Bunker-Exclusive Supplies

[RaeRiceSimmer]

I was just thinking about how bunkers should have some supplies that are only found inside one.  Preppers (like myself) think a lot about the worst possible things happening and would not just stock some generic supplies. Only a few types of items can be found in each type of bunker. Here are a few of my ideas, please suggest some more. 

ALL TYPES

Emergency blankets and bivy sacs (the kind treated with aluminum) 

Tent (Heavy and needs a lot of cloth to maintain it - wildlife will follow you inside and destroy it if they are coming after you, but prevents you from being discovered if you are inside it - adds a warmth bonus)

Pocket stove (sort of heavy, but is better than having a a bunch of burnt out campfires all over - possibly the only source of fire inside buildings without fireplaces (including tent) - will need metal scrap and tools to be maintained - uses sticks, coal, and can be filled with kerosene)

Zippo lighter (can be filled with lighter fluid and has a VERY slow decay rate (if any) I've had a zippo for almost my whole life and it doesn't even look like it's a year old)

FOOD BUNKER

Ration bars (Similar to MRE, weights a lot less)

Supplement drink powder (acts as coffee without having to heat water)

TOOL BUNKER

3-in-one tool (hatchet, pry bar, and hacksaw in one - weights more than just one of the tools, but works as all 3 - has a higher decay rate)

Emergency lantern (weighs less than a storm lantern and holds more fuel)

CLOTHING BUNKER

Camping vest (a new clothing type - adds a small amount of inventory space, even smaller warmth bonus)

Snow boots (a new clothing type - best found footwear)

MEDICAL BUNKER

Antiseptic swabs (single-use and lightweight alternative to hydrogen peroxide)

Night-time painkillers (works as painkillers and herbal tea)

HUNTING BUNKER

Heavy-duty combat knife (VERY good in wildlife struggles but not very helpful for harvesting meat)

Deer call (can be used to attract deer (and wolves) and calms the surrounding deer, making them stay in place for longer periods of time and thus easier to hunt)

[Dirmagnos]

Why would bunker have tent or bivy sack ? Its meant to be a shelter on its own, not warehouse of junk. Especially considering that it has rather limited space inside.

Portable stove could be an interesting idea, but it would be just lesser version of regular stove, due to its weight and size, just to carry from one area to another, not to carry it with you all the time. And its either coal/sticks or kerosene, not both. Kerosene stove could be actually portable and fairly small and light, but use precious fuel. While bigger one could use wood and coal as fuel, but be less effective overall and impractical to carry around with player, by severely decreasing accuracy and movement speed.

Zippos can be fueled with kerosene as well. Problem would be its flint, rather than fuel.

Ration bars are not lighter than MREs. They can be, but their caloric value would be equally that much lower.

how exactly that 3-in-1 would look like ? I tried to find real life counterpart, but couldnt. Hatchet/hammer/prybar was the best that comes close.

[RaeRiceSimmer]

15 minutes ago, Dirmagnos said:

Why would bunker have tent or bivy sack ? Its meant to be a shelter on its own, not warehouse of junk. Especially considering that it has rather limited space inside.

If you are a prepper, you prep for every situation.  If your bunker is attacked or compromised, you may have to leave.  You want to have an alternative form of shelter.  It is also a base of operations; hunting, fishing, and gathering might require a temporary shelter.  

 

17 minutes ago, Dirmagnos said:

Ration bars are not lighter than MREs. They can be, but their caloric value would be equally that much lower.

A 2400 calorie ration bar is about the nearly (510g) same weight as a MRE (in game), but are obviously more calories.  But, it would make more sense to carry around 1200 calorie bars instead that weight less. 

31 minutes ago, Dirmagnos said:

how exactly that 3-in-1 would look like ? I tried to find real life counterpart, but couldnt. Hatchet/hammer/prybar was the best that comes close.

