---
key: mechanic/survival-construction--t120
type: mechanic
id: survival-construction--t120
lang: en
title: Resource gathering and foraging
summary: >-
  The player finds a source, extracts material and carries it to where it is
  needed, weighing its value against collection time and danger.
updatedAt: '2026-10-21'
status: active
url: 'https://gamemechanics.pro/en/knowledge/mechanic/survival-construction--t120/'
jsonUrl: >-
  https://gamemechanics.pro/api/v1/knowledge/en/mechanic/survival-construction--t120.json
markdownUrl: >-
  https://gamemechanics.pro/content/knowledge/en/mechanic/survival-construction--t120.md
aliases:
  - Gathering resources
tags:
  - 'Survival, crafting and construction'
  - Mechanics and variants
sourceIds:
  - source-2350e106ed66faaf
  - source-0a031a39aeeef0d8
sources:
  - id: source-2350e106ed66faaf
    title: 'Klei: Don’t Starve'
    url: 'https://www.klei.com/games/dont-starve'
    verifiedAt: null
  - id: source-0a031a39aeeef0d8
    title: Deep Rock Galactic
    url: 'https://store.steampowered.com/app/548430/'
    verifiedAt: null
relations: []
placements:
  - catalogId: survival-construction
    id: t120
    title: 'Survival, crafting and construction'
    url: 'https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/survival-construction/#t120'
    categoryIds:
      - mechanics
supersededBy: []
attributes:
  preview:
    updatedAt: '2026-10-21'
    title: Gathering resources
    description: >-
      The player finds a source, extracts material and carries it to where it is
      needed, weighing its value against collection time and danger.
    image:
      src: images/mechanics/drg-mining.webp
      width: 1440
      height: 810
      game: Deep Rock Galactic
      sourceUrl: 'https://store.steampowered.com/app/548430/'
      originalUrl: >-
        https://shared.akamai.steamstatic.com/store_item_assets/steam/apps/548430/ss_82bae16c1411fad6a4a09c8c9f62cdf86bd6e8c9.1920x1080.jpg?t=1792497307
      credit: Ghost Ship Games / Coffee Stain Publishing
      rights: © Ghost Ship Games / Coffee Stain Publishing. All rights reserved.
      caption: Mining together with pickaxes
      alt: >-
        Deep Rock Galactic: two players use pickaxes to extract golden rock from
        a cavern wall.
      markers:
        - x: 47
          'y': 55
          label: Material extracted from the rock
        - x: 71
          'y': 30
          label: A gathering tool
    tips:
      - 'Distinguish the source, dropped material and collected stock.'
      - Give repeated gathering meaningful route and risk decisions.
    examples:
      - title: Deep Rock Galactic
        url: 'https://store.steampowered.com/app/548430/'
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
---
# Resource gathering and foraging

id: survival-construction--t120
type: mechanic
key: mechanic/survival-construction--t120
lang: en
status: active
url: https://gamemechanics.pro/en/knowledge/mechanic/survival-construction--t120/

The player finds a source, extracts material and carries it to where it is needed, weighing its value against collection time and danger.

## At a glance

![Deep Rock Galactic: two players use pickaxes to extract golden rock from a cavern wall.](https://gamemechanics.pro/images/mechanics/drg-mining.webp)

[Deep Rock Galactic](https://store.steampowered.com/app/548430/) · © Ghost Ship Games / Coffee Stain Publishing. All rights reserved.

1. Material extracted from the rock
2. A gathering tool

- Distinguish the source, dropped material and collected stock.
- Give repeated gathering meaningful route and risk decisions.

- [Deep Rock Galactic](https://store.steampowered.com/app/548430/)

## How it works

Gathering converts terrain knowledge and tool access into a renewable stock of materials and food.

## Variants

### Mechanic variants

<a id="t120-variants"></a>

- Seasonal resources require the right timing. <a id="t120-v1"></a>
- Tools change harvesting speed and output quality. <a id="t120-v2"></a>
- Depletion moves the search to another patch. <a id="t120-v3"></a>
- Environmental signs identify usable objects. <a id="t120-v4"></a>

## Design example

Bird activity leads to berries, but stripping the patch prevents quick recovery.

Prototype check: Test whether players distinguish undiscovered, depleted and tool-inaccessible resource states.

## 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)
- [Deep Rock Galactic](https://store.steampowered.com/app/548430/) (id: source-0a031a39aeeef0d8)

CC-BY-4.0 · gamemechanics.pro contributors