Let there be a sign of when you hit the target.

[Amateur Bushcrafter]

I've wasted easily seven bullets on a wolf that only bailed every time, as far i know i missed all the times, leaving me with a fragile confidence of shooting. Perhaps i hit every time? Is it bleeding to death? Is that a game mechanic included in the game at all? How do i know? I don't see any blood trails and they run so far away!

Please make a flash of red or anything, a sign of you hitting the target with your bullets in the future, because i'm honestly finding it to randomly working since the bear especially takes several hits to the face. What is this? Did i only acquire plastic bullets?!

[Odinn]

Emmm, maybe the blood on the snow? You don't see any blood trails which leads me to conclusion that you are a bad shooter....or unlucky one. What more do you need? It would interfere with realism of the game, having to much game mechanics, blood on the snow is enough, if he bails and you go to the place where he stood and you see no blood in the area...you missed. One thing I would recommend though is to make a bigger blood stain on the snow from the bullet hit. Jut from the first impact, later when you see only drops its normal, it is just dripping now flowing but from the first shot there should be more.

[ChillPlayer]

The OPs request is a valid one when it comes to bears. When you shoot it from a safe spot you don't actually see if it's bleeding. Sometimes it flinches when it's hit but not always, all you can do is forage wood for an hour and see if he dropped.

With wolves though it's easy, when you shoot he either runs away or fights you. When he ran away check for a blood trail. If there isn't any, you didn't hit. If he fights instead of running away, you see it by observing how many HP the wolf had when the fight started. When it was at 100%, you missed, when it was somewhere around 30%, you hit.

[Odinn]

Then just add a blood spat after the bear is shot even if it manages to survive, let's keep this realistic.

[Amateur Bushcrafter]

Then just add a blood spat after the bear is shot even if it manages to survive, let's keep this realistic.

I would love a blood stain to guide me to the prey and actually tell me if i were worthy the rifle and it me taking care of it or not. As for the realistic part, that would be that the animals actually scream when hit, there are no official screaming gestures in this game in regard to getting shot, only when discovered combined with that; Attacking. As for game mechanics, the more respected and lovable game ergo better, and better is better than good, it would only be a realistic game with few mechanics if it was a board game but its not is it?

[Majales]

The blood of a deer can stay in the chest cavity, so no blood or very little blood around is possible.

Normally, when you hit a deer in the game and the hit isn't kill, then the deer starts running away and you can see clear blood trail. If you miss, then there is nothing on the spot, where the deer was. I think, that condition of your rifle can have influence on the precision.

[ThaFool]

I do agree the shooting mechanic is currently a bit wonky, but you're really trying to solve a symptom of the issue by giving a 'blood spray' when you hit an animal, not addressing the root cause. There really should be a way for people to learn by trial and error how to shoot the weapon, and/or a way to see where their bullets are going.

Perhaps...

- Include a target somewhere near the beginning where bullet impacts register so that people can see where their rounds are hitting in relation to where they are aiming.

- Another simple aid may be something like having bullet trails (think the matrix) when you are playing in pilgrim so that you could learn that way too.

- You could even get more technical and let people zero or adjust the sights for wind and distance - that could play as a factor when shooting in blizzards or from height.

How the rifle works ultimately depends on how real they want to make it though, and how involved they want a weapon to be in the survival scenarios. Right now it's not very intuitive for someone who's used rifles because the bullets don't seem to go where the sights are saying they should, but again that's assuming they want the sights to be realistic. Maybe it's like that intentionally.

Perhaps a system where you could get shooting skill points similar to fire making could be used to improve your aim over time, which would more accurately simulate a real situation. For long time players especially,who may kind of be on cruise control, having to master the rifle would add an interesting element to the game. They'd have to break their routines to go look for more ammo, etc., or game could become scarce and/or more skiddish, so that you'd have to take shots from further away - something to bring back the urgency and intensity you feel when you first started playing.

I'm hoping that since the shooting mechanic seems like it will be fairly prominent, or at least highly used/liked by players, they will give it some more features and make it more robust.

[The_Hawk35]

As a hunter I can tell you that there isn't usually any sign that you have hit an animal other than it's reaction. It's pretty unusual to get a visible blood spray with anything other than a slug.

[UnlikelyGibbon]

Hawk,

I would guess that really large animals like bears might not do this very much but, in your experience, do most animals--like deer, for example--at least stagger a bit before they try to run off? Or would that primarily depend on where the shot landed?

Thanks,

--Gibbon

[The_Hawk35]

I've shot both White tail and smaller black tailed deer with buckshot, slug, and rifle. In none of these cases can you see them stagger noticeably. Part of the reason is that you're sighting is still obscured by recoil in the fraction of an instant that they would stagger. Additionally the flight mechanism for deer is an automatic reaction so the jump/run is pretty much at the same time they are hit.

They run and will keep running unless dropped immediately adrenalin really keeps them moving. I've actually had a deer turn at the last min and I wound up literally gutting him (the gut pile was there steaming when I started tracking) and he STILL ran 1/4 mile. I watched him fall when I got to where he had paused.

Edit: Also with buckshot there is almost never a blood trail, the fat layer closes off the external blood flow. Slugs will almost always leave a trail, and rife will usually leave a very small blood trail unless he shot has and exit wound.

[UnlikelyGibbon]

Hawk,

Ah, okay, thanks. I had thought a bit about the adrenaline issue and assumed that it might allow an animal to get out of the immediate area even with some pretty extreme trauma--as you've certainly described!

Anyway, everything you've said makes sense and I appreciate the response.

Thanks,

-Gibbon

[toebar]

Excellent info.

I think for gameplay, having a bloodtrail once the animal is hit is fair. In game I find I'm always running up to where I shot the animal to look for this as confirmation of a hit. And I'm alright if that's the only confirmation.

This is a good reason for animal tracks to be a bit more persistent-- so you can tell you're at the right spot to look for blood.

[Amateur Bushcrafter]

Excellent info.

I think for gameplay, having a bloodtrail once the animal is hit is fair. In game I find I'm always running up to where I shot the animal to look for this as confirmation of a hit. And I'm alright if that's the only confirmation.

This is a good reason for animal tracks to be a bit more persistent-- so you can tell you're at the right spot to look for blood.

Agreed, tracks would be the fair addition to the minor blood trails.

I've shot both White tail and smaller black tailed deer with buckshot, slug, and rifle. In none of these cases can you see them stagger noticeably. Part of the reason is that you're sighting is still obscured by recoil in the fraction of an instant that they would stagger. Additionally the flight mechanism for deer is an automatic reaction so the jump/run is pretty much at the same time they are hit.

They run and will keep running unless dropped immediately adrenalin really keeps them moving. I've actually had a deer turn at the last min and I wound up literally gutting him (the gut pile was there steaming when I started tracking) and he STILL ran 1/4 mile. I watched him fall when I got to where he had paused.

Edit: Also with buckshot there is almost never a blood trail, the fat layer closes off the external blood flow. Slugs will almost always leave a trail, and rife will usually leave a very small blood trail unless he shot has and exit wound.

Well, i'm sold! I'm no hunter but wish to become one, so i appreciate this fine addition of details, thank you.

[The_Hawk35]

I agree that the tracks would be quite visible. In snow deer leave very easily followed tracks. (Although most folks follow them backwards)

When a deer is running scared the tracks are even more easily followed, but they are quite a bit further apart as they are kinda jumping through snow.