Seven Days to Survive โ€“ Day 3: Honey, Zombies, and Home Improvements

Difficulty: Default Survival
Optional Rules: Permadeath, one horde night per week
โ€œIf you ever find yourself cornered by two zombies in a strangerโ€™s living room, just remember: honey is natureโ€™s antibiotic. Who knew bee juice would keep me alive?โ€

The Fetch Quest of Doom

The morning began with me jogging toward the latest house that Trader Rekt wanted looted for supplies. From the outside, it looked quiet โ€” shutters drawn, roof sagging slightly, just another abandoned suburban home. But this is 7 Days to Die, so I knew the interior would be less โ€œsuburban charmโ€ and more โ€œscreaming corpses.โ€

Sure enough, as soon as I hit the flag at the back of the property and stepped inside, the soundscape turned into a zombie alarm clock. Two of them barreled toward me, cutting off my escape. I managed to fight my way out, but not without a parting gift: infection. Perfect.

After clearing the stragglers and pocketing the supplies, I searched my pack for antibiotics. Nothing. A return trip to Papaw Residence confirmed the same โ€” unless you count decorative piles of junk and a near-useless jar of murky water. But buried in a chest was salvation: honey. Exactly the right cure for my low-level infection. Bee magic saves the day.

Medical Centre Run

I staggered back to Rektโ€™s, handed over the supplies, and chose skill books as my reward. Then I spent some coin on more honey, because clearly zombies see me as a chew toy. Another fetch quest? Why not. This one sent me toward what looked like a pop-up medical centre โ€” white tarps, overturned stretchers, and the distinct impression that the last patients didnโ€™t leave voluntarily.

The zombies inside were fewer and slower, which suited my still-throbbing wounds. Looting the shelves, I stumbled on something that felt like Christmas morning: a cooking grill. Finally, the days of choking down charred snake meat are behind me. Now I can prepare food that doesnโ€™t taste like it came out of a campfire accident.

I cleared the building, snagged the supplies, and returned to Rekt. My reward? Charred meat. Honestly, I think the man is trolling me. โ€œHereโ€™s some food, survivor.โ€ Yes, Rekt, I literally just looted the thing that makes your reward obsolete. Thanks for nothing, champ.

Dew Collector Dreams

Back at Papaw, I started eyeing my supplies. Between yesterdayโ€™s scavenging and todayโ€™s haul, I realised I was close to crafting a Dew Collector. After a bit more rummaging and resource-gathering, the parts came together. I placed the contraption outside, whispered a hopeful prayer to the condensation gods, and waited.

After five minutes of staring at a metal bucket with mesh, I admitted that Dew Collectors are not exciting to watch in real time. With thirst still an issue, I decided to channel my boredom into base-building. The first layer of the horde base is now fully cobblestone. The second layer is patchwork, half cobble, half wood. The third layer? Still dreams and dust. At least I can say progress is being made, even if it looks more like a construction site than a fortress.

Thirst, the Silent Killer

The Dew Collector is great in theory, but water production is glacial. By mid-afternoon I was dehydrated again โ€” stumbling around with blurry vision like Iโ€™d been on a pub crawl with the undead. Tomorrow, water is priority number one. Either the trader sells me a stash, or Iโ€™m boiling every murky puddle I find.

Still, the looming problem isnโ€™t just thirst. Itโ€™s the horde night clock. Day 4 is practically here, and my base is still an empty shell. If I donโ€™t switch gears soon, the zombies will be less โ€œcontained threatโ€ and more โ€œunwanted guests knocking down my half-finished walls.โ€ Tomorrow, the hammer and cobblestone get priority โ€” fetch quests can wait.

Continue the Journey

Day 2 | Day 3 (You Are Here) | Day 4 (Coming Soon)

SnowRunner Survival: The Permagear Diaries โ€“ Driver Log Ten: Bridges, Bumps, and Broken Dreams

SnowRunner Survival: The Permagear Diaries โ€“ Driver Log 10: Bridges, Bumps, and Broken Dreams

Mode: Permagear Rules | Optional Features: Winch-assisted woodland detours

Back to the Dam

I start the day by taking Red back to the Smithville Dam garage to decide on my next move. Both of my current main objectives need wooden planks, and as far as I can tell, the only viable source is back in Black River. The plan: build the bridge first, then worry about the rest.

