Hound/DST

Don't Starve

DST

“You ain't nothing, hound dog!”

–Wilson

“What a jerk!”

–Willow

“Woof!”

–Wolfgang

“Stay back, foul minion of evil!”

–Wendy

“IT LIVES TO EAT”

–WX-78

“That hound is not domesticated.”

–Wickerbottom

“They'd be good at pulling a sled.”

–Woodie

“They don't recognize me!”

–Maxwell

“Fenrir's spawn!”

–Wigfrid

“That's an angry puppy!”

–Webber

“Angry chien!”

–Warly

“Woofer! Woof! Woof!”

–Wormwood

“Anyone got some rolled up newspaper?”

–Winona

“Hyuyu, you're so badly behaved!”

–Wortox

“Bad doggy!”

–Wurt

“Hey Woby, another dog for you to play with!”

–Walter

“Stay away! I refuse to be eaten by the likes of you!”

–Wanda

Hounds are Monsters that periodically attack in packs. At least two Hounds will appear during an attack, which is signaled by growling noises heard for a short time. They can also spawn from Hound Mounds. If a player encounters a Varg, it will call two Hounds to help attack the player. Depending on the season, these Hounds can be normal, Blue Hounds and Red Hounds. If it was a Possessed Varg, the Hounds that were killed will transform into Horror Hounds.

Hounds take two blasts from an Ice Staff to be frozen. When killed, they drop one Monster Meat and have a chance of dropping a Hound's Tooth.

A character that has died and become a Ghost can haunt a Hound, giving it a chance of becoming either a Red Hound or a Blue Hound (50/50 chance). After the Hound has converted, it will panic for a short while, before continuing with what it was doing, such as attacking other players. Hounds will also spawn from the Moon Stone and Suspicious Moonrock Hounds when the Star Caller's Staff is inserted into the Moon Stone during a Full Moon.

Hounds can swim in the ocean and may transform into Horror Hounds after death on the Lunar Island or when is full moon after activating the Mysterious Energy.

Periodic Hound Attacks

“Did you hear that?”

–Wilson, when announcing a Hound Attack

“Show yourself!”

–Willow, when announcing a Hound Attack

“I hear puppies!”

–Wolfgang, when announcing a Hound Attack

“The hounds are baying.”

–Wendy, when announcing a Hound Attack

“SOMETHING IS COMING”

–WX-78, when announcing a Hound Attack

“Something is approaching.”

–Wickerbottom, when announcing a Hound Attack

“There's something out there.”

–Woodie, when announcing a Hound Attack

“The hounds are growing restless.”

–Maxwell, when announcing a Hound Attack

“The beasts are appröaching...”

–Wigfrid, when announcing a Hound Attack

“Doggies are coming!”

–Webber, when announcing a Hound Attack

“I recognize that sound. Hunger.”

–Warly, when announcing a Hound Attack

“Woofers!”

–Wormwood, when announcing a Hound Attack

“Are those dogs I hear?”

–Winona, when announcing a Hound Attack

“The beasts are baying!”

–Wortox, when announcing a Hound Attack

“Glurp... doggies coming...”

–Wurt, when announcing a Hound Attack

“Woby? Do you hear something?”

–Walter, when announcing a Hound Attack

“Wait a tick... did you hear something?”

–Wanda, when announcing a Hound Attack

When a Hound attack is imminent, snorting and growling sounds will be heard. These sounds start off softly and grow louder as the Hounds approach. Characters will also call attention to these sounds with phrases such as "Did you hear that?". Usually, these warnings appear at least twice before the Hounds come. Wes cannot speak and therefore does not have distinguishable warnings. When the Hounds appear, the growling sounds will be replaced with the very real running and panting sounds that Hounds make when they attack. Any spawning hounds appear within a 30 unit or 7½ pitchfork tile radius of the player.

Periodic hound attacks are a big threat to the player and get more difficult the longer they have survived, but also less frequent: The number of Hounds increases and the warning time before a wave decreases.

