Start with knife

[fewwdragon 2]

Hey. I am brand new to day z. I 've been playing about a week, the can opener topic really bothers me for two reason one my first life I died due  to starvation even though I had 5 cans of food, and two because I always have a knife on me (irl)... So this brings me to my suggestion all players should start with a knife. Having a good knife would be the very first thing I would do as a survivor, knives in the real world are so abundant that ever house would have some kind of sharp knife, there is no reason I should have to look for one. The suggested starting knife could be a pocketknife or a worn kitchen knife (since it's already in the game). It doesn't make sense to me that flashlights are trivial abundant but knives aren't.

[slider (DayZ) 26]

That would be to easy.

[Nicko2580 398]

Hey. I am brand new to day z. I 've been playing about a week, the can opener topic really bothers me for two reason one my first life I died due  to starvation even though I had 5 cans of food, and two because I always have a knife on me (irl)... So this brings me to my suggestion all players should start with a knife. Having a good knife would be the very first thing I would do as a survivor, knives in the real world are so abundant that ever house would have some kind of sharp knife, there is no reason I should have to look for one. The suggested starting knife could be a pocketknife or a worn kitchen knife (since it's already in the game). It doesn't make sense to me that flashlights are trivial abundant but knives aren't.

Most houses have already been looted (lore wise) so finding a knife in that situation might be harder than you think. 

I don't think you should start with anything personally. The flashlight I suppose is a necessity if you start on at night, but I usually just ditch it and keep the battery.

[enforcer1975 1111]

That would be to easy.

 

What he says is legit. You should be able to find knives or let's say kitchenware in almost every civilian house. You can't use every knife to open a can though or at least it will take long and there would be a chance for it to break it and/or cut yourself. And spilling food just because you didn't open the can with a proper can opener is also kind of gamey and stupid. You can pretty much open a can just fine, just be careful and it just takes longer.

 

Most houses have already been looted (lore wise) so finding a knife in that situation might be harder than you think. 

I don't think you should start with anything personally. The flashlight I suppose is a necessity if you start on at night, but I usually just ditch it and keep the battery.

 

I doubt anyone would take every knife. They would rather look for guns in a DayZ players case...

Edited February 19, 2014 by Enforcer

[DaedalRogue 83]

I think if they added a single slot pocket knife that has a chance to become "Ruined" and is useless when opening things like cans would be okay to start with. Or have it degrade rapidly when opening cans with it.

 

I personally carry a 3" pocket knife all the time. One of my co-workers called it a concealed weapon as I used it the other day to open boxes of new equipment. To me a pocket knife is a tool, not a weapon, so make it horrible for killing zeds and players with low damage but it'd be nice thing to have to begin with.

 

On a side not. I used a pocket knife, a pair of pliers, and screw driver to open a russian ammo can with 7.62x54R ammo in it. So it's very possible to do while opening cans, just gotta be really careful and be precise with your actions. But I seriously need to get the special russian can opener for those damn things the next time I need one open.

[mithrawndo 166]

I never carry a knife. I don't like this idea at all.

 

However I do approve of the idea of being able to rifle through cutlery drawers.

[Nicko2580 398]

 

 

I doubt anyone would take every knife. They would rather look for guns in a DayZ players case...

I was talking lore wise. It's been some time since the apocalypse hasn't it? It's likely that most easy to grab stuff has already been taken, according to lore. I still find it a bit silly walking into some places and finding the loot I do. I just think, "Surely... surely someone would have come along and taken that shotgun in the panic. It's not even hidden!"

[Korsbaek 1778]

They should be pretty easy to find, but one should definitely not spawn with them...

 

It would be bambi deathmatch! Oh wait, it already is.

[Pvt_Larry (DayZ) 98]

I always carry a swiss army knife (except airports and stuff, probably a bad idea), even in the game it wouldn't be useful as a weapon, you're not going to kill quickly with a 3-inch blade; but I think it could be used as a can opener and probably in crafting as well.

[pale1776 375]

Well I find it hard to bekieve that theyve only got the clothes on their backs several weeks/months after dayzero.

