The Problem With Blood

[Zithon 18]

Ok, after playing this game for two and a half days now I have a big question.

I play solo since none of my friends play DayZ and this causes my games to fall into a pattern:

1. Spawn and sneak past zombies.

2. Find weapon.

3. Find basic gear.

4. Lose 30% blood.

5. Get knocked down by zombie and lose 90% of blood.

6. Have no way to recover on my own.

7. Die.

Occasionally change step 4 to "Encounter other survivor, get shot and die."

Now up until step 6 I am fine with the mechanics of the game. Its a survival game so being in a tight spot is just fine. But having almost no way to recover is just... Annoying.

I can bandage myself and treat fractures but have almost no way of recovering blood without outside assistance. I have tried to find meat to cook but so far have only found a single goat (during any game where I managed to find matches). And considering Id need to kill 3 goats go gain any real amount of blood...

So my question is: Why is playing the game solo so unforgiving as opposed to playing co-op? Why add the advantage of being able to restore blood to co-op players in addition to the normal perks of playing co-op (more firepower, ability to resuscitate unconscious players, etc.)?

Anyway, I just wanted to get this off my chest as I am once again stuck in outside a small town with less than 1000 blood and no way to get more.

[nathanroney@gmail.com 5]

"Why is playing the game solo so unforgiving as opposed to playing co-op?"

Uh... You're playing solo. That's why. It's not going to get any better unless you're capable of teaming up with somebody. That's how it would be in real life, that's how it is here.

[Mustard (DayZ) 20]

get a hunting knife matches and a hatchet....kill an animal gut it cook the meat, problem solved

[sp86 508]

"Why is playing the game solo so unforgiving as opposed to playing co-op?"

Uh... You're playing solo. That's why. It's not going to get any better unless you're capable of teaming up with somebody. That's how it would be in real life, that's how it is here.

Nature rewards mutualism. Cooperation is a very effective survival mechanism.

[BigFatJohnSon 16]

get a hunting knife matches and a hatchet....kill an animal gut it cook the meat, problem solved

this all you need to do

[Lumberjack (DayZ) 60]

Suck it up.

For one be more cautious with your encounters, on average in a bad loot run for supplies I,ll lose maybe 2000 blood tops.

Basically without sounding like an arrogant ass, you just got to be more carefull particularly as a solo player.

Ive played for days on my own and probably had to recover 6000 blood in that time it's easy enough once your used to the mechanics.

My preferred source of meat is wild boars, whilst cows give the greatest yield of meats they are in open fields leaving me exposed to getting sniped. Let's say I hit up Zelenogorsk market and lose a couple thou bloods I,ll run to the woods in the west now if I run for a km throughout that wood its pretty rare I do not find a couple of wild pigs.

[Zithon 18]

"Why is playing the game solo so unforgiving as opposed to playing co-op?"

Uh... You're playing solo. That's why. It's not going to get any better unless you're capable of teaming up with somebody. That's how it would be in real life, that's how it is here.

So the official position is "If you have no friends who play DayZ: F**k you."?

Also where are you likely to find animals? I have run from Cherno to the airfield four times and roamed the woods to the east and west for hours and found only one goat.

[sp86 508]

So the official position is "If you have no friends who play DayZ: F**k you."?

Also where are you likely to find animals? I have run from Cherno to the airfield four times and roamed the woods to the east and west for hours and found only one goat.

They spawn randomly in fields and forests typically away from towns (though they can spawn on the outskirts of farm towns).

[Zithon 18]

They spawn randomly in fields and forests typically away from towns (though they can spawn on the outskirts of farm towns).

So iv just been unlucky then? FML =D

[Luke G 4]

So the official position is "If you have no friends who play DayZ: F**k you."?

Also where are you likely to find animals? I have run from Cherno to the airfield four times and roamed the woods to the east and west for hours and found only one goat.

