How to Make SRP Great Again (Species reworks, redistribution, backfilling)

[barren horizon]

The first thing that would greatly improve SRP would be a rework for the Rocky Mountain Elk. EW has shown that they can make a great elk model in the case of the Manitoban Elk on Askiy Ridge, and the RME deserves to look just as good or better. In the thread there are links to multiple posts that explain how this species should be reworked. The Plains Bison, Mountain Lion and Merriam Turkey could also use some major improvements to their models and textures.

In addition, I also think that the Pronghorn drink time should be moved to daylight hours since this species is not nocturnal in real life. In my opinion, Pronghorn drink time should be moved to 12:00 - 16:00, the same time as Bighorn Sheep, because the water sources in the areas where the Pronghorns live are totally barren during that time of day currently. They should also be moved back to Class 4 because that just makes far more sense for realism.

I also think that Mountain Goats should have their population redistributed across more of the map. They should only be found in the high mountains in the central and northern parts of SRP (I have a map below that shows where I think their home range should be). Everywhere else is either too low in elevation or too forested to be realistic habitat for them.

This map would also benefit from backfilling. Backfilling waterfowl species would help to bring more life to the many lakes and ponds. Backfilling more small game would also help to diversify the map's animal roster. Here are some species that would be great backfill options:
Dusky Grouse
Coyote
Cinnamon Teal
Northern Pintail
Gadwall
Red Fox
White-Tailed Jackrabbit
Bobcat (if they get changed so that they no longer spook larger animals)

Finally, I think SRP would greatly benefit from some brand new species. The American Badger, Yellow-Bellied Marmot, Blue Winged Teal, and White-Tailed Ptarmigan would all be great additions, in my opinion.

[analog hatch]

I like the idea

[barren horizon]

Two threads about a potential Rocky Mountain Elk rework.
https://discord.com/channels/393040947006406657/1158455389524860958
https://discord.com/channels/393040947006406657/1126544718415806544

[analog hatch]

So how will we know if they test this

[barren horizon]

I guess that's up for the EW dev team to decide, not me.

[analog hatch]

Ok so do they even look at suggestions

[barren horizon]

I'm pretty sure they do.

[analog hatch]

Ok well hopefully they will do sun

[pale rapids]

I think having black bears drink in the early morning would be better.

[barren horizon]

Only issue is, that's when RME drink. Unless we want to have both of those species drinking at once?

[pale rapids]

Nobody hunts RME at 4am or even the start of their drink time,make it 6/7-9am and it’ll be fine.

[barren horizon]

Makes sense I suppose.

[analog hatch]

Best time to hunt whitetail drink times 8-4

[barren horizon]

I edited my original post. Now it says that Black Bear drink time can be moved to either dawn or dusk. Either one would be fine imo.

[barren horizon]

I'm going to post images of each new species I want to see on the map, with some information about each species as well.

[analog hatch]

Ya

[barren horizon]

American Badger (Class 2)
This species is a common large mustelid throughout most of the United States. This badger species lives in burrows, so they would have similar burrowing mechanics to the European Rabbits we currently have in the game, along with feed zones. The American Badger mostly lives in open grasslands. It would be found in the open grassy areas in the lower regions of SRP, mainly in the southeast region of the map.

Yellow Bellied Marmot (Class 1)
A common rodent throughout the mountains of the western United States, the Yellow Bellied Marmot is found in high elevation and rocky areas. Another species that lives in burrows, this species would mainly be found in the alpine meadows of this map, in the same areas I highlighted in yellow to show where Mountain Goats should be found on this map.

Blue Winged Teal (Class 1)
This is a small species of duck found throughout North America. It would be found at the various ponds and lakes throughout Silver Ridge Peaks. Alongside the Cinnamon Teal and Gadwall, this duck species would help to bring some much-needed life to SRP's ponds and lakes. It could also be added to Mississippi Acres as well.

