Meteor Discoveries
Bring unexpected discoveries to the chaos of meteor impacts.
Rare meteor impacts can reveal Vistas or Research Sites across Mars.
Normally, when a meteor lands on open ground in Surviving Mars, it may leave behind resources such as Metals, Polymers, or Anomalies.
This mod adds a rare chance for meteor impacts to instead uncover something far more interesting.
Sometimes… a meteor reveals a Vista or a Research Site.
These discoveries can provide powerful bonuses to nearby domes, creating new strategic opportunities across the Martian landscape.
My other mods
I focus on enhancing gameplay by increasing player agency and choice.
This mod is part of my Surviving Mars: Relaunched collection:
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When a meteor impacts open terrain, there is a configurable chance that the normal meteor aftermath will be replaced with:
- Research Site – increases research output of nearby buildings
- Vista – increases comfort and morale for nearby colonists
If the special discovery roll succeeds, the normal meteor deposit is replaced with the discovery.
If the roll fails, vanilla behaviour occurs exactly as normal.
This mod does not change:
- Meteor storms
- Meteor targeting
- Meteor frequency
- Meteor damage
- Resource spawn logic
It simply adds a rare chance for discoveries to appear.
Discovery Frequency
Control how often meteors create discoveries.
- Off — Disabled
- Rare — 0.1%
- Low (Default) — 0.5%
- Medium — 1%
- High — 2%
- Very High — 5%
- Extreme — 10%
The default setting results in approximately one discovery per meteor storm.
Discovery Type
Control the ratio between Vistas and Research Sites.
- Research Only — 100% Research Sites
- Research Focused — 75% Research / 25% Vistas
- Balanced (Default) — 50 / 50
- Vista Focused — 75% Vistas / 25% Research
- Vistas Only — 100% Vistas
This mod was built with a minimal-interference approach.
Instead of rewriting meteor systems, it safely hooks the vanilla meteor aftermath logic and only replaces the resulting object when the discovery roll succeeds.
This ensures:
- Maximum compatibility with other mods
- Vanilla behaviour preserved whenever discoveries do not trigger
- No impact on meteor performance or pathing
This mod should be compatible with almost all mods, including:
- Meteor frequency mods
- Disaster mods
- Resource mods
- Gameplay overhaul mods
It does not modify meteor spawning logic, only the final aftermath.
Meteor Discoveries adds moments of surprise and strategic opportunity without disrupting balance.
You might suddenly discover:
- The perfect vista for a future luxury dome
- A hidden research hotspot in the middle of a barren crater
- A valuable boost to an existing colony
Each storm becomes a small gamble.
Sometimes Mars gives something back.
If you enjoy the mod, please consider leaving a rating or feedback.
Balance suggestions and ideas are always welcome.
