Drifter Man

Deadman 3 / Day 5 (continued) A few quick choices what to leave behind. Mag lens - has lower probability of starting a fire and I need a high one now. Spare hacksaw. Three pieces of reclaimed wood - for snares later. Whetstone - useless until I have a knife. Sewing kit - I'll sure find another on the way. 12 matches - they are quite heavy and tend to pile up in my backpack. Storm lantern with 0.70 liters of fuel - useful but too heavy to haul around. In the afternoon the weather I so-so but takes a better turn soon after I set out. On the way to the Camp Office I search three corpses and find a prybar and some nuts'n'stuff. Good, I like nuts'n'stuff. I slip by two wolves patrolling on the tracks and notice a deer at the Office as well. Wolves + deer = possible food. The Office has a tomato soup and more nuts'n'stuff, also two cooking pots and a bottle of painkillers. Another whetstone and another bedroll. I'll leave the bedroll here, I may use it for cloth later. After I warm up in bed, I go for the deer "hunt". I immediately realize this is not a good time - it's dusk and the weather is pre-blizzard. I try the lake instead but run into one full coat on patrol. I only manage to snatch one cattail. So it's off to bed for today. I'm almost out of food.

Actually, I'm changing plans It makes sense to get the flare pistol before going to the Summit. Also, I can get a rope and take it to the Ravine - later on I'll be too encumbered for that. So if I make it there, I'll change the direction of my Summit loop and go through Cinder Hills.

I thought about it (but didn't test) - somehow I don't like that place. Workbench is outdoors, no indoor fireplace (fishing huts only, and these have only one cooking spot) - things that don't matter much Interloper where you deal with CF but not so good on Deadman. And I'm not a fan of fishing - it means sitting the whole day in the hut and burning fuel, while the outcome is pure lottery. As for "challenges that make sense" - I don't like arbitrary/artificial self-limitations, like - "now I've found a pair of wool socks but because of rule #124 of my challenge I can't wear them, I can only harvest them" etc. So it's either the difficulty settings, or limiting oneself to one region of the map. Even "Outerloper" doesn't work for me if there are buildings around. It just doesn't feel right.

Deadman 4 / Day 5 I expected this to be short - Deadman 4 got a really bad start. But somehow he keeps kicking. Day 1 - I started at Offset Falls, HRV. Bad place. I ran down the river, collecting cattails, fed a rabbit to the patrolling wolf, got an ear wrap and two boxes of matches from the cave on the left. Naturally I needed a bedroll to sleep, so I went to Ice Cave A. Unfortunately, the landlord strongly objected against my presence there and I didn't have enough firewood to deal with him using fires. So I packed up and left. I walked back up river and to the rope, making it to Ice Cave B still in 100% condition but exhausted. After a break to make some hot tea, I returned to the river and made it to the cave to Milton and to the trailer, all at night, losing about 25% condition on the way. I finally got my sleep at the trailer. Also a hacksaw. Day 2 - I processed a deer carcass at the trailer and continued to the town, planning to sleep at the Picnic Area. I wanted to take a break in the Church of the Holy Wolf, but in the end I was glad I breezed through the barking festival on all sides unharmed. I ended up heading for the farm and had to return up river to the town, taking some more freezing damage. I slept at Grey Mother's and got a mag lens there. Day 3 - On to the Picnic area, I reached it after bypassing Orca and most of the town, with only one wolf encounter. Warm up in bed. Bedroll awaited me there. In terms of key loot it's a good start but the spawn point and weather are terrible. I went down the rope in the evening, started a fire in the cave and made water because I was dehydrated now, and killed two rabbits with stones. Spent the night by the fire. Day 4 - The local wolf was attracted by the two guts I carried but I beat it to the rope. Fortunately I had enough stamina after the short sprint to make it to the top. Cattails and coal on the way to Trapper's. There was no carcass at the barn at Trapper's but I found one at the rock formation in the direction to Unnamed Pond. Also three birch saplings, but no maple this time. Day 5 - Now I have one deer skin, four guts and three birch saplings curing at Trapper's. Tried to stone some rabbits but no luck this time. The weather is bad, I could use a break, come on - these are the first days of the game. I'm wearing two ear wraps but haven't found any other decent clothing. In the afternoon I want to push to Camp Office. I need those cattails from the lake. Then it's the Dam, Winding River, Signal Hill, Farmstead, Barn, Draft Dodger's, Bunker, Mountaineer's Hut, Summit. You know the drill 63% condition, no stims yet.