The number of Hounds spawned per player is dependent on each player's age. All other variables that depend on age/day count use the average age of all players in the world.

A group of players close to each other will be attacked by fewer hounds in total than if they were spread out.

Day	Next attack in (days)	Number of Hounds	Warning time before attack (seconds)
1 to 8	5 to 8	2	120
9 to 10	5 to 10	2	60
11 to 25	5 to 10	3 to 4	60
26 to 50	7 to 12	4 to 6	45
51 to 100	9 to 14	5 to 7	30
101 or more	11 to 16	7 to 10	30

Day	Time between each hound spawns (seconds)
1 to 20	3 to 8
21 to 60	2 to 5
61 to 100	0.5 to 3.5
101 or more	0.5 to 1.5

Red Hounds can accompany normal Hounds during attacks in Summer and Autumn, while Blue Hounds can accompany normal Hounds during Winter and Spring. Red and Blue Hounds will appear less often than normal Hounds. The chances of Red Hounds or Blue Hounds spawning with a pack increases depending on how many days the player has survived.

The chance for Red Hounds to spawn is 50% higher during Summer, but only after the highest chance (day 77) has been reached.

Day	Special Hound Spawn Chance
1 to 16	0%
17 to 31	10%
32 to 51	20%
52 to 76	33.3%
77 or more	50%

Hound attack frequency can be configured in the World Customization. The number of Hounds per wave is not affected. With custom settings, the frequency and warning time of the waves does not change over time.

Custom setting	Next attack in (days)	Warning time before attack (seconds)
Never	-	-
Less	9 to 14	60
More	7 to 12	45
Lots	5 to 10	30

After day 25, there is a chance that a Varglet will spawn instead of 5 of the Hounds. The chance depends on the number of Hounds that would spawn.

Number of Hounds that would spawn	Varglet Spawn Chance
fewer than 5	0%
5	5%
6	15%
7	30%
8 or more	70%

Hound Attacks can still happen while the player is out at sea, as Hounds can swim.

Hounds do not appear in Caves. Instead, Depths Worms attack in waves similar to the way Hounds do above ground.

Hound waves will try to avoid players on the Hermit Island when one of the Celestial Revenant, Enlightened W.A.R.B.O.T., or Celestial Scion bosses is active.

Behavior

Hounds are naturally aggressive, but easily distracted as they will attack all creatures on sight. Hounds will immediately charge the player when they spawn during a Hound attack. After a while, they can become distracted by nearby Mobs or Meat.

If a Hound's target is completely surrounded by Walls, they will attack the Walls in an attempt to reach their target. If there is a gap in the Walls, Hounds will run through it.

Hounds spawned from Hound Mound will only stray a certain distance from their Mound, but if they spot the player, they will chase them for a considerable distance. Hounds will retreat to their Mounds if they are unable to catch their prey.

Fighting Strategy

See also: Hound Wave Survival Guide and Hound Repelling

Hounds are much faster than the player and cannot be outrun unless they become distracted or belong to a Hound Mound. The player can use a Walking Cane or run along a Road to outrun them.

Hounds will bite as soon as they are close enough to the player and pause for a slight moment before and after they chomp. It is possible to dodge their bite and then strike twice during the pause, although this proves difficult when multiple Hounds are attacking. Wearing an item that slows the player, such as the Marble Suit, will greatly increase the chance of being bitten. Once a Hound executes an attack, successful or not, it may stop to bark. When they do this, they will now target the nearest Mob or Meat.

One simple strategy to defeat Hounds, especially later in the game, is by simply filling up a large area with a set of Tooth Traps. Players can simply equip armor, and then run around the trap field avoiding attacks until the Hounds are killed. The trap field should be built away from the base and other flammable structures, to avoid uncontrolled fires caused by Red Hounds. The broken traps can be replaced by using the teeth obtained from the Hounds, making this a self-sustaining method to deal with Hound attacks.

If they attack a Mob that fights in a group such as a Beefalo, they can quickly be dispatched. If one does not wish to cheese the Hounds using Beefalos, and does not wish to or cannot yet use Tooth Traps, tanking them with a Dark Sword and Night Armor is advised, although the player should be careful to not be stunlocked during large waves.

