UpUpAway95

You mentioned that this is a custom game.  Have you messed with any of the settings relating to animal detection ranges?  There are settings relative to "wildlife Smell Range" and "Wildlife Detection Range," as well as "Scent Increase from Meat/Blood."

42 minutes ago, Marcurios said:

allright, that sounds good..

but the description on the bow says it's for small game, so it will kill a bear eventually too ?
i mean, do i have to get much better at archery skills or will it be upgradable, or does it just stays the same bow and do i have a chance
to kill one even in the beginning, if they don't maul me that is..

i'll look out for those branches, i already found some rocks that i can climb up on without a bear being able to reach me too..
if you walk along the angled side with no snow on it, you can sometimes climb pretty steep rocks, you'll often get a sprained ankle on
those rocks, but if you succeed in climbing it, bear doesn't follow.

Any weapon has a critical hit chance on hostile animals large or small.  Alternatively, causing an animal to bleed will ensure it eventually bleeds out... so even a wounding shot can be lethal.  A grazing shot will not cause the animal to bleed and those wounds will heal.  Why I recommend not tackling a bear or moose with a bow until you level it up is 1) leveling the bow will increase your critical hit chance; and 2) once you level up sufficiently, you will be able to draw the bow while crouched... which enables you to get in closer without being detected and can enable you to get a good shot in before the animal detects you.  Obviously, if the animal is charging, you're going to use whatever weapon you have available and regardless of your level; but if I have a rifle, I find my chances are better of dropping the animal with it than with an unleveled bow.

There is a Tips for New Survivors thread in the How to Play section on these forums with lots of great tips there.  As another poster suggested, watching some videos of other players survivial can give you a lot of great tips and I find it easier to see someone else using a technique (like dropping bait and starting fires to scare off wolves) rather than just reading a description.

Generally, the revolver is more of a tool to scare wolves away before they get in close.  When an attack is in progress, you're better off selecting a hatchet or a knife to complete the struggle as those weapons will generally insure that the wolf bleeds (which will cause it to bleed out eventually enabling you to harvest the hide (and guts and meat if you want those).  The wolfskin coat is a great item of clothing to craft in this game.  Another tactic is to chase deer and bunnies ahead of you so that wolves along your path will wind up chasing and eating those animals, giving you an opportunity to sneak by them safely.

I generally do everything in my power to steer clear of any aurora animals, which usually means I avoid traveling during an aurora.  Also, the revolver is next to useless against bears or moose, so best not to try to take any down before you get a rifle or are proficient with your bow.  Avoidance of the hostile wildlife in general is actually a good strategy.

You can augment your diet with cat tails and birch bark teas.  Generally, on voyageur, there is also lots of canned and processed foods that can be looted in most areas.  Food poisoning is less of a concern in voyageur than it is on harder difficulties as well, enabling you to get away with eating more of the lower condition foods you find.

16 hours ago, Morrick said:

Sixth day… you guessed it… blizzard!

And on the seventh day, I reached Forlorn Muskeg. After a short break in the weather, another blizzard is coming. I don't know if I'll manage to get to Old Spence, but I gathered enough materials to build a snow shelter. I have to shake this 'Hypothermia Risk' before it becomes full-blown hypothermia. Very little food left.

I may be in for some record here. I've found better weather in Timberwolf Mountain on Interloper.

Unbelievable bad luck.  Since you're on voyageur difficulty, I think I would have just pushed through FM along the tracks to get to the Camp Office in Mystery Lake with a stop at the Poacher's Camp to warm up using the fuel that's always there.  You already have a pistol and probably a knife and hatchet as well, so you don't really need to worry about reaching Spence to forge.  On Voyageur, food shouldn't be an issue once you reach Mystery Lake.

35 minutes ago, Grignard_TN said:

      Funny that you mentioned trying canned sardines. I can't imagine that as there have been times where I have all but lived on those things.

I haven't had canned sardines in many years, but as a young child I remember loving them... hated mushrooms of any kind, but loved canned sardines... which would have caused my quick demise had I been growing up in TLD.

17 hours ago, Looper said:

Last one:

I'm on the way to the mountain and watch water freeze. Where am I?

I would guess you're in the fishing hut at Pensive Pond.

4 minutes ago, ManicManiac said:

In that, you do have my sympathies... truly.
...just out of curiosity is the run you are seeing this in pre-steadfast/hotfix, or is it a newer run that started after?

