hoik

But it isn't really a new life - you retain all the knowledge you have gained preiviously, be it of the map, how zombies work, or the pros/cons of different weapons. Simply stopping a player from looting their own body does little to change the fact that you are respawning. This is also my sentiment. As for your soloution, I think it is totally viable - but you have to consider how other people play the game, especially those that wan't to play with friends. It would be completely reasonable (IMO) for you to say, well they should suck it up. This is a penalty for death. Its designed to make you want to avoid it. And I'd agree, but I don't how many would. Then why not compromise? Time limited in-game penalties that can be opted out of by waiting outside of the game, or by joining another server, seems reasonable to me. Players who have friends or clan members can still play along side them, but in a humiliating gimped form :P , or decide they want to avoid that embarrasment and wait it out or go on a different server.

IMO the punishment (hate that term :P ) has to be unrelated to anything that can be transfered from one life to the other. This means that the focus shouldn't be on loot. There needs to be some other commodity that is intrinsic to each life (of a player), and is lost on death. I think having different immunities that you could cultivate throughout your life could be one "unique commodity". Another option, and this directly relates to looting your own corpse, is to restict how much players can carry on spawn. This is how: - On spawn the players "strength" is low (having just crawled out the ocean, I think this is belivable). - They are limited in what items they can physcally carry/operate. - over time (say thirty mins, like the suggested lockout timer) they recover "strength" to normal, and all normal carring/operating abilities are enabled. So in a sense, this is a in game lockout timer. There could also be the possibilitiy that these strength restrictions only apply to a server you died in for 30 "real time" minutes. That is if you wait 30 mins outside the game you can negate these negative effects. The good thing (IMO) about this idea is that it is somthing that could be implemented in the MOD, which is unlikely to see the disease system..

I realise my post on leaderboards was a bit incoherent :) . Let me try again. Basicly, I think you can take the "gamey" impulses of players (KoS, greifing etc) and use them to add interest, depth and authenticity to dayZ. Leaderboards/bragging rights are prime examples of "gamey" reward systems that appeal to our competative impulses. But: - If "leaderboards/braging rights" were something that only existed in game (with no offical list/ranking system), and... - You could only "advance" by preforming certain actions (eg: "phyiscaly" removing a ear from a corps), and then... - Make these actions a important part of player interaction (eg: A cut up corpse is a indicator of the type of players in the area). - Then these actions are no longer simply ways to advance up a lader. You have now integrated a playstyle into the game. Of course there needs to be other options like paying respect to the dead (eg: marked grave) and these would also be indicators of the attitude of players in the area. Personally, I think 'survival' can be interpreted in many ways - yes, teamwork is one of them, but who says that killing others isn't (in the short term anyway :) )? My point is, don't try to drive out or alienate a playstyle because you disagree with it. Embrace and integrated them. Yes, give players things to do that appeal to their nature - but make those things be apparent to others, in game, so others can formulate opinions. Am I making any sense?

Yes, I get your point - as long as this "anvil" isn't detramental to the game. IMO you have to integrate banditry, as well as plain old greifing, into the game as much as possible. If you make it legit and interesting from anyones perspective (I mean, for all play styles) then no matter what a player does it will be contributing to the game in a way that is authentic. As for leaderboards, I think it is important for some players to compare stats - especially kills. While for others killing is a nececary evil. I think there has to be a way for player to express their attitude to killing in game, by letting players take certain actions. This is an example of what I mean: This is just an example - the basic idea is to let players do specific actions that appeal to their p[laystyles. But then let those actions be evident in the game, so others can "read" them and determine for themselves what type of players are around.

Yes, this makes alot of sense IMO. I also think it would be cool if there is a chance of spawning with a natural resistance to certain diseases, or as a carrier :) .

Personally I think the approach is wrong - IMO you're mixing guilt with psychosis. In a crisis I think you can justify just about anything (to you're self anyway :) ). Rather than telling the player how it is they are feeling, I think the game should help players interpret the emotions/moraltiy of players by their actions - so it would be a judgement call on you're part, not the games. I know, easy said :) . As for anonymity, even with custom clothing in SA, players will still be anonomus after death - so what about some type of liniage system? So dispite death there are some features that will be passed from one "life" to another (like father to son). EDIT: hierlooms?

Move forward to what? The exact same moment that you died previously? Isn't this just playing reincanate tag-team? Personally this is not how I enjoy DayZ - but I understand that this is my own viewpoint. Other players runing back too their corpses doesn't effect me or how I play the game. That asside, IMO for players to care about their lives there has to be something unique to each life/ character - something which can not be carried from one life to another. Rocket is planing on introducing disease, what if each player had a unique immunity/resistance to a specific disease? This could be very advantages (once you figure out what it is you are resistant to :) ). OR what if each player is a CARRIER of certain diseases, this would then mean that all their equipment/items will be infected - and therfore make it more of a tricky decision to loot your own corpse. Anyway, I think disease is going to play a big role in giving people more depth to their decision making. Also, I could live with some sort of 30min ban :) .

Items should give utilitary (if thats a word :) ) pros and cons. Sneakers are lighter, so make less noise - but are less suited to running through the bush. Pros, make less noise. Cons, Slower movement speed on rough terrain. etc. For me this is the answer: Make items have authentic Pros/Cons, then through customisation players can mix and match items to best suit their play style (or situation).