I hop into Frank for the job, only to be faced with the first challenge โ€” actually getting him there. Instead of taking the standard road, I opt for a less-beaten path through the trees, using the winch liberally and clambering over rocks like a determined mountain goat in truck form. If Frank had feelings, Iโ€™d say he was trying to prove something.

Frank: The Reliable Workhorse

Once in Black River, I load up the planks and head back to Smithville Dam. Along the way, I canโ€™t help but admire Frankโ€™s handling โ€” reliable, sturdy, and never letting you down. Heโ€™s the truck equivalent of that one friend who always brings snacks and never cancels plans.

I top him up at the fuel station as a precaution (he probably didnโ€™t need it, but who doesnโ€™t like a full tank?). Crossing the Dam, I briefly flash back to the Dam level in GoldenEye 64, half-expecting to see polygons of Soviet guards wandering about.

Bridge Complete

The delivery goes smoothly, and with the wooden planks in place, the bridge is now a reality. Objective one: done. Frank earns a well-deserved rest while I swap into Red for some post-bridge exploration.

Redโ€™s Bouncy Adventure

Immediately, Iโ€™m reminded of the difference in handling: Frank sticks to the ground like heโ€™s got magnetic tyres; Red prefers to bounce along it like an over-caffeinated pogo stick. Past the bridge, I find a promising-looking track and decide to follow it.

The path is a mix of mud, stones, and one dodgy river crossing that all but confirms Red will need a raised exhaust if such a thing exists. After wrestling through, I spot an upgrade ahead and let my hopes soar โ€” could this be the elusive raised suspension for Frank Iโ€™ve been searching for? In my head, Iโ€™m already firing him up for a triumphant drive back to the garage.

Reality Check

It isnโ€™t. Instead, itโ€™s Engageable AWD for a White Star truck โ€” a vehicle I donโ€™t own. Still, at least itโ€™s unlocked for the future. I follow the road and, somewhat anticlimactically, end up back on the other side of the bridge.

Thatโ€™s where I call it for the day. Tomorrow, Red will keep exploring, and maybe โ€” just maybe โ€” Iโ€™ll finally complete The Essentials task.

Continue the Journey

Day 9 | Day 10 (You Are Here) | Day 11

Seven Days to Survive โ€“ Day 2: Chickens, Bandages, and Pipe Bomb Decisions

Difficulty: Chill Solo
Optional Features: XP set to 150%

โ€œThe chicken wasnโ€™t faster than me โ€” it was simply playing 4D chess while I was stuck with a stone axe.โ€

Adjustments and Priorities

Loading back in, I realised Iโ€™d left my XP multiplier at default. Rookie mistake. Bumped it up to 150% โ€” because if Iโ€™m going to die to zombies, Iโ€™d at least like to die while leveling a little faster.
First order of business: a buried food stash quest. Second: the elusive dew collector. The recipe calls for 100 scrap polymers, 4 short iron pipes, 4 duct tape, and ideally a water filter. Since I donโ€™t have the filter yet, Iโ€™ll only get murky water โ€” but with a cooking pot in the campfire, I can still boil it into something drinkable. Not glamorous, but thirst makes you less picky.

Survivorโ€™s Tip: Dew Collector Water

  • With Water Filter: Collects clean water directly โ€” no cooking needed.
  • Without Water Filter: Collects murky water. Use a cooking pot on the campfire to boil it safe.
  • Murky water is better than no water โ€” just donโ€™t forget to boil it, unless you enjoy dysentery roleplay.

The Chicken Incident

On the way, I decide to test my hunting skills. Enter: chicken. Exit: all my dignity. The little feathered gremlin zig-zagged through the grass like a professional sprinter, forcing me to waste more arrows than I care to admit.
After some zombie interference (probably hired muscle for the chicken mafia), I finally down it. A bone knife later, I had meat for dinner and a stockpile of feathers for arrows.

