PC Alpha 18 Dev Diary!!

[madmole]

I am happy with perk system in A18 getting rebalanced but my one problem is Archery perk. All combat perks have passive bonuses and special mechanic starting at level 3. Lots of combat perks got their mechanic redone to be more interesting but archery is still left with only passive bonuses . Any chance you could look into it?

Ummm you can shoot exploding bolts and flaming arrows. I don't recall exploding AK47 rounds a thing.

If thats not enough there are 7 new archery books that unlock crafts and new perks, like stealth knockdown hits and an arrow to the leg slows them. This should help deal with ferals using a bow.

 

[LurchUSA]

Any chance of some enhancement to character/avatar creation?

Higher textures?

Higher Mesh polygon count?

More base faces?

More hair styles? ( Would love to see bangs. :cocksure: )

Anything would be appreciated.

 

[theFlu]

I am happy with perk system in A18 getting rebalanced but my one problem is Archery perk. All combat perks have passive bonuses and special mechanic starting at level 3. Lots of combat perks got their mechanic redone to be more interesting but archery is still left with only passive bonuses . Any chance you could look into it?

Even in the current A17 build, archery perk actually has extras.. a chance to slow and a chance to stun iirc. They're just not mentioned in the skill descriptions. Pretty reliable as well, enough to slow down the bear den caged teddies for a clean kill before they reach you (normie difficulty, all landed hits).

Spoiler

			<triggered_effect trigger="onSelfDamagedOther" action="AddBuff" target="other" buff="buffInjuryStunned1">
			<requirement name="ProgressionLevel" progression_name="perkArchery" operation="Equals" value="3"/>
			<requirement name="RandomRoll" seed_type="Random" min_max="0,100" operation="LTE" value="50"/>
		</triggered_effect>
		<triggered_effect trigger="onSelfDamagedOther" action="AddBuff" target="other" buff="buffInjuryStunned2">
			<requirement name="ProgressionLevel" progression_name="perkArchery" operation="Equals" value="4"/>
			<requirement name="RandomRoll" seed_type="Random" min_max="0,100" operation="LTE" value="75"/>
		</triggered_effect>
		<triggered_effect trigger="onSelfDamagedOther" action="AddBuff" target="other" buff="buffInjuryStunned2">
			<requirement name="ProgressionLevel" progression_name="perkArchery" operation="Equals" value="5"/>
		</triggered_effect>
		<triggered_effect trigger="onSelfDamagedOther" action="AddBuff" target="other" target_tags="walker" buff="buffInjuryCrippled1">
			<requirement name="ProgressionLevel" progression_name="perkArchery" operation="Equals" value="5"/>
		</triggered_effect>

 

[Cazmyr]

Hoard night

(Snipped for space)

While I agree with you 100% that it is great when players think outside the box and do new an innovative things, I love building bases and defending them. In fact, that is the most fun that I have in this game, designing and gathering the materials to build a base. Once I build it and defend against 2 or 3 hordes then I start a new game and come up with a new base design and do it all again!

That is the great thing about this game! So many ways to do things and none of them are wrong! When a game has 1 way of doing things is when I quit.

 

[legolas141]

Stealth build is also agility build, meaning he does maximum damage with cheap 9mm ammo, nearly free bow ammo, and has the most powerful handgun in the world that will blow a man's head clean off, the 44 magnum. He slices and dices.
I mean if you stealth through your POIs during the week and slit everyone's throat with a knife, you'll have loads of ammo on horde night and do just fine. I did.

Its not incredibly hard to pick up an AK here and there either and use all that 762 ammo you found on horde night. TO me the AK guy has to mine, the 9mm stealth guy sort of doesn't near as much. Maybe for his 44 ammo but if you use bows and knives mostly you should have enough 9mm for oh ♥♥♥♥ situations and hordes.

I have to say that I love stealth gameplay. And even in A17 I noticed a clear difference when I took my time and stealthed through POIs. I 100% agree with you that stealth's main advantages are how much ammo you save (not to mention it is much safer in the long run lol). My current A17 build I got lucky and found a silencer early on and immediately placed it on the 9mm I found. That made a world of difference in itself. The next major upgrade to my stealth game was when I found a decent AK. By that point I had collected a bunch of mod schematics and tricked that gun out. When I was done I had an AK 47 that was silenced and changed to a semi auto receiver and had a larger magazine and a 4X scope and it was an absolute beast at stealthily taking out zombies. Its pretty much the only weapon I use when exploring as a 40 round, silenced, semi auto, sniper rifle turns me into a stealth assassin.

