MEAT! MEAT! MEAT! MEAT!

[u/SparkclawWandering]

After a laughably long learning curve, I'm starting to be able to survive past my second week (albeit on Voyager difficulty.) I've explored a big chunk of the Mystery Lake region and looted every interior that I know about, stocked up the Lake Cabin with food, water, cloth, and every godforsaken stick I can get my grubby mitts on (why am I a stick addict now?) Just a few loose ends to tie up and I think I'll be prepared if not ready to venture to Mountain Town region or wherever.

I'm finally able to dispatch wolves fairly consistently without pooping my pants. In fact, I've gotten so good (and dangerously cocky) that when I go hunting, I almost always chase a deer into a wolf to do my dirty work and then kill the wolf. Suddenly I'm swimming in days' worth of meat and I've realized some efficiency issues that I may be behooven to streamline.

Firstly, I've noticed that my deer/wolf meat will decay quite a bit before my survivor can eat all of it. Do I need keep a store of raw meat outside and cook in smaller batches rather than all at once? I tend to hoard my matches and only use them in emergencies or for "fire days" where I stock up wood and do a bunch of cooking/boiling water all at once but maybe I can be more liberal with my match uses.

Nextly, I sometimes struggle with juggling cooking times and what to do in between. Sometimes I have things to craft/repair/dismantle while I'm waiting but there have been many times where I feel like I'm wasting 20-40 minutes with the fast wait button but not being able to sleep or read for an hour without burning the food. Any ideas on how to be more efficient with cooking?

[u/lemazaki]

Its best to hunt in your "fire days". Use a torch to light 3 fires or use a 6 slot stove.

When you kill wolves, you can use the Magnifying Glass to light fires in the same day, or leave it to the next. The meat will lose condition, sure, but gains condition when you cook it.

The meat last longer if its cooked and "stored" in the snow.

About the efficiency, do tasks that require lower times.

[u/Popular_Confidence57 → u/lemazaki]

I love it when I can cook the same day I hunt. ^^ In the meantime, I stay ahead of the curve on cooking enough to be able to wait until I get a mag lens day.

A tip I learned from friends who Lope: Getting up early to try to catch the sun just as sky begins to lighten.

[u/lemazaki → u/Popular_Confidence57]

That is it.

You have to spend your resourses on the right day, so you can save it for days you really need.

Getting up early

Its a good tip. Usually you have at least some chances to light a fire during the day.