What new wildlife would you want?

[ShawnB]

Couldn't find another dedicated thread on this. So what would you want? Or are you happy with the current wildlife and behaviour. Please describe general behaviour mechanics or improvements.

For me, the cougar. Let's say one per region or world, with low Re-spawn. It avoids your line of sight, attacks from behind without warning. High aggro proxy zone, and if it crosses your footprints it will stalk you. It leaves scat and fur when it travels so you have some hope of hunting it, rather than vice versa.

People have mentioned birds, plenty of new wolf mechanics, deer trampling...what else is out there? The new bear challenge is great and it feel like a new class of wildlife on its own.

[Aelaera]

Cougar are already on the Hinterlands roadmap, although to the best of my knowledge they haven't released any information on them. Personally I would prefer to see cougars only in mountainous/rocky areas, since that is their preferred hunting grounds. I agree with how you've mentioned cougars behavior, since they are ambush predators having a cougar face charge you like wolves do wouldn't be terribly realistic. A survivor would need to be proactive about his surroundings when it comes to hanging around in areas that cougars like to be, such as constantly checking their surroundings, regularly turning around to check their back and avoiding hills or ledges. In turn, most people do survive cougar attacks as long as they have a chance to fight back, since cougars would prefer to run than risk an injury.Standing your ground before a cougar would decrease the likely hood of an attack, while crouching/resting near a cougar (especially if you don't even know they're there!) would greatly increase the chance. Coming across wolf carcasses (wolves are primary in cougar diet in certain areas),  would be a key sign that you're near where a cougar has been, and if there's plenty of meat left on the carcass, is a prime sign to stay away unless you're adequately equipped to deal with the big cat.

As for other animals, they've already confirmed integrating moose, but I would like to see a few smaller, non-predatory animals, to further encourage people not to eat predators meat and therefore, reduce their chance of getting parasites. Examples of that could be an ermine, porcupine (with their quills potentially being used as a crude sewing kit in combination with cured guts?), ptarmigan, raccoons, muskrats, marmots, beavers (albeit I wouldn't be able to shoot one since they're one of my favorite animals) or even TW exclusives like mountain goats, our food sources are very limited for the Canadian wilderness, and I would prefer to see Hinterlands incorporate penalties for having only a single source of food such as rabbit starvation, of which rabbits have been about 90% of my 100+ day Voyageur survivor diet... the other 10% being an occasional wolf or fish. I would enjoy seeing some more options from the ocean, like integrating elephant seals once the seasons have gone into effect, which would make certain areas of CH extremely dangerous to go near, but finding a lone seal could be a chance at a few great meals. I wouldn't even mind if towards the end of Alpha and towards end-game release if Hinterlands also just released "aesthetic" animals, ones you can see in the distance such as breaching whales or such but aren't actually anything we can get to or hunt. 

[the_watdabney]

Musk-oxen, caribou, polar bears (how far north are we?), some other birds besides crows like owls or eagles, lynx (extremely rare and mechanics as mentioned above, stalking ambush predator), foxes, or maybe some insects like grubs/larve in tree bark or rotting felled trees and can be used for bait in fishing, or just eating them, more edible plants would be nice, like pine needles for teas, the use of tree sap for many different things, mountain goats/bighorn sheep (are they in northern Canada?), bats in the caves, raccoons, weasels, wolverines, badgers, otters, ...  I'm sure the list could go on forever, but my personal favorites would be...

bighorn sheep

foxes

owls

some kind of insects

bats

... these all could be for hunting or just aesthetics but I think a more rounded wildlife environment would make the experience more realistic even if you aren't able to interact with them.  I know it's something that is difficult to just add things to a game like this without months of writing code and the art work, but I find the environments quite bare.  That being said, the first time I went hiking in Montana before I moved there, it was mid March and I was only at around 4000 ft in elevation, light snow was falling, but the silence of it was amazing.  There was no wind and the only sound you could hear was the snow falling on the ground or the trees.  It was a sublime experience and one that I will remember for the rest of my life, just standing there taking in the beauty of the forest and listening to the sounds of snow falling.  I get that feeling sometimes while playing this game and it's one of the reasons I enjoy it so much.

