Where do you live on Mystery Lake, and why? [ SPOILERS ]

[Wasteland Watcher]

7 hours ago, Dirmagnos said:

I dont know why people consider places like Camp Office in ML to be dangerous.

Even on Stalker with its abundance of wolves, 90% of them can be easily avoided or fooled. Rest can be just meleed.

If i hear a wolf, then i just turn around and run in opposite direction. If wolf is locked on me, then i just run in circles around rock or house, till it loses me. If wolf is 2 close for running away and i cant get behind something for him to lose los with me(so that i could run away), then i just moonwalk away from it. In 9 out of 10 cases i get away. Remaining 1 means free meat, guts and a hide.

I agree that wolves can often be avoided outside Camp Office, and actually this is somewhat easy if you see them first. And I also agree they can be easily beaten, but to echo Vhalkyrie,  I'd rather not use resources (cloth, bandages, meds, use of my tools) to resolve a successful wolf conflict, especially an unplanned one. I'd much rather use cloth to repair clothing from normal wear & tear, and use the knife only when I have planned it, not because I need to "rush" and cut meat from a wolf as quickly as possible because it's fallen dead and the weather has turned bad.
I'm only at day 150 at this point and I've had far more wolf "near-encounters" than "wolf fights won" which I believe indicates I'm living with nature instead of battling against it.
This is good for the long-term: I intend this play-through to be a >5000 day sandbox with a maximum of 10 hours sleep per day (I'm in the anti-hibernation camp).

6 hours ago, Vhalkyrie said:

No joke.  I'm surprised by all the people who said they never ran into wolves around Camp Office.  I guess I am particularly unlucky in my games because I have always had wolf trouble around there, which is particularly rough to handle when starting a new game.  Living in 'wolf ghetto' is no problem now that I am well stocked with matches, bullets and arrows, but when starting a new game, running into or avoiding the wolves around Camp Office is way more trouble than I'm looking for.  There's a wolf that wanders between the lake and the rabbit run, which makes it too dangerous in my early games to use as a trapping spot.  Trapper's remains my favorite spot in Mystery Lake in early game because I can always avoid the wolf that wanders through there.

Agree with you 100% and I've learned to immediately crouch upon exiting Camp Office, every time. It's allowed me to avoid nearly 100% of conflicts by choice.
For me Camp Office is only a good place to live in the beginning when I am actively seeking wolf conflicts for both food and their pelt to make the coat.  After that I'm all about avoiding them. I guess you are the same?
It's for this reason that on Mystery Lake I personally use the three-circuit home, all in safe locations and using safe transport routes.

4 hours ago, cekivi said:

Agree. You can usually avoid the wolves and the Camp Office's central location and amenities more than makes up for the risk.

Regarding Camp Offices amenities, the workbench is useful in the beginning when clothes need to be manufactured but after that it somewhat loses its usefulness.

For a long term (>2000 days alive) game Camp Office seems like a bad choice because when you come back from fishing ...there are wolves to deal with, and on the other side when coming back from the collecting rabbit meat across the tracks...again,  there are wolves to deal with.
Not good in the long term because it's unplanned wear & tear on my limited resources. 

Liking the location of Camp Office begs the question of "what are the benefits of living in a central location on Mystery Lake?"

[cekivi]

44 minutes ago, Wasteland Watcher said:

Liking the location of Camp Office begs the question of "what are the benefits of living in a central location on Mystery Lake?"

Because there is good hunting (deer on tracks), trapping (rabbits across tracks) and fishing nearby. Plus I play as a nomad. I like traveling around so when I get wanderlust the Camp Office is an easy place to set out from and return to. It's easy to find even in bad weather (saved me more than once) and when it comes time to move on it's within a half day's walk of the dam. In all, a central location with lots of food and resources nearby with an indoor stove, workbench and beds. The fact that I can trap and fish just outside is what makes the Office a better location than the Trapper's Cabin.

[Vhalkyrie]

2 hours ago, Wasteland Watcher said:

I'm only at day 150 at this point and I've had far more wolf "near-encounters" than "wolf fights won" which I believe indicates I'm living with nature instead of battling against it.
This is good for the long-term: I intend this play-through to be a >5000 day sandbox with a maximum of 10 hours sleep per day (I'm in the anti-hibernation camp).

