Where to find elks for taming? (rc.3)

[Misanthrilist]

As per the title, where can I actually find the Elks to tame in the unstable release?
Traveled quite a lot by now and have not seen any elks whatsoever.

[LadyWYT]

I would try checking in colder regions, either high altitude plateaus or somewhere between the temperate zone and the arctic. The few times I've seen wild elk in the game, they've always been in one of those colder taiga regions.

[Echo Weaver]

Slow-moving dork who hasn't actually found Chapter 1 here -- do you have to get to Chapter 2 content to tame and ride elks, or is that something you can start on at any time?

[Krougal]

6 minutes ago, Echo Weaver said:

Slow-moving dork who hasn't actually found Chapter 1 here -- do you have to get to Chapter 2 content to tame and ride elks, or is that something you can start on at any time?

Don't feel bad, I only just got around to it myself.

I don't want to spoil it for you, but you more or less get a free elk if you do chapter 1 (between gears I think you are guaranteed to get and the item hand in).

You still need a saddle, bridle, saddlebags and charm. A flute is a good idea too. You can craft all of these yourself of course.

The main thing is it saves you time since you don't have to train the thing or wait for it to grow.

Of course I got one and brought it home and then it either vanished or died on me (Feb is f'n cold!)

[Echo Weaver]

10 minutes ago, Krougal said:

Don't feel bad, I only just got around to it myself.

I don't want to spoil it for you, but you more or less get a free elk if you do chapter 1 (between gears I think you are guaranteed to get and the item hand in).

You still need a saddle, bridle, saddlebags and charm. A flute is a good idea too. You can craft all of these yourself of course.

The main thing is it saves you time since you don't have to train the thing or wait for it to grow.

Of course I got one and brought it home and then it either vanished or died on me (Feb is f'n cold!)

Ha. That makes me feel better. I am deeply committed to my current world, but I get distracted easily by survival mechanics, and I've located plenty of traders that are not treasure traders. I'm having a lovely time, and I assume I'll find it eventually!

So, it sounds like you COULD find a baby one and raise it if you explored the right areas, but it's not required.

[Krougal]

25 minutes ago, Echo Weaver said:

Ha. That makes me feel better. I am deeply committed to my current world, but I get distracted easily by survival mechanics, and I've located plenty of traders that are not treasure traders. I'm having a lovely time, and I assume I'll find it eventually!

So, it sounds like you COULD find a baby one and raise it if you explored the right areas, but it's not required.

The treasure trader is spawned by asking another trader, at least in the RC (I don't remember if that is new or not)

They charge like 4 gears for the info.

He won't talk about the elk until you do the first quest though.

Edited August 8, 2025 by Krougal

[Echo Weaver]

6 minutes ago, Krougal said:

The treasure trader is spawned by asking another trader, at least in the RC (I don't remember if that is new or not)

They charge like 4 gears for the info.

He won't talk about the elk until you do the first quest though.

I'm pretty sure that's new. I think in 1.20 you just have to find the treasure trader just like any other trader. At least, that was my assumption. I thought 1.21 added an additional way to get directions to the treasure trader to help out worlds like mine where the randomizer is just not work in our favor.

[Maelstrom]

Correct.  In 1.20 just find the nearest treasure hunter.  Be sure to have 50 gears on you when you return from the RA.   If you don't have the gears, the trader will take special item creating the elk discount but not give you an elk.  Otherwise elk are 100 gears.

[Krougal]

9 minutes ago, Maelstrom said:

Correct.  In 1.20 just find the nearest treasure hunter.  Be sure to have 50 gears on you when you return from the RA.   If you don't have the gears, the trader will take special item creating the elk discount but not give you an elk.  Otherwise elk are 100 gears.

Really? I got an elk, and I think I might have been short gears, but this was RC3.

[Misanthrilist]

So is it possible to get an elk before doing any of the story progression?
I haven't done any of it, but since it takes more than a year to tame an elk, I'd like to get started on that...

Has anyone tamed one yet?
If so, what kind of climate/region did you find it in?
And did you do it before or after story stuff?

[Maelstrom]

in 1.21, you can get an elk as soon as you can craft a large animal trap to trap a baby elk.  Then raise and saddle break it.  All of that will take time and depending on how quickly you get to iron level tools/armor it might be just as quick to visit the RA.

In a different but similar thread @LadyWYT mentioned that temperate climate and higher elevations is where she has predominantly seen elk.  That coincides with real world too.

[LadyWYT]

1 hour ago, Misanthrilist said:

So is it possible to get an elk before doing any of the story progression?

2 minutes ago, Maelstrom said:

in 1.21, you can get an elk as soon as you can craft a large animal trap to trap a baby elk.  Then raise and saddle break it.  All of that will take time and depending on how quickly you get to iron level tools/armor it might be just as quick to visit the RA.

I haven't touched 1.21 content yet, but based on what Maelstrom said, I would assume that yes, you could acquire an elk before starting the main story. However, I would wager that's unlikely, unless you were fortunate enough to have elk spawn within a reasonable distance of your base.

For climate, I would expect to see them in colder regions that aren't densely forested. The rare times I've encountered them in the game, they've always been at higher altitudes or the taiga climates that are north of the temperate zone but south of the arctic, and usually in grassland areas or sparse forest rather than dense forest.

