Can't find animals. (embarrased to ask but yep)

[Aviosche]

Well this is a newbie thing probably and people who read this are just face palming BUUUT...
I cant find any animal to hunt !!
well the thing is Ive asked a friend the times for white tail drinking zones for layton lake and went for that long lake at left side of the map but only found 1 drinking zone with 3 female deer at lowest part of it and a mallard area at the top and nothing between. Ive went whole way running but yep... Is there something Im missing?
I see many people including my friends hunting many game in need zones especially drinking times and they seem to make the game much easier compared to my few hour efforts to end up with 1 female deer to be only successful hunt.

[Nite69]

You are moving around too much, the key to getting animals is stealth (hide under trees and in bushes), move slowly, use callers, and use the scent blocker so animals can't smell ya

[Aviosche]

Originally posted by Nite69:

You are moving around too much, the key to getting animals is stealth (hide under trees and in bushes), move slowly, use callers, and use the scent blocker so animals can't smell ya

how do I find need zones if I dont move around then? I want to find the need zones in a map so Ill know the general areas that are more crowded

[Nite69]

Originally posted by Aviosche:

Originally posted by Nite69:

You are moving around too much, the key to getting animals is stealth (hide under trees and in bushes), move slowly, use callers, and use the scent blocker so animals can't smell ya

how do I find need zones if I dont move around then? I want to find the need zones in a map so Ill know the general areas that are more crowded

They don't always use need zones but at specific times of the day I wouldn't rely on them for finding animals, I've had better luck just hideing and using callers

[Biadabs]

Use need zone if you already know their routine hours. Search for animal tracks, and follow it. Keep attention for any call from them, it means they're not far from you.

[Soltyk]

Originally posted by Nite69:

You are moving around too much, the key to getting animals is stealth (hide under trees and in bushes), move slowly, use callers, and use the scent blocker so animals can't smell ya

You don't have to hjde in the bushes. That's role playing. Crouching in the open is good enough for all practical purposes and you actually have a chance to see some animals. And don't use callers if you can't see the animals.

[Nite69]

Originally posted by Soltyk:

Originally posted by Nite69:

You are moving around too much, the key to getting animals is stealth (hide under trees and in bushes), move slowly, use callers, and use the scent blocker so animals can't smell ya

You don't have to hjde in the bushes. That's role playing. Crouching in the open is good enough for all practical purposes and you actually have a chance to see some animals. And don't use callers if you can't see the animals.

That doesn't work for all animals you want the line to be completely gone or they still detect you

[MrKidRock]

Grind it out. As you gain levels, perks and skills, it gets a lot easier to find and kill animals. I quit for years because of few to no animals. I started up again to play with my grandchildren and it got me over the hump to advance. As you progress you will have more and more fun hunting.

[Nite69]

Yep once you get soft feet and improvised blinds it gets much easier they are the 2 most important

also avoid skills like Dazed and Confused and Who's Deer for obvious reasons they will bring the wrong animal

[½Pete]

You dont have to crouch and be stealthy, you can simply walk normal speed from lake to lake and you WILL find animals. That's all there is to it. This is the easiest and more sure fire way, you might not necessarily find the exact group of animals you want to shoot, but you will certainly find something.

There is ALWAYS an animal around you somewhere.

[Woodyplank]

You won't find a ton of need zones right next to the water sources. A lot of them were moved back into the brush and trees (away from the shore line). There are still a few you can find along the main rivers in LL but you'll find more tracks and glowing weeds/circular patches of ground full of tracks 30-50 meters away from the shore line. There's a time and place when it's okay to run and times when it is most unwise. Animals are dispersed by home ranges now and they will use the nearest need zone(s) when the time to do so comes around. It won't do you much good to find a need zone while running around and stake it out since you've probably already spooked them into using another need zone within their home range. Walking can spook animals within 100 meters of you. Running can do the same at 150 meters. Mind the wind, your visibility and noise levels and you'll do all right.

[ZAP]

You should find animals every 5-10 minutes max just walking in random directions. Always have your binoculars out when not stalking a target, use them often in different directions.

I don't use the need zones unless in the time period by coincidence while I'm in the area.

[yogisgoat]

One of the easiest ways to find need zones, especially in Layton, is to use your binos. A lot. Walk along the shore of the lakes slowly, keeping in cover as much as possible. Stop frequently and scan the shore ahead and across the lake carefully. The lake, too, if your a bird hunter. Take your time and follow these steps and your map will soon be festooned with need zones. Happy hunting.

[Mr L]

You can find need zones if you set your clock at say 8 am for white tails and just walk the lake areas. Don't hunt, just walk and run the lakes as fast as you can to cover ground quickly
The right side of the map doesn't have white tail but you will find Elk & Black tail zones to
Calburn river is a good area and the lake shore south of Roonache church id great. I have 5 zones there, As stated use your binoculars a lot

[Lazarus Long]

Originally posted by Aviosche:

Well this is a newbie thing probably and people who read this are just face palming BUUUT...
I cant find any animal to hunt !!
well the thing is Ive asked a friend the times for white tail drinking zones for layton lake and went for that long lake at left side of the map but only found 1 drinking zone with 3 female deer at lowest part of it and a mallard area at the top and nothing between. Ive went whole way running but yep... Is there something Im missing?
I see many people including my friends hunting many game in need zones especially drinking times and they seem to make the game much easier compared to my few hour efforts to end up with 1 female deer to be only successful hunt.

While it is possible to run (sprint) headlong into a group of animals more often than not they will start running long before you can see them because of the amount of noise you are making.

As others have said: slow down! Whitetails are some of the most skittish animals in the game you really need to count on more than luck to bring them to you. It's good to go out and explore, to learn the maps, and to find need zones. Just remember that the locations of need zones are randomized every game and that if you kill enough animals that use the zone it will disappear.

Callers are great for bringing in the easy, low value animals and sometimes a high value Gold. Scents are harder to use because you have think about wind direction and speed. They are also expensive. I normally don't use them at lower levels because of this.

Stealth is very much a part of the game and one that I enjoy greatly. The most important part is how much noise you are making. The second part is how visible you are.

https://thehuntercotw.fandom.com/wiki/Noise
https://thehuntercotw.fandom.com/wiki/Visibility?so=search

[Soltyk]

Originally posted by Nite69:

Originally posted by Soltyk:

You don't have to hjde in the bushes. That's role playing. Crouching in the open is good enough for all practical purposes and you actually have a chance to see some animals. And don't use callers if you can't see the animals.

That doesn't work for all animals you want the line to be completely gone or they still detect you

Humor me, which animals will spook at 100m when you are semi-circle visible and standing still?