The galaxy is full of wonders, countless stars, fantastic worlds and astounding creatures of all kinds. But sometimes, the most curious things can be found just under your very own feet. Step carefully or you may miss it. Tread lightly or you may disturb what is protecting it! Join us on a trip into the wilds of the world as we take a closer look at the "Forage" ability.
A Primer on Foraging
The ability to Forage may also be insignificant to the power of the Force, but it's an ability that each of us has inherently.
The ability can be found in your Command Browser under the "Other" tab. You can double click it there to use the skill. Better yet, drag the icon to your toolbar so you can activate it as you would any other ability.
For those who prefer to use the text command in a macro, surprising absolutely no one is the command /forage.
There are no tools needed for basic foraging, but a few "ground" rules do apply.
- Due to local and galactic regulations, foraging is not permitted within NPC cities.
- Similarly, you are not permitted to forage indoors or on the foundation of a structure (some structures extend out just below the ground surface, so you may need to move just a little bit further away from those large footprinted Mustafarian Bunkers to find your buried treasures)
- You cannot forage in the same location over and over again. You will need to move 5 meters to a new location to sift the soil again. After a short while you'll be able to return to previously excavated sites and try again.
- Foraging in water is possible, but not if the water is so deep that you must swim.
- And also - no running! That's right, you cannot forage while running. It takes time to make a proper hole and look around. Stay in one place and then trigger the command. Otherwise, you'll be met with a stern little warning.
Buried Treasures and Trifling Things
Each time you forage, there is a chance you will find something. Sometimes it's a fairly mundane bit, but it could also be a valuable enzyme or even a map that could lead you to even greater rewards.
Here are a few things you might uncover while poking around in the dirt.
- Foraged Rare Component - Interesting looking items in their own right, these inedible organics are used in the Portable Deep Fryer.
- Fishing bait - Either grub, worm or insect bait can be gathered up for use in Fishing
- Lyase - Coming in a variety of colors and forms, Lyase is one of the three main enzymes used in the science of beast incubation. A Beast Master would find these extremely useful in their experimentation sessions.
- Treasure maps - What may seem no more than a mysterious Data Disk, once you have a closer look at the contents of this item, you'll see that it is a map to a buried treasure. Who would leave such a valuable behind? And could anyone else know of its existence?
On that note, let's pause for a moment and warn you of the dangers of foraging.
With Great Treasure Comes Great Danger
While overturning rocks and making holes in the ground to find that elusive Bloddle or Dricklefruit, you may also come face to face with the terrifying Forage Worm! These creatures are almost certainly a match for your combat ability and will have the element of surprise on their side if you are not paying attention. Not all worms are the same. Some are carnivorous and hunger for your flesh! Others are simply aggravated that you disturbed its lair. Others are just simply oozy. Ew!
Some say that battling and defeating all the different forage worms is a treasure unto itself. Doing so might even get you a small token to remember the feat. Can you collect 'em all?
A less dramatic - but no less dangerous - encounter is when your activity attracts one of the locals to either run you off their land or to even ambush you to steal whatever it is you may have found. There's no honor amongst thieves, nor is there any collection associated with defeating these folk who come to fight you for your forage finds. But you'll need to defend yourself anyway.
Stay alert! Stay alive!
Maximize Your Gains
For the serious forager, there are a few options available to improve your chances of a successful search.
- There's an old spacer saying "I'd rather be lucky than good". So if everyone is equally skilled at foraging, that means those who have Luck on their side might have a better chance at finding something. Stack up on your luck to see if it makes a difference. Your mileage may vary.
- If your intent is to find treasure maps, you should do so with a belly full of Kommerken Steak. Not only does it increase your chance at foraging something (which is better than foraging nothing), there's also a slight increase that what you do find will be a treasure map!
- Beast masters may also train their porcine pets to sniff out locations where Lyase enzymes are found. It's possible to learn this power by completing a series of collections. Here's a guide on how to do so. It will be worth your time as the pig who learns this skill will greatly improve your chances for a successful forage.
- Chowing down on steak isn't the only way fill up on foraging power. There is a fairly generic - but quite potent - ice cream recipe which will grant a 10% increase to your foraging check. You'll need cereal flakes, exceptional milk and an exceptional egg. Yes, an egg for ice cream. If it tastes bad, that means it's working!
Final Foraging Thoughts
Foraging can be a profitable bit of business depending on what turns up. We could do an entire feature just on the Treasure Maps (in fact, maybe we will someday!). The lyase is a required object for incubation, so if you are - or know - a beast master, be sure to have a close look at the lyase you find since it could be exactly what is needed to make that next, great beast.
We hope this article has given you a lot to sift through and dig into.
Interested in reading other Friday Features? Check out the master thread RIGHT HERE!
