How to farm loot. A guide to collecting what you want. (Outdated)

[U.B.C.S. Ravin 326]

This Guide is currently up-to-date with 1.7.2.3 This guide maybe outdated with 1.7.2.4

There is a rumor that loot now checks to see if anyone is within 30m inside of a building. This would require every individual to leave a building for loot to properly refresh and recycle. I have yet to have a post to confirm however that loot respawns without touching a loot pile. (Old loot is automatically cleared out regardless of interference from the player.) I see this as a positive change and making gathering equipment much more dangerous. It is good to see steps being taken to improve loot mechanics.

I do not recommend reading this thread if you like to be immersed in Day-Z or do not like PVP. The guidelines below are an explanation of how I think loot mechanics work for 1.7.2.3. This is subject to change as new updates are released. Just as some people do not like loot maps or chopper maps, this falls under the same category.

I recommend taking a peek at this thread for a Weapon Chart to see what kind of weapon you might want. Big credit to Izviral

Hey everyone. I am going to be writing a guide to how to properly farm or generate loot from buildings. This guide will break down into several phases. Character Spawns, Distance, and Clearing a building.

When you character spawns into an area, loot will not generate if you are within 30m of a structure. Coming into a buildings location within 200m will start to cause the building to spawn Zeds. That person whoever is closest will START to generate loot. Loot is connected to one individual. Sometimes, if you get to close to a building, before ten minutes of Zeds spawning, Loot will not generate because you got too close to the structure and the items inside are connected to you.

Clearing a building (BESIDES Copter crashes) is an easy job, it is preferred you have more than one person, but one will do just fine. In order for loot to respawn properly, you will need to pick up everything in the one loot spot and drop it off somewhere else. This includes Tin Cans or Whiskey Bottles. Inside you can start your own trash pile. If you do not CLEAR a building out of EVERYTHING inside of it, that loot will NEVER despawn until the next server restart. This is important. Clear out everything from the generated loot piles in buildings. More loot piles cleared = More Loot chances.

If you are alone, you will need to exit whatever building you are clearing and either go somewhere else, or camp outside of it further away than 30m. Keep in mind if you leave 200m of a building, Zed's will despawn and the loot will not generate.

If you have more than two people in your group. Both individuals need to log out or be further than 200m away. The person who is covering or has the loot tied to their personal character timer, needs to sign in first or be closer to the 200m range before the second person going in to clear the building gets too close. That person then needs to inform the individual who will be CLEARING the building that zombies are now spawning. This indicates the zombies are tied to the first person. The individual should now go in or move within 200m of the building, sit in a safe spot, wait, and loot will start to spawn within ten minutes. Pick up loot, keep what you want and dump what you don't need in the trash pile you have started.

This is a great effective way to farm just about anything besides Heli-copter loot. I hope you enjoyed this guide to collecting and farming loot.

Cheers, Ravin.

Edit - Keep in mind whenever you are farming high valued targets, (Barracks, Tents, Firestation, Vybor, Starry, NWairfield, Ect.) People will know you are there and you will /always/ be at a disadvantage. You better be ready for a firefight and put those barbed wire, tank traps, and sandbags to good use. You will need it.

Edit 2

Having looked through the dayz files' date=' it appears that the loot respawns are on a 10 minute timer from when the pile originally spawned as well. Thought you might want to include that in your OP if you can confirm it.

[/quote']

Adjusted five-ten minute suggestion to ten minutes solid.

Edit 3 - Fixed some errors and random miswording. Explained it a little better and cleaned up the explanation. Updated for 1.7.2.3

Edit 4 - Appears to still be working in 1.7.2.3. Have a Video.

Edit 5 - As a lot of people complained about how "This is an Exploit." You can finally rest assured that, it is indeed NOT an exploit. As Rocket himself says "It is a poor loot mechanic system and he needs to tweak and adjust it." Which I am in full support of and glad that he has notice his loot mechanic needs adjustment. Skip to 8:45

www.youtube.com/watch?v=6BlHvh0JVuk

Edited August 15, 2012 by U.B.C.S. Ravin

[okano666@hotmail.co.uk 81]

might aswell make a guide to server hoping too bet its right up your back alley

[tuleg1t 50]

farming is not the same as hopping..

[U.B.C.S. Ravin 326]

I frown deeply upon server hopping. However, why would I do that when thats highly ineffective and rather easy way to get shot in the back? I much rather keep my tanktraps all over the airfield and kill server hoppers or throw them into debug forest and collect their loot when they die from doing that?

Before you post I recommend reading.

[nooblord 8]

gtfo

5

[Superior 9]

Well this is fucking lame. If you don't find any loot, give it up and try another building. Don't be a fucking idiot and try to get pass these counter measurements.

Smh, people.

[Blippy 26]

might aswell make a guide to server hoping too bet its right up your back alley

Loot cycling is not the same as server hopping.