After I moved to Montana, I took part in a search for evidence of lynx in MacDonald Pass near Helena, MT in February and we found bedding sites of suspected lynx and other animals in the snow.  I wonder if something like that could be added to the game as a random spawn of bedding sites near certain wildlife.  This could be part of a hunting experience with the tracking skills needed to find food. 

[ShawnB]

Great ideas here, I think my real question is what game mechanics and behaviour in this type of wildlife would you life to see to add another layer of depth to the game. If the small animals mentioned above functions just like trapping rabbits, but with a different trap, then I see little point in creating them.

More on Cougars, yes they should not do frontal charges, maybe over a certain distance. Also, while you should be able to fight them off at full condition, you should not wound them in this struggle. Let's say you just shake them off your back. Knowing the same cougar is out there always picking at you would make the hunt a little more personal. 

[ShawnB]

I wonder how moose will work. Maybe more rare than deer, but aggressive at random times where charges result in a similar bear maul event. Gives motive to go after the big target because it wouldn't have parasites. Efficient use of ammo but more rare and risky.

[the_watdabney]

I see what you mean.  The cougar mechanics should be just like you said, as a stalking predator with ambush attacks, this should be something that can be fought off, but with different mechanics from a wolf, as the cougar would attack from behind.  Moose could be a different mechanic as they are aggressive, but they aren't out to eat you, just protect themselves and their territory as it were.  They are most aggressive during rutting season, so I don't think they should be 100% aggressive, but have some sort of chance of attack like a stand-off where they bluff charge sometimes and other times full on charge and trample.  There could also be some kind of herd mechanic, as if a lone moose/deer would not attack but run off, but if there are 2 or more, like a breeding pair, they attack.  I've often wondered why most of the encounters with the deer they are by themselves, except in areas like in Timberwolf mountain with the deer clearing there are usually a few there.  Undulates are not always lone animals and usually stick to herds, but not always, so this could go to determine how aggressive they are.  The same could be said about the wolves as well.

As far as the other types of animals that I mentioned, most of the smaller animals would be treated the same as rabbits with snares, but with things like foxes or badgers, they could be alive in a leg hold trap and aggressive when you come to get them out of the trap and have a small encounter with them if you don't have the rifle or a bow to put them down first.  Maybe not much of a life or death struggle, but more geared towards clothing damage and infection/rabies risks, not so much blood loss or broken bones.  Live animals in traps are extremely aggressive and can make a rough day even worse if you aren't at 100% and starving.

With things like other birds, eagles, hawks, owls, they could be another small but dangerous encounter if you come across a dead deer or human corpse.  Most of the time they would just fly away but they could also get aggressive if they are trying to protect their meal and raptor talons can shred skin like razor blades in the blink of an eye.  I don't know how difficult things like this would be to add to the game but I think these types of encounters could add another level of risk/reward to the experience.

[ShawnB]

Bird are a good idea as mentioned above. Not sure if they should be aggressive or not. I think it would require another weapon and ammo type, bird shot obviously. But this ammo would not wound any other animals, and you would probably need lots of it because hits would be hard and meat returns low.

[Guest]

Personally, I would love to see bison/buffalo and hawks.

I want to see wolf behavior drastically improved.

Packs of wolves should hunt musk-oxen as well as buffalo/bison as realistically as possible.

How about mice?

Have you ever read the book "Never Cry Wolf" by Farley Mowat?

He was able to sustain himself just on rodents inside a cabin for a good while.

We need animals that feed on carrion like opossum, raccoon, and foxes too.

Put some variation into wolf and bear fur patterns to shake things up.

That would be cool.

I would also like to see ducks because, well...they taste good. 

