Bonedog aging?

[Remity]

Hello everyone! Just started playing with bone dog companion recently and was curious how they aged. Earlier this year I saw a thread saying they can grow up to eventually be Elder... So Pup>Teen>Adult>Elder.
I have had my bonedog for a while.. About 70ish in game days, but my dog is still only Adult. Just curious if anybody could confirm that Elder is the final tier these animals get, or did I read Fake news?

[Shidan]

It's definitely Elder that is the final tier, but I have seen many reports over the months of Bonedogs not aging up to Elder. Yet I know of a couple cases of Bonedog Elders.

At some point I want to do some testing with it. But have yet to ever get around to it. :/

[Temper]

http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=873892172

Be advized that *Puppy* grows very large as an Elder in comparison to humanoids and his/her bulk does not allow puppy to enter or exit small walkways such as small doors on most town buildings .... and puppy will have to wait outside until you've finished your buisness.This also means that when out adventuring puppy cannot help you in certain circumstances and you should plan accordingly.

I mostly leave *Puppy* at home to protect the base and its occupants .. he is currently the most devastating fighter in the faction and does not require training so can handle most any situation that may arise .... besides walking through those evil doorways lol =P

I've seen others write their mountaindog doesn't mature to Elder but have never experienced the bug personally.I wonder if they're actually using the guy and a dog start,which uses a unique mountain dog rather than the Bonedog that is purchased from farms.

[Shidan]

Out of curiosity Temper, was your "Puppy" bought? Or did you use the game start to get him?

[Temper]

Originally posted by Shidan:

Out of curiosity Temper, was your "Puppy" bought? Or did you use the game start to get him?

Puppy was from the game start *Guy with a dog*,it's a unique dog as far as I know because Bonedogs finish maturing at adult age.Also to distinguish him apart from other dog species,he is named at creation as a mountain dog rather than a Bonedog

[Remity]

@Shidan Ty for quick response!
@Temper ty for confirming! Now it's weird you mention the game start name for the puppy... I chose the same game start option, but i remember vividly that the dog's default name was bonedog. Did you import your game at all with that dog? Also noticed you reached day 38 in your playthrough.

My dog was a pup until day 11 of my first playthrough. then it matured to adult around day 18-20. I went on to import my game at around day 45-50ish. The dog's stats are also very generous, leaning toward end game. My doggo currently as an adult has half of your ATK / STR / DEX stats, but pretty close to your toughness... Could it be a bug? or maybe stats determine aging mechanic?

[Remity]

http://steamcommunity.com/profiles/76561198067867886/screenshot/87096384654587389
Pic related for dog stats incase aging mechanic is stat-based

[Shidan]

I'm thinking it is based on their lifespan value, Bonedog only has a 20 days, while the Mountain Dog has a 35. I used to think that it determined how long till they reach Elder, but now I think the "Ages" are set at specific days. Elder being somwhere between 20 and 35. So this may not be a bug, but simply not possible for normal Bonedogs.

The Guy with dog start was recently changed to be a normal Bonedog, instead of the Mountain Dog Temper got. I'm guessing this is why you only got a normal one Remity.

It also explains why there are multiple reports of both dogs aging up to Elder, and some not.

[Temper]

Originally posted by Remity:

@Shidan Ty for quick response!
@Temper ty for confirming! Now it's weird you mention the game start name for the puppy... I chose the same game start option, but i remember vividly that the dog's default name was bonedog. Did you import your game at all with that dog? Also noticed you reached day 38 in your playthrough.

My dog was a pup until day 11 of my first playthrough. then it matured to adult around day 18-20. I went on to import my game at around day 45-50ish. The dog's stats are also very generous, leaning toward end game. My doggo currently as an adult has half of your ATK / STR / DEX stats, but pretty close to your toughness... Could it be a bug? or maybe stats determine aging mechanic?

Just checked and the *Guy with a dog* start does indeed give the player a Bonedog now.However I don't know if it's just a name change or an actual entity change.It could be an oversight that the dogs have been mixed up for the start or perhaps the devs felt the mountain dog was too strong when matured,or perhaps weren't happy with how the Elder mountaindogs bulky size restricted its movement.

And yes that save file has been through 4 or 5 recent imports due to game updates both small and large.

Originally posted by Shidan:

The Guy with dog start was recently changed to be a normal Bonedog, instead of the Mountain Dog Temper got. I'm guessing this is why you only got a normal one Remity.

This bit here is where the difference lies I suspect.Do you know if the change was in the name only or an actual entity change ?

If it's an actual entity change,then Bonedogs can't reach Elder stage of maturity in either stats or size and stagnate at Adult stats and size.The change could be an oversight or maybe even on purpose due to quirks/limitations with the Elder dogs size and/or perhaps its battle prowess when compared to normal character progression.

I don't recall seeing any change notes at all regarding the *Guy with a dog* start.

[Remity]

@Temper I have no clue. But if Shidan is right and it is scripted age cycle, then it's safe to assume it was either intentionally or unintentionally set to be your run off the mill Bonedog... It would make starting the game with a severely underpowered animal that grows up to be generic pretty pointless to choose as a starter option when you can just buy one at a later time in other play options. Hopefully it is just an oversight by the Devs and the change was unintentional.

[Shidan]

It was a full blown entity change. Mountain Dogs a fair bit stronger than normal ones, and have an increased "lifespan" value as I mentioned previously. I also can't imagine the change to a normal Bonedog was unintentional, as it would be very difficult to accidentally do.

However, it is possible the being unable to reach Elder on a normal Bonedog is unintentional. Though I'm a bit surprised it lasted this long if it is.

[rompier02]

Hi. Thanks Shidan for the answer. I was waiting for some confirmation on the companion dog elder status since I found out it won't reach it. I agree with Remity statements. If it is intentional then they should just scrap that starter option. I just want to add that even at elder status, the dog is not invincible and can be taken down .

[bz_siege_01]

what version was it changed? I am on .11 stable and I did man and a dog and I wound up with a mountain dog?

[Shidan]

I'm not sure, but it was clearly after the latest stable build. Given it was one of the unmentioned changes, it is hard to pinpoint exactly when. :/

[bz_siege_01]

I really like the dog, when I restart my playthrough on the next stable version I'm hoping it's back to mountain dog.

[Red Bat]

Originally posted by Remity:

@Temper I have no clue. But if Shidan is right and it is scripted age cycle, then it's safe to assume it was either intentionally or unintentionally set to be your run off the mill Bonedog... It would make starting the game with a severely underpowered animal that grows up to be generic pretty pointless to choose as a starter option when you can just buy one at a later time in other play options. Hopefully it is just an oversight by the Devs and the change was unintentional.

Well, you can get anything the other starts can get. The Guy With Dog start is basically Rock Bottom with a stick, a rag skirt, and a bone dog.