eno

How about another player? Would you KOS him? Avoid him if possible? Try to talk to him?

I have to admit I have contemplated the value of a feature that would allow you to hit the "Alt-z" key or something and have it mimic zombie movements as you move from place to place. Dressed up in whatever gear you needed to in order to make it look sufficiently zombie-ish. But I kept hitting a wall when I wondered "what would the value be?" Anyone I'd literally need to be afraid of would just kill me anyway whether they thought I was a zombie, a player, or Caitlyn Jenner and anyone who would sneak around me trying to avoid detection would have probably been a friendly encounter anyway.

I actually agree with the sniper shuffle back and forth... not to say I disagree with the logic behind being careful with it. Generally I'll still move back and forth as I talk to someone- and if they do the same to me I know it's because they don't trust me either. In my opinion it's just smart play and if I come across someone who does it I know they're not brand new to the game or at least smart enough to be suspicious of everyone. I'm about 700 hours in and still suck at the pvp stuff- I die... that's just what I do. I've grown up through the game really, really trying hard not to kill people and that has resulted in being reluctant to do what is necessary to kill. ie: kill more people and get good at it. With that said, one thing I did get pretty good at was the conversations and initiating contact in a way that is less suspicious. I still trust people too much- but I've stumbled across some great warning signs. I won't bore you with them since the game was more fun before I figured them out and knew my way around the map. Needless to say starting with "friendly" as mentioned above is a direct route to being killed. The white armband people are wearing now adays... that too. As for what is concerning you regarding what you've been watching- that subject has come up recently in another thread as well for this exact reason. Basically the representation of all these pvp circus streamers versus what the game is ACTUALLY supposed to be. Unfortunately what the streamers do accurately represent is a common mindset about what DayZ is NOW- not what it intends to be... not what it's GOING to be- but more what it is during this painful transition between being nothing and being something. Part of the reason it's a common mindset is because guys like you watch the videos and come in thinking that's what it's all about. Stupid voices... idiotic pvp engagements... slapglitch comedy... There are a TON of videos out there showing pvpers out there doing whatever they do... and some are good at it. But as a mindset I think these guys are generally very "LOOK AT HOW AMAZING I AM" followed by 20000 videos of gunfighting in a couple of blocks of Cheranus. Meanwhile the group of guys who are quite happy to move inland and live under the tree canopy with leather crafted clothing and hunting animals with bow and arrows are are characteristically quieter crowd that have a few "how to videos." They're more like the quiet professors while the pvp clique are the sassy teenagers tangled up in their own ball of pubic hair. I didn't play a LOT of Arma2 and while I did play some Arma3 was never very good at it. There aren't a lot of keys to learn but the crafting "recipes" are daunting... fun to learn and experiment with but it takes some getting used to. But as a guy that had no experience with the mod, I've found the transition just uncomfortable enough to keep me engaged but not SO distasteful to make me not want to come back to it- as my ~700 hours or so attests.

I sound SO much cooler in my stories...

This. I mean make no mistake- pvp IS a playstyle... like it or not it is an aspect of the game that appeals to many if not most players. But to link our concerns back to the thread subject I think a big part of what takes away from the morbidity of the scenario is the complete disregard for their own life resulting in what even the devs appear to think is comical pvp encounters. Guys and their fake old woman voices... nobody cares if they get killed being idiots as long as it's fantastic for the viewer. Nothing dark and dreary about it. And we're talking about having ambient BACKGROUND music in game? I'm not even going to touch that. I'm sure it doesn't help that I haven't seen a DROP of rain in a month... been nice and sunny (day and night with a little gamma adjustment). Actually I think I saw a slightly cloudy day a week ago... Of course these are simply functions that are being worked on- but that I'm confident when added will add that element of misery and abandonment that people are craving. Fog would definitely provide some immersion.

I was just talking about this last night while Bam and I were hanging around Svet. Even the videos posted in the status updates are mostly guys running around shooting each other or some other pvp nonsense. It makes everyone coming to the game think that every single time you see someone, at some point, you NEED to try and kill them. On top of what makes this already incredibly frustrating is the pvp is RIDICULOUS- fricken guys zig zagging around like they're on tracks... blood spewing out of empty air a foot from the shoulder... one of the 4 people zooming around is trapped in some weapon shouldering glitch that continues throughout the event... 5 zombie sounds crammed into 1 as a grey stretch armstrong comes rumbling into the mix to flail into open air and knock someone down and then that gawdawful shrill of victory at the end pretty much characteristic of every pvp streamer in the game I've ever seen. ALL of those glitches are expected at this stage- but why is it that all of the "promotional" videos highlight all the things the game doesn't yet do very well at all?

