I just had a baller idea for SA regarding Banditry

[pbrunk 114]

I just posted this on /r/dayz so i figured id bring it up here too.

People on /r/dayz dont seem to like KOS very much. I think the general consensus is that banditry is good for the game, but too many people KOS.

If KOS was removed, DayZ would become a very pussy game. Pretty much everyone agrees on this. From what i understand, in the early months of DayZ, (before my time) people helped one another frequently, but this is no longer the case. KOS is safe, easy, and fun so it has gotten rather popular, but the result is deathmatch with zombies. I think that KOS and PVP should remain unchanged but there should viable alternative to KOS.

My suggestion for the Standalone, (or the mod) is to add a robbery mechanic, as an alternative to KOS. If you get the drop on someone you could hit a button causing your character to shout over direct chat something to the effect of "Lower your weapon and surrender". Whoever you are looking at at the time gets a notification somewhere on their screen that they are getting robbed, and has a very short time limit to comply with your directives. The unlucky player getting robbed would have a few choices

1. hit some button, causing them to put their hands over their head
   
2. try and fight and probably get wasted
   
3. try to run away and probably get wasted
   

Once the survivor has surrendered, the player could make them drop their gear and back away. You could then go through inventory while keeping an eye on your hostage. Killing a someone who resisted or runs away would not count as a murder. You could murder the person you are robbing at any time, but that would not count as a successful robbery. The amount of successful robberies would be tracked on each character.

If getting lots of successful hold ups was somehow rewarded in a system like humanity, it would become a viable option over simply murdering people.

Possible incentives

• Hunger and thirst increase less rapidly'
  
• Fancy Robin Hood cap in recognition of outlawish activities
  
• New voice lines when robbing people. go to 3:53 http://dchtvideo.com/2012/10/world-series-of-dice/
  
• Less detectable by Zombies
  
• Faster running speed
  

Any significant incentive would draw players towards this mechanic. Some players looking for a rush would stop sniping bambis in cherno, and start holding up players. There would still be plenty of PVP, because not everyone would be interested in the reward. The wasteland would become more realistic, with more robberies and less KOS. Holding people up would be higher risk AND higher reward than just murdering them, so I think it would be appealing to the masses. People might even start caring about their successful robbery count, instead of their murder count.

Also zipties, because why not. right?

NOTE: I realize there are players out there who hold people up currently, but I have yet to find one in game. If someone has already suggested an idea like this, then please let me know so i can feel dumb.

tl;dr there should be a robbery mechanic in game, and using it many times successfully should be rewarded.

[dulix11 731]

I like the idea of the humanity for robbing people, and the faster running upgrades etc...

[-Gews- 7443]

Sounds like a good way to increase your R/D ratio.

[callsignBravo (DayZ) 323]

i think it is a good idea. Maybe More of a passive upgrade for robberies. or you could mix incentives and be a robbing hero or robbing bandit but not a hero bandit.

[pbrunk 114]

Sounds like a good way to increase your R/D ratio.

Also longer epeen.

on an unrelated note:

wtf is up with your signature Gews. it has always weirded me out. Now i am even more confused.

[-Gews- 7443]

on an unrelated note:

wtf is up with your signature Gews. it has always weirded me out. Now i am even more confused.

That's Gags.

[pbrunk 114]

what about the art behind her?

[Hetstaine 10852]

i always had Gews sig down as a story reading from left to right...

Mum and daughter happy and colourful life with much love for each other/ Dad off at work in the burning sun making pots so mum and daughter can spend it on clothes and tableclothes/ Confucious steps in and tells Dad he should travel and broaden his horizons/ Dad gets on boat and travels/ Finds beautiful Indian princess who gives him all of his desires/ Dad and princess have a child who is the son that the Dad always wanted..unfortunately the son is a mental giant with a pyschotic stare and a blunt axe.

I dunno where the cheap lookin' blond comes in..the sons first axe murder because of her horrible talents ?

[-Gews- 7443]

what about the art behind her?

It's from loving-bengal.net.

"Where the mind is without fear and the head is held high;

Where knowledge is free;"

-Rabinranath Tagore

[Hetstaine 10852]

...well that was far more boring than i imagined :D

Thanks for ruining my day ;)

[DemonGroover 8836]

The problem i see is that a lot of KOS doesn't happen at a distance where a robbery could take place. Most bandits will shoot you as soon as they see you, they generally wouldn't get close enough to initiate a robbery mechanic though it would be nice if they did.

AFAIK there already is a surrender option which can be bound to a key so robbing someone is possible atm.

[-Gews- 7443]

The problem i see is that a lot of KOS doesn't happen at a distance where a robbery could take place.

Frequently I don't loot bodies, most times I don't even bother to hide them. I just like shooting people. ^_^

[godtoldme2killu 2]

I see where the character can be a mechanic and rob. A wise choice was made by the robber, if items were a necessity and with a time limit. Imagine a medic having no morphine and stuck in a forested area with robbers already there. Mechanics have space in their inventory because parts are needed in the inventory to fix vehicles. In code, and maybe some tweaks in ArmA II's engine, we could have less mechanic parts for more inventory space, making the robbers job a tiring escapade.

