Stalker+

[Vince 49]

My most recent Stalker playthrough was about as good as it gets*.  So I tried Interloper.  I lasted a couple of weeks and had some useful gear (hacksaw, bedroll, etc.), but no way would I make it to a forge.  As the description says, everything is against you and it was not fun.  Although I admire those who survive and make it to a forge, it's not for me.  So I'm playing "Stalker+".  It's simple really.  Just set the custom mode to Stalker and change rifle availability to 'no'.  It's significantly more difficult than regular Stalker, but (for me) a lot more fun than Interloper.

I would like to hear from others who may have played this mode.  For my current Stalker+ game, I have yet to find an axe or hacksaw.  Without one or the other I can't cut down saplings to craft a bow and arrows.  So far I only have one arrow head.  I know where I can get more near the barn in Pleasant Valley.  However, last time I went to the bow target, I had four wolves and one bear coming after me at the same time!  I just made it into the barn and waited several hours before sneaking out.  The other risky option is to go to the forge at the old Spence homestead in Forlorn Muskeg.  Then again, maybe I'll get lucky and find an arrow, broken or not, at the ML Unnamed Pond blind.  I'm heading there now.  I went down to the basin in Ravine to get the flare gun.  With that plus a bow and at least two arrows, I'd have a fighting chance to make it to the homestead forge.

* My last Stalker playthrough was, by far, my best.  I died in Broken Railroad on day 213 after traveling to all the regions except Timberwolf Mountain.  Between bow, rifle, and struggles, I killed at least 170 wolves.  More importantly, I killed 4 moose so had the satchel and cloak and was able to repair the cloak twice.  There's more, but you get the idea.

 

[Spakerman]

eventually I'll play some custom mode runs but right now I'm still missing 1 badge and some achievements. I too really enjoy playing with different modes and each presents different challenges. I'm enjoying interloper right now though in my current run I'm in the middle of recovering from intestinal parasites... 20 doses/days to recover on interloper is brutal.

 

[stratvox]

One thing about the moose cloak you may find interesting. You can, with the investment of about twenty hours, harvest your moose cloak for a moose hide, get four dried guts, and remake it at a workbench and it'll be 100%. No other moose hides required.

[Vince 49]

@ stratvox, Although I enjoyed the challenge of killing the four moose and surviving, I certainly didn't know what you describe--very interesting.

[stratvox]

It is. The upside: no need for another moose hide. The downside: you need twenty hours of work to do it, vs about an hour and a half to repair a moose cloak with another moose hide.

[Spakerman]

2 hours ago, stratvox said:

It is. The upside: no need for another moose hide. The downside: you need twenty hours of work to do it, vs about an hour and a half to repair a moose cloak with another moose hide.

I guess if you get the second moose hide you could instead craft a second cloak so you have one to wear while you recycle the old one.  Then you can split the recrafting process up into small chunks as long as you complete it before your second cloak gets too low... rinse repeat.