PC Am I the only one who thinks that roaming hordes need some love?

Stranded_Napkin

Stranded_Napkin

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I have played, on pc at least, since A16 dropped. Roaming hordes have been adjusted from time to time, but they've never really been an issue. Mostly they're just annoying. In A18 they're more of a happy surprise. You see them and instead of being like "oh no, my defenses" or just a simple "oh sh*t", you're like "yes, free xp". Now this can change a bit if you have your zombies set to always run. That being said, it would be nice if you could set the size/difficulty of the roaming hordes in the game settings. I like to play on always walk save horde night; zombies do not run, only living infected do. What would be nice is if there could be a setting that might work as a multiplier on the roaming hordes so that instead of a measly 5 zeds, you get 20 or something. That would make the early hordes actually worth asking the question "do I risk taking them on". Then in later game, you could end up facing large roaming hordes that threaten to significantly weaken your defenses. With the junk turrets, the mods on the guns, and the traps, we've gotten to a point where these tiny roaming hordes are no challenge at all. Hell, the game currently drops the number of zeds when cops and radiated are added to the roaming horde. Really that just makes the horde easier to deal with.

Now, there's a mod somebody made to increase the size of the roaming hordes. The only thing I'm not in favor of that they went with is screamers in the roaming hordes. Otherwise, that's what I'd really like to see in the future. Hordes should be big. I mean, more random zombies in the world would be nice too, but the roaming hordes just need to be bigger.

 
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maybe the horde could just be runners/joggers regardless of your game settings, i wouldn't mind that, it'd add to the "I could die at any moment" factor.

And I agree they should be bigger too

 
I have never seen a roaming horde as anything but free XP - they have always been really easy. The only hordes that were ever a problem still happen - early hordes of dogs, or wolves. They were larger in the past but without the aggro system we have now they just formed up into a line and died without effort. They may seem easier because you are getting better :D

You are not the only one though - in the 18 dev diary MM spoke about TFP working on an encounter system that would allow for more varied and more dangerous encounters.

 
Early A17 had crazy roaming hordes - they were huge and they homed in on you, day or night. I say this with nostalgia, it was great to be terrified and to have to knock out stairs or stay on roofs somewhere sturdy every night like it was horde night. Sadly, they were nerfed pretty much immediately. We used a modlet to put them back and also add more roamers to the world, but I don't remember whose.

 
Roaming hordes are very lame now. That coupled with the very low (1) wilderness spawn this game is essentially a sleeper simulator as of right now. Do what I did and turn on Bloodmoons to be every night. Breaks up the game play a bit.

 
I have a modlet in my mod pack that increases both the wilderness spawns and the roaming horde counts. Several others have them too. A search of the modding forum should yield something pretty quick. My modlet is completely separate from the other ways I modded the game so you can just take that one folder and put it into your mods folder and that is all it will do-- amp up the zombie counts.

I will say though that removing xp from zombies does make a roaming horde a survival trial best avoided rather than a feast to be excited about killing....

 
What roaming hordes?
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Indeed. The recent alpha massively reduced wild zombies and roaming hordes.

That said, if you are up for modding some XML files (and I recommend you do), it is fairly easy to have more or less constant hordes - which, if you ask me, is the only way to play this game. Otherwise it is super boring.

 
Early A17 had crazy roaming hordes - they were huge and they homed in on you, day or night.
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I think you meant A16. It was in A17 that the wandering hordes got nerfed to pointlessness.

And if you really did mean A17 (cause yes they did indeed get further nerfed in A18!!), then I am sorry to have to tell you that A16 was the golden age of wandering hordes, and you missed it.

 
I think you meant A16. It was in A17 that the wandering hordes got nerfed to pointlessness.
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It was uncommon, but I remember several occasions when wandering hordes caused me grief in A17.4.

In particular they had an annoying habit of showing up when I was stealthily clearing larger buildings.

 
Indeed. The recent alpha massively reduced wild zombies and roaming hordes.

That said, if you are up for modding some XML files (and I recommend you do), it is fairly easy to have more or less constant hordes - which, if you ask me, is the only way to play this game. Otherwise it is super boring.
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My 7 Days activity for a while now has just been checking the forums. I will occasionally start up some modded A16, but post A16 releases have mostly killed my interest in the game. I keep checking for changes I might like due to my love of what the game was.

 
I think you meant A16. It was in A17 that the wandering hordes got nerfed to pointlessness.

And if you really did mean A17 (cause yes they did indeed get further nerfed in A18!!), then I am sorry to have to tell you that A16 was the golden age of wandering hordes, and you missed it.
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Weird flex. I've been playing since A9 and didn't miss anything.

Yes, the very first experimental release we got hold of had enormous wandering hordes that would home in on you. They took them out pretty much right away because they didn't like people "farming" them.

Why is everything based on kill xp if we're not supposed to kill all the zombies we can is a mystery.

 
Wandering hordes are a pain in the ass when they come get you furtively 60 feet underground and they ruin your map. I love building bunkers but my map always end up looking like a mole field.

 
Wandering hordes are a pain in the ass when they come get you furtively 60 feet underground and they ruin your map. I love building bunkers but my map always end up looking like a mole field.
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Wandering hordes should normally not detect you that far deep down.

Screamers are a problem if you use the auger or don't stealth while digging, but the counter to screamers is a field of spike traps.

 
Wandering hordes should normally not detect you that far deep down.

Screamers are a problem if you use the auger or don't stealth while digging, but the counter to screamers is a field of spike traps.
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I have wandering hordes hearing me from that far every time. The thing that is weird is that i can stealth them easily in the outside (like being drilling, see a first one, stop drilling and they won't see me at night for example) but when I'm underground they always manage to get me. Like if they had a small detection range, but can hear all above and under. Or the fact that they hit blocks instead of going around makes them going in my base, and their overly intelligent path finding make them find immediatly my trapdoor and ladder.

My solution to this is to build the sloppy-side base, to trick the AI and stop them from digging around my base (plus, that could be considered as slavery if i get them to dig my trench, I would'nt want that !)

 
I have wandering hordes hearing me from that far every time. The thing that is weird is that i can stealth them easily in the outside (like being drilling, see a first one, stop drilling and they won't see me at night for example) but when I'm underground they always manage to get me. Like if they had a small detection range, but can hear all above and under. Or the fact that they hit blocks instead of going around makes them going in my base, and their overly intelligent path finding make them find immediatly my trapdoor and ladder.

My solution to this is to build the sloppy-side base, to trick the AI and stop them from digging around my base (plus, that could be considered as slavery if i get them to dig my trench, I would'nt want that !)
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Sounds like a new bug. I never had problems like that with my underground bases in A17. Did not make one in A18 yet.

 
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