Some thoughts about zombies and how to control player population around the map.

[overdosed (DayZ) 77]

So my idea consists of a way to "control" where players go around the map according to their gear(basically level) that would also make players use a bigger portion of the map than just the coast and airfields.

 

First off we start by creating three types of lootable locations.

 

1. Low yield - Mostly food, low tier clothing, crafting materials and low tier melee weapons, with really low chance of spawning firearms, ammo and high tier melee weapons

 

2. Medium yield - Less food, better clothing, crafting materials, high tier melee weapons, medical supplies and medium chance of firearms and ammo.

 

3. High yield - Almost no food, top tier clothing and melee weapons, bigger quantity of medical supplies and usually the place to obtain the best firearms and the ammo for them.

 

Now we introduce 3 different types of zombies that would populate those areas.

 

1. Slow lethargic zobmies with low aggression, damage and health - basically what we have now. Only a real danger in big numbers, can be easily outran. 

 

2. More aggressive and faster zombies, can keep up with the player and are harder to loose. Player must use line of sight to loose them, or deal with them. More health and better damage than the first type.

 

3. Highly aggressive, can outrun the player, high damage and health. Those must be killed, loosing them almost impossible.

 

Im sure you can tell where the different zombie types would be. This basically creates an enviroment where players can find food and some clothing without too much trouble and can only then head to more dangerous areas. Also going in high yield areas would require cooperation and a group of players. It would also be really fun to see battles of player vs player vs zombies in high yield areas. Going alone in high yield areas should be highly inadvisable unless you are following a group of players that have already cleared the place. 

 

I also really think that the big coastal towns should be high yield areas and this would thus force people to find whatever food they can in the small towns on the coast and then head inland untill they can get geared enough to come back to the coast. Its also only logical that the coast would be amongst the most dangerous places on the map, since many ppl would have went to the coast looking for a way out of Chernarus and that most of them wouldve stayed there in the form of zombies. Same thing with the airfields.

[overdosed (DayZ) 77]

Bump

[Lupine 14]

I like this idea. Split it from "3 types" into 5 and then mix it into zones and you will get a much more fun game. Its going to stop everyone racing off to the best spawns. Military stuff spawns are lvl 5, so u get a mix of lvl 5 and lvl 4 zombies around those areas, and more of them (combined with that dinner bell effect from gunshots would make it real scary).

 

The fact that i could survive a zombie encounter after being a new spawn (usually i just let myself die now, when new respawn and encounter a zombie without a melee weapon, or walk away and go get a drink or go to the toilet.. encountering one without a melee weapon is at best a slow death sentence. Its only experience (dying in a spawning area many times before) to know how many zombies are in the area, and if i am able to sneak around them or get at spawn points that allows for any survival at the present.