Of course if I mess up and Im detected, I immediately notice a huge spike in my ammo consumption. With the max stealth damage multiplier and the headshot multiplier I could take out everything except some of the beefier irradiated zombies in one sneak attack, but once they are active and coming for me I use exponentially more ammo. But being able to save more ammo than I otherwise would leaves me with plenty of rounds to take on the horde each week (not to mention your guns and armor don't need as many repairs so you save supplies that way as well).

I can see where some people might want stealth builds to have other advantages, but it already has huge advantages to begin with in my opinion even in A17. Just because it doesn't offer a way to counter the 7 day horde doesn't mean its bad. Honestly if stealth had the existing benefits along with a way to counter the 7 day horde then I would think it would feel too overpowered.

That said I honestly don't know which class I want to try first in 18. That junk turret and stun baton is awfully tempting, but so is everything else we have seen so far lol. I guess RNG will make the choice for me depending on what types of equipment I find first.

 

[legolas141]

This should help deal with ferals using a bow.

Oh no, the ferals are going to be using bows now?!?! lol just kidding.

Im excited to see the changes to archery. I almost never use the special arrows myself because for me the bow or the crossbow has always been the stealth takedown weapon. The crossbow especially is wonderful at clearing zombies out with little chance of drawing attention to yourself. I was clearing ever military camp I came across by slowly and methodically planting a nice pointy crossbow bolt in each sleeping zombies head and it really is the best stealth weapon as long as you are able to keep things quiet and not wake anything up.

I really do need to craft up some explosive bolts though just for those times when I want to go crazy lol.

 

[JCrook1028]

thanks madmole
by any chance have you guys got a voice actor for trader gen? just wondering she has a slightly manly voice

I vote for Pokket to do it!

 

[JCrook1028]

I'm looking forward to seeing these new "remnant" POIs. I used to often make a base within some of the POIs in A16 that got removed, although I miss those buildings, their replacements are admittedly awesome. The ones I used to love were the 2 or 3 story brick ones with the small store fronts and high ceiling loft apartments above. Sure I can and have made my own base, it just never feels right to me. Like, everybody in the world is gone and it is full of empty buildings, who in their right minds would make something from scratch? Adapting POIs is one of my favorite things, it always felt right, like far more how it would actually be.
One of my best games ever was an MP server where a bunch of us each took over our own building in a small city cluster. It was so awesome, 2 years later and I still play with the people I met there because we had such an amazing time on that server. I actually lived in the damn football stadium, boy did I take on a big task, but making my BM tower mid-field on the 50 yard line made Blood Moons so entertaining.

I hated the servers that prohibited building in POIs, those usually also had walls full of rules too... ugh, no thanks. It's not that I can't or don't want to make my own base from scratch, love it actually, again it just never felt realistic to me, but I know that's a personal thing.

I must admit I was super conflicted about all the new amazing POIs in A17, you can imagine why. All of a sudden there were buildings that had a purpose to them, which is great, love them, but that had never mattered before. Still glad you made them, and I still convert POIs anyway. My fav so far was the Pawn Shop near the Bakery and Bear Den. That makes for an awesome little base. A 3 wide garage door fits perfectly up front, did double those actually, and used the front room of the building as my garage. The windows already have iron bars on them, and make great turret spots, one on either side. Then I did BMs inside the Bakery next door, sounds weird but worked well, poor Bakery.

Anyway, would love to see some of these new remnants. Also wondering how much Navezgane has changed, a little or a lot? I highly prefer it over RWG, is just so well laid out and sculpted by comparison.

The POI you want for a base is still there, Bob's bakery.

 

[Morloc]

Think less about hiding with stealth, than evading with diversion!

-Morloc

 

[Beelzybub]

Thanks. Fokk Gazz lol.

Gazz is the man! Screw you guys. #teamGazz

 

[madmole]

Any chance of some enhancement to character/avatar creation?Higher textures?

Higher Mesh polygon count?

More base faces?

More hair styles? ( Would love to see bangs. :cocksure: )

Anything would be appreciated.

Nothing there sorry.

 

[Gnomaana]

Cities haven't changed since probably alpha 13.

The addition of sleepers changed cities tremendously. At one point they had gone from from "certain death" at really low level to "stroll down main street unconcerned." That got fixed a bit already in A17 but it never got back to the "stay away at all costs" cities were in A15ish.