According to the, YES, Mr. You, the robber mechanic, can have the luxury of:

1. robbing and detaining, leaving them crouched and cornered and untouched

2. robbing and detaining, leaving them crouched and cornered and wounding with melee weapon in legs

3. robbing and detaining, giving or receiving information to the victim or from the robber with their body movement and clothes, thus, giving off some impression on where they are going, coming from or which direction could be an advantage to counter attack or track them down and give them supplies they desperately needed to end their bandit story as a brainwashed survivor to the data already received by the victim while leaving them crouched and cornered in a house or outside and cornered, item less and untouched.

Dropping items before or after a robbery could become a concern to the gamer especially with items that can detain a person physically. Imagine crafting an item that could shut your mouth up while I take your items, or items of discovery. That tin can could be a snipers way of marking 300 meters! Detain someone right there?! Body count! I believe the murders and mugging will ruin my game before it ruins everyone else's. Pass those gun laws! We need a secure gate, mechanic!

EDIT: KOS for nothing means less bullets for that bandit. Until someone becomes one to get one out. Rob those medic mechanics like no tomorrowz!

Edited May 1, 2013 by DollarFive

[Death_Dealer 3155]

Why would robbing people make you less visible to zombies, run faster, and sustain hunger and thirst for longer amounts of time? The only reward for robbing should be the booty.

[pbrunk 114]

Why would robbing people make you less visible to zombies, run faster, and sustain hunger and thirst for longer amounts of time? The only reward for robbing should be the booty.

Heroes get two random bonuses. Why can't outlaws who make an effort not to kill?

[Death_Dealer 3155]

Heroes get two random bonuses. Why can't outlaws who make an effort not to kill?

We're talking about the standalone here, not the mod. Nobody knows how the hero benefits will work yet.

[fluxley 2228]

Heroes get two random bonuses. Why can't outlaws who make an effort not to kill?

They lose less humanity by not killing and gain undamaged loot.

Im not a fan of any kind of forced mechanic like this as i believe that the same results can be had with a simple hold up through direct chat, so long as the robber has enough of a tactical advantage, this will feel much more natural and lead to much more emergent gameplay which i believe is what DayZ should be aiming for.

But you're right, there needs to be some kind of benefit to robbing someone over just KoS,

It looks like the standalone already has a plan for this in that gear can take damage if shot at, so if you want that guys backpack and contents you better not shoot at the body, or a head shot will damage any NVG's they might have.

Thats more the kind of thing that we need, though that alone may not be enough to encourage robbers to gamble their own lives.

AFAIK there already is a surrender option which can be bound to a key so robbing someone is possible atm.

This is the other side of the problem.

As DemonGroover says theres already a surrender option in game first problem is many people dont even know it exists and by default its not even bound to a key.

But the second and biggest issue is that most people would rather die than suffer the humiliation of being robbed.

There needs to be a greater connection between the player and his character so that they would rather lose all their gear than die.

Otherwise robbery will never become a viable alternative to KoS.

[pbrunk 114]

i wish i could reply to some of these comments right now, but i've got to pass Calculus. Interesting thoughts

[audax 207]

The surrender animation already exists u.u

[Mullraugh 1151]

You can do this in game already. But since nobodies tried it, I can see how they'd agree with this suggestion. Gaining humanity for robbing someone doesn't make sense.

Anyway, the dev team said they might try another approach to the humanity system in the Stand Alone.

[pbrunk 114]

You can do this in game already. But since nobodies tried it, I can see how they'd agree with this suggestion. Gaining humanity for robbing someone doesn't make sense.

Anyway, the dev team said they might try another approach to the humanity system in the Stand Alone.

You can do this, but since surrendering isnt bound by default, and most players don't know about it, it isnt very viable.

I didn't really envision this as giving you humanity. I was sort of thinking about something separate from humanity.

[Chaingunfighter 917]

An interesting idea, but adding voice commands takes away from the idea that it's really 'you' in the apocalypse.

What I think they should do is change it so people can have a chance at more interaction before KoS, therefore allowing thinks like robbery to be possible (without having them as an 'official' feature).

Oh, and if you kill someone that you're 'robbing', it should still be murder. It would be completely ridiculous if people would just go around robbing defenseless or off-guard people and shooting them. It would make more sense for killing someone you're robbing to have an increased reduction in humanity (Robbing them and making them feel like they will at least live, and then killing them.).

Edited May 2, 2013 by Chaingunfighter

[Inception. 9443]

I like the idea of the Robin Hood Hat, but not the "less detectable by zombies". How easy one is detected should depend upon the skill of the player, not any attributes given as a reward.

[applejaxc 2500]

I stopped reading at "Doesn't count as a murder."

If you shoot them because they refuse to give you something, it's murder.

[Death_Dealer 3155]

If you shoot them because they refuse to give you something, it's murder.

It's not murder if they don't die.

:)