hello again it is bearing many questions for you LOL - 1) I'm rereading the og series and one thing I've always desperately wondered - when there's the feast, what was in the other bags for D2, D5, and D11?
i had a recent conversation dealing with this question, so my answer is based on the idea that the gamemakers had to select items that would set up the best avenues to an interesting final week in the arena, balancing a multitude of factors. as such, the bulk of my answer is going to deal with districts 2 and 11.
tl;dr: district 5 had a sleeping bag and districts 2 and 11 each had one set of armor. here's why i think that:
for district 5, i don't think the gamemakers cared too much whether foxface stuck it out or not beyond the fact that she provided a "smart" alternative in the betting. however, whether they thought she could win or not, she wouldn't factor into the calculus of an "interesting" final few days (i.e., fighting). thus, i think foxface's bag had something for survival. probably along the lines of what katniss was thinking ("i wonder if the thing somebody needs desperately is a good blanket"). it needed to be something foxface couldn't forage or steal, something she believed was worth risking the fighting tributes' pursuit. i don't think it was food, because it doesn't explain why she'd risk stealing from katniss and peeta only days later (especially because she'd DEFINITELY have enough sponsors at this point to send her some bread, at least, even with the late-games upcharge).
the district 5 pack was medium-sized, so it probably wasn't medicine, either, particularly because there's no reason to believe foxface was hurt. katniss also didn't note the pack on her or any evidence of her feast gift when her body was lifted from the arena during the daytime, when it was hot. further, as katniss could describe foxface's body as "emaciated," it was not likely covered in any notable protection. we can guess foxface didn't have much with her from the cornucopia, and we know she wasn't a fighter. a medium-sized pack could easily hold a sleeping bag or something to keep her warm, which was too expensive/too big to send as a sponsor gift. it would also let her hide up in a tree and wait out the fighting (and mutts) below, which was a reasonable (and character-consistent) path to victory.
as for district 2, we know that this pack contained at least the body armor that cato wore in the finale. comparing district 2's pack to thresh's: "on the table sits four backpacks, two large black ones with the numbers 2 and 11..." these were distinguished in size and color from the district 5 and 12 packs. the fact that they were identical in size, but especially in color, was, imo, a hint to the tributes that they contained the same thing. i also think that district 2's pack only had one set of body armor, given that district 12's pack only contained something "desperately needed" by one of the two district partners, and that pack was the same size as thresh's. therefore, i think district 11 and 2 both got one set of body armor.
the bigger question is why the gamemakers chose what went they put into each pack. of course, the tributes would be lured into a fight, which is good TV. but there's more than that for district 12. with the medicine, they could ensure that either katniss died trying to protect peeta (so sweet), or, just as good, the star-crossed lovers would remain on screen as long as possible (and that one, if not both, will have a bloody end in battle, dying in the others' arms). it also kept katniss tied to a weakness—a still-healing peeta. with district 5, if foxface died at the feast, great, but if not, she got to stick around as an intelligent dark horse, at least until the bigger tributes got her.
but what about districts 2 and 11? what would offering the same gift for each contribute to the narrative, and, just as important, the betting landscape?
the gamemakers had to consider that the most likely final match-up was some variation of thresh, cato, or clove, with maybe a solo katniss in the mix. the 11 and 2 tributes would be able to to survive and contribute to the up-close fighting at the feast. a district 12 tribute finale was the least probable scenario—it was extremely likely that katniss would die at the feast or get too injured to get back to peeta in time, because she was a distance fighter and weak up close. even if they did survive the feast, then the mutts (or the surviving 2/11 tributes) would probably get at least one of them, especially since they had no armor while their enemy did.
further, from a political perspective, a battle between district 11 and 2 (as a result of pack-stealing) would have been a LOT easier on the gamemakers to deal with than a joint district 12 win. assuming at least one of the district 12 tributes would be taken out by their own limitations, if cato and/or clove died by thresh, then there'd be no problem for the capitol with the “rule change.” but, if thresh died and not cato or clove, then you'd have district 2 career tributes who, once the rule change was reversed, would be way more willing to fight each other than the district 12 tributes. thus, the gamemakers wouldn’t have had to (and wouldn't have wanted to) worry about district 12 finishing together. which is clear from the amount of time katniss and peeta had to wait for cato to die/after—imo, they were waiting for peeta to bleed out, and then, once it was clear he wouldn't in a timeframe justifiable to a capitol audience, scrambling for a workable solution.
weighing the odds against an everlark or foxface win, the gamemakers prepared for an ideal (and likely) scenario of district 2 versus district 11 (versus, maybe, katniss). for district 2, the choice of armor is obvious—they needed something that'd either help him get in range of katniss or thresh (cato) or to keep her from having to (clove). as for thresh, the armor would help against cato’s sword, clove’s knife, or katniss’ arrow. granted, he likely didn't know about the latter, but he could probably guess some fighting skill got her an 11 in training and helped her live this long. there’s also a good chance cato and clove knew more about thresh’s situation than katniss and peeta did by that point to assume his pack had something to protect him (if the pack duplication wasn't enough of a hint).
two sets of armor would be especially ideal for the gamemakers, because all three tributes were willing to draw in a fight. for one thing, katniss anticipated that the tributes would take each other’s packs (a great reason why it'd be useful to signal that the packs are the same), as thresh did by stealing 2's pack. also, cato and clove were probably short on food since katniss blew up their supplies, and thresh didn't want to be there in the first place, so everyone was probably eager to get the inevitable over with and get the hell out of that arena.
by pushing them to steal each other's packs, the gamemakers could still have a good show even without the star-crossed lovers, under the reasonable possibility that the three biggest tributes would all be alive by the end of the feast. if district 2 stole thresh’s pack, they’d each have armor and he’d have nothing, so he'd have to follow them out of the grass (and away from food) where he'd been hiding to fight them on their own turf. but, if thresh took their pack, he’d have armor, which would help him take on an armorless clove and cato (weakened by hunger) simultaneously. they'd also be on his turf. either way, two sets of armor shakes up the odds. either the careers get an advantage against thresh and katniss, or thresh gets a boost in a 2-1 matchup against district 2.
however, the gamemakers would also want something that would prolong the fight between the high-powered tributes going into the end of the games, both to put on a good show and give time for commentators and bet placements. for one thing, armor could guarantee a particularly long and painful battle between 2 and 11, as we can infer happened between cato and thresh post-feast. as a bonus, if katniss and peeta stay alive, they could cut the gory combat footage with district 12's happy, rainy days in the cave, giving them time to heal and be in fighting shape before their final confrontation with 2, 11, or the mutts. even if one or more of them died at the feast, whether it was thresh, cato, or clove, at least one of the district 2 and 11 tributes would make it to the mutt finale (with or without district 12). the death of one of the final tributes by mutt was all but assured. the gamemakers most certainly wanted that unfortunate soul to be wearing body armor so they could drag it along, as we saw with cato.