Dusky Grouse (Class 1)
The Dusky Grouse is one of the two species of Blue Grouse. It is a forest-dwelling grouse native to the Rocky Mountains, including Colorado, where SRP is located. The breeding habitat of the Dusky Grouse is the edges of coniferous and mixed forests in mountainous regions, making it perfectly suited to the landscapes of Silver Ridge Peaks.

White-tailed Ptarmigan (Class 1)
The White-tailed Ptarmigan is the only species of ptarmigan that has not yet been added to the game. It is the smallest species of Ptarmigan and is actually the smallest bird in the grouse family. It is a permanent resident of high-altitude areas in Alaska, mountainous parts of Canada and the western United States. It would be a great addition to the high elevation areas of Silver Ridge Peaks, and it could also be added to the high mountain areas on Layton Lake as well.

[outer summit]

These changes and species backfilling would be a big improvement to Silver Ridge for sure!

[barren horizon]

I agree, these changes would make SRP an almost perfect map.

I still think SRP would have been a much more beautiful map if it was actually set in the autumn season. I can see why EW didn't go that route since we have so many autumn-themed maps already in the game, but it was still a serious missed opportunity in my opinion. The Colorado Rockies have absolutely spectacular fall colors, as you can see in this picture of the Maroon Bells in the Elk Mountains.

Maybe someday we'll get an update that gives us the ability to hunt on each map during one or more different seasons. SRP is definitely a map that would benefit from something like that, if it ever ends up happening.

[pale rapids]

Light snows would be incredible on a Autumn SRP.

[tardy mural]

Perfect

[topaz harness]

Imo they shouldve never removed mountain goat drink time. It was an unnecessary change. (Same goes for jackal, chamois, springbok and hares).

[barren horizon]

I 100% agree. I think the removal of those drink times was just a desperate attempt to appease the hardcore realism crowd who don't like the fact that COTW is an arcade hunting game and not a realistic hunting simulator. When in reality COTW is always going to be a more arcade fast-paced hunting game than games like for example WOTH. That's going to be the case no matter what, because that's just what COTW is and what has made EW the most money (great ones and the GO grinding playstyle would have never been allowed to materialize the way they have if this wasn't the case).

As such, the removal of drink times for certain animals but not others doesn't actually do what it is seemingly intended to do. It's meant to encourage more realistic hunting of those particular animals by making it so that you can't farm drink zones for them. Instead, people just kind of ignore those species or take them as opportunity kills when they see them, rather than actually trying to hunt them realistically. EW might as well just bring back all the drink zones for animals like Mountain Goats, Chamois, and Springbok, because right now I basically never see anyone hunting those species at all.

anyway, rant over.

[topaz harness]

Thats 100% what happened
Yesterday i rediscovered chamois while looking for rabbit burrows and i went like "OH RIGHT, i forgot these existed!", because ive hunted them like once ever since their drink time removal.

Its such a shame man, i loved visiting mountain goat lakes and chamois lakes, they had their own unique vibe, being in so high up environments. They shouldnt force play styles on their players since the games motto when it released was literally "you can hunt in any way you want". If thats the case then bring these drink times back!

[barren horizon]

Yeah I totally agree. Maybe at some point I'll make a completely new feedback post to suggest bringing back drink zones for all of those species.

[thorn violet]

Dope idea

[sullen scarab]

As A Black Bear Hunter Irl, That’s When I Normally See Them Near Lakes In The Spring. I’ve Never Seen A Bear Wandering Around At 4 AM When I Get To My Glassing Spots, They’re Only Starting To Get Active As The Sun Rises.

[mystic chasm]

I don’t mind the lack of a drink zone for chamois, it allowed me to hunt them up in the mountains

But thats me

[topaz harness]

Couldnt they be hunted there before that too?

[pale rapids]

I think Te is missing Glacier Rivers and lakes.

