Surviving your first winter

Winter is one of the harshest times in URW, just like in real life. Here, we'll teach you how to get through it in one (perhaps a bit frostbitten) piece.

Preparing for Winter
Of course, the first thing you have to do to get through winter, is to prepare for it. The most important things are: shelter, warm clothing, wood and Lots and Lots of Food (tm). If you started in spring/summer, you're in luck - there's a lot of time to get prepared. Lay down some trap-fences, and get your hands on some crops for planting. Nets also help. Smoke or dry your meat to preserve it, as salting doesn't last quite as long. You could also use hides from your prey to make some warm fur clothes.

Here's a rough guideline for how much you should have by winter:
 * Warm clothing, so that the 'Warmth' tab on your Armor page is completely green
 * Indoor shelter of some kind (cabin, cave, walled-up sauna etc)
 * A constructed fireplace in said area. THIS IS A MUST!
 * A cellar, containing:
 * Around 100+ lbs of meat, preferably dried
 * Some way of getting even more food (trap fences and nets are very popular)
 * A set of skis

It goes without saying, winter's not exactly a nice time. Here are the biggest threats in winter:

Hunger
Of course, in winter, you can't grow crops, and there will be less animals around for you to hunt and trap. Luckily, some rivers and lakes will still have fish. Rivers won't freeze over, but lakes will. To fish in them, use your Survival skill to cut a hole in the ice, and fish to your heart's content.

Really, the best way to deal with this problem, is to make sure you'll never be in a starvation situation. Correct preparedness pays off! Usually, in autumn, there should be a huge number of animals, fish and crops to grab. Use them! Preserve all the meat you can get your hands on, and harvest all your vegetables. Basically, to get through winter unscathed, an elk (or two) and a bear (or three) will definitely be enough. You could also buy some domesticated animals (cows, pigs, reindeer or sheep) and use them as a 'walking larder'.

Weather
Allow me to state the obvious here: Winter is Cold. The capital is justified. For most of winter, the temperature will regularly be below freezing. Frostbite will be common here, so wrap up warm. While frostbite tends to clear up in a few weeks, severe or questionable frostbite may take months.

When you travel around, you'll start to get messages about how cold you are. In order of warmest to coldest, they are:

Sweaty &gt; Hot &gt; Warm &gt; Rather warm &gt; Cool &gt; Cold &gt; Bitterly cold &gt; Freezing

If you receive the 'Cold' message, stop what you're doing and build a fire. Stay next to it until you are at least 'Hot'. That way, you'll prevent frostbite. The warmer your clothing is, the faster you'll warm up, and the longer you'll stay warm.

This is where building a fireplace really, really pays off. When a normal outdoor fire burns down, the embers are basically useless. But, if a fire burns down in a fireplace, it will still warm you. This means that you have to burn less wood, to stay warm for longer! Yes, it takes 35 stones to build, but that's not an excuse. Not got a house? Build three sections of wall, and 2 sections of floor, then build a fireplace on one of them. Fireplaces are an absolute must! By the way, around 700 firewood will be enough for the winter. Feel free to chop more.

The cold does have good side effects. Raw meat dumped outside will last practically forever provided the temperature stays below 0 degrees. Also, it's very dry in winter, so meat can be dried. Game tracks show more clearly everywhere. Lastly, you can 'drink' the snow on the ground, so you don't have to run to a water source for hydration. This means that travelling vast distances is much easier as water is no longer an issue.

Boredom
Yes, boredom. Just like in real life, URW's winter is cold, long and boring. More than one character has died as a result of boredom. When you're bored, you start to take stupid risks in order to find something to do. Try to find things to do.

You could: Just in case you didn't have enough (or don't think you do...) Winter is actually a popular time for doing so, due to a neat little exploit. It's also a good time to expand your fields. A popular one is Woodcraft. You can just sit at home, a huge pile of firewood or anything else wooden in front of you, carving away. Most people tend to have finished carving their entire stockpile of firewood by the end of winter. Physician is also a good one. Run outside naked, get some frostbite, come back in and heal them all, you crazy masochist. Of course, you could train other menial skills like Weatherlore. Make piles upon piles of arrows, javelins, clothing, cord, whatever. Njerpez hunting in winter is fun! (and the author's favorite winter pastime). You see, if you have a set of skis, you'll be travelling at 100%+ speed, while the Njerpez have to trudge through the snow. With a bunch of dogs, good armor and a good weapon, you'll be unstoppable! Uncover the vast wilderness. Run around, looking for more villages, maybe build another cabin. It's a good time to explore the world - just move around hunting small game, stopping every now and then to tan the skins. Cave exploring, basically. This actually carries a little risk, as bears like to sleep in caves.
 * Chop firewood.
 * Expand your house.
 * Train your skills
 * Make a huge armory...
 * ... so that you can go on a crazy Njerpez raid!
 * Go exploring.
 * Go spelunking.