Pyrozite

So, after playing DayZ for a while I felt something was lacking to the story. There is no set plot of course, but each individual makes their own nonetheless. I'm all about that shizzle, I enjoy finding out about the past of things. So, I believe the environment is a huge part of what makes DayZ. Its set in the little post-Soviet republic of Chernarus. When the mod was created,this proved to be an incredibly popular setting. Why? The idea of it preserves a little of the mystery that western audiences share about the Soviet Union. So, taking this into account, I believe there should be more of what makes Chernarus, Chernarus. It gained its independence after 1991, but, since it didn't possess any massive natural resources or anything, its economy didn't hugely develop post-communism, right? And Russia was its biggest market? So, I believe that there should be a focus on more Soviet/Russian idiosyncrasies in the game. More eastern themed clothing, a huge emphasis on military equipment especially. Why would there be a load of SUV's, M4's, UK equipment etc. in a country that has little link to the West? Replace the American gasmask with the Soviet PBF 'Gorilla' mask, maybe throw in a GP-5, PMG, GP-6. Why have a UK assault vest or tac vest when stuff like 6B3 armour or rigs and harnesses from 1990's Russia would make more sense? A kevlar helmet? What about the Ssh-68? Or a tankers helmet? Put in AK's, makarov's, stechkins, kiparis', SVD's. Why would there be Humvee's, throw UAZ 69's, 469's, 452's, Gaz 24's, Gaz Tigr's, lada's, zaporozhets etc on that shit. Why do all this? It makes Chernarus, Chernarus. It makes the game feel more rustic, you're forced to use equipment left over from the soviet days, which is still very apparent in the buildings. Plus, it would also make western items much more valuable and sought after. I know for most who will read this it sounds like utter bullshit, because this kind of experience is not sought. You just want to gear up, get food and survive. And thats fine, thats what DayZ is all about. But for those who want that little extra background, a little more substance to its story, this is what it needs. If your a fan of the Stalker or Metro franchises, you'll get where I'm at. If not, look up the things I've listed, and imagine playing with those in the game, everything would feel more authentic to where your character has been stranded. If you want a humvee, and M4 and look like a Navy Seal, theres plenty of other zombie games out there for that. But if something like this were implemented, that one Humvee that happened to be left by the US embassy that you spent forever searching for and repairing, the DMR that you kept despite no western ammo, and that one western sight for you AK will seem like pure gold. Just think about it...

Damn straight son. A lot of game developers seem to have issues distinguishing HATO 7.62x51 for Russian 7.62x54®. That annoys the shit outta me with the Mosin Nagant.

I was just about to make a thread for this idea, but i searched first. It is a great idea, I would definitely think they need to be implemented, especially witht eh cooking system coming soon, pots take up too much space in the bag, and should be able to hang off the back, at the expense of stealth. As for sleeves and ushanka flaps, I want it, very much

In would presume everything Soviet and Russian related would be torn down during and after their independence. Russia is quite proud of its accomplishments during its communist era, but hell, do most of its satellite states hate it. Although Chernarussian flags could be more prominent, but I'd say they were all taken down during the civil war in case they showed support for the government in the face of the communist rebels.

I don't actually, I was merely emphasising the need for greater focus on soviet vehicles. Of course it would have imported vehicles, Chernarus was a democracy and a free market. However, they should be much, much rarer than the soviet rustbuckets. As I have aforementioned, Chernarus is a rather poor state, with most of the populous relying on agriculture. They mostly would not be able to afford imports, and, considering the kind of place it is, most young people would move to get an education, eliminating the demand for exclusive import cars, and since an older population would remain, they would already have grown up making do with what they had, so they wouldn't need much change in vehicles that were already left behind after its independence from the Soviet Union. This is evident in the kind of vehicles they made for Chernarus in Arma 2. As for the foreign intervention, yes it is likely they left a lot of equipment behind if they were to abandon Chernarus to fight the global epidemic, however, it is likely they would destroy a lot of it to avoid enemy capture, and what did remain would have quickly been scattered all over Chernarus and out by remaining militias and panicking civilians. But what used to belong to the Chernarus military and police forces, mostly Kalashnikovs and Russian shotguns, would still be found in police stations and military bases, because, where did they have to go? The soldiers and officers probably manned their posts until infected or killed off by armed militias. But in the end everyone fuckin died so who gives a shit >:C

You confuse me sire, you wish to add more realism to the game, yes? How realistic is it if, during an apocalyptic scenario, infact any scenario, 75% of the inhabitants on the coast of Chernarus will be seen frolicking nude, urinating and defacating on anything from a pair of shoes to the top of an air control tower? Does that add immersion in your opinion? Developers can only take 'realism' so far, the rest is up to the audience, which the majority of whom, including myself, piss on your idea of 'realism'. (Pardon the pun) A rather obtuse suggestion, in my humble opinion. Sir, I bid you good day.

FN pistols really aren't that widespread. Anyway, in an Eastern European country, the makarov would probably still be the norm. However, the CZ-75P is planned, which, if it had a much higher spawn chance than the FN, would make more sense. Makarov PM would be an important implementation though, as it be historically present and is a popular civilian PDF all over the world.

Don't know why you're using models from Arma 2, all that gear is greatly outdated. VDV hasn't worn that kinda stuff since the 90's. But stuff like combat shirts with big US flags plastered on the arms really irritates me. It makes no sense, and prevents me from a good pilot outfit. The MICH is another one, ugly ass helmet, no reason to be there.

