Guide: Triffid Grove

Guide based on the 02Feb Bugfix version of Cataclysm DDA, with minor updates from 0.5.
Some of the information present here might not apply to future versions.

WARNING: This page may contain spoilers and ruin the joy of adventure. Conversely, being killed out of nowhere can also ruin the joy of your adventure. Reader discretion is expected.

Overview

What appears as a triffid grove on the surface hides the twisty but straightforward triffid roots and the free-for-all melee that is the triffid heart beneath. For lack of a better term, call the entire stack a Triffid HQ. But if there's a major road nearby or you've simply had it with the walking plants, you may be in for what may be some of the most intense close-quarters fighting Cataclysm has to offer.

Preparation

Since the important parts of the operation are underground, it's best to have a light source other than the ambient fires you may create from time to time. Apart from that, there are fairly few requirements for getting into the Triffid Roots: just walk on up and through the openings in the tree-line. (You could chop down a tree and walk through, but since Triffids are blind, best not to make too much noise.)

But there are a few things you really should have to improve your odds:

• the ability to see in darkness, though a flashlight should suffice for most purposes since you're the only sighted critter there. Your light won't help them any, so no need for fancy goggles, bionics, or mutations.
• serious ranged-damage capability to deal with creeper hubs and possibly the Heart. Grenades, dynamite, or molotov cocktails in abundance will do nicely; if your version has working flamethrowers, they're ideal. If you're a good shot, your decent-damage gun might work (vines tend to get in the way).
• plenty of ammunition for that ranged-damage. Minimum of 10 Molotovs or grenades--20 is safer--and 3-5 spare plastic bottles of gasoline for flamethrowers. Forum member halberdsturgeon reports that tear gas works a treat on Triffids, so if you have or can make some, consider doing so. Rifle requirements will be added when someone who uses them does so.
• a jackhammer isn't strictly necessary, but can speed the Roots considerably and may save your life in the Heart. Strongly recommend you bring one.
• a pointy stick or similar cooking utensil may come in handy if you're relying on fire: may as well be able to cook hot food on-site.

For the Heart level in particular, there are a few further concerns:

• a sewing kit or bone needle, fully loaded, may come in handy for Dodge-fighters, as the Vines can seriously rip up your cotton clothing. Plate mail or a Kevlar will probably hold up a bit better.
• a good melee option doesn't hurt: bashing plants with your gun butt only goes so far (but it can work, in a pinch). 40-50 damage per turn should suffice.
• a fire extinguisher can help reopen areas that you've set afire, should you need to move in a hurry. Failing this, Thermal Dissipation can work if you can power it.
• if you're the type that gets lost easily, breadcrumb-objects may be helpful.

And as with all serious undertakings in Cataclysm, it's good form to go in Full, Slaked, reasonably well-rested, in good shape, and free from pain.

Got heartburn?

Triffid HQ Levels

As stated in the Overview, there are three stages to assaulting a Triffid HQ: the Grove, the Roots, and then the Heart.

Triffid Grove

This location is a pair of concentric boxes made of Trees, with the downslope to the Roots in the middle. Each box has a gap to permit access; you're better off using that gap than SMASH!!!ing through with a wood axe or chainsaw, based on the noise involved. Biollantes reside in the interior corners of each ring, and there will probably be a triffid or three around. Clear out the biollantes along your approach as well as the triffids that attack you, but don't go out of your way to pick fights. You'll have plenty of action soon enough.

Triffid Roots

The Triffid Roots are a series of linked "cell" type structures in a chain. The complete level is only as large around as a typical house or store, but the Roots can feel larger due to their looping nature. Your primary objective here is to eliminate all creeper hubs so their vines can't clog up the passage. When a Hub dies, its vines die too, so focus on the hubs. In addition to the hubs, there will be quite a few triffids around, and possibly a biollante or two. Fire makes an effective barrier to both the plants and you, so a jackhammer may speed progress by letting you bypass your handiwork. If you're hard up for gasoline, a fire extinguisher may help speed matters.

(Bear in mind that the root walls burn, but don't get destroyed by burning.)

Once you've cleared out the creeper hubs, finish off any triffids, etc that are still around and take stock of your situation. If you still have a full jackhammer, plenty of ranged ammunition, and are in good shape, feel free to press onward. Otherwise, it's best to restock now. If you've got a flamethrower, 2000 gasoline is a good reserve stock in addition to filling its tanks. Don't worry, the creeper hubs here don't repopulate. (Or at least they didn't in 02Feb.)

Got a jackhammer? Loaded? Healthy and well-stocked? Great. Let's go.

Triffid Heart

You may have heard a thumping noise during your time in the Roots, and you'll definitely hear it here. That would be the Heart itself. The first thing to know about the Triffid Heart is that it pumps out new plant-critters at a fairly good clip, in addition to its ability to close up the root walls. It's safe to assume that someone new has arrived every time you hear the heart beat; you'll hear the roots creak when the Heart closes one. (To be totally clear: this means that passages don't stay open and Creeper Hubs don't stay dead.)

If you didn't bring a jackhammer and don't want to, good luck. You'll need it. You had best get stuck in and home on that heartbeat ASAP before it closes off the approach; you'll have to go through a host of Triffids, Creeper Hubs, and Biollantes in a fairly tight maze, and are likely to be both blocked and cut off from the surface.

If you came prepared, you can work at a slightly more relaxed pace. It's still a good idea to attack purposefully toward the heartbeat--it tends to be south and east of the stairs, if that helps--and stay as unhurt as possible. Once you have line-of-sight to the Triffid Heart, stop and check:

1. How's your gasoline holding out? Got enough to dig back to the Roots level?
2. How are you holding out? Got enough to kill that thing personally?
3. How's your weapon supply? Got a spare Tear Gas can?

If 1 is more problematic than 2, you'll need to shoot, stab, hack, or beat that thing to death yourself. If you personally kill the Heart, it'll collapse several of the root-walls throughout the entire underground portion of the HQ--guaranteeing you a way out. Back in 02Feb, that protection wasn't guaranteed if you torched the Heart. However, if you're not reasonably confident in your chances and just want to end this, simply torching or gassing the Heart will kill it. Unlike the Fungal Spire, the Triffid Heart is vulnerable to fires in its square, as well as Tear Gas. Watch it burn/choke, and then go. Unlike the Creeper Hubs and their vines, killing the Heart won't insta-kill the Triffids, so there may be some cleanup fighting on your way back topside.

Aftermath

There's no major payoff for killing a Triffid Heart or defeating a Triffid HQ, aside from gradually removing Triffid-type critters from the regional spawn pool. That despawn takes long enough that you're likely to see a triffid queen roaming around on your way back home. Just torch the thing and move on: you've done enough work for one day. Good job.

Alternative Approach

Tested in version 0.A (Kaufman). You can clear out the entire Triffid Grove with the following items:

• teargas canisters or teargas grenades. You can craft this with Cooking 4, ammonia, bleach, and an empty can. Tear gas quickly kills any Triffid, including the Heart. Bring as many as you can.
• a gas mask. So you can walk through the tear gas clouds without being blinded. Firefighter zombies often have these.
• a weapon for hacking through vines.
• a teleporter. Despite what you might expect, it seems to refrain from teleporting you into solid rock. It will probably take several teleports to get where you need to go. If you have a jackhammer, that is probably more reliable, but teleporters may be easier to obtain. You can find them on dead scientists, and occasionally in basements.