I enjoyed Last Horizon very much

[ChillPlayer]

The spoiler tag is there for a reason, don't continue to read if you want to explore on your own

After Buried Echo I left my Stalker survivor at Boss's Settlement, which it turned out, was the perfect starting location. I cooked up some food I haven't bothered with before and went  across the chemical pit towards the transition cave to the Airfield, which now also connects to the newly added region, Sundered Pass. I said it in a different thread already but Hinterland outdid themselfs with that cave design, it's the best in the whole game. The part with the frozen cave lake and water pillar is just awesome, especially when you hear Fluffy's sister howling. Sadly I had to dispatch her quickly, ingest her spirit and continue upwards.

I already knew to go left when I entered Sunderes Pass to reach the Weather Station, so I went there and picked up the first Polaroid. Next, I went back towards the transition cave and climbed down the rope to reach the Last Lonely House and pick up the next Photo. My original plan was to climb back up the mountain but then I remembered from my Pilgrim run the Packs of Timberwolves plus Bear roaming the region if you turn right after the Perilious Crossing rope bridge, so I decided against that plan and made my way through the forest towards the road.

Fortunately I didn't encounter any Timberwolves, just one wolf high above me (which I shot, just to be sure) and not too long I noticed a cave. I entered it and recognized it immediately, it's the T shaped cave and when you go straight you end up above Lotte's Rest. Down the road, one more wolf to kill and eat, warm up, rest and onward to Placid Notch.

As expected, a good 3-400m away from Cabin B was the first pack of I think 6 Timberwolves. I noticed a rock with a ledge on which I can climb on, got the attention of the pack by running towards it, ran back and up on the rock. They couldn't reach me there and I succeded to kill two and wound two more, thread-meter gone.

After warming up and resting inside the Cabin I was really hungry. I stepped out and thought I have to repeat the hunt but the remainder of the pack was gone. Dare I harvest the wolf 200m away from my cabin, should I waste some coal? Sure I do and sure I won't. I harvested 2kg and ran back as fast as possible, expecting the feared howling of the pack, but nothing happened. So I went back and harvested the other 2kg and lit a fire safely by the cabin.

Alright, with the pack gone I thought it's safe enough to make my way to the building with the broken window. On the ledge under the window my heart sunk, 300m away was another pack, this time with 6 Timberwolves at least. They didn't notice me though, so I went inside and waited for an aurora. When none came I harvested another Timberwolf I've wounded the day before and made some barbecue on the ledge under the window. Then the aurora came.

The pack was still in the vicinity and I was unsure if the devs are so nasty to let them attack me when I follow the signal - of course they are (btw, aurora Timberwolves look really cool). So I sprinted back on the ledge and luckily they couldn't reach me there. I repeated what I've done with the previous pack, two died instantly, two a bit later and the road was clear to pick up the next clue.

I feared the next part because I knew that there's a bear near Cabin C plus another pack. On my way towards Cabin C the bear was there as expected but the pack was behind the fishing hut on Ambler's Lake. I figured, my way is across the lake and I can skip Cabin C, probably missing a (non-tales) Polaroid but to heck with it, I'm here for Rüdiger right now. And that's where I went, or rather, ran for my life towards the fishing hut. While sprinting the Pack began howling but I just made it inside the fishing hut. From there they were an easy target, I killed all but one, cooked some meat and prepared for the climbing section.

On my way towards the rope the last Timberwolf kept running away from me when he saw me, so I crouched, waited and send him to his brothers with a bullet from my rifle. The following climbing section was a welcomed change from the action of the previous days. I found every section easy to climb with Crampons, I'm not even sure I've needed them. I picked up the next clue on the High Plateau, climbed down on the other side with the rope I found conveniently placed near by, and felt utter joy when I realized that I've come back to the road above Lotte's Rest. No more Timberwolves, just a stroll in the park under the beautiful Canadian sun, towards Transfer Pass and through to the Airfield, passing my favorite spot in the DLC, Justy's Hovel, and down the Omega Bunker once again.

What a journey this was, I absolutely love how the clues brought me full circle around all of Sundered Pass, below and up. I've visited all locations worth visiting (except for Cabin C) and I even enjoyed the encounters with the Timberwolves. For once I didn't care about bullets (I had over 60) and traded it kinda like an action game. Still trying to stay safe of course but I took more risks than I usually would and wasted more bullets than I normally like. But I picked up all the casings and can always go to Black Rock Montain should I need more.

TL;DR: well done Devs @Hinterland, this was the best Tales Part by far and an experience I won't forget!

 

Edited July 1 by ChillPlayer

[Hazelnut]

Thanks for sharing your story, I had to wait until I'd finished due to spoilers before reading it though. I would agree that Sundered Pass was absolutely fantastic to experience. A real tough test, and best new region of the DLC... for me each one was progressively better than the last. (not that any were bad, they were all good)