Marsh Ridge is shaping up as a second possible Deadman base. The local rabbit zone gives 4 rabbits a day, the other nearby zone in Milton Basin (partially wolfed though) gives more than 1. It doesn't have a workbench nearby but it's the best possible place if I want to park somewhere on the way to the forge. In addition, there are two possible moose spawns around. It seems to me that a Deadman could live at Trapper's Homestead and make rounds to the forge when needed, via Marsh Ridge. Marsh Ridge can be reached from Trapper's through the cave and by skirting Orca and Milton, then down to Milton Basin. It's three ropes down and one up - actually it's a pretty long dive from Trapper's to the Basin. Then, mysteriously, again down, down and down back to Trapper's So it's clear in which direction the loop should be taken in this topologically twisted world. I'm currently testing the rabbit zones on the way from Trapper's to Milton - two between the ropes and one at the Picnic Area. These aren't too important as there's no point in staying for long, but it would be nice to replenish my calorie store on the way to Marsh Ridge.

Thanks! It wasn't too hard actually, until Day 40 when I ran out of places to go...

So far I've found that the Ravine (all three zones above the Basin) give 1.2 rabbits per day (tested for 5 days) - not enough even for an Interloper, nowhere near enough for a Deadman. Trapper's has two zones within easy reach, each giving over 3 rabbits per day (tested for 6 days), which would be sufficient. So I'm looking for places that have two zones close to shelter. My other candidates are Marsh Ridge (testing now) and the place between two ropes on the way from Milton to ML. Lake Overlook could work combined with the rabbit zone on the other side of the tracks (on the way from Camp Office to Forestry Lookout or Frozen Creek) but still it's a bit too far to check both zones on a single day (remember, you can't take any freezing damage). Thanks for the tip though! At the moment my Deadman theory is as follows: Start the DysonTM way but try to accumulate some cured gut, either from caught rabbits or from deer carcasses. Drop it in places you're going to visit again after a few days, like the PV/TWM bunker or the Dam Once you cover all the ground you can cover initially (including FM forge), hopefully you should have a bunch of snares ready. Settle down at Trapper's and sustain yourself with rabbits. Gradually gear up and get to Level 5 cooking. Maximum temperature bonus from clothing is important, although I have to say that I've never killed 4 bears on Interloper, let alone Deadman. Once you have 25°C bonus and can eat wolf meat, you're more or less free to roam the world again and get all the resources you may need in later game (scrap metal, cloth, repeated visits to the forge). I think I'll try to put it into practice once I'm more confident that rabbits can sustain me. Any other tips for "good" rabbit zones? Even if it's only one, it can help during transits... drop snares in the evening, collect rabbits in the morning and carry on.

Right now I'm doing rabbit research - wildlife spawn rates are set to Deadman levels but all else is considerably less stressful I've confirmed that not all rabbit zones are created equal. The Ravine will give you a few rabbits on the first day but then things dry up. In contrast, at Trapper's Homestead the yield is much better, but I've been testing for a short time and can't conclude yet whether Trapper's could support a Deadman permanently. When I'm done I'll see what to do with this information Yes, there is one - giving one rabbit per 3 days or so... I didn't have a rope, otherwise I would have checked the basin out as well. Regarding Leftloper, Vampireloper etc... I want the restrictions of the challenge to make some sense

The entertainment was mostly mine, although I was happy to share bits of it! I did not fire the remaining 2 shells - you're right I could have tried again, for shooting practice if for no other reason. I wasn't too interested in extending the run though. My plan has failed, everything else would just delay the inevitable. I actually had a backup idea, going to CH to try fishing again. But by the time I realized I'm really not going to get food from snares, I'd lost too much condition for the trip to be an option. Anyway, there are two flare guns in the Ravine Basin now, in case you're interested. Getting the second one may require some serious rock climbing. Edit: Another thing - I was constantly in the Ravine to keep an eye on the snares, but I could have as well been starving in the Dam, crafting a bow. No, wait, I couldn't. I didn't have any spare guts and once I did, I used them to make even more snares

