Zombies - Making them Harder / only killable by headshots

[Paddy0610 278]

Hello :)

i came across the idea of making Zombies harder, by restricting the way to kill them, that means

"Zombies would only die to Headshots"

futher its kind of realistic that Body hits don´t hurt Zombies at all:

(just thoughts, not proofed since no reallife Zombies ^-^)

- They dont feel pain

- Bodyparts can miss and the zombie can still survive

- They seem not to bleed (in dayzmod)

- The Brain is the main part that controls the Zombie - so its the only damageable/weak part (Virus/Mutatet thinking and control)

What does it mean for the game:

- Killing Zombies is harder

- Zombies are getting more dangerous

- Players get in trouble fighting bigger groups since spraying isn´t really an option

and so on...

What do you think about it?

Edit topic thoughts:

- Legs should be still able to break by gunshots forcing the zombie to prone

- Small stun on Bullet inpact

Edited December 18, 2012 by Paddy0610

[Big Bear 17]

I like the idea that body shots will stun or incapacitate but head trauma kills them at this point Zeds are more annoying then an actual threat they def need an upgrade

Vote 1

[camycamera 36]

also they should remove line of sight again. it made them so much more harder and an actual threat... now you could just run past them, loot and get out instead of sneaking past like the good old dayz. and yes, i like the idea that shooting them in the head kills them, but shooting them in the leg only removes their ability to walk properly and only allows them to walk. and shooting them in the arms doesn't enable them to hit...

that said DayZ could benefit from directional damage to limbs, and dismemberment, and this.

[Paddy0610 278]

Sure the ability to break the bones should be still ingame.

Offtopic: Hope we get a new Animation for ground and crounching attack... Zombies standing up to attack is a bit wierd.

Edited December 18, 2012 by Paddy0610

[terminal_boy 860]

Brainshots "kill" zombies, not headshots.

Depending on the round used and the range, limb hits should sever or cripple that limb.

Torso hits do nothing unless you hit the spine, at which point the zombie is paralysed from the point of impact downwards.

[Paddy0610 278]

Brainshots "kill" zombies, not headshots.

Depending on the round used and the range, limb hits should sever or cripple that limb.

Torso hits do nothing unless you hit the spine, at which point the zombie is paralysed from the point of impact downwards.

could be right...

Thinking of a game:

Headshots are equal to "brainshots"

and i think doing spines for torso, is to much hitboxes probably.

The system would work good with the actual bone breaking mechanic, and would only need 3 Hitboxes (head body legs) or 4 (head body legs arms) if there a bone mechanic for the arm implemented.

[Chris529 380]

I dunno aren't they supposed to be just infected like you see in 28 days later etc, not full on dead walking but just infected with a virus so they are still human, thats why they can run and behave like animals crawling around and growling etc. So really you shouldn't have to hit them in the head. I think to make them harder it should be more difficult to find ammo (definitely dont make them even faster they already catch up to you..). I literally find makarov mags in most houses I find which is kind of nuts. if you had less ammo you would find it way harder to kill 10 zombies chasing you down the road.

[tititotoOL 1]

Dont change this game into The WarZ, we can easily kill zombies but they are numerous, less ammo seems a good idea, but I think will be the case in future versions ( or the standalone, or both..)

[colekern 1364]

They are infected not dead, so no.

[Happymrsnowman 52]

Well, the counterargument to that idea is, why not just go for the legs? They're a bigger target and crawling zombies are pathetic. Making a whole army of crawlers isn't any harder than just shooting them in the chest. In fact currently that's what I do anyways since it prevents more zombies from spawning.

While your idea isn't BAD its also not really going to change the game much in any case. Headshot, legshot, either way they're ineffective.

[hatfieldcw 184]

Nah, I like zombies that have HP and can be killed. Unless you're going to have a really detailed wound model for zombies (and players too, while you're at it), they idea of pumping round after round of 7.62 into a human body and getting nothing at all out of it would feel even cheesier than killing them with bullets.

DayZ "zombies", it's been established, are still-living humans infected with a condition that renders them immune to pain and unable to think beyond a desire to kill and eat living people. They're not "dead" by any means. Their hearts pump blood, their lungs breathe air, they need everything a living person needs to stay functional. Destroying their organs will kill them.

This isn't just me being a douche about lore, though. I prefer these "infected" to the alternative. I like zombies that are still alive, that can be put down with center-of-mass hits. Often in DayZ, as a solo player, I find myself cornered in a building with ten or more zombies shambling right at me. If I had to headshot each of them to get away, instead of laying into the horde with my AKM and dashing through the hole I made, I'd be having less fun than I currently have.

