Need zones confuse me.

[Vedo]

So do need zones change? I mean i could have sworn that Moose zone was a Blacktail zone the other day...

[War Bear]

Yup, noticed the same some days ago. Blacktail zone turned into a black bear zone

[DerrickDude]

Need zones are sort of dynamic in nature. If you discover one and then harvest all the animals that use it, it will disappear. It is possible that other animals will use the same area at the same time but the first track you examined was for the blacktail. Once you harvested all the blacktails for that zone, it defaulted to the moose because you haven't harvested them yet.

This is just y guess and observations. I may be totally wrong.

[RamMack]

I do believe "Need Zones" can be shared. You say it changed, I believe it was shared, you just only checked one highlighted area. If you checked more than one, you probably would have seen a different animal, and possibly a different time. I'm not saying this is how it is across the board, but I'm sure I've come across this.

[Vedo]

Originally posted by jobabysmaster:

Need zones are sort of dynamic in nature. If you discover one and then harvest all the animals that use it, it will disappear. It is possible that other animals will use the same area at the same time but the first track you examined was for the blacktail. Once you harvested all the blacktails for that zone, it defaulted to the moose because you haven't harvested them yet.

This is just y guess and observations. I may be totally wrong.

Im not sure what you are saying is plausible because im pretty sure i didnt hunt the Blacktail zone that was there earlier. If i did i shot like one MAYBE two. Im honestly not even sure when i discovered the Moose zone at that spot, cant remember ever walking across there and discovering it. Its like the game just decided it should be a Moose zone there for whatever reason.

[Vedo]

Originally posted by RamMack:

I do believe "Need Zones" can be shared. You say it changed, I believe it was shared, you just only checked one highlighted area. If you checked more than one, you probably would have seen a different animal, and possibly a different time. I'm not saying this is how it is across the board, but I'm sure I've come across this.

Hmm... that does kind of make sense. I will test that by pressing E on all the highlighted grass on that spot to see if there is still a Blacktail zone there.

[RamMack]

Originally posted by Vedi:

Originally posted by RamMack:

I do believe "Need Zones" can be shared. You say it changed, I believe it was shared, you just only checked one highlighted area. If you checked more than one, you probably would have seen a different animal, and possibly a different time. I'm not saying this is how it is across the board, but I'm sure I've come across this.

Hmm... that does kind of make sense. I will test that by pressing E on all the highlighted grass on that spot to see if there is still a Blacktail zone there.

jobabysmaster is correct, once you harvest all animals of a certain species, the need zone disappears for that species. Sometimes there is only one animal using zone.

[wubbelflup]

are there predifined need zones? does it make sence to discover them in someone elses multiplayer?

or are they dynamic?

[afwsi]

Originally posted by RamMack:

I do believe "Need Zones" can be shared. You say it changed, I believe it was shared, you just only checked one highlighted area. If you checked more than one, you probably would have seen a different animal, and possibly a different time. I'm not saying this is how it is across the board, but I'm sure I've come across this.

if they are shared, that might explain my duplicate need zone icons in same spot I was getting. I posted in bug section ,but don't know if that got looked into. Hard to see when you got two on top of each other.

[Vedo]

Originally posted by RamMack:

Originally posted by Vedi:

Hmm... that does kind of make sense. I will test that by pressing E on all the highlighted grass on that spot to see if there is still a Blacktail zone there.

jobabysmaster is correct, once you harvest all animals of a certain species, the need zone disappears for that species. Sometimes there is only one animal using zone.

How do you know this?

[Vedo]

I just discovered a Blacktail zone and then immediately a Whitetail zone. When i discovered the Blacktail it said Blacktail on the map but after i discovered the Whitetail zone it changed to Whitetail on the map. Now when i try to rediscover the Blacktail zone it makes no difference it still says Whitetail on the map even though there is actually a Blacktail zone there as well. So i guess the map just shows the most recent discovery. Kind of a lil bit frustrating because i dont know the time range for the Blacktail now unless i walk over there and actually check i guess?

[KaiEr]

Need zones are useless bits of clutter on the map – good for nearly nothing at all.

The only thing they are good for is knowledge of what animals may possibly be in the general area. They are not worth hunting over, or waiting for that trophy to return to – it’s just not going to happen.

Then there’s the fact that there are completely inactive need zones that remain after the designated animals are harvested. Yes, need zones are for a specific animal or herd of animals, and that’s it. That information can be gathered with that tracking perk that allows you to inspect need zones. You can also figure that out if you pay attention to how need zones remain or disappear when harvesting animals, depending on whether or not you “discover” the need zone first.

If I spot a bear and automatically discover a need zone then shoot the bear, if the need zone says it’s for one bear… it’s now an inactive need zone cluttering the map.

If I shoot a bear that’s resting/eating/drinking, without spotting it or examining the need zone when I walk up to it, the need zone (graphic) disappears once I harvest the bear. If need zones are not dependent on the animal, then it should not disappear… right?

What does that say about the unoccupied need zones you walk up on in the woods? Did you happen to already kill the animals that were designated to that need zone? Who knows – you could be sitting around a need zone that is completely inactive.

Useless.

They are specific markers for where the animal was eating/drinking/resting at the time. Yeah, statistically they may return to that same spot to drink, but with the map the size that it is… I find it doubtful.

I spent a month hunting nothing but bear, and made it a point to examine every need zone and spot every animal that was resting/eating/drinking. At the end of that month, my map looked like it had the measles. Several hundred need zones all over the map.

[Vedo]

Im confused... do the need zones remain or disappear? And yeah the more i play the more im thinking to ignore the need zones and just go after where i know i have spotted the animal in numbers before.

[afwsi]

Originally posted by Vedi:

Im confused... do the need zones remain or disappear? And yeah the more i play the more im thinking to ignore the need zones and just go after where i know i have spotted the animal in numbers before.

couple things I can say about needs zones. I discovered a roe deer drinking need zone. I stayed there, killed 5 roe deer, and my need zone then disappeared from the map. I also discovered a elk need zone close by a stand. Went during the middle of time given and there was 3 bull elk laying down by the stand. Use em, don't use em, it's up to you.

[76561198088759410]

Originally posted by jobabysmaster:

Need zones are sort of dynamic in nature. If you discover one and then harvest all the animals that use it, it will disappear. It is possible that other animals will use the same area at the same time but the first track you examined was for the blacktail. Once you harvested all the blacktails for that zone, it defaulted to the moose because you haven't harvested them yet.

This is just y guess and observations. I may be totally wrong.

Yes!! need zones only for the group who use it!
in classic, you can always restart the game and find the same group of animals in the same place.

but in cotw, it follows the record.

[RamMack]

They would be a lot more useful, if we had portable climbing stands. Then you could set a stand, then set a tent nearby, and fast travel to your stand whenever you wanted. Then pack up and move when you have exhausted all your animals.