Scent eliminator not working

[Narbish]

Is it just me or does seem like scent eliminator is not working...since i started playing again for month now, every time i spray it animals will smell me either way even from about 100 meters away...its like i never sprayed it.
I even resprayed to be sure and still didn't work..

Am i missing something?

Thank you

[von Driesen]

Check in you hunting profile to see if your actually scaring animals with scent. Some have said they feel its the eliminator is not working for them.

[jal273]

It has not worked for months

[Eclipse]

works for me pretty okay, just a short duration maybe 45 secs to 90 secs. unless im totally tripping.

[Mr. Ed]

Works for me but the term "eliminator" is misleading. It does not eliminate the hunters scent. Merely reduces it's impact upon the animal, causes it hang around a bit longer before heading for China. It stays with you when you move (even fast traveling) (don't know if it stays with you if you change reserves) and supposedly lasts 30 min. For me it works best on animals on the fringe of my scent fan. If an animal is directly downwind....you are out of luck.

[Narbish]

Originally posted by Mr. Ed:

Works for me but the term "eliminator" is misleading. It does not eliminate the hunters scent. Merely reduces it's impact upon the animal, causes it hang around a bit longer before heading for China. It stays with you when you move (even fast traveling) (don't know if it stays with you if you change reserves) and supposedly lasts 30 min. For me it works best on animals on the fringe of my scent fan. If an animal is directly downwind....you are out of luck.

I see so it tames it down yeah? Otherwise without they'll run without waiting

[CaptainNebulous]

It works fine in the direction the wind is blowing. In that aspect it is just like the scent lures. But don't expect it to eliminate more than 50% of your scent. Like others, though.... I do suspect the timer is bugged on it. I never feel as if it really lasts 30 minutes.

Note, there is a small area around the player in all directions where they can smell you, as well.... depending on how strong the wind is.

Speaking of wind strength.... the wind speed also has noticeable effects on your scent, and how the scent eliminator and scent lures work. I believe this aspect is largely overlooked by the player base.

[Narbish]

Originally posted by CaptainNebulous:

It works fine in the direction the wind is blowing. In that aspect it is just like the scent lures. But don't expect it to eliminate more than 50% of your scent. Like others, though.... I do suspect the timer is bugged on it. I never feel as if it really lasts 30 minutes.

Note, there is a small area around the player in all directions where they can smell you, as well.... depending on how strong the wind is.

Speaking of wind strength.... the wind speed also has noticeable effects on your scent, and how the scent eliminator and scent lures work. I believe this aspect is largely overlooked by the player base.

That explains it good...and i do agree that the devs say 30 mins length but it doesn't feel like it. Oh well

[von Driesen]

Reason I suggested looking in profile is it shows how and how many of each type of scaring you have done.
On 27th november I posted i had 662 scent scared animals, today 742. I have 83000 scared by hearing. Now unless I have clocked the scent and its rolled over and started at zero again, its not very many, but nearly 10 % in three days for scent is worrying.

[Narbish]

Originally posted by von Driesen:

Reason I suggested looking in profile is it shows how and how many of each type of scaring you have done.
On 27th november I posted i had 662 scent scared animals, today 742. I have 83000 scared by hearing. Now unless I have clocked the scent and its rolled over and started at zero again, its not very many, but nearly 10 % in three days for scent is worrying.

Will try to check that and report back

[Dan Conner [GER]]

This is my experience: Scent eliminator is only a scent reducer.
Animals react on 3 indicators - seeing, hearing and smelling.
Seeing is the strongest. After a short alerting time they will run.
Hearing and smelling are softer indicators. Only one makes the animal nervous and it will not come closer when you call. But two of them alert the animals and they will run.
So...
Seeing --> animal runs
Hearing --> nervous
Smelling --> nervous
Hearing and Smelling --> runs

When the animal is downwind from you, you need to be silent, kiss the ground or take cover in a bush. With scent reducer the animal will come closer when you call. Without scent reducer you have no chance to call them closer.

--> Scent eliminator is only a helpfull tool for calling animals closer. But the alerting indicators above remain primary.

When you walk with wind and normal speed, animals receive 2 indicators --> hearing and smelling. So animals will run before you know that they were there. Be silent as good as possible and take cover.

