What is the best base location in the long dark?

[SadonicShadow]

I am new to TLD and as such i am not familiar with the most meta places to hold up in. In the opinion of experienced Long Dark survivalists where is the best place to make a base? I keep hearing Trappers Homestead and the Farm House are the best. Is this true and which one is superior?

[jones]

Mystery Lake - Camp Office

[Shelt]

Best not to get tied down in any one location for too long, that's been my experience. Staying in doors for too long will cause you to get a weird mental disease called cabin fever.

I guess if you're going to be crafting for a several days in a row though, it's best to build a snow shelter outside to sleep in at night while doing your inside work during the day. Thus you'll want to pick a location with a workbench that has lots of resources around.

[IvantheFormidable]

You'll hear a lot of different opinions on this. Bottom line is that there isn't a single "best" base location, but you can narrow down locations that are better based on your specific criteria. Some people value the location of the base relative to all maps (like ML Camp office), but there are plenty of cases to be made for other base locations. And a lot of it depends on the difficulty. On Stalker, I have more leeway to choose a base that I find interesting or aesthetically pleasing. On Interloper, it might be best to set up close to a food source and/or the forge.

For example, one of my usual base locations is in the Forestry Lookout tower. Sure, might not be the most convenient place, but I quite enjoy the view.

Between the two you mention, it depends on the difficulty. Also, are you talking about the farm house in PV or MT?

Bottom line, experiment! Don't solely choose a base because it's the "best" base. Have fun!

[PowerOn]

Originally posted by SadonicShadow:

I keep hearing Trappers Homestead and the Farm House are the best. Is this true and which one is superior?

IMHO - Is not, places like ML Camp Office, CH Fishing Village is better, because give you all food options, including fish.

The "best base" depends on what player find more convenient, for some is a place with 6 burns stove (e.g. PV Farmstead) for cook a bear of moose in few hours... and after having to throw away half of the meat because became spoiled (0%).

[Trashe]

Misanthrope's is always my go to. Holed up there and had a 215 day interloper run based on that island and it's become like a second home to me since.

Trapper's is great if you're starting out due to all the rabbit spawns, decent gear and wood in the area. It's also pretty close to some nice POIS in mystery lake.
I personally don't like the Camp Office because there's a couple of wolves that have ruined my day when they spawned outside of the door. Same thing with Jackrabbit island.

Right now I'm thoroughly enjoying basing at the farm in Mountain Town. Close enough to sneak by wolves and loot through Milton and the gas station then get back home before nightfall. I found a revolver plus 36 rounds and have a nice, steady rhythm with the wolf, deer and rabbit spawns.

My advice when choosing a base is to find a nice location close to whatever suits your gameplay style. If you can find a rhythm to surviving and maintaining yourself, you've got it made.

[Gustuv Wynd]

When setting up a base...I always think about where I plan to retire. When I say retire I mean where I want to end the game because the weather gets so bad that you can't really do anything much that doesn't involve just sitting around a fire and sleeping.

I typically like to retire to the Mountaineer's Hut in Timber Wolf Mountain. It has fish and rabbits close by so even when the weather gets bad it is doable. Also I don't think it counts as in doors because I've never gotten cabin fever there, but I still try to be out of it as much as I can to be safe. However, it would be a pain to use this as a "main base" for the whole game.

So I will stock pile gear in the Abandoned Cache in Pleasant Valley by the TWM entrance. Moving the gear up the rope to TWM is no small feat, but the challenge is fun for me. So that is often my main base. It is a little out of the way, but I think it is worth it for the easier move into TWM. I like the windproof outdoor stove right there with the work bench in the cache...deer near by...no wolves to speak of (but there will be some right over the hill in a camp ground quite often if I actually want one)...I can climb the rope and watch a sun set...it's nice.

[MaiZure]

BR Hunting lodge. Loved that place even before 6-burner stoves mattered and before the forge in Maintenance Yard. Also, it does have a fireplace for a total of 8 cooking slots for two fires burning.

Painful to get to the lodge and set it up...but once in residence, I never leave!

EDIT: Ok ok, I leave usually every ~60 days to load up on coal, cloth, and clear any stray saplings along the way. A pass through FM, MT, ML, and back. Then another pass through CH, PV and back. The new revolver will make these journeys much safer and more productive

[Trashe]

Originally posted by JayXL:

That's funny, I'm the exact opposite. Never been attacked by a front door wolf at CO; not a bad base with deer, fishing, cats, and a cave nearby. I generally don't base at the islands anymore, too far away from everything. Fishing Village has it all; deer, workbench, firewood, nearby fishing hut.

I stay away from Misanthrope's, they don't call it MissingThroats for nothing.

CO isn't a bad base by any means; I've held up there quite a few times in the past but I'm scarred from the wolves at the door lol. Mystery Lake and that area in general has been a bit buggy for me recently so I dont stay on that map any longer than I need to now.

lmao sounds like you've had quite an adventure with Misanthrope's. Old Smokey down by the beach come knock on your door I take it? I didn't mind the bear much, he kept the wolves away and I kind of liked planning my day around his visits ngl... and then sniping him from behind as he made his way out onto the ice.

