BentNose

Restoring old infrastructure seems like it would be beyond the capability of the common self-taught person, especially if they're working on their own.

It might be more sensible to look at smaller historical options. Are the rivers in this area swift enough for a water wheel for instance? There's a traditional source of power that might be an option for more power.

1130. I have tossed this in other places, but I'm going to put it here.

Tackling Zombies. Runners who are too uncoordinated to actually stop. If the player dodges the Zombie, it trips as it tries to stop. If the player doesn't dodge the Zombie, they and the Zombie are both knocked to the ground.

Perhaps this would be a very rare zombie type, perhaps it would be an adjustable sandbox option. It would certainly put a new fear of zombies into veteran players if they knew a runner could take them out like this. New players are already scared of runners.

So... what's the difference? Can the Zombies smell you on the walls?

Yes, I'm actually advocating the potential option of letting zombies hit preset walls between them and a noise or smell like they'll do with player made constructions. Oddly enough what bothers me about the way zombies will attack player defenses is that they won't attack any other obstacles the same way.

Perhaps it feels a bit better because of how zombies look for windows, doors and barricades in preset buildings. But then there's a disparity with how Zombies won't hesitate to just attack a player made wall as soon as they touch it.

Maybe a nice option would be some sort of delay between when a zombie finds a player wall and how long it'll take them to get frustrated and just start smashing whatever is in front of them?

1130. I have tossed this in other places, but I'm going to put it here.

Tackling Zombies. Runners who are too uncoordinated to actually stop. If the player dodges the Zombie, it trips as it tries to stop. If the player doesn't dodge the Zombie, they and the Zombie are both knocked to the ground.

Perhaps this would be a very rare zombie type, perhaps it would be an adjustable sandbox option. It would certainly put a new fear of zombies into veteran players if they knew a runner could take them out like this. New players are already scared of runners.

When a vehicle is in motion, the driving is often looking far ahead of themselves when driving at high speed. There should be a way to simulate this within Project Zomboid, yet there isn't, and accidents are painfully easy to create because every driving player is near-sighted, almost entirely by accident of design. I don't see why it has to be this way, but things I can't see are the whole problem here.

So right now in game, you can shift the camera around when your character is walking around by holding the right mouse button, so there is a mechanic in game for shifting camera focus.

Would it be possible to apply an automatic forward focus when driving? When getting to high speeds push the camera in the direction of travel to give the player a better chance to see what's coming up. When stopping or turning, create a delay to avoid throwing the camera around at the moment the player is acting to a new stimulus. Turning or braking, the character is coming to a slow anyways, have the game gradually return to a central focus until they get moving again. A player *has* to brake at most turns and the angled roads are highly uncommon and always short, so there is no need to whip the camera around.

This would be a huge quality of life update and make players much less afraid of driving fast.

I think the best point in this is the number of unpacking as recipes. A problem that gets much worse with various item mods.

Packing and unpacking doesn't need to be visible in the crafting menu.

I think the best point in this is the number of unpacking as recipes. A problem that gets much worse with various item mods.

Packing and unpacking doesn't need to be visible in the crafting menu.

In game erosion does happen at an accelerated rate. Enough so that I've slowed erosion in my sandbox settings because trees popped up quicker than seemed sensible to me.

If slowed in building erosion was a part of the game it would probably help maintain immersion. If outer cracked walls eventually broke and allowed some basic propagation inside, it would probably help out the game.

I wonder if this would be a suggestion for the game devs though.

1214. Propane refueling station.

While less common, at least one of the gas stations on the map should be able to refuel propane as well. If balance is a worry then perhaps put it in a station in the middle of a high pop area. This would turn propane tanks into another type of fuel can. This makes sense in that propane tanks are good scrap materials for DIY tasks or at least provide some decent scrap metal.

1215. Self care mood modifiers.

Being able to stop and shave, to wash-up or getting a new haircut could provide an option to mitigate the effects of depression. It would only work when used sparingly of course, but cleaning oneself up is a known mood lifter. Conversely, leaving the PC in ripped, worn, dirty and bloody clothes for extended periods of time could inflict slow mood debuffs.

