Biomes
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Biomes are types of area on a planet, characterized by their terrain properties, climate, flora and fauna, diseases and special challenges. Each world tile has one particular biome.
Oceans and lakes appears as world tiles but are not playable biomes.
There are twelve playable biomes types in RimWorld, divided into three categories: Warm, Hot and Cold.
The following table is a simple summary of the biomes by difficulty, overall cold biomes are more challenging than their hot counterparts. You can use this table to help decide which biome best suits your experience or playstyle:
Warm Biomes
These biomes are rich in flora and fauna, and also have a slightly elevated rate of disease. They generally have year-round growing periods, or longer growing periods at the very least. Traveling speed is fast in normal forests and average in more dense forests but slow in marshes and cold seasons if they have one.
Temperate Forest
A friendly biome dominated by forests of deciduous trees interspersed with fertile clearings. Many species of animals move around in the trees and on the plains.
Growing Season and Temperature
- Growing Season: From all year to 20/60 days.
- Average Temperature: 25 °C (77 °F) to 0 °C (32 °F).
- Temperature Variation: From 35 °C (95 °F) in summer to -25 °C (-13 °F) in winter.
- Roads and Rivers: Yes.
- Movement Difficulty: 1, but often 3 due to winter.
- Forageability: 100%.
- Grazable: Only during growing season.
- Disease frequency: 1.2 per year.
Temperate Swamp
A more wet version of the Temperate Forest, like in all swamps diseases are more common, the marshy soil greatly restricts building and the terrain is really slow to travel, but they also have more fertile soil.
Growing Season and Temperature
- Growing Season: From all year to 20/60 days.
- Average Temperature: 25 °C (77 °F) to 0 °C (32 °F).
- Temperature Variation: From 35 °C (95 °F) in summer to -25 °C (-13 °F) in winter.
- Roads and Rivers: Yes.
- Movement Difficulty: 4, but often 6 due to winter.
- Forageability: 75%.
- Grazable: Only during growing season.
- Disease frequency: 1.5 per year.
Tropical Rainforest
A thick, moist jungle. Dense overgrowth and aggressive wildlife make construction and survival difficult. Tropical Rainforests are also notorious for diabolical diseases, including Sleeping Sickness: a slow-progressing, long-lasting disease that is exclusive to the tropics.
Growing Season and Temperature
- Growing Season: From all year to 40/60 days.
- Average Temperature: 30 °C (86 °F) to 15 °C (59 °F).
- Temperature Variation: From 35 °C (95 °F) in summer to 0 °C (32 °F) in winter.
- Roads and Rivers: Yes.
- Movement Difficulty: 2, rarely 4 due to winter.
- Forageability: 100%.
- Grazable: Most of the time, during growing season.
- Disease frequency: 1.7 per year.
Tropical Swamp
A more wet version of the Tropical Rainforest, like in all swamps diseases are more common, the marshy soil greatly restricts building and the terrain is really slow to travel, but they also have more fertile soil.
Diseases are more constant here than any other biome, making it difficult to live in unless you have enough skilled doctors.
Growing Season and Temperature
- Growing Season: From all year to 40/60 days.
- Average Temperature: 30 °C (86 °F) to 15 °C (59 °F).
- Temperature Variation: From 35 °C (95 °F) in summer to 0 °C (32 °F) in winter.
- Roads and Rivers: Yes.
- Movement Difficulty: 4, rarely 6 due to winter.
- Forageability: 75%.
- Grazable: Most of the time, during growing season.
- Disease frequency: 2.0 per year.
Hot Biomes
These biomes become progressively dry as they become more arid. Moderate amount of flora and fauna, which drops off as you pick a more extreme biome. Mostly year-round growing periods. Traveling in those biomes is usually fast and rarely slowed by cold seasons.
Arid shrubland
A dry region, but not dry enough to become a true desert. Open plains with grasses and bushes give way to scattered groves of trees. Plants are hardy and there is a moderate density of animals.
