Clinging to life on Interloper

[Khan_Drichthyes]

So I'm trying Interloper again and it drops me in Pleasant Valley once more.  This time, I try hopping from shelter to shelter, to gather what little supplies I can.

The homestead yields some food, a hat, toilet water, harvestable cloth, the basement matches, and a heavy hammer.

The next morning, I set out for the barn.  Not much to be found, except shelter.  So, moving on to that store and buildings by the bridge.  Hey, more matches!  Have to sneak from building to building, due to a prowling wolf.  The slow creep is not helping with my health in the cold.  Stay the night in an intact house with a bed.

Creep away the next morning.  Good for wolf, bad for cold.  Get to river and start running away.  Safe, but cold.  Pick up cattails.  Plan to return to homestead and try the radio tower before taking the cave to the hydro dam.

Passing the barn when I hear a wolf bark.  Can't see where and not close enough to the barn to escape.  Quickly make fire!  Good thing I picked up sticks and a couple books.  Wolf runs away.  Hmm...  Fire not warming me up.  Cook peaches.  That's not warming me up either.  Health not looking good.

Run to homestead.  Halfway there, have to avoid several wolves.  Getting tunnel vision.  Stumbling.  Am I crawling at times?  There's the river.  Vision fading.  Stumbling is even worse.  Can't get to any of the doors in time.  Collapse into the basement...

Slowly warming.  Health improving, but agonizingly slow.  Stumble out and make it in the house.  Up, up, up to a nice warm bed.

I'm still alive.  I made it to the radio tower before stopping.  Health is still a bit low.  On reflection, I should have gone into the barn after the wolf ran away, to get a better fire going in the barrel.  I don't have a screenshot to prove it, but the journal shows that I had dropped down to only 2% health.

[Stone]

Tough it out @Khan_Drichthyes, you can make it! PV's danger is the distances (and thus cold, especially if the weather goes against you), getting out is a good call but its a fair distance from the bed in the tower, through the cave, up to the dam and to a bed in the trailers outside. You can do it if you pace yourself and keep moving. Carry lots of sticks or coal to ensure you can get fires hot enough to warm you. Take a bunch of torches and chain them as long as you can after leaving a fire. With enough fuel and favorable weather, the cold isn't a problem as you can stop to make a fire each time you start freezing. Just remember, if your condition is bad and you're tired, wolves won't think twice. Good luck reaching the Dam. 

[Khan_Drichthyes]

2 hours ago, Stone said:

PV's danger is the distances (and thus cold

LOL!  Yeah, that lesson sank in really quick.  I've been very lucky with the weather, up until now, as a blizzard started after getting to the radio tower.

I've never tried to chain torches.  How do you accomplish this?

I've also given thought to the distance to and through the dam.  I wonder if I should have tried for the cave to Coastal Highway instead of returning to the homestead.  Thankfully, I found coffee in the radio shack.

Now, as the hammer will serve as a weapon, how effective is it against wolves?  I wouldn't intentionally pick a fight with one, in my current condition, but if I should get unlucky....?

[Stone]

@Khan_Drichthyes I believe the hammer scares wolves away fastest without killing them. Its great for breaking stuff down as its easily repaired.

Distance wise you can get a really long way if you just keep walking i.e. don't sprint too much. Spiriting has diminishing returns. When you're fresh you sprint fastest and gets slower as you tire.

Chain torches: take a torch from you fire, put it out for later use. Repeat until you've several. Set off with a lit torch then when its down to <5%, throw it, whip another out and light it from the dying torch then on you go (to light a torch from another: hold the new torch, aim it at the head of the old thrown torch on the ground, wait till you get a 'light torch' option. Careful you don't just light the torch from a match).

 

[Khan_Drichthyes]

I'll probably get a chance to try this weekend.  I'm now wondering if I should try looting Mystery Lake or go from the dam on to Coastal Highway.  I'll need to make sure my health stays out of the red before crossing the Ravine trestle.

[Drifter Man]

On 30/08/2018 at 10:48 PM, Khan_Drichthyes said:

Now, as the hammer will serve as a weapon, how effective is it against wolves?  I wouldn't intentionally pick a fight with one, in my current condition, but if I should get unlucky....?

It is not effective, avoid wolf struggles at all costs. Wolf struggle in early interloper has meant death to me like 95% of the time - condition, fatigue and hammer never seemed to make a difference.

Later on, once you have decent protection bonus from clothes, you may stand a chance in a struggle as long as you are well rested.

[Stone]

I second @Drifter Man, avoidance is the best policy.  

[Khan_Drichthyes]

I died.

I got down from radio hill, collecting sticks along the way.  Came to a bunny glade with a deer carcass, a corpse, and a nearby cave.  Started freezing as I entered the cave and started a fire.  Warmed up, but in the red again.  Killed and cooked a rabbit and got out of the red.  Night came.  Not enough sticks.  Try to find the cave to the dam.  Health too low and probably took a wrong turn. 

So much for that.

[Stone]

@Khan_Drichthyes respect, unlucky! Not knowing the maps adds a lot of risk and early game it's harder than ever. If you ever want directions just ask but you only get to explore for yourself once of course. So where is your next Loper spawn? ?

[Khan_Drichthyes]

Spawned in Desolation Point and got VERY lucky.