Thanks everyone for your support to the end! Right, I didn't notice that there was a difference vs Interloper until you pointed it out here. That could be the cause. Although I don't trust the settings the custom game menu presents, wolf spawn chance is shown as "Very High" with Interloper but that gets you much more wolves than if you start an Interloper normally. I want to look into this rabbit thing again before starting another Deadman. It's fun but I need some lasting solution - something that gets me 2500 calories per day.

Deadman 3 / Day 48 Snares are empty. Made it to the Dam, crafted five more with the cured gut I have. I found out I can use tools - it probably makes it faster, but no indication of time is given. I returned. Snares are empty. I placed five more. Been starving all day. 18% condition Deadman 3 / Day 49 One rabbit is caught during the night. I cook it and eat it. During the day I drink all my reishi and rosehip tea. I regularly check snares, but none trigger. Deadman 3 / Day 50 I make it to 49 days survived. I want to die with style, so I climb on the edge of the train bridge and jump. I botch it and die on the rocks. I wanted to make it to the basin...

Yep I know the rabbit spawns in the Ravine, I got some rabbits from all three in this run. But they just don't reappear. Because I can't hit a damn thing, that's why I'm not Atheenon or Geltaz or anyone who can hit a rabbit from 150 meters in an inverted somersault.

Deadman 3 / Day 46 In the morning I collect one caught rabbit at Cave #2, sleep for a little more and once I'm out of calories, I harvest all rabbit carcasses in the cave, until I'm left with a pile of guts and pelts. This takes me until late afternoon. Then I run direction ML to collect some cattails at the Dam. I happen to corner the deer into the ML exit - incidentally - and try sneaking closer to it, ignoring the fact I'm taking freezing damage. I get close enough for a shot from the bow if I had one and if I was behind, not in front of, the deer - but then the deer notices me and runs away. I fire a flare shell when it's passing me. Of course I miss. The weather is too bad and it's too late now, so I just warm up in the trailer, collect 12 coals I left there several weeks ago on my way to Forlorn Muskeg and return to Cave #2, taking more freezing damage. I find two rabbits caught at the cave. Did my plan work? I start a fire, harvest them completely and at least go to bed on half-full stomach. Deadman 3 / Day 47 No more rabbits found in the morning. In the afternoon I try ML again, stopping at Cave #1 of course - the guts are not cured yet. After a brief warming break at the trailer, I deal with the wolf at the Dam with defensive/warming fire, for a gain of whopping six cattails. I return to the cave at night. The snares are empty. 41% condition. Breath cloud ruined this shot but deadmen don't have time to arrange pictures

I'm less concerned with extending the life of this particular deadman than I'm perplexed by the apparent ineffectiveness of snares. The experience of other survivors indicates that snares are the solution to the deadman equation, and there is no place with greater concentration of rabbits than the Ravine. What am I doing wrong? I'll try to grab some cattails at the Dam today, if the weather allows this. Felt -30°C is routine now. I'll take on the deer if I get the opportunity, but I generally don't get to see it until it's running. No, I can't hit a running target, with anything, from any angle, ever

I tried to approach it but it's hyper-alert. And I don't get another chance - I have to run to the cave to warm up. Besides, the deer is just a patch-up, not a solution. The meat will be gone in 2-3 days, then what?

Deadman 3 / Day 45 No rabbits caught. I collect my snares and relocate to Cave #2, where I place all three together. However, I can't wait for food to appear, and kill two rabbits with stones. However, that doesn't save me from starving for most of the day. 61% condition. I have an idea, maybe my last chance. What if my failure is because I'm not harvesting the rabbits completely? I have nothing to lose, not even calories, because I'm starving anyway, and at this rate I'm dead in 3 days. So I can as well give it a shot. As soon as I hit zero calories again tomorrow, I'll process all the rabbit carcasses piled up in the cave for pelts and guts... and see if anything happens.

