Rancher
| Rancher | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Class | Occupations |
| Type | Occupation |
| Points | 0 |
| Skill Boosts |
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The Rancher brings the strongest livestock start in the game. It suits a survivor who plans to raise animals for eggs, milk, wool and meat.
The occupation costs no points from the trait budget. It starts with four levels of Animal Care and three levels of Butchering. It also starts with one extra level of Fitness. The Rancher knows how to make barbed wire from wire.
The Rancher gives a lot of skill for nothing. Eight levels arrive free of cost, which leaves the full trait budget for other needs. Those levels sit in animal work rather than combat, so the payoff comes once a farm is running. A herd of animals turns into a steady supply of food that lasts as long as the animals are cared for.
Rancher Skills
Four levels of Animal Care reveal a great deal about each animal. The inspection panel shows whether a mammal is pregnant or an egg-layer's eggs are fertilised. It also shows clutch size and egg-laying period. More resources come from each animal as well.
Level 4 also shows a male's last mating when it is known. Level 5 is a short step away. It adds weight and mating season, and it spots pregnancy earlier and tracks it more closely.
Stressed animals can interrupt milking or shearing. Higher Animal Care lowers the chance of an interruption while shearing. From level 8, stress never interrupts milking or shearing at all. That makes level 8 a worthwhile long-term goal for a Rancher.
Three levels of Butchering raise the quality of meat cut from a carcass. They also bring the first boost to how many parts an animal can give. Every slaughtered animal goes further. Every second level adds another boost, so level 4 is the next step.
One extra level of Fitness raises melee attack speed and endurance. The character tires more slowly during long days of farm work.
Each starting level shows as an experience boost at character creation. Animal Care and Butchering both get a large boost.
A new Rancher starts with these skill levels.
| Skill | Levels | Skill Group |
|---|---|---|
| Animal Care | +4 | Farming |
| Butchering | +3 | Farming |
| Fitness | +1 | Physical |
Rancher Recipes
The Rancher knows how to make barbed wire from wire. Barbed wire helps with fencing and with wrapping weapons.
A Rancher knows these recipes from the start, with no book or magazine needed.
| Name | Image | Recipe | Crafting Materials | Tools | Skill | Station | Learned | Spawn ID |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Barbed Wire | 
|
Make Barbed Wire from Wire | 1x Wire | Pliers | None | Any Surface | Yes | /additem Base.BarbedWire
|
How to Play Rancher
A Rancher plays best on a farm with animals. Chickens give eggs, and larger animals give milk, wool and meat. Planning breeding is easier with the inspection panel's extra details. A rural base near farmland makes the most of the start.
Animals need food, water and shelter. A chicken hutch gives chickens a safe place to lay. Wooden feeding troughs can be built for larger animals. Fences and gates keep the herd in and the zombies out.
Animal Care trains through daily chores. Giving water directly to an animal gives experience for every small amount poured. A full drink therefore gives a good total. Collecting eggs from a hutch gives experience for each egg. A busy chicken coop gives steady training.
The Butchering start turns every animal into more and better meat. It also pairs well with hunting and trapping.
A butcher hook is worth building early. Animals on a hook give more parts than the same carcass processed on the ground. Removing the hide on a hook gives a large amount of Butchering experience. Removing the head gives experience too, and heads hold brains for tanning hides.
Timing matters at the hook. A carcass starts losing yield after half a day. A rotting carcass can give rotten meat. Roadkill gives fewer parts with less nutrition. Butchering soon after the kill gets the most from each animal.
Some butchering steps need a set Strength level. Smashing a cow skull needs Strength 3, and smashing bones needs Strength 4. An average character has enough Strength for most of these steps.
The occupation costs nothing, so the full trait budget stays free. Pairing the Rancher with a crop-growing plan builds a full food chain. Gardener adds a level of Agriculture for that plan. The starting skills lean toward animal work, so a combat trait helps protect the farm.
Early goals include finding animals, building a coop or pen and securing water and feed. Watering animals by hand and collecting eggs train Animal Care further.
Water becomes harder to find once the taps fail. Under default settings, the water shuts off at a random time in the first weeks. Rain collectors near the pens keep the herd watered after that.
Notes
- Pregnancy and fertilised eggs show from the start.
- Butchering skill gets more meat from every animal.
- Build a butcher hook for more parts and Butchering experience.
- Level 8 Animal Care stops stress from interrupting milking and shearing.
- The occupation leaves the full trait budget free.
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