Found matches, a flare, and a bedroll in Hibernia.  Found a wealth of coal in the mine.

I've left off at the lighthouse for now.  Next stop: The Riken to see if the hammer and some scrap metal is there.  If not, at least drop off most of the coal, and move on to Coastal Highway.  ...unless I should try to beachcomb at the edge of the ice?

I also have a pilgrim run going now in Pleasant Valley.  I'm back at radio hill and recently killed a bear.  Harvested everything and using radio hill as my base for exploring the eastern side of the map.

[Stone]

If forging at the Riken is a viable then thats sounds like a great start but this is Loper: prepare for disappointment! If not, I'd head for TWM. You can get there with a Bedroll and hit some nice loot on the way. Just don't take anything up that you don't really need when you leave PV. Take coal if you can. The mountaineers but isn't warm or that we'll supplied with firewood. Good luck! 

[Khan_Drichthyes]

Oh yes, I wouldn't be surprised if the hammer or some scrap metal was missing.  Even with an axe, a knife, or both, I'll still need to venture out for other supplies.  One obstacle I'm not looking forward to is getting past the wolf between Desolation Point and Coastal Highway. 

[Stone]

Loot DP, run that wolf gauntlet and never go back 

[Looper]

17 hours ago, Khan_Drichthyes said:

One obstacle I'm not looking forward to is getting past the wolf between Desolation Point and Coastal Highway.

Good story again. I usually go over the fence just outside the mine clinging to the right side till the cave. Get in and get warm. Then sneak on hugging the cliff till the basement. 

[Khan_Drichthyes]

Thanks.  Yeah, sneaking is definitely a must with that wolf.  If I'm lucky, maybe it'll be too busy chomping on a bunny.

So I retraced my Pleasant Valley footsteps on that Pilgrim run, right up to when I died.  It turns out I didn't take a wrong turn.  It's worse than that.  I walked right past the cave.  If I had just scouted ahead on Pilgrim first, I would have made it to the cave.

[Khan_Drichthyes]

Oh, and on that Pilgrim run, I unlocked the Cold Fusion badge.  Can I activate that badge on an existing game, or do I have to start a new game?

[romerabr]

1 hour ago, Khan_Drichthyes said:

Can I activate that badge on an existing game, or do I have to start a new game?

Only on a new game. 

[Khan_Drichthyes]

Aw, nuts.  

I guess I'll keep this Interloper save going, but I'll probably get another one going with this badge.

[Khan_Drichthyes]

Yep, I started one with the badge.

Oh, nice, I started in Desolation Point!

Awesome!  I found pretty much all the same stuff as before, and the bonus of a prybar!

I couldn't find the hammer, though.

After searching the area some, I moved on to Coastal Highway. 

I've stopped for now on Jackrabbit Island.  Tomorrow, I plan to visit the workbench at the fishing camp, to fashion a hook from some scrap metal I found.

[Khan_Drichthyes]

Yeah, I made it to the fish camp.

I even found a sewing kit in one of the fishing huts, along the way.  After searching one of the camp buildings, I took a moment to warm up, and repair some clothes.  Ready to move on to the next building, I step out into the cold again. 

To find a bear walking past.

Naturally, I jumped back inside.  And that's where I am:  Trapped in here, hoping the bear moves on.

[Khan_Drichthyes]

I'm still clinging to life. 

I managed to sneak past the bear and make it to the two remaining cabins ag the fishing camp.   All I found was a can of soda and a can of dogfood. 

The snow was falling, making things colder, so I couldn't fashion any hooks at the work table.  Not much point, anyway, since I don't have any cured gut to make into line yet.  Returning to Jackrabbit island, I detoured to the fishing hut on my right.  Just a piece of tinder there.  Skirting the edge of the ice, I found a cattail stalk. 

On the way up to the cabin, I catch a rabbit for dinner.  After harvesting indoors, I get my campfire going.  The winds start coming in as my fire catches.  Luckily, I'm sheltered by the cabin.  After adding a piece of coal, I'm getting nice and warm for my rabbit and cattail dinner.  By now a blizzard is whipping up.  As I start making my 3rd can-full of water, the wind shifts and starts putting out the fire.

After sleeping until the storm passes, I set out for the Log sorting camp.  Setting out at night isn't the best idea to me, but I absolutely must find more food.

And there are the wolves.

Two small packs of two.  One to my left and one to my right.  A fishing hut lies in between.  I've made sure to have a lit torch handy as I carefully transit the gauntlet, in case I need to quickly light a fire, but I'm hoping to keep just out of range.  It worked well enough.   I did hear a bark as I reached the hut, but the wolf ran away when it got close.  I'm not sure if it was due to holding the torch, being inside the hut, or both.

Not wasting the opportunity, after a quick search of the hut, I set out for the next hut by the log sort.  No more wolves nearby but the cold is getting to me.  Once I reach the hut, I light a fire in the stove.  Warming up gives me time to craft some reishi, old man's beard, and rosehips.  I probably should have drank the tea, but I really wanted to reach one of the buildings. 

I made it to the trailer, but now I think I need to make a decision.  I could try to continue searching Coastal Highway for more supplies, move on to Mystery Lake, or move on to Pleasant Valley 

Quonset hut and the surrounding houses is tempting, but the wolves make it very risky.