Below is the number of hits it takes with each weapon to kill a Hound when playing with characters with a default damage modifier. The Weather Pain, Brightshade Staff, and Bee Mine are not included due to their random natures. This table does not take into account the damage bonus gained from characters with a lunar or shadow affinity. It also does not take into account the 40% damage bonus Wendy gets from attacking the same mob as Abigail, Wanda's damage bonus with Shadow weapons (except for the Alarming Clock, which does accurately reflect that bonus), or Wolfgang's damage multiplier when he isn't mighty.

Number of hits

Advanced options Select your character: If you are reading this, you do not have JavaScript enabled. Enable it to see a list of other characters' damage modifiers. You are currently viewing the version of the table with no damage modifier, 1x. Current Damage Modifier: 1
Weapon
	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1
	1
()	2 (Old) 2 (Middle age) 2 (Young) 6 (Out of fuel)	1 (Old) 2 (Middle age) 2 (Young) 5 (Out of fuel)	1 (1 ) (Old) 2 (1 ) (Middle age) 2 (1 ) (Young) 4 (3 ) (Out of fuel)	1 (1 ) (Old) 1 (1 ) (Middle age) 2 (1 ) (Young) 4 (2 ) (Out of fuel)
()	2 (1 )	2 (1 )	2 (1 )	2 (1 )
()	2 (2 )	2 (2 )	2 (2 ) (2 (1 ) )	2 (2 ) (2 (1 ) )
	3 (3 )	3 (3 )	3 (2 ) (2 (2 ) )	2 (2 ) (2 (2 ) )	3 (2 )	2 (2 )	2 (2 ) (2 (2 ) )	2 (2 ) (2 (1 ) )	2 (2 )	2 (2 )	2 (2 ) (2 (1 ) )	2 (1 ) (2 (1 ) )	2 (2 )	2 (2 )	2 (1 ) (1 (1 ) )	1 (1 ) (1 (1 ) )
	3	3	3 (2 )	2 (2 )	3	3	2 (2 )	2 (2 )	2	2	2 (2 )	2 (1 )	2	2	2 (1 )	1 (1 )
	2	2	2 (1 )	2 (1 )	2	2	1 (1 )	1 (1 )	2	1	1 (1 )	1 (1 )	1	1	1 (1 )	1 (1 )
	3 (2 )	2 (2 )	3 (2 )	2 (2 )	2 (1 )	2 (1 )	2 (1 )	2 (1 )	2 (1 )	2 (1 )	2 (1 )	2 (1 )	1 (1 )	1 (1 )	1 (1 )	1 (1 )
	4 - 18 (3 - 11 )	3 - 16 (3 - 11 )	3 (2 ) - 15 (11 ) (3 (2 ) - 10 (8 ) )	3 (2 ) - 13 (10 ) (3 (2 ) - 9 (7 ) )	3 - 15 (3 - 10 )	3 - 14 (3 - 10 )	3 (2 ) - 12 (9 ) (2 (2 ) - 9 (7 ) )	2 (2 ) - 11 (8 ) (2 (2 ) - 8 (6 ) )	3 - 14 (3 - 9 )	3 - 12 (2 - 9 )	2 (2 ) - 11 (8 ) (2 (2 ) - 8 (6 ) )	2 (2 ) - 10 (7 ) (2 (2 ) - 7 (5 ) )	2 - 10 (2 - 8 )	2 - 9 (2 - 7 )	2 (1 ) - 8 (5 ) (2 (1 ) - 6 (4 ) )	2 (1 ) - 7 (5 ) (2 (1 ) - 6 (4 ) )
	3	3	2 (2 )	2 (1 )	3	2	2 (1 )	2 (1 )	2	2	2 (1 )	1 (1 )	2	1	1 (1 )	1 (1 )
()	3 - 12	2 - 10	2 (1 ) - 8 (5 )	2 (1 ) - 7 (4 )
	3
	3
