Removal of Meat and Canteen

[endaskus 0]

Just an idea I'd like to throw out that may or may not be good.

What if meat and possibly refillable canteens were removed or nerfed? I don't think either are a problem for realism but I think their removal could add a lot to gameplay.

A lot of the fun of the game is the scarcity of resources. Now certainly a matchbox is not easy to come across (knife and axe are easier), but once you find it you hardly have to worry about food ever again. Same goes for a canteen. Once you find these things, you can stick to the forest and live forever; there's no urgency to return to a town in search of precious resources.

A great thrill of this game is the threat of being killed for your beans (or the need to kill for some beans). But once you've lived long enough to find a matchbox, that need for beans goes away entirely. I think this game might be better off if it didn't.

Straight up removal of meat and canteens might not necessarily be the answer. Maybe there could be a decent chance for contracting a disease when eating wild meat or drinking impure water from lakes/rivers. Maybe matchboxes could have limited uses before being expended.

Or maybe there is no problem to be answered here. What do you all think?

Edited December 21, 2012 by Endaskus

[Timmymachine109 (DayZ) 235]

I think Rocket said in the SA he is aiming to have diseases in water sources/animals so you need to cook your meat/purify your water properly. Also if they are intending to have things like batteries for NVG I think that they will probably have thought about adding a limit to the amount of matches per pack etc. I would like to see that in the game though...could also insert lighters, which last longer etc :)

[Draay (DayZ) 47]

Isn't this already being planned for standalone?

[dekartz 315]

I don't know, there's still the inherent problem of hunting whatever it is you plan to eat, and finding a reliable water-source. Diseases coming from various water-sources may work to be a better balance than just taking out canteens.

[TheThinkTanker 26]

I think Rocket said in the SA he is aiming to have diseases in water sources/animals so you need to cook your meat/purify your water properly. Also if they are intending to have things like batteries for NVG I think that they will probably have thought about adding a limit to the amount of matches per pack etc. I would like to see that in the game though...could also insert lighters, which last longer etc :)

I think limiting the amount of matches is a better solution for this. People who want to live forever in the woods will still be able to do so peacefully, but they'll have to return to town to search for matches (which are moderately rare) instead of searching for food. It doesn't remove a valid playstyle but still uses gameplay to drive players back together into tense interactions in cities.

[QuantumDrop 7]

I think limiting the amount of matches is a better solution for this. People who want to live forever in the woods will still be able to do so peacefully, but they'll have to return to town to search for matches (which are moderately rare) instead of searching for food. It doesn't remove a valid playstyle but still uses gameplay to drive players back together into tense interactions in cities.

Agreed. You have my beans. I say keep things as they are, but limit the number of matches in each box.

[Dylanco1 10]

I think Meat should Rot and need Cooking twice if left uncooked and Matches should be limited thus meaning you are forced to go out looking for them and stockpiling them to all hell and trading Meat and Matches would be Viable as Animals could be made to Conciously avoid Gunfire Cities Infected that sort of thing unless they are meant to spawn in Farms like Cows Chickens and Sheep but those in farms would always result in twice cook meat thats only half as good further reducing it and adding other Fuels could help like Charcoal (Or gas and a generator making stuff like Electric fences useful) for an actual Oven that lasts longer cooks quicker and can also Improve quality of Canned Goods along with a Mix of Other things such as it emits less light only spawns in Houses and is quite painful to run as Charcoal would be Rarer than Matches and while its good for bulk Cooking unless you plan to Pre-bake all your meals the Fire is still the best

[Steak and Potatoes 13480]

It would be nice to find camel back hydration systems that could molle attach to you characters bag and provide up to three water refills.

[TheSushi 28]

On removing canteens, I think the inability to carry water with you aside from canned beverages is a bit unrealistic and unfair. There should be other ways to balance it.

Here's an idea - what about finding water filters that have to be replaced to drink out of ponds (which are absolutely filthy) and such. Additionally, make it so canteens can be filled during rain if you stand around for long enough while it pours. That, and generally speaking in an environment like this there should just be more water in general. In undeveloped / rural areas, water storage tanks and wells should be a lot more common.

Meat spoiling is not a bad idea. There should be some time constraint for you to cook the meat by, so it's not some leisurely job to take down an animal and get some food off of it. A random chance of not getting meat (simply popping the bladder of the animal you gut can spoil the entire thing) is also realistic and fair - it adds some risk to tracking and shooting animals. Making the matches more finite is definitely a good idea. Make the matches have anywhere from a few to a dozen uses - you use more than a match to light most fires, sometimes an entire box if its wet out.

There's also the idea of depopulating an area by over-hunting, but I think that might be a bit flawed - I mean, you have no real way to know what areas are being wiped out by other players.

[radrussian1 (DayZ) 23]

as far as the matches go i think they need to be limited and much harder to use in rain for instance(if your in dense enough foliage then you can manage ect) this paired with disease would sky rocket the difficulty. ive never died from starvation in dayz and that honestly saddens me.