FAQ For Newcomers!

You find yourself in the dark thicket of an unfamiliar forest, unsure of your place in this world so new to you. Every sound sends shivers down your spine, and every creature seems hostile. You know Tala must be close nearby, but you can't sense her and every sound sends shivers down your spine as it reverberates through the trees; every creature you see glares with narrowed eyes hostile to your intrusion. A massive badger bursts from its den to snap at your paws and you take off running, but before long you find yourself back where you began, turned around and pacing in circles.

From behind you, you hear a soft chuckle. Whirling, you set your gaze on a fiery she-wolf, with kind but striking yellow-orange eyes. "You're new here, aren't you?"

You nod cautiously, fur all on end. Should you be admitting weakness to this strange wolf?

"Don't worry, I'm here to help you. My name is Rielle." Her voice is reassuring and husky, and she settles down on a large rock thickly covered in moss. "Tala insists on tough love sometimes, but there are many here who are willing to guide newcomers such as yourself. All of us were new, once. What do you wish to know?"

***

This is my quick guide to questions from newcomers I frequently see in chat. I intend these to be as brief as possible, so for more help and more in-depth guides and explanations, search other user-created guides in chatter or ask questions in help chat. Feel free to post questions here as well, or PM me! I don't bite.

Feel free to link this thread in chat!

***

DIRECTORY
1. Starting Out
2. Wolves and Packs
3. Genetics and Breeding
4. Currency, Items, and Trading
5. Forums, CSS, and More
6. Coming from Lioden?
7. Everything Else!

STARTING OUT
I literally just got here...

Should I have a male or female lead wolf?
Whatever you like! But keep in mind that you get to choose the looks of your lead, so you will likely want them to breed.
Male leads can be your breeding male, but if they aren't they can only breed within pairbonds. Female leads can breed no matter what, but will have slowed energy regeneration when nested.
There are no other in-game differences between male and female leads.

Should my second wolf be male or female?
Whatever you like! But keep in mind that you get to choose the looks of this wolf, so you will likely want them to breed.
A male wolf can only breed if they are your breeding male or if they are in a pairbond with a specific wolf, but female wolves can breed no matter what. Female wolves will have slowed energy regeneration when pregnant and cannot fulfill scouting, hunting, or herbalist duties while nested.
There are no other in-game differences between male and female wolves.

What biome is best?
Starting out, the largest/most important difference between starter biomes is whatever aesthetics and lore you want for your pack. There are some differences, like the types of encounters and herbs in each biome, but you'll have the chance to explore all biomes for these features! The starter biomes are all considered easy, but later on, more challenging biomes will become available.

Can I change my pack name?
Yes, but make sure you choose wisely. Pack names must be unique and cost 1GC to change in the Grove.

Can I change my wolf's name?
Yes, lead wolves and packmates can have their names changed anytime you like.

I made some wolves, I marked my territory... What now?
Do ALL of Tala's tutorial quests. (Pro tip: Sometimes she talks too much and she gets cut off by your browser! If you feel stuck, try scrolling her dialogue box to see if there's something you're missing!)

I'm stuck on a tutorial quest?
First: Check to see if Tala's just talking too much for your poor browser to handle! Sometimes she gets cut off, so try scrolling her dialogue box to see if there's something you're missing!
Second: Try checking the Quest Snake at the Crossroads, he may have the info you're looking for!
Third: If still stuck, ask for help in chat! Help chat is usually better for questions but main chat is usually more active.
Fourth: If no one can help solve your problem, you may have a bug! Report the bug/modbox the issue -- but PLEASE go through the other steps first! AND please search the keywords of your problem to make sure someone else hasn't reported it! Our mods deal with a lot of clutter in bug reports and the modbox!

How often will I get unique quests?
You'll get several, spanning several rollovers. These are just tutorial quests so after a while you won't get any more unless new tutorials are released with new features!

What is rollover/RO?
Rollover (RO) is what moves time forward on Wolvden. Your wolves will not age, your meat will not spoil, etc. if you don't roll your account each day-- so don't worry about your pups dying because you have a busy week!
Each RO ages wolves one half month.

Can I have more than one account?
No, WD is strictly one account per person. You also cannot share or sell accounts.

Can my sibling/significant other/roommate and I both play if we have the same IP address?
Yes, just submit a modbox report so mods know and don't penalize the accounts.

***

More thorough beginner's guides here and here. Get adopted by a more experienced player here.

WOLVES AND PACKS
I'm just a wolf and my life is a nightmare...

Should I have a male or female lead wolf/second wolf?
Whatever you like! But keep in mind that you get to choose the looks of this wolf, so you will likely want them to breed.
A male wolf can only breed if they are your breeding male 9r in a pairbond, but female wolves can breed no matter what. Female wolves will have slowed energy regeneration when pregnant and cannot fulfill scouting, hunting, or herbalist duties while pregnant (but female leads can still explore.)
There are no other in-game differences between male and female wolves.

