Sleeping bears are absolute units

[Varying Neutrals]

This is really confusing and I really mean it.

I get that I don't understand everything about this game. However my mind can't grasp how a bear can tank more than 4 shots of a hunting rifle at master level.

To give you some context, I was in Ash Canyon up north of Miner's Folly (the bear choke point) on a clear day. The bear was just making travel around the place impossible, so I shot the bear with my bow and started tracking it. 

I found it sleeping then shot another few times with my revolver because I had encountered a sleeping bear before and knew it would "stronger". After I what I thought to be a death animation I went near it to harvest it but turns out it was just sleeping and almost mauled me to death.

I don't remember how many times I shot it after that but I remember I was pretty upset at the amount of ammunition I used for just one bear. 

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Long story short, can someone tell me why bears become near invincible when they start sleeping? Is there is a way to counteract the immunity they gain to damage or at least wake them up?

 

Thank you in advance for spending some of your time reading and possibly responding.

[hozz1235]

If you've shot it, and you see a blood trail, just give it some time and it will bleed out all on it's own (sometimes in it's lair).

[UTC-10]

The bears do not become invincible but you have to understand the animal model used in the game.  Critical hits kill on the spot but bleeding wounds take time before the animal dies of blood loss.  There are also trivial wounds which don't do anything but can be hard to distinguish from actual meaningful wounds (excepting critical hits since the animal dies right away). 

A bear, nominally sleeping on the snow, has two postures.  One when it is merely sleeping and another when it is actually dead.  Shoot a bear and it will get up and, if it was sleeping, it will tend to go back to sleep (but that's in Pilgrim, YMMV).  

Sleeping bears, in some unlikely spot, has been a thing for a while.  All one can do is be careful. 

Might find this post I made helpful: 

It is in the survival mode forum about February 18.  In case the url does not come through. 

Note that when sleeping the bear's paw covers its snout and when it is dead the paw is not. 

Edited August 8, 2021 by UTC-10
Make other post a link.

[Leeanda]

You can even hear it quietly snoring sometimes too!