DayZ Combat/Firefight guide(?)

[vaalea (DayZ) 3]

So, I'm looking for any detailed, or at least more in depth, guide to combat in DayZ. Not in regards to the actual basic controls- but more how to actually conduct successful combat.

I am doing somewhat well when it comes to the survival part of the game. Got my tent, got meds and food and a basic assault rifle- so really things aren't that bad. However, after many many many hours- I still can't handle a firefight with bandits. I suck when it comes to "pvp".

The usual scenario is that I get under attack and killed within seconds and without really knowing from where the shots came from. The second most common scenario is me trying to ambush a bandit, miss the first shot (thereby alerting him where I am) and getting stuck in a longer firefight were I usually loose. I can't aim with the "mouse-delay", I get adrenaline rushes, and I rarely manages to scout the bandits out before they see me.

I'm getting tired of these sudden and quick deaths, and want to improve. Are there any guides or tips to improve combat-wise.

Thank you.

[CombatWombat (DayZ) 63]

When you get shot at, don't stop and look around, don't crouch behind some "cover" because generally you don't know what angle the enemy are coming from. My advice, sprint and zig zag. Then run behind a hill or into a dense area where they may not be able to see you and try and pin them down. When you have a decent idea of where they are coming from then try and flank them, or maybe do something that may be a little outside the square. If you're playing in a squad and encounter an enemy then I can't stress this enough, SUPPRESSION, because it actually works both in games, and out of games. DayZ's immersion really comes in to play here and most geared players are quite sentimental when it comes to their belongings. Have one person supress, while you and maybe a few others come at them from different angles. I always win my fights this way, but remember when worse comes to worse you have to be smart and think, Fight or Flight? If you're coming up against an AS50 when you have a Enfield in elektro, then personally I would choose fight because hey, what have you got to lose?

[pieflavor 38]

the sheer amount of different circumstances that can happen in dayz makes it impossible to play competitive shooter, you won't find fair fights or fighting chances often, most of the timed you die instantly and 99% of the times you are caught by surprise losing any advantage you could have.

[lappihuan 26]

don't let the Adrenalin controll you, you need to controll the Adrenalin ;)

If you can handel your Adrenalin and have some 3D imagin skills you can handle many firefights!

[vaalea (DayZ) 3]

When you get shot at, don't stop and look around, don't crouch behind some "cover" because generally you don't know what angle the enemy are coming from.

Yeah I guess I'm doing that for the most times, I kinda "freeze" ^^ Good tactic with suppression, although I tend to play alone.

@Pie flavour, at least it feels nice to hear that others experience the same situations, even though it's an anoying way to die- I at least wanna be able to put up a decent fight.

[The Stoned Wolf 491]

Just remember to ALWAYS stay calm and patient. Even if you have been shot or are being shot at, remain calm, cool and collected. Get behind cover ASAP, thoroughly search for where your target could be, and take time with your aim and shots. Other than that, you can't really have a big guide on it seeing as 90% of the time you are attacked you end up being dead before you can react. Good luck! :)

Edited October 18, 2012 by Excision

[vaalea (DayZ) 3]

Just remember to ALWAYS stay calm and patient. Even if you have been shot or are being shot at, remain calm, cool and collected. Get behind cover ASAP, thoroughly search for where your target could be, and take time with your aim and shots. Other than that, you can't really have a big guide on it seeing as 90% of the time you are attacked you end up being dead before you can react. Good luck! :)

I guess this sums it up. I just hate the fact that you just cant do anything about it 90% of the times you are attacked :) But I sure do have to work on staying calm.. It's so hard though. And to all of you: Just "kinda" survived my first real firefight. Progress :P (I ended up being shot in the head by a 3rd player whilst looting).

You all seem to handle firefights very reactionary/as-they-come. As a read-to-learn kinda guy, there really should be a guide out there :) I guess I'll have to read up on IRL military tactics.

[Dayzo 182]

When you pick up a gun that you don't know well, practise with it offline using the shooting range mod:

http://www.armaholic.com/page.php?id=14616

One other thing to note - if you are playing at low frame rates (Eg. 16-20) and/or have double the ping

of your opponent (Eg 100ms vs 50ms), then you are disadvantaged before even firing a shot.