EDIT #1: I'm not sure if crawfish can survive cold climate but those could be used as another food source.

I know snow leopards are an Asiatic species, but maybe the cold could refreeze the land bridge from Russia to Alaska and some wildlife from Eurasia could be implemented as they may have migrated into northern Canada.

Himalayan Black Bear anybody??? 

EDIT #2: Throw in bobcats for good measure. They're mean little SOB's.

[FatheriatorCZ]

Even thought we can catch fish now when the ice melts it would be great to see something like mussels in the water.

They wouldnt last long and wouldnt be a weary good source of food but would be stationary and easy to obtain.

Also i would like to see mices in the larger cabins (house in pleasant walley, Camp office, and others). It would be a great thing to doo if you are desperate or can not get out of cabin but it would have to bee something passive like a snare or trap.

[Hotzn]

I would love to see mice and rats. It would be a cool feature if we had rodents in some of the shelters. In rodent-infested shelters, we would not be able to leave certain items on the floor, as the rodents would start nibbling away on them. For example animal skins & guts. Imagine waking up at night and hearing noises in the house. You make light and see the little critters scuttling away from it, disappearing in cracks and holes in the walls. Then you would check your stuff on the floor, and some of it would be damaged. I'd like that.

[hauteecolerider]

Okay, if we are going to have small rodents in the game, then I want feral/barn cats that will move into these houses and feast upon said rodents! 

[Tbone555]

MOOSES!
MEESES!
but moose are already on the roadmap, so i suppose its to be expected eventually

[Scyzara]

I'd love to see a small predator/carrion eater preying on rabbits and stealing meat you left on the floor (or unharvested in carcasses). They wouldn't be agressive and always run away from the player, but they would add a bit of randomness to the game and make you think twice if you really want to leave all your meat on the floor in front of your base.

Foxes or minks might be nice candidates. 

[SPiRiT]

Dogs!  dogs would be great specially if u could use them as pets and assistants ! 

[ShawnB]

5 hours ago, Scyzara said:

I'd love to see a small predator/carrion eater preying on rabbits and stealing meat you left on the floor (or unharvested in carcasses). They wouldn't be agressive and always run away from the player, but they would add a bit of randomness to the game and make you think twice if you really want to leave all your meat on the floor in front of your base.

Foxes or minks might be nice candidates. 

I think this carrion is a great idea. Heck, they would already have all the crow animations sorted out. Or at least more scavenging behaviour in some animals. The point being food left outside will not last long.

It feels silly when I chase a wolf off a kill then it ignores the carcas for 3 days before it disappears. Not realistic and makes hunting too easy. Knowing other animals will scavenge your kills will make tracking down wounded animals much more urgent. It will also force you to be prepared to harvest kills immediately, not in 2-3 trips between your camp. 

[LloydNoise]

Seals, preferably harbour (common) seals but also perhaps some elephant seals too.

Also find/make some lobster pods and get some crabs and lobsters.

Then maybe just former family pets gone feral, house cats, dogs etc.

 

[nicko]

5 hours ago, Scyzara said:

I'd love to see a small predator/carrion eater preying on rabbits and stealing meat you left on the floor (or unharvested in carcasses). They wouldn't be agressive and always run away from the player, but they would add a bit of randomness to the game and make you think twice if you really want to leave all your meat on the floor in front of your base.

Foxes or minks might be nice candidates. 

yeah the white fox or red fox (HT style) would be cool to see.

[unti1x]

I thought about it once, even read a lot of articles about Canadian fauna.
At first there are no birds except crows.

• Canada goose
• Falcated duck
• Black-browed albatross

Mammals. I thought devs will introduce canadian lynx or bobcat, but then roadmap was released. I also thought about walruses and seals, but it looks like they live on another side of country. But another sea mammals exist: Bowhead whale, Narwhal. And one more thing: caves look really lifeless. How about bats?

 

 

[ElvisHunter]

Has anyone suggested a fisher? They are a darn cool animal.