[mystic chasm]

I mean they could, I guess I personally don’t like to rely on drink zones or need zones in general

But that is simply how I play the game

[timber skiff]

40 upvotes

AND TURKEYS DRINKING

[digital magnet]

I'd love to see bobwhites
For new species doves and ans gambel quail would be also great

[analog hatch]

@digital magnet they do have quail

[digital magnet]

Yes but bobwhite not gambels, two very different species

[analog hatch]

Ok

[barren horizon]

How to Make SRP Great Again (Species reworks, redistribution, backfilling)

changed the post title just for fun

[outer summit]

Black Bear drink time will now be 4-8! 🎉🎉

[digital magnet]

Wait really?

[barren horizon]

I will remove that part of my original post to reflect this change, but the rest of my original post will stay the same.

[digital magnet]

I would rather edit it as done so people can see it and as a thank you to ew

[barren horizon]

already changed it, sorry

[digital magnet]

May be you could add a part where you say something like.
"Black bear drink time has now been changed to daytime this post used to have black bear day drink time as a point, thank you to EW for changing it"

[barren horizon]

maybe I'll put something like that at the end of the post

[digital magnet]

That would be great, I like to acknowledge the positive changes that EW has made becouse I believe that positive feedback is scarce and should be given more often

[outer summit]

Yes, Jaxy confirmed it on the stream today. I'm excited for it!

[unborn perch]

I would also like for that weird dead grass around water to be removed. It doesn’t add much and makes grinding for Elk and Bighorns hard.

[pale rapids]

Reeds???

[barren horizon]

the dead brown reeds around the lakes don't really make sense on SRP. It's a map that is clearly meant to be set in summertime so why are the reeds dead as if it's fall?

like on Layton it makes sense because all of the grass on Layton is brown and dead anyway. On SRP it really doesn't make sense though, so I actually support the idea to remove them. It would make more sense realistically and would make it easier to spot animals..

Or if you really want to have reeds around the lakes on a summertime map like SRP, replace them with actual Cattail reeds. At least then they would add some visual interest to the areas around the lakes.

but anyway, that's all I have to say about that. I'm not really expecting EW to change this particular thing, it's just something about the game currently that is a mild annoyance.

[silent frost]

Super on board with the mountain goat redistribution. I’m fine with no small game or birds, but additions are always welcome.

[unborn perch]

It don’t look like reeds to me

[primal geyser]

those are cattails

[timber skiff]

bump

[timber skiff]

yes

[mellow sentinel]

You used a picture of a blue winged teal

Also you are forgetting a lot of game birds as of all the states Colorado has the most game birds

[digital magnet]

• chuckar partridge
• bobwhite quail
• gambles quail
• dusky grouse
• ruffed grouse
• spruce grouse
• common sage grouse
• gunnisons sage grouse
• sharp tailed grouse
• lesser prairie chicken
• greater prairie chicken
• band tailed pidgeon
• scaled quail
• mourning dove
• ring necked pheasant

[tame epoch]

b

[barren horizon]

bumping this up again

[barren horizon]

Decided to make a separate post about Pronghorn on the map because they still haven't been changed back to how they used to be which was much better. #1253647568261611562 message

[native shore]

Also since I have a feeling, someone will probably bring this up, I think maybe down the line I could probably see them adding “Gray Wolf” to SRP as another backfill species, but it would have to be down the line since Gray Wolves have only just been brought back to Colorado

[digital magnet]

Moose would be neat aswell

[civic rock]

I’d love to see this

[barren horizon]

bumping this up again because SRP deserves a major update

[crystal oracle]

All of them

[dapper ivy]

I don’t mind whether it has the drinking area for the chamois or not. Just recently, I got the diamond chamois for the first time; it was a hunt with good planning and a rewarding experience.

