Hello everyone!

We announced our first map-building contest to launch the https://mod.io/g/timberborn with a bang. And it worked! The 300 entries we received exceeded all our expectations!

Picking the three winners - one per each map size category - was a tough nut to crack. After the preliminary back and forth with our game designer Adrian, we narrowed the list to 36 submissions. After that, the entire team voted to help us choose the maps we believed were the most original, visually appealing, and valuable gameplay-wise.

It was a tough race, with each team member having personal favorites, but after the dust settled, we selected three winners who would each get 1000 EUR and be added to the game's credits. The competition was so fierce we also felt obligated to mention several other maps that scored high.



Winner (1000 EUR prize): Sinker (128x128) by Flor3nce2456



Using a clever map editor trick with water sources set to negative strength, this challenge map puts your colony at the bottom of a hole that’s about to be flooded… or is it?

Adrian’s comment: This map gives you plenty of green room to manage the early game. However, to build larger water reservoirs for later or harder scenarios or effectively use water flows to generate the power, you will need to use some beaver ingenuity and construct your own contraptions. At the same time, you must ensure you don’t accidentally drown your colony stuck at the bottom of the sinkhole.

Honorable mention: Hidden Valley (60x60) by Aniqua88



It’s hard to do a lot of verticality on a Diorama-sized map, all while maintaining a good level of detail and having a gimmick significant to the gameplay. Hidden Valley stood out here!

Honorable mention: Thousand Needles (96x160) by Walliie



There may be no Great Lift here but we really like the idea behind a map composed of high cliffs and tall rocky columns, with water spiraling down below. You have two main ways to go: you can send beavers down after constructing a big staircase, or you can try to stay above by bridging the pillars.

Honorable mention: Gentle Canyon (128x128) by jwbjerk



We like the author’s take on the built-in map. Here, the straightforward design was twisted by adding an additional water reservoir high up the hills and a narrow spring, ruins sprinkled around, and a conveniently placed deeper pond that helps during initial droughts.


Winner (1000 EUR prize): Green Peak Valley (192x192) by Oombalol



We were very impressed with the great amount of detail found on Oombalol’s map, down to the single tiles positioned to keep select areas green after water withdraws during a drought.

Adrian’s comment: You start in a relatively limited space, but if you look around you can see some prime expansion locations to give you short-term goals to work towards. This map already gives you a pretty-looking frame to work with, now it’s a matter of filling in the blank spaces.

Honorable mention: High Coast (150x150) by KnatteAnka



This map uses height differences to great effect, with the jagged, rocky coastline facing a not-so-distant, metal-rich island separated by ocean depths. The simple idea is well executed, resulting in naturally looking scenery.

Honorable mention: Utopia (256x128) by ValentineEverlight



You won’t miss out on water on this rectangular map, with large chunks of the land flooded or on the brink of flooding - thanks to elevated springs constantly pouring out water. When the drought hits, the terrain normally hidden below the ground appears, so you can use that time to reclaim the land for tree cultivation.

Honorable mention: Tatalia (200x200) by GinFuyou



This is one of several submissions that used the map editor to create an image of ruin-like, post-hooman (?) structures using terrain. Here, it was paired with a mostly flat but intricate design we really enjoyed.


Winner (1000 EUR prize): Chip Island (256x256) by JumperFK



Compared by its author to a crushed cookie, the island in question was carefully designed to allow for expansion in different directions, all the while scaling nearby walls.

Adrian’s comment: Many mapmakers in this category struggled to use the available space fully. There were a lot of maps that had a decent amount of detail and effort put into the direct starting area, with the rest of the map left in a much simpler state. We found that Chip Island has maintained a consistent level of detail and offers an interesting and good-looking layout, all while allowing for creative expansion across the map.

Honorable mention: Nuclear Spring (256x256) by Kaynaki



Definitely one of the most visually stunning maps in the contest (thanks to an abundance of Slopes), it makes beginnings truly a challenge - but we wouldn’t expect anything less from a nuclear test site.