Same here.  I'm at day 125 with 6 wolf fights, 56 wolf close encounters, and 35 wolves killed - and also not a hibernator.  I think I can handle wolves ok.    If I need to travel a certain path multiple times for some reason, I kill the wolf in the way simply because I'd rather not be caught by surprise later.  My 6 wolf fights were due to them getting the jump on me for some reason - like at CH coming around the path from the Mine where it curves around.

I don't tend to fish early in the game because I'd rather be collecting pelts for clothing.  Where I am right now in the game, I like fishing because fishing line is a very cheap tool.  I can conserve hunting weapon wear/ammo because I have an excess of pelts and guts.  Therefore, for my purposes, Camp Office is just fine for mid to late game play, but in early game, I find Trapper's easier since there's only one wolf to deal with.

[Wasteland Watcher]

2 hours ago, Vhalkyrie said:

Same here.  I'm at day 125 with 6 wolf fights, 56 wolf close encounters, and 35 wolves killed - and also not a hibernator.  I think I can handle wolves ok.    If I need to travel a certain path multiple times for some reason, I kill the wolf in the way simply because I'd rather not be caught by surprise later.  My 6 wolf fights were due to them getting the jump on me for some reason - like at CH coming around the path from the Mine where it curves around.

I don't tend to fish early in the game because I'd rather be collecting pelts for clothing.  Where I am right now in the game, I like fishing because fishing line is a very cheap tool.  I can conserve hunting weapon wear/ammo because I have an excess of pelts and guts.  Therefore, for my purposes, Camp Office is just fine for mid to late game play, but in early game, I find Trapper's easier since there's only one wolf to deal with.

I also only kill a wolf in my way if it's going to really be hampering progress but I really only have this issue with the two wolves near Derailment when going from Camp Office to the Dam. Now that I live closer to Forestry Outlook those two are least a non-issue. But there are also wolves near the Clearcut and Logging Camp so... kind of equals out. I think the wolves in those two areas are much easier to circumvent over passing by the Derailment "bottleneck" though.

3 hours ago, cekivi said:

Because there is good hunting (deer on tracks), trapping (rabbits across tracks) and fishing nearby. Plus I play as a nomad. I like traveling around so when I get wanderlust the Camp Office is an easy place to set out from and return to. It's easy to find even in bad weather (saved me more than once) and when it comes time to move on it's within a half day's walk of the dam. In all, a central location with lots of food and resources nearby with an indoor stove, workbench and beds. The fact that I can trap and fish just outside is what makes the Office a better location than the Trapper's Cabin.

Those are some good reasons:)
Personally I don't fish at all (not enough calories per kg for my taste) so I tend to gravitate to where rabbits live near a shelter. 
I also have the wanderlust but tend to just move from area to area but with the intent of eventually ending up in Mystery Lake for the "long haul."

[hauteecolerider]

At least you have settled on something for the "long haul!"

I haven't yet decided where I want to settle in my Pilgrim play through (now at a pretty modest 116 days). I kinda fell in love with the Mountaineer's Hut in TM, as well as the little Coastal Cabin across the road from the Quonset in CH. The Farmhouse in PV has been very useful, but I find it kinda depressing, and the Dam in ML is too noisy for my taste. Sometimes I can't tell if that's sheet metal groaning or Fluffy coming back! The Camp Office is practical, and I really like its tables on the lower floor for storing non-perishables (like kerosene jerry cans, accelerants, cups of coffee, herbal tea, reishi tea and rose hip tea, water, etc) and keeping storm lanterns handy. But I really like the Trapper's Homestead for it's atmosphere, which is both bright and cozy at the same time. Now if I can just sit in that damn easy chair in the corner!

[cekivi]

5 hours ago, hauteecolerider said:

 Now if I can just sit in that damn easy chair in the corner!

Sigh. Maybe one day

[Wasteland Watcher]

8 hours ago, hauteecolerider said:

At least you have settled on something for the "long haul!"

