PJSleaze

Kill on sight. Here's a picture.

Same thing happened to me last week too. It hadn't been raining.

Slightly off topic, but it just occurred to me; if they re-code the zombies and allow them to climb stairs and ladders, there'd be no zombies in like, 10 minutes after the server reset. "Stairs vs Zombies; We're just innocent bystanders" the game!

Since climbing seems to kill me more than anything: In Chernarus, stair masters you! Ladder dayz saints

Well I shot a man in Cherno Just to watch him die...

I was just thinking about this myself. Yeah, contact of any kinds really makes you jump in this situation. I play solo and HC. Just preferred style, and I think it helps even the odds a bit if I’m alone. All of the HC servers that I get with good ping are fairly small, 10 or so (it was up to 15 for a while last week). I’d like to move up, but there’s just not much for options, and I don’t want to switch to 3pp. So, yes, this is how I’ve been playing since i started. Knowing someone is nearby when there’s only 5 of you out there really gets the feelings of dread going. Eerie at times. Anyway, I’m finally confident enough to start mingling a bit more on the coast now that I know the game a bit after a couple of weeks up north, where I’d see maybe 1 person every 5 hours of play. So I log in last night. I pick the one with the most people (about 10) and join. I start way up north and slowly make my way south to check out Balota for the first time. Having heard stories I’m anxious as all hell and slowly case the airfield; 30-40 minutes of observing and making my way down the hill from the north through the trees, figuring there’s people there, and again, this playstyle makes you extra paranoid. I don’t see many people up north, so they must be down here, right? No sign of anyone. Doors closed, Zs swaying in the wind, and an LRS in the first hangar- that's as good a sign as any that no one has been here. I pick my way through to the top of the ATC tower, and head back down, where I drop my M4 (another solo player who does the M4/Mosin switch) to axe a zombie that got all riled up at the bottom of the stairs. I was wondering what set that zed off, but I hadn’t seen anyone while upstairs. Before I can go back to get my M4, there’s someone standing in the doorway! He’s only got an axe, and seems friendly. I had just put my axe away, and wasn’t comfortable being in this particular place without a weapon in my hands (and he may have a gun on him), so I jammed my fingers into a number to draw another weapon, only to draw…my canteen. (Multiple valuable lessons learned here…) But maybe this was good, because he became more chatty with me. Acting all casual and cool, as if to say “I don’t care that you’re here. I can take a drink anytime I like” I take a swig from the canteen and back up toward my weapon. (I tell myself I was cool- I was frantically trying to get my canteen put away so I could pick up the gun but hit the middle mouse button) I tell him there’s gear up there and that I’m leaving. I grab my M4 off the stairs and get out of there, as I’ve heard so many horror stories about this place. I’m half expecting him to kill me the moment I leave the building. He doesn’t. I watch him loot the stuff I left behind through my new scope from the woods. I hit P and realize we’re the only two on the server! 225 sq mi and we're 6' apart? What? Where is everyone? All that skulking around expecting the worst, and there’s only one other person? … and he’s nice? (And ABDano, wherever you are, you’re a good dude) Did the other 8 drop off as soon as the good stuff got looted? It would seem that way, but this is a common loot area, and the place was untouched. I’d like to play with (or around) more people now that I’ve got some confidence in my game, I just can’t seem to find them on the HC servers that have good ping for me. Or maybe the emptiness of 5 people on hardcore is starting to break me after 2 weeks.

I think you're missing a key point. Let's say that, using some of the advice in this thread, pro spots noob before noob spots pro 80% of the time. Pro is patient, methodical, in cover, staying alert while noob is blasting zombies from the middle of the road. Now pro has time to decide how to handle this encounter, and is no longer forced into quick decisions, reflexes, etc. that make them equals.Pro maintains advantage by being able to plan how or even if they want to encounter others. Noob is always one step behind in this situation, surprised and forced into unplanned situations. That's the pro right there. It does not always work, it's not guaranteed, but over time it pays off. I'm working on this but am not there yet. Getting better all the time though.

I've got an extra LRS to give myself. Might do the same tonight. Cool idea.

I'd like to see an animated trail on the map of all the places this character went when the finally die.