Blood and Bandages

At the buried stash location, a zombie ambushed me and managed to inflict a bleed. Thank you, starting bandage โ€” youโ€™ve earned your retirement.
Note to self: learn how to craft more. Turns out all you need is cotton โ†’ cloth fragments โ†’ bandage. Problem solved. My feather surplus also became arrow surplus. Feeling slightly more capable, I dug up the stash and headed back to Trader Rekt.

Pipe Bombs for Later

Rekt offered me a tough choice of rewards. I went with five pipe bombs, because nothing says โ€œHorde Night insuranceโ€ like handheld explosives.
Next stop: Papaw residence to unload my loot, then scouting a new Horde base location.

First Steps Toward Horde Night

I laid out the foundations of a 6×3 base. Not glamorous, not reinforced, but itโ€™s a start. Iโ€™ll reveal more of its design on the big night โ€” for now, just know it exists, itโ€™s square-ish, and itโ€™s mine.
With daylight fading, I tried to squeeze in a fetch quest, but after one zombie fight it was already 9pm. Jogging zombies are not on my wishlist, so I postponed.

Evening at Papawโ€™s

Back at Papawโ€™s, I cooked up my chicken, learned eggs can be eaten raw (filed under: desperate measures), and salvaged what I could.
A zombie came knocking on my door uninvited, so I introduced them to my club. Afterwards, I excitedly crafted an armor crafting kit โ€” only to immediately discover I had no clue how to use it. Survival irony at its finest.

Looking Ahead

Day 2 ends with preparations in motion but confidence on shaky legs. Iโ€™ve got pipe bombs, a half-built base, and one less chicken in the world. Tomorrow, Iโ€™ll knock out that fetch quest early and dedicate daylight to shoring up my defenses. Horde Night is coming, and I need all the help I can get.

Continue the journey:
Day 1 | Day 2 (You Are Here) | Day 3

Seven Days to Survive โ€“ Day 1: Punching Trees, Evicting Corpses

Seven Days to Survive โ€“ Day 1: Punching Trees, Evicting Corpses

Difficulty: Default Survival
Optional Rules: Permadeath, one horde night per week

โ€œI woke up in front of a caravan with a few scraps, a stone-axe dream, and a passive-aggressive note from the Duke. Welcome to 7 Days to Die.โ€

The Duke Hates Me, Trees Hate My Fists

Like every survival game worth its salt, the tutorial goes like this: punch nature until it gives up resources. Twigs, stones, and grass became my new currency. Before long Iโ€™d cobbled together a stone axe, wooden bow, arrows, a club, and some basic armor. The Dukeโ€™s instructions? Go see Trader Rekt. Fine. But Iโ€™m docking him points for management style.

Papaw Residence: Home Sweet Maybe

On the way, I found the Papaw Residence. Inside: zombies, a cooking pot, and โ€” after several panicked swings and one deeply ungraceful bow shot โ€” victory. A few quick wood frames in the doorways, some repair slapdash on the windows, and I served my first eviction notice to the undead. I dropped the land-claim block becauseโ€ฆ the tutorial said so. Itโ€™s just me out here, but sure, paperwork matters.

Administrative Hostility at Trader Rekt

Rekt handed me a shovel and told me to dig. When I stepped back outside, a zombie was loitering like security had gone on break. A couple of club taps later, the parking lot was clear and my cardio stat was emotionally damaged.

Diggy Diggy Hole (ft. Immediate Zombie)

Quest in hand, shovel in pocket, I marched out to unearth supplies. Within seconds of my first swing, the dirt complained โ€” and so did a nearby zombie, who arrived to file a noise complaint with his teeth. One frantic scuffle later, I was back to the dwarven anthem: โ€œIโ€™m a dwarf, and Iโ€™m digging a hole.โ€ Every thunk felt like ringing a dinner bell for the next groaner, but the stash popped and I grabbed the goods.

