---
key: mechanic/survival-construction--t117
type: mechanic
id: survival-construction--t117
lang: en
title: 'Hunger, thirst, temperature and fatigue'
summary: >-
  Needs deplete readiness for action, requiring decisions about interrupting a
  task to recover.
updatedAt: '2026-10-22'
status: active
url: 'https://gamemechanics.pro/en/knowledge/mechanic/survival-construction--t117/'
jsonUrl: >-
  https://gamemechanics.pro/api/v1/knowledge/en/mechanic/survival-construction--t117.json
markdownUrl: >-
  https://gamemechanics.pro/content/knowledge/en/mechanic/survival-construction--t117.md
aliases:
  - 'Hunger, thirst and fatigue'
tags:
  - 'Survival, crafting and construction'
  - Mechanics and variants
sourceIds:
  - source-2350e106ed66faaf
  - source-9a1664e49d0e8f50
  - source-87856bbeffa16f0c
sources:
  - id: source-2350e106ed66faaf
    title: 'Klei: Don’t Starve'
    url: 'https://www.klei.com/games/dont-starve'
    verifiedAt: null
  - id: source-9a1664e49d0e8f50
    title: NetHack (menucolors)
    url: 'https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Nethack-inventory.png'
    verifiedAt: null
  - id: source-87856bbeffa16f0c
    title: NetHack Guidebook
    url: 'https://www.nethack.org/v343/Guidebook.html'
    verifiedAt: null
relations: []
placements:
  - catalogId: survival-construction
    id: t117
    title: 'Survival, crafting and construction'
    url: 'https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/survival-construction/#t117'
    categoryIds:
      - mechanics
supersededBy: []
attributes:
  preview:
    updatedAt: '2026-10-22'
    title: 'Hunger, thirst and fatigue'
    description: >-
      Needs deplete readiness for action, requiring decisions about interrupting
      a task to recover.
    image:
      src: images/mechanics/systems-nethack-inventory.webp
      width: 644
      height: 461
      game: NetHack (menucolors)
      sourceUrl: 'https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Nethack-inventory.png'
      originalUrl: >-
        https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f5/Nethack-inventory.png
      credit: 'NetHack developers; screenshot by Shen, 2006, with the menucolors patch'
      rights: >-
        NetHack General Public License. Converted to WebP on 2026-10-22.
        License: https://www.nethack.org/common/license.html; bundled copy:
        images/mechanics/nethack-license.txt. Source:
        https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Nethack-inventory.png
      caption: Food supplies are part of exploration preparation
      alt: Food supplies are part of exploration preparation
      markers:
        - x: 54
          'y': 30
          label: Three food rations are counted separately from apples and oranges
    tips:
      - >-
        Make need depletion predictable and let the player choose when to
        recover.
    examples:
      - title: NetHack Guidebook
        url: 'https://www.nethack.org/v343/Guidebook.html'
endsAt: null
provenance: >-
  Original bilingual editorial overviews authored for gamemechanics.pro on
  2026-10-20 and reviewed on 2026-10-21. Scenarios are hypothetical design
  examples; prototype checks describe work to perform, not completed playtests.
  Primary sources support the stated techniques and implementation context, not
  every proposed variant.
license: CC-BY-4.0
codeLicense: MIT
attribution: gamemechanics.pro contributors
catalogKey: catalog/survival-construction
---
# Hunger, thirst, temperature and fatigue

id: survival-construction--t117
type: mechanic
key: mechanic/survival-construction--t117
lang: en
status: active
url: https://gamemechanics.pro/en/knowledge/mechanic/survival-construction--t117/

Needs deplete readiness for action, requiring decisions about interrupting a task to recover.

## At a glance

![Food supplies are part of exploration preparation](https://gamemechanics.pro/images/mechanics/systems-nethack-inventory.webp)

[NetHack (menucolors)](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Nethack-inventory.png) · NetHack General Public License. Converted to WebP on 2026-10-22. License: https://www.nethack.org/common/license.html; bundled copy: images/mechanics/nethack-license.txt. Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Nethack-inventory.png

1. Three food rations are counted separately from apples and oranges

- Make need depletion predictable and let the player choose when to recover.

- [NetHack Guidebook](https://www.nethack.org/v343/Guidebook.html)

## How it works

Needs deplete readiness for action, requiring decisions about interrupting a task to recover.

## Variants

### Mechanic variants

<a id="t117-variants"></a>

- Hunger limits the duration of an unsupported trip. <a id="t117-v1"></a>
- Thirst connects routes to water sources. <a id="t117-v2"></a>
- Temperature changes the value of clothes and shelter. <a id="t117-v3"></a>
- Fatigue degrades action before forced rest. <a id="t117-v4"></a>

## Design example

A soaked explorer chooses to dry beside a fire rather than continue a short freezing route.

Prototype check: Test whether a need offers recovery timing and method choices instead of constant mandatory input.

## Context and limits

Survival connects supply consumption, environmental conditions and preparing a safe return; construction changes that relationship. Each overview separates player actions, state changes and alternative rules. Examples are hypothetical design scenarios, not claims about a named game. A prototype check states an observable question for the next iteration. Existing detailed references remain separately linked from the direction map.

## Connected materials


## Sources and provenance

Original bilingual editorial overviews authored for gamemechanics.pro on 2026-10-20 and reviewed on 2026-10-21. Scenarios are hypothetical design examples; prototype checks describe work to perform, not completed playtests. Primary sources support the stated techniques and implementation context, not every proposed variant.

- [Klei: Don’t Starve](https://www.klei.com/games/dont-starve) (id: source-2350e106ed66faaf)
- [NetHack (menucolors)](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Nethack-inventory.png) (id: source-9a1664e49d0e8f50)
- [NetHack Guidebook](https://www.nethack.org/v343/Guidebook.html) (id: source-87856bbeffa16f0c)

CC-BY-4.0 · gamemechanics.pro contributors