It's a new one.  I don't have any saves linger from before the steadfast/hotfix now.  On higher difficulties, I generally die pretty quickly and on the lower difficulties, I tend to terminate them when I start getting too comfortable.  The best/funnest part of the game for me is the beginning; although I would like to eventually get good enough to have a more difficult save last beyond a few days.

ETA:  I'd like to have a custom setting where we could progressively increase the difficulty on our own... then maybe I'd carry some of my lower difficulty saves longer and, maybe, learn more about surviving at a higher difficulty.

10 minutes ago, ManicManiac said:

Fair enough... you absolutely did.  Since the last hotfix for it, I've not had any sprains under those conditions you listed in your last post either though.  That is puzzling...
As you mention, I guess sometimes the RNG just hates us.  

I once was waiting 21 days for an aurora (during the Archivist Challenge where the Aurora is more frequent), just because I got screwed by bad weather each night for three weeks solid.   

Exactly.  Just call me "Badluck Shleprock."

Just now, ManicManiac said:

For all those reasons you list I totally understand where you are coming from... but I'm not having the same experiences you are.  For me it's been working as Raph described where his intentions.  It totally shouldn't be spraining you on flat surfaces especially under the conditions you mention.  I'm on PC and my game doesn't behave the way you are describing. 

For the railroad track one, I did say "mostly flat."  There are a few dips and dives on the route, but nothing major.  For awhile after the mechanic was introduced, I was getting sprains on completely flat terrain (like the front porch of Grey Mother's house - after not getting sprain when climbing the hill).  That much has appeared to have been fixed.  I'm careful.  I go long periods without any sprains doing exactly the same things and following exactly the same routes as when suddenly I'll start getting a bad roll of the dice in rapid succession.  I can understand them wanting a "surprise" element in there, but I prefer mechanics that are completely reliable.  Player does X and Y happens reliably every time.  I'm not pushing to see the sprain mechanic changed at this point... I just don't want to see the game become reliant on these lotteried events.  There is enough RNG in this game already.  Case in point - As I posted on another thread, I was recently attacked by a wolf in Pilgrim mode.  Yeah, I shot it and I had been following the blood trail for a long time before it jumped me after I had lost the blood trail and decided to just to back to harvest the deer it had been feeding on when I shot it.  It's the first time a wolf has behaved like that in Pilgrim mode that I know of.  Probably not a bug though... probably RNG.

53 minutes ago, ManicManiac said:

Yeah, but that is a reasonable punishment for a player who foolishly decides to stand in a fire...  It would be different if it were something silly like while you are cooking, you randomly get splattered by grease and are given a burn affliction.  - that's the kind of silliness I'm against.    

[Side Note]
I like the sprain mechanic as it exists now.  I know some don't, but I do. 
I've not yet had any sprains that weren't well deserved.

As I said, I'm OK with the burn mechanic because it is direct cause = effect.  What I don't like about the sprain mechanic is that there is a random component to it... and I have gotten several sprains that were not really deserved... 1) Walking along the mostly flat railroac track in Mystery Lake when not overtired (i.e. not in the red yet) and over the carry limit by only 1 kg.  2) Walking down the hill while crouched near the cave between Mountain Town and Mystery Lake in the direction of the Trapper's Cabin when not over the carry limit and it was first thing in the morning after waking in the Trapper's Cabin.  3) Four sprains in rapid succession (heal one get another right away) when climbing the hill across from the Camp Office at it's gentlest point and again not over the carry limit and fully rested.  4) I've received at least 4 sprains in my most recent save in Mountain Town while crouching going down below the climbing vine to the radio tower while over the carry limit by 1 to 3 kg and with only about 1/2 my fatigue level used... one of them was when my fatigue level dropped just low enough that I went from being unencumbered to being a little overencumbered during that descent.  I would be fine with the new sprain system IF it were more reliable that staying well rested and reasonably unencumbered resulted in fewer sprains overall.

We already have a burn "klutz" mechanic if you stand too close to your campfire, but AFAIK, it's not an RNG thing.  Standing too close = getting burned every time.  I prefer this sort of thing to the sprain mechanic as it is now... where there are a number of factors being weighed by the game, but the ultimate decision is a roll of dice.  I didn't like spending hours in game thinking I had figured out strategies to avoid getting so many sprains only to be suddenly hit with 4 sprains back to back when on mild slopes, unencumbered, and fully rested.  Therefore, I'm going to say no to this as well. 

Just now, rancid0 said:

wow no one can ever guess something this detailed off a screen shot lol

True - that's why I'm awarding wins to all of you.  Good sleuthling.

