I have taken the "expiry/withering" feature to heart, not only because of multiple people asking for a way around it, but also because I found in my own playthroughs that it can be intrusive, and negatively impact tense situations (i.e. hunting animals, being in a raid, etc.) This feature was meant to balance these weapons that are basically infinite, and can be exploited with some effort. It was not implemented as well and engaging as I thought it would.

So, multiple solutions will be in the next update, named "Terralabs: Part 1" . These solutions will help you find your comfort zone regarding the mechanic (note that all are subject to change, but they are likely to be implemented as they are shown below).

Broader balancing regarding weapons - pods, weapons stats, etc. - aren't listed here. But careful attention and testing is being done to make sure the changes still allow the weapons to be worth their effort.


SOLUTION 1: weapon health has generally been increased (see current solution), and most now have a higher total usage amount. I.e. instead of 12 uses for the stake caster, you now have 75 usages. Most other weapons also fall around 70-80 usages. Rapid-fire and one-shot weapons will generally be around 40-50 uses.


SOLUTION 2: You will have a method to increase health (and thus, usages) by a further 40-50%. Instead of the SMG variant only firing 40 bursts, you may now have 70 (or more!)


SOLUTION 3: You will also have a method to entirely REMOVE the ammo expiry. The way to do this will be both rare and expensive, but it will be make sure you never have to deal with this problem again.


SOLUTION 4: Certain weapons can be "matured" into their fully grown form via a replant option. These mature forms will have slightly more uses than their previous form, and will have their health completely restored. This will at least double a weapons uses, alongside some improved stats. This method will have one or two tradeoffs, however.


SOLUTION 5: Immature weapons have a photosynthetic trait, and they will regen health while they are unequipped and left alone. This regen is slow, but can add up over time.


SOLUTION 5.5: new, durable turrets will be added in. While I don't want to go into too much detail, these turrets will serve as defenses in case your Terraweapon access is restricted or completely eliminated.


CURRENT VERSION SOLUTION: Two weapons - the pistol and the OMR, weren't properly balanced. The pistol (the fastest-grown ranged weapon) can fire up to 150 shots, and the OMR (the highest ranged and one of the highest damaging weapons) can fire up to 180. If you want guns that last a long time, use these two. They will be properly balanced next update!