What region is best for living in?

[Glflegolas]

A few weeks ago, I decided to write a blog post on the wiki in which I discuss the pros and cons of living in each region as a long-term base.

One thing you won't find there, however, is any advice from me regarding where to live -- and that's because there is no fact-based, unbiased answer to that question. The only thing you can get, whether on the forum or any other website, is someone's opinion, and my goal with the blog post was to help you make your opinion.

My opinion:

Ash Canyon is a beautiful region to explore. If only it weren't so cold, I would seriously consider living there for a long time. I personally prefer to use it more as a vacation destination, rather than a place to live.

Bleak Inlet: No thanks. I don't want to spend my days constantly dodging timberwolves and fighting to walk into gale-force winds. It's alright to stay in for a few days to make ammo, but that's about it.

Broken Railroad isn't a terrible region to live in IMO. You do want to have a weapon though, otherwise getting past wolves in the map's chokepoints becomes a real pain real fast. It's also a little bit on the small side for my liking, though having the Maintenance Shed as a workshop and living in the Hunting Lodge is pretty nice, not going to lie.

Coastal Highway is possibly my favourite map for long term living. Lots of shelter everywhere to duck into if the weather turns south, beachcombing outside your doorstep, abundant ice fishing, and beautiful ocean views from the nearby hills. As long as the weather's nice, I don't find the wolves hard to avoid on the ice. One word of caution; I do not recommend using the Quonset as a base, especially in Interloper, as I don't like a base where I'm always dodging wolves. Jackrabbit Island is much safer and has lots of rabbits outside it. Besides, living on an island? Pretty cool stuff, IMO.

Crumbing Highway is simply too small and lacking in resources, I think. Also too many wolves that are hard to avoid. Why live there when I could enjoy life a lot more in Coastal Highway or Desolation Point?

Desolation Point: An OK region for me. There's lots of shelter, and having the forge in the Riken is very convenient. The view from the lighthouse is second to none too.... if you can avoid the wolves on the way there! The real reason I don't live here for too long is because it's a little small, and the game population is a bit limited. If there were fishing it might offset that a bit, but, as it is, I prefer to stay there for a few days when forging/crafting, and live somewhere else.

Forlorn Muskeg is no fun to me. It's all well and good if the weather's clear and you can see predators from a mile away, but when the fog moves in? Not cool. Blizzards are even worse; there's no better region to get completely turned around, especially when a route you thought was good turned out to be unusable due to weak ice. I prefer to stay here only long enough to forge.

Hushed River Valley is one of my favourite maps. Navigating it isn't easy the first time, but once you know it, you pretty much know exactly where you're at at any time. There are caves everywhere, game and natural resources are both plentiful, and if you play your cards right, you can almost completely avoid wolves. Just don't forget your bedroll, you will definitely need that. All in all, I have a hard time deciding whether I prefer the Hushed River Valley or Coastal Highway for living in long-term.

I do enjoy Mountain Town for gearing up early in the game, but living there is another matter. It just seems a little too...urban? Wolves are also a little more common than I would prefer.

Mystery Lake is an excellent region for living in long-term. In fact, its biggest disadvantage is that it might be too good, and I find living there for any length of time to be a bit boring. Still, I enjoy staying there for a few days for some R&R on my trips across Great Bear.

Pleasant Valley really isn't too pleasant or unpleasant. I do find the unpredictable weather rather annoying, especially given the featureless fields. On the flipside, though, there's a ton of gear at the plane crash, and those open fields do make predators easy to see in clear weather. The farmstead is one of the best houses to live in, as it's big, yet cozy at the same time. Overall, it's likely my third favourite region for living in.

The Ravine is really safe, but a little small. It's more suitable as a hunting ground, especially when living in the trailers outside Carter Hydro Dam.

Timberwolf Mountain has a ton of loot, and plenty of caves to sleep in. Its main weakness is that it's a bit on the cold side for me, and that the Mountaineer's Hut doesn't count as a full interior location. Most of the time, that doesn't matter, but a full indoor location is rather nice when sleeping, otherwise I'm concerned about unusually cold blizzard setting in just before dawn and my character not waking up ever again.

Winding River is too darn small. There's a wolf to hunt, and a few rabbits.... and that's about it. Sure Carter makes a massive base, but it's so dark that you can't really navigate it without a light source. Do not recommend living here.