I'm sure the Mods will get around to rebalancing again, traits already change slowly overtime as the game evolves.

Until then you may look into modding, I know there are a couple mods involving traits already, although usually they make the game easier.

There is an MRE mod in the workshop. It's overpowered frankly, and you can find them on literally any sort of zombie, but it's thematically very nice.

If they could be de-tuned and made to drop in thematically applicable situations they would be great. Military outposts. Cabins in the woods. Soldiers and outdoors-men. Vehicle trunks and glove boxes.

1214. Propane refueling station.

While less common, at least one of the gas stations on the map should be able to refuel propane as well. If balance is a worry then perhaps put it in a station in the middle of a high pop area. This would turn propane tanks into another type of fuel can. This makes sense in that propane tanks are good scrap materials for DIY tasks or at least provide some decent scrap metal.

This might be an involved Mod rather than a game suggestion considering the fiddling around involved. Pillow's mods do help to mitigate the problem, but there's another aspect that's taking the fun out of things. Still, even having mentioned Pillow's, I'm going to go through the whole thing here.

So one of the aspects of late game death is the loss of all progress on that character.

I'm fine with that honestly, it's what comes after that is the problem. I'm more peeved about the idea of starting a new character after this point because of the state of the new character. By all appearances, that character has apparently woken up from stasis a moment ago to discover a zombie apocalypse in full swing. It's this incongruity that bothers me, not having to start over or potentially find and recover the progress of the previous character.

There have been some conversation in other respawning related threads, but TrailerParkThor asked me to expand on the idea of time advanced spawns. Character creation options and bonuses that open up when in game time has passed.

On the topic of where and how the respawning happens, once enough time has passed the game should probably be very particular about where it puts people. Characters should spawn as a person who is already going through the motions of survival. And they should really not be placed into a home recently looted by a previous character if possible.

Spawn a new survivor with a broken down or crashed car near a city. The survivor should have the key to this car.
Spawn them at the edge of the map as if they are on foot and on the move.
Spawn the player in a house that hasn't been visited in quite some time and if possible convert the house into a safehouse. Alternately, pick an unvisited safehouse to put them in.
Spawn the player in the middle of the woods with a tent and campfire.
An exciting Spawn that has a player in a home with some minor tools and a flowering garden but is being invaded by zombies.
Spawn them in a well-stocked middle of the woods house, but you can hear the helicopter and see the first zombies coming in.

What they shouldn't be is spawned into an unsecured, unvisited or looted home. This is immersion breaking. It's been months, there needs to be a good reason for that survivor to still be around.

As for the character itself. Simply having been around for awhile suggests that they've learned to survive. They need something to signify they've had at least a little experience ensuring that they're still alive. I think it should be a matter of course that the character has gained skill points in the movement skills, Sprint, Nimble, Stealth and Lightfooted. How that is distributed can be semi-random, it would depend on what the character has gone through after all. To accompany this, the character should potentially get one or two weapons skills leveled based on time passed, with one corresponding weapon in their inventory. As for Crafting skills, well, for all we know the character could have survived on an excellent shopping trip, I don't think we need randomly assigned crafting skills.

Instead, why not add points granted by hobbies and occupations based on how much time has passed? They've had to practice what they know. Every single occupation could just have a boost in skill points granted based on the advancement of game time.

And then there is the idea of Late Game occupations. These don't have to be terribly complicated really. These would be things that appear a few months in, a natural evolution of having to figure out how to stay alive and well after society shuts down. At this point, these people probably have something that sets them apart from all those who have succumbed to the horde.

"Carjacker"
Has survived by hopping from one vehicle to another, learning some tricks as they go.
Can hotwire vehicles, less chance of breaking window locks.
Better chance for the car to start up, reduced fuel usage.
Has skills in electrical, mechanics and metalworking.
Spawns next to a broken car with the key in hand.