I haven't yet decided where I want to settle in my Pilgrim play through (now at a pretty modest 116 days). I kinda fell in love with the Mountaineer's Hut in TM, as well as the little Coastal Cabin across the road from the Quonset in CH. The Farmhouse in PV has been very useful, but I find it kinda depressing, and the Dam in ML is too noisy for my taste. Sometimes I can't tell if that's sheet metal groaning or Fluffy coming back! The Camp Office is practical, and I really like its tables on the lower floor for storing non-perishables (like kerosene jerry cans, accelerants, cups of coffee, herbal tea, reishi tea and rose hip tea, water, etc) and keeping storm lanterns handy. But I really like the Trapper's Homestead for it's atmosphere, which is both bright and cozy at the same time. Now if I can just sit in that damn easy chair in the corner!

The cool thing about Pilgrim is that you have the luxury of everywhere being a good neighborhood
 

Camp Office is practical in Pilgrim but on anything else the wolves are a nuisance (for me -- others actually like having them around).

I kind of like Trapper's as well and I think it was placed as the default "best to live in Mystery Lake" by the Developers: though it's "far from everything" it's fairly close to rabbits, only one wolf patrols the area (as opposed to the two to three outside of Camp Office), and it has a stove and workbench with a nice bed as well as plenty of storage.
 
However, I'm always on the lookout for the "alternate solution" so for Mystery Lake I've decided that I'll be storing items in Trapper's but mainly storing food at the Unnamed Cabin and if time allows always sleep in the nearby Forestry Outlook. Though it has no storage, it has a stove so I'll simply bring 3 kg meat with me whenever I go. 
A somewhat nomadic life but I'll be able so see the great view every day while managing to live in relative safety, nourished by rabbits provided by the good grace of God.

A good life.

[Jolan]

On 3/9/2016 at 5:38 PM, Wasteland Watcher said:

K
Personally I found the last location the easiest to live at and the only thing that put me off to it was that it was obviously the scene of a murder: two dead right outside the cabin and apparently whoever "won" the fight dead inside. A pretty depressing place actually.
But if not for that though I probably would stay there: Lots of food right outside the door, plenty of sticks nearby for gathering, one or two containers for storage, and a warm bed. Really all a man or woman needs to survive, as long as you have a magnifying glass for fire.

Please tell me where you've chosen, on Mystery Lake only please, to live. And why?

I just got the cabin near unamed pond with only 1 corpse outside and nobody inside.  

[Pillock]

On 3/30/2016 at 6:30 AM, Wasteland Watcher said:

Personally I don't fish at all (not enough calories per kg for my taste) so I tend to gravitate to where rabbits live near a shelter. 

Has fishing been tweaked since the update?

I've been living at the Camp Office, and finding that I can catch a couple days worth of food in about 4 or 5 hours on the lake. Fish weigh a lot, but they seem to have more calories now (400-550 for the small ones and 1000-1500 for the big ones?), and they only take 10 minutes to cook each, instead of 20 minutes for meat. Beats the hell out of rabbiting, any day.

[hauteecolerider]

Really? I'm gonna have to give this a try!

BTW, I got my It Was This Big achievement on the .321 update . . .

[Fuarian]

On 3/14/2016 at 4:22 AM, illanthropist said:

Lol, can you imagine if the record clock had only been allocated 10 digits, someone got to 9999d 23h 59m 56 tick tick tick, day's survived: 0

I can't believe someone has survived for 68 years on steam, sure the game has re-playability but that's just I can't even find the words...

He was a hacker

[Dirmagnos]

3 hours ago, Fuarian said:

He was a hacker

Cheater, not a hacker. Hackers are professionals, cheaters are losers, for the most part. Any idiot can use program made by some1 else, but making one yourself, thats a whole different animal.

[MueckE]

@Wasteland Watcher have you ever hibernated for 1k days? Believe me, condition of your clothes doesnt metter at all. If you have everything, you wish you would have to repair the clothes or just have to do anything. At some point, the desperation turns into insanity, it is a little bit like in King's the Shining

Back in the days, for me i always prefered camp office. After PV was added, i prefer hydro dam if i stay for a longer time in ML

[wilkinscw]

I have a few supplies set up at Trapper's and Camp Office in case I'm ever in the neighborhood, but I mainly stay at the Hydro Dam, due to its proximity to CH and PV.

[Greenglades]

This is my point of view from play in stalker mode.

Early on the Homestead is a nice base of operations. As time goes on I tend to move down to the Camping office.