[manolitode]

Really enjoyed reading your opinions  My five cents:

HRV, CH and PV are some of my favorites too and I'm still quite fond of ML. Time hasn't changed that and my main base remains the Dam. Such a great hub at the center of the world, unbeatable storage and every now and then a wolf chase me through the fence and I get to scream like a child.

The Quonset wolves are a nuisance indeed. It's not my choice for a longterm base but access to meat is irresistibly great. I've found that my general pulse on mornings in the yard is much lower when I've cleansed the wolf inhabitants beforehand. I go out on the ice with full health and a few smell bars, lure the wolves out and put a couple of arrows in their furry skulls. 

I'm torn about the Hunting Lodge in BR. Used to think it was great and would still if there were more activities around and if it wasn't in the outer periphery of the world. Nothing new under the sun there. However, I'm a huge fan of the outdoors bedroom at the Maintenance shed and the fact that you can make a windsafe campfire there with an abundance of crates around. No cabin fever risk whatsoever. 

[Glflegolas]

5 hours ago, manolitode said:

Really enjoyed reading your opinions  My five cents:

HRV, CH and PV are some of my favorites too and I'm still quite fond of ML. Time hasn't changed that and my main base remains the Dam. Such a great hub at the center of the world, unbeatable storage and every now and then a wolf chase me through the fence and I get to scream like a child.

The Quonset wolves are a nuisance indeed. It's not my choice for a longterm base but access to meat is irresistibly great. I've found that my general pulse on mornings in the yard is much lower when I've cleansed the wolf inhabitants beforehand. I go out on the ice with full health and a few smell bars, lure the wolves out and put a couple of arrows in their furry skulls. 

I'm torn about the Hunting Lodge in BR. Used to think it was great and would still if there were more activities around and if it wasn't in the outer periphery of the world. Nothing new under the sun there. However, I'm a huge fan of the outdoors bedroom at the Maintenance shed and the fact that you can make a windsafe campfire there with an abundance of crates around. No cabin fever risk whatsoever. 

The Quonset wolves are only useful once you reach level 5 cooking. Otherwise the wolf meat is simply too risky to eat on a regular basis. The same can be said for the wolves near the Hunting Lodge though... unless you get lucky with the moose spawning nearby that is.

[manolitode]

6 hours ago, Glflegolas said:

The Quonset wolves are only useful once you reach level 5 cooking. 

No question. And below max cap cooking the wolves at quonset are quite useful being dead since it means you can walk back and forth carrying an overload of fish. At least if you've slain the bear showing up on the garage threshold inviting to headshot.

[Lord of the Long Dark]

It’s not even a debate. In interloper it’s CH because of the beachcombing and nearby unlimited coal resources. It’s the only region where you not only  will never run out of resources, but you have the greatest proximity to them.  Plus you have the forge just one zone away.  
 I have several 1000+ day interloper characters and a 300 day ATDS character and each of them has “retired” at CH and have so much meat, coal, wood, cloth and hides that I wouldn’t have to hunt for months 

Edited October 3, 2021 by Lord of the Long Dark

[peteloud]

5 hours ago, Lord of the Long Dark said:

 I have several 1000+ day interloper characters . . . .

How many hours of play does it take for a 1,000 day game?

[sierra 117]

I would agree with most of your points.

  Each place has its pros and cons, but eventually you find yourself lacking something or feeling too hemmed in, giving you the urge to move on , to leave your comfort  zone and push on into the wilds . 

Personally this is one of the things I find gives the game great balance.

I also like that you included transition zones also 

However I think you missed an area which even I had overlooked until recently , I am considering making  the Milton basin/Marsh ridge in FM  as a combined living area for my next interloper survivor.

Would like to hear if anyone else has stayed there short / long term on loper?

[Lord of the Long Dark]

12 hours ago, peteloud said:

How many hours of play does it take for a 1,000 day game?

Around 150-200. I have been playing since it first came out. Probably have 2000+ hours invested almost entirely in interloper (I went from voyager right to interloper). 

[straffin]

13 hours ago, sierra 117 said:

I am considering making  the Milton basin/Marsh ridge in FM  as a combined living area for my next interloper survivor.

No predators on the Marsh Ridge side, only a few (2? 3?) easily viewable wolves on the Milton Basin side. Plenty of snarable rabbits on both sides along with dear and a chance for a moose in the basin. Ready access to Broken Railroad for a better forge experience than the other side of the Muskeg. Plenty of coal from the Ridge transition tunnel.

Sounds like a winner to me!