A few Forlorn Interlopers: Attempting the “Keg Stand”…

[Gooner77]

I check in from time to time. Glad some fearless adventurers are picking up the metaphorical torch. as @Drifter Man said the new patch/DLC makes everything old new again. 

[conanjaguar]

Keg 7 / Day 3

I was going to go to Hat Creek today. Unfortunately, the wind blew out my torch, and a wolf ate me before I even reached the train tracks.

Keg 8 / Day 1

Same settings, same start, by the High Blind. I check it for a package of ketchup chips and a chunk of (guaranteed?) firewood before carefully picking my path across the treacherous ice. Thankfully I don’t fall through.

Coming up to Spence’s, I cannot believe my luck. No wolves are in sight. I sacrifice a bit of condition to grab some sticks and Reishi mushrooms and check the first aid kit for antiseptic. Useless, since any wolf struggle is going to be the end of our tale.

Inside Spence’s is fairly warm. I break all the crates inside and stuff the forge full of reclaimed wood to warm up while I boil water.

The weather outside is benevolent, with a flt of only -4C. I make the most of it by breaking the nearby scrub bushes in between water boiling.

This cycle of break, boil, boil dry, break, etc. etc. continues until late in the night. I top up the forge to 9 hours and sleep for 8 of that.

Keg 8 / Day 2

I decided to start writing notes in the in-game journal to help my memory.

I check the forge. Almost 5 hours left; it must have been really cold last night. I put tea on to cook and crack the safe for a jug of maple syrup (liquid gold 😋) and a can of gunpowder, which will probably be used as accelerant somewhere down the line. I am starting to miss the Mackinaw jacket that used to be in there…

I drink my tea, pull some torches, and set out. The weather is lovely, a flt of only -8C. I check the smaller outbuildings on my way to the train tracks, netting 6 pieces of coal and a bunch of cedar firewood. I am overencumbered with this booty (including cattails) by the time I reach the tracks. A salesman notices me, but I wave him off.

Reaching Poachers’ Camp, that place is an absolute treasure trove! Another half dozen chunks of coal, a storm lantern, some candy bars, a few books (including a fire starting book…. I’m debating sacrificing some calories to read that), and the usual flare.

I light up the fire barrel to boil some water and grab a few hours of sleep before continuing on my way. I left some emergency supplies behind at Poachers’, if I ever come back this way.

The sun is setting and the wind is rising when I awake. At first I am disoriented, but I quickly find the safe path across the ice to the shortwave tower. I run across a bear, and I sneak past him before reaching the home stretch of the Creek itself.

I am exhausted when I enter the cave, but I make it to the central chamber (noting the absence of the usual deer carcass), overburdened with a whopping 21 pieces of coal!!! I make a small fire and sleep an hour to save the session.

Ruminations:

A good start for Keg 8. I have tons of fuel and at least 10 days worth of food. After I eat settled, I will start gathering deer hides from any existing carcasses in preparation for making deer pants.

[Leeanda]

Sorry to hear keg 7 didn't make it....  Onwards and upwards 👍.   

That pinky purple sunset is beautiful 🙂

[Gooner77]

On 12/14/2022 at 1:19 PM, cullam said:

That was my first thought as well. Which means it's an all new adventure!

I jumped into two Day 1 Kegstands last night and could not find any matches either. If there are 2 or 3 random spots of memento cache, and both blinds then that is significantly less than before. Previous kegstanders regularly found 24 matches or even 36 with good rng. I would say the new world update kegstand should start with 12 matches but NO BEDROLL as bedroll was never an option before. This would put it almost on the same level, although there seems to be even fewer clothing pieces as well. 

[conanjaguar]

45 minutes ago, Gooner77 said:

I would say the new world update kegstand should start with 12 matches but NO BEDROLL as bedroll was never an option before. This would put it almost on the same level, although there seems to be even fewer clothing pieces as well. 

So… I already have the bedroll. What should I do with it? Harvest it and use the cloth to make snow shelters? Drop it out on thin ice?

I’m debating whether or not it will prove to be a life saving asset, or a stain on my honor, or both .

[CoffeeCup]

TLD must be a game made for irrepressible optimists. Who else would choose to die by wandering into a deceptively beautiful hell-scape, over and over again, thinking "But THIS time, who knows? I might even find some matches!" 

: )

[conanjaguar]

3 hours ago, CoffeeCup said:

TLD must be a game made for irrepressible optimists. Who else would choose to die by wandering into a deceptively beautiful hell-scape, over and over again, thinking "But THIS time, who knows? I might even find some matches!" 

