Weather, Water, Terrain and Hygiene

[Quartermaine 34]

I would like to see a number of things included in DayZ that relate to the environment/terrain.

Mother Nature is the harshest mistress of them all. If we are playing a survival game, we should remember that the environment has the greatest say if we make it through the day. My (and other peoples) many suggestions fall into the category of environment.

TL:DR version

• - A hygiene system based on access to water (rather than, or in conjunction with pooping);
  
• - Include water types (stagnant, polluted, frozen, fresh water);
  
• - Swimming;
  
• - Increase terrain features such as Rivers (accordingly bridges), cliffs (ropes), frozen ponds, different tree types (durability of wooden tools, time taken and noise to cut down trees);
  
• - Increase the amount of terrain types that appear in game, such as snow, swamp, sewers;
  
• - Simple fur and wood crafting (spears, bows and arrows, clothes);
  
• - Food plants such as berries, mushrooms etc and poisonous plants; and
  
• - More dramatic weather patterns (such as heavy rain leading to flooding of rivers and low lying areas).
  

Each of these features I believe would add potential for individual and group crises, thus creating tension.

Expanded version

• - A hygiene system based on water access: Survival means keeping yourself clean and healthy. A dirty stinking survivor is one that lets every animal in the area know that you are present. It also invites diseases that only exist in most people’s imaginations. A mechanic like this could force even the most solitary survivor out of their hidey hole and risk a once a week city trip (or maybe not).
  How would it work? It would be based on a point system 0 being you just got out from your morning shower. As the days wear on you lose hygiene points, eventually down to -1000 where you are a stinking savage that hasn’t cleaned anything for a week and would make Tarzan cringe. Your options are to have a birdbath from bottled water, say increase your hygiene by 20 points up to a max by this method of -800 (birdbath would do nothing after reaching -800), soak in a pond/lake +200 hygiene (max by this method up to -500), a running stream/river +500 hygiene (max up to -200) and the only option that gets you to squeaky clean, a freshwater shower +1000 (the only way to get to 0 hygiene).
  So why clean yourself? As you get lower in the hygiene points a number of things happen. Your risk of disease and infection increases, animals can smell you further away making it very hard to hunt for animals (i.e. live an easy peasy outsider life) and clothing would degrade faster. On the plus side however, you gain a small zombie detection modifier, owing to the fact that you smell more like a rancid corpse than a meal.That’s the basics of it, I don’t want to go too much further into detail but you should get the main idea.
  
• - Water types: An important part of survival is access to fresh water. It is unrealistic to expect every pond/lake you come across to be fresh water. This aspect would form a crisis for an individual, in that they may choose to risk drinking the water in hope of preventing dehydration, but may make matters worse by ingesting harmful parasites that cause dysentery as a result of drinking dirty water. Having a feature like this would allow for the inclusion of water purification techniques that add an extra level of challenge to a wilderness survivor (do you keep the heavy water boiling equipment or do you keep a limited supply water purification tablets handy?)
  
• - Terrain features: Chernarus is as flat as an A cup woman, let’s add some excitement. How about some rivers, cliffs and canyons? Each feature presents an opportunity for some great moments especially if we are allowed to traverse them. Imagine you are presented with an option to A: abseil down a cliff face or B: walk 20 minutes around to find a walk able slope. You have a rope to make it down, but you are going to be a prime target for anyone that can see that cliff face. Again, with rivers, you can take the fast route and cross the bridge or swim across, each option has an associated risk. The bridge is an artificial funnel that may or may not have a bandit watching it; the river swim could lead to a bout of hypothermia or do you spend precious time moving downstream in hopes of finding a ford? What if you have a car? The bridge may be your only option, will you risk it? Such a simple thing that we take for granted every day (like crossing a bridge) could become a fight for survival in the DayZ world. Not to mention the added convenience of having a navigational landmark.
  
• - Include swimming: Self explanatory. Needed if compulsory river crossings are required, also provides a haven from zombies, but at the risk of developing hypothermia.
  