Making friends on DayZ is easier than you think! Ask if anyone would like to team up on the forums then use Skype or Teamspeak to chat with them. Hell, you could even use in-game voice chat once you find the,

[Lumberjack (DayZ) 60]

So the official position is "If you have no friends who play DayZ: F**k you."?

Also where are you likely to find animals? I have run from Cherno to the airfield four times and roamed the woods to the east and west for hours and found only one goat.

It sucks at first but after a while you'll get used to finding animals, you just got to get a feel for what you,ll find and where you will find it. Like I said for me at least the woods to the West of Zelenogorsk market is always a good place for wild boar. In the fields south-south west of starry you will find goats and maybe a cow. Fields around Vybor can also yield cows.

And the official position is not if you have no friends then screw you, playing solo is fine but of course the difficulty is a little higher.

[sp86 508]

So iv just been unlucky then? FML =D

My group is up to fifteen now, we never have a problem hunting enough meat. I'd say head north. Cherno and Electro are effectively turning into death match arenas, and the hillsides are swarming with veteran bandits looking for easy kills. I'd say hunt the death bowl north of kamenka or hit up the interior.

[ragen666 0]

If you want to team up with me and my friends, as were looking for a few more players to play with, come and join us on our teamspeak server

ts60.gamespeak.com:9215

we also play EVE online and have our own corp. were done for the night, but we'll be on tomorrow! my name on ts is Chris (CJ). hit me up if you wanna play.

[SleepingHellion 1]

actually, I do agree that blood is trouble to get, as it should be. I really think there should be some way to transfuse yourself with blood, perhaps at a cost, or with a hard-to-find tool. Perhaps you don't get as much blood when you do it by yourself.

[Bizmal 19]

get a hunting knife matches and a hatchet....kill an animal gut it cook the meat, problem solved

This is correct, I kill every animal I see even if I don't need it at the time. Different animals give different results. I find sheep to extremely helpful.

[Zithon 18]

Also my original question hasnt really been answered (beyond "it just is that way"). Why make solo so much harder? Id imagine the problem for co-op players isnt losing blood but finding enough blood packs to sustain the two of you (as with food, water and ammo).

That the game is meant to be harder solo I understand and think is great. Just wondering what is the reasoning as to why the difficulty has to come from different mechanics. Why not make blood packs restore 3000 or so blood and enable use of them on yourself? As they are only found in helo crash sites and in hospitals they will still be rare and take up enough space that finding enough may be problematic.

What I am talking about are game mechanics, the source of difficulty are different for the two kinds of players; finding and carrying enough for co-op players and not losing any in the first place for solo players. I am asking if there is any cause of this? An artificial way to force people to play co-op? And if so why not go the full way and make it impossible to bandage or give morphine to yourself?

As for realism I cant see why giving a blood transfusion to yourself should be impossible. And is going at it alone harder IRL? Yes, of course it is! Two people can do more work, help each other if they get incapacitated and carry more firepower.

EDIT: To make myself even more clear: Why do co-op players get this artificial advantage over solo players? Shouldnt the natural advantages of playing co-op be enough? Why this powerful extra ability?

Edited July 26, 2012 by Zithon

[Lumberjack (DayZ) 60]

Zithon it's just harder solo, and not being able to give a transfusion solo whilst maybe not accurate presents an interesting dynamic to the game, I,e the need to seek out assistance in your fellow man.

I think it's a genius move, being a soloist just means you got to adapt, I find it so intense I,m literally nervous the whole time, when I find a heli wreck the urge to check it out is so great but with no cover I just do not know what is lurking in the tree lines, maybe a ghillie suited player with 50.cal

I,m happiest and more relaxed once I have some of my group online and we can move in a group, yet I,m also cool to play for days on end solo.

You have realised that being in a co-operative of players will help a great deal so go out there and find a group, or stick to the forest hunting animals and drinking from puddles for weeks on end.

