The Ability to use a Lit Torch as a Wolf-Defence Weapon

[Pharose]

I’ve been playing TLD since the very early days of early-access and I’ve seen the dynamics of torch self-defence change quite a bit. A lit torch used to discourage wolf attacks pretty well by itself, then you had to throw the torch to properly scare the wolves, then they replaced that with the brandish function, then they went back to torch throwing (please correct me if my memory is wrong). I recently tried playing stalker mode and I discovered that a held torch won’t deter a wolf attack and a thrown torch *might* make the wolf hesitate for a split second before resuming his quest to eat my face. I’m playing Interloper right now and I’ve assumed that the torch is useless for wolf self-defence.

I’ve never been a fan of the torch throwing method of self-defence. It is not intuitive in the slightest and not something that a new player would learn to do on their own. By throwing your torch you are throwing away your best tool of self-defence and putting your faith into a game mechanic that probably won't work.

(I have a deep personal connection to this issue because as a child I had a frequent re-occurring dream in which I was eaten alive by a wolf. I would be chased through the forest and I usually had a rock or a stick in my hands. Once the wolf caught up to me we would face off and I would yell at him while swinging my rock/stick. Usually I would end up panicking and I would throw my rock/stick at the wolf but the second I did so I realised that I was even more defenceless and the wolf would pounce to seal my fate.)

In reality a burning torch provides good defence against wolves by simply shoving it at their face. A wolf’s only proper weapon is their mouth and, unlike bear or cougars, their paws are not very good at blocking or parrying weapons. For a self-sufficient wild animal without good medical or dental coverage, biting into a burning torch should be unpleasant enough to make them forget about their hunger or their personal vendettas against the human species. It could render them blind or unable to hunt/eat. 

For the developer it’s super easy to implement, all you need to do is add another icon for weapon selection in wolf combat. It would also get rid of a tremendous amount of confusion for the gamers that I see being expressed here and on forums elsewhere on the internet. Is there any reason not to implement this feature?

[Strategizer]

Great.  I really like this idea, perhaps if they ever revisit the Wolf struggle mechanic to make it more interesting with "choices" that have different strengths rather than always use the Axe... always. 

I could see a lit torch reduce the struggle time, with a 0% chance to kill the wolf.

 

[Pharose]

I think it would reduce the struggle time dramatically or avoid it altogether. It would not kill the wolf in the short term, but I think a burnt face would put the wolf into "sulk mode" where it would be unable to hunt. It may recover from this period or it may die. 

[Jcx70t]

A lit torch will keep the wolves at bay. Just don’t get too close to them and don’t drop it. However I don’t think torches are effective in this way if you are smelly. (Having raw meat or guts on your person)