Honorable mention: Dry River (256x256) by RAVEN_AON



Making good use of the map’s size, Dry River gives the player plenty of opportunities to build settlements, play with elevation and water physics, and expand the colony to your heart’s content.

Honorable mention: Lost Atlantis (324x322) by Helianthemum



Zoomed out, this vast map looks like real-life landscape, with a river cutting into the landmass and the once-submerged city looming in the distance. It makes for a perfect travel destination - if you can get there, that is.


We can safely say that the submissions we received were excellent. Carefully designed, featuring cleverly implemented ideas, often tested and improved to perfection, they made it really difficult to pick the winners. If you didn’t win, don’t worry - another competition is a matter of time! And if you did win, congratulations from everyone on the team! Expect to hear from us shortly.

The custom maps you see above are just a taste of what our community creates. You can find all custom maps (as well as many crazy mods for the game) on https://mod.io/g/timberborn.

Speaking of community creations, we have recently moved our Wiki to a new home. It's an ongoing work-in-progress but thanks to the contributions of our players, you can already find plenty of in-depth information about Timberborn there! And with the help of the amazing community admin Karmaworks, the front page has a brand new layout. Check it out!



Finally, we have partnered with fellow Polish indie devs Eremite Games to launch a limited-time bundle with Against the Storm! It is is a very well received city builder with a roguelike flair. Among the playable races, there are beavers, so picking it up should be a no-brainer for Timberborn players!


The Beaver Builder Bundle is available until April 9 - with a 10% discount no less. Get it below!

https://store.steampowered.com/bundle/30766/Beaver_Builder_Bundle/

All seems okay, so we're pushing these changes to the main branch.

• Fixed occasional-but-annoying lagspikes related to the new warehouses.
  
• Fixed haulers transporting goods to other districts beyond limits set up by the player.

• Fixed occasional-but-annoying lagspikes related to the new warehouses.
  
• Fixed haulers transporting goods to other districts beyond limits set up by the player.

Hello everyone!

Whether it’s custom maps or player-made mods, our community gives the lumberpunk beavers A LOT of cool new stuff to do. That’s why today, we’re officially launching the https://mod.io/g/timberborn. And to kick things off, we’ve got our first map-building contest. Join the competition and you can win one of the three grand prizes - 1000 EUR each! 💰

Mod.io is an external platform that hosts community-made add-ons, including custom maps created with Timberborn’s built-in map editor. For now, we are not integrating this tool with the game but as you’re about to see, it’s straightforward to use. We hope it will become a handy platform for all Timberborn players who can’t get enough of post-apocalyptic beavers.



Getting a custom map from Mod.io is as simple as downloading a file, unzipping it, and moving it to the Maps folder. Sharing your creations with other players is equally easy - make a map, archive it, and upload it with an appealing description. For details, follow this easy guide.

Currently, our game does not officially support mods (seriously, you’ve been warned, don’t come to us if something breaks!). However, Mod.io already hosts many cool player-made mods that add awesome new in-game content or allow you to meddle with Timberborn’s mechanics. If you wish to try, start your adventure here!

Our hub is new so to get things rolling, we’ve prepared a long-awaited map-building contest with a proper prize pool. The idea is simple - until February 28, 2023, create a cool new custom map using the built-in map editor, upload it on Mod.io with the “Build-a-Map Contest” tag, and you may grab one of the three grand prizes, 1000 EUR each.



Based on the submitted maps’ originality, playability, appearance, and popularity on Mod.io, our team will pick one winner per each map size category (128x128 and below, 129x129 through 255x255, and 256x256 and above). You can submit as many maps as you like but as any beaver craftsman will tell you, quality precedes quantity, so put your best paw forward!

In addition to the cash prizes, winners will earn eternal fame among beavers (read: the coveted “Master Architect” title on our Discord and a place in the game’s credits).

Knowing all the excellent maps our players have created since the game’s launch, we expect truly grand creations to appear. But before you don your engineering hat and participate, please read the full Terms & Conditions document and check the Frequently Asked Questions. Links are below.

