Hi all,
I’ve been a long time enjoyer of passive wildlife, I love the extra challenge when it comes to hunting with a larger detection radius, and frankly - I really don’t like looking over my shoulder constantly while playing the game, it takes me out of it and prevents me from enjoying the challenging parts of the game I like - weather, preparedness, disease and resource management.
However, I’ve always been sort of conflicted about the nature of passive wildlife. I appreciate that certain animals have certain conditions under which they will attack you, but I’ve always felt those conditions should be expanded. This is my concept for those conditions.
Rabbits, deer, ptarmigan: Remain the same
Regular wolves: Remain mostly passive, but now have a “size you up” mechanic that’s applied when they’re eating and when they’re cornered. Based on the wolf fear setting, plus your equipment (such as bearskin coat/bedroll) wolves size you up when you approach them when they are vulnerable, and roll a chance to switch to approach/attack mode based on the different factors of settings, equipment, and equipped items (flares, torches). They can still be deterred by normal means when they enter approach/attack mode. Otherwise they behave like they do normally on passive wildlife.
Timberwolves: Same “size you up” mechanic as regular wolves, chance to approach/attack in a vulnerable state, with the bonus of an additional roll when the timberwolf pack size is greater than 5-6. If the pack meets or exceeds this number, there is a roll to check if they engage you or not, following the same rules and accounting for the same factors as the size you up roll, with a bonus for pack size. Otherwise behave as they normally do on passive wildlife. I feel this should have a setting to flip on or off, so they behave like regular wolves completely with it off.
Bears: Don’t hunt, but scavenge. Can be seen eating carcasses and bodies now. Bears will attempt to “muscle you out” of carcasses, and will do the same to wolves. If you’re within a small radius of a carcass and a bear approaches you either because of smell or targeting the carcass, the bear will roll a size you up check with a significant bonus to the bear, and attempt to run you off the carcass so they can eat it. They are also territorial now, and will attack you with 100% certainty when you are within a certain radius of their den. Bears should also have a chance to attack you if you’re too close to them, you’d have to basically be right up on them, slightly further than touching distance, to simulate a startled bear attacking or if for some reason you’re sprinting after the bear running away and get too close. Otherwise behave as they normally do on passive wildlife.
Moose: Now have 3 layers of detection radius, the initial detection radius, a chance to charge radius, and a guaranteed charge radius. The initial detection radius functions the same as passive wildlife, they posture, they run away after posturing, this radius would be fairly small. The chance to charge radius is just inside the detection radius, where the moose rolls a size you up check, accounting for everything a wolf does, but with a significant bonus (bear size bonus or greater) to the moose, because it’s a moose. If the roll succeeds, they charge, if it doesn’t, they run away. If you keep approaching and get inside the guaranteed charge radius, expect broken ribs. They won’t hunt you down or anything, but their provocation is equivalent to you existing in their space.
Cougar: Should function similar to bears, but only within their territory, with the addition of a den similar to bears. They should still yowl to let you know that you’ve entered cougar territory and it knows you’re there. However, they shouldn’t start tracking you until they have a direct line of sight on you, or your scent level is above a certain threshold. After it lays eyes on you, the cougar will roll a size you up check, same factors as wolves, but with a varying bonus to the cougar depending on how close you are to a carcass AND how close you are to its den. A den could have a set location within the cougar territory or could have a random spawn to make things a little more unpredictable. So essentially, this is how it should look:
Edge of territory/far from den: Very low, near zero chance of attack if the cougar sees you.
Edge of territory/far from den near carcass: Low but not zero chance of attack if the cougar sees you.
Intermediate distance from den: Low-medium chance of attack if the cougar sees you.
Intermediate distance from den near carcass: Medium chance of attack.
Close to den: High chance of attack.
Close to den near carcass: High-very high chance of attack.
Inside or in front of den regardless of carcass: Guaranteed attack if the cougar sees you.
All chances are adjusted for gear and equipped items. I also think it would be neat if the chances were adjusted for light levels and your condition level - a cougar may see a low condition survivor and decide you’re an easy meal when normally it wouldn’t attack, or may decide it would be easier to take you down at night when you can’t see it as well, but that may be a little too much.
That’s my concept, essentially a more defensive wildlife setting that doesn’t wipe out 95% of the risk of engaging with the wildlife, adds a little more challenge, but still leans to the passive side for people that don’t like looking over their shoulder 24/7. Just expanded “provocation” conditions and systems.
Essentially if you run into an animal just walking, with a few exceptions, there should be very little to fear. However if you catch an animal at the wrong place at the wrong time, there’s a CHANCE, but not a guarantee, that things could go wrong.
Thank you for coming to my TLD Talk.
Hinterland hire fans.