[Superior 9]

mfw people don't understand "right up/down your back/alley", foreigners.

[U.B.C.S. Ravin 326]

Well this is fucking lame. If you don't find any loot' date=' give it up and try another building. Don't be a fucking idiot and try to get pass these counter measurements.

Smh, people.

[/quote']

You can indeed, but if you don't clear a building out, loot will NEVER respawn. Loot will not GENERATE but loot inside a structure will stay generated, thus eventually any city will strangulate and not have weapons, food, or items worth taking.

Normally, I clear out several industral buildings for barbed wire, tank traps, and car parts, then important apartment buildings and loop around in full so I have several buildings on a single timer generating loot. Keeping me busy.

[Superior 9]

Oh. I thought this was a case of hoarding loot for your squad. I understand the loot strangulation on your part, though that is weird and awkwardly scripted then.

[Hawk24 94]

So basically to "farm" a single deerstand all I have to do is wait 50-80m outside of it and the deerstand will keep spawning items as long as I either take them or drop them off in a trashpile?

[Cappy (DayZ) 6]

Op you are dead inside,. your a husk of a gamer that could have been. Why even play the game, to be honest I'm not even sure you do.

Do you just stick to one spot, farm up everything you need,. and then,... what?

The main reason for traveling to dangerous places and about is to acquire loot, while making a choice between risk and reward, you have none of that.

you've taken a fantastic and trilling experience and made it dull.

hello i am fun, you have killed me.

[U.B.C.S. Ravin 326]

No. We don't horde. But it will get to a point you will feel like you are hording... We found in the last few days 3 M107's, 2 NVG's, a Range Finder, 3 SVD's, 2 M4A3 Holos, bunch of Misc' loot. Over 30 or so barbed wire, tank traps, and various other industral parts. 10+ tents, too much canned food... several sets of ghillie and camo suits.

[tuleg1t 50]

Op you are dead inside' date='. your a husk of a gamer that could have been. Why even play the game, to be honest I'm not even sure you do.

Do you just stick to one spot, farm up everything you need,. and then,... what?

The main reason for traveling to dangerous places and about is to acquire loot, while making a choice between risk and reward, you have none of that.

you've taken a fantastic and trilling experience and made it dull.

hello i am fun, you have killed me.

[/quote']

You will never get all of what you need in one place. You will still go into other areas just like everyone else, who are you to say he isn't still having a fantastic thrilling experience?

Farming is still putting yourself in an area for a period of time leaving you vulnerable to other players and zombies alike. You are not cheaply going server to server finding what you need and disappearing. You are working for the gear in a certain area with the risk involved of dying.

[Never 237]

No. We don't horde. But it will get to a point you will feel like you are hording... We found in the last few days 3 M107's' date=' 2 NVG's, a Range Finder, 3 SVD's, 2 M4A3 Holos, bunch of Misc' loot. Over 30 or so barbed wire, tank traps, and various other industral parts. 10+ tents, too much canned food... several sets of ghillie and camo suits.

[/quote']

Because your exploiting the loot spawns.

[U.B.C.S. Ravin 326]

Op you are dead inside' date='. your a husk of a gamer that could have been. Why even play the game, to be honest I'm not even sure you do.

Do you just stick to one spot, farm up everything you need,. and then,... what?

The main reason for traveling to dangerous places and about is to acquire loot, while making a choice between risk and reward, you have none of that.

you've taken a fantastic and trilling experience and made it dull.

hello i am fun, you have killed me.

[/quote']

Considering one of our farming spots is in the most dangerious spots in the map. Vybor, Starry and NW Airfield., we clear out every city and go LOOKING for players.

If anything, this makes you more paranoid because you have to clear out every single building, barracks, tent, and apartment or whatever you want in hopes loot will respawn.

You misunderstand the post greatly and over-assume a guide to a players tactics. I will have a lot of fun, and do. I hope you have fun too.

---

So basically to "farm" a single deerstand all I have to do is wait 50-80m outside of it and the deerstand will keep spawning items as long as I either take them or drop them off in a trashpile?

Yes.

@ Never - There is a big difference between loot cycling and exploiting. That's like saying 'I only go into cities I see way off in the distance with zombies because a player IS in there, then snipe them and laugh.' Loot is randomized and cleaned out, we don't know what we are getting as anyone else does.

[zorkmid 2]

Is it alright for a server admin to reset at his leisure and then drive around to all of the Heli crash sites, and then repeat?

[daze23 549]

If you don't find any loot' date=' give it up and try another building.

[/quote']

yep. anything else is an exploit IMO

[Cappy (DayZ) 6]

The fact you make this 'guide' makes me laugh

We all know that loot re-spawns in a certain way, you not clever for figuring it out ( although posting this thread seems that your looking for congratulations or admiration ).

