Increasing level of difficulty?

[andymm76]

Quick question about the difficulty level. Basically, Grounded is not very easy. I've been playing in the coop with a friend for about 1.5 years. For a few weeks we have noticed that the level of difficulty has noticeably increased. For example, the beetles regain their full energy after briefly exceeding a certain distance. When bugs are shot with a bow, they immediately run out of range and return with full energy. In short, we can't get any further at the moment due to the level of difficulty. Has anyone else had this experience?

[Johnny Wirick]

They have been changing their difficulty due to adding weapon and armor upgrading. Also making it harder to cheese fights, but not impossible. Bugs also have weaknesses and resistances now.

Next patch they will dodge more, strafe, and jump gaps. And all around be better at navigating terrain in order to try and dodge or kill you.

Are you mostly fighting with bows? Melee in the game is more effective than bows atm.

There is a more defined progression path in the yard. Hedge, pond, haze, black ant lab, sand box, shed/woodpile.

Make sure your gear is the right tier for the area you are in and upgrade your weapons. 

You can build a ledge around the porch leg next to the faucet by the garbage bags to cheese the roly poly there to make armor. Good stuff, will help you survive better. Build tier two sheild. The area between the garbage and sand box has a chance to spawn two black solder ants. Easier to single out and kill. Can make black ant sword. Also build black ant shovel. 

Build your way into the sand box. At 3pm in game, go to the shadow of the shovel handle and dig in that area to get the moat key. Go to the sand box moat for the salt morning star plan. Build that. You can also put salty upgrade on the black ant sword to make killing the ant lions easier.

The salt mint morning star and the other gear will make doing the black ant lab easier and the mini boss is weak to the salt morning star. Then go to the lab in the middle of the sand box and grab the burgl.e chip. Build the antlion greatsword. You can put spicy on it for an easier broodmother kill. 

You can pretty much roam the yard with all that. Next patch will add armor upgrading so surviving combat should get easier.