Can my breeding male have another role?
Yes, breeding males can also be hunters, scouts, herbalists, pup sitters, or even pack leaders! (I recommend setting your breeding male as your leader or a scout, as those wolves build stats the fastest!) However, to breed you'll also need energy, so you may not want to set your breeding male with any role at all.

What biome is best?/Why change biomes? Starting out, the largest/most important difference between starter biomes is whatever aesthetics and lore you want for your pack. There are some differences, like the types of encounters and herbs in each biome, but you'll have the chance to explore all biomes for these features! The starter biomes are all considered easy, but later on, more challenging biomes will become available.
Different biomes will provide different items and enemies, as well as differing levels of challenge. However, enemies of all levels can be found in all biomes.
More info on biomes here.

Can I change my pack name?
Yes, but make sure you choose wisely. Pack names must be unique and cost 1GC to change in the Grove.

Can I change my wolf's name?
Yes, lead wolves and packmates can have their names changed anytime you like.

How does wolf aging work?
Rollover (RO) is what moves time forward on Wolvden. Your wolves will not age if you don't roll your account each day-- so don't worry about your pups dying because you have a busy week!
Each RO ages wolves 1/2 a month.
Pups can be weaned (and traded) at 2 1/2 months (5 ROs.)
Pups become adolescents at 6 months (12 ROs.)
Adolescents become adults at 1 year (24 ROs.)
Wolves can die randomly between 7 and 8 years (168-192 ROs,) but will die for certain at 8 years old (192 ROs.) Your lead wolf will die of old age only sy 8 years old (192 ROs.)

How fast does energy regenerate?
For lead wolves, energy regenerates 10% every 7.5 minutes, for a full regen after an hour and 15 minutes.
For pack wolves, energy regenerates 10% every 15 minutes, for a full regen after 2 1/2 hours.
Energy regen is slowed by half when wolves are pregnant, and slowed when wolves are hungry.
Wolves do not regenerate energy when working (hunting, scouting, crafting medicine, foraging, training pups, or pupsitting.)

Why did my wolf leave my pack?
Wolves can leave because they are about to age into an adult and you don't have enough territory space, or if their hunger or mood reaches 0%. Puppies won't leave, but nursing mothers that leave will take pups with them.
You have 3 ROs to reclaim your wolf on your den page, but it will cost 100SC per wolf.

How do I feed/play with my wolf?
You can take care of your wolf from the wolf page or from the item's page in your hoard. If you can't play with or feed your wolf, it probably has 100% mood and hunger!

My wolf has 0HP! Will it die?
No, unless it has a fatal illness.
More info on illnesses here and here.

How do I heal my lead wolf/pack wolves?
Healing salves can be used to heal any wolf, and random explore encounters provide health points (HP) for lead wolves.
Healing salves can be crafted by an herbalist, bought from another player, or found in explore (inspect the water, don't drink!)
More info on herbalism here, and on explore encounters here.

What do wolf personalities do?
At the moment, personalities only affect befriending and hunting. A guide to befriending and personalities can be found here. If your hunters have conflicting personalities, they will have lower synergy and the party will be less successful. The personality snake can evaluate your hunting party for personality clashes, but you can save the SC and check the personality chart here.

How do I get more territory?
At the bottom of your den page. Territory can only be acquired through buying with currency, and the price per slot scales up as more slots are bought. Max territory slots is 200 adult wolves.

How many adult slots do I need?
As many as you want, but I recommend starting with a goal of 7-11 slots, enough for;
4-5 Hunters
1-2 Scouts
1 Herbalist
1-3 Pupsitters
Your lead wolf is not counted in your adult slots.
You can have maximum 2 scouts and 1 herbalist, but unlimited hunters, pupsitters, and wolves without set roles (freeloaders!) As your wolves age, you'll also unlock a role called mentor.
More about pack roles here.

My hunters suck???
Hunters take time to get good, but conflicting personalities in your party may also be an issue. The personality snake can evaluate your hunting party, but he'll mostly just tell you if there are personality clashes. Save the SC and check the personality chart here.
If you have no conflicts, proficiency and synergy in your party may be low. These take time to build, but you can help by sending your hunters out as much as possible and avoiding frequently adding/removing members. In the meantime, stick to a starter biome and hunt critter carcasses until your wolves get gud.
More on hunting here.

How do I unlock the herbalist?
The herbalist unlocks after 4 rollovers, via a unique quest. You and your wolves are immune to disease until then.
More info on herbalists here.