Snake on a Path

On the return leg I spotted a snake. Compared to the zombies outside Rektโ€™s place and the dig site, this was stress relief with scales. One arrow later, dinner. The bone knife Iโ€™d made earlier turned it into tidy cuts for the pot.

Night by the Fire

Back at Papaw, I set up a campfire, boiled every drop of murky water Iโ€™d hoarded, cooked snake meat, and tossed a couple of potatoes on for good measure. The house creaked, the wind howled, and distant moans reminded me that the homeownersโ€™ association here is very hands-on.

Day 1 Reflections

Base secured (ish). Water safe (mostly). Food cooked (definitely snake). Iโ€™ve got another buried supplies quest from Rekt lined up for tomorrow and the horde clock has quietly started ticking. One day survived. Seven? Weโ€™ll see.

Day 1 Pro Tips (7 Days to Die Edition)

  • Gather early, gather often: Grass, stones, and wood fuel your first tools and defenses.
  • Craft the basics fast: Stone axe, wooden club, wooden bow + arrows, and primitive armor.
  • Secure a roof: A fixer-upper beats the outdoors. Frame and patch doors/windows immediately.
  • Cooking pot = jackpot: Boil water safely and expand your recipe list.
  • Bone knife bonus: Butchering with it yields more meat, hides, and resources.
  • Expect company when digging: Shovels are loud. Fight, reset, keep scanning 360ยฐ.
  • Trader quests pay: Early tools, food, meds, and dukes โ€” stack them for momentum.
  • Night jobs: Boil water, cook, sort loot, plan upgrades. Donโ€™t waste the dark.
Continue the journey:
Day 1 (You Are Here) |
Day 2

โ† Back to Seven Days to Survive Hub

Survivorโ€™s Dread: Platform 8 โ€“ Last Train to Nowhere

โ€œThe train keeps moving. Every carriage promises freedom. Every anomaly promises erasure.โ€

The Setup

Platform 8 is the companion nightmare to Exit 8. Same rules: walk, notice anomalies, survive. Miss them and the world resets. Only this time, youโ€™re trapped on a subway train that never stops. Played on the Steam Deck with Loop = Life: every reset is a dead survivor. Only one makes it off the train. Like Exit 8, this was my very first time playing โ€” learning the rules on the fly, with resets as my only teachers.

The Diary

First survivor: Reached the end of the carriage and saw a figure standing at the exit. I didnโ€™t realise youโ€™re meant to move when the lights flick on. The lights came, the figure moved faster than me, and I was erased.

Second survivor: This time the exit door stood wide open, platform beckoning. I trusted it. I stepped toward freedom. The world snapped back to the first carriage, and so did I. Survivors donโ€™t get second chances for gullibility.

Third survivor: Red water pooled in the aisle. The right move was to sprint. I didnโ€™t. Instead, I shut the door on the carriage like that would help. The reset came anyway, cruel and quiet.

Fourth survivor: I let curiosity win. Instead of spotting the anomaly, I pushed through to the next carriage just to see what would happen. The answer: reset. Straight back to carriage one, another survivor erased for being too nosy.

Final survivor: Paranoia sharpened me. I ran when I had to, stopped when the lights demanded it, and turned back from lies. At last, the train gave up its prisoner. I stepped onto the real platform, escaped the loop, and lived. Luck played its part too. Some of the anomalies repeated from earlier failures, familiar traps I finally knew how to dodge. That memory, plus paranoia, was enough to carry me to the platform.

The Video

Hereโ€™s the full successful run, captured on Steam Deck:

Survivorโ€™s Thoughts

The corridor in Exit 8 felt endless. The train in Platform 8 feels worse โ€” claustrophobic, restless, each carriage identical until it isnโ€™t. Four survivors erased before one finally broke free. Thatโ€™s the real distinction: Exit 8 is a test of attention, Platform 8 is a puzzle box. Both erase you for mistakes, but in different ways.