However, I would say that the easiest way to acquire an elk is still going to be via the treasure hunter trader. It will cost some gears, but gears are easily acquired and treasure hunters are a bit easier to find than wild elk, unless something's changed. The taming and saddle-breaking process, I'd wager, is probably more to offer Homo Sapiens players a way to acquire a mount, since traders don't spawn in that game mode. Of course, for players who really don't want to spend the gears, or prefer more of a challenge, it's also nice to have the taming option too.

[Thorfinn]

2 hours ago, Misanthrilist said:

Has anyone tamed one yet?

You can catch one. Doesn't look like it can be domesticated in any reasonable amount of time, though I'm a bad judge of that. I'm still thinking he's not that expensive, and choose to skip that whole training rigamarole.

[Maelstrom]

It might make sense to capture 2 elk, for breeding.  That way if one dies you can create replacements for free since 100 gears can be pretty steep.

[Krougal]

Well yeah, just because you could in theory capture one on day 1, it'd still take a year to train it, oh and you need leather to make a saddle.

So for all intents and purposes it is probably going to be faster and easier to get 1 from the story line.

This is what I call soft gating and I am a fan of. There is nothing preventing you from going after an elk right off the rip, but it isn't practical.

There is nothing stopping you from trying to do the quest on day 1 either, except you are probably going to die repeatedly.

 

We could just give Thorfinn an improvised armor and an inventory full of spears and send him on his way. What do you say Thor? Do it for the children! Do it for God and country! Do it for science! Do it because you can! Akur, Akir, Akam!

Edited August 8, 2025 by Krougal

[Maelstrom]

It's definitely not a stone age priority.   At best a secondary copper/bronze age priority.  And while I mentioned the benefit of elk breeding to offset the cost of getting a second mount, should be taken as an indication it should be a high priorty.

[Krougal]

1 minute ago, Maelstrom said:

It's definitely not a stone age priority.   At best a secondary copper/bronze age priority.  And while I mentioned the benefit of elk breeding to offset the cost of getting a second mount, should be taken as an indication it should be a high priorty.

You meant should not right?

[Misanthrilist]

33 minutes ago, Maelstrom said:

It's definitely not a stone age priority.   At best a secondary copper/bronze age priority.  And while I mentioned the benefit of elk breeding to offset the cost of getting a second mount, should be taken as an indication it should be a high priorty.

This is all assuming that Elks can breed, as I saw no mention of that in the patch notes. (But I do hope that is the case)

Personally I think it's more fun/rewarding to catch and tame an elk than it is to simply buy one. Very in line with the rest of the game, so that's what I'll be doing.
I'm about to start my second winter, haven't touched any story content yet. Hell I feel barely established, only having planned out my builds but not actually building any of them properly yet, while working up the stuff required to get to steel. Just put on my first set of armour (tailored gambeson) 1 year into the game, apart from trying out the bear armour once (it seemed like a complete waste of huge hides to me)

[Thorfinn]

1 hour ago, Krougal said:

There is nothing stopping you from trying to do the quest on day 1 either, except you are probably going to die repeatedly.

The RA? My best on hardcore wilderness is day 5, IIRC. Spawned near a treasure hunter, and popped enough tin ore in a cracked vessel. Not on 1.21, but I suspect it can probably be done. I have the 1.21 dance of death more or less figured out. Unless I mess up, he doesn't tag me. The bell is still a PITA.

[Krougal]

30 minutes ago, Misanthrilist said:

This is all assuming that Elks can breed, as I saw no mention of that in the patch notes. (But I do hope that is the case)

As long as you have a boy animal and a girl animal, they can make babies.  

30 minutes ago, Misanthrilist said:

Personally I think it's more fun/rewarding to catch and tame an elk than it is to simply buy one. Very in line with the rest of the game, so that's what I'll be doing.

You say that now! Let's see how you feel after spending another year making the thing rideable.

It certainly is in line with the rest of the game, animal husbandry is the grindiest grind in VS.  

30 minutes ago, Misanthrilist said:

apart from trying out the bear armour once (it seemed like a complete waste of huge hides to me)

It is and it isn't. It is decent for hunting in the dense forests early game, where it is easy to get surrounded by wolves, before you can make leather armor.

I used to feel the same way about large and huge hides, except by the time I can make sturdy leather, I have way more than I even feel like cooking up, it is that much of a pain in the ass. There also isn't a lot to use it on for now (although there is a sturdy leather armor mod that I think is good).

Even regular leather starts to pile up faster than you can use it.

So in the end, you won't miss those 2 hides, especially if you got them early game, before you can tan and when fat is at a premium.

 

[Krougal]

3 minutes ago, Thorfinn said:

The RA? My best on hardcore wilderness is day 5, IIRC. Spawned near a treasure hunter, and popped enough tin ore in a cracked vessel. Not on 1.21, but I suspect it can probably be done. I have the 1.21 dance of death more or less figured out. Unless I mess up, he doesn't tag me. The bell is still a PITA.

Yeah, the bell sucks. Day 5 hardcore huh. You probably could do it day 1 on standard lol.