More random events (like chopper crash sites)

[tobiassolem 173]

Updated: 2012-08-01

Comment: I have been thinking more about this idea, and I think I've fleshed it out further, now here is my basic thought:

A server starts at "DAY 0" (Day Zero) - basically what happens during Day 0 is that all cities of Chernarus are populated by civilian and military units alike, with no infection. What happens next is that in some lab in Berezino something goes wrong and an experimental virus is released into the populace. The virus spreads rapidly over the next few days, survival day length needs to mean more. Essentially at the beginning there will be news reports, and players will be able to witness the havoc, panic and the chaos of a society in an ongoing apocalypse. By day 7, Chernarus will look like it does now.

The idea is to make the game living, yet make time have more weight and value. There will be original survivors who were there from day 0, and there will be foreigners who come to Chernarus, simply by fleeing from neighbouring regions (this is how we motivate how new players come and go to Chernarus). Essentially a character's progression in this timeframe will be linear, but the events in that timeframe will be randomly generated - so no two servers will be alike. This will promote server loyalty and sticking to one server. You will still be able to jump between servers, but events that have occured on one server may not have on the other.

Essentially it will boil down to larger events (such as Day 0) and smaller events. Each server will be listed by what day it is, the server can be reset (either by the hive, or by the admin) to replay day 0 for that specific server. When this is done, everything on that server starts from day 0 (but equipment is kept). There are only three ways a server (or a list of servers) can be reset do day 0, they are: 1. Server admin decides to reset it, 2. Hive decides to reset it (such as when a new patch is added), 3. Anti-virus has been developed and administered successfully.

Larger events:

Starting point: Day 0 - (Read the introduction of the post)

1. Anti-virus activities have begun developing, a list of (randomly generated) ingredients has been spawned (on a corpse) - these ingredients need to be allocated (gathered) to start creating an anti-virus formula (as according to the same scientists that created the infection itself). Regardless if players find and are able to mix these ingredients, there is but a small chance that this formula will be successful. The final dosage needs to be administered to one of the infected, and that infected needs to survive and interact for long enough with other infected to be able to spread the cure (the same way the infection was spread). If any of these factors fail (such as, someone killing the z in question, or the players getting out (and despawning the infected in question) everything fails. This event can only occur once by random.

2. - More to come here, when I've thought further on this idea.

Smaller events:

An "encounter" would spawn at random coordinates on the map (unless it is a specific encounter that occurs [for instance] in a city.

1. "Resupply box (attached to a parachute) lies crashed open in the middle of the wilderness, what goods lie therein?"

2. "The lost platoon, a smaller lost group of militarymen are haplessly wandering the area, morale is extremely low, they've lost their SSG and many friends to zombie attacks - they will shoot anything and anyone on sight out of fear that they are infected".

3. "Remnants of a dead civilization", adding to the atmosphere and horror you find corpses/skeletons and remnants of civilians who fled to the woods but starved to death, they left behind them dolls, suitcases and what they could carry with them. One or more of them now stalk the location as a living dead.

4. "Radio mast" - a 15 meter tall radio mast is seen among the trees, connected to a camouflaged tent, inside is a radio connected with a tape that is set to repeat a "Mayday"-message warning anyone on the same radio channel not to enter the towns. (In the appropriate language (subtitled for the player to see)) - a small group of soldiers lie scattered around the radio, all dead by gunshot wounds to their backs. Their gear lie scattered in the tent.

5. (Conditioned on non-rain) "A forest fire" - For some reason the forest in a location is on fire making it impossible to travel through there.

6. "Radiation", in the middle of nowhere radiation start affecting you, you first get nausea, then start vomiting and your skin start to open wounds. As the effect is "creeping" as you get closer to the source you might get too far into it to survive.

7. "Dead zombies in a pool of water", a pool of water full of dead zombies, (HINT: DO NOT FILL YOUR WATER BOTTLE HERE) - flies buzz around and if your body temperature is too low you will most definitely get a disease if you step too close.

8. "Abandoned campsite" - An abandoned campsite with a lit fire and a tent nearby, slabs of meat hung over the fireplace, but no one there - did they leave in a hurry?

9. "Mass graves" - you encounter a sight that brings back memories of the horrors of concentration camps, pit after pit after pit full with corpses, and droves of zombies walking around. This must've been done before people became too extinct.

10. Gas powered generator outside a building in the middle of a town is running, and all lights are on, and inside there's a TV turned on to a dead station, and a radio tuned to a dead station. Who started it up?

Basically more random events will make the wilderness seem more "alive" than currently.

Edited August 1, 2012 by fisk

[MasterZ 90]

Random events would make the world feel more alive and that is something I endorse.

I like the idea of boxes dropped by a plane that never got picked up, not a big fan of military personal that shoots everything on sight. Not to forget that I assume only hardened veterans would survive among these conditions. Their priorities would be elsewhere and not about wandering aimlessly and killing survivors that might be a valuable asset. ;)

Maybe flesh out your suggestion with more ideas?

[Torndeco (DayZ) 46]

Maybe a random cargo drop via a C-130J.

Make it an encounter that a server gets atleast one a week, that gets assign to it by the hive server.

So once a week a solo C-130J flys overhead lowish & drops off supplys via parachute outside one of the coastal towns.

Imagine your at cherno & hearing planes overhead with supplys dropping nearby, or u just fresh spawned..

What do u do, run to the supplys, kill those at the supplys, run away ???

[tobiassolem 173]

Random events would make the world feel more alive and that is something I endorse.

I like the idea of boxes dropped by a plane that never got picked up, not a big fan of military personal that shoots everything on sight. Not to forget that I assume only hardened veterans would survive among these conditions. Their priorities would be elsewhere and not about wandering aimlessly and killing survivors that might be a valuable asset. ;)

Maybe flesh out your suggestion with more ideas?

I will take your feedback into consideration and update OP when I've come up with some more ideas.

[spinager 152]

Maybe a random cargo drop via a C-130J.

Make it an encounter that a server gets atleast one a week, that gets assign to it by the hive server.

So once a week a solo C-130J flys overhead lowish & drops off supplys via parachute outside one of the coastal towns.

Imagine your at cherno & hearing planes overhead with supplys dropping nearby, or u just fresh spawned..

What do u do, run to the supplys, kill those at the supplys, run away ???

I don't like the idea of a set position. Have it happen in an open area, any where on the map. Only a rare few may be able to see the plane pass by and dropping it.

[tobiassolem 173]

Updated OP.

[tobiassolem 173]

Updated OP.