[digital magnet]

Same, I like if some species are planned to be like that especially small bovids like Klippspringers, dik diks, duikers and co

[mystic chasm]

Yeah I don't mind weather an animal has a drink zone or not since my playstyle is just walk around till I spot something then hunt it

[dapper ivy]

List of huntable Small Games in Colorado

[crystal oracle]

Same

[dapper ivy]

You suggest that the Mountain Goat should recuperate its drinking zone because no one hunts it. That’s their problem. Personally, I’m fine with it not having one; it forces me to think of other ways to hunt it. Call of the Wild offers the possibility of playing with different hunting styles (stalking, tracking, waiting) and strategy. Not long ago, I got a diamond chamois with very few kills (an animal that also doesn’t have a drinking zone), it wasn’t difficult, honestly.

[mystic chasm]

I might have to start hunting chamois on Te Awaroa again if thats the case

[barren horizon]

That message was posted several months ago. That being said, I stand by what I said back then, and I still think that removing drink zones for those species was completely unnecessary. The only thing that it did was make those species less popular to hunt and far more of a pain in the rear to even find. Plus it doesn't even really make sense to remove their drink zones realistically, because even animals that get most of their water from the plants they eat will still occasionally stop at watering holes when one is nearby. The way it is now, you have high elevation ponds on SRP that are basically devoid of life because nothing drinks there anymore.

what makes it even weirder is that WOTH, the supposedly more realistic game, has drink zones for animals like Mountain Goats, but COTW can't because it supposedly makes the game too unrealistic? It just really doesn't make sense to me. They chose a few species and arbitrarily removed their drink zones because a few people had complaints, instead of, you know, reworking the need zone system to make them work in a more realistic way for all species, which would seem to make more sense? It was a really bad solution imo.

[crystal oracle]

Not me not noticing they did that and that's why I couldn't find the goats lol

[south stratus]

i think they just copied the reed textures from hirsch and layton

[barren horizon]

#1321250596782608464 here's a separate thread regarding the Mountain Goat range rework specifically

[barren horizon]

bump for a better SRP

[barren horizon]

bumping this back up again

[umbral nexus]

This is very well developed and well put together! I really hope EW takes this seriously and makes it happen! SRP is my second favourite map in the game, but it is starting to feel boring and repetitive, this would really help!

[umbral nexus]

Helping you bump 🙂

[umbral nexus]

Bump

[gray flicker]

Bump

[gray flicker]

Bump

[barren horizon]

I think SRP could also be improved through a Turkey rework.
https://discord.com/channels/393040947006406657/1083391378920308858

[umbral nexus]

Bump

[dapper ivy]

Why are the wapiti and the black bear so friendly in SRP?

[barren horizon]

yeah that doesn't make much sense. However, it doesn't bother me nearly as much as the Caribou peacefully drinking alongside Grizzly Bears on Yukon Valley (where realistically Grizzlies would be quite likely to eat Caribou). I do agree though that having any prey animal like elk, caribou, etc. drinking right next to bears without a second thought is quite bizarre.

[barren horizon]

now that I think of it, a lot of other species on various maps have drink zone times that don't really make sense.

like, why would Reindeer on Medved choose to drink at a time when both Brown Bears (exact same drink time) and Eurasian Lynx (overlapping drink time by about 2 hours iirc) are both also drinking, especially when both of those species would be more than willing to make a meal out of a reindeer? It doesn't really make sense.

[dapper ivy]

This needs to be fixed urgently because it completely ruins the gaming experience. The black bear keeps escaping, then stops and gets stuck.

When I drive the quad, the wild turkey keeps moving back and forth. It should run and hide.