My pup has low survival chance, what can I do?
If your pup is still nursing (2 months and younger,) feed and play with the mother up to 100%. If your pup is weaned (2 1/2 months and older,) feed and play with the pup up to 100%. Your pup will receive a 7% bonus to survival chance next RO, or a 7-15% penalty if neglected.
Pupsitters raise the survival chance of your pups, but do not guarantee survival unless their survival chance is at 100% with the sitter bonus. You can have unlimited pupsitters so use that to your advantage, one per pup if necessary!
Pup training also raises survival chances by a few percentage points. It's not much, but it helps!
More information on pups and pupsitters here.

How do I add a featured wolf and give my wolves titles?
Featured wolves are set in the wolf's settings, and titles are set at the bottom of the den page.

Can I sex change my wolf?
Yes, with the sex changer in the Grove. However, there are some requirements- for instance, the wolf must be unbred to be sex changed.

Can I gender change my wolf?
You can set your wolf's sex and then write whatever lore you like, including giving your pack leader and one featured wolf titles! (A female lead can be given the title King, for instance.) Have fun with it. 🏳️‍⚧️
There may be official LGBT+ pride decor added in the future-- nothing confirmed but Lioden has pride decor. There's also tons of fun pride-inspired custom decor made by users.

Can my wolves be gay?
Same-sex wolves can be pairbonded and even adopt pups from the Enclave! They can't breed, however. You can also write whatever lore you like, including giving your pack leader and one featured wolf titles! (A female lead can have a female featured wolf with the title of Mate, for instance.) Go nuts, kids. 🏳️‍🌈
There may be LGBT+ pride decor added in the future-- nothing confirmed but Lioden has pride decor. There's also tons of fun pride-inspired custom decor made by users.

***

More information on wolves and packs here.

GENETICS AND BREEDING
Turns out getting busy is a science...

Should I have a male or female lead wolf/second wolf?
Whatever you like! But keep in mind that you get to choose the looks of this wolf, so you will likely want them to breed.
A male wolf can only breed if they are your breeding male or in a pair bond with a specific wolf, but female wolves can breed no matter what. Female wolves will have slowed energy regeneration when pregnant and cannot fulfill scouting, hunting, or herbalist duties while pregnant (but female leads can still explore.)
There are no other in-game differences between male and female wolves.

What is a pair bond?
Pair bonds consist of two wolves and allow non-breeding males to breed. Different-sex pair bonds are able to breed when the female wolf is in heat. Same-sex pair bonds are not able to naturally conceive puppies, but they can adopt puppies from the Enclave! Wolves can only be in one pair bond at a time and prefer to pair for life, so you cannot trade a wolf that is in a pair bond and breaking pair bonds triggers 0% mood and a 30 day cooldown for both wolves
Pair bonds are unlocked on your 30th rollover, and a wolf has to have been in your pack for 7 ROs to be pairbonded.
More on pair bonds and breeding here.

Can my breeding male have another role?
Yes, breeding males can also be hunters, scouts, herbalists, pup sitters, or even pack leaders! (I recommend setting your breeding male as your leader or a scout, as those wolves build stats the fastest!)

When can wolves breed?
Wolves can breed upon reaching adulthood at 1 year (24 ROs) of age. Wolves must have at least 2% energy, 50% hunger, 80% mood and 1HP to breed. Males must be set to breeding males, and females must be in heat.

Does pregnancy have any affect on roles?
Energy regen is slowed by half when wolves are pregnant, and wolves cannot work while nested.

My pup has low survival chance, what can I do?
If your pup is still nursing (2 months and younger,) feed and play with the mother up to 100%. If your pup is weaned (2 1/2 months and older,) feed and play with the pup up to 100%. Your pup will receive a 7% bonus to survival chance next RO, or a 7-15% penalty if neglected.
Pupsitters raise the survival chance of your pups, but do not guarantee survival unless their survival chance is at 100% with the sitter bonus. You can have unlimited pupsitters so use that to your advantage, one per pup if necessary!
Pup training also raises survival chances by a few percentage points. It's not much, but it helps!
More information on pups and pupsitters here.

What does scrying do?
Scrying shows possible results from a breeding pair, not what cubs you will get.

How do I get x base/mutation/marking/etc?
Genetics on this site are nuts. Here's a comprehensive guide.

Can I sex change my wolf?
Yes, with the sex changer in the Grove. However, there are some requirements- for instance, the wolf must be unbred to be sex changed.

***

More information on breeding here and here, and genetics here.

CURRENCY, ITEMS, AND TRADING
Ok but I want stuff?...

What are silver cones/SC?
Silver cones are the currency you will naturally accrue by playing the game. SC cannot directly be bought with real life money, but many users will exchange SC for GC.
Info on the SC grind here.

What are gold cones/GC?
Gold cones are a premium currency bought with real life money, but can also be acquired through trades with other players.

