[Brian Pfleuger]

I've had one scope fail.

It was a Tasco 10-40x that was the first scope I put on my .204. It was the definition of junk from day 1 but it also served me well for several years. Even brand new, it was unusable above ~32x except if both shooter and target were in the brightest of absolute direct, mid-day summer sun.

Anyhow, one summer I brought the gun out for the first time. First shot at a woodchuck, 50 or 75 yards I forget, missed by FEET. With the turret cranked all the way the other direction it was still off by something like 18" at that distance.

In the context of the OP's theoretical hunt in the wilderness, you have to realize that everything is a trade off. Sure, irons are more reliable but they're not "bullet proof" so to speak. They too can be damaged. Plus, if you go with straight irons, no scope, most shooters are realistically limited to 100 yard shots. Some guys less. Yeah, lots of folks will tell you they could kill an elk at 500 yards with iron sights. Some guys could. Most who could, wouldn't.

Me, if I'm going on an elk hunt, I'm having the brightest, most rugged 3-9x I can find. My rifles don't have irons and I won't start adding them now.