Continue the Journey

See where it started with Exit 8 โ€“ Lost in the Corridor, or browse more nightmares in the Survivorโ€™s Dread Hub.

Prologue: Go Wayback โ€“ Joined the Playtest

โ€œBecause clearly I donโ€™t already have enough survival games trying to freeze, starve, or otherwise humiliate me.โ€

Iโ€™ve just joined the Prologue: Go Wayback playtest on Steam. It drops you into a massive, freshly generated wilderness with nothing but your wits, a map, and the eternal hope you can light a fire before hypothermia claims you.

Iโ€™ll be playing this on my Steam Deck, so when the first impressions post goes live Iโ€™ll not only talk survival mechanics, but also how it runs in handheld mode. Portable chaos, as always.

Want In?

Iโ€™ve got three extra invites to hand out. If youโ€™re a friend of mine on Steam (Survivor Incognito) and want to try Go Wayback for yourself, give me a shout. First come, first served.

More Info Coming Soon

Once Iโ€™ve had a proper session in the woods, Iโ€™ll be back with a full write-up โ€” controls, survival systems, Steam Deck performance, and whether the fire-making is as fiddly (and satisfying) as advertised. Keep an eye on the blog if you want to see how gloriously wrong it goes.

Useful Links

Surviving the Milky Way: An Elite Dangerous Survival Diary โ€“ Day 2: The Rustbucket Rises

Day 2 โ€“ The Rustbucket Rises

โ€œThese are the voyages of one unprepared Commander. Their mission: to break in a second-hand Adder, deliver mail faster than expected, and discover that cargo pickups can crash more than just your ship.โ€

From Scraprunner to Rustbucket

The ISS Scraprunner got me this far, but when I spotted an Adder for sale, I couldnโ€™t resist. A few credits later and some questionable tinkering produced the ISS Rustbucket, registry RBT-01. Upgrades included a new Frame Shift Drive, thrusters, fuel scoop, more cargo racks, and an extra weapon. The one thing I didnโ€™t touch? Shields. Whether thatโ€™s wisdom or hubris, time will tell.

Courier Life

The mission board offered one contract labelled high threat. I decided exploding wasnโ€™t on todayโ€™s agenda and picked safer jobs instead:

  • A data delivery to Marius Relay in the Col 285 Sector AM-R b19-4 system.
  • An agricultural supply runโ€”which bizarrely meant transporting six units of personal weaponsโ€”to Weskerโ€™s Pride in the Col 285 Sector BV-E a41-1 system.

On the way to Marius Relay, I got a message offering a bonus for quick delivery. Challenge accepted. The new fuel scoop kicked in automatically, topping up my tank as I skimmed stars. Docking complete, data handed over, and I even ranked up to Peddler. Not glamorous, but itโ€™s better than โ€œgalactic stowaway.โ€

The Cargo That Wasnโ€™t

Then it hit meโ€”I hadnโ€™t actually collected the weapons before leaving. Back to the station I went, already dreading the 20+ jump route ahead. It would at least be a good test for the Rustbucketโ€™s scoop, or so I told myself.

Ten minutes of fiddling with menus later, I finally thought Iโ€™d sorted the cargo pickup. Thatโ€™s when the game crashed. Server connection lost, mission abandoned. The Rustbucket sat waiting, but my courier career ended in digital silence.

Rustbucket Status Report

  • Ship: ISS Rustbucket (Adder)
  • Upgrades: FSD, thrusters, fuel scoop, cargo racks, weapons
  • Untouched: Shields (future-me will regret this)
  • Rank: Peddler
  • Mood: Triumphant โ†’ Confused โ†’ Disconnected

Next Time

With the Rustbucket ready and the galaxy waiting, Iโ€™ll try again. Hopefully the servers stay awake long enough for me to actually deliver cargo. Otherwise, Iโ€™ll just become the Milky Wayโ€™s most overqualified data courier.