[Nicko2580 398]

Well I find it hard to bekieve that theyve only got the clothes on their backs several weeks/months after dayzero.

I've always assumed you washed up on the coast after a boat wreck personally... That would explain it.

[mithrawndo 166]

It's a tried and tested "literary" idea; there are several Infection/Zombie themed films, books and television series that have the protagonist enter the fictional world with nothing but the clothes on their back.

 

In 28 Days Later the poor guy walked out into the mayhem wearing nothing but a surgical gown.

I seem to remember The Walking Dead did something similar with Grimes

In Shaun of the Dead the only thing they had was a pen and a "henry"

In Dawn of the Dead (2004) she has to climb out of a window with nothing but the clothes on her back.

In fact I have to go back to the original 1978 version of said film before I find the protagonist armed with anything at all!

 

It's an alpha folks. Currently we have absolutely no back story, no introduction - nothing. I do presume they plan to set the scene a little more than just dropping us in blind.

[tester9000 3]

Starting with a knife is a terrible idea. What will be the point of picking up a screw driver or any item that is mostly worthless but able to open cans of food when there's a knife, presumably of pristine condition? Why pick up a baseball bat to whack a zombie when one could just go behind and stab it with a knife? why punch when there's a knife?

[cejota14 130]

I think knives should be more common. Not as a starting item like the shitty flashlight...but more common than axes at least. Even in the apocalypse, first thing I would grab would be my hunting knife. Small, easy to handle and carry...perfect defense item  :P

[fewwdragon 2]

Starting with a knife is a terrible idea. What will be the point of picking up a screw driver or any item that is mostly worthless but able to open cans of food when there's a knife, presumably of pristine condition? Why pick up a baseball bat to whack a zombie when one could just go behind and stab it with a knife? why punch when there's a knife?

 

The knife has been the utility tool since they were invented. Yes I agree you could do all these things with a knife but I would assume that doing any of these things would wear a knife quickly. I sharpen my knife frequently and I rarely use it. So maybe they shouldn't be starting equipment (still think a small pocket knife makes more sense than a flashlight which just feels gamey) but ... they should be every were and I know it's been discussed at length other places but not being able to open a can feels like an artificial limit of a game... if you were hungry you would open that can.

[DMentMan 707]

no, don´t want

[AP_Norris 1018]

I've always assumed you washed up on the coast after a boat wreck personally... That would explain it.

They need different spawns and just scrap the washed up onshore as just another spawn among many, waking up in a locked room EXTREMELY hungry with lots of empty cans of food (simulating a food hoarder that bunkered in and is now forced to leave his locked away hiding spot in search of food) there should also be a book and a rubbish bin in the corner full of shit just for fun.

Other spawn could be waking up in a newly spawned crashing chopper, (extremely rare, even deemed legendary spawn).

Any slightly better spawn, like inside a town/ near an airfield should come plagued with a hungry/ thirsty character.

[Lupine 14]

I say no to the Knife Idea (but I do understand) .. can openers are rare for a reason, but thats cool. I find that Axes will open cans.. (46% loss of food) machettes, and the kitchen knife will.. the kitchen knife only takes up 2 slots, but will wear with each can.. still it leaves u with about 78% of the cans contents, which is better than the Axe. you can open about 7-9 cans with a Pristine knife till it hits "ruined", one of those is usally my tempoary can opener until i find an opener... Remember you can eat powdered milk, rice and cereal if u find it (found powdered milk immedately on my last respawn. I would suspect though, rice will require cooking and water eventually ingame though, and cereal and milk require water. :D  

[bobotype3334 160]

They need different spawns and just scrap the washed up onshore as just another spawn among many, waking up in a locked room EXTREMELY hungry with lots of empty cans of food (simulating a food hoarder that bunkered in and is now forced to leave his locked away hiding spot in search of food) there should also be a book and a rubbish bin in the corner full of shit just for fun.

Other spawn could be waking up in a newly spawned crashing chopper, (extremely rare, even deemed legendary spawn).

Any slightly better spawn, like inside a town/ near an airfield should come plagued with a hungry/ thirsty character.