: )

You nailed it on the head . This game dangles success in our faces and snatches it away, making us eager to do better.

[conanjaguar]

Keg 8 / Day 3

I spend all night harvesting the deer carcass that was hidden behind some stalagmites by a mischievous leprechaun. It is nearing dawn when I hit the hay.

I awake in the late afternoon and use my lantern to light the way to the Marsh Ridge exit. The weather is a bit nasty, but tolerable, and I decide not to waste the opportunity to grab sticks, birch bark, and rabbits.

As luck would have it, the flt rises to -2C just as my warmth meter runs out. But the effort was not wasted; I bagged all four bunnies, a dozen Reishi mushrooms, about 20 sticks, and 9 pieces of birch bark.

Short update to keep the thread going. Halfway through Day 5, things are looking a bit grim.

[Bloodywren]

-Short update to keep the thread going. Halfway through Day 5, things are looking a bit grim.

 

Just as I was getting invested. Excellent.

[conanjaguar]

@Bloodywren

Not to fear, if this Keg should die, one will eventually be victorious!

[Drifter Man]

10 hours ago, conanjaguar said:

I spend all night harvesting the deer carcass that was hidden behind some stalagmites by a mischievous leprechaun.

Interesting to see that this delayed carcass spawn trick still works on people... even on experienced kegstanders 

[conanjaguar]

Keg 8 / Day 4

I awake to the sounds of a blizzard, even through the stone walls of the cave. I decide to harvest my bounty of rabbits… in the inventory. Huge mistake, as I am used to harvesting rabbits from the ground. In doing so, I accidentally click on a piece of raw meat… and click again.

I stuff a morsel of the raw rabbit meat into my face and immediately contract food poisoning. I don’t have any Reishi teas prepared, (despite having a mother lode of them) but fortunately, I have a bottle of antibiotics that I looted from the abandoned campsite on the Ridge. I take two pills and sleep for 10 hours.

I awake in the middle of the night, dehydrated; I had no water on me and no time to boil more. I step outside (it’s a glorious and rare purple aurora, and I snap a few screenshots) to head to said abandoned campsite, where I use a precious accelerant to get the fire going. I boil water while lighting single-stick fires to level up my fire starting, cooking all the rabbit meat, and preparing birch bark tea. I need to get my condition up; it’s about 30% right now, so I eat all the meat.

I finally finish my efforts at dawn, and head back to the cave to save the session.

[conanjaguar]

Quick sneak peek:

Whew, left my campfire just in time! I was so busy harvesting that deer, I didn’t even see old Ivan creeping up behind me…

[conanjaguar]

Keg 8 / Day 5

I decide that it wouldn’t hurt to go and check out the shortwave tower. After all, I need a can opener if I don’t want to go thirsty. My torches are still lit, so I don’t have to use the lantern… and I leave it behind in the main chamber while I organize my gear. 

I gather up six more pieces of coal that have fallen out of the magical ceiling while I make the journey, eventually emerging from the waterfall side of the cave. The wind is kind; torching should be easy.

“Excuse me sir, would you be interested in-“ A wolf is quick to greet me as I approach the tower, but I wave him off with a rock as I make my way to the base of the tower to start a warmup fire. I am forced to use birch bark as tinder, since I have exhausted my supply of cattail heads and don’t have time to harvest sticks.

I check the dead guy’s pockets, and, indeed, the can opener has stayed with him through the worst of the update’s loot randomization. Overjoyed at this find, I realize that I don’t have my dog food with me. Ah well… such is life.

I keep the fire going for the rest of the afternoon while I harvest sticks from the surrounding area, until the wind begins to rise. I take my torch and stick to the protection of the cliff side, when the wind shifts and my torch blows out. No matter, I say to myself. I can easily find my way through the dark.

Fast forward 15 minutes and I’ve fallen off the side of the ramp that is separated from the main chamber by a maze of tunnels. I’ve sprained my wrist, so reloading the game isn’t an option.

After a few seconds debate, I light the flare and find my way to the main chamber. I don’t plan on being caught in a blizzard, anyway.

I light up the fire and pile on enough fuel to keep it burning all night, try to read a bit of the fire starting book, and go to sleep.

Dobranoc…

[AdamvR]

5 hours ago, conanjaguar said:

leave it behind in the main chamber

I’m almost never playing this difficulty, so not quite sure what’s the rationale behind not having the lantern with me at all times. Was it simply to save weight for sticks? Or sg else?