Continue the Journey

โ† Day 1 | Day 2 (You Are Here) | Day 3 โ†’


Surviving the Milky Way: Series Hub

The Rules of the Stars

Survivorโ€™s Dread: Exit 8 โ€“ Lost in the Corridor

โ€œThe corridor doesnโ€™t need to chase you. It just waits for you to blink.โ€

The Setup

Exit 8 is a short horror game where survival means noticing anomalies in a looping subway corridor. Miss one and you reset. I played it on the Steam Deck under my Loop = Life rule: every reset is a death, only one survivor escapes.

The Diary

First survivor: I spotted the red water in corridor two. I caught the wall-man in corridor four. Each time I turned back, rewarded by the corridorโ€™s shift. By corridor six, I thought I was safe. Thenโ€”blinkโ€”reset. No attack, no warning. Something small slipped past me, and that survivor was gone.

What I missed: Door 3 handle placement (corridor six) โ€” misaligned compared to earlier loops.

Second survivor: Paranoia sharpened my vision. Lights flickered and died. A man with a briefcase walked far too fast. A poster grew eyes that tracked me. A face stared from the ceiling. I turned back every time, trusted my instincts, and finallyโ€”finallyโ€”the real exit appeared. One survivor made it out. The corridor kept the rest.

The Video

Hereโ€™s the full successful run, captured raw on Steam Deck:

Survivorโ€™s Thoughts

Exit 8 isnโ€™t about combat. Itโ€™s about attention and paranoia. You can catch the obvious anomalies and still fail to a blink. Thatโ€™s the horror here: survival through vigilance, failure through doubt.

Continue the Journey

More eerie one-shot diaries live in the Survivorโ€™s Dread Hub. Next stop: Platform 8 โ€” the train that never ends.

SnowRunner Survival: The Permagear Diaries โ€“ Driver Log Seven: Mud, Bridges, and Big Dreams

โ€œSometimes the smallest truck has the biggest heart. And sometimes, Red gets new shoes.โ€

๐Ÿ“œ Series Hub: SnowRunner Survival: The Permagear Diaries Main Hub

๐Ÿ›  Rules: SnowRunner Permagear Rules

๐Ÿ’ก Why Permagear Works: Read the reasoning behind the challenge

Missed Day Six? Find it here.


๐Ÿ›ฃ๏ธ Exploring With Red (and Just a Little Jealousy)

With Pipe Dreams in the rear-view mirror, itโ€™s a well-earned day off for Frank. Today? Itโ€™s all about Red. Heโ€™s got the boundless energy of a puppy on caffeine and the mud-crawling tenacity ofโ€ฆ well, a Scout whoโ€™s tired of being second-best.

The target? The wooden bridge task. Along the way, I spot a trailer Red thinks he can handle. He canโ€™t. But youโ€™ve got to admire the ambition.

We reach the bridge and, of course, it needs wooden planks. Frankโ€™s domain. But Redโ€™s not doneโ€”he also picks up a SnowRunner throttle upgrade (one for himself and one for Scout). Naturally, Red gets the install. Scout remains benched.

๐ŸŒŠ Mud Wrestling and Watchtower Glory

Tempted to spoil Red with more upgrades, I decide to hold off. Then he earns them. Charging through deep mud and water, Red smashes through the terrain to grab another Watchtower like a tiny, determined hero.

Back to the garage we goโ€”Red gets a roof rack for longer hauls and, most importantly, a tyre upgrade. Thatโ€™s right: better grip, less slipping, and maximum mud-mashing potential. Watch out, Frank.

๐Ÿชต Frank Does What Frank Does Best

Now itโ€™s Frankโ€™s turn. Time to deliver those wooden planks and make that bridge a reality. He follows the same route Red scouted earlier, proving why heโ€™s still the heavy-lifting king.

  • Bridge? Built.
  • Frank? Effective as ever.
  • Red? Flexing in the garage.
  • Scout? Still patiently waiting for relevance.

๐Ÿ“ Next Stop: Smithville Dam

Black River is slowly bending to our will, and tomorrow we head deeper into Michiganโ€”straight into Smithville Dam. There will be mud. There will be breakdowns. But Redโ€™s got new tyres, and morale is high.

