Roaming zombie "hoards"

[sudZ! 115]

A la Kirkman's "The Walking Dead" comic series. It would be awesome (and downright terrifying) to crest a hill and see 50+ zombos shuffling along together on their way to wherever zombos go. It would add another element to zombie difficulty, and would certainly result in some ridiculous circumstances (running into a horde and leading them towards a bandit camp!)

Edited August 8, 2012 by sudZ!

[izodn 37]

Seeing as the "Zombies" are always referred to as "Infected" by the dev-team, this is entirely possible. A technical downside is that the 50+ infected would have to be handled by the server seeing as not everyone has fast enough processors to handle that many. As it is now, a persons computer is in control of the infected that spawn when your character gets close enough. So if the 50+ infected all spawned on your CPU, there'd be many issues.

On a legitimacy side, they're infected, so they're still "human" in some way. The infected are just that, infected. With what, we don't know 100% yet. They still COULD have some motor control or leadership qualities.

I like this idea. Some people want special zombies, but I think an infection isn't a mutation, they should be left out of this series. A horde however, seems awesome and challenging at the same time. It can give fear to the well-geared walking through a forest.

[GeordieMarv 293]

I'd like to see stuff lke this too.

I guess we will have to wait and see what the new stand alone game engine is capable of.

Whether that is the ArmA2/ArmA3/VBS or a totally new engine, remains to be seen.

I'd also like the infected to just be proper zombies that everyone knows and loves. More Romero/Walking Dead style.

Would love to see zombies decaying with limbs missing etc. Alot more variation too, male..female, children.

Whatever they end up as, i hope the fear and horror aspect is there. :thumbsup:

Edited August 7, 2012 by GeordieMarv

[sudZ! 115]

yeah my suggestion is rooted in the idea that we're getting a standalone game at some point. ARMA II's engine definitely isn't up to the task at this point.

It would certainly make the most sense to have the zombies processed server side and obviously rendered client side.

Having unique zombies would be cool too, they could just be zombie leaders. So if you've got a pack chasing you and you take out the leader, the rest of them cannot see you/hear you as well. I presume it wouldn't be all that hard to figure out.

[kingworks 1]

I like the idea, but fear the technical limitations/requirements.

[libertine 351]

I'd like to see stuff lke this too.

I guess we will have to wait and see what the new stand alone game engine is capable of.

Whether that is the ArmA2/ArmA3/VBS or a totally new engine, remains to be seen.

:thumbsup:

If its any engine related to the Arma engine, goooooooooooooooooooooooood luck with that............. I've been playing since Operation Flashpoint and they have always had horrible net code....and it is, so we'll need a miracle.

[Zetal 90]

A 'hoard' is a large collection of items.

A 'horde' is a large group of people or creatures.

Besides that, I think everyone wants more zeds, whether they're running or walking, but it's a matter of server load.

[sudZ! 115]

lol... thanks Zetal. Good catch...

Servers can currently handle HUNDREDS of spawned zombies at a time. Maybe the HORDES don't need to be 50, that was a completely arbitrary number, but they could handle 20 or so in one spot in a few locations around the map. If you've ever blaze of gloried into a town, you know that 20 is a small number of zombies to have going in the same area... Hopefully a new game comes with the ability to make this happen!

[Lt.Angel 0]

Sry to be a bitch, but im posting this in 2 locations (both threads gave me the idea)

Zombie hords and player zombies fit together pretty nicely.

I think the option to turn into a Z based how long u were alive is a very good idea (maybe 3 hrs thou)

And if they were identical to NPC zombies i have a few ideas on how to make them fair for players too avoid them like normal.

1. zombies only see in grey scale (black n white)

2. they can only move at zombie idle speed untill a player comes into range, maybe they get a blood lust and can then run with an audio que "moan" so the surviver knows they just got "agro" from a player zombie ..... maybe if the zombie hears shots fired it can get the run buff from further away??? (like agro range of NPC zombies)

3. still no running inside for player zombies (walking only)

4. Zombie players need to feed at the same rate as survivers. (corpses, animals and ppl)

Now whats fun about being a zombie, I got this idea form the post about "zombie hords"

1. maybe a player zombie has a "moan" to rally other zombies into a group (60 sec cooldown maybe)

2. can regain health from corpses u didnt kill urself

3. No-one can tell ur a player!!! (unless they spot the "moaner" )

4. can move using all 3 zombie animations, walking, crawling, and leg draging

So it could play out like this... you enter a town and already see zombies so u know somone is here, but you wont know if its a surviver or a zombie player. You listen for the moaner and hear nothing. The zombie player spots u far off and starts casualy wondering in ur direction trying not to be to obviouse (he cant run at range) You do ur normal looting while the player zombie avoids entering the house you are in. When u exit the zombie player gets the bloodlust speed and lets out the moan drawing in more zombies. If u can run out of range or kite them around ur ok (you can lose them) but when u turn around to pick off the Z player the mob has closed in and u cant tell which one to shoot now.

