Request for help: If your PC had to spend 2 years in the wild, how would he survive?

[Bob Aberton]

He is not, as some people say, done for before it even starts.

First off: Make friends. When neutral or friendly Feys, or even monsters, walk into his little glade, he should make every attempt to make friends.

Then: Make traps. Is profession (trapmaking) or whatever an untrained skill? I should think he's smart enough to make traps & things around his glade. Have an unseen servant dig a 30 ft trench all around his glade. put a log across as a bridge, and make sure you TELL YOUR NEWFOUND FRIENDS ABOUT THIS TRENCH!!

Then: Make a house. Dig down into the ground, because come winter, you don't want to be stuck up in a tree with the cold winds blowing.

Magic Missile, as mentioned before, is great for shooting down birds and things. Never try to have your character bring down a bear, because you probably will just make it mad, and a first level character of any variety doesn't want an angry bear after them.

I disagree with the people who say the character can't gain any levels during his hermitage.

I agree he can't gain any more wizard levels, but I think TWO YEARS ALONE IN THE WILDERNESS is worth AT LEAST ONE RANGER LEVEL!!

 

[hong]

[toilet paper substitute]

*AHERM* That's what Prestidigitation is for.

No, no, that's what mage hand is for. To avoid leaving one's arcane mark all over the place, IKWYIM AITYD

 

[The Forsaken One]

BUt with the average min-maxed wizard stats that level of Ranger is gonna be hylarious ^_______^

 

[Corwyn]

Hmmmm

Nobody has mentioned the sleep spell. This one is very usefull to bring down larger animals and then coup de grace them with the sword. In this manner he can stock up on meat. With fishing and some gathering of nuts and roots he has his diet coverd for in the winter.

So the food isn't a problem.

Making a shelter is also very neccery.

And as mentioned he friends with the fey / humaniods is also very helpfull. And if they are not frendly sleep and slay them.

It would still be a tough time but manageble.

Leveling would probably be best in rouge(If there aren't any other spells available that is). The 9 skillpoints (human I believe) plus Int. will probably ensure his survival. And if his dex is worth nothing it doesn't matter.

At least that is what I would do.

 

[Dagger75]

What kind of famalier to you have? A hawk or an owl would be a pretty could lookout and watch animal. A hawk or owl can also hunt for you, bring you small game and stuff.

I guess its like Cast Away
-except not on island
-stuff will want to kill you.
I guess it is not like Cast Away

 

[Edena_of_Neith]

I figure the character has three very difficult obstacles to overcome.

They are:

Wandering Monsters
Winter
Disease

Wandering monsters are just that.
Humanoids can smell out prey, and many can track quite well, so hiding from them is extremely difficult.
The Fey are even harder to hide from.
Both groups are tough adversaries for a 1st level wizard, especially since if even one of them escapes an ambush or battle, he or she will bring back friends to help next time.
Wandering monsters include animals and large sized variants of animals. Obviously, these are a problem for a lone mage.

Winter is an equally hazardous adversary. In Faerun, winter is long and severe, with sub-zero temperatures, devastating wind chills, and deep snow.
The character does not have a sleeping bag or a tent. He does not have camping equipment.
Building a crude lean-to is fine, but one will still freeze to death even if not in the wind.
Start a fire? Perhaps. But starting a fire will attract attention of a most unwanted kind very quickly.

Disease ... ah yes, there is always disease.
In this case, lockjaw is the primary enemy, for it exists in the soil everywhere, and minor injuries can infect one with the virulent bacteria.
Dysentary occurs with the water, and typhoid and typhus are not out of the question.
Of course, anyone suffering from exposure can contract pneumonia, and the flu can be transmitted from your friendly orc opponent.

As for my DM, he is neither sympathetic nor friendly.

His attitude can be summed up as follows:

If your character is worthy, he will survive the 2 year period.
If your character is not worthy, well ... that's just too bad, isn't it?

- - -

So yeah, I continue to solicit ideas for how this 1st level wizard character could survive.
My DM does not mind me doing this.

I appreciate your ideas given above. My thanks to you.
I hope more people will write, and give me some helpful advice on this matter.

Edena_of_Neith

 

[I'm A Banana]

Kill some hostile badger, and then mutliclass like a mofo is my advice.

