HOPELESS RESCUE HELP

[Greenfoot_away]

I have made 7 attempts now at hopeless rescue.  With each try I manage to shave mere hours off my time. With the last trip,  I made it off the mountain and back to the valley with 10hrs to go,  doesn't seem like enough time. Add in a wolf attack (or 4) along with being tired ALL THE TIME, how can this  be done? This should be rated as the hardest challenge.   The Hunted pt1/pt2 were pieces of  cake compared to this bastard. 

[cullam]

It's somewhat tricky. The big key that I found was that it REALLY forces you to change your playstyle (assuming you tend to play it somewhat safe). But it turns out that you can push yourself to travel a LOT farther than you might in a game that you've been at for weeks, and want to be sure to stay alive in. For instance, in a regular game, it would generally take me a couple days to get from starting in the trapper's homestead to the carter hydro dam. I'd probably spend the night nice and safe in the camp office. But in this challenge, since you really don't have much choice, you should be able to get from the homestead all the way to the radio tower in Pleasant Valley, without even really treating things like a speed run. Stopping to nap and warm up in a few spots, naturally. You also don't have to worry about consuming your resources, so to do something like get up timberwolf mountain, go right ahead and use Adrenalin shots to get up climbing ropes that you'd be too tired to climb otherwise. Don't hesitate to crack a flare to keep wolves away. 
Good luck with it! It's a tough'un, but it's damn fun! 

[Mikhail_Reign]

Yeah I stressed about time before I played it. In my head I had me forging on through rain or shine just to make the deadline. I budgeted 2 and a half days for Timberwolf (1 assent half for rest one for decent). I left Timberwolf at dawn. Took me about 20 in-games minute to decent. Was at the lighthouse before the afternoon. I was completely crushed with how easy it was.

With this game I really want some difficulty in travel. Like if you wanted to go from A to C, you would actually have to go A to B, leave supplies and go back to A, before heading out again, picking up the supplies left at B and heading on to C. Base camp operations.

Instead I just wedge the W key down with a fork and point the mouse while I go take a piss.

[SteelFire]

Knowing your way around and the most efficient routes to get from one location to the next is a big part of it. Not overloading on stuff you don't need is a big part of it too. Don't even bother searching/scavenging most of what you could/would in a sandbox game.

[MarrowStone]

 

The most important and surprising thing is to actually not sprint at all, if you walk everywhere, you will actually get there faster. Surprising, i know, but true.

The second most important thing is to cook all your coffee in one go, and to drink a cup before you climb each rope, the coffee not only reduces fatigue, but reduces drain for a while too, and is most efficient at reducing how taxing climbing is on the character. Also, use those flares on wolves liberally, and dont carry a rifle unless you are out of flares because you dont need to survive off meat. 

[Barretts Privateer]

You sound pretty hopeless...

I haven't played this myself, but from what I've seen, you just need to pressure yourself to keep going. Food is not too critical; you can survive off cattails during the day and some high-calorie bursts before resting. The big problem here, as you've mentioned, is sleep/stamina. Coffee, stims, etc. Sleep is needed, but you shouldn't need as much once you're out of Timberwolf. Walk everywhere you go, sleep when you find shelter, then keep going.

Something I've done when I NEED to get somewhere in sandbox, say get back to my base after getting caught in a blizzard that has let up for a night, is go outside and check how well lit it is by the moon. If you feel you can travel by the light of the moon, then go for it. Just be sure you know where you're going.

I wish you well in your next attempt...you keep fighting, and that is a good sign in and of itself! Also, sorry for the pun at the start; I couldn't help it.