Growing Season, Temperature, Travel and Disease
- Growing Season: From all year to 40/60 days.
- Average Temperature: 30 °C (86 °F) to 15 °C (59 °F).
- Temperature Variation: From 35 °C (95 °F) in summer to 0 °C (32 °F) in winter.
- Roads and Rivers: Yes.
- Movement Difficulty: 1, rarely 3 due to winter.
- Forageability: 50%.
- Grazable: Most of the time, during growing season.
- Disease frequency: 0.9 per year.
Desert
A very dry area which supports little life. There are scattered areas of dirt which crops can be grown on. Deserts can be really cold.
Growing Season, Temperature, Travel and Disease
- Growing Season: From all year to 20/60 days.
- Average Temperature: 30 °C (86 °F) to 0 °C (32 °F).
- Temperature Variation: From 35 °C (95 °F) in summer to -25 °C (-13 °F) in winter.
- Roads and Rivers: Yes.
- Movement Difficulty: 1, but often 3 due to winter.
- Forageability: 25%.
- Grazable: Only during growing season.
- Disease frequency: 0.7 per year.
Extreme desert
An extremely hot and dry area which is hostile to most life. Fertile land is non-existent and wildlife is extremely scarce. Even cactus are hard to find. Its warm enough for growing plants outdoors but it has to be done in stony patches around hills and mountains. Potatoes grows better in stony soil, but berries can also be a good idea since there is no wood for cooking.
Growing Season, Temperature, Travel and Disease
- Growing Season: From all year to 40/60 days.
- Average Temperature: 30 °C (86 °F) to 15 °C (59 °F).
- Temperature Variation: From 35 °C (95 °F) in summer to 0 °C (32 °F) in winter.
- Roads and Rivers: Yes.
- Movement Difficulty: 1, rarely 3 due to winter.
- Forageability: 0%.
- Grazable: Never.
- Disease frequency: 0.7 per year.
Cold Biomes
These biomes become progressively colder and hostile as they become more intense. Flora and fauna becomes more scarce as you pick a more extreme biome. Mostly seasonal growing periods but may go down to no growing period in more extreme biomes. Traveling in those biomes is usually slow due to marsh and cold seasons which can be very long.
Boreal Forest
Northern forests of coniferous trees. Despite the harsh winters, boreal forests sustain a diverse population of small and large animals, and somewhat dense flora. You can find many raspberry bushes scattered around, and also a few large bogs.
Growing Season, Temperature, Travel and Disease
- Growing Season: 30/60 days to 10/60 days.
- Average Temperature: 10 °C (50 °F) to -10 °C (14 °F).
- Temperature Variation: From 25 °C (77 °F) in summer to -35 °C (-31 °F) in winter.
- Roads and Rivers: Yes.
- Movement Difficulty: 1, but often 3 due to winter.
- Forageability: 75%.
- Grazable: Only during growing season.
- Disease frequency: 1.0 per year.
Cold Bog
A more wet version of the Boreal Forest, like in all swamps diseases are more common, the marshy soil greatly restricts building and the terrain is really slow to travel, but they also have more fertile soil.
Growing Season, Temperature, Travel and Disease
- Growing Season: 30/60 days to 10/60 days.
- Average Temperature: 10 °C (50 °F) to -10 °C (14 °F).
- Temperature Variation: From 25 °C (77 °F) in summer to -35 °C (-31 °F) in winter.
- Roads and Rivers: Yes.
- Movement Difficulty: 4, but often 6 due to winter.
- Forageability: 50%.
- Grazable: Only during growing season.
- Disease frequency: 1.3 per year.
Tundra
These mostly-frozen plains bear almost no trees and little vegetation. There are a few small animals interspersed with large herds of migratory grazers and their predators. Growing periods are generally very short or non-existent.
Growing Season, Temperature, Travel and Disease
- Growing Season: 20/60 days to never.
- Average Temperature: 0 °C (32 °F) to -20 °C (-4 °F).