Bam and I got on last night again after I'd played a couple of relatively uneventful solo sessions trying to recoup my gear after getting shot in my perch. I got lazy, and greedy... and punchy. Started shooting a bit more and let's face it... the spot I was working is relatively inconspicuous but when you start shooting there's really only one place it can be coming from so tracking you down becomes pretty easy. I didn't heed my own advice- increased my exposure and someone mowed me down. Not sure if it was from the town or from behind- either way. You are dead. So back I go... started at a Cherno spawn, headed over to the various deer stands- all relatively clean of anything useful. Up through Novoselky and Nadezhdino to the north... deer stand... deer stand- Found some binos and I think a hunter scope (damaged). Looking for my winchester but no weapons at all were forthcoming. Sidestepped to Pulkovo and up to Rogovo where I realized I was in heli crash central... looked around there a bit but didn't put much energy into it. Figured hey- if I'm going to stumble into a crash site then so be it... but I'm not going to find what I WANT there so meh. I did happen across a truck so took that east with the intention of getting back to Svet where Bam told me he was going to hang out. I glitched the truck into a wall at some point and lost the front tires. Was still able to drive most of the way until I hit the tracks by riffy at which point going up and turning at the same time turned the truck into a curling rock. Hoofed it to Svet and spent the rest of the time in that session going between local deerstands looking for "my precious" since Bam had to log early. Last night fit our normal profile. Like a dummy I was back up in my little spot -without a sniper rifle this time but with a pristine scope I'd found. I figured that would help prevent me from getting rammy. Like everyone else in the world I'd found an AK and had a Kashtan scope on it and enough ammo for it to wage war against the Ukraine single handed... but it was of limited use at that range. I'd seen a few people mincing around town but everyone fit a relatively casual profile. One dude was just casually jogging with his red dry bag- must have been new since it was REALLY glowing- with a splitting axe out and a cowboy hat on. Another couple of fresh guys made their way around but I lost site of them eventually as they headed west. Bam came in and staged at the guardhouse to start- then moved around to the red house at the base of the hill I was on. One fresh came in and Bam intercepted. Offered him food and water but the guy tried to punch him. Bam shot him a couple times in the legs, then offered to help him just as he went unconscious. An epi pen later and the guy was up and crawling around so Bam gave him a morphine injector too. The guy got up, made a nodding action with his head, then went on his way where I lost him behind the hospital. Nice work Bam! Simultaneously, 2 freshies showed up from different directions. One came from the water and the other from Novo to the west. They both literally met up around the crane nearest the guardhouse. Looked like they chatted very briefly (Schwab said he could hear them talking) and then headed to the ladder of the nearby crane. "I think they're going to jump-" "I'm heading out," Schwab said as I saw his character run into view towards them. The two characters made it to the first platform... "Hey- Hey! Don't do it guys... Don't do it- c'mon... you have so much to live for." I could hear him through our Steam Voice Chat but I knew they could too since they both stopped and looked down at him. "Please guys- just don't do it. What do you need? Water? Food? Hey, if you're going to jump I'll try to catch you!" One guy crouched then leaped to his doom. The other guy jumped but then lived. Bam was standing there talking to him and I had the scope zoomed out. Movement by the seacan behind him caught my attention. Looked like someone relatively fresh with a large, dark green backpack on. He was half glitched into the seacan so I couldn't tell for certain whether he was armed. "Hey Schwab- get out of there... someone's behind the seacan from you- just standing there. Just back off... Seacan towards the guardhouse. Guy has a pack on- unsure if he has a weapon. Schwab instantly started heading for the first warehouse. He later told me the guy he was talking to instantly changed his tune- trying to talk him down a bit. "Hey buddy, it's cool, it's cool..." Schwab has enough gear on that I'm sure he looked like a lucrative target- but taking him out would be a workout. Two against one with everyone's superhuman direction changing / speed altering capabilities is a challenge at best. He talked back and forth with them briefly. The large green backpack turned out to be a military tent that they set up in the middle of the warehouse. "Too bad they're no good for anything right now," Bam said to me over SVC. "Hey man, do you have any rice?" "Uh- no... I don't think so." "Well- what kind of stuff you got in your inventory?" Bam could tell they were just trying to get him to look into his inventory so they could jump him so he didn't take the bait. If it had been me I'd have been dead 2 minutes earlier. "Yup, they're coming at me-" I can hear gunshots through his mic. Eventually all is silent. "They didn't get any hits on me- surprising since there was two of them." Spotting the guy poised for the ambush was validating and helped to remind me why I'm actually there. More watching, less shooting!