I shot this wolf with a pistol some distance away from this point (while it was eating a deer).  I followed the blood until I lost it behind a rock close to this location.  I jumped me, despite being in Pilgrim mode and I fought it off with a knife (which would not leave the blood spatter under the wolf).  It was in such low health that it died instantly with the first stab of the knife and without injuring me (at least on my status screen - no bites or sprains, although the picture shows my blood and my health is a little lower than it was before the attack) and it glitched in this unusual stance.  I then harvested the wolf which created the blood spatter beneath the wolf... and the body did not despawn for quite some time (no idea why).  So, wins to everyone who guessed, even hozzl because that's the first thing I thought of when I was taking the screenshot.  Kudos all!!

Just now, XaldinVii said:

You got in a struggle with one wolf and took everything so the body despawned. Then another wolf came along in the same spot.  

Another correct bit, but still not quite right.  Shall I give "wins" to all three of you and piece together the sequence... or does someone still want to take another guess?

2 minutes ago, Looper said:

 

guess its dead and frozen

Nope... Lol, you're getting colder. 🙂

2 minutes ago, Looper said:

I think it its the taxidermy-thing. You shot the wolf close to you (charging) and it entered melee. After winning the struggle the wolf is in full birth taxidermist position. 😅

You both are dancing all around it.  There's one piece of information you're missing though.  Hint:  At this point, is the wolf really there at all?

2 minutes ago, Rashad82 said:

You shot the wolf with a pistol, didn’t get a crit, fought it off, then killed it with a second pistol shot, and the body glitched at a strange angle?

Definitely closer... still not quite right though.

17 minutes ago, hozz1235 said:

You found a wolf in the act of giving birth?

ROFLMAO.  Great guess!... sadly, not correct though.

Not my turn, but anyone want to take a turn at guessing the sequence of events leading to this screenshot?

1 hour ago, Rashad82 said:

I must have confused a wolf feasting on a kill for an already-dead deer.  Still, that seems like a mechanic that one day might be real...

There is a scripted incidence of a wolf feeding on a ravaged deer (where the ribs are showing) in Wintermute.  That's the only time I can think of when I've seen it.  When a wolf feeds on a deer it just killed, the deer appears intact.

I've had some bad weather starts in Broken Railroad and the area can be rather sparse for clothing as well.  If you can get through the initial hit though and if you find a heavy hammer in the maintenance yard area, you can get a lot of good hunting in quickly and make yourself some better clothing.  Finding the revolver or rifle can help a lot... especially, of course, if you haven't found a heavy hammer in the zone.  Wood is fairly plentiful and there are cat tails... but watch out for the bear.  Wolves will frequently take down deer near the Maintenance Yard and take rabbits up close to the hunting lodge.  So if you're observant, you can both a deer and a wolf just by killing the wolf while he's munching on the deer.

Be sure to leave some scrap metal available making fishing line to sew with if you're sewing kit supply is limited.  Of course, if you've found a hacksaw, scrap metal won't be an issue since there are quite a few shelves in the maintenance shed that can be harvested.

 I've left the zone with rabbitskin mitts and hat, deerskin pants and boots, wolfskin coat, a moosehide satchel, and carrying a bearhide...  as well have having a bow and several arrows .  If you're able to stay viable long enough to do all of that, you don't ever have to worry about going back to that zone again and it sets you up for a really nice progression across the map world.

My longest blizzard lasted 3 full nights (so, almost 4 days).  I was stuck the cave on the Ridge in Forlorn Muskeg.

While I'm not having a huge problem hitting things, I now do think that I really just like the old system much better than the current one.  I'm still getting hits and, for the most part, the animals eventually bleed out,; but I'm getting fewer critical hits for sure.  Furthermore, aiming just seems "clunkier" than it did before.

I was actually thinking more about the traditional Canadian Sugar Shack and maple syrup snow candy.

https://happyhooligans.ca/make-maple-syrup-snow-candy-3-simple-steps/

I don't think it's so ridiculously out of line to just let the sap flow in the cold.  We already have brown bunnies in the dead of winter, still edible roae hips (which are ususually harvested in late fall), and reishi mushrooms (which become unusable after a hard frost).

I'm with Frozen Corpse on this despite it being a bit illogical that a pilot wouldn't have a good watch with him (but perhaps it got broken during the crash).  I like the organic feel of the game which stems from having to read the environment and keeping tabs on the position of the sun.

I'd be game for this in game.  IRL, sap stops flowing when the termperatures stay below freezing during the day (which, of course, is the situation in TLD); but I wouldn't mind them stretching the boundaries for this.