[barren horizon]

Highly needed backfills for SRP:

Coyote
Some type of waterfowl
Either the pheasant or some sort of new upland bird species

Other great options:
Red Fox
White-Tailed Jackrabbit (would be a great chance to remaster them)
Bobcat (if they get a rework to how other animals react to them)
Shiras Moose (if moose get an update to distinguish between the subspecies on all of the different maps that have them)

badgers and marmots would just help to further flesh out the reserve's roster of small wildlife, but in my opinion they are not essential to making the map great again

[umbral nexus]

Bump

[robust glen]

Greater sage grouse would be nice to see as an alternative to the pheasant

[barren horizon]

While I'd love to see them in the game, Sage Grouse are really reliant on Sagebrush habitat, which doesn't really exist in SRP, so it would be a bit weird to have them there. The grassy areas in the southeastern region of the map could theoretically have a few of them, but it's really just not the best habitat for them. That's why I left them off of the list.

[robust glen]

Fair but I don’t see how they couldn’t add some sagebrush to srp in that southern prairie area otherwise there’s really no chance we’ll see them in game ever based on what locations have been covered already.

[barren horizon]

I wouldn't necessarily be against that, I just don't think EW would be very likely to do it.

[robust glen]

True sadly

Would be nice though seems like that area of the map doesn’t get much traffic

[barren horizon]

I think I might make range maps for where each of the new species could occupy, since I've done that for Layton and Yukon Valley already. I'm not sure when I'll have time to make those and post them here, but hopefully sometime this weekend.

[dapper ivy]

Burrows need to be provided for marmots and badgers

[barren horizon]

I agree, and I touched on that a little bit in my first few posts in this thread if you scroll up far enough.

[umbral nexus]

Bump

[barren horizon]

In my opinion, SRP needs the following animal reworks:
A remodel for Rocky Mountain Elk: #1158455389524860958
Rework for Bighorn Sheep horns and models (both male and female): #1131615912705937428
Remodeling and some more antler variations for Mule Deer: #1121922705629925408
Rework for Plains Bison models: #1301718610426859540
Texture rework for Merriam Turkeys + better scoring system for them:
#1083391378920308858
Fur improvements for Mountain Goats: #1271155788907286619
Slight improvements to Mountain Lion models and textures:
https://discord.com/channels/393040947006406657/1325116200677801987

In addition, Pronghorn should be moved back to Class 4, and should be given a drink time that is in the daytime: #1214623947790749716 #1253647568261611562
And finally, Mountain Goats should get a rework to their home range: #1321250596782608464

In my opinion, the most essential backfill for this map is the Coyote. They are a very iconic species of the American West and their absence on SRP is quite strange. The map also currently doesn't have any Class 2 species, so I think this would be a very welcome addition. They could also use a model rework, and an update where they get backfilled to SRP would be a perfect time to do that.

Some waterfowl would also be great, because the map has tons of lakes and ponds that just feel like they would be fitting places to have some ducks or geese.

[barren horizon]

We have confirmation now that the Dusky Grouse will be added with the new Alberta map. Because this species lives throughout the Rocky Mountains, I'd like to see them be backfilled on Silver Ridge Peaks. This is a picture of one in Colorado.

||Image credit - Andrew Spencer / Macaulay Library||

This shows the range map of both Dusky Grouse and Sooty Grouse. As you can see, Dusky Grouse have a pretty wide range, from the Yukon Territory in Canada all the way to the forested mountain ranges of New Mexico

[barren horizon]

I've moved them to the "backfilling options" list in the original post, because once the new map comes out, they won't be an entirely new species if they get added to SRP

[barren horizon]

The new Dusky Grouse on Askiy Ridge looks pretty great. I would really like to see this species be backfilled onto Silver Ridge Peaks!

[barren horizon]

If Coyotes ever get the much-needed rework that they need, then they would be a perfect backfilling option for SRP.

||Image Credit: NPS||

[worthy viper]

i want more animal render distance it would help alot on srp but that probably wont be possible, maybe a slider for a few hundred more meters though

[barren horizon]

I've updated this post because several species on SRP have now been reworked with the Askiy Ridge map. I also added the new Northern Pintail to the potential backfill list because I think they would fit in very well on SRP.

