This page provides more in-depth information on each feature of A Horse's Life.
Purchasing Horses
You can now purchase up to two horses from each stable. Check the notes posted on the stable walls to review each horse’s unique stats and abilities before registering your interest. When you speak to the hostler, the horse you selected will be offered for purchase.
Wild Horses
Taming horses in A Horse’s Life works similarly to the Wild Horses creation but with an extra layer of challenge. Horses will buck you off, with difficulty varying based on their desirability. After enough attempts, the horse will begin to trust you, unlocking interactions like feeding and petting. Once fully bonded, you can ask the horse to follow you, then take it to the nearest stable and register it with the hostler for a fee.
Naming
With the exception of some unique horses, you can name your horses when they are purchased or registered with a hostler. Additionally, you can change their name later via dialogue.
Commands
Horses will now follow you after dismounting, maintaining a slight distance for a more natural feel. You can command them to wait, but if left too long, they will eventually return home on their own. Speaking of homes, you can assign each horse a designated home, ensuring they always have a place to return to when dismissed.
Trading
You can trade with your horses, and they will have a limited carry capacity. This capacity can be increased or decreased depending on the equipment they wear and certain traits they possess, allowing for greater customization and flexibility in how you manage your horse’s inventory.
Tracking
Horses can be individually tracked on your map via a Misc quest if selected in the Mod Configuration Menu.
Abandonment
You can abandon your horses, and they will either return to the stable where you purchased them or roam back into the wild where you first found them. If a horse dies, it will eventually respawn, following the same rules to ensure you never lose them permanently.
Selling Horses
Purchased horses can be sold back to their original stable for half the price of the base cost. You cannot sell horses to any hostler as this would have put too much strain on the system and didn't feel necessary.
Mortality
Horses by default cannot die, however you can speak with them to tell them "What will be will be", making them mortal, if you're in to that sort of immersion.
Combat Behaviour
You can tell your horses through dialogue whether they should or should not get involved with battles and they will flee, keep a distance or help fight with you.
Horse Coats
Via the mod configuration menu, you can change your horse's coat at any time, or keep the coat your horse comes with.
Saddles & Barding
You can purchase saddles and barding from hostlers, with prices and availability leveled similarly to the base game. This ensures that high-level armor isn’t accessible at the start of the game. As you progress and level up, hostlers will gradually offer more powerful equipment, giving you access to better gear. Some saddles offer a carry weight for your horses and barding can be enchanted at an enchanter table.
Recall
If your horse becomes lost and you lose sight of them, they can be recalled using a hotkey, lesser power, wheel menu, or the Tween Menu Overhaul mod. You will either whistle them over or use a horn if obtained from a hostler. Additionally, you can also teleport horses back home if they are in danger. In extreme circumstances where you cannot retrieve your horse, use the "Tools" option to add a froced recall in the MCM.
Traits
Each horse you purchase from a hostler has two set traits appropriate to the region they are in. Wild Horses are given random traits, meaning no one horse will have the sasme trait. These traits will offer buffs or debuffs to various stats, as well as offer some more interesting gameplay mechanics such as Moodyness and Flatulence. Purchase, tame and interact with horses to unlock unique traits and keep your eyes peeled for anything out of the ordinary.
Needs
Optionally, A Horse's Life introduces a needs system for horses, requiring you to feed, pamper, and regularly maintain their hooves to prevent negative debuffs or the risk of them running away. These features are fully customizable, allowing you to adjust the challenge to your liking—whether you want a relaxed experience or a more demanding one.
Followers Ride Horses
If you have a follower that has an AI package with the flag for "Allow Ride Horse", you will be able to speak with your follower and assign one of your horses to them. They will then ride their assigned horse whilst following, if you are riding yours. My follower mod, Busy Follower Framework has receieved an update that allows seamless integration with A Horse's Life, however some other frameworks and follower mods may also work, dependant on how they have been set up.