I just want to bump this because of all the other useless topics that directly contradict this, Chernarus and everything. Some usefull points are raised here by all members.

I second this idea. I think it would add that someone talking through a mask have a muffled voice. On a similar note, things such as Motorbike helmets, sunglasses etc. should actually protect you from sun glare?

Vehicle Graveyards are quite common in post soviet states, and I think this idea would be a valuable addition to the game :)

http://forums.dayzgame.com/index.php?/topic/162621-the-soviet-connection/#entry1639351

I thought about that too, but here is my reasoning as follows: Yes, Chernarus is of course modeled after the Czech Republic geographically, and also militarily in a fashion( if you you remember dead and infected soldiers from the mod, they were in what i believe is Czech gear.) So, it does make sense to have some modern military equipment such as Humvees and all that. However, Chernarus is not the Czech Republic, it is its own little nation wherever. It has no reason to have developed economically, so it would be like many other small Eastern-European countries that have not managed to get very far out of the Soviet time-capsule. This is evident by the lack of modern structures, industry and obvious reliance on agriculture. While it would make sense that the CDF would have purchased what it could afford of new equipment, most of its forces would remain with Soviet or 90's Russian stuff. That is my logic behind this :)

No doubt there would be American equipment left behind by the NATO humanitarian forces, but they would tend to be rare. Considering the presumption that the Infection went global, it would be likely that NATO forces would have withdrawn to fight the infection in their native countries, or simply moved to the West front to the more essential European states. US military protocol tends to abandon military equipment when they withdraw from a country because it is cheaper and, well, they have money to make more. Depending on the state, they either leave it for the native security forces or destroy it to avoid acquisition by the enemy. That's during 'normal' wartime... However this is a possible pandemic, and international interests are key. For the U.S., Chernarus is too close to Russia, so they would mostly adopt the 'scorched earth' policy. That means destroy or remove everything. Although Russia is far from needing it, the US couldn't let its technology fall into enemy hands. As for personnel, most would be withdrawn bar perhaps a few to safeguard research into the infection's origins. Thus, Humvees and the likes would be found, but rare. It would be likely that, depending on international political relations, the Russian Federation would have moved in to take NATO's place in Chernarus, if they could afford the manpower. This would probably consist of CBRN units and maybe riot police such as the OMON, who would be better suited than regular armed forces as they are equipped with shields, full body armor suits, and have apt experience with both melee and firearms. This would give reason for modern Russian vehicles such as the Gaz Tigr. As for the ATBIP idea, I like it, but I'm note sure if the dev's are focused on changing the map in any major way, but perhaps...

I agree with chaingun, specialist weapons should be available in game, such as the Dragunov and the РПГ-7. However, to counterbalance their 'supovapowa', ammuniton should be extremely rare, in fact more valuable than the weapon itself, because any clan can clear the map in about 2-3 days. As for a revolver, why not the Nagant M1895? Makes a lot more sense than a Python, and adds the little 'grandfather's gun' touch. But to be honest I hate the weapons like the Python being there, it's typically American and has no reason to be in Chernarus, and as I said before, if you want the 'all-american .357 caliber supremacy' experience, there are plenty of other games out there to accommodate you. Regarding TYS' answer, I agree there should be a greater emphasis on civilian hunting and personal defense armament, however military grade should not be too uncommon. Should they only spawn in military barracks and such, people will get bored of their civilian gear quickly and create bigger meat-grinders at military spawns. So one must remember that the military was deployed all over Chernarus outside of their barracks when the infection began. A good way to implement this is to use the vehicles. They should make a different model of the Ural truck other than the one that has been there for an age, and make it searchable, and have the likelihood of finding an AKM or an AK-74. This military Ural should however be uncommon. Another one would be to put weapons in the lovely 'полиция' cars. Have a high chance of a makarov or a fort-12 somewhere in the car, but also have a low chance of spawning an AKs-74u or another specialised weapon in the boot. That would make checking a cop car worthwhile. Also throw the Uaz-452 on that shit. Also, a little of topic(and yes, I realise it's in Alpha), but there needs to be greater evidence of an epidemic. Mass graves, barbed wire, checkpoints, medical tents, piles of rotting bodies, dead soldiers, burning cars etc. Not the odd wrecked car every now an then, or an APC left over from the war, but the place should be absolute carnage. At the moment it's just... empty...

Better to make these suggestions now when they have the development flexibility...

This is a stellar idea for the game. Not only would it add realism to the game, but also prominently distinguish weapons from each other. For example, an M4 would have slightly better accuracy than an AK 74 and also easier access to modification parts and such, but degration of operation would be much, much quicker. This would make the Kalash the 'weapon for keeps', and the AR base the 'specialist's weapon'. For example, an M4 made completely of pristine parts, between when the first and lets say the 50th shot is fired might have a possibility of misfire of maybe 10%. Once the rifle surpasses the 50th, the chance of misfire increases by a small percentage per shot, until a point where the rifle will no longer fire, and maybe even injure the user. I say 50 shots because of the availability of weapon parts in military spawns, but I think something like a weapon maintenance kit would be much more suitable.

I'd say this is a great idea, however a motorised cart would be a much better idea imho. Armour plating would be a must. The railroad system in chernarus is so vast that it would be a mistake to omit it. such a thing would also add to the experience of post apocalyptic life. Perhaps even the possibility of an MG on the railcar would make sense. It cant go anywhere but the rails, so it wouldn't be an extreme op like a pickup with an MG. Saying that, I can't stress enough how incredible it would be if there was a metro system, even a small one. That would open a whole new world of gameplay.