Anima tree

The anima tree is a tree added by the Royalty DLC. It provides both a meditation focus for psycasters and a way to create psylinks for them. If a person (psycaster or not) meditates near an anima tree, it will grow anima grass around its base. Once twenty anima grass is grown, it becomes possible to carry out a psychic linking ritual with the tree and upgrade a person's psychic powers. Only pawns with a tribal backstories know the secret of this ritual. Tribal psycasters can also draw psyfocus from anima trees while meditating to them. Anima trees' psychic properties are weakened if artificial structures are placed nearby. They refuse to be caged or studied and must remain part of nature. Their effectiveness is also reduced after being used too long.

Growth

A single anima tree spawns on every landing site map.

While it is not flammable nor susceptible to toxic fallout, it can be eaten by alphabeavers but not by thrumbos, despite both being dendrovores. However, anima grass will not be consumed by grazing animals, although it is flammable.

Destruction of the anima tree causes the anima scream debuff, which inflicts a -6 mood penalty (scaling with psychic sensitivity), and lasts for 5 days. It will grow back as a random event a few days after being destroyed, at a random location that will be out of range of buildings. This can be used to move a tree from an inopportune location if the mood penalty can be dealt with.

Meditation Mechanics

Meditating at an anima tree requires a Natural meditation focus, which a pawn can only get from its childhood background. Multiple pawns can meditate at the same time to speed up the spawning of the anima grass. Pawns do not need to have psylink levels to meditate, nor are pawns with psylink levels or higher Psychic Sensitivity better at growing grass. It takes 1 pawn meditating approximately 5 in-game hours to grow one anima grass.

Anima trees provide the second-best additional meditation focus strength for Natural meditation, after animus stones.

Building an artificial building nearby will reduce the meditation strength by 1-5%. However, there are some exceptions:

Animus stones increase the focus strength by 2% each, up to 4 stones (8% increase total).
Large and small nature shrines increase the focus strength by 1% each, up to 4 shrines (4% increase total). This limit is shared with animus stones.
Torch lamps, campfires, roofs, and all flooring have no effect at all.

Selecting the tree displays two circles around the tree. The smaller green circle close to the tree is the range at which animus stones and nature shrines can link to the tree and enhance its meditation strength. The larger red circle indicates the area within which artificial structures, other than as noted above, will disrupt the tree. Any structure that would disrupt the tree also displays a red line from the hovering blueprint to the tree if one selects the building to build or place within the radius. This red line can be disabled by selecting the tree and unchecking the "Build radius warning" option.

Once a certain amount of meditation has been done during a day, grass growth will slow down. Grass growth slows to 50% of normal growth rate once 12 pawn-hours of meditation time, summed across all pawns meditating at the tree, has elapsed during a day. It slows to 25% of the normal growth rate after 24 pawn-hours of meditation time has occurred during a day. Finally, it drops to 15% of the normal growth rate after 48 pawn-hours of meditation time has happened during a day.

Once 20 grass has been grown, a level of psylink can be granted to a pawn with the Natural meditation focus type. The linking ritual takes approximately 5 hours. This ritual can grant a psylink to a pawn without one or improve the level of an existing psylink; even one granted using a Psylink neuroformer or through an Empire bestowing ceremony.

Tips

To maximize grass growth, one or more pawns with the "natural" focus type can be scheduled to meditate for the entire day, only stopping to eat and sleep. Meditating will provide some recreation; however, the pawn will quickly become bored of it, reducing its effectiveness in this regard. It is recommended to install attractive floors, or to plant flowers around to improve the beauty of the area and improve mood without affecting the tree. If the tree spawns next to either a rock wall or cave, this can be useful to place the meditation spot under a roofed area without affecting the tree with an artificial structure. A bed and dining room just outside of the radius are also recommended to minimize travel time to and from the tree and avoiding the "ate without table" debuff.

While the grass does not grow faster when meditated at by a psycaster, it can be worthwhile to assign them to this role. The psyfocus gain from meditation not only replaces their need to meditate elsewhere; it also all but guarantees that they will be consistently at 100% psyfocus. This especially synergizes with high-psyfocus-cost, non-combat psycasts such as word of trust or word of inspiration, and is valuable for keeping casters combat-ready as well.

While building close to the tree impacts the rate at which you gain psyfocus, the psyfocus gain provided by the tree is an "offset" on top of a pawn's base psyfocus gain of +50%/day. Even if the tree's psyfocus gain offset is at its minimum, a -2%/day penalty, pawns can still gain psyfocus by meditating at the tree at a rate of +48%/day. Therefore in some circumstances, it may actually be beneficial to build close to the tree for ease of meditation for the purpose of anima grass production, as well as ensuring the safety of pawns who won't need to travel as far to meditate.

Version History

1.1.2647 - Added.
1.1.2654 - Regrowth check cycle: 40 days -> 30 days. Added warning message when designating an anima tree for cutting and using it to give a psychically dull or deaf pawn psylink. Now sends a letter when enough anima grass is available for linking.
1.2.2719 - Anima trees are enhanced by nearby animus stones. Will no longer be destroyed by meteors, crashed ship parts, or shuttles. Anima grass progress rate now reduces after they're heavily used within a single day. All Psylink levels now take 20 anima grass instead of 18 for levels 1 and 2, 20 for 3 and 4, and 22 for 5 and 6. Soften anima tree glow. Remove anima grass glow.
1.3.3074 - Prevent thrumbos from eating anima trees.

Plants

Domesticated plants: Cocoa tree • Corn plant • Cotton plant • Devilstrand mushroom • Haygrass • Healroot • Hop plant • Potato plant • Psychoid plant • Rice plant • Smokeleaf plant • Strawberry plant • Tinctoria • Fibercorn • Gauranlen pod • Nutrifungus • Toxipotato plant
Decorative plants: Dandelions • Daylily • Rose • Bonsai tree
Wild plants: Agarilux • Agave • Alocasia • Ambrosia bush • Astragalus • Berry bush • Brambles • Bryolux • Bush • Chokevine • Clivia • Giant rafflesia • Glowstool • Grass • Low shrubs • Moss • Pincushion cactus • Tall grass • Wild healroot • Anima grass • Gauranlen moss
Trees: Bamboo tree • Birch tree • Cecropia tree • Cypress tree • Drago tree • Maple tree • Oak tree • Palm tree • Pine tree • Poplar tree • Saguaro cactus • Teak tree • Willow tree • Timbershroom • Gray pine tree • Pebble cactus • Rat palm tree • Witchwood tree
Special: Anima tree • Gauranlen tree • Polux tree • Harbinger tree
Tree stumps: Burned stump • Chopped stump (Gauranlen , Anima , Polux , Harbinger ) • Smashed stump (Gauranlen , Anima , Polux , Harbinger )

Anima tree

Contents

Growth

Meditation Mechanics

Tips

Version History

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