Forage

[Ice Hole]

Back before I started playing TLD the game had the option to forage for wood.  This of course was upgraded to the manual collection of wood as we currently have in the game.  This does make collecting wood a chore and in my opinion works well.  The limited amount of easy to grab sticks also works well. 

There are many areas the developers have not placed any branches or sticks.  This is done more than likely to reduce lag and also works well.  The issue occurs when I am surrounded by trees and no wood is to be found.

Bring back forage for wood to allow players to gather wood when surrounded by wood.  Have the yield of sticks based on the number and type of trees in the immediate area.  Make the forage results random.  Allow tools to assist in foraging by reducing time.  And if tools are used allow for branches to be returned in a neat pile.

This wood forage could be offset by reducing the number of branches and sticks currently in the game.  The wood forage does break immersion but it is related to fabricating.   The best part is it encourages exploration without encumbrance.
 

 

 

[Sgt. Eclair]

Honestly, I'm not sure this is necessary- the current wood collecting system is much more immersive, and the old forage for wood mechanic was just a placeholder in the first place. 

[Ice Hole]

20 minutes ago, Sgt. Eclair said:

the current wood collecting system is much more immersive

Yes and I agree it works well.  Where it lacks immersion is when travelling off the beaten path and if you did not bring sticks along than fuel might be an issue. 
There are many areas the developers have not placed any branches or sticks or much else other than trees rocks and snow and these areas can be difficult to travel to.  Surrounded by trees and not a stick to be found.

Now I see extra carry is available for being well fed so this could make a difference.