In my opinion, SRP still needs a lot of work to improve it. In my opinion there's certain aspects of SRP that are always going to be overshadowed by Askiy Ridge, but the animals on SRP should still be as good as they can be.

[barren horizon]

Potential Dusky Grouse range on SRP

Potential Coyote range on SRP

[gusty radish]

Agree on all fronts

[barren horizon]

Potential Cinnamon Teal range on Silver Ridge Peaks

Potential Northern Pintail range on Silver Ridge Peaks

Potential Gadwall range on SRP

[gusty radish]

I'd also make more plains area

[barren horizon]

They'd be at most lakes in that area, but I wanted to change things up and keep them out of the far southeastern corner of the map. The lakes and ponds there aren't very open and Gadwall prefer open water if they can find it.

Potential Red Fox range on SRP - I think they should be in the mountain forests of the map primarily. The Red Fox population in Colorado's Rockies is the Wasatch Mountains Fox, which is adapted for more mountainous forested environments.

Potential Bobcat range on SRP - they would be in the foothills of the mountains and the plains, only slightly overlapping with the range for Mountain Lions. They would also have a small population of only about 12-14 individuals on the map. The only way I think they could be added to this map would be if their predatory behavior gets changed, so that they no longer spook larger animals (let's say animals above Class 5)

Potential range for the American Badger on SRP - their burrows could be found throughout both of the highlighted areas here

potential range for the Yellow-Bellied Marmot - they would also have burrows that can only be found in the highlighted region of the map

Potential Range for the Blue-Winged Teal on SRP

Potential Range for the White-Tailed Ptarmigan on SRP

[umbral nexus]

Honestly all this map needs is some small game and then it’s perfect

[barren horizon]

I agree, which is my backfilling and new species recommendations are all smaller animals

[umbral nexus]

A lot of the new things from Askiy would literally be perfect, and the new and improved pronghorn def makes the map a little bit more enjoyable

[barren horizon]

yeah I agree, the new Dusky Grouse and Northern Pintail would be great additions to SRP

[worthy viper]

this map could be so much better

[barren horizon]

yep, definitely

[native shore]

Potential Gray Wolf Range?! Yeah I know they only JUST Returned to Colorado and are Endangered but it’s just for Fun Speculation

[barren horizon]

honestly I'm not sure where they'd make sense on SRP. Probably the northern mountains if I had to guess? But I'm not expecting them to get added to this map regardless, so it doesn't really matter that much.

[mystic chasm]

Yeah I don't think wolves make much sense on Silver Ridge myself

[barren horizon]

agreed. We have them on Askiy Ridge, we don't need them on two different Rocky Mountain maps

[gusty radish]

I'd make them an occasional thing

[barren horizon]

personally I'd prefer it if wolves wouldn't be backfilled onto any more maps. If they do any more maps with wolves, then they should be new maps.

maps like SRP, Layton, etc. don't need wolves in my opinion. Medved was different because Siberia is a vast region with lots of wolves. Wolves have only recently returned to the Pacific Northwest and Southern Rockies, and they don't have a very big well-established population in either of those regions like they do in regions like Alaska (Yukon Valley), Siberia (Medved Taiga), or the Canadian Rockies (Askiy Ridge)

Also, SRP and Layton are both currently very beginner-friendly and the addition of wolves would pretty much ruin that.

[dire junco]

Yes

[barren horizon]

bump

[native shore]

Ehhh maybe they could be added down the line when the gray wolf population and Colorado has gotten much bigger…. But until then, we’ll just say it’s a no go….. still do hope mountain lions and grizzlies both make it to Askiy Ridge…. Coyotes, Wild Boar, and Ptarmigan too….Also Bobcat, Gray Fox, coyote and red fox should be on this map…. Maybe Canadian Lynx too if they ever get added.

[barren horizon]

bumping this back up again

[barren horizon]

SRP deserves some new species. The Dusky Grouse would be a great addition to this map in my opinion.

[barren horizon]

bumping this back up