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Editing save game raw json to alter planetary biome, weather, etc.?

Is this possible? Context: My 'home planet' got screwed over in the 5.0 gen updates so my spouse and I decided to do what someone suggested on that thread - RP a planetary disaster and the need to move to another habitable system.

Instead of relying solely on the RNG Gods we decided to be selective and seek out a paradise planet that ticked a bunch of boxes for us (namely nice weather, lack of sentinels, bioluminescent grass, peaceful..... you get the picture).

It has been So. Many. Hours. searching :( We're a busy family and don't have time to continue searching hundreds of systems (after sorting through thousands of stars). So I wondered if it would be possible to stop on an almost perfect planet and then <clears throat and mumbles> 'terraform' it the rest of the way by using a save game editor to change the planets settings?

I couldn't find any info directly on doing this. But Brave 'AI' seems to think it is possible by editing the raw json (since none of the save game editors have this function directly).

So I download the Goatfungus NMSSaveEditor and took a look at the raw json data. Hoo boy, it's been a while since I needed to edit a save game (many years ago to fix broken storyline progress) and there is a LOT more to that file then there used to be.

If changing planet data is possible, does anyone know where in the json I would go to do this? Searching comes up with many irrelevant matches :/ I'm still on the planet in question as well as having it saved to my wonders (it's the only one there).

TIA!

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5 comments
  • I could be wrong, but I'm not sure what you want is possible.

    As I understand it, planet generation all comes from a singular initial seed. So it's probably much more complex than editing your save file, which will contain info about your specific save like inventory contents, ships owned, words learned etc.

    I hope they do add terraforming, it would be really cool, but if I've correctly understood the way the proc gen works... Difficult to implement. This is why an update to the proc gen changes all the planets (initial seed).

  • Yeah I’m in the same situation. I built a big awesome base on a beautiful paradise planet. Colorful skies, blue-green grass, cool fauna & flora, perfect weather, blue water…. Then the 5.0 update came out and now my planet is a miserable gray rainy swamp.

    I’m so discouraged I’ve barely played the game since.

    • It's taken me a while to want to play again. The current grind to find the right planet doesn't do much for my continued motivation however. :/

      You may be less picky than I am about requirements (one of mine is bioluminescent grass which is not easy to find) then let me know and I can give you my tried and true method for maximising the chance of finding paradise planets :)

      I have seen other people say that you can also use a save game editor to move your base to another planet, although I haven't personally tried so I can't confirm this but could also be something you could look into so you don't have to completely start again.