I've been playing a little more passively lately- watching from a distance to see what people are up to. Particularly in Svet- obviously not "THE PLACE" everyone wants to be. But I've been really surprised at the sheer number of suicides that occur there- probably more than half the people I see in Svet run up the cranes, the hospital or the industrial building and jump off. I know they're wanting to respawn somewhere else for whatever reason- to be closer to their buddies or better loot... whatever the case may be. Heck- I do get it... I've done the same thing. Main reason is because it's relatively easy to do and there is no punishment or drawback. I'm not sure what the devs' intentions are with that whole concept and the spawning process. Is suicide always going to be without repercussions? Just a quick jump off a building and a 20-60 second wait for a new body? Is that capturing the essence of the game as it intends to be or is this just a place holder for a more elaborate system? A part of me would hate it... but one thing I've been mulling around that I know would stop me from committing suicide would be in the event of a suicide (using the suicide key) or a death by falling in general you end up respawning in the same place you originally spawned with that character. Possible drawback might be that people who are unhealthy or wounded could just go back to their spawn point and kill themselves (if they're close enough to do so)- then come back with a fresh body and take their loot back. A few stars would have to be in alignment for that to be possible- but I suppose it could happen. Another option would be a longer respawn period... something long enough to make suicide less desirable. Kind of like shooting... people do it because there are no repercussions. Your hearing isn't affected... there's no massive zombie horde that races at you... no sense of guilt or loss... Hence oodles of people shoot first and ask questions later. It's a play style that I think has emerged as a way of passing the time moreso than what the game intended to be. Make it harder on people who pull the trigger- maybe people will shoot less often and when their lives depend on it instead of when boredom creeps up. Suicide is the same- and it seems odd to me that a game based on survival is set up in such a way to make killing yourself so easy and even rewarding. This is my opinion anyway... what's yours?

If a person isn't jumping off on purpose then why would it be a punishment for the person who falls off accidentally? (which is pretty much the question that kept the conversation going in the very next post)