Sometimes confusion: Scent eliminator is active for 2 in game hours, that means 30 minutes real time.

Good hunt and have fun! :-)

[cbrrrman]

no such thing as scent eliminator. It simply masks the smell with something else.
And smart animals are still alerted by the false scent.
Bottom line... do not be downwind of the animals hunted.
The eliminator will only suffice for a few minutes of lower value animals.

I have never used the scent eliminator in the 6000+ hrs I have played this game.
And I have harvested well over 15K animals in that process.

Better to mind your wind direction and the noise you make.

[Hidden Gunman]

Originally posted by cbrrrman:

no such thing as scent eliminator. It simply masks the smell with something else.
And smart animals are still alerted by the false scent.
Bottom line... do not be downwind of the animals hunted.
The eliminator will only suffice for a few minutes of lower value animals.

I have never used the scent eliminator in the 6000+ hrs I have played this game.
And I have harvested well over 15K animals in that process.

Better to mind your wind direction and the noise you make.

That's pretty much it...there is no free ride in this game, in any case.

[DMC101]

Pedantic responses aside, many of the lures and such in this game do not have realistic effects on animals. I've watched bucks well within earshot totally ignore callers, had ducks ignore it as well as geese. They seem to land at the same rate regardless of the calling, and the animals that you'd use a caller for tend to freeze and just hang around there without ever coming in. I stopped carrying callers or scents.

[DMC101]

Originally posted by cbrrrman:

no such thing as scent eliminator. It simply masks the smell with something else.
And smart animals are still alerted by the false scent.
Bottom line... do not be downwind of the animals hunted.
The eliminator will only suffice for a few minutes of lower value animals.

I have never used the scent eliminator in the 6000+ hrs I have played this game.
And I have harvested well over 15K animals in that process.

Better to mind your wind direction and the noise you make.

Being downwind is the right way. You don't want to be upwind from them. You want the wind in your face, not at your back.

[Geronimo]

Originally posted by Dan Conner GER:

This is my experience: Scent eliminator is only a scent reducer.
Animals react on 3 indicators - seeing, hearing and smelling.
Seeing is the strongest. After a short alerting time they will run.
Hearing and smelling are softer indicators. Only one makes the animal nervous and it will not come closer when you call. But two of them alert the animals and they will run.
So...
Seeing --> animal runs
Hearing --> nervous
Smelling --> nervous
Hearing and Smelling --> runs

When the animal is downwind from you, you need to be silent, kiss the ground or take cover in a bush. With scent reducer the animal will come closer when you call. Without scent reducer you have no chance to call them closer.

--> Scent eliminator is only a helpfull tool for calling animals closer. But the alerting indicators above remain primary.

When you walk with wind and normal speed, animals receive 2 indicators --> hearing and smelling. So animals will run before you know that they were there. Be silent as good as possible and take cover.

Sometimes confusion: Scent eliminator is active for 2 in game hours, that means 30 minutes real time.

Good hunt and have fun! :-)

Good post EXCEPT that animals will flee if they suddenly detect your smell.

This is the indicator to me of the exact minute that the scent mask fails, or times out.

You are right in that there are multiple factors involved in when an animal will flee and it is often difficult to pinpoint which of their senses triggered the flight.

Did they see you move a bit, or hear you brush against a branch, or was it because your scent mask gave way to a breeze in their favor?

However, there ARE certainly some instances where the exact reason they suddenly fled is obvious enough to draw conclusions, for example, when in a tree stand, where they have been wandering beneath you without concern, the wind in your favor, you being totally immobile, and obviously unseen by them, and suddenly, altogether, they flee in a sudden panic.

Your scent eliminator just wore off.

There are also many instances where, as you noted, animals just flat out refuse to come closer, and as soon as you spray that eliminator on they suddenly come trotting in like you suddenly dropped a bag of apples beneath you.

It was because the eliminator works that well, unfortunately, without any way to know how long it will last or continue to hold that same affect.

I have made many posts in an effort to create a community discussion about what things might be the cause of the scent eliminator issues many of us have observed, but there are too many members here that refuse to acknowledge those concerns, and are readily satisfied by a simple off the cuff post stating what may or may not be accurate information.

I will go by what I experience in the game under close scrutiny and even experimentation-testing, rather than be one of those guys who has to later eat crow when the bug is finally dealt with. lol