🌍Terms & Conditions🌍
🌎Frequently Asked Questions🌎

So, get ready to build your best lumberpunk maps yet. We can’t wait to see what you come up with!

~Team Timberborn

Hello everyone!

Since its launch, Timberborn has used regional pricing based on Steam’s recommendations. Back in October, Steam issued new price recommendations based on the economical changes across the world. On January 31, 2023, we’re going to follow the new recommendations and adjust regional prices for the game and the soundtrack.

While we are not increasing the base prices for the game and the soundtrack (which remain set to 24.99 USD and 6.99 USD, respectively), local prices in most regions will change. You’ll find the new regional prices at the bottom of this post.

Before the price adjustments are live, you’ll have one more chance to buy Timberborn at unchanged regional prices - with a 20% discount no less. Starting at 10 AM PST today and until 10 AM PST, January 30, 2023, Base Builder Fest is live on Steam, and Timberborn is participating. We’ll adjust the regional pricing after the event ends.



Starting January 31, 2023, Timberborn’s regional prices will be as follows:

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Thank you for your understanding!
~Team Timberborn

• Fixed idle beavers that would pick up goods from warehouses only to put them back right away.
  
• Fixed an out-of-memory crash that could happen on weaker GPUs.

• Fixed idle beavers that would pick up goods from warehouses only to put them back right away.
  
• Fixed an out-of-memory crash that could happen on weaker GPUs.

Hello everyone!

A lot has happened in 2022, so it's time to look back at the crazy past twelve months. Let's rewind the first full (calendar) year of Timberborn Early Access!


Update 1, a.k.a. the first major Timberborn content patch, dropped on December 17, 2021, adding mechanical pumps, mines, multiple new resources and attractions. It was quite a heavy hitter so, in the following months, we took things a bit slower. Behind the scenes, we had been expanding our team and working on Update 2. Fortunately, the community was as active as ever - as evidenced by our mod and map showcases from that time.


In March, our first significant update of the year went live on the experimental branch to address many popular requests. The most visible change was a new day and night cycle, now affected by the active season and featuring sunrise and sunset. This is also when we added the first iterations of job priorities and the proper settlement panel. A challenging, lore-driven new map, Beaverome, was also added, ready to shatter many beaver dreams with its abundance of water.


Timberborn may be a game about bipedal beavers that grill potatoes but we refuse to ignore what was (and still is) happening behind the borders of our country. With the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine, we decided to support the life-saving efforts of Polish Humanitarian Action. And to recognize our neighbours’ sovereignty and culture, we added Ukrainian to the pool of supported languages and introduced a symbolic new in-game crop - the sunflowers.


April 20 marks the annual World’s Earth Day. We celebrated the occasion by putting together a special dual-themed Steam sale. The event, dubbed Earth Appreciation Festival, included games that either show the beauty of nature and our planet, or warn us about what can happen due to climate change, lack of sustainability, conflicts, and other perils. The sale featured over 100 awesome titles such as The Long Dark, Plague Inc., Frostpunk, Eco, and Let’s Build a Zoo.


It’s hard to believe that this also happened in the same month but yes, on April 28, we launched our most ambitious community project yet. We partnered with Timberborn’s talented composer, Zofia Domaradzka, and the vocal community members Synthron and DerHouy, to record a beaver-themed rendition of a classic 19th-century sea shanty “The Shores of Botany Bay”. To make it a truly community-driven creation, we invited everyone to join the song’s chorus.


We finally revealed the “futuristic” Update 2 feature we had been teasing for a while. We were about to add golems - as bots were known pre-Update 3. We envisioned robotic beaver workers that could perform any job 24/7 - be it to help living beavers a bit, to take over all work, or even run self-sufficient robocolonies. The initial experimental Update 2 build dropped a week later and we started collecting feedback on what was to become the largest new post-launch feature.


