opposed, otherwise it would be in the auto-rejections. But I would be interested to see if they will ever respond with limits or no-goes. Would make suggestions a bit easier.

Oh I adore that part of the idea! And I think the devs were struggling with balancing the lack of social dimorphism in wolf packs, the realism of wolf breeding within packs, and the fact that this is a game, and a breeding sim at that, so breeding for traits your pack may or may not already have is kinda a really big deal. 

So I think they came up with something decent, but I really, really hope they're willing to take some suggestions on edits.

And Sienna, it totally would. There's so many complaints and suggestions on the topic already that I hope they don't ignore that most people seem to want some sort of change... But I think a list of no-go potential solutions, with an acknowledgement that they are interested in adjusting the feature, would be super super helpful and nice to see. 

I like it! Especially the pup survivability factor. But I support most of the breeding tweaks. I just want Wolvden to be a unique game with a challenge. It does feel a bit too LD. I do love the variation in other areas of the game that the devs added to try to make Wolvden it's own thing but I think the breeding mechanics is really holding the game back from feeling like it's own thing.

Edit: I agree. I hope the devs just take into account that their user base would appreciate a change up in the breeding mechanics. I don't really care what route they take as long as it feels like it's own thing.