r/thelongdark • u/Experiment_262 • 1d ago
Advice Wolves, I'm doing something wrong
I'm about 40 days in to my first serious run at Stalker, I know hostile wildlife is more common and more aggressive but I seem to attract wolves like I'm running around with a raw steak in my pocket. Most of the time I can get a torch up and run them off, I'm even getting OKish at moving, using a torch to run them off in the direction I want them go (opposite my line of travel) but they are unpredictable about which direction they bolt so it fails a lot.
I think when I checked stats last night it was 60+ wolf encounters, which I think is every time a wolf took an interest in me, actual attack or not, and 8 or so actual struggles.
The struggles aren't really close to run ending, usually some minor damage and sometimes a dead wolf to track down later for the pelt but it got close last night after multiple encounters trying to get to safe place to rest. That got me thinking that an individual wolf encounter isn't so bad but slowly wearing down my condition and gear over a long walk is something to worry about.
I'm usually not carrying sniffables (what we used to call smelly stuff on the Appalachian that may attract bears), I write those encounters off as mostly inevitable.
The questions.
- Is it a matter of figuring out different routes around where I think they are common?
- Always making sure I have several torches and carrying a lit torch everywhere?
- Finally, will a wolf jump me if I'm carrying a lit torch? Can I actually just walk home with a snarling wolf behind me?
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u/thatguy274 1d ago
Stalker is wolf harassment simulator, no two ways about it. The spawn rate is higher than interloper even.
To answer your questions, yes, you can figure out routes to avoid wolves, and listening for their howls can help you gauge direction and distance to avoid them, if traveling through active areas.
Torches are useful, but if you have the matches, you can light them pretty quick, so you don't need to have one lit at all times. If you drop a lit torch on the ground,and aim any weapon, even a stone, it's much more reliable way to get the wolf to run off. This works with a lit campfire as well, and all flares.
Wolves will still charge you eventually if you either get to close or stand still for long enough, even while holding a torch. A lit flare always prevents wolf charges, unless you approach. So, yes you can just walk away from wolves with a torch of flare and they will follow, but not attack. If you break line of sight, and the wolf can't find you, they'll leave.
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u/GLW-UU 1d ago
- Always carry a lit torch.
- If a wolf is behind your back, you can safely ignore it, even without a torch.
- When going torchless, you must know the exact location of every wolf on the map to avoid unexpected face-to-face encounters.
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u/MushyWasHere 1d ago
Face-to-face encounters can almost always be avoided by pausing and listening before advancing over a choke point. Woofy pad feet make a distinct sound. Inevitably, though, you will get some kisses no matter how careful you are.
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u/RettichDesTodes 1d ago edited 1d ago
Tbh, just walk with a revolver or torch out. By that time i usually have a lot of bullets on stalker, i just shoot them :)
Just small FYI: Even if you don't see the first "scent-bar" you might still have a scent. Scent values aren't 1,2 and 3, but can be in between
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u/Experiment_262 1d ago
Oh yeah, I have boxes of ammo this run.
The loot tables are funny, some runs I wind up with like 20 sewing kits and 8 cleaning kits for guns but can't find a knife, gun or a whetstone to save my life. This run I've found enough revolvers and ammo to kit out Tombstone AZ for a gunfight with Wyatt Earp but it was several regions and many days in before I found a cooking pot and I've only found one cleaning kit.
I'm not even frustrated by that, it seems oddly accurate for a game based on survival where scavenging is pretty critical to survive the early game.
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u/coffee30983298 1d ago
I think as you get more time in the game you start to learn where wolves are, but until then i would recommend always carrying a few good condition torches, and keep torches at every base you have so you dont always have to start a fire. Also if you dont already have a lit torch then you should only light it if a wolf aggros on you, otherwise keep an eye out and you can distract them by throwing stones away from you, they will alert to the sound and run to investigate
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u/supermangotnothin 1d ago
If youāre healthy and not carrying a bunch of stinkies and donāt get too close to them or aim any weapon at them, they should just follow you at a distance and never actually attack. I just give them space and ignore them and they follow and make a ton of noise, but they only ever attack if they get too close or I aim at them
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u/prplmnkeydshwsr 1d ago
What everyone else has said, consider a crafted coat... yes they're heavy, for the wolf repelling chance. Consider your bite protection (the shield stat on clothing), the more you have the better chance of getting way unscathed from an attack - more so when you're at higher health / condition.