Note	4 (3 )	3 (2 )	4 (3 )	3 (2 )	3 (2 )	3 (2 )	3 (2 )	3 (2 )	3 (2 )	2 (2 )	3 (2 )	2 (2 )	2 (1 )	2 (1 )	2 (1 )	2 (1 )
	4	3	3 (2 )	2 (2 )	3	3	2 (2 )	2 (1 )	3	2	2 (1 )	2 (1 )	2	2	1 (1 )	1 (1 )
() Note	3	3	2 (2 )	2 (1 )
	4 - 7	3 - 6	3 (2 ) - 5 (3 )	2 (2 ) - 4 (3 )	3 - 6	3 - 5	2 (2 ) - 4 (3 )	2 (1 ) - 3 (2 )	3 - 5	2 - 4	2 (1 ) - 3 (2 )	2 (1 ) - 3 (2 )	2 - 3	2 - 3	1 (1 ) - 2 (2 )	1 (1 ) - 2 (1 )
()	3 (2 )	2 (2 )	2 (1 ) (2 (1 ) )	2 (1 ) (2 (1 ) )
()	2	2	2 (1 )	2 (1 )
	4	4	3 (2 )	3 (2 )	3	3	2 (2 )	2 (1 )	3	2	2 (1 )	2 (1 )	2	2	1 (1 )	1 (1 )
	4 (Melee on land) 3 (Melee on ocean) 3 (spell)	4 (Melee on land) 3 (Melee on ocean) 2 (spell)	3 (2 ) (Melee on land) 2 (2 ) (Melee on ocean) 2 (1 ) (spell)	3 (2 ) (Melee on land) 2 (1 ) (Melee on ocean) 2 (1 ) (spell)	3 (Melee on land) 2 (Melee on ocean) 2 (spell)	3 (Melee on land) 2 (Melee on ocean) 2 (spell)	2 (2 ) (Melee on land) 2 (1 ) (Melee on ocean) 2 (1 ) (spell)	2 (1 ) (Melee on land) 2 (1 ) (Melee on ocean) 1 (1 ) (spell)	3 (Melee on land) 2 (Melee on ocean) 2 (spell)	2 (Melee on land) 2 (Melee on ocean) 2 (spell)	2 (1 ) (Melee on land) 2 (1 ) (Melee on ocean) 1 (1 ) (spell)	2 (1 ) (Melee on land) 1 (1 ) (Melee on ocean) 1 (1 ) (spell)	2 (Melee on land) 1 (Melee on ocean) 1 (spell)	2 (Melee on land) 1 (Melee on ocean) 1 (spell)	1 (1 ) (Melee on land) 1 (1 ) (Melee on ocean) 1 (1 ) (spell)	1 (1 ) (Melee on land) 1 (1 ) (Melee on ocean) 1 (1 ) (spell)
()	3 (Direct hit) 5 (AoE)	3 (Direct hit) 4 (AoE)	2 (2 ) (Direct hit) 3 (2 ) (AoE)	2 (1 ) (Direct hit) 3 (2 ) (AoE)
	3
	5 (3 )	4 (3 )	5 (3 )	4 (3 )	4 (3 )	3 (2 )	4 (3 )	3 (2 )	3 (2 )	3 (2 )	3 (2 )	3 (2 )	2 (2 )	2 (1 )	2 (2 )	2 (1 )
()	4 (3 )	3 (2 )	4 (3 )	3 (2 )
	5	4	4 (2 )	3 (2 )	4	3	3 (2 )	2 (2 )	3	3	2 (2 )	2 (1 )	2	2	2 (1 )	1 (1 )
()	2 (When thrown)	2 (When thrown)	2 (1 ) (When thrown)	1 (1 ) (When thrown)
	4
	6	5	4 (3 )	4 (2 )	5	4	3 (2 )	3 (2 )	4	3	3 (2 )	2 (2 )	3	2	2 (1 )	2 (1 )
()	5	4	3 (2 )	3 (2 )
()	3 (When thrown)	2 (When thrown)	2 (1 ) (When thrown)	2 (1 ) (When thrown)
	8	7	5 (3 )	5 (3 )	6	5	4 (3 )	4 (2 )	5	4	3 (2 )	3 (2 )	3	3	2 (2 )	2 (1 )
()	3 (When thrown)	3 (When thrown)	2 (2 ) (When thrown)	2 (1 ) (When thrown)
()	6 (Direct hit) 9 (AoE)	5 (Direct hit) 8 (AoE)	4 (3 ) (Direct hit) 6 (4 ) (AoE)	4 (2 ) (Direct hit) 5 (3 ) (AoE)
()	9	8	6 (4 )	5 (3 )
()	5 (When thrown)	4 (When thrown)	3 (2 ) (When thrown)	3 (2 ) (When thrown)

