[Idea]Sleds/Sled Dogs

[SirGregory]

An addition of sled dogs would crucially benefit travel and transport. I think you should be able to tame certain wolfs(maybe wild dogs in the future) and you could create a sled with the work bench in the trappers cabin.

[EternityTide]

Bit of plagiarism here, I think? Just kidding, but I would suggest you do a little thinking into how the item/items added would interct with the ingame environment

[SirGregory]

Bit of plagiarism here, I think? Just kidding, but I would suggest you do a little thinking into how the item/items added would interct with the ingame environment

I thought the same, but if it can be implemented properly into the game this could really work if times have gone back to before technology and machines.

[autonomous]

Taming dogs seems like it would take months. Training them could take years. Not to mention wolves would probably revert back to trying to eat you the moment you didn't have enough to feed them for a day or two. If you did tame a wolf and set it off hunting for you I doubt it's going to want to share with you so you'll only get the scrapes or bit by your pet wolf. I cant think of a way to add wolf taming with out it being really hooky.

If any sort of k9 companion is added it makes a better back story if it was a domesticated dog gone stray after it's owner froze. So give it a collar and a different coat then the wolves (some breed that's adapted for cold weather). It would be too over powered to make it a capable deer hunter but having it able to pull a light sled load (very light) along side you or with your help. Also it should be a source of warmth when sleeping or stopped inside (raise room temperature slightly over time).

And in the end the game keeps telling us about the hard choices we will have to make. Having to choose between feeding your new dog friend to keep him around for his minimal benefits or eating him to save your self for 2 days worth of meat seem like a hard choice to me.

A team of sled dogs and a sled you can ride around isn't something I want for this game. You don't just find a team of sled dogs hanging out by camp office.

[EternityTide]

Autonomous, you are a genius. [gestures to nearest waiter] give this man/woman a cigar.

[SirGregory]

very true, and this is why i posted my previous post about Snowmobiles

[autonomous]

And if there is a sled that your lugging it should have a proportional weight to calorie/speed penalty on top of a base penalty for pushing the damn thing. It should not be convenient to bring everything with you. I really only see if being used as a way to move your base camp in less trips or if you have a lot of meat from a hunt.

I've been snow camping with sleds for gear before and it's usually a 2 to 4 man operation to steer and push. Steering rope or 2 on the front for pulling and pushing from the back to help keep things moving. With some of the hills in the long dark it would need to be really hard to drag it to the top of fire lookout and harder to keep it in control while steering it down at a controlled pace. Add the ability for the thing to flip and dump every thing or damage the sled if it flies off a cliff. The sled should not make everything easier

[SirGregory]

ah..

[elloco999]

I agree with most of what @autonomous said here. Dog sleds are simply not feasible. Just keeping the dogs fed would be very hard. And it would completely mess up the game mechanics.

I do like the idea of a small sled pulled by one dog as long as it doesn't give you a speed bonus, just the ability to move more weight. The dog could even warn you if dangerous animals are close by even if you can't see them. But I doubt this will be implemented simply for the time and effort needed to do this.

A small sled that you can pull yourself would be an interesting option, if implemented as @autonomous describes. A small sled can be pulled with some effort if not loaded to heavy, but going up steep mountains should be impossible.

[Trandor]

A pulk, one of the first suggestions I made when I started here on the forum.

[elloco999]

A pulk would work. I do want to see a limit to how much it can carry, like maybe 20kg or so?

[Trandor]

Yeah, I was thinking about 10-20kg. Enough to transport everything you find in one dear safely home. Or the finds of one decent sized house in the new maps, which should (toilet water included) amount to about 10kg.

[autonomous]

20kg or 44lb seems about right. it's about double what you can do now. It is also the weight of a full medium/large backpacking pack or a small child. Should be able to tow something that weight at about normal walking pace. As long as it's sensitive to the extreme angles of hills and doesn't just trail behind you.

Although towing empty up hill wouldn't really cause the same problems towing full would so that's something that would have to be considered.

If a pulk is added it will need a few different models to represent full or empty.

If it's going to be damageable it should be made of wood since plastic sleds are pretty indestructible. It should not decay like meat but only from bad driving.

[autonomous]

I glanced over this guide on pulk building http://skipulk.com/images/stories/pdfs/pulkbook.pdf and ridge tow poles eliminate most of the Major issues with keeping control. If the devs add this I highly recommend they take a look at that book as a reference. After reading this I might try building one next time I go snow camping. Having the pulk be an upgrade you can preform to the sled at the work bench seems possible after reading that book.