He who plays solo.

[Africanus]

I am much of a mind as the OP. Solo play in a secluded area appeals to me, with the option, as I see fit, to trade/socialize with the outside world as needs dictate.
The game in its current form does not cater to this niche.

How to resolve the situation?

Increase the map size in proportion to cater for all playstyles. Big enough so that the hermits can remove themselves to an area/s that is far enough removed to make the PvP crowd (or Pk'ers) think twice before making and epic(ish) trek for little reward?
Big enough that tribes can remove themselves to an area where their direct neighbour is not in plain line of sight or just over the hill.

Workable enough that PvP'ers have reasonable access to others of like mind?

[Bridger]

Africanus - the map will be expanding. Eventually. That's already been stated. If you run out to the edge of The Green - before you get to the point where it becomes too dense and opaque to see in more than a few feet - you can see there's already lots more map out there already.

Perhaps part of the intention of Prelude is to get the civilization anchor established as a base for folks to strike out from into newly revealed territory once it becomes available?

[mgilbrtsn]

Don't worry about how much land space there is currently. They plan on expanding it. Should be pretty good for solo'ers. Most of the tribes will be established, and won't wanna move. This way there should be a nice frontier for the solo player to have his relatively isolated camp.

[BigCountry]

You can play solo but it will not be easy. Just make sure you realize what your getting into.

[SotekOne]

i don't understand... why play a mmo if u wanna play in solo? just play in a singleplayer game offline and u solved all problem...

I prefer to be flexible and independent. IF i would join a tribe, it would be as a scout/messenger/explorer/hunter/trader-type. And there is not a lot of demand for those at the moment.

[Chevron]

I disagree with op that the world is to small and that you cannot find a secluded spot...even with a junk pile.

Explore more because i have mapped several spots with no tribe in the vicinity wait out in the boonies of the forest with small junk piles there for the taking. It did take roughly 6 hours of running around to find these spots and i have not even dented the "Hermit Areas" yet.

On my own i have managed to set up my baskets...build camp fire and place a tepee along with crafting a set of weak armor. I am working on the walls.

[blackzilla]

Playing solo is perfectly fine in this game.

[SotekOne]

I disagree with op that the world is to small and that you cannot find a secluded spot...even with a junk pile.

Explore more because i have mapped several spots with no tribe in the vicinity wait out in the boonies of the forest with small junk piles there for the taking. It did take roughly 6 hours of running around to find these spots and i have not even dented the "Hermit Areas" yet.

Could be I am just unlucky. In all my hours of exploring out in the mountains (+/- 15) I have not seen a bear either, for example. But judging by the number of people I have seen deep in the wilderness and on the edges of the map, I really think the current map is pretty busy. And after the 15th, when all the positive feedback about the game goes out and hordes of new players come storming in...

[Ashfield212]

I fail to understand why soloing, currently, is considered by the majority as hard. Since I pre-ordered Xyson, all I've done is solo - I don't know any different and I wouldn't have it any other way.

When I establish a place to call home, I'm sure to note down surrounding tribes/communities, if I'm in dire need of a tool for example, I'll put the word out I'm looking to trade. I don't distance myself too far away from existing tribes, I just choose not to be part of one.

There seems to be a stigma attached to soloing, like it's not beneficial or productive in some way, personally I don't believe this to be the case.

[Asmodeous]

I think it's primarily due to the fact that it's very hard to get initial establishment, especially in comparison to a handful of people (and by handful I really mean enough to have each set of starter tools). That's the only place it's hard, though. Once you get enough needed goods (especially obsidian and chalk, for instance) to trade for the tools you need to really get started, though, the extended difficulty curve is levelled out abruptly, since you have much smaller resource consumption need than a group.

I think they did a pretty good job balancing it out in my short time of playing the prelude. (I've only been back for a week or so, so I could be wrong).