It takes 2 blasts with an Ice Staff to freeze Hound, and 3 Sleep Darts to put it to sleep.

Tips

• While Hounds are attacking, Chester, Glommer, and tamed Beefalo can and will be targeted.

Beefalo attacking Hounds.

• 2 or 3 Hounds can usually be defeated without issue, by using a Spear, Log Suit, and Football Helmet. A player can even tank the damage when kiting is not an option.
• Out of all the Hound variants, the Red Hound is the most dangerous as it will burn anything around it upon its death by setting flames on the floor which could lead to serious loss of flammable Structures and Items. It is advised to fight them in an isolated area from the flammable Structures and Items. They can also be killed near an active Ice Flingomatic to avoid the fires.
• Hounds are easily distracted. As such, many strategies involve leading Hounds to other Mobs.
  • Lead Hounds to a Marsh where the resident Tentacles, Merms, and Spiders can aggro on the Hounds. This can also be a good way to get Tentacle Spikes, Tentacle Spots, Monster Meat, and other loot.
  • 

    Suprised hound
    Lead Hounds to Frog Ponds where Frogs will swarm their target when just 1 is attacked. Red Hound explosions cannot destroy Ponds, so no resources are at risk. Frogs do not eat Meats, so all loot can be recovered, including any Frog Legs the Hounds did not eat.
  • Lead Hounds to Treeguards where large and medium Treeguards will kill Hounds in one hit. Beware of Red Hounds; they can set Treeguards on fire, who in turn can wander around and set other things on fire.
  • Lead Hounds to a Killer Bee Hive (or attack a Beehive to spawn Killer Bees). The Bees may take a while to change targets if aggroed by the player, but will prioritize Hounds that have attacked them.
  • Lead Hounds to a herd of Beefalo and run through (or around) the herd until a Beefalo gets bit. The herd will easily kill a Hound.
  • Some more places or creatures one can lead Hounds to are Spider Dens, Spider Queens, Pigs, Lureplant and Rock Lobsters. The latter isn't recommended as the Lobsters will eat the valuable Red and Blue Gems. Keep in mind that Red Hounds may burn down any nearby structures or resources.
• Leaving any type of Meat on the ground can distract Hounds that are chasing the player. The Hound will do its attacking animation when it eats, but the player won't take any damage if they are nearby.
• One can create a walled-off area with an entrance filled with Tooth Traps. Incoming Hounds can be funneled through the entrance, killing off most, if not all. A Fire Pit and other supplies can be kept inside for night attacks.
• Hound attacks on sea will make them "wet", meaning electric damage can be used very effectively during hound attacks.
• It isn't recommended to fight hound waves at sea during Summer or Autumn as the death of Fire Hounds can easily cover the boat in fire.