I was thinking a cross between these two beauties:

34 minutes ago, Dirmagnos said:

Portable stove could be an interesting idea, but it would be just lesser version of regular stove, due to its weight and size, just to carry from one area to another, not to carry it with you all the time. And its either coal/sticks or kerosene, not both. Kerosene stove could be actually portable and fairly small and light, but use precious fuel. While bigger one could use wood and coal as fuel, but be less effective overall and impractical to carry around with player, by severely decreasing accuracy and movement speed.

Now I own something similar to this.

I have used fuel cubes, canned fuel, sticks, char cloth, and lots of other fuels.  Never had a problem with any of them.  It can be any fuel, if you have the right stove. 

[Boston123]

 A knife is a knife is a knife. A "combat knife" isn't going to be any less efficient at processing game than the in-game knife, nor will it necessarily be any "better" in combat.

Considering how in real life, you can (and I have) process game quickly and efficiently with a sharp shard of glass, there is no real need to differentiate between different "types" of knives.

 

[Dirmagnos]

If you are a prepper you do try to prepare to every situation. But again, your bunker is not a warehouse of junk, nor is it made out of rubber to fit everything in the world. And bunker is meant to be main staging area, from where you operate, as if you come back there after long day. If you even come out to begin with.

Those bars sound good, but youd still require large amount of water to drink alongside them and their protein content is non-existing. On their own they may be tad lighter, but as complete meal there wont be much difference from MREs.

Its nice to talk about cross without actually having any idea how end-result should look like. So that it would be actually usable.

Same thing with stove. You post a screen that uses only one of two and then wannt some magical item added that can use sticks, cola, kerosene, nuclear fusion, solar energy and fit into a pocket. How ?

[elloco999]

17 hours ago, Dirmagnos said:

If you are a prepper you do try to prepare to every situation. But again, your bunker is not a warehouse of junk, nor is it made out of rubber to fit everything in the world. And bunker is meant to be main staging area, from where you operate, as if you come back there after long day. If you even come out to begin with.

While the bunker may not be infinite in it's storage capabilities, I don't think it's all that strange to expect certain items that most preppers would indeed store. And let's be honest, the bunkers in TLD are not exactly well stocked. They're almost empty! I get that this is for gameplay purposes, bunkers that are truly stocked the way they would be if they had been created by end-of-the-world-fearing preppers would be way overpowered.

But still, the idea of having some items in each bunker that can't be found anywhere else, like the flare gun on TWM, would make the bunkers far more worthwhile. As an experienced player, I don't need the bunker to survive for a long time in TLD even on stalker. I only check the locations that are near the routes I take and if there's no bunker there I don't go looking for them in the more remote locations. This feature might entice me to go looking for them again.

I'm not saying that I agree with all the suggestions (for items that could be found in a bunker) made here, but quite a few make sense to me. Like the emergency blankets (space blankets, no way any serious prepper would not have these), the zippo lighter, antiseptic swaps and the deer call. A small tent or tarps that can be used to make a shelter would not surprise me either.

A knife (not a combat knife, but rather a bushcraft/ hunting knife, the knife already in the game would be just fine) and a firestarter should be in pretty much every bunker. Google prepping list and you will find knives and firestarting methods on just about every list out there. Same for cordage and duck tape if they ever get implemented.

I think the clothing in the game is already more than adequate but it would be nice if the best pieces would be very scarce in the game world with the exception of the bunkers. An emergency whistle could also be found in a bunker. It could be used to scare away wolves, or at least keep them at a distance?

I'm sure there are many other things that could be found in the bunkers to make them more useful. Like I said, as the bunkers are now I don't bother looking for them anymore. Unique items found only in bunkers (or nearly so) would make them more valuable to experienced players.

17 hours ago, Dirmagnos said:

Same thing with stove. You post a screen that uses only one of two and then wannt some magical item added that can use sticks, cola, kerosene, nuclear fusion, solar energy and fit into a pocket. How ?

