All 6 weather conditions the game can roll — Blizzard, Snowfall, Fog (day), Fog (night), Aurora borealis, Clear sky — with how long each lasts, when it can start, how much colder it gets and the statuses it brings, read from the game files.
Each condition runs through five phases — build-up, rolling in, peak, easing and clearing. The bar shows the base hours of each phase; the peak can run shorter or longer by the game's random factor.
The most dangerous weather: the cold bites harder, Bone-Chilling Cold sets in and fires stop helping.
Bone-Chilling Cold
“Storm start”▼ Visibility will decrease▼ Temperature will fall
“Storm is clearing.”▲ Temperature will rise▲ Visibility will increaseSteady snowfall that makes it colder and cancels the warmth of heat sources while it falls.
Daytime fog that cuts visibility and makes it slightly colder.
“Fog is rolling in”▼ Visibility will decrease
“Fog is clearing”▲ Visibility will increaseNight fog that cuts visibility and makes it slightly colder.
“Fog is rolling in”▼ Visibility will decrease“Fog is clearing”▲ Visibility will decreaseA night-only light show with no effect on temperature.
Clear daytime weather with no effect on temperature.
Also in the files but switched off: Dust storm. It never rolls in this build.
Data: Permafrost game files, build 0.44.2.4552-playtest. Rebuilt whenever the game updates. How we source this
The hours each condition is allowed to start, on the in-game 24-hour clock. The shaded bands are night (19:00–07:00), when the game makes the cold bite harder.
| Blizzard | 01:00–24:00 |
|---|---|
| Snowfall | 0:00–24:00 |
| Fog (day) | 08:00–18:00 |
| Fog (night) | 20:00–23:00, 00:00–04:50 |
| Aurora borealis | 18:00–24:00, 00:01–05:00 |
| Clear sky | 08:00–16:00 |
A full-width bar means the condition has no time window and can start at any hour.
The game's temperature scale factor for each condition. Above ×1 the cold hits harder; conditions with no factor leave the temperature alone.
These multiply the cold of the area you're in — they are factors, not degrees. Stack them with the biome temperature and the night swing on the temperature page.
The game's own hints about storms, cold and staying warm.
Fire, such as from a lit brazier or campfire, will warm you when you're close.
Keep an eye on the thermometer displayed at the top right of the screen.
Beware of Cold Zones with rapid temperature drops!
These locations are taken over by ice and dense freezing fog.
The storm is coming! Build a shelter using the Build mode [B by default].
If you are not prepared for lower temperatures, go to the closest building.
Stay warm with clothes, heat sources, or shelter, without them, you’ll take damage. Heaters give cold resistance but don't last long, so bring extras. Use the bottom-left icons to track Body Warmth, Health, Hunger, Energy and Stamina.
Stay near active fires or heaters to raise your body temperature.
Watch the icon in the bottom-left corner, it shows the current area temperature. The shield icon next to it shows your Body Warmth, which starts to drop if the temperature falls below it.
Permafrost rolls 6 kinds of weather: Blizzard, Snowfall, Fog (day), Fog (night), Aurora borealis, Clear sky. Each one builds up, peaks and clears over a few in-game hours, and only some of them affect your temperature. Blizzards are the threat: the peak alone lasts 1–3 h, the cold is scaled ×1.3, Bone-Chilling Cold kicks in, and once one ends another can't start for 24 h. They can begin at 01:00–24:00. Blizzard, Snowfall also switch off the warmth of heat sources, so a fire won't save you mid-storm — get inside a shelter before the peak. Night is colder too (×1.25 from 19:00 to 07:00), so a blizzard after dark is the worst case. Plan clothing with the warmth planner.
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The peak of a blizzard lasts 1–3 in-game hours. With the build-up and clearing phases the whole storm runs about 3.25 h at base length.
A blizzard has a 25% base chance in the game's weather data, can start 01:00–24:00, and has a 24 h cooldown after it ends.
No. Blizzard, Snowfall switch off heat-source warmth while they last. Get indoors or into a sheltered spot instead.
Fog cuts visibility and scales the cold ×1.1. Daytime fog can start 08:00–18:00; there is a separate night fog.
Only at night: it can start 18:00–05:00, has no effect on temperature and won't come back for 48 h after it ends.
Yes. From 19:00 to 07:00 the game scales the cold ×1.25; during the day the factor is ×1.