To many Bandits? Suggestions for Co-op.

[Dexadrine 0]

Has anyone else noticed that you rarely meet genuine co-op offers in DayZ.

The only Players i seem to meet are bandits, people willing to "team-up" under false pretenses (friendly until they find you), and groups of real life friends. It's very rare to meet players that will team-up and not stab you in the back somewhere down the line... so what I created this thread for as the title suggests are ways to incorporate a optional social style of play that doesn't change the game drastically but rather adds a new aspect because lets face it meeting these deadly players are half the fun of DayZ.

So What I think would be interesting is adding life saving items for example

a defibrillator to bring you back from death obviously with harsh penalties for doing so and with a very low drop rate. In my opinion players would have a reason to team up with others they don't know, who doesn't want to stay alive with all they're gear. At the moment teamwork unless with RL friends seems to be lacking and the blood pack isn't good enough to warrant team play.

Although I am not associated with DayZ's Development I would love to hear the thoughts of others on this matter.

[jokkl 0]

Like bloodpacks?!

[Terrorfex 0]

Do you really think that if faced with the choice of letting you die and looting you or helping you people will actually chose the first?

No, they wont.

I have found people that i can trust, even managed to get a few transfusions from strangers but most of the time you have to kill before they kill you. Specially if you have some good stuff.

That guy with a Makarov / Winchester will not avoid killing you for your AR.

[Sinaz20 0]

All food and drink are tea and finger sandwiches...

Because you need two for tea.

"I've got biscuits and Twinings, near Elektro!"

"Let's group!"

Look at that! Solved!

[Dexadrine 0]

I feel you guys are kinda missing the point i'm looking for suggestions on how team play would be more feasible i already know the majority of people are gonna wanna kill you and take your stuff and i don't think changing that core gameplay of being a survivor in a deadly world should be changed i just think it would be nice if there were items like a defib to bring your teammate back to life you would see more genuine offers from "friendly's" that wouldn't end in a gunfight as you have the option to keep them alive?... no?

[mio.rogvall@gmail.com 107]

Well first off there needs to be some sort of GUI to determine who is a "team" where you can invite players. Secondly there needs to be a real in game benefit for players to stay together. Most simple solution would to be add something like where blood regenerates when you are near teammates. More teammates could mean faster regeneration. This would of course not happen when you are in proximity of non teammates (who are defined by the GUI) since you could detect enemy players near you by your blood level rising. Players also kill for loot mainly. So maybe a hightened chance of better loot would be viable.

[septuscap 42]

We already have blood bags and bandages, and a group would loot your stuff for you when you respawn. The issue isn't value, it's trust. Groups are ridiculously valuable in this game, but you can't trust some one you don't know.

I think a reputation system would go a long way. The way I see it, you can have a group list (enable tags on mouse-over for anyone in you REALLY trust), and a friend list of people who you've had friendly encounters with. Friends would have their usernames show green in in-game chat/voice. Now if a friend of yours marked some one a friend, their name would show blue. If a friend of a friend marked some one as a friend, their name would show up light blue/gray/whatever.

In the same vein, if you mark some one as a bandit after they betrayed you or robbed you (or you deduced who your killer was in some other fashion) or simply trolled you in chat, their name would show up red. If your friend marked some one a bandit their name would show up orange. If a friend of a friend marked some one a bandit their name would show up yellow.

Of course this still requires you take the risk of initiating conversation with a random, but at least there is some reputation system simulating word of mouth. And as players create safe cities and the like, its value will increase exponentially.

In the mean time though, go to the survivor HQ sub-forum and find groups of friendlies there. Try and get various friendly groups to play on the same server, or even coordinate events at specific times. There is a 50 player cap (or less on some servers), it isn't hard to find a few dozen friendlies to saturate the server.

[Sinaz20 0]

Ok, in all seriousness.

You trust who you know you can trust.

On a regular basis, the people I team up with are 100% trust worthy and never shoot me in the back... because the people I team up with is one guy who I know personally.

I am beginning to make other in-game friends to team up with by joining teamspeak servers and being a gracious and polite fellow, making friends in the channels, and working with people who make an effort to not be a douche over VOIP.

Look for servers that offer a teamspeak server, and join up... if you can talk to people with ease and be a sport, you will rapidly find people to group with.

I don't think there really needs to be a mechanic for teaming up (though, I have suggested the notion of handshakes to sort of penalize friendly fire severely-- but since been talked out of the idea.)

But here's the thing-- don't assume all the survivors you meet are level headed adults as their digital avatar would appear to suggest. Most of them are just gamers locked in deathmatch mode.

[racecar 0]

Do you guys not have any friends or something?

Also, this

Reputation stuff

is a pretty good idea.

[Dexadrine 0]

"The issue isn't value' date=' it's trust. Groups are ridiculously valuable in this game, but you can't trust some one you don't know. "

[/quote']

Which is exactly my point, implementing coop friendly items to entice players to take a risk in teaming up with an unknown may spark some unusual relationships with other players, but having reputation may destroy the game as we know it knowing who can/can't be trusted or even taking a risk teaming with someone in the middle may destroy some of the fun encountering bandits or being one may be.

[Kolchak (DayZ) 5]

I've been saying it for a month now: Unless there is a major, inherent, and obvious benefit for people to team up to offset the huge amount of added risk, teaming up with strangers isn't going to happen. Lots of people in this game seem to think zombies are there for shooting and sprinting away from, that kind of person is not a bonus to me, they're more likely to get me killed than help. Now if our characters had some way of expressing added confidence, a palpable change in mechanics to show being near another person means something good, then everyone would have a reason to try, right now the risk isn't worth the reward cause the reward isn't even guaranteed.