A pocket stove is just 4 metal walls with a grade to hold the fuel in between them. You can disassemble it into the 4 plates and the grade and stack them together so it takes up very little room (hence the name 'pocket stove'). Off course, once assembled it's just big enough to heat a cup of water, you can't fit a large pot or pan on top of it.

You can put in any fuel you want. Feed it with small sticks, use solid fuel cubes or put in an alcohol stove. I don't know about kerosene, but petrol could simply be put in a small container with an open top and then put in the stove.

Pocket stoves exist in real life, so it's not so far fetched as you make it sound. Considering @RaeRiceSimmer owns and has used a pocket stove, I would say he does know what he's talking about.

[Dirmagnos]

7 hours ago, elloco999 said:

While the bunker may not be infinite in it's storage capabilities, I don't think it's all that strange to expect certain items that most preppers would indeed store. And let's be honest, the bunkers in TLD are not exactly well stocked. They're almost empty! I get that this is for gameplay purposes, bunkers that are truly stocked the way they would be if they had been created by end-of-the-world-fearing preppers would be way overpowered.

...

A pocket stove is just 4 metal walls with a grade to hold the fuel in between them. You can disassemble it into the 4 plates and the grade and stack them together so it takes up very little room (hence the name 'pocket stove'). Off course, once assembled it's just big enough to heat a cup of water, you can't fit a large pot or pan on top of it.

You can put in any fuel you want. Feed it with small sticks, use solid fuel cubes or put in an alcohol stove. I don't know about kerosene, but petrol could simply be put in a small container with an open top and then put in the stove.

Pocket stoves exist in real life, so it's not so far fetched as you make it sound. Considering @RaeRiceSimmer owns and has used a pocket stove, I would say he does know what he's talking about.

Thats the point. Those bunkers are fairly empty, considering their volume. And if prepper didnt fully stock(or he alredy was there and left with most of the stuff) it with essentials, like food and water, then what is the chance that he instead brought in something as obscure as tent into it ? Its not even tertiary on the musthave list.

Yes, you can use kerosene in such stove, but you get to use it in the same way as with campfires, as accelerant, not main fuel source. And if you just take an empty can, pour some into it and use it this way, it will probably be a waste of that kerosene, since it will be even less efficient than sticks.

I wasnt claiming that there arent portable stoves that use liquid fuels like same kerosene, i was just referring to the fact that they have completely different way of usage. Its either one way or another.

[swissheart]

Im not sure if the game needs all of these items but I do wish sometimes that I had a blanket or a tent, especially at Timberwolf Mountain. 

[Rooks_Nemesis]

This game has always been about balance.. That multi tool although right cool would break so many mechanics and shift the current balance towards the easy side..

as for clothing. There already is quite a bit out there. And there already is insulated boots which do as you suggested. But there can always be more variants of what we do have I guess.

The pocket stove is also nice! But very situational. Almost every location has a cooking area already. And if you where able to bring a stove around with you it again would break balance. Basically if I'm transitioning from one place to another I always carry 3 - 4 days worth of food incase of blizzard etc. But with that stove I'd have NO fear of ever getting stuck some where..

the big one is the bunkers having specific tools/equipment..

they already do just that. Each one is a cache of awesome. Each one is already geared to a specific thing from hunting to crafting. My only real wish for bunkers is that they are a viable place to live.

personally the bunkers as is if used right already add 3 - 5 days worth of solid surviving. Which if found early enough is more then enough time to start getting prepared for the long haul. And if your finding the bunkers alot later in your run the tools inside alone are enough to add many more moons to your play through, the food how ever is either helpful off the hop or just thrown into a cabinet to help you cling on in your final days..

this is all just my opinion. And comes from my experience in TLD.

[elloco999]

17 hours ago, Rooks_Nemesis said:

Each one is a cache of awesome.

Do you really think so? I find them not worth the time to go looking for them. Other than the hunting bunker providing me with rifles and ammo there is nothing in the bunkers I can't find just about anywhere else... In my longest run I hadn't even found any bunker.

[hauteecolerider]

I still have yet to find one in Mystery Lake . . .