Ironically, I tend to die when I stay at the fishing village longer than a day.

[Metanoia]

Originally posted by SadonicShadow:

I am new to TLD and as such i am not familiar with the most meta places to hold up in. In the opinion of experienced Long Dark survivalists where is the best place to make a base? I keep hearing Trappers Homestead and the Farm House are the best. Is this true and which one is superior?

You'll hear alot of different opinions, but i believe the rabbit island in CH is the absolute best base, and I settle there in practically every serious survival run I do, because it provides everything I want in a home, easy food, easy beachcombing, great line of sight around you, fishing nearby, it's nearly perfect.

There's even a workbench not too far away, if you're willing to Sprint past some wolves.

[JiffyPopKids]

like a couple other people said, on lower difficulties I will choose the prettiest base. On higher difficulties I would chose the most efficient. For example on my current stalker run I'm basing in Mystery Lake at the forestry lookout. If I were on Interloper staying in Mystery Lake, my first choice would be Camp Office. Tons of fish nearby, wood, deer, rabbits, only problem here is that there is no nearby moose or bear.

Personally, here are my favorite bases in each region.

Mystery lake; Camp Office, Trapper's Homestead, Forestry lookout, Hydro dam.
Coastal Highway; Jackrabbit Island, Fishing village, Quonset gas (On lower difficulties)
Desolation Point; Lonely Lighthouse, Riken.
Pleasant Valley; Farmhouse, Signal Hill, Rural Crossroads house, Draft Dodger's.
Timberwolf Mountain; Mountaineer's hut, Cave at Deer clearing.
Forlorn Muskeg; Spence Family Homestead, Poacher's camp.
Mountain Town; Paradise meadows farmstead, Milton park camp office, Gray mother's.
Broken Railroad; Hunting lodge, junk yard.
Hushed River Valley; Cave southeast of Stairsteps lake / creek.

This is just my opinion, of course. If I had to pick an absolute favorite base, I would probably choose the Mountaineer's hut. Simply because of how cozy it is. It's secluded from the rest of the world and surrounded by wildlife. Nothing more comforting than listening to the fire crackle while watching the aurora. My favorite use to be the Pleasant Valley Farmstead, which is still one of my favorites, but not my absolute favorite anymore.

[MaiZure]

Originally posted by JiffyPopKids:

...
Pleasant Valley; Farmhouse, Signal Hill, Rural Crossroads house, Draft Dodger's.
...

Interesting...I've never considered living out of Draft Dodger's. Is it actually a sustainable location?

[Sir Prometeus]

The building next to the radio tower is one of my favourites. And better positioned than PV farmstead

[Lakarin]

my personal favourite is the 2 stage cave at the western access in mystery lake, there are cabins right out front, deer, wolf, bear and bunnies right on the lake, plenty of firewood and if i go for a short walk to carter dam, i can also have a shot at a moose. i use the rock formation to put my freshly harvested meat and the cooked meat at the entrance of the cave, i don't like how the meat looks sitting in snow.

best of all is no cabin fever ever:)

[JiffyPopKids]

Originally posted by MaiZure:

Originally posted by JiffyPopKids:

...
Pleasant Valley; Farmhouse, Signal Hill, Rural Crossroads house, Draft Dodger's.
...

Interesting...I've never considered living out of Draft Dodger's. Is it actually a sustainable location?

Yes, I've lived at Draft Dodger's a few times and it's a pretty good location. Of course it lacks a few things. Storage is a good example. But it has a very warm bed of I think 14+F and absolutely TONS of wildlife around! There's a bear spawn up on skeeter's ridge, just above draft dodger's, as well as another bear and moose spawn in the birch forest, not too far away. Not to mention the deer and rabbits that spawn in the little grove the house sits in. Location wise, this is a great place. It also does lack an indoor stove though. Which of course you can just make a camp fire or two when you need to cook, but it sure isn't as fast as a 6 plate stove like there is in the farmhouse.

Not to mention it also gives you a very cozy feeling when you live there. :)

[MaiZure]

Originally posted by JiffyPopKids:

Yes, I've lived at Draft Dodger's a few times and it's a pretty good location. Of course it lacks a few things. Storage is a good example. But it has a very warm bed of I think 14+F and absolutely TONS of wildlife around! There's a bear spawn up on skeeter's ridge, just above draft dodger's, as well as another bear and moose spawn in the birch forest, not too far away. Not to mention the deer and rabbits that spawn in the little grove the house sits in. Location wise, this is a great place. It also does lack an indoor stove though. Which of course you can just make a camp fire or two when you need to cook, but it sure isn't as fast as a 6 plate stove like there is in the farmhouse.

Not to mention it also gives you a very cozy feeling when you live there. :)

Well I think I just found my project for this evening...thanks Jiffy!