Alec's Cats!

Summary

This mod started as a simple cat conversion from unused base-game assets and has grown into a full pet system with:

• Taming + ownership
• Capture/spawn with persistent appearance variants
• Command controls (Follow, Hold, Recall, Move To Ping, Set Home, Return Home, Attack Target)
• Happiness/needs simulation with resource seeking
• Passive companion breeding
• Trait generation and inheritance for bred companion cats
• Multi-language localization

Required:

• Alec's Tamework!

Recommended:

• Alec's Nametags!
• Alec's Animal Husbandry!
• Taming Addon for MMO Skills

Craftable Items

Cat Collar (Capture/Spawn Item)

• 3x Light Leather
• 1x Gold Bar
• Bench: Workbench Tier 2 (Tinkering)
• Stored cats use generated collar icons that match their body type and coat.

Cat Treat Bag (Command Item)

• 2x Light Leather
• 5x Raw Fish
• 5x Raw Meat
• Bench: Workbench Tier 2 (Tinkering)

Cat Cardboard Box

• 10x Plant Fiber
• 5x Catnip Plant
• Bench: Workbench Tier 2 (Tinkering)

Large Cat Cardboard Box

• 20x Plant Fiber
• 10x Catnip Plant
• Bench: Workbench Tier 2 (Tinkering)

Quick Start

1. Find a wild cat.
2. Feed raw fish to make it friendly.
3. Use a Cat Collar to capture/tame it.
4. Place your cat from the Soul Lantern item.
5. Use one of these control methods:
   • Interact directly to cycle basic modes (Follow / Defend / Stay).
   • Use the Cat Treat Bag for advanced commands.

Cat Treat Bag (Command Item)

• Left click on a cat: link/unlink that cat to the bag.
• Right click: open command selection wheel.
• Left click (while not targeting link action): execute selected command on linked cats.

Default commands:

• Follow
• Hold
• Recall
• Move To Ping
• Set Home
• Return Home
• Attack Target

Notes:

• Commands require ownership + tamed cats by default.

Taming and Ownership

• Taming assigns ownership.
• Only the owner can interact with/store the cat by default.
• When stored in an item, ownership can be cleared until re-spawn (trading-friendly flow).
• Owner damage/invulnerability behavior is controlled by Tamework companion config:
  • Alec's Cats!\Server\Tamework\Companion\ACCompCat.json

Happiness and Needs

• Happiness fluctuates based on if the Cat's needs are being met
• Cats will automatically eat raw fish or Tamework Carnivore Kibble from storage containers nearby
• Tamework Carnivore Kibble can also be used as backup hand-feed, but it is less satisfying than their preferred food
• Cats will automatically drink water from water sources nearby
• Cats prefer to have at least one cat friend nearby, but don't like to be overcrowded
• Cats like when their owner is nearby

Breeding and Traits

• Cats can automatically breed if they are happy and have a suitable partner
• Cats can spawn with 0-4 traits
• Traits can alter anything from size, to strength, to fertility and more
• Traits can be inherited from parents, and breeding cats with the same traits together can result in higher trait values (or lower!)
• Fur and eye color are also inherited from parents
• Body type roles can be inherited from either parent, with a small chance of a different body type appearing as a mutation
• Cat breeding uses Tamework gender support, so compatible breeding pairs must be different genders when that Tamework setting is enabled

Spawns

Cats are uncommon but not extremely rare.

• Mediumhair: Zone 1 Plains and Forests
• Shorthair: Zone 2 Oasis, Plateau, and Savanna
• Bobtail: Zone 1 Mountains, Zone 2 Plateau, and Zone 3 Mountains
• Longhair: Zone 3 Forests and Tundra

They usually spawn solo, but can spawn in small groups.

1,216 Appearance Variations

All cat textures are now made by an artist far more skilled than me, Celly (@Excel Lynt).

Appearance combines body type, coat, and eyes. Eye colors are separate randomized attachments, so cats can inherit eyes independently from coat color.

Total combinations: 4 body types x 19 coats x 16 eye variants = 1,216 appearance variations.

Config Files

• Companion Config:
  • Server/Tamework/Companion/ACCompCat.json
• Interaction Config:
  • Server/Tamework/Interactions/ACIntCat.json
  • Server/Tamework/Interactions/ACIntCatTemp.json
• Spawner Config:
  • Server/Tamework/Items/Spawners/ACSpawnCat.json
• Command-item Config:
  • Server/Tamework/Items/Commands/ACCommCat.json
• Happiness Config:
  • Server/Tamework/Happiness/ACHappCat.json
• Needs Config:
  • Server/Tamework/Needs/ACNeedsCat.json
• Breeding Config:
  • Server/Tamework/Breeding/ACBreedCat.json
• Trait Config:
  • Server/Tamework/Traits/ACTraitsCat.json
• Attachment Migration Config:
  • Server/Tamework/AttachmentMigrations/ACAttachmentMigrationCatEyesPre190.json
• Attachment Display Config:
  • Server/Tamework/AttachmentDisplays/ACAttachmentDisplayCat.json

Want More?

If you're interested in bringing the same mechanics to vanilla mobs in Hytale, check out my new mod:

If you're a modder interested in adding these mechanics to your NPCs, check out my comprehensive taming framework built specifically for modders to integrate my systems with their mods. By referencing Tamework, you can add complex systems to your NPCs without writing any Java code at all:

Known Issues

• Some wake/laydown animation transitions are still placeholder quality and will be improved.

Issue Reporting

If you run into issues, please report them here:

• https://github.com/Alechilles/AlecsCats/issues/new