But I found TWO in PV! On Pilgrim, too, where I really don't need them . . .

I think they're there more to drive us crazy . . .

[cekivi]

On 2016-04-02 at 11:15 AM, swissheart said:

Im not sure if the game needs all of these items but I do wish sometimes that I had a blanket or a tent, especially at Timberwolf Mountain. 

Remember you can always shelter in the interior of caves (the ones with loading screens). They're always warm and free from animals.

[cekivi]

Personally, I always thought of the bunkers as being relics of the Cold War and not from modern preppers. Hence the state of disrepair (roots coming through ceiling, missing/broken equipment, etc.) and lack of supplies. As such, I'm fine with them as is since it fits my headcannon

[elloco999]

15 hours ago, hauteecolerider said:

I still have yet to find one in Mystery Lake . . .

But I found TWO in PV! On Pilgrim, too, where I really don't need them . . .

I think they're there more to drive us crazy . . .

They can be really hard to find, most are in places you don't go when just traveling from A to B. But once you've found them it's generally not that hard to find them again.

When the bunkers were added, resources were much much scarcer in TLD and finding a bunker made a big difference. It drove a lot of players crazy trying to find a bunker, having to go to all the remote locations, trying to climb every hill etc. Good times

[Dirmagnos]

Yes, bunkers are kinda outdated right now.

Depending on in what predetermined location they spawn it also affects bunker layout(eg loot) and half of them feel kinda light on useful supplies.

Its great when tool or weapon one spawns, even medical supplies are good. But when you get food bunker its kinda "meh". There arent that much food in them to be comparable to bunker where you can find ammo or bunch of various tools.

[Patrick Carlson]

8 hours ago, elloco999 said:

They can be really hard to find, most are in places you don't go when just traveling from A to B. But once you've found them it's generally not that hard to find them again.

When the bunkers were added, resources were much much scarcer in TLD and finding a bunker made a big difference. It drove a lot of players crazy trying to find a bunker, having to go to all the remote locations, trying to climb every hill etc. Good times

I think bunkers add a dimension to the game that works on several different levels, that when lost or hungry (perhaps in a storm) you might stumble on one of these caches. It may be that when you find one, you aren't all that well-fed or well-equipped. It could make all the difference. 

[elloco999]

1 hour ago, Patrick Carlson said:

I think bunkers add a dimension to the game that works on several different levels, that when lost or hungry (perhaps in a storm) you might stumble on one of these caches. It may be that when you find one, you aren't all that well-fed or well-equipped. It could make all the difference. 

True, but that goes for any other building. Or cave for that matter, if shelter is what I need most. Although most caves have far less, if any, supplies. For the experienced players it's not hard to get the resources they need so unless you just happen to be in a poor state for some reason when you find a bunker, they don't really give the "Yes! I found a bunker!!!" experience they used to give. The last time I was truly exited about a bunker was before PV was added...

[Pillock]

Must admit, until I read this thread I didn't know there were "bunkers" in the game at all. I have played 272 hours.

I don't know yet whether or not I like the idea that I now know they exist. Maybe I've seen them and mistook the entrance for non-interactable scenery? Don't know. How long have they been in-game?

[cekivi]

28 minutes ago, Pillock said:

Must admit, until I read this thread I didn't know there were "bunkers" in the game at all. I have played 272 hours.

I don't know yet whether or not I like the idea that I now know they exist. Maybe I've seen them and mistook the entrance for non-interactable scenery? Don't know. How long have they been in-game?

