Why wolves are so tamed?

[Whisper]

If you hear angry wolf only stop, wait, toss the decoy and all will be good - you can run, you can easy one shot kill or try to get rid it. And after that you can pick up old decay again!

Is it right for exciting gameplay?

[Boston123]

I have always had a problem with how the wolves reacted to decoys.

In "real life" wolves are pretty smart. Smart enough to either 1) recognize the bigger threat, aka the player, and go after them first, or 2) eat the whole piece of meat in one gulp and continue to attack

Seriously, the whole mechanic is a cheap, "get out of jail free" card.

[Hesha]

Hey, I betcha that also got something to do with that "geomagnetic disaster" :D

It somehow made wolves super aggro, but also game them tiny mouths so they can only take miniscule bites at a time.

[Renegade30]

I disagree with the decoy being unrealistic. It is well known that if you have a wild dog approach you threateningly a good way to make an escape is to drop something that belongs to you such as an item of clothing or food and make a run for it because it confuses the animal and can buy you precious seconds.

As per the canon of the game the wolfs are supposed to be starving due to the unnatural weather making food slim pickings (theoretically - animals still seem too abundant in game imo) and the fact that the winter is much more extreme than normal and happening at an unusual part of the year (or all year even). This non only makes the wolves highly aggressive towards prey so that they can have their next meal, but also take on a scavenger type mentality where they prefer a free meal rather than a potentially dangerous fight (i'm still on the understanding that a wolf not eating a corpse lying next to them is not working as intended - may make a new thread to confirm).

Apparently a mechanic which dictates the desirability and therefore the chance of a decoy working based on the food type and calories already exists in the game. This is why if you drop a can of pork and beans the wolf is unlikely to go for it, but the wolf will nearly always go after a big hunk of raw meat.

You guys are right though that the wolves eat very slowly. There should be a change that the wolf will gulp down the food very quickly and come bounding back after you after only a few short seconds.

[Eachna]

I disagree with the decoy being unrealistic. It is well known that if you have a wild dog approach you threateningly a good way to make an escape is to drop something that belongs to you such as an item of clothing or food and make a run for it because it confuses the animal and can buy you precious seconds.

I'm not sure where you're getting this, but you should *NEVER EVER* run away from a feral dog (or even a regular dog that's particularly aggressive). You can walk away, but don't run.

As per the canon of the game the wolfs are supposed to be starving due to the unnatural weather making food slim pickings (theoretically - animals still seem too abundant in game imo) and the fact that the winter is much more extreme than normal and happening at an unusual part of the year (or all year even). This non only makes the wolves highly aggressive towards prey so that they can have their next meal, but also take on a scavenger type mentality where they prefer a free meal rather than a potentially dangerous fight (i'm still on the understanding that a wolf not eating a corpse lying next to them is not working as intended - may make a new thread to confirm).

The devs can claim the wolves are starving but they're most definitely not. None of the code used to model wolf behavior is realistic for any starving predator.

The wolves are a substitute for zombies in zombie games, including the zombie fixation for (human) brains at any cost. They just happen to look and howl like wolves.

[Renegade30]

I'm not sure where you're getting this, but you should *NEVER EVER* run away from a feral dog (or even a regular dog that's particularly aggressive). You can walk away, but don't run.

Yes this is true, I should have worded that differently. It is still a known technique to drop something when an animal is pursuing you though. I actually did just this when I was in this situation and was approached by 2 viscous, dangerous looking dogs while I was night jogging - I backed off at walking pace while shouting and when I got far enough I threw my t-shirt near the dogs and speedwalked away from them until I was around the corner and then ran.

The devs can claim the wolves are starving but they're most definitely not. None of the code used to model wolf behavior is realistic for any starving predator.

The wolves are a substitute for zombies in zombie games, including the zombie fixation for (human) brains at any cost. They just happen to look and howl like wolves.

This is true. I was just trying to point out the intent with the decoy system. Wolf behavior in this game definitely leaves a lot to be desired.

[p-walker]

My main issue with them wolves (and bears) is their behaviour / aggressiveness - or (more precisely) the difference between Voyager and Pilgrim mode:

While in Pilgrim, you'll never ever attacked by a wolf, in Voyger mode, one and every wolf will certainly attack you if you get too close (which IMO is still quite far away). It's really an "all or nothing" thing.

IMO it would be better (and more realistic?) to have a better "mix" / balance of these two extremes - e.g. wolves will attack you in Voyager smowhere between "quite often" and "most of the time" (somewhere between 51% to 90%) and "rarely" to "sometimes" in Pilgrim (1% to quite a bit below 49%).

Currently, the difference between wolves in Voyager and Pilgrim is way to big - Pilgrim turns to being quite boring /(too) easy after some hours, while Voyager is quite frustrating sometimes if you don't know how to deal with wolves (and bears) - especially for new players.

