Alpha 19 Dev Diary

[Guppys Fur]

Mr. Mole:
the high polygon Blocks like the new Weapon Racks and a lot of others are too expensive for Players to use in masses in their base; you have stated.

 

Any thoughts in letting the Players creating Makeshift versions of them to use in the base? Some McGuyver stuff that tells the observer its welded together by a Casual and give the base a more "survival/Postapocalyse" look and feel. This could be used for various Blocks like Clothing rack, Shelfes etc so that we players have more variety in detail-decorations without using the polygon rich "professional" versions that we drool over in TFP´s Streams and Pics.

 

cant wait to loose myself in the details of the new Prefabs when looting btw

[omegarte]

I think something like this would be a good INT tier 3 melee weapon.  Steel casing, built-in flashlight, longer reach than stun baton, has electrified prongs at tip to stab and stock Zombies (same animation as spear would work).  

[Laz Man]

2 hours ago, hiemfire said:

The Junk Sledge also kept spazzing out and not attacking...

From the footage I've watched I think the issue is an animation/tracking issue as the zeds do still get smacked as they walk by.

[Vintorez]

I think it'd be neat for other INT melee weapons to not stick to the club-style form factor of the stun baton.

 

Junk Taser, batteries hooked up to a steak fork, attacks like a knife

Stun Baton, like a club

Cattle Prod, attacks like a spear, heavily modified with like a glowing tesla orb on back end

 

Would also be cool for T3 melee weapons to have special attacks, like a power attack with the Cattle Prod causing chain lightning and incurring a cooldown for the weapon to recharge.

[JCrook1028]

On 6/26/2020 at 2:39 PM, MechanicalLens said:

It's not that. I'm more so concerned about their what I assume to be unscripted distribution in RWG. It would be unfortunate if for example 4/5 of your traders happened to be in the forest biome and 1 was in the heart of the desert, and you wanted to settle in the burnt biome.

5 refers to you unlocking from the tiers, not the number of traders on the map. First trader you get from opening quest. Then you will unlock 4 traders thru trader to trader quests, at the end of tier 1/2/3/4. All other traders on a map you will have to find the old fashioned way, exploration.

[Mechanimal]

3 hours ago, Blake_ said:

As one streamer said, Junk Sledge Turrets should rotate 360º to actually be useful in every close range situation within their limits. Woudn't upset balance one bit.

I second this.

Having the sweeping laser sight for the shooty turrets is fine, well balanced even, but for the sledge it is kinda silly over-restricted in that way and thus not effective enough as is. It doesn't even need the laser, just have it turn and hit whatever zombo gets within range, from any direction. Almost any fish eye lens, or other reg cams, or even other sensor types, could be enough with some very basic AI to do such a thing irl.

[4sheetzngeegles]

Watching the streams to pass time. I listened to a few comments, and thought.

It will probably be a mod later, since vanilla already has icons for the map
and TFP has included the color tinted onscreen locator icons, If 3 icons can
be redrawn. A green dot,an amber dot,and red skull.

Green for friendly completed, amber for quest completed, and red to be solely

for multiplayer PVP.  A fourth can be added BLUE for meet up location.

 

It would help provide interactive mapping. A quick unobtrusive visual for map overlay,
and if the red is coded to be shared, it would be green for the friendly side, and
red for non-party members, it would create territorial zones.

 

For basic single player and friendly party only would be easy, just two shared icon changes.

 

For PVP, would need code: player would have to clear all of the sleeper zones within
POI, retrieve a certain percentage of loot, and destroy a specific foundation block to assign the Red Skull.

This would work best in a controlled PVP RP environment.

[xfejiou5]

On 6/26/2020 at 4:49 PM, Laz Man said:

Did u watch any of the streams?  Melee looked good to me.  Maybe the new feed back animations will also help make it feel better for u.

Yes, I watched fataal's stream. There was a comment that summarised the whole stream. There was a hitbox section but it was not about melee range.

[Mechanimal]

21 minutes ago, Mechanimal said:

I second this.

Having the sweeping laser sight for the shooty turrets is fine, well balanced even, but for the sledge it is kinda silly over-restricted in that way and thus not effective enough as is. It doesn't even need the laser, just have it turn and hit whatever zombo gets within range, from any direction. Almost any fish eye lens, or other reg cams, or even other sensor types, could be enough with some very basic AI to do such a thing irl.

Well... thinking about it more..  so in this case it would have probs end up having a high chance of hitting the player if a zombo was near them when it struck.

But I find this to be an acceptably dangerous, and highly amusing, side effect that players should enjoy learning the hard way. Especially if it doesn't do much damage and focuses on causing the ragdoll effect.

Solution is simply to keep ones @%$*#!ing distance from it when deployed, fully expect to get yo @%$*#! ragdolled at the worst possible moment, or don't use it. All the turrets have the ability to harm the user, this is no exception, and I think it would be hilarious on top of meaningfully useful as the entry level turret if it functioned like this in 360.

[Roland]

Intelligence build is the nerdy build so the tier 3 weapon should obviously be...

 

 

 

 

 

yIntaHvIS yInqa' batlh Suv!

 

[Adam the Waster]

1 minute ago, Roland said:

Intelligence build is the nerdy build so thr tier 3 weapon should obviously be...