Deadman 3 / Day 43 One rabbit caught, one snare lost. 2% condition lost to freezing. I harvest the deer carcass at Cave #1 for 1.8 kg meat, a hide and two guts. Deadman 3 / Day 44 One rabbit caught. I collect a the remaining few cattails and starve. I check the derailed boxcar and find scrap metal and kerosene. I can't eat scrap metal. I tried. There's no rope in the boxcar, so I can't go to the basin. Guts are still curing. I'm thinking about killing a deer - there's only one - with the flare gun. But I don't know if I can do it, the deer can sense me long before I can see it and runs away. Frankly, I probably couldn't do it even with a bow. It's hard enough with the usual Interloper wildlife detection range. In the morning of the next day, I'm at 69%, starving and with no food left.

Deadman 3 / Day 42 My first full day in the Ravine. I hit 0 calories before noon and begin starving. As soon as the winds stop for a moment, I leave Cave #2 (the one farther from ML) and run to check the snares. The plan is simple: collect all rabbits, reposition snares, run to Cave #1, don't freeze. The first rabbit zone has bad news: one rabbit caught, one snare broken. I take what I have and run to Cave #1. Winds start again. I make fire, cook and eat the rabbit. Then it's time to visit the second zone. Good news - three snares, three rabbits. I cook everything, eat everything and finish the day harvesting guts. I hesitate for a moment which tool to use. 15 minutes and 56 calories with the knife, twice as much with the hacksaw, even more by hand. I can't repair the knife though, and this will cost 1% of knife condition. I choose the knife. Later I can use hacksaw or even hand, but for that I have to survive in the first place. All in all, I lost one snare, cooked and ate 5.2 kg rabbit meat and got 4 guts. I lost 1% condition to starvation, now at 73%. In the morning I wake up with the stomach still half full. I hope I can make it through the next few days like this.

Interestingly, you're the second person on this forum suggesting I should meet this specific end

A comment on snares - I've done a fair share of snaring, specifically in the Ravine, which supported me during my "1000 Days in the Dam" exercise. I caught 1943 rabbits in that run, that was before stones were introduced. A few updates later the "world decay" came and with it the possibility to exhaust local populations by excessive hunting. When I made the experience in TWM that snares indeed stopped working after one successful day - which may have been an accident - I stopped looking at rabbits and snares as a source of regular sustenance on Interloper. Deadman 3 may teach me to reconsider this.

Thanks - as far as I know, snares don't break due to blizzards. Teas are still desperately needed for warmth. And, no, I'm not doing the food poisoning trick. Either I can survive like a normal person, or I can't

Deadman 3 / Day 41 Everything has to go just right today or I'll end up seriously starving. I have 5 snares, but they will not produce any rabbits until tomorrow. There should be deer carcasses in the Ravine but they may not have enough meat on them to feed me. An by the way, I need at least 5 rabbits a day - preferably 6 - to stay fed. But I won't get new guts for about a week! In fact, some snares may break. A fresh deer carcass would solve my problems for now. But can I get my hands on one? Steal a wolf kill close to the Dam, or kill a deer with the flare gun in the Ravine? And what if the weather turns bad? --------------------------------------------------------------------- After I drop everything I'll only need for crafting, I leave the Dam perimeter and greet the local wolf. I just go on until I'm in the Ravine, the wolf does not attack. It's sunny and the winds are still, but maybe I left too early. I make an emergency fire already before the bridge, and still bleed a bit as a result of freezing damage. What's worse, as soon as I make my stick investment to overcome air temperature, wind decides to strike and kills the fire. At least I'm warmed up. I reach the first rabbit area and place three snares. Felt -36°C. The corpse and backpack have nothing for me. Then I run - yes, run - to reach the cave before my temp bar runs out. I grab two cattails on the way. I make it and warm up in the bedroll. When I wake up, winds are still again but it's snowing now. There's a carcass at the cave, but I need to place my remaining two snares in the other zone near the rope down to the basin. I place my snares there and start a fire next to another deer carcass. The wind lets me get the meat out but not cook it. Since this morning I've burned maybe 50 sticks for 1 hour of fire or so. Not yet fully warmed up, I grab the meat and head across the fallen tree... felt -28°C... empty metal container at the place where railroad is blocked by rocks... more freezing damage as I dash for the second cave... a granola bar saves me from starving for now. I sleep for an hour, start a fire, cook the venison - it's only 0.9 kg. Then I collect sticks and reishi mushrooms outside. The wind is still at maximum strength, three arrows down. I try to hit a rabbit with a stone but 3-4 attempts fail. I add coal, warm up, try again. And again. Until I have a rabbit. I get 1.3 kg rabbit meat and a gut, ignoring the pelt - I don't have calories to spare for that. Finish cooking it at the fire and let the fire die. I go to bed in 74% condition. I kept my calories above zero today - at a huge cost in matches, kerosene and sticks - but tomorrow the struggle begins again.