[Bramacgar 5]

get a hunting knife matches and a hatchet....kill an animal gut it cook the meat, problem solved

A thousand times this.

These 3 items are basically end game. Toss in a water bottle or two and you're pretty much all set.

Hatchet wielding players can be the end to a lot of people in this game.

New players always try to aim for the big weapons. They should try to find these items and work their way up.

And when you think you're safe. You're not. Sneak better. Close doors. Hide bodies. Take caution. Check everywhere. Keep moving.

[Zithon 18]

Zithon it's just harder solo, and not being able to give a transfusion solo whilst maybe not accurate presents an interesting dynamic to the game, I,e the need to seek out assistance in your fellow man.

I think it's a genius move, being a soloist just means you got to adapt, I find it so intense I,m literally nervous the whole time, when I find a heli wreck the urge to check it out is so great but with no cover I just do not know what is lurking in the tree lines, maybe a ghillie suited player with 50.cal

I,m happiest and more relaxed once I have some of my group online and we can move in a group, yet I,m also cool to play for days on end solo.

You have realised that being in a co-operative of players will help a great deal so go out there and find a group, or stick to the forest hunting animals and drinking from puddles for weeks on end.

Ok, so what you are saying is "Yes, it is an artificial way of forcing players together." Which you may like or dislike. That is all I wanted to know, thanks =D

[Littleassassin2 73]

So the official position is "If you have no friends who play DayZ: F**k you."?

Also where are you likely to find animals? I have run from Cherno to the airfield four times and roamed the woods to the east and west for hours and found only one goat.

In raiding the military tents last night at the airstrip above Krasnostav, i counted 3 cows and 1 goat. Unusual yes but w/e, we took it and shot a cow and goat. I don't reccomend going if you're alone though, sniper heaven. Or if you do go, go on a very not populated server

[Zithon 18]

In raiding the military tents last night at the airstrip above Krasnostav, i counted 3 cows and 1 goat. Unusual yes but w/e, we took it and shot a cow and goat. I don't reccomend going if you're alone though, sniper heaven. Or if you do go, go on a very not populated server

I go on low pop servers most of the time. Currently my meat supply is ok but I nearly went insane getting it.

First I find a chicken and kill it for one meat (yay!), then a goat and kill it, but something glitches and I only get one piece off it. Then I find a cow and because I only have two rounds left in my AKM I stop and crouch to wait for my hands to stop shaking from running. Then just as I am about to shoot... The cow despawns. Yeah, FML.

Now, just after finding a nice helo wreck (which contained 2x FN FAL and a L85A2 AWS, hell yes!) I finally found a cow and dropped it with one FAL shot. And it didnt glitch. So... Yay... Guess Iv just been horribly unlucky.

[itscjftw@hotmail.co.uk 3]

The survivor section of this forum is full of people looking to team up. Saying 'I don't have any friends who play DayZ' is a poor excuse for complaining about blood in the game. So, say for example, you do find someone on the forums to play with and he turns out to be a bad apple, so what? You're at no loss to what situation you'd be in without him, you said yourself you've been dying from zombies or players, this isn't anything out of the usual. You'll find a good player or group of players eventually.

[Zithon 18]

The survivor section of this forum is full of people looking to team up. Saying 'I don't have any friends who play DayZ' is a poor excuse for complaining about blood in the game. So, say for example, you do find someone on the forums to play with and he turns out to be a bad apple, so what? You're at no loss to what situation you'd be in without him, you said yourself you've been dying from zombies or players, this isn't anything out of the usual. You'll find a good player or group of players eventually.

You have missed my point... I am not saying "ooh, its too hard", Im saying "I think that making blood transfusions be a co-op only is a bad and artificial way of forcing people to play co-op". Saying I dont have any friends who play DayZ is just to explain why I havnt played co-op since the start.

[damiclipse 1]

I'll play with you.

[DinDae 1]

You can get blood from eating( 200 ), so go to a supermarket or hunt animals.