More Secure/Permanent Means of Item Storage

[ThuggleS 45]

Problem: As it stands it is difficult if not impossible to secure a camp/base/storage place for your items. Tents/vehicles are easily spotted within a few days even on lightly-used servers, and player "progression" in the game is stifled - not from the inability to survive, but from the inability to secure one's collected goods from thieves.

Solution #1: Implement a new tool - shovel. You can use the shovel to dig hidden stashes (in the ground) to store items. To make the creation of hidden stashes more difficult (and to make them more valuable) implement a new consumable item called "Plastic Sheet" (or whatever) that will be used to line the hidden stash and protect your items.

When creating a hidden stash a player will look at a spot in the dirt, use the shovel to dig the hole, and then lay down (and consume) 1 Plastic Sheet. The player will cover the hole with dirt/leaves to make it blend in and harder to see, BUT it will appear somewhat different than the surrounding terrain. This will be MUCH harder than spotting a tent or vehicle and a more secure (but NOT completely secure) means of item storage and gear protection.

Solution #2: Implement a COMPLETELY secure means of storing items, but rarer and harder to deploy than a Hidden Stash. Such secure means could be footlockers with locks that could spawn in loot piles. The footlocker would take up a large amount of inventory slots until "deployed" - the player sets it up (like a tent) and it is linked to that player, but unlike a tent ONLY the player that it is linked to can open it.

Solution #3: The most complicated/complex solution I am currently thinking of - create a way for survivors to build cabins in the woods using the hatchet to cut down trees for lumber and use new tools (saw, hammer) and new consumables like nails to construct a secure cabin with a lock on the door. I'm not sure if this would be a good type of addition for DayZ or not, because it would definitely alter the gameplay, but it is a possible solution nonetheless.

Edited August 30, 2012 by ThuggleS

[cab435 0]

more hidden or underground areas would be cool for keeping items.

Many people have made topics like this one tho listing the same things.

[Pandemia 4]

Nice Ideas. Mainly your first solution because it is something I have thought about and think should be added.

Honestly it is much more authentic. It would add more realism to the game.

I'm sorry but if I had valuable items in a world like this, or anything I believed to be valuable at least to me. I would not put it in a tent that can be seen from far as hell away. You'd be better off dropping your item on the ground next to a tree.

But realistically, I would definitely be burying my items and trying to hide it as good as possible. Good idea as well because if you do not really pay attention to where you place something, you will lose it.

I do not really agree with the locker idea and house idea just because there are weapons and explosives in the game. In a world like this if you found a house or locker you would most likely try to get into it and see what the hell is in there. No matter what.

Highest realism possible with good implementation please~

Edited August 30, 2012 by Pandemia

[ThuggleS 45]

Nice Ideas. Mainly your first solution because it is something I have thought about and think should be added.

Honestly it is much more authentic. It would add more realism to the game.

I'm sorry but if I had valuable items in a world like this, or anything I believed to be valuable at least to me. I would not put it in a tent that can be seen from far as hell away. You'd be better off dropping your item on the ground next to a tree.

But realistically, I would definitely be burying my items and trying to hide it as good as possible. Good idea as well because if you do not really pay attention to where you place something, you will lose it.

I do not really agree with the locker idea and house idea just because there are weapons and explosives in the game. In a world like this if you found a house or locker you would most likely try to get into it and see what the hell is in there. No matter what.

Highest realism possible with good implementation please~

I agree with you about it not being realistic that a lock on a cabin/storage container would be unbreakable, and as you said, with a game with guns and explosives you could break into anything.

But, along those lines of realism, it bugs the heck out of me that 80% of the buildings are just for show in the game and are un-enterable, so an unbreakable lock wouldn't be any LESS realistic than that, right?

[agippo 37]

I think digging is a decent idea. Anything that is too "secure" is frankly unrealistic unless its a massive bank vault safe or similar.

I also think tents are OK, but from what I understand hackers maps will show up all tents on a map. I suspect without this, tents would be a lot more secure

[bazbake 456]

Seriously? Permadeath is already a joke right now and now you want to make it so that the only counter to this immortality will be coded out so you never have to worry about dying ever again?