"Scavenger"
Survived by knowing where to look for what they need, then making the best use of those things.
Comes with Lucky trait (may be nullified by unlucky).
Uses less materials when repairing tools and weapons.
Has skills in maintenance, metalworking and carpentry.
Possibly spawns in a store or storage area, probably with a crowbar.

"Wild Man"
Went to the woods and only now has to come back.
Has the Axe Man trait and Herbalist.
Is able to forage more from a location before the area is depleted.
Skills in foraging, carpentry and Axe.
Spawns on a road at the edge of civilization.

"Z Hunter"
Does one thing and does it well, but until now they had companions. He can take care of the Zombies, but now he has to fend for himself without help.
Has Hunter and desensitized.
Has an easier time activating critical hits (knife stab, spear skewer, etc.)
Improved fitness and movement skills.

"Marathon Runner"
If they aren't walking, they're running.
Can still run at high exertion. Can still jog even when exhausted.
Improved fitness, sprinting

I'm sure there are other late game classes to come up with, but I think I've laid it out well. Whether or how much this applies to multiplayer is another question, but I'm sure having an enhanced character based on how much time has passed in game would help the longevity of PZ.

1217. Loot or craft to alternate locations

Being able to craft or loot items straight into a container or onto the ground would help with inventory and weight management. Especially when dealing with heavy products that will injure the character simply by being in inventory.

Check out this guy. He's got more boat stuff and even a bit of swimming.
 
 

Restoring old infrastructure seems like it would be beyond the capability of the common self-taught person, especially if they're working on their own.

It might be more sensible to look at smaller historical options. Are the rivers in this area swift enough for a water wheel for instance? There's a traditional source of power that might be an option for more power.

This might be an involved Mod rather than a game suggestion considering the fiddling around involved. Pillow's mods do help to mitigate the problem, but there's another aspect that's taking the fun out of things. Still, even having mentioned Pillow's, I'm going to go through the whole thing here.

So one of the aspects of late game death is the loss of all progress on that character.

I'm fine with that honestly, it's what comes after that is the problem. I'm more peeved about the idea of starting a new character after this point because of the state of the new character. By all appearances, that character has apparently woken up from stasis a moment ago to discover a zombie apocalypse in full swing. It's this incongruity that bothers me, not having to start over or potentially find and recover the progress of the previous character.

There have been some conversation in other respawning related threads, but TrailerParkThor asked me to expand on the idea of time advanced spawns. Character creation options and bonuses that open up when in game time has passed.

On the topic of where and how the respawning happens, once enough time has passed the game should probably be very particular about where it puts people. Characters should spawn as a person who is already going through the motions of survival. And they should really not be placed into a home recently looted by a previous character if possible.

Spawn a new survivor with a broken down or crashed car near a city. The survivor should have the key to this car.
Spawn them at the edge of the map as if they are on foot and on the move.
Spawn the player in a house that hasn't been visited in quite some time and if possible convert the house into a safehouse. Alternately, pick an unvisited safehouse to put them in.
Spawn the player in the middle of the woods with a tent and campfire.
An exciting Spawn that has a player in a home with some minor tools and a flowering garden but is being invaded by zombies.
Spawn them in a well-stocked middle of the woods house, but you can hear the helicopter and see the first zombies coming in.

What they shouldn't be is spawned into an unsecured, unvisited or looted home. This is immersion breaking. It's been months, there needs to be a good reason for that survivor to still be around.

As for the character itself. Simply having been around for awhile suggests that they've learned to survive. They need something to signify they've had at least a little experience ensuring that they're still alive. I think it should be a matter of course that the character has gained skill points in the movement skills, Sprint, Nimble, Stealth and Lightfooted. How that is distributed can be semi-random, it would depend on what the character has gone through after all. To accompany this, the character should potentially get one or two weapons skills leveled based on time passed, with one corresponding weapon in their inventory. As for Crafting skills, well, for all we know the character could have survived on an excellent shopping trip, I don't think we need randomly assigned crafting skills.

Instead, why not add points granted by hobbies and occupations based on how much time has passed? They've had to practice what they know. Every single occupation could just have a boost in skill points granted based on the advancement of game time.