Thanks! It's certainly a coincidence that I hit 100k and zero calories at about the same time. I'll have some serious balancing to do in the next two days if I want to avoid starvation.

Deadman 3 / Day 40 Wind, blizzard, wind... it's still windy in the afternoon but I have to go. The snare I placed yesterday did not catch anything. I decide to push on for as long as I can, sacrificing condition, fuel, flare shells as necessary. I have to make it to the Dam. Since the Clearcut is effectively blocked, I take the way up Frozen Creek. Medium winds turn into strong winds as I cross the pond and I make my first fire halfway up Frozen Creek. Soon after I'm warmed up, the winds stop. I carefully pass Frozen Creek - no wolves are around, an exception - and then across the hills to the Logging Camp. I hate the Logging Camp but of all the approaches that are available, I like the one from uphill, which lets me check for wolves. None are here today. I search the trailers and the corpse, finding just a piece of reclaimed wood and a soda. The soda is a welcome addition to my quickly disappearing calorie reserve. Once I warm up in a bed - I don't sleep because I want to be on my way as soon as possible - I set out and make my next warming fire at the Loading Area. Again, it's my lucky day, I see only one wolf in the distance. I even check the train engine, but it's empty. The deer carcass isn't here, either. As I approach the engine, I hear an unusual sound and wonder for a second what it is. It's the aurora starting at dusk. The sooner I'm safe in the Dam the better. A few minutes later I reach the Dam. I take advantage of the aurora to craft snares - four guts, four more snares. I sleep into the morning and eat my last food - the last box of crackers. But I'm alive, at 77% condition and have snares, knife and arrowheads, and saplings curing, and 3 flare shells, and 40 days survived (well, minus a few minutes, actually). [101640 calories consumed]

Deadman 3 / Day 39 In the morning I finish the cooking book - gets me to level 4 and it's another 0.5 kg I can leave behind. Then I repair the hoodie and eat some more cattails. My supplies are dwindling - I have food for two days at most. Today I'm making a fairly big and dangerous move, through Clearcut, Logging Camp and Train Loading to the Dam. If I make it there, I'll craft four more snares from the guts I left there and sleep inside before moving to the Ravine the next day, for my endgame (no matter how long that endgame may be). I'm not going up to the Destroyed Lookout and I also hope to avoid camping at the Logging Camp overnight. -------------------------------------------------------------------- Reality: It's a bit windy for my liking, but I can't choose the weather. As soon as I make a few steps towards the Clearcut, the wind turns into the strong, ugly kind that does not let you make fire. I push on nevertheless and make my fire at the other side of the hill, sheltered by slope and a tree, with a view of the Clearcut. While I'm warming up, I observe wolves. I see two at the Clearcut - what's worse, they keep sprinting around, running away from an unseen bear. The most dangerous of circumstances - you can't predict when the next wolf will be catapulted straight at you at maximum speed, I don't know how many times I was killed like this. I briefly consider taking a detour through the Lookout (the far end of the map), until I notice another wolf there, too. I stay until the wind kills my fire, then return to the cabin. In the morning I have 8 cattails left, plus the two boxes of crackers. One day's worth of food and no more than that. I placed my only snare in the rabbit run, every bit helps now. [98750 calories consumed]