You awaken to find yourself, a mother badger, surrounded by cubs/kits/pups. (Choose one! I called them pups but in real life, baby badgers are called cubs.) But wait... there's something wrong. See that pale cub/kit/pup laying down?

Whoops, you get hit with reality hard. Your baby is already dying.

Don't worry! If you traverse through the tunnels enough, (WASD or arrow keys) you'll find a veggie! Pick it up by left clicking, and bring it back to your dying love. Keep it mind that the lighter the cubs/kits/pup's coats get, the hungrier they are and the closer they are to starving! And we can't have that, can we?

Now that your little baby is fed, take it (and the rest) through the tunnels and out into the world! (Now the real fun begins...)

I'm sure you'll quickly notice that all your little ones have different coats. You can't name them, but at the same time, you can! I quickly named mine off of their features, which included Smol Stripe, Big Stripe, Circle, Side Stripes, and Randy. (RIP Randy, he was my first death.)

Learning to identify your babies is crucial, but you could also keep track of the numbers.

Now that you're outside, you'll want to find as much food as you can. Take fruits and veggies and feed them to your cubs/kits/pups. Occasionally, you'll find a tree. Run (Shift-WASD) into it and it'll drop a delectable goodie! One of your little ones will gobble it up and you can keep moving.

You'll also find frogs and rats. Left-click on those suckers and it'll be a feast! I'd crouch (CTRL-WASD) before charging, though. They're spooked pretty easily. (If you're coming straight from Shelter 2, like I did, you'll have to get used to clicking. AND NO SCENTING!)

Foxes also prowl around. Don't worry! They don't want anything to do with your precious loves! But they're very tasty and a banquet for the whole litter. Crouch, crouch, and crouch. They're super skittish and flinch at the slightest movement. Bushes are your best friend! (And they'll come in handy later.) In my opinion, I wouldn't kill them first shot. It'll be explained in the Helpful Hints section, don't worry!

WHOAAAAA! WHAT WAS THAT SCREECH?!? AND NOW THERE'S FAST MUSIC AND YOUR HEART IS ABOUT TO EXPLODE!!!

Once you've traveled down the mountain, you'll hear a screech and see a shadow overhead. Remember how I said bushes were your best friend? RUN TO THEM. THEY'RE WAITING FOR YOU.

Once you've reached a bush, crouch (CTRL). Your cubs/kits/pups will follow suit. Wait for the shadow to pass, and run like your life depends on it to the next patch, and crouch there. You'll eventually see a tree trunk, and you'll see your screen shake and slash and you'll hear that sound of nightmares once more. Hopefully your loves are in with you, and they won't get taken.

Keep hiding in bushes, and you'll see another log. But this one is special. Once you get in, there will be a cutscene. The log will fall, and you'll be in the next level.

!!!WARNING!!!

Do this level FAST. If not, you'll find your littles are paler than pale. Feed them as much as you can next time!

Now, even me, someone who's played Shelter 2 at least 10 times over, was scared by this. It's definitely as scary as the swamp-geese in Paws. And those gave me nightmares.

Your character now has a light over her. Good. Make sure every single one of your remaining cubs/kits/pups are in it. If they stray to far, bark like crazy (LEFT CLICK) and get them back to you.

Just traverse slowly and carefully with this one. Follow the path and feed as much as you can.

They come for the weak.

Every 5 minutes, you'll hear a stick crack. Your little ones will go bonkers and run away. FOLLOW THEM. PLEASE, FOR YOUR MENTAL HEALTH FOLLOW THEM. KEEP THEM IN YOUR LIGHT.

If you don't, you'll hear a snarl, a crack, and a yelp. Then your bebs will come running back. ...Except for one. That one has been killed, presumably by wolves. I lost 3 to them, and Smol Stripe was the only one left. Make sure you keep an eye on them, okay?

Keep following the trail. Eventually, you'll reach a point where the ground forms a ramp of some sorts, and builds walls around it. It'll show a loading screen. Your nightmare is now over!

By this point, I only had one baby. This part requires skill and timing.

Take a stroll along the river. You'll see huge waves going past. KEEP THE CHILDREN AWAY! There's fruits and veggies and all kinds of delights dangerously close to it. Make sure if you plan to feed them, do it far away from the death water.

Eventually, your land path comes to a stop. There's rocks in the river, though. Once the waves go past, rush your cubs/kits/pups through it, but get to the middle of dry land before stopping. Bark bark bark as you run across to keep them going. At some point after repeating, you'll have to go upstream. This is where I lost my last little love. I came to a quick conclusion that if you position them on the bigger rocks, they'll get caught while the river sweeps them away. Please leave a comment if I'm wrong!

For the sake of the guide, I'll pretend that my children are still alive. Onward!

After the flood, you'll come to find yourself in a forest. Move quickly! This forest is on fire!

And.. you know how I said bushes are friends?

Stay away from them. They catch fire very easily and can swallow up your tiny preciouses.

Go as quickly as you can, of course feeding your babies. You yourself are immune to the fire, but your cubs/kits/pups aren't. Be careful and move swiftly. (If you go down to Helpful Hints, there's a great tip in case you forget which way to go!)

Great job if you've made it through!

You've finally made it past all dangers! You and your remaining pups can be free now!

Or so you think, eh?

SPOILERS! IF YOU DON'T WANT THEM, GO TO THE CHAPTER INDEX AND GO TO HELPFUL HINTS OR THE THANK YOU SECTION!





I knew there would definitely be a twisty twist to the end. And boy was it heartbreaking. I had just been able to finish Shelter 2, where I watch my grown-up cubs live their own life, without crying. I was starting to get a handle on Paws. BUT YOU HAVE TO FREAKING DIE FOR YOUR KIDS. They can survive, all thanks to you. You've done a great job.

-DON'T KILL THE FOX. If you get lost, chase it around. It knows the correct way and can get you out!

-All your babies died and you're on your own? If you get turned around easily, uproot some plants. That way, you'll see a detached plant or a lone fruit from a tree and say, "Hey! I've been here before!" It could work with babies, but do not let them eat it.

(Let me know more hints in the comments and I'll add them! You'll get full credit, of course.)

No, really! This is my second guide, and I spent about an hour on it. Hopefully you have a great first run, or buy this lovely game!

Let me know if I need to make edits!

Bye bye! :D