Board Thread:Suggestions forum/@comment-29680750-20170302201913

I have been thinking about gameplay mechanics recently and I remembered mevans describing the reason seasons didn't work. This would be a partial replacement for seasons as well as a useful mechanic in its own right.

Temperature would go from 10.0 to -10.0 and have many effects. You would be able to tell the temperature from a bar on the screen.

Latitude  Imagine the middle earth map divided into rectangles traveling horizontally across the page. Each of these would represent 1000 blocks and have a fixed temperature. E.g the southernmost bar of the Forodwaith would have a temperature of -3.5 and the centre of Near Harad 5.0.

Biome The first of the changes. Each biome would have a value. This value would be added (or taken away from)the starting value of the Latitude point. E.g Mordor is a volcanically active area so earns +1.0. The misties however need snow on their peaks so are -1

Height For every 1000 blocks upwards (starting from 0,0) the temperature would reduce by 0.5. This would allow mountains to have effective snow cover.

Season The final change. Seasons would do exactly what you'd expect. Heat up in spring and summer, cool down in autumn and winter.

What would temperature do? Temperature would control the weather, deciding whether it snows or rains and cause snow to melt.

When you are too hot (above 5.0) it will cause the Harad heatstroke effect and the freezing effect when below (-2.0). Light scources will increase the temperature.

When in the cold your hunger will go down faster, when in the heat (if added) your thirst will go down.

Conclusion  Adding temperature will give a more dynamic map as well as increasing tactics (e.g go to Harad in winter). I think seasons would improve gameplay and that this would be a good way to implement them as it does not require grass and leaf blocks to update periodically. 