Living Log

"I am going to keep you, and call you Frank."

- Woodie

Living Logs are items that are dropped by deceased Treeguards, as well as chopped Totally Normal Trees and Poison Birchnut Trees. They are used to craft several magic items, including a Shadow Manipulator, and can also be used as fuel for a fire. Living Logs will scream when burned on a fire and when eaten by the were-beaver form of Woodie, though this has no effect on gameplay.

Gathering
Treeguards are powerful monsters and are difficult to take down. To more efficiently gather Living Logs, Treeguards can be enticed to fight other creatures such as Pigs, Tentacles, and Merms, who can wear down their incredible health. The player may also try a field of Tooth Traps, which aren't hard to lay down before the Treeguard catches up. If there is no other way, Treeguards can be kited fairly easily because of their low speed. It's possible to hit a Treeguard four times before it has a chance to strike back. There's a large sanity drain for doing this, and an unarmored player can be killed within a few hits if careless.

Totally Normal Trees give Living Logs, too. It's safer and less time-consuming, but unlike Treeguards, Totally Normal Trees aren't renewable.

In the Reign Of Giants DLC, Poison Birchnut Trees are another reliable source of Living Logs, especially since, unlike Treeguards, their chance to spawn goes higher as the days pass. It's best to chop Birchnut trees to get the attention of Poison Birchnut Trees during Autumn, since more Birchnuts are dropped by Birchnut Trees in Autumn. The disadvantages of Poison Birchnut Trees is that, like Treeguards, they are tough, they also must be chopped, unlike the Treeguards, who can be attacked by weapons, their Birchnutters are a constant pest whilst attempting to chop them, also, Poison Birchnut Trees attack with their roots, forcing the player to dodge them whilst chopping. Another disadvantage is they drop less Living Logs than Treeguards and Totally Normal Trees, though a Poison Birchnut Tree's potential for abundance makes up for that.

Usage
A Living Log may be used to repair a Wood Wall. This works in a similar fashion to using a standard log, except that the Living Log repairs three times the wall health of a standard log.

A Living Log can be used to fuel a fire, but due to the difficulty in obtaining, this is not recommended.

Trivia

 * The Living Log's scream was added in the The End of the Beginning update.