The final result of the Timberborn Sing-along - fully mixed, with tens of community members on the chorus - was released as part of our submission to the Save & Sound Festival on Steam. We took this opportunity to also show behind-the-scenes material on how Timberborn’s soundtrack - and the sea shanty - came to be. If you don’t have 15 minutes to watch the full thing (which we recommend, though), you’ll find a song-only lyrics video here.


The testing of Update 2 on the experimental branch continued. We implemented an updated Needs system that, for the first time, featured negative effects such as broken teeth and injuries. Afterwards, we also added a huge (literally) golem pay-off. The players have been asking for the ability to put up new land blocks - in addition to removing them - for a while now. In this update, we added fully realized terraforming with golem-operated Dirt Excavators, the most advanced timber-tech yet.


After weeks of gathering experimental feedback, we decided to make a few important changes to the Update 2 content. We made it easier to maintain golems, and the robobeavers would no longer explode on death, poisoning their masters. We also made further tweaks to the Needs system. We switched to the current tier system and linked bonuses such as Movement Speed to a unit’s well-being tier rather than to a particular need. There was much rejoicing!


Almost exactly on the launch anniversary, our second major update dropped. Other than the evolved golems and the reworked Needs system, we added gravity batteries, the migration panel, and more. We also shared our huge sales milestone - in the first year of Early Access, Timberborn sold over 750.000 copies. Update 2 generated the most buzz around the game since launch, including some of the most popular Timberborn live streams ever, including a series by the mighty CohhCarnage. <3


As a fully-remote studio with members scattered all across Poland, we rarely see each other face-to-face. Since launch, the team had grown from seven to eleven members (and now it’s twelve already). In September 2022, we met live in such numbers for the first time! Other than discussing Timberborn’s future, we participated in beaverish activities such as driving cars through a lake and getting them stuck in mud in the middle of the forest.


After a content-packed Update 2 in September, we knew we would focus on the quality of life next - with Update 3 which would be smaller but also come sooner. In our devlog, we revealed that we would add a new storage system and recyclable buildings, redesign bots, improve migrations, and more.


And that’s where we are! Following the experimental testing, Update 3 moved to the main branch, and you can check its patch notes here. The update changed quite a bit, hence the broken save compatibility (that you can work around with the Update 2 branch). The main feature is the new storage system that you should check out. There are also some well-hidden in-game secrets yet to be discovered. In the name of Ol’ Kazko, find them already!


Speaking of secrets, we do not have any new details to share yet (booo!) but be on the lookout for cool new updates in 2023. We’re working on both new content and technical tweaks for the game, and we can’t wait to share more details with you when the time comes.

Having said that, from everyone at the studio, a big thank you to all our players for your support in 2022! The game wouldn’t be here without the massive feedback, constructive discussions, and community creations, be it mods, maps, or memes. We’re dam grateful for that.

Happy New Year!
~Team Timberborn

• Updated an icon for Hauling Post.
  
• It is now always possible to choose “Obtain” on storage buildings.
  
• Storage buildings set to "Obtain" in a district without a Hauling Post will display a warning.

• Fixed input boxes (such as the one used to rename a unit) that would not be focused right after opening.
  
• Fixed several crashes.
  
• Issues with macOS Ventura should now be fixed.

---

Saves created on Update 2 and before are incompatible with Update 3. This sucks, yes, and we try to limit losing save compatibility to the minimum - but it’s not always possible. With the reworked storage system added in Update 3, it had to be done.

However, we have added Update 2 on a separate branch. This way, you're able to continue your U2 playthrough as long as you're fine with not having access to the U3 features. Please check this thread if you want to play on the Update 2 branch.

• Updated an icon for Hauling Post.
  
• It is now always possible to choose “Obtain” on storage buildings.
  
• Storage buildings set to "Obtain" in a district without a Hauling Post will display a warning.

• Fixed input boxes (such as the one used to rename a unit) that would not be focused right after opening.
  
• Fixed several crashes.
  
• Issues with macOS Ventura should now be fixed.