...

Sounds legit.

[ThuggleS 45]

Seriously? Permadeath is already a joke right now and now you want to make it so that the only counter to this immortality will be coded out so you never have to worry about dying ever again?

...

Sounds legit.

I never said that any of these storage options would be safe from death.

For my 3 options, the "footlocker" idea and the "cabin/house" idea would both disappear upon your death because no one can get into them other than you. So, if you die, they go away as well.

As for the hidden stashes in the ground, those would function the same as tents - stay for 7 days if no one uses it.

If you read my "Problem" in the OP I didn't say "it is a problem that we lose items when we die". I actually said that the problem is that it is impossible to keep your gear safe when you ARE alive (other than the gear on your back).

Edited August 30, 2012 by ThuggleS

[xximrtwoixx 104]

I never said that any of these storage options would be safe from death.

For my 3 options, the "footlocker" idea and the "cabin/house" idea would both disappear upon your death because no one can get into them other than you. So, if you die, they go away as well.

As for the hidden stashes in the ground, those would function the same as tents - stay for 7 days if no one uses it.

If you read my "Problem" in the OP I didn't say "it is a problem that we lose items when we die". I actually said that the problem is that it is impossible to keep your gear safe when you ARE alive (other than the gear on your back).

How unauthentic would it be to come across a cabin/foot locker and not be able to break into it? What about not being able to take the key off the guy you just shot coming out of a locked structure? How about not being able to wait till someone finishes building a structure then killing them and claiming it for yourself? What about destroying the structure/foot locker just because you don't want your enemy to have it?

Your burried treasure Idea could work as long as I'm able to come along and dig it up, it would really just be a tent that's harder to see though then.

It ruins immersion to implement gamey controls locking content/items etc to players. IMO its also gamey to remove these things from the world just because someone died, if you don't want them going back to their tent/house/car etc go find it and steal it or destroy it. That is what makes storage work, the fact that it is always vulnerable to other players, that is the control that does not allow storage to ruin perma death. It takes work and planning to set up a good camp, wtf else are you going to do live hand to mouth forever or just DM?

Player locked storage would also increase inflation because fewer items would change hands, thus more items would be introduced via normal spawning.

[flimsypremise 94]

I think there may be a solution involving a popular and widely used mechanic from other games: storage in furniture items in buildings. If Rocket were to implement a skyrim type system, and allow players to enter any building, players could create private caches of items in anonymous furniture. It would be susceptible to discovery, but a player would have to go around for hours checking empty drawers. The key would be the sheer number of players to keep stuff. The random sheds scattered around the map would suddenly become a real resource, rather than just useless scenery.

[C0LDKILL (DayZ) 34]

I think underground bunkers would be a better idea than cabins. Say you need to find schematics and materials in order to build a bunker. Then find different kinds locks and doors to better secure your bunker.

[ThuggleS 45]

How unauthentic would it be to come across a cabin/foot locker and not be able to break into it? What about not being able to take the key off the guy you just shot coming out of a locked structure?

Very unauthentic, as I have already admitted. Did you not read my post detailing that? If not, read up.

How unauthentic is it that 80% of the buildings in DayZ can NOT be entered at all? Very unauthentic as well.

My idea would be no worse than what is correctly part of DayZ.

Although, I am not saying it would be the best solution to my stated problem - just a possible one.

[ThuggleS 45]

I think underground bunkers would be a better idea than cabins. Say you need to find schematics and materials in order to build a bunker. Then find different kinds locks and doors to better secure your bunker.

Yes, that would be very awesome.

I thought of that, but in the hopes of staying realistic I thought that 1 guy building an underground bunker AFTER the zombie infection just didn't seem likely, and that a wood cabin seemed like a more likely thing a survivor would build out in the forest. I do agree that it would be very cool, though.

[xximrtwoixx 104]

the map isn't part of dayz, it's left over from Arma and is only used because you dont make a map/textures when your doing initial development if you have a free one to use.

