Larders - Are they necessary?

[Katluvr]

The first thing I do when I create a new hero is to add a larder to their home and I'm wondering if it is really necessary to do so.

Can your heroes carry around fish, meat, vegs, etc. in their inventory indefinitely (like grocery items in TS3) or will it eventually spoil if it isn't stored in a larder?

If the raw materials don't spoil in inventory then it would seem the only reason to have a larder is to store cooked meals to delay spoilage or to act as a 'warehouse' for cooking supplies that any hero can access (e.g., if my active hero doesn't have any cooking supplies then I will have him take supplies from someone else's larder to save money).

I've also noticed that even if I have a larder full of all kinds of fish/meat/groceries, if my hero cooks without my telling them to then they always seem to cook gruel.  Has anyone noticed if heroes will cook better meals by themselves if they have the supplies in their inventory or will they still default to gruel?

So is there really any benefit to adding a larder?

[TwinSpirit]

Your observations have all hit the mark.
Ingredients themselves don't spoil and larder only delays the spoiling process of meals.
Also, never have I seen my heroes eat anything besides the basic food (gruel/roasted rat/flat bread) on their own, well maybe besides the monarch, who usually gets served better food.
My guess is that when you are not playing them, they don't need the focus bonuses from food, so they just keep the good stuff for the dark days.

[Theo]

I like to add an oven fairly early and have my hero make some field rations. The field rations do not seem to spoil in the inventory. They do not give much of a buff but if my hero becomes hungry while their focus meter is at maximum, eating field rations saves a trip to the nearest kitchen.

I add the larder after getting the oven or even after getting the spit for roasting.

[Carl]

I've found the larder to be handy at times. Some of the big group meals take a long time to prepare, like Whale Stew. It was worth my time to click the larder, drag the bowl, click the bowl, and drag the bowl back to the larder to keep up his whale of a meal buff without having to cook another.

[TwinSpirit]

You can also make deer jerky, which has 4-5 servings, a minor focus buff if im not mistaken and doesn't spoil either. Not so sure about its portable propeties, as it is still eaten off a plate.

[Pam]

Deer jerky is portable.  It can be moved to your Sim's inventory and eaten any time.

I haven't bought a larder for my physician.  She lives alone and only cooks for herself.  Even having large meals in the larder to eat later is annoying because you have to open the larder, take out the food, grab a plate, then put it back in the larder.  Might as well cook something fresh for all that bother.

[Carl]

Yeah it is a bit of a bother for the player, but if you have something really great like whale stew, it's not cool to throw it out

I mentioned on the recipes page that you can sell the remainder of a group portion meal. I can't tell you how much money I've wasted by letting something simple like Boar stew spoil.

[Joria]

So the general consensus is the larder is good for SOME characters but not necessarily for all?  Like, how often is your physician going to be able to eat whale anything or pretty much anyone else except maybe the monarch or merchant?  Which characters would it be more beneficial to have a larder, and which ones can you skip that expense and maybe go for something else, like a better bed or different stove?

[Alaskasim]

I have yet to use one and have had no issues with food. I get my characters into a cycle where they eat and sleep at the same time.

[Katluvr]

So the general consensus is the larder is good for SOME characters but not necessarily for all?  Like, how often is your physician going to be able to eat whale anything or pretty much anyone else except maybe the monarch or merchant?  Which characters would it be more beneficial to have a larder, and which ones can you skip that expense and maybe go for something else, like a better bed or different stove?

I think what I'm taking away from everyone's opinions and ideas is that having one larder somewhere in the kingdom that is easily accessible to all your heroes is probably a good idea - perhaps place one in the throne room and keep some better meats and fish available for heroes who can't hunt or don't have the time to fish.  But it sounds like it is a waste of money to give every hero their own larder and it would be wiser to upgrade their beds or buy them an oven or roasting spit instead.

The other thing that seems to work well for me is to hunt often when my active hero has that option and then share the meat among my non-hunting heroes.  You may be able to cut down on trips to the larder or the village shoppe with a little advance planning.

[Deckayder]

Personally I think larders are a waste of money -- I don't find they provide any benefit worth their cost, especially not for every Hero. I think you will get more for your money upgrading your bed or trying to create a more beautiful environment. You get a really high buff for nicely decorated rooms. Say you decorate your bedroom very nicely you get the decorated buff the whole time your Hero is sleeping/eating.

[Signal]

I use larders because what I do is have my sims cook up "large" recipes that provide several servings. I let my hero eat one serving, and then click-and-drag whatever food is left into the larder. Then, later, when they're hungry again, I just have them open up the larder and get another serving rather than having to gather the ingredients for the exact meals I want them to cook - because I only go for the recipes that provide the biggest moodlet boosts. Getting the ingredients for those kinds of recipes usually means a trip to the village shoppe which is a BIG time sink even if your hero lives right next to the path.

Basically, I use larders as a time-saver.

Two good examples I can give are Hunter's Stew and Seasoned Boar Meat. They are both "large" recipes that provide several servings. Hunter's Stew gives you a +50 focus moodlet for 6 hours. Seasoned Boar Meat gives you a +25 focus moodlet for 12 hours. A larder becomes necessary to make the portions your hero doesn't eat right away last because just carrying them around in your inventory means they'll spoil after about a day or so.