(I don't care about aggressive wolves in Stalker)

[KD7BCH]

(I don't care about aggressive wolves in Stalker)

You mean you dont like dying every other month in the game in Stalker? lol

[akodo1]

I have had instances where a dropped bit of food distracted a wolf, but I have also had two recent times when the food failed to distract the wolf. Both times it was a good size chunk of fresh raw rabbit meat. So no, the decoy is not a fool proof method.

[Whisper]

So no, the decoy is not a fool proof method.

May be, but I've killed 3 wolves one by one while skinned rabbit. One arrow, one decoy - I would prefer if one of them try to bite me at least

[Eachna]

I'm not sure where you're getting this, but you should *NEVER EVER* run away from a feral dog (or even a regular dog that's particularly aggressive). You can walk away, but don't run.

Yes this is true, I should have worded that differently. It is still a known technique to drop something when an animal is pursuing you though. I actually did just this when I was in this situation and was approached by 2 viscous, dangerous looking dogs while I was night jogging - I backed off at walking pace while shouting and when I got far enough I threw my t-shirt near the dogs and speedwalked away from them until I was around the corner and then ran.

It's good that you escaped a scary situation intact. Also, thank you for correcting part of your mis-statement.

The devs can claim the wolves are starving but they're most definitely not. None of the code used to model wolf behavior is realistic for any starving predator.

The wolves are a substitute for zombies in zombie games, including the zombie fixation for (human) brains at any cost. They just happen to look and howl like wolves.

This is true. I was just trying to point out the intent with the decoy system. Wolf behavior in this game definitely leaves a lot to be desired.

Decoys IRL are not 100% accurate, which was the comment of the first couple of posters. The devs making them 100% accurate in game (or close to it as apparently they do fail rarely) is not realistic and in no way connected to starving behavior in wolves (which was your explanation).

Just to be clear: an animal in a state where they're likely to be distracted by a decoy is not going to be "starving". A starving animal is not *more* likely to rush a decoy than known food (the human is the known food). Animals "charge" for different reasons (territoriality, fear/self-defense, hunting, etc.). A *hunting* animal running at you planning on taking you down to *eat* you will not be distracted by you tossing your shirt to one side.

Pretty much the only thing that will stop a charging animal intent on eating you is injuring it badly enough to convince it that it will die by continuing to attack.

[K63]

I just started using the meat drop, and am glad it is there. Before discovering it, I was feeling that the wolves were too much: too numerous and too aggressive (in Voyager mode). At least with it you can manage them without being mauled relentlessly every time you step out the door.

If you prefer being eaten by wolves over dropping some meat, just don't use the drop option.

[SteveP]

I have noticed that the wolf AI is tweaked in the latest release. Now you have a chance to scare away a wolf using a torch. Not sure of the technique how to do it but I have seen GELtaz demonstrate on one of his Youtube videos. I was surprised.

Also if a wolf growls at you, in the game, if you run away, the wolf may not pursue you if you do not look back. I know it doesn't make sense but that's how it works in the game. A more realistic strategy might be to crouch and retreat relatively slowly. Fire is the best option to discourage a wolf, or a quick shot with a rifle or bow and arrow. A miss preserves your arrow and sends the wolf fleeing.

There are very abundant wolves in the game; that's just the way they make it interesting. I'd like to see more hazards introduced to the game and perhaps fewer wolves in general. They are difficult for new users to learn to cope with and without the necessary tools or weapons, they can be hard to deal with, until you learn how to use fire against them.

Interestingly, some have been proposing that we have a way to tame a wolf and thus use it as a pack animal, for protection from other wolves or bears or to pull a sledge. I like this possibility as it adds to the richness of the game. Dog sleds!! What a brilliant idea; it would take a long time to master this and to construct a sledge and to tame and train the animals. Perhaps its not part of the vision for the game but if a lot of folks ask for it, the developers might grant our wish.

I think we could use a more rare predator such as a wolverine. Much harder to kill or shoot, smarter and able to track the player and ambush him. Cougar could also do that. Take some of the pressure off the wolves for being the primary threat.

I'd also like a way to defend against wolf attack that minimized clothing damage but still permitted hand to hand combat. Dropping or removing clothing? seems artificial and counter intuitive. At least flesh wounds can heal; clothing cannot heal without cloth and time to repair.

[KD7BCH]

I don't know why the devs are ok with so many exploits in their game but hey its still fun if you don't play the exploit game.

Decoys are just silly cop outs and yes is an animal going to go after a steak or moving prey? Odds are on the moving prey because nature doesn't randomly toss them steaks. If they coded the AI to be really close, close enough that wolves could smell the decoy like really close and then be effective that would be something but right now you can toss it and they slowly drone walk towards it and eat it and then walk away. LOL comical.

Hey Steve, hows the new GPU working out for ya?