It was a sweltering summer day, the kind where the air felt thick enough to chew. When I opened my eyes, I wasn't in my bedroom anymore. I was spawned in a glade, the grass beneath me a vibrant, juicy green, swaying gently under a breeze that carried the faint scent of flowers and earth. The sun blazed directly overhead, high noon, its heat pressing down on my skin. My head spun as I sat up, blinking against the light. It took a moment to realize: this wasn't my room, this wasn't even close to home. I was lost.
"Okay, first thing, don't panic," I muttered, my voice sounding small in the open air. My heart was racing, but I forced myself to breathe slowly, to think.
"Second thing…" As I shifted to stand, something crinkled in my hand. I looked down to find a folded letter clutched in my fingers, a worn pencil tucked beside it. "We'll figure that out later."
I hadn't noticed them before, and the sight of them sent a chill down my spine despite the heat. Where had they come from?
I unfolded the letter with trembling hands. The paper was old, yellowed at the edges, but the text was sharp and clear, written with the blue ink. It read:
"You have been transported to a different world. Your task is to defeat the three strongest beings in one-on-one combat. Information regarding the identities of these beings will be provided to you. You have three wishes. The first wish must specify the game and its version. The other two wishes will come with limitations or drawbacks. To make a wish, write as follows: '1 – (your wish)…'"
"… The what? It feeles like something out of a comic, fanfic or novel… (story basically)". I glanced around the glade again, half-expecting to see something new or something that I missed, but there was nothing. Just me, the letter, and an endless stretch of green under a cloudless sky.
"This is the time where my gamer instinct kicks in". I joked to myself.
"Ok, lets roll with this…"
I steadied the letter against my knee and started writing, the pencil scratching softly against the paper.
1 – Terraria, tModLoader, latest version.
2 – Access to my home Earth internet.
3 – The ability to write and configure game mods myself.
As soon as I finished, the text shimmered, and new words appeared below my own, as if the letter was responding:
1 – If the game includes mod compatibility, built-in security will disable or nerf mods to prevent exploits (anti-/gamemode 1 system).
2 – Passwords to your accounts will be set blindly. You will be logged out of all accounts every 24 hours. Any account inactive for more than 24 hours will be permanently deleted. You cannot obtain a phone number or make calls through any means.
3 – Your programming environment will include an AI that enforces balance, adjusting or limiting mod effects to maintain fairness.
My left eyebrow rose sharply (yes only one). The first limitation wasn't terrible but we will need to test weather glitches(transmutation glitch) or hoik still works. About second one… I guess I can communicate but with some limitations... The third limitation was tricky but manageable. A balance-enforcing AI could be a pain, but I hope it won't be a problem.
Before I could dwell on it, the letter burst into flames. I yelped and dropped the paper. But it didn't burned. The fire danced across its surface, leaving it untouched, and when the flames died down I picked it up and noticed that the text had changed again:
World generation: Done!
World modifiers:
Chest multiplier = 0 (no naturally generated chests in the world)Pots multiplier = 0 (no naturally generated pots in the world)Life crystals multiplier = 0 (no naturally generated life crystals in the world)Statue multiplier = 0 (no naturally generated statues in the world)Traps multiplier = 0 (no naturally generated traps in the world)Microbiome multiplier = 0 (no naturally generated microbiomes in the world)
World features:Two evils!All the ores!More living trees!
Error!Unable to remove the Dungeon.Unable to remove the Temple.Unable to remove the Shimmer.
(A.N.:Mode to configure world settings: "Fargo's Best of Both Worlds")
The world was quite inconvenient… No chests, no pots, no life crystals means a lot of fishing... And both Corruption and Crimson in one world just mean more time making the border.
The Dungeon, Temple, and Shimmer being unremovable was interesting. I guess that's because you can't progress without them…
As I stopped focusing on the letter I realized that I see familiar and yet totally unexpected terraria UI. Inventory with shortsword, axe, pickaxe and letter in one corner, health and mana in the other.