You Think You Might Hear Some Kind of Rustle

[favomancer]

What is that message about? I get it every once in a while but when I send Rauni out with her spear there's nothing there.

[PALU]

There usually isn't anything there, but very occasionally there is. I guess it's an attempt to provide the experience of being alone with potentially hostile wildlife (or even worse, human life) that may show up at any time. You wake up at night for no discernible reason, but in a safe environment you can just say that it probably was nothing, or a car passing by, and go back to sleep.

[cookie]

Yep. In my experience, this is usually either nothing or a tufted duck... but also it's something that pops when a Njerpez raider shows up at your cabin. That's why - long term - it's important to trap-fence and spike-pit the outer border of your settlement.

[PALU]

Humans detect trap lines (and both robbers and Njerps are humans), so they can bypass and/or disable those. Humans do not detect isolated traps, though.

[cookie]

Humans detect trap lines (and both robbers and Njerps are humans), so they can bypass and/or disable those. Humans do not detect isolated traps, though.

Well the one and only time that I've ever seen a Njerp enter my camp, he dove headfirst into a spike trap on my fence line. That was a few versions back though. Was probably night too, come to think of it.

[PALU]

I've had a Njerp come up to my sneaking character was building a trap, and the bugger disabled several traps, without detecting my character. That was a long time ago, though, but I've also seen other humans pass traps that are part of trap lines/fences.

I had one idiot who first cut down a tree (or several) that formed part of a trap line around my homestead, and then ended up in the now disconnected trap. He insisted everything was fine for the month or two it took to heal...

[Arsenic]

Yeah as others have said most of the time its just your character's imagination, probably a result of being alone in the dark wilderness.

one time I had a message that said "you hear something" and then an elk screamed. apparently a lynx decided to get dinner 7 tiles away from my shelter.

If it says "you THINK" then its probably nothing but maybe check. if it says "you HEAR" then get ready for a fight.

[Privateer]

Rustle is a harmless vagabond known well in the area.

[TMagurowitz]

Now that I think about it perhaps its tied to your relation with the local spirits. If your character is uneasy with their relationship with them they might sleep more warily wether the spirits are real or not.