Been missing my sidearms (Bam and DaveB) for the last few sessions but I have had a chance to go at it solo for the last few days. As pitiful as it sounds, I've just been sitting back watching. Watching people go about their business... judge, jury and executioner. I'm happy to watch freshies come in and head to the nearest crane to suicide. Yesterday I watched a guy try to commit suicide off the crane and nearby industrial building half a dozen times. Looked silly- but he was committed. Went to the crane to jump off... Nothing- still standing. Tried again- Still standing. Building- jumped... Nothing. Still standing. Back to the building for another go- no joy. Still standing. Harvested the attention of a nearby zombie and it beat on him for about a minute... He obviously got bored with that because he went back to the building. Nothing- still standing. Crane? Still standing. I figured he had some invincible hack going or something- looked just stupid watching him throw himself off everything just trying to die. Finally I even got bored watching him and started looking around. Went back to him a few minutes later and he was dead with a zombie on top of him. No idea how he died and don't really care. That was idiotic to behold. Saw the first truck pass through town since I took up my post... Dudes stopped by the industrial building and at least two geared players jumped out and maybe one fresh- couldn't tell if he just stumbled in on the group. Cue on the dude with the motorcycle helmet (never liked them much- innocent or not they're going to die... Call it my "thing"). Shot went wide but they got the message and didn't hang around. As I'm sitting there- relatively motionless- I'm watching for a few things: 1) Geared up? Gun in hand? For the most part I'll leave this guy alone unless he kills a fresh or has a motorcycle helmet on. 2) Pairs? Teched out pairs are going to get my attention for the same reason I'd expect to get attention if Bam and I are hanging out. People in pairs aren't often friendly- I roll the dice. Sometimes it's enough for me to put "a shot across the bow." Takes them off their game... I'm in their head. 3) Fresh straight to common buildings- guard houses / police stations / relative hit-points depending on patch. If you're fresh and heading straight to "ammo up" points I'll keep my eye on you and will "get in your head" if you let me. And by "get in your head" I mean with a bullet if you'll give me the shot. 4) If you shoot openly with no discipline or concern of your environment I'll kill you because you're an idiot. 5) If you're running building to building and happen upon a building of interest then I'll generally leave you alone. 6) If you're showing up in a truck with a bunch of teched out buddies- I'll "get in your head." I'm not so concerned with killing you as much as getting you to move on. There's something about sitting back, relatively invisible, watching people go about their business in the game. I see a fresh come in and I'll watch over him the same way I'll watch over DaveB and Bam. Anyone gets in that circle and I'm instant on. I'm not interested in shooting the fresh. Yeah, I have fantasies about being able to shoot accurately enough to hit some of these suicide dudes in the leg so they can all lay there crawling around with broken legs... But I don't shoot that well. Man I would love that... Some guy coming around to suicide and sees a half dozen guys crawling around the area begging people to kill them so they can get on with it and go do whatever stupid ish they're doing wherever they're doing it. Oh yes... please yes! But no- no such joy. If you're teched out then you should know better than to give me a shot. If you don't know better already then my bullet through your brain should be the memo. If you're fresh... No shot- unless you're straight to common points... In which case I'll be watching you carefully. Moving around like someone who knows what they're doing? If you give me the shot, I'll take it. All of this is measured against a risk of exposure... Tough shot or a likely miss? What are the chances that someone will be able to anticipate my location, find me and kill me? This is important since I'm not really in a "mobile plain" at the moment. I want to hunker down, stay in my cozy spot and do my thing. If you're all over the place, at a distance, and not giving me anything to shoot at I'll leave you alone. Why am I typing this? I can't imagine that many other snipers are thinking differently than I am. We're just sitting back- sucking at pvp- with more patience than we have skills. We're trying to help without helping. Trying to make a difference while not really able to... Anyway- just some thoughts.

I'd like to think that the clock would keep ticking on items- though might be slower if in your care or in a protected case. (I know you want something more concrete than my opinion) but it would make sense that things are always gradually de-spawning. If left alone on the ground things break down / degrade quicker than if in your person and you can always set the "clock" back a bit with a repair kit for a certain item. A weapon in particular would generally get dirty or rusty and- if you didn't clean it- would eventually become ruined. How long would this take would depend on how often you fired it or how long it was left on the ground. I'm not sure if they take rain into the equation or not? Anyway- it's a good question and everything above is just stitched together from different conversations I've seen on here. I apologize that the sources include both people who know what they're talking about and those who don't.

A million times this.

I know, right? Those are some lonely moments up in the nest let me tell you.

Murder people with white armbands with extreme prejudice. Rgr!

Okay just throwing this out there and yeah I'm a moron- but what's the deal with the white armbands- seeing that a lot lately.

Maybe ask in troubleshooting instead of new player discussion for standalone.

And then you eat it and immediately are dying of thirst?

Have to admit you're a fricken beast in game op. Admire the skill.

Why are you even here? Every time you log into the game you hit a little button that says "I understand" under a rambling explanation of all the things you can expect. Every. Single. Time. Tired of it? Walk away... come back when it's further along. I'm sure it'll still be here when you get back- and if you wait long enough you won't need to click "I understand."