๐Ÿ›ž Team Status Update

  • Red: Roof rack, throttle upgrade, fresh set of tyres. Officially a mud-slaying menace.
  • Frank: Old reliable. Still gets the job done. Probably feeling a little upstaged.
  • Scout: Collecting dust. One day, Scout. One day.

๐Ÿ“ธ Coming Soon

  • Red showing off the new tyres.
  • Watchtower victory shot.
  • Frank delivering planks like a pro.

Want more SnowRunner? Day 8 link coming soon.

Customloper Diaries โ€“ Day 7: Bow Before the Blizzard

Customloper Diaries โ€“ Day 7: Bow Before the Blizzard

Weather: Clear start โ†’ freezing winds โ†’ blizzard
Loot Highlights: Survival Bow, cooking pot, skillet
Mood: Excited โ†’ frozen โ†’ grateful to still have toes

โ—€ Customloper Diaries โ€“ Day 6: Blizzard Send-Off, Ptarmigan Detour, and the Great Cooking Pot Tragedy  | 
What is Customloper?

Morning Discoveries: Maxโ€™s Last Stand

Todayโ€™s goal was simple: reach the Camp Office without becoming a wolfโ€™s breakfast. Thatโ€™s really the only bar for success these days. On the way, I spotted one of The Long Darkโ€™s most reliable signals that something is worth investigating: birds circling in the sky, waiting patiently for either my demise or someone elseโ€™s.

Luck was on my side for once โ€” it wasnโ€™t my turn. At Maxโ€™s Last Stand, a corpse lay frozen in place, and right beside it sat the holy grail of early-game weaponry: a Survival Bow. I snatched it up with the speed and enthusiasm of a raccoon finding a half-eaten cheeseburger.

All I needed now were arrows. With them, I could finally graduate from โ€œrock-throwing medieval PE teacherโ€ to โ€œslightly competent hunter.โ€

Deadfall + Hypothermia = Great Life Choices

Feeling pretty pleased with myself, I decided to swing by the Deadfall area. Thatโ€™s when my overconfidence caught up with me. The temperature dropped faster than my optimism during an Interloper run, and I was soon staring at the dreaded red text: Hypothermia.

I lit a fire in the nearby stove, boiled some water, and cookedโ€ฆ something. Iโ€™d like to say it was a hearty stew, but given my supplies, it was probably just porridge or whatever counted as โ€œhot foodโ€ in my pack. Once I had a bit of warmth and hydration, I grabbed a torch from the fire and pressed on toward my main goal.

Lesson learned: Interloper weather waits for no one, especially those who think they can โ€œjust pop overโ€ somewhere.

Camp Office and Instant Regret

The rest of the walk to Camp Office was blissfully uneventful โ€” a rare thing in Mystery Lake. Inside, I scored a skillet and cooking pot. Not exactly a rifle or a quiver of arrows, but after yesterdayโ€™s cooking pot debacle, I wasnโ€™t about to complain.

Then I made the fatal mistake: I decided to โ€œjust explore the areaโ€ before settling in. First came the snow. Then came the blizzard. In minutes, visibility dropped to โ€œguess and hopeโ€ territory. Navigation became a mix of scent, instinct, and blind luck.

Somehow โ€” and I truly do not know how โ€” I managed to stagger back to the Camp Office without being eaten, freezing to death, or wandering onto thin ice. The blizzard roared outside as I slammed the door shut, my heart still hammering.

Evening Wrap-Up

Back inside, I set about cooking more porridge, boiling as much water as I could, and letting my core temperature crawl back to something survivable. The bow was now mine. The arrows? Still a distant dream. But tomorrow, Iโ€™d change that.

Tomorrowโ€™s Goal

Find arrows. Or a rifle. Or, failing that, a pointy stick and a really bad attitude.

Continue the Journey

โ—€ Customloper Diaries โ€“ Day 6: Blizzard Send-Off, Ptarmigan Detour, and the Great Cooking Pot Tragedy
Customloper Diaries โ€“ Day 8 โ–ถ

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