Sure, zombies aren't that big a deal when you're just hitting up the Cherno market or sprinting in and out of the Elektro hospital, but when you're engaging a couple bandits at the Stary tents and trying to manage your fields of fire and zones of cover while staying conscious of zombie aggro and trying to use zombie reactions to the enemies' shots to find their overwatch guy, zombies become a critical part of DayZ gameplay. If zombies were boosted until they're a whole problem all by themselves, then the PvP in zombie-infested areas would be broken. The first guy to shoot would be swarmed by zombies, and the would-be target would either slip away or engage at his discretion, making aggression against players an invalid tactic unless you either work as a team with other players against smaller groups or singletons or snipe from a hilltop hundreds of meters away. Tougher zombies would discourage all but the most odious forms of PvP, making the douchiest tactics the only viable option for banditry.

Zombies are great just like they are. They keep you on your toes without preventing you from playing the actual game, which is a PvP sandbox. They are background for the most part, but if you get your leg broken leaving a firehouse or get knocked down in a hangar or have to use half your STANAG ammo to get out of an apartment building or have to fire your DMR in earshot of potentially hostile players, they become a very important consideration.

[Tarkastio 38]

I'm hoping for zombies that are less sudden stop and punch and more full football tackle and eaten alive, but that is just my sick desire. I would much rather have zombies a more forefront role, and being an actual threat, that human players have to deal with more seriousness when it comes to banditry. Nothing against them and their views, mind you, I would just rather have them play a bigger role.

[DirtyCry 118]

The OP got really no glue about the Human anatomy.

If i shot a Zombies Heart, no more blood goes to the muscels and brain - Zombie dead

If i shot a Zombies backbone, the Zombie got no more controlle over his body - no more moving, no more biting

If i shot a Zombies main artery in Arms, legs, belly the lose of blood will stop the moving, breathing - Zombie not able to run, dead in <5min

Also a Zombie is a biomechanic machine that stops working if you shot the right part(Brain, Muscel, heart, organs, Nervs, arterys, backbone). Zombies are still humans with less brain activity, nothing else.

And we have still physics in DayZ.

To make Zombies only killable by headshots is much more unrealistiv as it is now.

Edited May 22, 2013 by DirtyCry

[mzltv 2281]

Whilst I too am a fan of severe brain trauma being the only thing to kill 'em, I can't help but feel that it'd be dependant on the backstory of the infected.

I mean, it's always bothered me with how you see zombies torn to shreds with limbs missing and still functional. If it's going to be portrayed with a plausable viral explanation behind it, then I feel it should be accurate in the outright medical respect. Ie. all the zombies Awith missing limbs/severe lacerations would have completely bled out, meaning no blood flow to the brain, meaning the brain just wouldn't be able to function at all?

I know that's a pretty indepth look at it, but I'd like to see zombies as more of an obstruction - terminating them with mass trauma to the head would make for more interesting gameplay.

Edited May 22, 2013 by mzltv

[dulix11 731]

I like what Terminal Boy said. Depending on the round and range, you should still be able to cripple / kill zombies, with a large caliber bullet and a strong weapon.

[radivmoe 47]

i think that if your brain does not get any oxygen you die. it does not matter if you have some sort of brain changing virus. so lungs would kill. so would intestines, your brain needs energy to survive.

Edit: both of these kills take time though.

Edited May 23, 2013 by radivmoe

[Stoned Orangutan 31]

Head shots only? Hahahahah no.

[sausagekingofchicago 4711]

I had a lot of fun on a DayZ+ server that did this. Even the mighty hatchet took more skill to wield.

[victusmortuus 1074]

You people ask for ZOMBIES to be more than a nuisance yet push tjese ideas under the carpet due to Dean saying they're infected. Why let such a trivial thing effect gameplay?. It's not like he's asking if they can fly.

[pawlzz 18]

Headshot only is kinda extreme. A hit from a heavy cal in the torso is pretty much the end, also for a zombie.

But I surely agree they should be far more resistable for body-shots.'

EDIT: Obviuosly agreeing to Terminal Boy and dulix11

Edited May 23, 2013 by Pawlzz

[Hosty 647]

The OP got really no glue about the Human anatomy.

If i shot a Zombies Heart, no more blood goes to the muscels and brain - Zombie dead

If i shot a Zombies backbone, the Zombie got no more controlle over his body - no more moving, no more biting

If i shot a Zombies main artery in Arms, legs, belly the lose of blood will stop the moving, breathing - Zombie not able to run, dead in <5min

Also a Zombie is a biomechanic machine that stops working if you shot the right part(Brain, Muscel, heart, organs, Nervs, arterys, backbone). Zombies are still humans with less brain activity, nothing else.

And we have still physics in DayZ.

To make Zombies only killable by headshots is much more unrealistiv as it is now.

True, plus they are no zombies, but infected. Their way of thinking is changed by a disease, they are still in a way human, or atleast their bodies.

So, headshot only would be both unrealistic as fuck, and since zombies can now run in buildings also hard.