I really like this, actually, with a few adjustments.

The things that caused them to start playing from your perspective would be the ones that change their lifestyle, e.g. the hermit running out of food.

• "Castaway" spawn: Lying down on the beach wet, no equipment. Will have a mild cold problem initially.
• "Hermit" spawn: Generally in a remote bunker or cabin, with empty tins around as you said. Hunger and thirst is too prohibitive though [because navigation ain't always easy] so instead pretend they just ran fresh out of food and decided to move from their hideaway or die They will have a makeshift torch, the Cell Phone.
• "Crash survivor" spawn: In the wreckage of a car or even helicopter, having just regained consciousness. Mild injuries, but no broken bones, just a little blood loss. Still carrying Cell Phone. Not one of those people who's been in a car crash and comatose since day one, but more a person who found a car maybe a few hours earlier and WAS driving it until they met another car/the ground.

[Corto 34]

So, spawning out of nothing with a flashlight and a 9 volt battery is acceptable/realistic, but spawning with a survival knife (which are not Rambo like knives, but rather small and easy to carry on the belt) would make the game too easy (and you sissies feel bad about playing a game that's too easy) and it's unacceptable? Man, some people just pour too much jealousy into a game.

 

In real life, a survival knife is a terrible self defense/attack weapon and more of a tool to improvise fires, shelters or even better self defense weapons (wooden spears at the most). I don't see how it would make the game easier where everybody seems to be carrying state of the art M4 or at least firefighter axes.

Edited February 20, 2014 by Corto

[DURRHUNTER 597]

No. Bambi suicide and Bambi knife fests.

[fewwdragon 2]

I don't understand the bambi knife fest. Why would a fresh player kill other fresh players they don't have any gear is this something that happens a lot? I played for the first time last night with a large population and another newly spawn character started attacking me ... so I ran away. No issue there but I don't understand the reasoning why bambi attack one another?

[Corto 34]

Newly spawns may attack other newly spawns because they've seen videos in Youtube where some a-hole does that and they want to be "cool" too. I've seen a lot of people spawn killing for sport. Some even think they have the moral authority to kill server hoppers (even when their logic to decide who's server hopping is completely flawed). Anyway, a knife is only a good attack/defense weapon for trained people, for the rest of us is a bad idea to engage in a knife fight. So it should more of a tool than a weapon (unless you are playing Battlefield or Call of Duty, which have the most unrealistic use of knives I've ever seen).

[- Karma - 75]

So, spawning out of nothing with a flashlight and a 9 volt battery is acceptable/realistic, but spawning with a survival knife (which are not Rambo like knives, but rather small and easy to carry on the belt) would make the game too easy (and you sissies feel bad about playing a game that's too easy) and it's unacceptable?

 

-snip-

 

I agree personally, I'd rather see survivors start with nothing.  I think since low visibility wasn't optimized, the Devs felt they had to include torches for everyone otherwise players would have had a ridiculous time if spawning in on nighttime maps.  That was likely before the "gamma cheat" and "24/7 daytime servers" became realities. 

 

Now, I would honestly say either start the characters with nothing at all, or have a small pool of survival items of which one randomly spawns for each new spawn (ie matches, compass, pocket knife, flashlight w/ battery, canteen, etc)

[KarmaCoin 72]

I was talking lore wise. It's been some time since the apocalypse hasn't it? It's likely that most easy to grab stuff has already been taken, according to lore. 

 

Think about this. There is probably an average of at least 10 kitchen knives per house in every house in America. That makes for a total of 3 billion kitchen knives nation wide. With only a handful of people still alive (lets say 1 million) each person would have to loot 3000 knives in order for all the knives to have been looted. 

 

In the insanely unlikely event that this did somehow happen, the knives do not simply remove themselves from existence when they are looted. People have to put them somewhere. So it would follow that somewhere there is a house with a stack of kitchen knives 10 feet tall.

 

And yes, I am aware the game is in Russia, but my point is finding a knife in the apocalypse would be stupid easy because there are considerably more knives on the planet then there would be survivors.

Edited February 21, 2014 by KarmaCoin