Trivia

• Hounds and Red Hounds were added in The Birds and the Bees & Dogs That Want to Kill You update.
• Blue Hounds were added in A Winter's Tale update.
• According to Wickerbottom, a Hound's Tooth contains brimstone, also known as sulfur. In folklore, sulfur is often associated with demons, implying that the in-game Hounds are Hellhounds, a supernatural dog common in some mythologies or beliefs.
• The Red Hound is available for use on Steam as a chat emoticon.
• Red Hounds are the only mobs that take 16 hits from an Ice Staff to be frozen - the maximum for most Mobs is 4.
• Even though Red Hounds cannot be set on fire, they still take fire damage if they come into contact with it.
• When Red Hounds are inspected by Maxwell, he reveals that he "put gems in there as a joke". This implies that the notable traits of the Red Hound, such as its red color and spontaneous combustion upon death, are due to the presence of the Red Gem inside its body.
• Maxwell comments that he had a lot of surplus Gems when examining Blue Hounds. This reveals that the freezing resistance Blue Hounds have is caused by the Blue Gems in their body. This may also have caused their "blue" fur, although the grayish teal coloration they sport is a common pigmentation in many real-life mammals, especially those living in colder climates.
• The Blue Hounds have a dark blue nose when awake. Should they fall asleep, however, then their nose will change to the color of an ordinary hound's nose.
• There's a small, but non zero, chance for a special hound to spawn in the first season.
• In Don't Starve Together, Hound attack frequency and amount were changed in the 2022 March Quality of Life update. Hound Attacks now become less frequent as the player survives more days.

Bugs

• Saving the game when the Hound attack warning begins and then loading that save will cause the attack to become bugged. The Hounds will arrive extremely late, up to 7 days, and the warning will persist indefinitely, making the player unable to use Tents and other items that require a "safe" condition.
• Occasionally, dying in a Cave and getting resurrected on the surface (perhaps when Hound attacks are supposed to begin) will cause the growling and snorting sounds to play in half-day intervals while the character remarks that the Hounds are coming, but they will not appear until a Hound attack in 3–10 days, where the warnings properly play close together.
• Sometimes, Hound attacks will 'reset'; the growling warning will last longer and only two normal Hounds will spawn, just as the first Hound attack.
• Saving and exiting the game during a Hound attack, and then loading the save will cause all of the Hounds to become temporarily distracted.

Assets

• 

  All Sides
• 

  Run
• 

  Taunt
• 

  Death
• 

  Sleep

Gallery

• 

  An attacking Hound.
• 

  A running Hound.
• 

  A snapping Hound.
• 

  A sleeping Hound.
• 

  A frozen Hound.
• 

  A Hound barking.
• 

  A dead Hound.
• 

  A Hound losing interest in Wilson and attacking Butterflies.
• 

  A Red Hound bursting into flames when killed.
• 

  Red Hounds sleeping in the Fire Staff set piece.
• 

  A dead Red Hound.
• 

  A running Blue Hound.
• 

  A snapping Blue Hound.
• 

  A dead Blue Hound.
• 

  A Moonrock Hound
• 

  Two Blue Hounds following MacTusk.
• 

  Blue Hounds sleeping in the Ice Staff Trap set piece.
• 

  The aftermath of a fight between Hounds and a herd of Beefalo.
• 

  A corridor made to funnel Hounds into Tooth Traps.
• 

  A trap layout made to prevent Hounds from attacking in all directions.
• 

  A Hound stuck because of a Tree and a Wall.
• 

  Wallpaper for the launch of Don't Starve.
• 

  The Birds and the Bees & Dogs That Want to Kill You poster featuring Hounds.
• 

  An alternative poster for The Birds and the Bees & Dogs That Want to Kill You update featuring Hounds.
• 

  Hound concept art.
• 

  A Blue Hound as seen in a drawing from Art Stream # 57.
• 

  A Hound and Wilson as seen in the Turn of Tides launch trailer.
• 

  A Hound biting a Ham Bat and Wilson as seen in the Turn of Tides launch trailer.
• 

  Hound as seen in the Release Poster for A New Reign.
• 

  Blue Hound as seen in the poster for A Winter's Tale update.
• 

  In DST Loading Screen
• 

  In DST Loading Screen
• 

  Hound Hit Test animation from Rhymes with Play
• 

  Joke Hound Hit Test animation from Rhymes with Play
• 

  On Stickers from CD Don't Starve

References

DSRoGSWHamDST