Basic Controls Guide (for new players)

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Moderators: Forgive me if this is duplicate, I did search but didn't find anything relevant. Also, if it belongs in another forum, pls move it appropriately and accept my appreciation for your patience :)

This is a basic controls guide for new players. It assumes the most fundamental familiarity with FPS controls on a PC. It is targetted at players who haven't played Arma, and are checking out Day Z due to the hub-bub in the gaming community about it. Hopefully, it will spare you some frustration. This guide assumes you're past server-selection and have your video/audio options set appropriately. You've spawned on the shore. This guide also assumes you don't want any spoilers or unsolicited advice about how to play best - only that you wish to know how to operate your character fundamentally.

Basic Movement:

Basic movement is the same as any FPS on PC. Your W key moves you forward, S moves you backward. A and D strafe you left or right respectively, and moving the mouse aims your line of sight. There is no jumping, your spacebar will do nothing. Sorry, your feet are stuck to the ground. This isn't TF2. You can "vault" over short obstacles (low fences and such) using the V key. This isn't really a jump, but a vault animation that will get you over low items.

Stance:

The Stance keys are Z, X and C. Z will send you prone (bellycrawl), X will crouch you, C will make you stand fully. These are not toggles, so if you like to be crouching just mash X and you'll be crouching. You don't have to hold the key down, nor do you have to worry about accidentally hitting it twice.

Speed:

The left shift key controls your speed. Pressing it and holding it will temporarily toggle between "always run" and "always walk." Tapping shift twice will toggle you between always-run and always-walk without you needing to hold it down.

Looking:

It is possible to run in a constant direction, while "looking" to your left, your right, or back over your shoulder. While running, hold the LEFT ALT key and move your mouse to change where you look - without changing your direction of travel. This is handy for checking over your shoulder while running away from threats. Or eyeballing your distance from a road while running parallel.

Pressing the numpad enter key will toggle you between first-person and third-person view.

Pressing and HOLDING the right mouse button will zoom your view, in whatever direction you're looking.

Loot:

Loot has five basic relative locations for you. It can be in your upper pockets, in your lower pockets, in your backpack, in your toolbelt, or on the ground in a loot pile. Items that "fit" in your upper pockets WILL NOT FIT in your lower pockets, and vice versa. Items from either pocket will always fit in a backpack, assuming sufficient item space. Inventory management is one of the more counterintuitive and frustrating game elements, but like any system it is something you can learn and become accustomed to.

Press G and you will see your inventory. To the right of that inventory window, you will see what's in your pockets. At start, you have a painkillers in your upper pockets, a bandage in your lower pockets. Your toolbelt will have a flashlight. Your bag will be empty. To view it, click on it in the list (or its icon) and click "Open Bag" at the bottom. Click "Close Bag" to return.

The list at left is dynamic, and will change depending on your view. When you first hit G, the items listed are in your possession, in either your pockets or toolbelt. The numbers in the RIGHT column are how many you possess in your pockets/belt (not counting backpack). The numbers on the left represent a pile in front of you that should be empty. If you move an item from right to left (or click drop) you will see the count at right drop by one, and the count at left increase by one. The item stays in the list if you drop it, until you move.

If you "open bag," the right column is your pockets, and the left column is your bag (instead of a pile). This is a major point of confusion for new players, so learning the difference early on will save you from accidentally your gear. When you "close bag" the left becomes a drop pile near you again and your bag is closed. Just picture the bag as being underneath you when it's open, catching anything you drop.

If you are standing over a loot pile, point at it until you get a green icon. It will either be a rifle with three spots underneath it, or a rifle with a circle-arrow loop symbol. Press G, and you will see your inventory with the items in the pile represented by numbers in the left column. You can "pick up" items by clicking the arrows to move them RIGHT, into your inventory.

While looking at a loot pile, you can also open your bag. This puts the pile you're looking at on the left, and your bag on the right, with a graphical representation of what is inside and how much room is available. You ONLY will get this view of your bag when standing over a loot pile with the bag open. Here's a small table of the left-to-right shuffling:

Not Over Loot Pile, Bag Closed:

Number of Items Dropped < Name of Item > Number of Items in Inventory

Over Loot Pile, Bag Closed:

Number of Items in Pile < Name of Item > Number of Items in Inventory

Not Over Loot Pile, Bag Open:

Number of Items in Bag < Name of Item > Number of Items in Inventory

Over Loot Pile, Bag Open:

Number of Items in Pile < Name of Item > Number of Items in Bag

Consumables:

To eat food, take pills, use a bandage, etc press G to bring up inventory, right-click on the item (it must be in your pockets, not in your bag). Option to consume will be in the right-click menu that appears.

Using Tools:

Some tools can be removed from your toolbelt, and wielded. Examples you may find right away are the Flashlight and Hatchet. Press G, and right-click on either of these tools and select "remove from toolbelt." You might think this will drop the item, it will not. It removes it from the belt, and places it in your hand. The flashlight will take the pistol spot, and the hatchet will take the rifle spot.

Switching Weapons:

Switching weapons is done with the middle mouse-wheel. If you have more than one, you can scroll the mousewheel and change weapons with a left click. Watch the left side of your screen for the middle-mouse menu. Right-click cancels the menu (useful if your scrollwheel is jumpy like mine), left click selects whatever is highlighted. Switching weapons will stop your movement, so don't do it on the run. To select grenades or other throwables, refer to the "Firing Mode" section below.

Quirks to Note:

If you find a hatchet, and remove it from your toolbelt to wield it, you still cannot attack with it. First, you must "reload" it by pressing your R key. This is a game quirk, and will probably go away in later versions. You may also find that your hatchet will not swing at all, randomly. To repair this, press G to bring your inventory up. Right-click on the hatchet and put it back in your toolbelt. Then, remove it from your toolbelt again and reload it again. I have noticed this affect rifles/pistols as well occasionally, and simply switching away from that weapon and selecting it again will fix it.

Aiming:

If you have a pistol, or rifle, aim down iron-sights by tapping the right-click. Tapping again drops the sights. Bringing your sights up, and then holding right-click will zoom in a bit down the sights and steady your weapon at the cost of fatigue. Left-click will fire.

Firing Mode:

If you have a rifle that supports multiple fire modes (semi, burst, full-auto) you cycle these by pressing the F key. The mode will be displayed upper right. The F key will also switch you to any throwables you have. Once selected, left-click will throw the item. Throwable items include empty bottles, empty cans, chemlights, road flares, grenades, etc.

There's certainly a lot more in the game, but knowing these basic controls should get you started.

Edited August 30, 2012 by catface.jpg

[DemonSlayer666 5]

There may not be a jump key, but there is "v" for vaulting over stuff like low fences. Very useful.

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Thanks DemonSlayer666, I had forgotten about that key while putting this together. I've added it. :3