(genuinely curious)

Thanks for sharing your story! Love reading it!:)

Edited May 25, 2023 by AdamvR

[conanjaguar]

@AdamvR

I left the lantern behind out of carelessness, and I guess I was also overly confident . 

I’m not dropping it again…

Doing a bit of math, I go through the cave approximately twice every day, using about 0.05 L of fuel each time. I found the lantern with a full tank, and I think it’s at about 70% capacity.

I’m gonna have to start laying a trail to use in the dark. Since there’s a blizzard out, now’s the time to do it, I guess…

[Dr. S.]

This might not be an option for you given the constraints of your run, but you can pretty easily get from one end of that cave to the other without going through the cave itself. 

[conanjaguar]

47 minutes ago, Dr. S. said:

This might not be an option for you given the constraints of your run, but you can pretty easily get from one end of that cave to the other without going through the cave itself. 

By going out of the waterfall side, making the trek up to the low blind (or vise versa), and then up the rope again? That sounds like a lot of work…

Is there another way that I’m not aware of?

[conanjaguar]

Keg 8 / Day 7

Stick stockpile is looking a bit low. I leave 6 hours on the fire in case wind cuts the day’s work short and head out to Marsh Ridge. The flt outside is -15C, almost none of that due to windchill. I decide to deploy the climbing rope I’ve been lugging around for a couple of days, throw my torch down, and climb down.

I have never been here before. There are tons of scrub bushes, a nice place for an emergency camp, and I can see the Low Blind pretty close by. It has a deer carcass and a couple of cattails, so I light a fire (I was getting cold anyway) put tea on to cook, and check out the blind while the carcass is defrosting. I find a granola bar and an old Polaroid. If there are any more matches spawning this run, they must be at one of the abandoned campsites.

When I return, the carcass hasn’t quite thawed, so I break a scrub bush and return to it. Hm… only 1.2 kilos of meat, pretty skimpy if you ask me. Still… I take almost everything (leaving a gut) and take a short nap, awaking in time to deter a wolf’s charge, and then head back, since I am getting tired and don’t want to waste more fuel.

About halfway to the rope, I hear the wolf panic. I turn around… and there is a bear right on top of the deer. Good thing I left when I did! I don’t waste any more time getting to the rope and climbing for dear life. I time it just right; my fatigue is exhausted just as I reach the top. That was tense.

I sacrificed a few percentiles of condition to gather approximately 30 sticks from the Marsh Ridge area before heading back to the cave for the night.

[Dr. S.]

1 hour ago, conanjaguar said:

By going out of the waterfall side, making the trek up to the low blind (or vise versa), and then up the rope again? That sounds like a lot of work…

Is there another way that I’m not aware of?

If you’re on the waterfall side, just cross the creek and there is a snowbank you can walk up. 
 

From the marsh side, exit the cave and follow the rocks around to the left until you get to the creek. If you stick to the left all the way, you’ll go down the same snowbank. 

[conanjaguar]

@Dr. S.

I’ll try that, thanks!

[AdamvR]

Thanks for the explanation above! In the meantime I've also realized, that if you constrain yourself to FM, then refilling that lamp is out of the question - so rationing it to the last drop is absolutely warranted...:)

 

On 5/25/2023 at 9:21 PM, conanjaguar said:

throw my torch down

I'm not sure since when is this a thing, but we can climb with a lit torch both up and down. Of course, saving its weight still makes sense when climbing down (but at least my annoyance, that there often is an invisible wall around climbing areas, and I cannot throw my torch up, turned out - to me at least - to be completely unwarranted). It works both on rock climbing and rope climbing - maybe helpful for you/others as well:)

Edited May 27, 2023 by AdamvR

[conanjaguar]

13 hours ago, AdamvR said:

I'm not sure since when is this a thing, but we can climb with a lit torch both up and down.

It was around since before TFTF… which is why I threw the torch down . It seemed like an exploit that was going to be fixed sooner or later, and I was paranoid, since I haven’t tried it after the update.

Edited May 27, 2023 by conanjaguar

[Pencil]

This has inspired me to try my first Keg Stand run. With today's birch bark tea and a potential FM bunker, this challenge sounds a lot more interesting. Good luck on your run!

[conanjaguar]

2 hours ago, Pencil said:

This has inspired me to try my first Keg Stand run. With today's birch bark tea and a potential FM bunker, this challenge sounds a lot more interesting. Good luck on your run!

Thanks, and good luck to you as well! You’ll need it .

(There’s no shame in starting with a bedroll if you need it .)

Edited May 29, 2023 by conanjaguar