However most of us who play know that the reason for loot re-spawning isn't that so it can be farmed by a single group that stay in one place, its so after a location had been looted and left by a group/person, it will re-spawn random loot again for the next player who comes across the location.

Consider this, for loot to re-spawn you have to leave the area by a certain distance, why do you think that is? to make you farmers get exorcize? of course not, its a mechanic to make loot appear for the next person

your simply abusing the mechanics of the game, your a cheater, plain and simple.

Yes it can be done,. just like you can snipe people as the spawn in off the coast,. but should it be done?? fuck no.

[U.B.C.S. Ravin 326]

If you don't find any loot' date=' give it up and try another building.

[/quote']

yep. anything else is an exploit IMO

If you don't clear a building out' date=' loot will NEVER respawn. Loot will not GENERATE but loot inside a structure will stay generated, thus eventually any city will strangulate and not have weapons, food, or items worth taking.

[/quote']

@ Crappy - Once loot is generated, it will never spawn anything else. So if you run into a marketplace with all tin cans, you will never see anything else but tin cans until someone picks it up. You are assuming loot despawns. It never does. You should do a bit of research.

I also don't need a congratulations or admiration. I am merely explaining how to clean out a building and how loot generates in Day-Z.

Only bad bandits snipe on the coast.

[Techercizer 82]

Interesting and informative guide, OP. This answers many questions I've had about the loot spawn mechanics, and gives hard numbers to distances I had only approximated in theory.

I don't plan to use this much, but I do find it fascinating. Thanks for posting.

[tuleg1t 50]

The fact you make this 'guide' makes me laugh

We all know that loot re-spawns in a certain way' date=' you not clever for figuring it out ( although posting this thread seems that your looking for congratulations or admiration ).

However most of us who play know that the reason for loot re-spawning isn't that so it can be farmed by a single group that stay in one place, its so after a location had been looted and left by a group/person, it will re-spawn random loot again for the next player who comes across the location.

Consider this, for loot to re-spawn you have to leave the area by a certain distance, why do you think that is? to make you farmers get exorcize? of course not, its a mechanic to make loot appear for the next person

your simply abusing the mechanics of the game, your a cheater, plain and simple.

Yes it can be done,. just like you can snipe people as the spawn in off the coast,. but should it be done?? fuck no.

[/quote']

So, by your definition, i have to loot a place and leave and never come back to it?

[Daddy'o 4]

I'm not going to go in to the moral of this topic, but I will go in to the fact that it's full of wrong statements and misinformation.

Loot works in cycles.

Actually, don't take my word for it. Take Rockets:

"When your character is near a building, your game (I shall refer to as client) checks the building to see when loot was last spawned. If it was spawned, and is old, it will delete that equipment (cleanup) and then let the building sit empty for a while. If you or another client comes along after that time has passed, it will then generate loot."

This is why you don't find loot in all buildings, because it deleted old loot when you approached. And the loot certainly does not stick until next server reboot.

I suggest you fix it if you plan on spreading this as a guide.

source: http://dayzmod.com/forum/showthread.php?tid=686&pid=6313#pid6313

All you really need to do in order to farm loot is, go in, solo or in a group, pick the loot piles empty, drop em elsewhere, even next to the original piles works, then just run out about 100-200 meters, come back in 5 minutes, rince and repeat.

Nothing else to it. Approaching an emptied out loot location always causes new spawns.

And I should know, done it like that a good lot.

[Cappy (DayZ) 6]

The fact you make this 'guide' makes me laugh

We all know that loot re-spawns in a certain way' date=' you not clever for figuring it out ( although posting this thread seems that your looking for congratulations or admiration ).

However most of us who play know that the reason for loot re-spawning isn't that so it can be farmed by a single group that stay in one place, its so after a location had been looted and left by a group/person, it will re-spawn random loot again for the next player who comes across the location.

Consider this, for loot to re-spawn you have to leave the area by a certain distance, why do you think that is? to make you farmers get exorcize? of course not, its a mechanic to make loot appear for the next person

your simply abusing the mechanics of the game, your a cheater, plain and simple.

Yes it can be done,. just like you can snipe people as the spawn in off the coast,. but should it be done?? fuck no.

[/quote']

So, by your definition, i have to loot a place and leave and never come back to it?

Not at all, where did you read that?

[U.B.C.S. Ravin 326]

@ Tul - Not even logical. Even if you never come back to a loot spawn, that loot will forever be the same UNTIL someone picks it up. Meaning that tin can you saw in the market forever ago and you needed canned food, will never be anything else BUT a tin can until you pick up the tin can.

@ Daddy - That post is two months old with several patches done to the game to fix loot. Loot will never despawn from a building. I suggest you try it. We waited over eight hours for loot to despawn once in a market, ran away to Starry from Vybor, came back to Vybor four hours later, no new loot.

Now, maybe thats unintended. But loot doesn't despawn until the server restarts.