• - Terrain types: Each type of terrain would present its own inherent dangers and benefits. For example in a hilltop area that is snowy, the survivor risks hypothermia and starvation, but benefits from an area that would be richer in supplies based on lower activity in the area. Swamps would be harder to access as well, would have a greater risk of insect borne diseases and have limited (if any) fresh water, decimates hygiene rating, but is largely free of zombies. Sewers as well, would provide a safe haven at the risk of contracting some form of illness.
  
• - Simple fur and wood crafting: Fur may be a fashion faux par in the 21^st century, but animal skin could mean the difference between life and a cold death after DayZ. Players should be able to skin animals and wear fur for added warmth and limited camouflage. Crafting of simple wooden tools or weapons (such as spears) would add to a survival theme.
  
• - Dangerous wild animals: Another way to make wilderness survival more challenging and rewarding (wearing a badass timber wolf cloak would be enough to scare the shit out of a new survivor; simultaniously screaming and running at them like a madman optional). Not to mention the hilarity involved in a bear going on a zombie massacre.
  
• - Berries and mushrooms: Starvation would make any survivor desperate enough to eat these, problem is, are they poisonous or life saving?
  
• - Dynamic weather: In conjunction with cliffs and rivers, a massive downpour could lead to disastrous consequences downstream such as: sending swimming survivors further downstream, flooding low lying areas and increasing the risk of insect borne diseases.
  
• - The ability to grow a beard over time: Nothing says hardcore survivor quite like a developing beard (i.e. a visible, growing badge of honour).
  
• - A less forgiving exposure system: Not sure how this would work in a game, but maybe those people that spend all their time outdoors should experience the negative consequences that would arise from such exposure (sunburn, frostbite, hypothermia etc).
  

I think that when Mother Nature is included in the list of enemies, the game will be made a lot more challenging and exciting, especially for a wilderness survivor.

Edited January 11, 2013 by Quartermaine

[Welch (DayZ) 756]

Most have been suggested, but your thread looks like it took effort and it's nice, so good job.

Some nice things to add would be like a Poisonous Berry Book, where it shows the types of berries in the Chernarus and whether their edible or not (they actually have these), so why can't we find them in a Supermarket?

And with the decline in actual hunters, the amount of wild animals would rise dramatically. They'd probably head into the city for shelter, food, and water. So when a herd of deer wander into Stary, wouldn't a pack of wolves follow sometime? And maybe down the road there's a bear digging through trash, etc.

[Michaelvoodoo25 3120]

Some good ideas there,

My EYES, BURNING, MELTING, MY EYEEEES.

[mr_chabowski@live.co.uk 2416]

Some good ideas there,

What is it they say about monkeys and Shakespeare? It was bound to happen sooner or later. ^_^

Take a deep breath, Mike. It's OK.

@OP, I really like the idea of foraging for fruit and fungus. It's this sort of thinking that will make the world feel like a REAL survival scenario.

Any expanded cooking/food system would be awesome TBH. It all feels far too simple just now.

[Willard1118 31]

Love everything you said.

also, the beard part could be a way to show how long a player has survived.

[Michaelvoodoo25 3120]

If people took the time to read some of these long-ish threads they would see the potential points and defining differences to other contenders.

[Welch (DayZ) 756]

I want to be able to cook my Raw Meat to a nice medium-well, and I'm pretty sure you can only cook it medium on the mod! I also want to make a zed casserole, but alas, I can't.

[SkilzZ 23]

I agree with all Ideas ;)

[joe_mcentire 2074]

i like the idea of swampy areas, hope to find a skunk ape there.

Swamps would above all play a viable role for the upcoming infection-system in the SA

Also rivers are a must in terms of immersion!

Edited January 19, 2013 by joe_mcentire

[WiFiN 55]

Full support for everything listed.

Especially beard growth :P

[CreepySalad 108]

This is an amazing suggestion.

I love every bit of it.

I think your hygiene system could be a bit different, but it's pretty swell.

The beards are chill though.

I love me some beards.

[whiteboy greg 21]

The beard idea is solid gold.

I like everything but not sure if flooding is realistic for this game engine. It would be great just not sure it can be implemented.

[joe_mcentire 2074]

ha... i was just searching if there is a real chernagorsk and guess what ;) an there was something near to it which caught my eye, an amazing river delta. would love to have something like this in the game at some point.