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Herdling: Earn your herding license with our beginner’s guide
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Francisco Dominguez
As anyone knows who’s ever tried to walk a dog, usher a cat out of a room, or keep a persistent mouse out of your cereal, getting just one animal to do what you want is easier said than done. Fortunately, steering the herd just takes practice and a little know-how before you’re tearing through wondrous fields like antelopes across the savannah.
Our guide will give you the tools you need to master this unusual skill and pass your herding test with flying colors.
Follow the leader
Your herd wants to keep their distance from you, as if you’ve eaten an entire clump of garlic cloves for lunch and they don’t want a whiff. Take one step towards them, they’ll move away in the direction of the glowing waymark you generate. The principle feels simple enough when you’re strolling across wide-open plains, but coordinating your team through winding mountain passes and claustrophobic caverns demands precision.
This indirect control scheme can take a bit of adjustment. Tracking the movement of a mass of trotting animals can feel overwhelming—especially when you’re used to controlling just one character, not this many!—but there’s an easy way to simplify things: the leader at the front.
As the devs previously told us, Herdling meticulously follows natural animal dynamics. Where the leader goes, the rest follow. Most of the time, with rare, dangerous exceptions we’ll discuss shortly, your focus should be on directing the leader. The others fall in line like medieval cavalry charging in wedge formation.
One last tip so your herd goes where you tell it: Never use your character to move the camera. Each time you change your character’s direction, your herd follows suit. Stick to the right analog stick when you need to survey the area, otherwise you’ll see your herd wiggle erratically out of the desired position. It's a silly sight that guarantees a laugh, but absolutely zero progress!
Earn your herding license
Now you’ve got the basics down, let’s cover some necessary maneuvers.
Gradual turns are simple enough: just position yourself 45 degrees standing in the opposite direction you want the herd to turn. For a sharper L-turn, you’ll have to work harder, sprinting directly next to the herd.
As any driving instructor knows, the dreaded U-turn poses a greater challenge, demanding you outrun the entire herd to make them turn around. It’s doable that way, but rarely worth it; some stragglers might keep charging forwards despite your efforts. Save the stress. Call them to a halt, then you can loop around them at your leisure for a more controlled maneuver.
Now this is herd-racing!
Now you know how to steer, it won’t take long to discover one of the game’s greatest joys: the stampede. Lead your herd through flower fields and they’ll accrue up to one charge per calicorn. Hit the right shoulder button and you’ll pelt through the fields at incredible speed!
These stampedes aren’t just a sensory delight as you frolic through the fields; they’re a vitally important mechanic too. Treat it like hitting a boost in Mario Kart or Need for Speed™ Heat. Obstacles that’d otherwise slow you to a crawl, like trudging through thick snow or plowing through bushes, can be bypassed with ease. Use it with abandon. Chain your stampedes by speeding towards the nearest flowers, and instead of zigzagging through obstacle-laden routes, you can charge right through them.
It’s an important technique to learn so you can dash through certain surfaces, like stoney hills whose smooth slopes are so slippery you can barely ascend them at all at walking pace. If you dare to stop here, your herd starts sliding back whence they came. With the stampede, however, you can reach any height.
Commander Shepherd
Any good herder offers protection as well as directions. The charming beasts in your care are highly vulnerable to predators and hazards on the intended difficulty; you can find a no-die option in Settings if you prefer.
First, the hazards. Some paths are rife with jagged railway tracks that will pierce anything that draws near. Elsewhere, crumbling mountain precipices and frozen trails can collapse and take your calicorn with it into the abyss. For either hazard, the solution’s the same: Slow right down and proceed with caution, there’s no need to rush. Unless a calicorn slips off the edge, then you best rush to grab them before they’re gone for good!
Herdling’s predators are an even more dangerous threat. You’ll have unwelcome company in the form of giant birds of prey. Often found resting in gloomy caverns, if disturbed, they won’t hesitate to attack. Just don’t panic! Their lairs are densely crowded with delicate lanterns, and if a calicorn smashes one, you’re in trouble. So keep your cool, navigate at a walking pace, and don’t be afraid to put the brakes on so you can safely reposition the herd and get to safety.
If a calicorn does knock one over with a dreadful shatter, now’s the time to panic! Stampede to the nearest enclosed cover where the roof is too low for them to reach you. The fearsome beast, once awoken, will injure at least one of your precious calicorn. And if it happens again before you find a berry to heal them, they’re doomed.
When they strike in the open, they’re more easily avoided. Continue to stampede, but when they dive into a hover position, get ready to perform the L-turn we practiced earlier to save your favorite calicorn from the beast's merciless raking claws!
Get to know, and decorate, your herd
Now you’ve learned to protect and feed your wards, you’d be remiss to reject the opportunity to care for your calicorns and discover each one’s individual personality. Yes, of course you can pet them, but after getting tangled in the undergrowth, you can help clean their wooly hides too. In the overworld, and strewn liberally all over the camps you’ll visit, you’ll find a variety of trinkets you can collect and use to adorn your calicorn of choice if you venture off the beaten path.
One of the more inquisitive calicorns, full of bounding enthusiasm, will be eager to play fetch with you too. Don’t miss the opportunity to stop and play a while before you venture out to the treacherous paths once again. It may be your last chance, at least if you don’t heed our advice!
Will you pass your herding license test? Find out for yourself and play Herdling, out now on Epic Games Store.