Handheld flares - worth looking into?

[Target Practice (DayZ) 1335]

Okay, I did a little bit of searching, and it seems that whilst a lot of people have been suggesting the flare gun, it didn't look like anyone has actually suggested handheld flares (other than the road flares which are obviously already very common), which are likely to be a lot more commonly available, not to mention easier to fire.

In particular I'm thinking of two main types that (to my knowledge - I've not been lucky enough to find an M203 in-game yet) don't have an in-game equivalent - the white parachute illuminating flare and the red 'rocket' distress flare. They both have very different uses.

The White Para Flare

The white para flare is used for illuminating an area at night, and it is ridiculously effective. I've personally witnessed these being used in search and rescue efforts on more than a couple of occasions, and you use these when you absolutely, positively need to light up every bastard for a kilometre or so in every direction. The ones I've seen used (commercially-available maritime flares) can simply be bought by anyone, and you typically get 30-60 seconds of light out of them before they burn out/drop out of sight.

Uses

In-game, these would be invaluable for lighting up a large area but without being so obvious as a placed road flare - unless you happened to see the flare go up (and you'd have to be looking in the general direction BEFORE the area was illuminated, as the flare doesn't start burning until it descends), you're unlikely to be able to pinpoint the source of the flare, as they tend to go up a LONG way - if you're close enough, you might hear the tell-tale 'whoosh' as it launches, though. These would be particularly useful for blinding NVG-snipers without giving away your position, as well as illuminating a city for a quick raid without actually aggroing every zombie in a ten-mile radius (you could, for example, stand on sniper hill at Elektro and aim the flare over the city - you'd light up the city, but you'd likely be too far away for the sound to draw aggro from inside the city)

The Red Rocket Flare

Similar to the White Para, the Red Rocket (or just 'distress' flare) is also a hand-launched flare, and works much the same way - launches to about 300m in the air (~1000ft) then deploys a parachute and begins to burn brightly. These tend to burn for about 60 seconds or so. Typically, these aren't used for illumination, they're generally used as a way of alerting someone to the fact you're in distress and need help.

Uses

The obvious one would be signalling your position if you're in need of help, or simply trying to guide someone in to your location - these things are designed to be visible from MILES away, particularly at night, but they're also easy to spot when fired during the day. There's an obvious risk that the person you're trying to alert might not be the only person who sees it, which could in turn lead to some interesting risk/reward decisions - are you THAT desperate for help that you're willing to tell half of Chernarus where you are? However, for lone wolf players with side chat disabled, it could very well be the only method of alerting someone to your plight.

[charley-taylor@hotmail.co.uk 39]

I would love for this to be implemented ad i have the most intense times at night on dayz, road flares are horrible and you can pick them up in game but its not actually hand held but floating infront of you! I really like the idea of real flares added to the game as this would help for looting at night time, blinding snipers, calling for help, distracting the enemy!

[CreepySalad 108]

I wouldn't mind different kind of flares found on dead soldiers, or in military areas.

That'd be kinda cool.

[thejarofflies@gmail.com 12]

maybe just a lighter, or use matches to light a bit of environment.

alone in a hallway at night. just a match light while you try to find some food, light goes off, you light another and HOLLY FUCK A ZOMBIE FACE IN FRONT OF YOU!!! :D