Introducing cramping or limbs falling asleep could be interesting... would make camping require a bit more thought and risk (Say all you had to do was go from prone to crouched for a minute, every ten minutes or so, in order to prevent negative effects) - though to what degree this would influence campers is (as always) debatable. Anyway, it would be a nice addition to test out IMO. The OP: 1. As Charb said, it is the type of fuel you add to the fire that determins the smoke - IMO this delves into the realm of realism Vs gameplay. So either introduce a bunch of different fuels that can be used to make fire, or simply have it set to a defult one that makes smoke more visible during the day, I could have it either way. 2. A simple solution for hording items, is to make tents destuctable - deny the enemy, set them on fire! I think this is a feature on DayZ Redux servers. 3. Make the reward for shooting zombies, living longer. (so yeah, make them more of a threat :) )

Ok, heres what I think. It is less important for the game to give feedback on the mental state of your character than it is for it to give feedback on the mental state of players in your vicinity - I don't nececarily mean in the terms of sanity or insanity, but maybe more in their general outlook/morality. An interesting mechanic to help players guage the moral compas of others(in their vecinity) is by allowing players to either descrate a dead player (by taking trophies, like ears etc) or respect them (By making a marked grave, etc). - trophes can be kept for kill counting. It should be the proof that you killed someone - without it your just whistling dixie. - There will be no direct benifit for paying respect (I don't think there should be, because you are showing regret/remorse :) ). - Importantly, both these actions will be evident to anyone who finds the corpse. Now you might think this is just a perk for bandits, but its not - It can be a definitive signpost that either there is a bandit in the area or a reluctant killer. It lets you be more situationally aware, which I think is good. Heres the great bit - for all the players who are in DayZ for the PvP (and presumably the braging rights), taking trophies will nearly be irrisitable! So by their own desires they are revealing their moral outlook to anyone who chooses to look. Of course this system still relys on choice - a player can still kill someone without doing anything to the body.

I support the taking of body parts as trophies or mementos - but only because I think it can add a interesting layer to story telling and environmetal awarness. DayZ is a sandbox, many players like the bandit lifestyle, I see no harm in letting players who choose to, to gather trophies from their victims - but it should not be an automated thing. If you have a hunting knife you should be able to take a ear or finger (or whatever). It should not be limited to just players you have killed - but any player corps you have come across. If you have no scruples about killing people and taking their ears, I don't see why honesty (in terms of bragging rights) should be a problem :) . Of course there needs to be ballance. If you can maim a dead player for kicks, you should also be able to pay them respect. Be by covering their face with a jacket or making them a marked grave. I have read of (and been the victim of) appologetic killers, who through paranoia or supprise feel forced to kill. How can this add story? It could add story if, when you inspect a body, you can see evidence of what another player may have done to them - and in turn, depending if the bodies were treated with contempt or respect can give you an idea of the type of players in the area.

About the "star" system: I like the idea of players being able to gift objects to eachother by way of grattitude. i imagine these objects would have little intrinsic value, but were more of a asthetic feature - and could act like a "memento" of the person who gave you it. These momentos could replace "stars", and be more in line with the theme of the game. And because they are a token of a memory they can be both good and bad. So then it would not be possible to hold someone up for a good memento - but I don't know how you could actually implement this in the game. What if you can give a "memento", but it doesn't reveal its self as a positive or negative "memory" untill a set amount of time has passed - I was going to suggest also being able to give a direct positive or negative "memento", but then players would just demant a positive one, and kill you if you gave them an annonomus one. All in all, I think this could work...

Sorry, but I think this is semantics, and not really relevant. Zombies/infected are fictional - i don't think any preconceptions should restrict your imagination. @Machineabuse - about the mounds: that makes sense, but the image of them emerging from the ground like gophers is a bit commical... what about piles of courpses or crawling out from under carwrecks?

Like the general idea. My question: why mounds? They seem a bit redundant... Why not just simply have the zombie corpses? Apart from that if they acted the way you describe, I think it would be pretty cool.

3d is the future! This image was fully tested, using the latest in state of the art technology:

Why is Captain Planet getting all the perks?? And what is that... a lazer disk?

Wow, am I late to the party? Well, I'll just have to party harder - wooo! Great to hear more development news!

Keeping watch over his misstress...

Spotted Dean at the salad bar...

^ What a asshat :P . Seriously though, endgame content is needed - I would go as far as to say a difinitive end to the game (say, the players could murder eachother into extinction :) - full server/hive reset! ). Base building (and all that it entails) as well as NPC's have been discussed quite alot, have a search around. For the most part though I don't think the idea of NPC's is a very popular one :( .

dear lord... I might be mistaken, but wasnt there a time when rocket had...

"Rocket" launcher? (How do you make pics fulls sized :huh: ? )

So cathartic! No more fear and loathing :)

If there were "lock outs" it should be a concequence of all deaths and effect all players - this is a very simplistic way to give players lives value - and... it will not happen :P (in any vannila version of dayz anyway :) ). I understand you wanting killing players to require more thought, because alot of the time death can feel cheap in dayZ, but singling out bandits in this way with a lock out system seems artificial (I know its a game!) and a bit too simplistic (not that simple ideas are bad - their not!).

Cocks on the mind? I agree with Very Ape and Spaggiari - by making the symbols preset options it insures a level of authenticty within the game. Combining sets of pre-defined markings or text (ala Dark souls) for more specific/unique symbols/messaging would be my cup of tea :).