Expansion Grid Density?

[Aihal]

Can anybody say exactly how empty the expansion grids are right now? Especially the south. I'm thinking of moving to a sparser clime; I want to know if it's rural enough to be worth the effort.

[_Gunnar]

Where I've explored it has been extremely empty.

[MagicManICT]

Anyone that lives there isn't going to tell you how populated it is, but the areas I've wandered have been sparse. You should be able to find a location with friendlier neighbors since this opened up a good bit after the major factions settled. Since villages don't need to expand over the entire map to find different metals (as in w3), there's less incentive for them to make outposts there unless they find better clay, water, or soil.

[Aihal]

My current neighbors are friendlier than I could reasonably hope for, which makes me reluctant to leave. But they are also huge, so there is some scarcity of resources.

[MagicManICT]

Are they scarce because they're claimed or because everyone is logged on at the same time? I've lived in the shadow of active villages, and resources aren't scarce unless the village is very active all day or they've claimed all the nodes.

[Aihal]

In fact I rarely see active players, but good q nodes are claimed (although they're generally nice enough not to claim the whole thing), and the local mountain has several large claims as well. I certainly don't fault anyone for it, but foraging is spotty, and I haven't seen a bear in...a month?

[MagicManICT]

If you only look along the rivers, bears are rare. Quite often they spawn out of site range of the river. You can forage on claims without leaving any more than trespassing scents. Just be sure you are on friendly terms with the claim owner else they might get upset and break in to smash your stuff.

[Aihal]

Even taking into account the rarity of bear-spawn in river-range, they have been rarer than usual of late. And in any case, my hunting efforts are strictly ranged atm, and I prefer not dying, so I go boats. Whether due to uber-caution or a foolhardy attachment to principle, I prefer not to leave scents of any kind.