And then there is the idea of Late Game occupations. These don't have to be terribly complicated really. These would be things that appear a few months in, a natural evolution of having to figure out how to stay alive and well after society shuts down. At this point, these people probably have something that sets them apart from all those who have succumbed to the horde.

"Carjacker"
Has survived by hopping from one vehicle to another, learning some tricks as they go.
Can hotwire vehicles, less chance of breaking window locks.
Better chance for the car to start up, reduced fuel usage.
Has skills in electrical, mechanics and metalworking.
Spawns next to a broken car with the key in hand.

"Scavenger"
Survived by knowing where to look for what they need, then making the best use of those things.
Comes with Lucky trait (may be nullified by unlucky).
Uses less materials when repairing tools and weapons.
Has skills in maintenance, metalworking and carpentry.
Possibly spawns in a store or storage area, probably with a crowbar.

"Wild Man"
Went to the woods and only now has to come back.
Has the Axe Man trait and Herbalist.
Is able to forage more from a location before the area is depleted.
Skills in foraging, carpentry and Axe.
Spawns on a road at the edge of civilization.

"Z Hunter"
Does one thing and does it well, but until now they had companions. He can take care of the Zombies, but now he has to fend for himself without help.
Has Hunter and desensitized.
Has an easier time activating critical hits (knife stab, spear skewer, etc.)
Improved fitness and movement skills.

"Marathon Runner"
If they aren't walking, they're running.
Can still run at high exertion. Can still jog even when exhausted.
Improved fitness, sprinting

I'm sure there are other late game classes to come up with, but I think I've laid it out well. Whether or how much this applies to multiplayer is another question, but I'm sure having an enhanced character based on how much time has passed in game would help the longevity of PZ.

This might be an involved Mod rather than a game suggestion considering the fiddling around involved. Pillow's mods do help to mitigate the problem, but there's another aspect that's taking the fun out of things. Still, even having mentioned Pillow's, I'm going to go through the whole thing here.

So one of the aspects of late game death is the loss of all progress on that character.

I'm fine with that honestly, it's what comes after that is the problem. I'm more peeved about the idea of starting a new character after this point because of the state of the new character. By all appearances, that character has apparently woken up from stasis a moment ago to discover a zombie apocalypse in full swing. It's this incongruity that bothers me, not having to start over or potentially find and recover the progress of the previous character.

There have been some conversation in other respawning related threads, but TrailerParkThor asked me to expand on the idea of time advanced spawns. Character creation options and bonuses that open up when in game time has passed.

On the topic of where and how the respawning happens, once enough time has passed the game should probably be very particular about where it puts people. Characters should spawn as a person who is already going through the motions of survival. And they should really not be placed into a home recently looted by a previous character if possible.

Spawn a new survivor with a broken down or crashed car near a city. The survivor should have the key to this car.
Spawn them at the edge of the map as if they are on foot and on the move.
Spawn the player in a house that hasn't been visited in quite some time and if possible convert the house into a safehouse. Alternately, pick an unvisited safehouse to put them in.
Spawn the player in the middle of the woods with a tent and campfire.
An exciting Spawn that has a player in a home with some minor tools and a flowering garden but is being invaded by zombies.
Spawn them in a well-stocked middle of the woods house, but you can hear the helicopter and see the first zombies coming in.

What they shouldn't be is spawned into an unsecured, unvisited or looted home. This is immersion breaking. It's been months, there needs to be a good reason for that survivor to still be around.

As for the character itself. Simply having been around for awhile suggests that they've learned to survive. They need something to signify they've had at least a little experience ensuring that they're still alive. I think it should be a matter of course that the character has gained skill points in the movement skills, Sprint, Nimble, Stealth and Lightfooted. How that is distributed can be semi-random, it would depend on what the character has gone through after all. To accompany this, the character should potentially get one or two weapons skills leveled based on time passed, with one corresponding weapon in their inventory. As for Crafting skills, well, for all we know the character could have survived on an excellent shopping trip, I don't think we need randomly assigned crafting skills.

