Year of the Carrat is an event in Don't Starve Together that began on January 23, 2020 and ended on March 19, 2020.[1] It is inspired by the Chinese Year of the Rat, which started on January 25, 2020 and ends on February 11, 2021. In the Chinese zodiac, each year is related to an animal in a 12-year cycle.
It is similar to the Year of the Gobbler, Year of the Varg, and Year of the Pig King events, which came in the years before, and shares mechanics with them, such as the Offerings crafting filter, and most craftable items from those events. However, there are several additions and differences to be implemented into this event. Players can revisit this event by setting Events to Year of the Carrat in the World Customization menu.
During the official Year of the Carrat event, the Carrat Torch Skin was given to players upon opening the game.
Items can be obtained from the Offerings Filter when standing next to an activated Carrat Shrine, each of them having a different function. These items cannot be prototyped; in order to craft an item under this filter, the player must always be near a Carrat Shrine.
The following items can be crafted only at the Carrat Shrine:
Competing in a Carrat race is the only method of obtaining Lucky Gold Nuggets during the event. It can be initiated by placing a Carrat at a Starting Point and by activating the bell. The race can be started at any moment.
When the race starts, 3 of Charlie's Carrats appear as competitors if only one carrat entered the race. All competitors run to the closest Checkpoint in range and keep going until all checkpoints have been visited by all competitors. The race finishes when all competitors reach a Finish Line.
Once per day, competitors bring back a Red Pouch to their owner. The winning Carrat receives a large Red Pouch with 2 to 12 Lucky Gold Nuggets, depending on the length of the race, with 1 extra Lucky Gold Nugget every 4.5 tiles. All other competitors receive a small Red Pouch 1 Lucky Gold Nugget.
The Carrat is a Mob exclusive to Don't Starve Together, introduced in Return of Them. It is found in the Lunar IslandBiome on the Lunar Island. It first takes on the appearance of an unpicked Carrot and reveals itself upon being picked. A Carrat can be obtained in the Inventory either by catching it with a Trap or by using a Shovel on the planted form, which will stun it for a short while and allow it to be picked up.
During the Year of the Carrat, Carrats can be bought from Carrat Shrine with 4 Gold Nugget. Carrats can also appear in the back of Beefalo, with a 33% chance every night per Beefalo Herd. The Carrat will unmount the Beefalo to eat nearby seeds and then mount another Beefalo. The Carrat is dropped when the Beefalo dies.
Carrats can compete in Carrat Races. Their performance in the race is defined by 4 skills, each skill is rated on a scale from 0 point to 5 points as displayed by the Carrat Scale.
The Speed skill increases the speed of a Carrat, from 5 up to 7. The Carrat also gains a random bonus of up to 1 speed at the beginning of each race.
The Endurance skill increases the time a Carrat can run without pause, from 2-4 seconds up to 22-24 secondes. A pause lasts 2-3 seconds. Carrats with 0 Endurance have a 10% chance to sleep 3-6 seconds after each pause.
The Reflex skill reduces the reaction time at the start of the race, from 2-4 seconds down to 0 seconds. Carrats with 0 Reflex start the race being stunned for 4-5 seconds.
The Navigation skill reduces the angle deviation from the objective from 0-100° down to 0-30°. Carrats with 0 Navigation have a chance to returns to a point they already visited.
Naturally spawned Carrats start with 5 randomly distributed points, while Carrats bought from a Carrat Shrine spawn with only 3 points. Carrats randomly lose 1 or 2 points every night, unless they have been training the same day. Carrat skills cannot go below the Carrat's initial skill points.
Carrats change their color when eating Seeds. Crop Seeds give a specific color, while regular Seeds give a random color. The table below resumes the color associated with each of the Seeds.
A Checkpoint Kit can be acquired in exchange for 2 Lucky Gold Nuggets at the Carrat Shrine.
It can be deployed into a Checkpoint. Checkpoints allow players to lengthen the races, while also serving as markers for which Carrat has reached the Checkpoint first. When a Carrat reaches a Checkpoint, it will glow in the color of the first Carrat. Otherwise, the Checkpoint will simply glow red.
Charlie's Carrats are the opposing competitors in the Carrat Race. Three of them appear when a Carrat Race starts with only one Carrat entered. They disappear at the end of the race, players are not able to interact with them.
Charlie's Carrats' skills depend on the total of the player skills points. One Charlie's Carrat has points randomly distributed equivalent to 75% of the total minus 0-3 points. Another Charlie's Carrat has points randomly distributed equivalent to 75-90% of the total minus 1. The third Charlie's Carrat has points randomly distributed equivalent to 80-110% of the total.
Carrat Gym
Navigation Gym
“This'll get things moving in the right direction.”
A Navigation Gym Kit can be acquired in exchange for 4 Lucky Gold Nuggets at the Carrat Shrine.
It can be deployed into a Navigation Gym. A Carrat placed in the Gym will train for 90 seconds to increase its Navigation skill by 1 point. Carrats that trained in the Navigation Gym are heading more directly to Checkpoints.
