The Long Dark: Tall Tales Walkthrough

The Long Dark: Episode 3 – Sidequest: Tall Tales (Local Legends) Walkthrough & Guide.

The Long Dark: Tall Tales Walkthrough

So this sidequest is triggered by picking up any one of the four books below. As the name suggests, Astrid has the chance to look into some of the local legends around Pleasant Valley. Completing all of them nets you an achievement, and each quest has some nice goodies at the end so they’re worth your time.

Sasquatch

Yeah… Judging by the The Long Dark’s track record, I don’t think we’ll actually be seeing a real sasquatch. Anyways, this book is found in the Community Hall bathroom.

As always, go towards the map marker. The cave can easily be found by crossing the road after leaving the Community center and just hugging the wall while heading to your right. You might get a sprain or two from walking on a steep slope, but there are a lot of pain killers in this region.

Anyways, you’ll eventually come across a cave with a dead deer outside and mushroom stumps.

Go inside to trigger the next objective of searching the cave. You’ll quickly find a dead man with a sweet coat.

Search him to get yourself a wolfskin coat. This is a pretty warm animal skin coat with good defense and a small chance of causing wolves to run from you. And frankly, I’m just glad there wasn’t a bear in here.

Misty Cave

You’ll find this book in the Thomson’s Crossing general store. The building is right across from the Community Hall, and the book is on the counter near the cash register.

As with all quest objectives, a marker will appear on your map. You’ll actually want to follow the river as if you’re heading to the plane crash. But you need to follow it until you reach see the waterfall. From there, keep going until you see a campground on your right (and yes, the picture is from a different angle since I came a different way). While it may not look like it, there’s actually a cave entrance hidden behind a large rock.

After entering the cave, you’ll be asked to find the secret waterfall. Thankfully, this cave is a giant loop. Keep going until you hear the sound of rushing water and see the small entrance in the picture below.

You have to crouch to crawl through the hole, but eventually you’ll get through and see the waterfall. Go through it to finish the objective…and see a rather sad sight. As a side note, going through the waterfall is guaranteed to get all of your outer clothes wet and give you hypothermia, so you may want to take them off beforehand.

Ghost Stag

This book is in the Draft Dodger’s Cabin, the same place you’ll be visiting if working through the Church Artifact sidequest.

To see this special stag, you need to heard towards the Three Strikes Farmstead. As always, just head towards the map maker; it’s pretty easy to get there. Once you cross the bridge, head to your left and you’ll find a snow shelter.

Get close enough, and the game will autosave and then prompt you to hide in the shelter until the stag appears. Oh, and be sure to search the nearby backpack for some Rabbit-skin mittens! Do as it says, and the game will fast forward until the dusk. You will then see the majestic white stag.

This will unlock the blueprints for deer-skin boots and pants. While you can take a shot at the deer, it won’t be injured or die. And why would you do such a thing to such a beautiful creature?

Magical Pond

The book for this legend can be found in Joplin’s second bunker. Check that section of the guide for more details.

You’ll want to do some prep before heading out to Pensive Pond. Make sure you’re wearing your warmest clothes. Try to wear get enough that you can stand in a sheltered area without your temperature dropping. If you can’t manage that, then you need to bring a tool that can break down wood or a lot of fire fuel. Also bring any fishing tackle that you’ve found beforehand. There will be some at the Pond, but it’s always good to be prepared. Finally, try to drop enough gear that you can carry at least an extra 15 kilograms on the way back.

Once your ready, head out towards Pensive Pond. The easiest way to get there is to just follow the river and then head up the bank when you get close. Anyways, it’s a pretty obvious area.

Head inside the fishing hut and search it. There will be a bedroll for you and two fishing tackles in the drawers/cabinets. You can then begin fishing for the giant bass. Now getting it is completely random. I’ve heard some people found it on the first cast, while others fished four days straight without getting it. But once you catch it, it’s clear that this is a BIG fish.

As I said, if you want to take it with you, you’ll need an extra 15 kg of carrying capacity. Not to mention the other fish you’ve probably caught during this. You can always let it go to swim another day. But if you’re still need food for the Community Hall pantry, then this fish is a great addition. Your choice.