So yes your suggestion is worse ie more unauthentic than whats been developed as part of dayz.

Flimsy I think that is the greatest idea I've heatd in awhile, as long as im not putting 5 backpacks in a lounge chair.

Also underground bunkers have a major draw back, if some one finds it and plugs your oxygen intake u r screwed. I do agree that constructing one in this scenario is unauthentic.

[adamtheheretic 106]

I'm on the fence here, I think secure is subjective... I think in DayZ someone should always be able to stumble upon my gear, that's why i think the planned underground base thing will work well.

[Blakbewwy 8]

I love solution one, or POSSIBLY even two. Not three though, seems a bit weird.

Because, at the end of the day, there's one massive and unfixable flaw in DayZ which takes away from the realism. The fact we cannot be online 24/7. In real life, we do not simply log off and come back on later. In real life, groups would take shifts and similar to guard vehicles/tents and make sure they aren't spotted. Since this is virtually impossible to do in DayZ unless someone somehow never leaves the computer for several days, we do need to implement some sort of unrealistic (possibly) feature to counter our offline status. However, I think simply digging a hole and making it look similar but not identical to the surrounding area would be a brilliant idea. It's perfectly feasible and realistic, and means we don't have to shove our vehicles in bushes and trees - who would do that!? - to prevent them from being discovered.

Shower of beans!

[rollo23 57]

I would rather they just fix tents (duping and item loss) and make them a bit more blendable with the enviroment.

[rollo23 57]

Double post, sorry

Edited August 31, 2012 by Half man/Half Biscuit

[ThuggleS 45]

I love solution one, or POSSIBLY even two. Not three though, seems a bit weird.

Because, at the end of the day, there's one massive and unfixable flaw in DayZ which takes away from the realism. The fact we cannot be online 24/7. In real life, we do not simply log off and come back on later. In real life, groups would take shifts and similar to guard vehicles/tents and make sure they aren't spotted. Since this is virtually impossible to do in DayZ unless someone somehow never leaves the computer for several days, we do need to implement some sort of unrealistic (possibly) feature to counter our offline status. However, I think simply digging a hole and making it look similar but not identical to the surrounding area would be a brilliant idea. It's perfectly feasible and realistic, and means we don't have to shove our vehicles in bushes and trees - who would do that!? - to prevent them from being discovered.

Shower of beans!

Yeah, I completely agree.

It sucks to log back on and see "Oh, guess my hiding spot wasn't good enough this time either...stupid tents..."

[xximrtwoixx 104]

If the goal is to simulate your character being in game 24/7 I think a more authentic scenario can be made than secure synced storage for a player. How bout your character stays in game as AI when your not there then you can log in to a dead character instead of missing gear?

I think you should learn from your experiances and come up with better places for your tent(s). Pro tip don't put vehicles near them because there are hacks to find all the vehicles on a server. I have had a tent unlooted for going on a month. Sometimes hiding in plain sight is better than activley trying to hide one, people look in the places you assume would be great tent spots.

[lucasde 0]

well i beleive #1 is the best solution to the problem but to counter it metal detector could be added.

[ThuggleS 45]

well i beleive #1 is the best solution to the problem but to counter it metal detector could be added.

No need. The stashes would still be viewable and lootable by other survivors, just much less so than tents.

[Lights Out 141]

This is such a tricky gameplay add on and the reason is, yes you want to keep a stash so you can store weapons and stuff you can't carry for later. But when you die, you shouldn't know nor have any idea where it is as you are starting a new character.

[ThuggleS 45]

This is such a tricky gameplay add on and the reason is, yes you want to keep a stash so you can store weapons and stuff you can't carry for later. But when you die, you shouldn't know nor have any idea where it is as you are starting a new character.

What's your point? Right now, if you die, you still know where you placed your tents. The hidden stashes would function the exact same way, and thus it really is not a gameplay add on as you make it out to be - just harder for other players to spot and loot.

As for my footlocker and cabin idea, since locked and completely secure, these should disappear upon your death.