Fire and damage resistance

[EternityTide]

Not a major thing, but I thought perhaps your clothing should have an effect on the severity of wolf/bear attacks and burns.

Thicker clothing (like the mariner's pea coat and the canvas cargo trousers) is more resistant to tearing, and holds up better against fire. I have an old donkey jacket which is highly resilient to claws and teeth (as my dogs and cats have demonstrated numerous times). Thicker natural cloth also is more fireproof.

Thin synthetic materials allow for claws an teeth to slice through with ease, and exposure to naked flames usually results in a boiling napalm-like substance coating your arm where your polyester sleeve used to be.

Just an idea.

[AmericanSteel]

I don't think our current clothing choices would offer much protection. Deer skin is not all that thick. Never actually felt the pelt of a skinned wolf, but I have felt dog, coyote and fox. They are not really all that thick either. I have felt bear skin and buffalo, with bear being thicker but buffalo being REALLY thick.

If a wolf jumps you, the wounds are going to be to the limbs and the throat. While the piercing/tearing wounds might not be as bad with a thicker hide coat the crushing damage is going to be the same. Again, the swipes from a bear's claws are going to be bit lessened but once they start ripping and tearing it is not going to matter.

If you wanted to wrap a belt or two around your secondary arm to offer a wolf so you could stab them, I could see lesser damage. Having worn the big protective suit and rubber arm guard for K-9 training in the Army, there could be some limited defenses. However, once a large animal starts swinging back and forth after a bite take hold it is going to bad. It is not like a bite and release, bite and release. Once they have a good bite of meat they are not going to let go. Unless they can get a better bite in a better location (the throat). Bears just rip into people like they so salmon.

While I would like some other opportunity before we get into the stabby, stabby mini game with the wolf I think the combat from there on in is fine. Unfortunately our advantage with fighting a wolf extends into range combat only. If the wolf can get you down it is not going to be good as they have the advantage now. For a bear, I am glad the devs let us live.

[EternityTide]

I suspect that the Mariner's pea coat has something similar to the old police trench coats in London, which had high thick collars to prevent garrotting. I reckon this would provide a small amount of protection from the animal's teeth, but as you say, crushing damage is unavoidable.

[bethany]

I suspect that the Mariner's pea coat has something similar to the old police trench coats in London, which had high thick collars to prevent garrotting.

I did not know this! I've learned a lot from you this week =)