"Trained" vs "Untrained" Characters

[Publik 404]

Edit: All options on the poll are perfectly valid ways for DayZ to go. I'm in support of "Purely player knowledge".

 

There's a debate related to the current weapon accuracy about whether or not our characters spawn as "trained" or "untrained"/civilian. If we're talking about this as it is, I like to think that every player that spawns has a few years of "backstory" time before they get to the coast. The Infection didn't happen last week, it happened years ago. Your character has been surviving since, hence your medical, weapon, and mechanical knowledge. There was a storm, you fell off the boat, washed up on the shore, etc. However, this thought process is just as wrong as the people that think that your player is a fresh civilian never-held-a-gun and the people that think that we're all veteran military sniper-medics that can repair and fly choppers.

 

Your character in DayZ is YOU, the PLAYER

 

YOUR knowledge is what defines your character. Do YOU know how to treat shock or prepare a splint or tourniquet? Do YOU know how a car works and how to hotwire it or replace its tire? Do YOU know how to start a helicopter and read the gauges, and land without an engine? Do YOU know how to zero a rifle and read the wind to take long shots or handload ammo? This should be what decides your "skill" level in DayZ, not some stat that levels up over time.

 

Hopefully this is the direction DayZ takes, but who knows. Personally, I find the idea of learning real world skills from a survival game to be really interesting. Maybe when/if they release their roadmap we'll know for sure, but until then some discussion on the matter would probably be best.

 

/Discuss

 

Edit: And please post something to keep this thread up

Edited January 6, 2014 by Publik

[BelMarduk 169]

"purely player knowledge on the subject, and neither, none of this matters" are the same thing... really

[Publik 404]

"purely player knowledge on the subject, and neither, none of this matters" are the same thing... really

To a degree. If none of it matters you probably wouldn't have a deep helicopter system like TOH. It'd be more like the mod where it just flies if it has an engine, turning it on is done for you, morphine always cures broken legs, etc. With player knowledge, you'd need to know how to turn it on first, etc :P

Edited January 6, 2014 by Publik

[Dchil 829]

Purely player knowledge. That is what i voted for, but how will you measure accuracy vs player skill. Unless you make the inspect function do more (like have buttons to check the chamber and barrel and so on on a gun) it kinda makes it a mute point.

[Publik 404]

Purely player knowledge. That is what i voted for, but how will you measure accuracy vs player skill. Unless you make the inspect function do more (like have buttons to check the chamber and barrel and so on on a gun) it kinda makes it a mute point.

Up to Rocket on that one, though I want to be able to inspect items to get more info about them. "Steve is bleeding from a laceration on his arm", so I've got to stop the bleeding and maybe stitch it up, clean the wound, etc. "The shotgun barrel is bent slightly to the left", so I should manually aim left, or maybe "The shotgun barrel is clogged" so I need to clear it before firing. For weapons themselves, I'd really like to be able to interact with them in hand like you can with the choppers in TOH. If your M4 jams, look at the charging handle and you'll get a context option to cycle the weapon. If you look at the flashlight or laser, you get the option to turn it on/off. If you look at the dials on your scope, you get the option to adjust the windage or yardage, etc. Weapons themselves are pretty simple to use, and there aren't usually a lot of switches and knobs to deal with. It would also be cool to be able to disassemble or field strip a weapon, clean each part, check each part for damage and replace it if need be.

 

As for weapon accuracy, I think it should mirror its real life counterpart as best as possible; same muzzle velocity, bullet mass, rate of fire. Your player then can have weapon sway based on your current state of health; if you're malnourished it's hard to keep the weapon steady just like if you're in pain or exhausted. Even then, you'd still be able to somewhat compensate for the sway, and weapons are skill based for it. If you know that the gun jumps up and to the left when you shoot, you should be able to compensate.

[Gdaddy22 299]

What do you mean by skill points and skill tree ? Like you level up, and you have skill point like in regular rpg games such as this one ?

 

 

If yes, then no I don't like this idea, but I love the idea of skills based on repeating things in game, like higher stamina after running 10km, faster bandaging, faster scoping etc

Edited January 6, 2014 by Gdaddy22

[raynor009 204]

No perks, skills or other sorcery.

[Publik 404]

What do you mean by skill points and skill tree ? Like you level up, and you have skill point like in regular rpg games such as this one ?

If yes, then no I don't like this idea, but I love the idea of skills based on repeating things in game, like higher stamina after running 10km, faster bandaging, faster scoping etc

Whatever such a system might look like, but at the end of the day having a stat that determines how well you do X. It'd be good to point out that the health system is somewhat the same deal; you've got a "stat" that says how full your stomach is. The difference being that a stomach contents stat is different than a bandage faster stat because it reflects a physical system. Higher stamina should be tied to the health system, btw :P If you're healthy, you have more stamina. Eat pasta run fasta.

 

Stats would be alright, I guess. Not really where I'd like the game to go (DayZ pvp builds anyone?), but I'd like to stress that all 3 options on the poll are perfectly valid.

Edited January 6, 2014 by Publik

[AmirDayz 54]

I'd rather have detailed intricate systems that users have to learn but if that's too much an alternative that might be acceptable (though honestly I'm not sure I like it myself) would be to have randomly assigned professions that grant certain abilities. I.e, sometimes you might spawn as a surgeon, a car mechanic, a law enforcement officer or maybe even a fast food worker.

The downside is that people will just suicide until they get the profession they want, the useless professions will be discarded immediately.

[Publik 404]

I'd rather have detailed intricate systems that users have to learn but if that's too much an alternative that might be acceptable (though honestly I'm not sure I like it myself) would be to have randomly assigned professions that grant certain abilities. I.e, sometimes you might spawn as a surgeon, a car mechanic, a law enforcement officer or maybe even a fast food worker.

The downside is that people will just suicide until they get the profession they want, the useless professions will be discarded immediately.

On that subject, since the poll looks fairly even either way, are there any middle-of-the-road solutions? Like, you need to know the order in which to turn on your helicopter, but the speed at which you do it can be "leveled up"?