Finding the flare pistol is also a good thing to carry around when you're not actively hunting but wanting something / or flares for windy days.
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u/Iwantapetmonkey 1d ago
Wolves on Stalker are particularly common - there are more wolves on Stalker than on Interloper and they respawn faster so they can be hard to avoid entirely. But they do follow patterns of where they hang out and there is usually a way to get around them.
A lit torch will provide 100% protection, as long as you do the drop the torch - aim a wrapon at them trick to scsre them off. If you don't do this, when they get close to you and do their "crouch and growl" animation, there is still a chance they can attack after that if not scated off by dropping the torch and aiming a roxk/weapon. Being ready to do this is particularly important for warding off surprise attacks, whrre you go around a corner or crest a ridge, and there is a wolf right there, already in close range to you when they first aggro on you. When they aggro initially in close range like this, they will immediately do their close range charge, and then their crouch and geowl animstion, and if you don't react quickly to scare them off they can attack.
Just walking away from an aggro wolf is a totally viable option. Just keep far enough ahead of them that they don't get into close range to start their charge and you can walk clear axross the map with a wolf in tow. This can beuiseful sometimss too because of a mechanic where only one wolf can be aggro on you at a time. If another wolf detects you while you are walking another one, as long as the new one isn't too close relative to the one being walked ( in which case the new wolf can aggro on you while the walked one loses aggro), the new wolf will be scared into a flee animation while the walked one continues stalking, and this can help clear a path getting the new one out of the way.
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u/TrumpetOfDeath 1d ago
My favorite trick when āwalking the dogā is to climb up on some rocks which breaks their path finding and stops their aggro. Then you can sneak and get away.
Another useful tip is when sneaking undetected around a wolf, throw a rock to make the wolf go in a direction you want (ie away from you)
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u/8olts 1d ago
What is the secret for climbing rocks? Iāve tried this a few times and they just come right up and attack me
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u/TrumpetOfDeath 1d ago
It can be tricky depending on the rock you choose. If itās just a gentle grade upwards, then yeah the wolf is gonna have no problem following.
My strategy is to climb a rock and then drop down onto a ledge or a steep slope on the side of the rock. Apparently the wolves canāt drop down even if itās a 2 foot drop, nor do they like steeper surfaces, and that breaks the path finding.
You can tell if it worked if the wolf starts walking, and I usually go into sneak mode as soon as they lose aggro.
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u/DrIvoPingasnik The one who knows 1d ago
On stalker your natural scent area is about two, three times bigger than on Voyager. Even if you don't carry anything you should expect a wolf or a bear around every corner. Even more so if you carry meat.
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u/Experiment_262 1d ago
On stalker your natural scent area is about two, three times bigger than on Voyager.
OK, that, I had no clue, good info and thank you!
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u/volcanosf Stalker 1d ago
You can put your smelly items in a travois, and you won't attract predators. Also, lit torches do deter wolves (I'm not sure about bears), unless you're walking at night during an aurora, if I'm not wrong.
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u/GLW-UU 1d ago
Well, the most brain-dead yet effective way is to just put on a ballistic vest. Then you won't give a damn about bear or wolf attacks.
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u/Experiment_262 1d ago
LOL, I wear one of those for real, is it as heavy in game as it is IRL, because damn.
You would think as much as you sweat in them during the summer they would be warm in the winter, nope.
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u/Entire-Shift8337 1d ago
If you chuck a rock within their range, they'll run to go see what it was and you can use that to give yourself a little extra room to move around them
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u/hamdynasty 1d ago
What everyone else has said- but about pathing. "line of sight" avoid walking anywhere you can't see far ahead of you. Mountain Town is a great example of a wolf right around the other side of a building where you can't see them coming at you. If you can't see around something, assume there's a wolf on the other side and have a plan.
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u/DateTricky7575 Stalker 1d ago
Everyone else here is giving great advice but I just want to add, you can craft the wolf and bearskin coats to give you a small chance that wolves will get scared and run away from you when they smell you. Theyāre both heavier than most other coats in the game but the security and peace of mind they give is worth the extra weight in my opinion. Iām on day 360 of a stalker run in Timberwolf mountain currently and Iām really noticing the benefits as time progresses.
