What's your scariest bear encounter

[Cyclone35]

There have been moments in the game where you most likely got jumpscared by a bear encounter. Whether the bear started charging at you, or he appeared when you least expected it, I want to hear some of your stories during your playthrough.

I'll Start: I was going to make my way to Timberwolf mountain, but I needed to climb a rope to get there. So I rested in the nearby bunker and readied myself. Unfortunately, it was the middle of the night, and there was a blizzard. But I didn't want to wait around any longer, I figured I could make it to shelter by the lake in that region. So I climbed the rope, and got moving through the blizzard. The cold was catching up to me, so I found some cover and got a fire going, enough to keep me warm for 2-3 hours. I used my bedroll to rest near the fire to recover some lost fatigue and warm up a bit. However, the wind decided to change directions, so my fire blew out and I had to keep moving before I freeze. I picked up any sticks I found and looked for another place to get a fire going. I was lucky and was able to get a 2nd fire going. Once again I rested for only 1 hour. But when I wake up, my fire was once again being blown out by the wind. I kept moving, ended up walking past the lake where I was suppose to take shelter and ended up on a hill with 2 trees. The blizzard hasn't stopped, by guy was tired and freezing, I had no choice but to use the hill as cover and try to rest for 1 more hour. But when I woke up, there was the bear right in front of me. I literally jumped out of my seat when I heard/saw it. Luckily, the bear didn't attack me, it got scared and ran away. It took me a few moments to calm myself and view my surroundings. The blizzard stopped, but it was still dark out and was snowing. But it was just visible enough for me to see the hut in the distance. 

That's my story. Feel free to share your stories below.

[TonyInPleasantValley]

Too many to count, lol! Most of the time I hear them before I see them, which can literally cause you to jump out of your skin...especially with some of the music in TLD. First time I played game, it dropped me near Skeeter's Ridge. Was able to get into the cellar and spend the night. Lucky, or so I thought. Next day, pop up out of the cellar start walking in the direction of the TWM climb (I had no idea then as I knew nothing about the map) and up comes the bear and chases me back into the cellar. Eventually worked my way past him and into PV. Many close calls and a few maulings in PV, one particular one was a huge surprise as I walked around a ridge and face to face with a bear. Walked around a corner at night on TWM as I made my way to the last climb up to the wreck...as I turned the corner to the rope area and aurora bear came out of nowhere. About messed my pants! SOMEHOW he did not see me and I was able to hide. Over time I have learned where the bears journey so I am not as often surprised, except for new sections of the map like the other night in ZoC. See my post from the other day, but basically I saw an aurora bear, he got scared, started running like a madman, and when he went way left, I head down and right...into the paws of a big 'ol bear that mauled the heck out of me.

[artmunki]

  Already posted mine in another thread...

On 11/15/2023 at 1:15 PM, artmunki said:

I'd just arrived in HRV, for the first time in that run, and I was doing my usual arrival task of clearing out a few wolves near the cave I use as my main base there, before I drop a coupla deer to start establishing the base camp. An extra wolf had spawned behind the cave and I dealt with it easily enough, but I was losing light by the time I harvested it and the weather had suddenly grown belligerent, so I sorta hugged close to the cliff wall and quickly made my way back to base.

I rounded the last tree closest to the cave and found myself almost literally face to face with a bear, barely more than a body-length away, and apparently almost as surprised as me. Clearly the scent of the two wolf carcasses I'd already dragged back to the cave, and the third I was carrying, had been enough to catch its attention and draw it out of its usual patrol territory, and the blustering wind had made it impossible for me to hear its approach. It reared up immediately, roaring furiously at me and giving me just enough time to deploy and draw my bow, and as soon as it dropped to all fours I was able to score the single luckiest critical shot to the face in my entire TLD experience, dropping it right at my (invisible) feet.

Sure, my base cave was very well set up with a healthy meat pile just a day after arriving, but it took that whole day of harvesting and cooking my spoils for my RL body to recover from the massive adrenaline dump I got from the encounter. I've never experienced anything even close to that from any other game. That's immersion.

 

[TFA303]

Last thing I saw....

Wandering out in HRV during the aurora with the shortwave transceiver, looking for a cache.

Survived two wolf attacks, then  got cornered by the bear in the river canyon - he mauled me three times and I ran out of bandages. Another stalker lost in the Long Dark...

[dahemac]

I was very new and I was tentatively exploring the rail line through Forlorn Muskeg. A wolf started following me. Back then that really freaked me out. I was making my way around the boxcar you can get up in as the wolf was closing, so I took my shot. I don’t remember if I hit the wolf. I have a feeling it ran off. I was so relieved. And I turned around…

The bear was coming around the end of the boxcar I was standing next to. On the north (?) side, where I could not go into the boxcar. And I just panic fired the rifle and that was the first time I ever one-shotted a bear. I mean it was likely, cause its head was already right in front of me.

I suspect that I screamed. I definitely jumped. It took me some time to recover.

On another occasion I chose a bad place to put down a bedroll and sleep, and was actually woken up by being mauled. That was a surprise.

Most of my other bear “encounters” were run into bear, foolishly not immediately flee. Get mauled.

Nowadays I really try to avoid bears. I stop and listen for them all the time. Which slows me down. The only time I want to engage a bear is when I can be sure to hunt him while he cannot get me. Like lure it into a killing zone. So much meat.

[twyn1]

** I pretty much play on Pilgrim because I am not big on stress/attacks/kill or be killed -- but I totally get those who choose to play other levels. **

One of the few times I was playing on a higher level (it may have been a challenge where Pilgrim was not an option), I was in Coastal Highway, looting the various houses behind the Quonset Garage. I spent the night in one of the houses (the one with a Canadian flag) and headed out after a good night's sleep and breakfast...

