Rot and repair

Items

Every item has 10,000 points of structure. Once per day, the item loses an amount of structure, decreasing the time until the item breaks (this amount is listed in the wiki description of each item). The remaining structure is given by the condition of the item, but has no effect on the performance of that item. For example, a brand new sword will be just as effective as a often used sword.

The only way to restore structure is through repairing that item. For each hour of work, some of the structure is restored to that item (the amount restored is also listed in the wiki description of each item). Usually, items made of harder materials such as steel and iron decay more slowly then those made from softer materials such as wood. Once all 10,000 points of structure are gone, the item breaks and is no longer functional.

For a good approximation of how long an item will last without repair, divide the 10,000 points of structural integrity by the daily points of decay. For example, if an object's decay rate is 100 points, then it will last 10,000 / 100 = 100 days.

The structure is represented by the adjective before the object. They are, in order from best to worst:

• Brand new (deterioration = 0 to 2499)
• New (2500 to 4999)
• Used (5000 to 6249)
• Often used (6250 to 7499)
• Old (7500 to 8749)
• Crumbling (8750 to 9999)

Faster repair

Some tools allow for faster repair, see Repair Tools for details.

Resources

Most piles of resources left on the ground will rot daily. The rate of this decay is based on a fixed tainting modifier for the type of resource. Some resources, like fluids, have a very high tainting modifier. To keep resources from rotting away, they can be placed in a building, vehicle, container or your inventory.

Dead bodies

A dead body is usually very heavy. Most likely too heavy for one person to be able to pull. Bodies will taint and lose weight in time, unless stored in a sarcophagus.