I've taken to firing two quick shots over the heads of people I get the drop on when I'm in dangerous KOS areas like airfields. It gives them 1-2 seconds to get the hell out and let me go about my business without me having to kill them on sight. Yes, I could try talking to them, but that seems very risky in places like airfields. In smaller towns, yes, I'll talk to people first. Since I started doing this (very recently) I've run into 3 others at bases/airfields, all also lone wolves, like me. I stalked them for a short while to make sure they were alone, and before they could loot too much more, I fired. 2 turned and ran. I'm pretty sure one ran around a corner and logged. I watched the other bolt across a field away from the base to get away from me, and I let him go. The third went straight to the roof of the ATC tower to try to find me. Deployed a bipod and everything. I killed him, because he certainly would have shot me if he'd seen me. Knowing how much getting shot at startles me and many others, it seems like a way to control a situation and get a potential threat away from you without an automatic KOS, especially in these danger-prone areas where everyone is afraid of snipers. Of course the trick is to fire without giving up your position, so good cover is essential. Anyone else do anything like this, or does everyone shoot to kill? Thoughts?

Thanks for all the feedback and discussion. I'll keep some of the points in mind mentioned above. I'll likely continue to practice this tactic when circumstances allow, and will occasionally throw some anecdotes in here. If anyone else tries this, I'd like to hear your results.

Good to know- I was in the middle of nowhere when I heard someone drinking near the tree I was under. Scared the hell out of me.

I think the fact the just about every window in the world is broken means the heat is long gone from these buildings!

I do this as well. The bug that makes ammo disappear is helpful in this.

Yeah, the SKS is loud as hell for this!

I close them behind me as I go. That way if I come downstairs and see it open, I know someone is in the building or nearby.

Because from personal experience- "visionaries" are usually terrible at getting shit done. If there are smart, capable people on this project, they will take the best parts of the "vision" add some other good stuff to it and make it work, with or without him.I have no dog in this fight- just started playing. I know nothing about these people. But I've worked at small tech startups with "visionary founders" who quit before. Their leaving made things better in some ways as everyone could finally agree to an approach.

But you're assuming everyone will fire back because you would. So far, two of three have left the area immediately preventing further conflict- my stated goal. That's a reasonable percentage to me (though a small sample). It is inefficient, sure. But as long as it remains effective (meaning I don't die while on very dangerous ground) I'll keep trying it. If I start dying, my approach will certainly change, likely to a KOSer, but I'm trying to avoid/postpone that.

Yeah- this is what I was getting at- you have a vision. You take the bold step of trying to make it a reality. It's hard. It may not pay the bills. It takes more effort than expected. People don't see your product the way you do and use it differently. That's reality meeting your idea- some people roll with it and adapt their concept to the real world. Others reach a point where they don't want to compromise anymore, chalk it up to a vision that could never succeed in reality and try again. Neither approach is wrong, and it doesn't mean that what they created isn't a viable thing- it just isn't perfectly in sync with what they envisioned. In the meantime we get something good from it even if the creator disagrees with the end result. I don't think that's failure. Artists sometimes hate their own work for the same reasons, right?

Fair point about cover. So far, no one has done that- one ran for cover and disappeared. Very, very small sample size, of course, and everyone has been a fellow lone wolf- I think they're more skittish by nature. People can interpret however they like- I will deal with the consequences either way, and I expect it will not always work out. But if I prevent a potentially lethal confrontation by expending two rounds, that's a worthwhile trade for me.

I've found that some of the smaller ones continue to make noise even after you have stopped moving in them.

Sure, but how many intelligent people who aren't afraid of some gunfire are currently playing?

Interesting use of gunfire, Griz. Making it work for you is pretty cool. Anyway- it's not meant to be Hollywood BS- it's a way to control the encounter and meet my goal of keeping others off the base/AF while I'm on it. People have itchy trigger fingers there, and I'm alone. It's risky, but I believe it to be less risky than talking, and the fact that no one yet has immediately returned fire, and 2 of 3 immediately left the area seems promising. What gave me the idea was reading all the accounts of panicky reactions when getting shot at. It's easy to say you will turn and shoot- and you might, but I think 50% will look to get out first.

In the startup world, visionaries/ founders sometimes leave their companies once the money starts to come in. Why? Because once you have a working product with customers, you have to start sacrificing your vision to keep them happy, and to keep the company in the black. Now that 1.5 million people are playing, and there's bills to pay, there's a good chance it will never quite be what he wants it to be. There's too many other people in the process now. It can still be a great game- just not exactly what he had in mind. Time to move on to the next idea now that the current one has reached a logical end.