Your DM is cruel enough taking away the rest of the party that the game is balanced in the mind of. Nobody to heal you, nobody to protect you, nobody to build traps for you...

Maybe take a level in Bard for he healing and control over wandering humanoids, followed by something more martial like the Barbarian, Druid, or Ranger. If you're lucky, you'll be able to get to 4th level before winter (y'know, nearly every day should be an encounter of your level or greater....), and with Druid levels you could Animal Friendship a bear and live with them, or Charm Person a woodsman and get him to build you a house, or whatnot.

He's not dead right away, and he actually stands not too bad of a chance if he takes it easy, doesn't provoke anything big, and knows that as a Wizard he's probably not going to lasat too long because he's not diverse enough to handle everything that the D&D world can throw at him.

 

[RingXero]

as mentioned, multi-classing is your best choice.

Digging a cave/tunnel system for winter is your only option(with multiple escape tunnels, it will be impossible for a normal human to survive exposed in that climate. If large enough, a fire could be made, you would have a vent hole to allow smoke out.

Fey are good and bad, just don't piss them off, making friends with the fey is easier if you multi into a druid.

A sorcerer/druid option for multiclass will allow you to possibly research spell variants tailored to help you survive.

Most important consideration, why? why are you there? why can't you leave? guarding something? quest? geased? is the place magical? anything out of the ordinary will be important to the survival of the character.

A sleeping place up in the trees is your first priority, and remember to dispose of all food and waste by burying it deep. (cantrips would help in disposal possibly)

as mentioned, given an intelligent character it won't be a problem, as long as the DM doesn't throw a dire bear at you the first day.

 

[Xeriar]

Winter is an equally hazardous adversary. In Faerun, winter is long and severe, with sub-zero temperatures, devastating wind chills, and deep snow.
The character does not have a sleeping bag or a tent. He does not have camping equipment.
Building a crude lean-to is fine, but one will still freeze to death even if not in the wind.
Start a fire? Perhaps. But starting a fire will attract attention of a most unwanted kind very quickly.

In boy scouts we made lean-to's out of a fallen tree on a stump and packed snow around it. Of course they're a litte low, but they retain a good deal of heat and well, they can be built in a day and last the winter if you know your stuff.

Disease ... ah yes, there is always disease.
In this case, lockjaw is the primary enemy, for it exists in the soil everywhere, and minor injuries can infect one with the virulent bacteria.

Typically it takes a pretty serious wound, I thought? Needs to peirce the flesh, and requires something infected anyway. I wonder if you could clean your wounds with prestidigitation, anyway?

Rabies only needs a scratch, though, but that can take six years for a human.

Learn to bleed wounds, of course, get some leeches, even.

Dysentary occurs with the water, and typhoid and typhus are not out of the question.

Get to the water before everything craps in it? I mean upstream, or better, be sure to collect rainwater and melt snow for your water, or at least some of it, to reduce your chances.

Of course, anyone suffering from exposure can contract pneumonia, and the flu can be transmitted from your friendly orc opponent.

Pneumonia has a variety of causes, I guess it depends. Eat healthy

The majority of disease and health issues can be solved by a good supply of clean water, actually.

As for my DM, he is neither sympathetic nor friendly.

His attitude can be summed up as follows:

If your character is worthy, he will survive the 2 year period.
If your character is not worthy, well ... that's just too bad, isn't it?

Well, it's a wizard. He's not a sorcerer, or any of the other classes, all of which would fare infinately better.

But you picked a wizard.

I can't see how, without gaining some extra levels pretty quickly, he's gonna make it. Unless he makes some friends or something (can he at least get his familiar?) he's escrewzored in hostile territory. Any other class I'd not be too bothered...

 

[Dagger75]

There is NO possibility of an adventuring party or the occasional traveller running into him (or vice versa) by accident or chance.
There is a very GOOD possibility of humanoids, monsters of various sorts, and perhaps even fey creatures of the woodlands coming to this place, and an even better chance they will be hostile.

I was re-reading your post. These two "requirements" seem to contrdict each other. So go around and torching and defiling the surrounding countryside. Then you become a monster and adventures will be forced to hunt you. It will be a low level party only because you are first level but you should be able to sleep them.

Destroy your plot of land thats my solution. I don't think you will be able survive for 2 years. 2 angry squirles or a pissed off racoon will kill you.