When you begin counting your resources, every little thing starts to come into play. The good part of the Homestead is that when the wolves and deer go dormant for a while you can snare rabbits as needed. Long term - bullets I save for deer and use arrows for everything else. The benefit of the Camping office is access to deer and wolves, but also the ability to save bullets and bows by fishing. With the ability to craft hooks and snare rabbits, fishing can be done with replenishing tools. The central location is also a plus. The downside is also the wolves which always pose a threat here.

The Dam has 2 major downsides. 1) The fire barrel is downstairs. So unless you master going back and forth without a light source, cooking food or making water indoors uses resources either by lantern fuel or matches. 2) Sleeping requires a sleeping bag. You must keep this repaired to sleep, so you will constantly be using cloth for repairs. It's proximity to the ravine makes this a nice spot, but I end up using more resources in the Dam long term. I do however use the Dam as a storage point. Extra clothes, scrap metal, etc... I keep here

 

What makes a good base for me:

• The shelter should keep you warm without having to light a fire. 
• It should have a bed which replenishes a good amount of health with rest
• Indoor fireplace
• Decent lighting
• Storage Space
• Ease of moving around
• and a crafting station

That ease of moving around makes the Dam less favorable for me.

[Wasteland Watcher]

On 4/26/2016 at 2:15 AM, Greenglades said:

What makes a good base for me:

• The shelter should keep you warm without having to light a fire. 
• It should have a bed which replenishes a good amount of health with rest
• Indoor fireplace
• Decent lighting
• Storage Space
• Ease of moving around
• and a crafting station

That ease of moving around makes the Dam less favorable for me.

Great tips
My main concerns for the long term are simply a bed that restores condition and decent storage -- enough to keep food and to prevent clothes from deteriorating. Everything else gets stored on a shelf or table.
 

On 4/24/2016 at 8:25 AM, MueckE said:

@Wasteland Watcher have you ever hibernated for 1k days? Believe me, condition of your clothes doesnt metter at all. If you have everything, you wish you would have to repair the clothes or just have to do anything. At some point, the desperation turns into insanity, it is a little bit like in King's the Shining

Back in the days, for me i always prefered camp office. After PV was added, i prefer hydro dam if i stay for a longer time in ML

I'm another anti-hibernation player. Very glad that Cabin Fever was added!

[Greenglades]

I used to love the dam as my interim home before moving to PV. I would work on collecting my rabbit and deer pelts from the ravine and live there until I was able to craft the deerskin and rabbitskin clothing before moving over to PV. Then one day I couldn't rest when I realized oh no ... I forgot to repair my bedroll. Blizzard conditions, dead of night. Forced to make it to a shelter with a bed or die. With just a storm lantern, I struggled along the river to get to the Camping office but with fatigue, not able to run... slowly the wolves caught up with me. Painful death with a Hydro Dam stocked to the gills with supplies.

 

[cekivi]

2 hours ago, Greenglades said:

I used to love the dam as my interim home before moving to PV. I would work on collecting my rabbit and deer pelts from the ravine and live there until I was able to craft the deerskin and rabbitskin clothing before moving over to PV. Then one day I couldn't rest when I realized oh no ... I forgot to repair my bedroll. Blizzard conditions, dead of night. Forced to make it to a shelter with a bed or die. With just a storm lantern, I struggled along the river to get to the Camping office but with fatigue, not able to run... slowly the wolves caught up with me. Painful death with a Hydro Dam stocked to the gills with supplies.

 

In that situation you're likely better off going to the Logging Camp. It's a little closer than the Camp Office though harder to find in bad weather.

[Greenglades]

21 hours ago, cekivi said:

In that situation you're likely better off going to the Logging Camp. It's a little closer than the Camp Office though harder to find in bad weather.

Yeah it was a whiteout, why I tried to follow the river and less wolves that way without having a flare.

With the new Rest mechanics, bed healing condition may become much mre important now. Staying in a home with the bed with the highest healing %, or at least knowing where it is when you have to heal.

[cekivi]

2 hours ago, Greenglades said:

Yeah it was a whiteout, why I tried to follow the river and less wolves that way without having a flare.

With the new Rest mechanics, bed healing condition may become much mre important now. Staying in a home with the bed with the highest healing %, or at least knowing where it is when you have to heal.

Ouch. That river has lots of twists and turns and definitely has the longest route to safety. In that situation following the train tracks may have been your only chance.