Bear tricks

[Dwayne]

I'm doing my first real survival game, second difficulty, so rather easy ... just looking for the 100 days achievement for now.

2 questions:

- I shot a bear and immediately went into a house, then I immediately went outside again, an the bear was gone. I scouted the whole area (it was a clear and sunny day) and nothing to be found, also no birds in the air. What could have happened?
- Can you sneek up to a bear when he is sleeping in a cave? I saw one sleeping the other day but it was green due to aurora, so I was too afraid, but I wondered if this is a good technique

[PowerOn]

Afetr shoot a animal don't go for interior (house, cave) this "reload" the game and maybe "heal" the prey.

Instead pass time one hour - outside. A bear hit may take way more than one hour to die due bleeding.

If the bear was really killed you see crows circling above - if weather allow.

"Exploit":

Is a bit "gamey" but you can confirm the kill in Journal statistics".

And, most time shoot a animal more than one time is waste of ammo.

[Bole]

What i do i a bit risky but it works, i locate him, go for the highest climb around and then i start shooting at him. You have to hit him at least 3 times in my experience and he could get to you before that. A bit like russian roulette this technque.

Much better is just to shoot him once, go inside, wait a day and look for birds.

[SteelFire]

Originally posted by PowerOn:

Afetr shoot a animal don't go for interior (house, cave) this "reload" the game and maybe "heal" the prey.

Instead pass time one hour - outside. A bear hit may take way more than one hour to die due bleeding.

If the bear was really killed you see crows circling above - if weather allow.

"Exploit":

Is a bit "gamey" but you can confirm the kill in Journal statistics".

And, most time shoot a animal more than one time is waste of ammo.

This. Unless you hit it in the leg, one shot is enough to make it bleed out. The better the shot, the more vital the area you hit, the quicker it will bleed out.

The bear will almost always try to charge and maul you after getting shot, so make sure you have a safe place, either to shoot it from initially or to get to quickly after shooting it.

To that end, bears are easy to lure wherever you want them. Just get close enough to draw aggro, but not for it to charge, then start moving toward where you actually want to confront it. Your walk speed is faster than the bear's, so you actually have to stop frequently so you don't get out of aggro range or it will turn around and forget about you. This is also a great tactic if you unexpectedly come across a bear; if it isn't in immediate charge range, just turn around and walk away.

As for confronting a sleeping bear in its cave... well, you can, but I'd consider that a recipe for disaster. Putting yourself into a confined space with no safe location to attack/retreat. = definite mauling. I'd also think that would drastically increase your chance of a secondary mauling, as the bear wouldn't have much room to wander away to a safe distance before you get up off the ground.

[Dread Arkive]

If it's not bad weather, shoot it and then drop your bedroll or get in a car (not an interior like a house) and sleep for 1 hour. With luck he dropped dead before running far (sleep/harvesting meat makes time progress faster while stopping creatures from actually moving, so they bleed out without going anywhere). If it didn't, then it will possibly head back your way, so be careful.

[McZ]

Killing a bear isn't that hard. Lure it near a outdoor covered area like a fishing hut, car, glass back porch in PV farm house, or some areas that's inaccessible for a bear. Shoot it once at most vital area you can, pass the time, and you will find it dead somewhere nearby. It can't charge at you in those areas.

[HUBRIS]

Arrow/Car/Bedroll is absolutely the best combo, but not always available. If you get on a fallen tree trunk and shoot the bear, it won't even come at you. It'll just run around forever, then die. Try this on the trunk opposite the bear cave near Trapper's for a good trial. Hunting Blinds protect you most of the time, but NOT 100%. I learned that one the fun way.

[vinadir]

You can just campcraft->pass time without a car or bedroll or anything for the same effect.

[Undecided Name For Now]

Originally posted by purehubris:

Arrow/Car/Bedroll is absolutely the best combo, but not always available. If you get on a fallen tree trunk and shoot the bear, it won't even come at you. It'll just run around forever, then die. Try this on the trunk opposite the bear cave near Trapper's for a good trial. Hunting Blinds protect you most of the time, but NOT 100%. I learned that one the fun way.

Please tell me you have video.

[Bengrim]

top of log pile in clearcut area also works well.but its hard to keep warm for harvest no shelter

[deelee58]

Originally posted by Bengrim:

top of log pile in clearcut area also works well.but its hard to keep warm for harvest no shelter

Are you saying that it is safe to shoot a bear from the top of a log pile? That the bear can't get to you? If so, I'm going to try it.

[HUBRIS]

Originally posted by Samuel:

Originally posted by purehubris:

Arrow/Car/Bedroll is absolutely the best combo, but not always available. If you get on a fallen tree trunk and shoot the bear, it won't even come at you. It'll just run around forever, then die. Try this on the trunk opposite the bear cave near Trapper's for a good trial. Hunting Blinds protect you most of the time, but NOT 100%. I learned that one the fun way.

Please tell me you have video.

Of what? The tree trunk trick or me getting mauled while in a blind? The latter would be fun to share, but sadly, I don't have any videos of any gameplay.

[ajb1978]

Jumping into a car used to be a foolproof way to dodge a charging bear after shooting them, but now that you have to click/hold to enter, that extra precious second can let the bear take a chunk out of you before you reach safety. If you shoot the bear from far enough away, it can still work. The best way in my experience is to lure the bear to a fenced in porch or ice fishing hut, then shoot it from there. The bear will go into its flee animation since it can't reach you. Just pass time from the campcraft menu to accelerate bleed-out time, so it drops before it gets too far away. Then, depending on the weather and your defense against the cold, either harvest all the meat, or quarter the bear and haul it away in chunks.

If you want to hunt a bear the old fashioned way, find a spot where you can get to, but the bear can't. Like a cliff face overlooking a path where you know the bear is going to walk. If you can get above the cliff and drop halfway down (i.e. you have to fall to get there--you can't climb) the bear has no chance of reaching you. Then just shoot Ol' Grumpy, take a note of which direction he ran, then meander your way safely back to ground level and start tracking him. A wounded bear can travel incredible distances.

Also, if you shoot the bear from head-on, aim for the left eye. If you nail a perfect eye-shot, most of the time they drop in one hit. Even with a bow. I've got a couple videos of me one-shotting a bear with a bow by aiming for the left eye, although granted that was several updates ago.