 

[DatDamnDutchie]

No I don't think its hard to find a cooking pot. For 1 point you can buy blacksmith and make one, or you can eat charred meat.

Cooking pots are everywhere, just pick any kitchen. Beakers on the other hand are too rare (in A17 at least) On the current map we play with 6 people, only 1 has a working chem table because no one can find (or buy) more beakers. I feel if you up Better Barter or so, you should be able to buy a beaker by default at a trader..

 

[4sheetzngeegles]

For archery why not set each level bow as Drawstrength each grade higher having longer distance falloff. Need str attribute incresased to use stronger bow. And for upperlevel add possibility to pierce more than on zombie if lined up.

 

[Guppycur]

Cooking pots are everywhere, just pick any kitchen. Beakers on the other hand are too rare (in A17 at least) On the current map we play with 6 people, only 1 has a working chem table because no one can find (or buy) more beakers. I feel if you up Better Barter or so, you should be able to buy a beaker by default at a trader..

I think the balance on both is perfect imo, but I do think they should be buyable from a trader... I never really understood requiring a perk for a seller to sell you something... Sure, have him sell it at a high price, but the "secret stash" has always been weird to me.

 

[madmole]

 

[Odetta]

Enabling a “tactic” where the player just sits still for 10-20 minutes of real-time does offer that choice. However, it will also result in lots of negative reviews and feedback that if you take stealth you are “forced” to stand still in a shadow during blood moon. Even people who hate it will do it because it’s there and they bought the perk for it.
It’s just like the criticism we have heard pre-A16 about how there was nothing to do at night because people just stayed inside their base sitting around waiting for the sun to come up. With A16s broken zombies at night and A17s broken zombie speed more and more people have gone outside at night and that particular negative feedback has abated.

Some people see problems and others see potential :

1. Give stealth players a blinding smoke bomb, that causes anything in said smoke to go blind for X amount of time, including bloodmoon zombies.

2. Slowing arrows that slow for X amount of time (area of effect) very low damage, used for CC

3. Drug that causes heightened senses, causes arrows to pierce if hit their head and knives have increased chance to gib limbs.

4. Etc.

 

[madmole]

For archery why not set each level bow as Drawstrength each grade higher having longer distance falloff. Need str attribute incresased to use stronger bow. And for upperlevel add possibility to pierce more than on zombie if lined up.

It takes a lot of practice to master the arch and fall of the arrows, I don't want 1000 variables, I want to head shot that deer at 80 meters by raising my crosshair to the exact spot above his head so the drop lands where I know it will. It takes no strength to use a bow unless your a nerd. I could pull a 60 pound bow when I was 14 and had 8" arms.

 

[Star69]

A couple of thoughts on this past days topics. I’ve played since A6 and the only thing I miss from previous alphas is the danger of hub cities. I agree with Guppy.....do you remember how it was a stupid idea to enter the city solo? Hornets, dogs, spitting cops and zombie hordes that would track you down. Leaving a hub city with your loot and life felt like a major accomplishment. It was an adrenalin high like no other. You go in as a group with one person as lookout while the others looted, looking for crossbow book or sniper book or another valuable book or ammo, whatever. It sounds like that’s what’s planned for the wasteland and will bring some of this back though with better loot as the reward. However would love for some of this danger to return to cities or towns as well.

As for the stealth builds, I can’t believe I didn’t see the inherent problem on horde night....Guppy again is right, of what use is stealth on horde night? I’m glad madmole cleared up that 9mm pistols are more powerful for the stealth build. Even so, I think the build up of heat while sitting still is a perfect idea but also add what mm said about getting the stealth bonus when hidden on horde night. And if you don’t move after shooting you lose your advantages. Sounds like a perfect solution. I don’t have a better solution, I just want to add my agreement to what was mentioned. Very cool solution.

 

[Dimpy]

Think less about hiding with stealth, than evading with diversion!

-Morloc

Wow, I was just thinking the same thing.

If stealth builds fall short of the other primary builds in terms of effectiveness agaist horde nights, there could be a distraction perk.

My idea is that it makes hostiles less apt to target you if they sense something else interesting. So you can have your loud buddies create a ruckus fighting zs in a POI, and that helps you sneak behind them better. On horde night, if you're with other players, the perk allows you to be stealthy in a way even if the zombies can still technically sense you.