A Reflex Gym Kit can be acquired in exchange for 4 Lucky Gold Nuggets at the Carrat Shrine.
It can be deployed into a Reflex Gym. A Carrat placed in the Gym will train for 90 seconds to increase its Reflex skill by 1 point. Carrats that trained in the Reflex Gym are faster when the race begins.
A Speed Gym Kit can be acquired in exchange for 4 Lucky Gold Nuggets at the Carrat Shrine.
It can be deployed into a Speed Gym. A Carrat placed in the Gym will train for 90 seconds to increase its Speed skill by 1 point. Carrats that trained in the Speed Gym are faster.
An Endurance Gym Kit can be acquired in exchange for 4 Lucky Gold Nuggets at the Carrat Shrine.
It can be deployed into an Endurance Gym. A Carrat placed in the Gym will train for 90 seconds to increase its Endurance skill by 1 point. Carrats that trained in the Endurance Gym are less likely to pause and rest when running.
A Carrat Scale Kit can be acquired in exchange for 1 Lucky Gold Nuggets at the Carrat Shrine.
It can be deployed into a Carrat Scale. The Carrat Scale will measure the prowess of the Carrats by their navigation skills, reflexes, speed, and endurance.
Carrat Figure Sketches can be acquired at the Carrat Shrine in exchange for 8 Lucky Gold Nuggets. They can then be given to a Potter's Wheel to be able to sculpt Carrat Figures.
The Carrat Figure can be crafted from the Sculptures Filter after acquiring its Sketch from the Carrat Shrine and giving it to a Potter's Wheel. Depending on whether the player chooses to place 1 Marble, 1 Cut Stone or 1 Moon Shard on the wheel before sculpting, the resulting Figure will be white, black or translucent green.
Similar to Chess Pieces, Carrat Figure can be carried around on the players' backs and can be used for decorational purposes.
The Dappled Koi and Golden Koi are Ocean Fishes introduced during the Year of the Carrat, they can be found in the water only during a New Year Event.
Trivia
The main menu features an animation of Winona holding a winning Carrat which ear and tail color is randomly chosen each time the player logs in.
In Rhymes with Play # 271, a developer stated that the special theme for this event was inspired by "Gonna Fly Now", the theme from the movie Rocky.
While training a carrat at any of the gym pieces, the Year of the Carrat theme will play. A reference to training montages, popularized by the above-mentioned movie series.
Carrats found on the backs of Beefalo and the Carrat races are a reference to the Chinese legend of how the order for the Chinese Zodiac was made.
Gallery
A promotional animation for the Year of the Carrat event.
A promotional image for the Year of the Carrat event.
A Carrat in a Carrat Race being chased by a Bunnyman as seen in a drawing from Art Stream # 101.
Winona and Pink Carrat animation in main menu in honor of Year of the Carrta event
Concept art of various gyms from Rhymes With Play #273.
More concept art of various gyms from Rhymes With Play #273.
Concept art of the Speed Gym from Rhymes With Play #273.
More concept art of the Speed Gym from Rhymes With Play #273.
Concept art of an unused Intelligence Gym from Rhymes With Play #273.
Concept art of an unused Obedience Gym from Rhymes With Play #273.
Unused concepts of platforms for Carrat Gyms from Rhymes With Play #273.
Concept art of an unused Strength Gym from Rhymes With Play #273.
Concept art of the Stamina Gym from Rhymes With Play #273.
Concept art of the Stamina and Navigation Gyms from Rhymes With Play #273.
Concept art of the Carrat racing Kits from Rhymes With Play #273.
Concept art of the Floating Lantern from Rhymes With Play #273.
Concept art of the Year of the Carrat loading screen from Rhymes With Play #273.
Concept art of the Year of the Carrat's Red Pouch from Rhymes With Play #273.
More concept art of the Year of the Carrat's Red Pouch from Rhymes With Play #273.
Concept art of the Checkpoint structure from Rhymes With Play #273.
Early Carrat race concept from Rhymes With Play #273.
Concept art of the Starting Point and Finish Line structures from Rhymes With Play #273.
Concept art of the Finish Line structure from Rhymes With Play #273.
Concept art of the Starting Point structure from Rhymes With Play #273.
Concept art of the Carrat variations from Rhymes With Play #273.
Unused concepts of Carrat clothing from Rhymes With Play #273.
Frame of an animated concept for what became the Carrat Scale from Rhymes With Play #273.
Another unused concept for the Carrat Scare from Rhymes With Play #273.
More Carrat Scale concept art from Rhymes With Play #273.
More Carrat Scale concept art from Rhymes With Play #273.
Ideas for new Carrat Gyms drawn by hosts May and Grace at the end of Rhymes With Play #273.
More ideas for new Carrat Gyms drawn by hosts May and Grace at the end of Rhymes With Play #273.
Burnt Carrat Shrine.
Sounds
The Year of the Carrat theme that plays on the main menu and while training carrats.
Carrat Shrine
See also: Offerings Filter 
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