[arkental 5]

Slightly off-topic, but I began pondering this while reading the topic so I'll shoot anyway.

I've played solo so never really checked out hospitals for blood bags and such. Does the place have a decent amount of supplies? I just got an urge to go "RP" a doc in Elektro or Cherno and do nothing but offer people meds and transfusions, mostly to see how people react and how long it takes before someone puts a bullet in my face for it.

[septuscap 42]

"The issue isn't value' date=' it's trust. Groups are ridiculously valuable in this game, but you can't trust some one you don't know. "

[/quote']

Which is exactly my point, implementing coop friendly items to entice players to take a risk in teaming up with an unknown may spark some unusual relationships with other players, but having reputation may destroy the game as we know it knowing who can/can't be trusted or even taking a risk teaming with someone in the middle may destroy some of the fun encountering bandits or being one may be.

Those incentives already exist. I personally think you have to be an idiot to solo this game unless you're doing it purely for the challenge.

The point is, grouping with a random is too dangerous, regardless of the benefit. 9 times out of 10 he'll just shoot you in the face before you even type "friendly." Maybe he's already in a group, maybe he's a bandit, whatever. And *if* you actually get a group going, you have the additional risk of being betrayed the moment you have something the random wants, or being used as zombie bait just so the random can get to where he wants to go, or being killed on a whim when the random is bored. There is simply no TRUST. He is just as likely to kill you out of boredom than help you.

That is what a trust system (reputation, whatever you want to call it) would allow for. Obviously the system I outlined isn't complete. What happens if one friend labels some one a bandit and another labels him a friend? Clearly, rather than an absolute value, there needs to be some measure of stats. Not just an average rating, but also an indication of the standard deviation. My brief outline also didn't account for an obvious piece of information -- is this player himself a friend of a friend?

This is a videogame, and you can't expect people to take as much time remembering people as they would in real life. It's just not going to happen.

As for ruining the bandit playstyle, I don't think bandits would give two shits about it (me being one). Maybe a few trolls who specifically enjoy grouping up and backstabbing repeatedly would have their jollies taken, but I don't think anyone cares for that minority, and the trolls would simply find their jollies as a regular ol' bandit.

[gizm0 96]

If you haven't noticed a lot of players are not annoyed zeds/infected are more of a threat now, some because they are sligtly broken the rest because dayz moved away from deathmatch with zeds/infected setting.

However like others have stated the problem is trust, a great way to solve that is a reputation system and static player names so they can't game the system with unlimited aliases.

[Dexadrine 0]

"Does the place have a decent amount of supplies? I just got an urge to go "RP" a doc in Elektro or Cherno and do nothing but offer people meds and transfusions' date=' mostly to see how people react and how long it takes before someone puts a bullet in my face for it."

[/quote']

Cherno especially has a hospital with supplies on the roof and a few tents full of supplies next to it, always plenty lying about to much for 1 person but the major city's are hives for bandits but its what i wanna do if i wanna play the role of medic with a group of friends, quickly in and out of Cherno but I dont imagine you'll last too long offering your services like that most will kill you regardless but you might get lucky... so good luck.

[septuscap 42]

If you haven't noticed a lot of players are not annoyed zeds/infected are more of a threat now' date=' some because they are sligtly broken the rest because dayz moved away from deathmatch with zeds/infected setting.

[/quote']

No one is grouping up b/c of the new zeds, stop defending a broken system.

Stealth is a complete crap shoot now, you're going to get pk'ed while crawling around like a moron for an hour or you're going to aggro a zed and give away your location.

Rocket has admitted as much in his post.

---

Slightly off-topic' date=' but I began pondering this while reading the topic so I'll shoot anyway.

I've played solo so never really checked out hospitals for blood bags and such. Does the place have a decent amount of supplies? I just got an urge to go "RP" a doc in Elektro or Cherno and do nothing but offer people meds and transfusions, mostly to see how people react and how long it takes before someone puts a bullet in my face for it.

[/quote']

I don't see why they wouldn't just go to the hospital themselves. You're better off offering an actual service, like popping a few tents out by a city with NO hospital and keeping it stocked with medical supplies.

Or help these guys and RP a doctor there.

[arkental 5]

Cherno especially has a hospital with supplies on the roof and a few tents full of supplies next to it' date=' always plenty lying about to much for 1 person but the major city's are hives for bandits but its what i wanna do if i wanna play the role of medic with a group of friends, quickly in and out of Cherno but I dont imagine you'll last too long offering your services like that most will kill you regardless but you might get lucky... so good luck.

[/quote']

I'm well aware Cherno/Elektro are hives of bandits, which is the idea. See how people react to another person after I do my very best to remove that friend-or-foe uncertainty. Figure I'll set up a macro I can use at regular intervals or when people are nearby to explain my intentions in direct chat. After all I've shot my share of people due to aforementioned uncertainty which has helped the paranoia spread like wildfire through the community. Will be fun to try doing the exact opposite.

Thanks for the tip about the Cherno hospital, I'll probably try to set up shop there on a server :D

@SeptusCap:

Because the aim is to offer transfusions to strangers. Most of the people I see around are going solo, and unless I've missed something a transfusion requires two people (correct me if I am mistaken). Aside from that, as mentioned above, I want to see how complete strangers will react to this. I have a nasty feeling this is going to be masochism however.