So its up to the Z player to use the mob for cover, maybe rally enough to block off a door way. But they still cant just run inside, upstairs with tones of Z's and own u (there still slow inside) they dont have weapons and do little solo damage. Even if they camp newbie spawns, somone has to spawn in the 30m range b4 they can chase them. If they rally other Z's u can hear it. Zombies use ur mobs to hide in and dont look suscpiouse.

Would be rly kool to come across town or an open field to see a hord of zombies shambling along slow waiting for somone to get in range.

[Lt.Angel 0]

And just a small note about the zombie variation that might be added ..... plz do not add children zombies, i cant handle that :S

[ScienceMan 9]

I like the idea of zombie hordes roaming around. My brother and I had this idea as we talked on skype with a penny shoved in the keyboard to let us "auto-run" from NW airfield to Berezino. I think a roaming horde would spice up the more mundane long treks.

I don't think the "become a zombie" idea is very good. It seems like it takes away from the realism and depth of the game. However, I do agree there needs to be better zombie AI which should come with the standalone game...

I just see groups of zombie people working together and planning, and this is something zombies don't do. I am not saying it is impossible to set this system up, but I am not sold that it is a good idea. I would like to see a working model before I agree its a good idea or not...

[ikon 7]

seems like something we might have to wait for arma 3 to do

or just make small groups of roamers

[DaNegoa 1]

great idea!!!

[panthro 0]

SpinFX and I also had the idea of zombie hoards I recon if they behaved as a unit it should be because they were a unit when alive

for example a military squad, football teams or firemen, maybe a team of doctors with the nurses too.

Another idea to make them more deadly (besides numbers) would be that the AI can all see what the other AI in the group can see

but will still only attack one target at a time before moving onto the next.(depending on server loading)

also maybe make them able to track via smell (again depending on server loading) and will do a "jog" when tracking a scent so that

they will catch a walking player, but not a running player and it should then be possible to loose a zombie hoard by running

through water or using an item to cover your scent (ammonia? cleaning products? smoke nade? formaldehyde?)

[apache25 133]

i think the zombies should be as deadly and scary as dead islands zombies

[The_Dude (DayZ) 27]

GREAT idea!

[sudZ! 115]

Holy thread resurrection!

I really don't think this would be too hard to implement and would definitely make the zombies more important without making them "faster or stronger".

[starwarsfan@gmx.de 450]

Rocket already said he knows this is something the community wants and he'll add it if it's possible.

[Spekter 3]

Great idea, but what about say 15 or 20 in the horde and give them a chance to have rare loot on the bodies if you manage to kill them. Not like a heli crash but maybe they could spawn 2 or 3 hordes every 3 ish hours or at server restart at random places always out of towns. Then let then have a chance to drop NV goggles or some other rare item. NOT drop every time either. Make people work for their gear. Oh and make the horde all military zeds with flak jackets so they are hard to kill.

[foxtrot760 2]

Owwww, that sends shivers up my spine: finishing looting some guy/zombie/infected thing I have killed, look up and see 50+ zombies skylining on a hill with the sunset behind them

[Xelous 28]

I personally need to hear a reason for them to be there... Why are they venturing away from towns...?.. Their natural food is the flesh of the un-infected, they ignore animals, they ignore and shun tree's as they're for the most part quite stiff and clumsy... Why would they venture out into the wilds?

Sometimes one can be surprised by a few zombies who are at a little shack in the woods, or a deer stand you were unaware of, and its thrilling to be suddenly on the run, or fighting for your life... So I see the appeal of zombies roaming...

Just I simply can't seem to find a reason to explain them being there.

There is a post up else where questioning whether they're going to include some of the ideas from the "Armaversum" into DayZ, this means some of the mission ideas I believe... so possibly giving a reason for Z's to be out in the wild, just like they appear around helicopter crash sites... But Rocket himself has replied that he wants to stay away from this idea, not to give any tangible story behind the Z's, or the infection and to keep the game more about the player, about the survivor experience.

So, to keep it more about the survivor their has to be somewhere to survive, and at present this is the wilds. Making conduits for travel and forcing survivors to tread with care around towns and only venture into them for the items they need to survive, hence driving the game.

Without a story, without that reason for the Z's to be out there I don't think it could be justified to have them mooching about...

[Bludy 324]

did someone else notice that zombies seem to run better? less zigzaging and they don't stick near to your back after a second of chasing?

[hoik 415]

What if players could effect how large a horde is and what their destination was? Have a look at this thread (near the end, though it directly ties in with the OP).

http://dayzmod.com/forum/index.php?/topic/87515-dynamic-zombies-spawn-rates/