- Temperature Variation: From 25 °C (77 °F) in summer to -50 °C (-58 °F) in winter.
- Roads and Rivers: Yes.
- Movement Difficulty: 1, but most of the time 3 due to winter.
- Forageability: 50%.
- Grazable: Only during growing season.
- Disease frequency: 0.8 per year.
Ice Sheet
The surface is covered with sheets of ice which can be kilometers thick. There is no access to soil so there are no plants. The only animals seen here are migrating to somewhere else. Surviving is very difficult because hydroponics and stony patches around hills and mountains can be used for growing but need they to be heated indoors and also have sun lamps or roof openings. Potatoes grows better in stony soil. Geothermal vents can be used for free heating.
Growing Season, Temperature, Travel and Disease
- Growing Season: Never.
- Average Temperature: -20 °C (-4 °F) to -40 °C (-40 °F).
- Temperature Variation: From 10 °C (50 °F) in summer to -70 °C (-94 °F) in winter.
- Roads and Rivers: No.
- Movement Difficulty: 1.5, but most of the time 3.5 due to winter.
- Forageability: 0%.
- Grazable: Never.
- Disease frequency: 0.7 per year.
Sea Ice
This is where the sea has frozen over to the point where a thick ice sheet is formed, theoretically making it habitable. For those that thought Ice Sheet wasn't difficult enough: no flora or rocks or geothermal vents, you eventually find an animal migrating to somewhere else, but still you pretty much gotta survive via trading or cannibalism, until you eventually get hydroponics. Later moisture pumps allows for turning the few shallow pools into patches of soil, allowing you to build greenhouses over them. It is worth mentioning that Sea Ice even though possible was not designed at all to allow colony building, only to allow traveling in the area.
Growing Season, Temperature, Travel and Disease
- Growing Season: Never.
- Average Temperature: -20 °C (-4 °F) to -30 °C (-22 °F).
- Temperature Variation: From 10 °C (50 °F) in summer to -60 °C (-76 °F) in winter.
- Roads and Rivers: No.
- Movement Difficulty: 1.5, but most of the time 3.5 due to winter.
- Forageability: 0%.
- Grazable: Never.
- Disease frequency: 0.7 per year.
Wild Inhabitants
Flora
| Biome | Agave | Birch tree | Bush | Cecropia tree | Dandelions | Grass | Moss | Oak tree | Pincushion cactus | Pine tree | Poplar tree | Raspberry bush | Saguaro cactus | Tall grass | Wild Healroot |
| Arid Shrubland | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Boreal Forest | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ |
| Desert | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Temperate Forest | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ |
| Tropical Rainforest | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ |
| Tundra | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ |
Fauna
| Biome | Alpaca | Arctic fox | Arctic wolf | Boar | Boomalope | Boomrat | Capybara | Caribou | Cassowary | Chicken | Chinchilla | Cobra | Cougar | Cow | Deer | Dromedary | Elephant |
| Arid Shrubland | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Boreal Forest | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Desert | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Extreme Desert | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Ice Sheet | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Sea Ice | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Temperate Forest | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Tropical Rainforest | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Tundra | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Biome | Elk | Emu | Fennec fox | Gazelle | Grizzly bear | Hare | Husky | Ibex | Iguana | Labrador retriever | Lynx | Megascarab | Megasloth | Monkey | Muffalo | Ostrich |
| Arid Shrubland | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Boreal Forest | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Desert | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Extreme Desert | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Ice Sheet | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Sea Ice | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Temperate Forest | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Tropical Rainforest | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Tundra | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Biome | Panther | Pig | Polar bear | Raccoon | Rat | Red fox | Rhinoceros | Snowhare | Squirrel | Thrumbo | Timber wolf | Tortoise | Turkey | Warg | Yorkshire terrier |
| Arid Shrubland | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Boreal Forest | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Desert | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Extreme Desert | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Ice Sheet | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Sea Ice | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Temperate Forest | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Tropical Rainforest | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Tundra | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |