Should you chop down or befriend Bob Barkskin in Fabledom?

Bob Barkskin has the chance to appear in your Fabledom kingdom as an Encounter, and you’ll have to make a tough choice: Chop down the talking tree or befriend him. Both options come with their own rewards, but you’ll have to decide—and once you do, there’s no turning back.

Here’s whether you should cut down good ol’ Bob or befriend him in Fabledom.

Bob Barkskin Encounter in Fabledom, explained

Bob Barkskin appears as a withered tree with the face of an old man on the trunk. The game describes him as one of the last remaining talking trees (which doesn’t make the choice any easier). You can interact with him using your Hero to trigger a dialogue box that gives you a few choices:

• Cut Bob Barkskin down for a trinket.
• Befriend Bob for a kingdom buff.
• Do nothing (postpone the decision).

If you postpone the choice, you can come back to the Encounter and make your decision later.

Reward for cutting down Bob Barkskin in Fabledom

Chopping Bob down removes him from your kingdom and gives you the Essence of Regeneration trinket, an item you can equip for your Hero through the Armory menu. As its name might suggest, the Essence of Regeneration increases the rate at which your hero’s health regenerates by 100 percent.

If you choose this option, the trinket will automatically appear in your Armory. Bob will slowly sink into the ground, freeing up the tile he previously occupied. Bye-bye, Bob!

Reward for befriending Bob Barkskin in Fabledom

Choosing to befriend Bob Barkskin instead will grant you a permanent kingdom buff called Bob’s Friend. This reduces the time it takes for trees to grow back via a Forester by six days. On average, trees take 25 days to grow back. Because Wood is used in almost all construction projects, having your trees grow back at a faster pace is invaluable, regardless of the type of kingdom you want to build.

If you choose this option, Bob Barkskin will remain in the tile he spawned in. You won’t be able to move him, so be prepared to build your kingdom around him.

Should you chop down Bob Barkskin or befriend him?

I don’t recommend chopping down Bob Barkskin unless you want to free the tile up for other structures or decorations. While the Essence of Regeneration is a powerful trinket, combat in Fabledom isn’t particularly challenging unless you’re playing on one of the higher difficulty levels. If you level up your Hero to a high level, build enough fortification systems, and add plenty of soldiers to your army, battles against trolls or other monsters become much easier.

There are also other strong trinkets in the game that you can equip your Hero with. A Hero can only have three trinkets equipped at a time, so you may end up not even using the Essence of Regeneration in your playthrough.

On the other hand, the Bob’s Friend buff is a fantastic boon to any kingdom, and you’ll always benefit from faster tree growth.