Needs & Survival

Needs & Survival

Wildlander is a survival game. You don’t just fight enemies—you must eat, drink, sleep, and stay warm. Ignoring these needs will kill you faster than any bandit. Unlike vanilla Skyrim, you cannot simply rest at an inn and forget about survival.

This is not optional. Manage your needs or die.

Table of contents

Table of contents

• Needs & Survival
  • Overview
  • Exposure (Warmth & Wetness)
    • Key Mechanics
    • Exposure Increases Faster When:
    • Staying Warm
    • Frostfall UI
  • Hunger
    • Hunger Stages
  • Thirst
    • Thirst Stages
  • Exhaustion (Sleep)
    • Exhaustion Stages
  • Cleanliness
    • Dirt & Blood Stages
    • How to Get Clean
    • Available Soaps
    • Inn Bathrooms
  • Next Steps

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Overview

Wildlander uses a custom survival system (no DLC required) that tracks four core needs: Exposure, Hunger, Thirst, and Exhaustion, plus a Cleanliness system. Managing these needs is crucial for survival and affects your performance in combat and social situations.

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Exposure (Warmth & Wetness)

Exposure represents how cold your character is. As exposure increases, you suffer penalties. At maximum exposure, you lose consciousness and re-awaken elsewhere (potentially far away).

Key Mechanics

Warmth - How well you endure cold temperatures. Increased by:

• Fur armor and clothing
• Torches and soups/stews
• Frost Resistance perks (Nords start with +warmth)
• Endurance skill perks
• Spells like Mage Coat, Soothe, or Bound Cloak
• Alcohol (visual penalty, though)

Coverage - How quickly you get wet and how resistant you are to severe weather. Increased by:

• Armor and clothing
• Shields (small bonus)

Wetness - Getting soaked from rain or water. High wetness dramatically increases exposure rate. Getting dry by:

• Standing near a fire
• Going indoors

Exposure Increases Faster When:

• In cold environments and snowstorms
• During rainstorms
• At night
• When wet (high wetness)

Staying Warm

1. Build a campfire and pitch a tent - Fur tent provides excellent warmth protection
2. Wear armor or clothing in every slot - Back, Head, body, hands, and feet all provide Warmth and Coverage
3. Wield a torch or eat soups/stews - Grants temporary Warmth bonuses
4. Invest in Endurance perks - Accessible from any campfire, these enhance survival
5. Watch the weather - Rain and blizzards are deadly; seek shelter when needed
6. Use warmth spells - Mage Coat, Soothe, and Kindling (panic button: costs 1 wood, instantly loses 20 exposure)

Frostfall UI

Check the Frostfall temperature gauges on the UI page for visual aid to your exposure, wetness, and warmth status.

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Hunger

Hunger affects your stamina and melee combat effectiveness. Foods are classified by nutrition level:

Innkeepers can serve you full meals (20 gold).

Hunger Stages

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Thirst

Thirst affects stamina and magicka. Water can be obtained from:

• Rivers, lakes, and ponds (refill empty bottles)
• Innkeepers (water bottles for sale or refill for 10 gold)
• Alcohol bottles (gives empty bottle after drinking)
• Salt water from ocean (must distill into fresh water at a cookpot)

Thirst Stages

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Exhaustion (Sleep)

Sleep restores exhaustion and magicka. Quality of sleep matters:

• Normal beds (inns, homes) - Full restoration
• Bedrolls, tents, sleeping on floor - 25% less restoration

Exhaustion Stages

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Cleanliness

Your character becomes dirtier every 2 days (faster with combat). Cleanliness affects your Speech skills and disease resistance.

Dirt & Blood Stages

Clean (+5 Speech, +5% disease resistance)

• You take your appearance seriously

Slightly Dirty (No penalty)

• Still acceptable by local standards

Somewhat Dirty (No penalty)

• No worse than the average adventurer

Very Dirty (-5 Speech, -5% disease resistance)

• Time to take a swim

Quite Dirty (-10 Speech, -10% disease resistance)

• Merchants dislike you; hard to persuade

Slightly Bloody (No penalty)

• Nothing unusual for adventurers

Somewhat Bloody (No penalty)

• Locals won’t notice

Covered in Blood (-5 Speech, -5% disease resistance)

• Very intimidating but hurts negotiations

Filthy & Bloody (-10 Speech, -10% disease resistance)

• Intimidating but hard to get good deals

How to Get Clean

In the world:

• Bathe in any body of water (pond, river, lake) with soap from your inventory
• Standing in rain (less effective)
• Hotkey to bathe (default key)

At inns:

• Speak to innkeeper for bathroom key (12 game hours access)
• Use soap from the basket (can also buy/sell soap here)
• Grants temporary warmth and relaxation bonus

Available Soaps

All soaps are craftable at a cooking pot. Plain soap is the base requirement:

Inn Bathrooms

Every vanilla inn in Skyrim and Solstheim has a bathroom with soap baskets. Here’s where to find them:

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Next Steps

You now understand the core survival mechanics. Continue your learning:

1. Read Derived Attributes - Learn how your Health, Stamina, and Magicka directly support survival and combat effectiveness
2. Read NPC Crafting and Enchanting Services - Craft food, potions, and survival gear to meet your needs efficiently
3. Explore Start Here in Wildlander World - Expand beyond your first character to the broader Wildlander experience

Remember: Every journey requires planning. Before leaving a safe location, ensure you have food, water, and shelter materials.

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