Surviving in the frozen wilderness of The Long Dark requires strategic planning, resource management, and knowledge of the best gear to endure the harsh Canadian environment. Among the many clothing items available in the game, the Bearskin Coat stands out as one of the most effective and iconic pieces for extreme cold survival. Crafted from the hide of a slain bear, this heavy coat offers exceptional warmth and protection, but it comes with trade-offs that players must consider. Whether you’re venturing out in a blizzard or sheltering in a mountain cave, the Bearskin Coat plays a critical role in your long-term survival strategy.
Understanding the Bearskin Coat in The Long Dark
The Bearskin Coat is a unique and powerful clothing item in The Long Dark. It can only be crafted by the player and is not found in the world like many other clothes. This makes it both valuable and costly, as it requires you to hunt and kill a bear one of the most dangerous animals in the game. Once crafted, however, it becomes a cornerstone of your cold weather defense.
Key Attributes
- Warmth Bonus: +5.0°C
- Windproof Bonus: +5.0°C
- Weight: 5.0 kg
- Durability: Very high (starts at 100%)
- Crafting Time: 30 hours (divided over several sessions)
How to Obtain the Bearskin Coat
To create a Bearskin Coat, players must go through several important steps. These steps include hunting a bear, harvesting its pelt, curing the hide, and finally crafting the coat using a workbench. It is a time-consuming process that requires patience, proper gear, and risk assessment.
Step-by-Step Process
- Hunt and Kill a Bear: Bears are powerful and can kill players easily. Use long-range weapons and ensure you have an escape plan.
- Harvest the Bear Hide: After the bear is dead, harvest its hide and guts. Be aware that this process can attract wolves or other predators.
- Cure the Bear Hide: Place the bear hide indoors on a floor surface. It takes 12 days to fully cure.
- Craft the Coat: Once cured, use a workbench to craft the Bearskin Coat. You’ll also need 2 cured guts to act as thread and reinforcement.
Advantages of Wearing the Bearskin Coat
There are several reasons why players strive to craft the Bearskin Coat. It is especially useful in the later stages of the game, when survival becomes more difficult and the temperature drops dramatically in higher difficulty modes like Interloper and Deadman.
Exceptional Warmth and Wind Protection
The coat provides one of the highest warmth bonuses in the game. This makes it ideal for long outdoor expeditions where temperature drops rapidly, especially during blizzards or nighttime travel. Combined with other high-warmth gear like the Moose-Hide Satchel or Deerskin Pants, players can create a cold-resistance loadout suitable for the harshest areas like Timberwolf Mountain or Hushed River Valley.
High Durability
Unlike many clothing items that degrade quickly, the Bearskin Coat is extremely durable. Even with frequent use, it can be repaired multiple times and lasts significantly longer than synthetic gear. This longevity means fewer resources are spent on mending, freeing up time for other survival tasks.
Immunity to Freezing
Wearing the Bearskin Coat significantly lowers the chances of freezing, allowing players to extend their foraging, trapping, or hunting sessions without rushing back to shelter. This advantage is especially important in regions with fewer indoor areas.
Disadvantages of the Bearskin Coat
Despite its obvious benefits, the Bearskin Coat is not without its drawbacks. Understanding these downsides will help you decide whether it fits your current survival strategy.
Very Heavy Weight
Weighing in at 5 kg, the Bearskin Coat is one of the heaviest clothing items in the game. Wearing it may significantly reduce your carrying capacity, especially if you’re also hauling meat, firewood, or other gear. This can increase fatigue and slow you down, putting you at risk during predator encounters or long-distance treks.
Slow Crafting Process
Crafting the Bearskin Coat takes a full 30 hours, which must be completed in segments. This means you need to find a safe place to work preferably a sheltered cabin with a stove and sufficient food. Interruptions from weather or wildlife can slow the process further.
Bear Encounters Are Risky
Killing a bear is no easy task. They are extremely tough, can survive multiple rifle shots, and will charge aggressively when provoked. Players who are not prepared can die quickly. The risks involved in obtaining a bear hide make the coat a high-investment item not suitable for early gameplay.
Best Situations to Use the Bearskin Coat
The Bearskin Coat is not always the optimal choice for every environment. Depending on your goals and current biome, its weight and crafting demands may outweigh its benefits. However, it excels in several specific scenarios.
Deep-Wilderness Exploration
If you’re planning to explore distant regions such as Ash Canyon or The Far Territory, where shelter is limited and weather is brutal, the Bearskin Coat is a game-changer. Its warmth keeps you safe during long travel sessions and prevents condition loss overnight in snow shelters or caves.
Late-Game Survival
In the later stages of survival, when food sources are limited and you’ve already crafted other hide-based gear, the Bearskin Coat becomes more viable. You’ll likely have the skills, tools, and confidence to take on a bear without excessive risk.
Blizzard Endurance
During unexpected blizzards, even fully sheltered areas can become lethal. The Bearskin Coat significantly increases your chances of surviving until the storm passes, especially when paired with a fully enclosed outfit and access to fire-starting tools.
Combining with Other Gear
For the best protection, the Bearskin Coat should be combined with other high-quality clothing items. Since it’s worn as an outer layer, it’s best matched with lighter, more breathable inner layers to offset the weight while maintaining overall warmth.
Recommended Pairings
- Inner Layer: Wool Long Underwear, Thermal Underwear
- Mid Layer: Fisherman Sweater or Cowichan Sweater
- Pants: Deerskin Pants or Military Pants
- Footwear: Deerskin Boots or Insulated Boots
The Bearskin Coat in The Long Dark is a powerful, iconic piece of gear that symbolizes a player’s growth, skill, and survival prowess. Though heavy and resource-intensive to craft, it provides unmatched warmth and durability that can make the difference between life and death in the harshest regions of the game. It’s not for beginners, but for players who have reached the mid to late game, crafting the Bearskin Coat is one of the most rewarding achievements and a major step toward mastering survival in the frozen wilderness.