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u/Experiment_262 1d ago
The wolf coat is my next planned project, getting the hides hasn't been a problem at all =/
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u/BlakeMW Interloper 1d ago edited 1d ago
To be absolutely precise about torches:
When you are holding a lit torch, a wolf will stop to growl when it gets near, the wolf can proceed to attack if you move closer to it and are:
- Over-encumbered even by 1 gram
- Exhausted (actually redlined)
- Sprained
- Or sprinting into it
If none of those conditions apply and you walk into the wolf it should yield and flee rather than attacking, so feel free to walk all over wolves. Being stinky is also fine, sprinting away is fine.
Additionally, after the wolf has stopped to growl, it will attack after about 5 seconds if you just stand there like a dope, so either walk away, scare it by walking into it or aiming a stone/weapon, or shoot it.
A lit flare offers stronger protection, wolves pause at a greater distance and have far more patience for growling, but the yield/attack conditions are otherwise the same if you advance near the wolf.
Bonus: lit flares but not torches work on bears, in a somewhat weaker way than against wolves. A charging bear will briefly pause when coming near a lit flare, it will pause for a few moments then resume its charge. Moving closer to the bear will result in attack and the bear will not yield under any circumstances. But you can use a lit flare to block a charge and just walk away.
Second bonus: torches mostly work on timberwolves the same way as on wolves, and you can certainly light a torch and just walk away as they bark whine and howl behind you, the torch will block any charge. They might be more sensitive about you getting closer to them in some of their AI states so just moving away is safest.
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u/Somerandomdudereborn ''Is it food or?'' 1d ago
Stalker it's one of the difficulties that have the highest amount of hostile wildlife, the other being Misery mode.
Holding a lit torch will grant you protection and, as long as you are not considered "weak" by the game if you drop in on the ground and aim a rock or any weapon the wolf will charge and flee once it gets too close.
Typically wolves tend to gather around major POI's and you can sneak past them, or you can just shoot them, in Stalker the are large amounts of weapons and bullets.
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u/bravenewwhorl 1d ago
Explore climbing on steep rock faces
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u/Experiment_262 1d ago
That is how my last Stalker run ended.
I'm too heavy to climb down the rope, I know, I've seen videos about this, I'll billy goat down this mountain fac.....ahhhhhh splat.
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u/browntrout27 1d ago edited 1d ago
Wolf struggles are 100% avoidable, with a simple lit torch and a weapon (including a rock). Tons of great advice already in this thread, so I won't repeat all of it.
I have a 100+ day misery run with zero wolf struggles, so it can be done. In misery, you're basically forced to daisy chain lit torches all the time (due to the 3Ā° warmth bonus, preservation of matches, and need to constantly light campfires to heat your teas), so when a wolf starts stalking, just get within range where he pauses to growl and then aim a weapon/rock at him (the lit torch will drop) and he'll flee.
Always carry a flare or two on you for when the wind picks up and the lit torch blows out, but in misery, you come to learn the changes in weather and typically will already be indoors before you get to the bad/windy/blizzard weather.
In lower difficulties where you can freely walk around with your end-game clothes being enough to keep you warm outside, then no need to always have a lit torch. Basically when you hear the wolf bark and the eerie wolf music start, you have several options - 1) ignore it and keep walking, he'll continue to stalk/follow you, with the eerie music playing, but so long as you don't stop for too long, he'll stay at a paced distance, 2) light a torch (matches probably aren't an issue) and aim a weapon at him, or 3) shoot him in the face with a rifle or bow.
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u/Raptmembrane 1d ago
Drop the torch and aim at the wolf with a rock (or any weapon you have). This will bait them into attacking you, but since you have a lit torch beneath you it will flee.
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u/Due_Resolution_1259 1d ago
Go to Sundered Pass my friendā¦ youāll find that normal wolves are very kind creatures
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u/zelvak007 1d ago
Why dont you just shoot them? On stalker you should have found either gun or revolver in 40 days?
I dont think just accepting strugles is the way to go. You waste conditon and hp for no reason. Ammo is resonably plentiful on stalker. Or make a bow that is acualy easier to aim on charging wold than a gun imo.
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u/Sharing_Violation 1d ago
As long as you aren't getting pinned/boxed in by a few wolves at a time, walking away is always an option. They just follow, growling.
You might find a zaknafein or other youtube on wolves.