Instead, why not add points granted by hobbies and occupations based on how much time has passed? They've had to practice what they know. Every single occupation could just have a boost in skill points granted based on the advancement of game time.

And then there is the idea of Late Game occupations. These don't have to be terribly complicated really. These would be things that appear a few months in, a natural evolution of having to figure out how to stay alive and well after society shuts down. At this point, these people probably have something that sets them apart from all those who have succumbed to the horde.

"Carjacker"
Has survived by hopping from one vehicle to another, learning some tricks as they go.
Can hotwire vehicles, less chance of breaking window locks.
Better chance for the car to start up, reduced fuel usage.
Has skills in electrical, mechanics and metalworking.
Spawns next to a broken car with the key in hand.

"Scavenger"
Survived by knowing where to look for what they need, then making the best use of those things.
Comes with Lucky trait (may be nullified by unlucky).
Uses less materials when repairing tools and weapons.
Has skills in maintenance, metalworking and carpentry.
Possibly spawns in a store or storage area, probably with a crowbar.

"Wild Man"
Went to the woods and only now has to come back.
Has the Axe Man trait and Herbalist.
Is able to forage more from a location before the area is depleted.
Skills in foraging, carpentry and Axe.
Spawns on a road at the edge of civilization.

"Z Hunter"
Does one thing and does it well, but until now they had companions. He can take care of the Zombies, but now he has to fend for himself without help.
Has Hunter and desensitized.
Has an easier time activating critical hits (knife stab, spear skewer, etc.)
Improved fitness and movement skills.

"Marathon Runner"
If they aren't walking, they're running.
Can still run at high exertion. Can still jog even when exhausted.
Improved fitness, sprinting

I'm sure there are other late game classes to come up with, but I think I've laid it out well. Whether or how much this applies to multiplayer is another question, but I'm sure having an enhanced character based on how much time has passed in game would help the longevity of PZ.

A crowbar letting you pry open a wood or metal door with appropriate strength would be pretty useful. Being able to open windows quicker would also be a nice perk. No more window powerlifting, just crank it open in one go.

This would mitigate the 'must have' value of the sledgehammer and provide a tool that's easier to use when fatigue is factored in.

A suggestion I tossed in on another thread was the idea of progressive starting stats.

It would go a long way to helping the respawn problem if time passed in game boosted stats to compensate for the later start. Along with a bit of extra gear to make sure the pc is set, this would make respawning much less painful. This could even go further and lead to the creation of survivor classes that aren't available until a certain amount of time has passed.

A suggestion I tossed in on another thread was the idea of progressive starting stats.

It would go a long way to helping the respawn problem if time passed in game boosted stats to compensate for the later start. Along with a bit of extra gear to make sure the pc is set, this would make respawning much less painful. This could even go further and lead to the creation of survivor classes that aren't available until a certain amount of time has passed.

The suggestion is valid and may still happen. Until then, there is a mod "Primitive Survival" that gives you more options for making twine and rope as well as expanding on what you can do with foraged materials. After that there is a "Spears: Twine and Leather Binding" mod that does as advertised.

I always find it rewarding when modders have the option to fill the gaps where the devs just don't have the time.

I want to bump this up since I'm starting to really feel this.

The text line inventory is clunky and slow to use. It is a pain to sift through a list of items with non-related sorting tags. I want that kitchen knife for cooking, but it's in with weapons, etc. The more the current system is used, the more the frustration can build up. This is most keenly felt during long shopping trips and sorting base inventory.


If time was a balancing factor, then you could potentially animate and slow the player when interacting with the backpack. Show them carrying the backpack in front of them as they paw through the bag.

1215. Self care mood modifiers.

Being able to stop and shave, to wash-up or getting a new haircut could provide an option to mitigate the effects of depression. It would only work when used sparingly of course, but cleaning oneself up is a known mood lifter. Conversely, leaving the PC in ripped, worn, dirty and bloody clothes for extended periods of time could inflict slow mood debuffs.