Had a bit of an active evening last night... Svet was apparently THE place to be for everyone but my two sidekicks! I was running solo so kept an understandably low profile. Well- I tried to. Almost immediately I noticed two yahoos running around shooting wildly trying to get zombies to attack them. They were both just standing out in the open being morons so I took some pot shots at them. I'm an awful shot- they were in no real danger. About 10 minutes into my surveillance I noticed two geared characters working their way towards me from the south at a distance, weapons in hand. They ducked into the dock side and headed towards the guard house. They didn't spend much time there... I have it ranged at 400 meters so I wasn't worried about them necessarily. But they weren't giving me a warm, squishy feeling. They had some pretty high vis gear on which in the state of mind I was in was like a poisonous fish... "I don't need to hide because looking at me can kill you." Challenge accepted. One of them moved into the middle of the road and I took the shot. I don't think I hit him (stupid reload)- but he quickly ducked around behind that large pre-fab shop with the blue doors. I saw him again pretty quick so I don't think he had time to bandage. They didn't stick together long- they split up. Wise move, hombres! Uh oh... I don't think they knew where I was exactly but I think they had a good idea. One of them headed out of sight around my left (NE or so) and the other ran towards the hospital. Was one going to act as bait for me to shoot while the other used those shots to guide himself in on me? Sniper induced paranoia. I should move... or will moving give me away? Had another sip of vodka soda... then decided to stay put. And 456 I can't wait until ghost sounds are fixed. Jesus it's going to be an empty, boring world without them slamming gates, reloading, drinking, splitting ammo and birds taking flight sounds. Good grief. Every sound I heard could have POTENTIALLY been the dude with the red backpack getting the drop on me as I sit there laying out in the sun like a crocodile after eating a cow made out of nyquil. Minutes went by... I lost the one guy in town since I kept looking over my shoulder every quarter of a second- I didn't even want to drink for fear of making noise. Of course the guy would probably write the sound off as a ghost and pay me no attention. I saw something in the corner of my eye on the hospital roof so I looked over just in time to see a rainbow of dudes wearing dry bags in a large group- probably 4 or 5. They were just splitting up when I zoomed in. I lost all but one guy I saw make his way behind the box over the stairwell. I could see him through the open door since there was a window on the wall he was beside. I could see him there with some yellow attire... looked like he was a lookout. He was moving just a bit- probably looking back and forth with his whole body instead of just turning his head. Idiot! Even a noob like me knows that's a visit from the reaper. I watch him closely- trying to figure out if they're part of the smaller group I saw earlier. Are they all going to try and flush me out? Are they all going to different parts of the city to listen for my near impossible shots at Mr. Yellow? Okay- smart guys. Glad I had 5 aces up my sleeves. I felt so cunning and superior right at that moment... I wanted to shout out to him "Wait there all you want buddy- I've got all night!" Moron. I'll be here digging your grave while you sit there and hang your yellow carrot out for me to shoot at. But after about 20 minutes of waiting for the sure SINGLE shot I could take- killing him and not giving his friends enough opportunity to converge on me- I realized I had double head faked myself. I'd watched Mr. Yellow carefully- taking my eyes away from him only long enough to occasionally spot some of his other companions moving building to building heading generally west. Something changed- the light... the angle I was sitting at the monitor... something made me take a really long look at Mr. Yellow. He's moving- there's no doubt about that. Wearing worn yellow jacket of some sort... maybe a tanned leather vest as well? Wait a minute. I took a few seconds to take a quick look at the tree swaying just beyond him. It's yellow... with brown / tan shades within the branches... and it's moving as well- swaying side to side gently in the breeze. I matched up its movements with Mr. Yellow- Awwww faaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaack. I'm an idiot.

I'd have never- ever guessed the hockey stick would come out on top... Unless that is Dr. Hook from Slapshot fame.

Unfortunately just about everything in all those screenshots won't be rendered past about 100 feet so it'll look like you're lying out in the open. Literally not wanting to sound like a jerk or rain on your parade... it was a discovery I made after a couple of ghillie attempts. It does work in close- as I'm sure you've seen with videos or buddies or whatever. But out where you'd expect to be using a ghillie more often (especially a full one)... you stand out with excruciating clarity. In addition- the underlay of the world is more of a tan... so at a distance the stock ghillie is actually the better colour since it tends to blend in with what people can see further off (out in the open anyway). Many turn their shadows off... and grass won't be visible at a distance. It really is brutal and I would love for it to work but it just doesn't. Oh and notice that "you're rapidly warming up" message? Get ready to see that a metric shit ton. You may already know all this- but I remember how much time I spent packing around all that netting and burlap... and how much gear I dropped without a pack. All to find out that I was barely hidden at all. Best of luck with it- just always remember in the back of your mind it's an instant death sentence if you're spotted... and you'll be spotted.

Hmmmm- I don't think so (but maybe?). Frick... this memory of mine.

I tried this same thing a couple weeks ago on .57... stashed it under a loot pile at one of the guard houses. We watched with anticipation as a guy practically moon walked across the platform where the mine was placed and nothing happened. He just carried on about his merry business. I read a thread shortly thereafter that mentioned a guy had stepped on a mine and got the message "you have been injured by a mine" but he'd suffered no injury. Not sure where it stands right now?

456. I agree with that concept- and if implemented I think there should be some way of identifying older female characters as well.