What is the SC/GC conversion rate?
This will always be in flux, but at the moment it seems to be 300-400SC to 1GC. The economy of Wolvden is also still pretty young, so the conversion rate may fluctuate wildly for a while before it becomes more stable. You can check the approximate conversion rate by searching currency trades in the trading center (TC.)

How do I get more SC?
Do quests for the quest snake every day, sell small carcasses to the raccoon and feed larger ones to your pack. Sell extra large carcasses in the trading center.
More info on questing here and the SC grind here.

How do I get more territory?
At the bottom of your den page. Territory can only be acquired through buying with currency, and the price per slot scales up as more slots are bought. Max territory slots is 200 adult wolves.

How do I sell my wolves/items?
Wolves can only be sold in the trading center (TC.) Items can be sold to the raccoon or to other players in the trading center.

Why can't I sell my wolves/items?
Wolves can only be sold in the trading center (TC.) Wolves must be weaned, have no role set, and not be on a claiming/trading cooldown in order to be sold.
Items can only be sold if they are not buried or currently in another trade. The first guarana you are given in the game is account-locked and cannot be sold.

How do I gift something to another player/set up a private trade?
There is a link on each player's profile page for gifting. You can also create a trade as usual, but select the gift option and include their ID. Private trades can also be done this way.

I need a certain item, how do I get it?
Check this guide here for explore encounters, as many of those provide items. Some encounters even specifically provide needed quest items, guide for that here. The raccoon also sells items, and herbalists will trade 3 of the same herb for any other herb.
If all else fails, check the trading center (TC) for other users selling the item you need. If it's an herb you seek, try using keyword "herb swap" as some users will swap herbs for an equal number of any other herbs.

Why can't I find befriendable wolves/a certain enemy type/etc. in explore?
RNG (random number generator, which runs many aspects of Wolvden) is a cruel mistress. Befriendable wolves are equally common in all biomes, but check here for other explore encounters and here for enemy types. If all else fails, check the trading center (TC.)

***

More information on gaining currency here.

FORUMS, CSS, AND MORE
I want pretty things...

How do I get a profile picture/avatar?
At the bottom of your profile page there is a field that says "tag URL." You will need to paste the URL of the image you want in that field.
There are no official Wolvden tags at the moment but you can find some user-created Wolvden tags and other art for free tags here.

How do I make my profile/den page pretty?
With a type of coding called CSS! Don't fret if you're not familiar, there are guides, free CSS, and CSS sales here.

How do I delete the comment/thread I made in chatter?
You can't, really. If a thread, title it something like "to be deleted" and modbox to get mods to delete. If a comment, just edit the comment (possibly with explanation, like if you accidentally double posted.)

How do I subscribe/unsubscribe to a thread in chatter?
Top right button on the first page of the thread.

Where do I post suggestions?
You can make suggestion threads and comment on other user's suggestions here. Wolvden is a new game with many upcoming features planned already, so be sure to check the pinned post for ideas already acknowledged or planned by the developers.

***

Forum rules are here, and there's a whole chatter board for those seeking/offering help here!

COMING FROM LIODEN
I totally didn't almost add "pride" to my pack name...

What is Lioden?
Lioden is Wolvden's sister site. It's much older but bears many similarities to Wolvden... except lions.

What should I expect coming from Lioden?
Staff has said that though Wolvden is similar to Lioden in many ways, you should go into WD assuming that just because something looks like LD doesn't mean it is the same.
Important note: You can only have one account on Wolvden! No side accounts!
Threads highlighting many of the differences between WD and LD, as well as other takeaways, can be foundhere and here.

Will there be x feature from Lioden?
Wolvden will share many features with Lioden, but will also leave some behind and implement new ones.  This news post here lists some of the features that will be implemented relatively soon after launch, but there will be much more than that to come. It's important to remember that LD had almost a decade to become the beast of a pet sim it is, and that WD will take time grow.

Okay but I actually did put "pride" in my pack name...
You're not the only one. Modbox it and ask for a change.

***

Great big guide to Wolvden vs. Lioden here.

EVERYTHING ELSE
Everything... else...

Will add to this as necessary.

***

Check out user-created help guides here! The Grouse House guides here are especially thorough.
Don't be afraid to ask questions in help chat!

This is really good! I was talking to another player a few days ago that an FAQ would be nice but we were both too busy...

I would move the herbalist questions further up since it's easily noticeable that you can't immediately access it and the others quests unlock the role.

What biome is best? the 3 starter biomes do give different herbs to forage for later

Thanks for your guide!!This is helpful!!

I wanna share this to my friends who just joined wolvden , however some of them can't read English fluently.

So ,may I get your permission to translate this FAQ into another language and share it on another social app? Of course I'll  indicate the source and the author，and also link to here!