Since at least a year. I can't remember the exact update that they were added to the game in. I saw them in the patch notes first or maybe one of the beautiful maps that the community creates. They're really off the beaten path. You'll know it when you see one

The first I found was on Pleasant Valley completely by accident. I was exploring in the hills trying to get to the one part of the map I'd never been to (at that point) and I crest a hill to see the bunker on the other side. It was a really cool experience

[hauteecolerider]

13 minutes ago, cekivi said:

The first I found was on Pleasant Valley completely by accident. I was exploring in the hills trying to get to the one part of the map I'd never been to (at that point) and I crest a hill to see the bunker on the other side. It was a really cool experience

When I found my first bunker in PV, I was really excited to see what everyone was talking about in another thread. But after exploring it, I thought "Ok, this would be worth noting as a potential blizzard shelter." I noticed that it was relatively warm compared to the exterior conditions, so that was that. I haven't been back to that one since. 

But out of curiosity, I went walking all over ML looking for the darn things. I have never gotten so many sprains as I did doing that, so after that I decided they weren't worth the risk. I figured if I came across one, cool, otherwise I could do without them. 

The most useful a bunker has been for me was the one that spawned next to the rope access to TM in PV. I did not find that one until I set off to locate a way station to stash supplies for my TM venture. Now that one I was excited about because its location was perfect! 

But like @Patrick Carlson said, they do add something to the game - another one of those storytelling elements that I find so enjoyable about this particular game.

[illanthropist]

I would have thought those pocket stoves are more for ultra light backpackers or hobbyist preppers who like collecting multi tools and titanium sporks.

[Pillock]

2 hours ago, cekivi said:

Since at least a year. I can't remember the exact update that they were added to the game in.

Haha! That is longer than I've owned the game - by at least 3 or 4 months!

I guess they are difficult to spot.

[cekivi]

2 minutes ago, Pillock said:

Haha! That is longer than I've owned the game - by at least 3 or 4 months!

I guess they are difficult to spot.

Yep. I've been playing since Halloween 2014

And most are really hard to spot by design. Bunkers are one of the few procedurally generated elements in the game so where the bunker will be and what's in it is likely different every game you start. Most of the YouTube videos for finding them also wouldn't be of much help since bunker locations were given an overhaul with the Pleasant Valley update

If you really want to find them, download one of the excellent maps found in the fan creation forums and just go hunting. Most of the maps I've seen are accurate to the latest major update.

[Pillock]

1 minute ago, cekivi said:

If you really want to find them, download one of the excellent maps found in the fan creation forums and just go hunting. Most of the maps I've seen are accurate to the latest major update.

Thanks, but that is the very last thing I want to do. I'd have preferred to have stumbled across one without prior knowledge that they even existed, I think - especially after so many in-game hours of ignorance. It'd have bowled me over, I imagine.

I probably will keep a conscious eye out for them from now on, but I doubt I'll ever scour the landscape with that goal in mind. (Plus, last time I went exploring the boonies for the sake of it, out of boredom at the sense of security in my PV Farmhouse base, I ended up spraining my ankles and getting attacked by wolves too many times, running out of painkillers, running low on condition, getting caught in a blizzard, then freezing to death in some God-knows-where-but-probably-not-far-from-the-house woodland.)

[Dirmagnos]

2 hours ago, hauteecolerider said:

The most useful a bunker has been for me was the one that spawned next to the rope access to TM in PV. I did not find that one until I set off to locate a way station to stash supplies for my TM venture. Now that one I was excited about because its location was perfect! 

That one is actually fixed location. It is always there, behind that log. As far as i remember its meant to be a stepping stone for travelling to otherwise difficult TWM.

Bunkers are not really that hard to spot, they are essentially just a hatch in the ground. Main problem is, as already mentioned, is that they spawn in remote locations off the beaten path. In most cases, unless you know what you are looking 4, your best chance at finding it is to get lost and just aimlessly wander around, since they spawn good 100+ meters from closest location and often in areas that are hard to reach and require some elaborate acrobatics.

Only rule about them is that 1 spawns at one of predefined locations on player starting map(altho i dont know how it works if starting map has no bunker spawn points). Finding it is up to player, altho discovery may be rather disappointing depending on bunker loot preset. I tend to look for them just to find them, i never go bunker hunting in hopes that it will save me - properly settle in, hoard some supplies and when im doing well, time for bunker hunt.