Walked out the front door and stepped over a snow bank to find myself literally in the jaws of a passing bear ... absolutely no time to react in defense or to run away... got a good mauling (enduring the horrible cut scene, where I can almost smell the nasty breath of my Ursine attacker) -- lost my precious ear wrap and almost my toque, but managed to struggle back into the house to repair the damages and rest. 

I still cringe every time I leave that same house on Pilgrim, even tho' I know I don't need to worry about the bear if he happens to be passing,

[dahemac]

The garage in Coastal Highway is one of the best places to hunt bear. Crouch next to a car door until they are close. Shoot, then immediately enter the car. Even if they charge, you can mess your drawers inside the car where it is safe.

That said, such hunting is very tense.

[sohosid6]

I hear them before I see them too and it makes me jump.

 

 

_{Mini Militia App Lock}

[dahemac]

On 1/21/2024 at 11:33 AM, sohosid6 said:

I hear them before I see them too and it makes me jump.

 

 

_{Mini Militia App Lock}

It is a nightmare sound.

[ManicManiac]

On 6/13/2022 at 7:33 AM, ManicManiac said:

While it wasn't my first encounter with a bear... it was one of my earlier encounters and most memorable.

I was hunting the bear that liked to stalk through Hibernia on Desolation Point:

• I let it get to close; it started to charge
• My shot was panicked and failed to bring it down
• I back peddled to try and get another shot... heard ice cracking under my feet.
• Got mauled...
• Fell through the weak ice immediately after... pulled myself out (of course soaking wet and hypothermic)
• Got mauled again, before I could even stumble away...
• Very promptly died.   

Never made those mistakes again.

[Third Try]

I was in coastal highway I think, over by a fishing hut on Stalker difficulty, see a wolf, no torches, one rifle bullet.  I use it, it drops dead and I go over and harvest it.  When I'm done I look up and there is a bear at the fishing hut, rearing on its hind legs.  My heart immediately spikes to about 2000 bpm and I fumble around, hold my flare gun with my single shell and fire as it charges at me.  The shot hits it in the head and it drops at a steps length.

  My little sister had been watching me and we both had to pause the game and breath for a moment, lol.

[acada]

I havent got mauled for a long time. Bears are big and easy to avoid untill one want to hunt them. Recently I developed a revolver hunting method, where one place revolver bullet into bear head while sitting on bear not accessible point and then wait till the bear demise. It was working well. But it seems like bears learned how to climb a tree. Here I was. sitting on the tree on FM. I aimed and shot bear from revolver. I expected bear cry and running off. Bear was crying and running. Suddenly I thought "Why it is running to the tree root?" And second thought was. "OH MY, I dont have time to switch to flare gun, I will try my luck with hip shot". Well it costed me 60% of health and 50% of outer layer garment. Pilot jacket and hat was the main pain, because leather does not grow on trees.

[dahemac]

On 1/29/2024 at 4:55 AM, acada said:

 leather does not grow on trees.

You can salvage leather from satchels. You can make satchels from moose hide. It would make sense if you could just make a bunch of leather from moose hide. Since it is a central game mechanic to harvest and cure skins, which is a big part of making leather, I don’t really understand why we can’t make leather. Like I can use cured hide to make leather items, which means I made leather, but I cannot just make the leather and put it in storage for later. Makes no sense.

[hozz1235]

Pffftt...bears don't scare me!

[Semple Fi]

The scariest encounter was the first encounter.  Started TLD playing Wintermute before Survival, so the first time I met the bear was…. Intense. 

[jhickie]

This happened a while ago, but I almost wet myself when it happened lol

 

[dahemac]

Great bear hunting location.

[Leeanda]

It  is .. he's my go to  bear..   I wish he'd come back..it's very quiet in PV without bears 

[dahemac]

On 2/15/2024 at 2:31 AM, Leeanda said:

It  is .. he's my go to  bear..   I wish he'd come back..it's very quiet in PV without bears 

And there are so many trunks to store him in.

 

[Leeanda]

1 minute ago, dahemac said:

And there are so many trunks to store him in.

 

True on harder levels but I'm on pilgrim so my  cupboards are full of loot still, but I have a huge circle of his meat round the firepit outside😁

[ajb1978]

So I used to hit the whisky pretty hard, and one night while two, maybe three full sheets to the wind I was doing something in DP. WRROOOOWWWLL That stupid bear somehow snuck up on me, while directly ahead of me at 12:00, as I was looking right at it. I somehow had the presence of mind to shake off the stupid, bust out the flare pistol, and panic-fire the single round I carry for that exact situation. But I'll never forget that one.

[dahemac]

2 hours ago, Leeanda said:

True on harder levels but I'm on pilgrim so my  cupboards are full of loot still, but I have a huge circle of his meat round the firepit outside😁

Be careful what you summon with a bear meat circle around a lit fire pit under the stars.

[Leeanda]

5 hours ago, dahemac said:

Be careful what you summon with a bear meat circle around a lit fire pit under the stars.

😁.   It's PV,stars are far and few between lol..     actually it's not just bear.... It's a big circle😅

[dahemac]

21 hours ago, Leeanda said:

😁.   It's PV,stars are far and few between lol..     actually it's not just bear.... It's a big circle😅

Stormy weather, even more macabre. You know that resulting summoned “creature” will be an unnatural combination of all the kinds of meat in the ritual circle!

[Leeanda]

2 hours ago, dahemac said:

Stormy weather, even more macabre. You know that resulting summoned “creature” will be an unnatural combination of all the kinds of meat in the ritual circle!

The DARKMEATEATER.  lol...