[Sula 1205]

The best way to learn is to go into Arma 2 and work your way through the tutorials and the scenarios too - they're a lot of fun and very useful. Best thing I ever did was working through those. Don't get me wrong, some were tricky - and I'm still not through all of them but it was great fun and I learned so much about weapons, vehicles, parachuting, how to fly helicopters and planes - lots of great stuff. I bought Arma 2 just for dayz but now I play that regularly too. And it's helps so much with dayz. Fantastic game, and in my view, many of the best players are ex arma 2 players. DevilDogGamer, Nooby Noobster... Those guys have excellent gun skills. (Not me of course, I'm still learning)

Good luck. :thumbsup:

Edited October 19, 2012 by Sula

[Bludy 324]

i suggest you too to go in arma2 and do some firefight in those missions, which are really useful, specially regarding combat maneuvers. when i play solo i use always the same tactic: when i get shot i run away spraying a bit of fire, zig zaging and going straight for a little. then i search for a bottleneck in urban or a ridge in mountain, i stop and watch my flanks, waiting for them coming, and this doesn't always happen but at least you survive and don't get stuck. another good tactic is to run away and then take a detour and make a sort of loop, for example run around the top of a hill and try to watch the path you followed and see if they follow you, this can put you in the shit against groups. finally when you shoot first, if you miss, shoot another couple of bullets and then change position, but be able to watch your previous one, this made my day several times. good luck buddy, i know it's hard and i usually die when i get caught in an ambush

[rob.kedar@hotmail.co.uk 5]

I use my military experience as this mod is based off ARMA its pretty effective I've just modified it slightly.

1. Fire two to three rounds in the general direction of the enemy (doesnt matter about aiming or accuracy, your trying to achieve a bit of suppression)

2. Make a very short, quick, zig zagging run either to ground or a nearby piece of cover

2. Crawl into cover (so enemy cant see what position your taking up)

4. Locate your enemy by observation or failing that firing into likely positions, and as a last resort movement on your part.

5. Once located begin supressing accuratly, 1 round a second into his immediate vicinity even if he's taking cover. Dont allow him to observe, fire or move without getting hit.

6. If you have a friend use them to assault via a flank, make sure your still supressing the enemy though.

7. If your on your own decide whether your going to assault or withdraw, base this decision on available cover moving towards or away from your target your ammunition state, if you have inferior firepower etc.

8. If assaulting or withdrawing try to make short bounds between cover, I often say in my head "I'm up, he's seen me, I'm down". By the time you've said those words you want to be prone or in your next bit of cover.

[rob.kedar@hotmail.co.uk 5]

Sorry for double post but I thought I'd add to what I've said.

Try and pay attention to the sound of the incoming fire its one of the biggest assets you have to locating your enemy. The crack you'll hear is the bullet passing you faster than the speed of sound, try and listen to the "thump" as thats the sound emitted from the enemys muzzle. That will give you an idea of direction, but the trained ear can distinguish rough distances as well by the time delay between the crack and thump. If its immediate, your targets obviously close. If theres a one second between the noises he'll be around 300 meters, 2 seconds and you've got a long range shooter and you'll be able to avoid getting hit by making yourself a hard target.

[Bat (DayZ) 230]

I've played the game for several months now and I rarely get into firefights when there's a chance to miss. Avoiding people, staying hidden in a bush while a big team of well equipped people are passing by, is sometimes even more rewarding than firing at everyone you see. So the first advice is stay invisible. Always scan your surroundings for possible enemies, know the topography of the map. Think a lot and play slow and carefully. Dieing from another player will soon become quite unlikely, and then you can start having fun killing all those ghillie bandits at airfield and such, because they will not see you til you're just behind their back :)

[Twixx (DayZ) 39]

If you encounter a sniper firing upon you, it's best to zig-zag into a city/woods. Thereafter try to find out where the shots came from (usually from hills). Then just go around the hill and sneak up behind the sniper and take him out. That's what I usually do, they never watch their back..