 

  Reveal hidden contents

 

 

LMAO! that or the lightsabber!

 

the Plasma Rod!

[STyK_]

Watched Jonahs day 14 horde night turned up to survivalist. He did it in a garbage dumpster with a ramp and floating quarter block. After watching faatals bit on the devs stream I thought that he said that half would path and half would attack. It seemed too easy anyway.

[GoldenFox]

4 hours ago, Cndrocker said:

Will this update overlay current games or will we have to start fresh to utilize the update?

with every large update a fresh savegame is mandatory

[DanLW]

Initial thoughts on Trader music, and A19 music in general (I know, a little late to the party)

 

While I like having new music, the style doesn't feel right.  Mainly the electric guitar sound used in a lot of the clips.  I think the reason I feel this way is because somewhere in my brain, it isn't making sense that electric instruments would be common in the apocalypse.

 

My feedback (for A20) is to try some iterations using a fully acoustic set.  Traditional guitars, cigar box guitars, banjoes, harmonicas, pianos, flutes/whistles stuff like that.  A severely de-tuned honky-tonk piano would be great to use in suspense music.  Basically, instruments that would be common in a bluegrass/country setting.  Not a country style of music, but those kinds of instruments with a modern post-apocalyptic flair.  Kinda like how people are playing modern heavy metal music using only orchestral instruments.  Do modern post-apocalyptic music, but try doing it with a strictly acoustic set of instruments that one might imagine they could craft in the apocalypse.  Maybe even keep the electric guitar, but record it without an amplifier - put a mic by it and record the sound of the strings without plugging the guitar into anything.

 

In A18, the music did work for me...  With A19, some (but not all) of the music just feels out of place.

[Laz Man]

36 minutes ago, xfejiou5 said:

Yes, I watched fataal's stream. There was a comment that summarised the whole stream. There was a hitbox section but it was not about melee range.

All of the streamers I've seen so far all have said melee feels better in A19.  The one exception has been some possible hitbox issues with the new big mama head.  A good sign for the most part.

[The Gronk]

19 minutes ago, DanLW said:

Initial thoughts on Trader music, and A19 music in general (I know, a little late to the party)

 

While I like having new music, the style doesn't feel right.  Mainly the electric guitar sound used in a lot of the clips.  I think the reason I feel this way is because somewhere in my brain, it isn't making sense that electric instruments would be common in the apocalypse.

 

My feedback (for A20) is to try some iterations using a fully acoustic set.  Traditional guitars, cigar box guitars, banjoes, harmonicas, pianos, flutes/whistles stuff like that.  A severely de-tuned honky-tonk piano would be great to use in suspense music.  Basically, instruments that would be common in a bluegrass/country setting.  Not a country style of music, but those kinds of instruments with a modern post-apocalyptic flair.  Kinda like how people are playing modern heavy metal music using only orchestral instruments.  Do modern post-apocalyptic music, but try doing it with a strictly acoustic set of instruments that one might imagine they could craft in the apocalypse.  Maybe even keep the electric guitar, but record it without an amplifier - put a mic by it and record the sound of the strings without plugging the guitar into anything.

 

In A18, the music did work for me...  With A19, some (but not all) of the music just feels out of place.

You've pretty much just described "Hayseed Dixie's" entire act.

 

 

[Adam the Waster]

16 minutes ago, DanLW said:

Initial thoughts on Trader music, and A19 music in general (I know, a little late to the party)

 

While I like having new music, the style doesn't feel right.  Mainly the electric guitar sound used in a lot of the clips.  I think the reason I feel this way is because somewhere in my brain, it isn't making sense that electric instruments would be common in the apocalypse.

 

My feedback (for A20) is to try some iterations using a fully acoustic set.  Traditional guitars, cigar box guitars, banjoes, harmonicas, pianos, flutes/whistles stuff like that.  A severely de-tuned honky-tonk piano would be great to use in suspense music.  Basically, instruments that would be common in a bluegrass/country setting.  Not a country style of music, but those kinds of instruments with a modern post-apocalyptic flair.  Kinda like how people are playing modern heavy metal music using only orchestral instruments.  Do modern post-apocalyptic music, but try doing it with a strictly acoustic set of instruments that one might imagine they could craft in the apocalypse.  Maybe even keep the electric guitar, but record it without an amplifier - put a mic by it and record the sound of the strings without plugging the guitar into anything.

 

In A18, the music did work for me...  With A19, some (but not all) of the music just feels out of place.

the Guitar only plays at trader joels. not when you're roaming around!

 

personally i love it, Granted i kinda wish that you could turn off Combat music and keep the dynamic music but that sounds a bit much!

 

i hope soon they will add more! one i would LOVE to hear is something like what you hear in the wasteland! the Banjo or whatever it is! that always gives me a tingling and one of the reasons i love the wasteland!

 

And maybe some night music that sounds a bit. "scary" hearing screams of zombies, Wild animals, bugs, and other scary stuff!

 

 

  

[Demonoid74]

T3 Nerd weapon would be a katana...over rated weapon that nerds have a hard on for...

[Drithyl]

Would raising the loot percentage setting also lower the gamestage required to start finding certain items, or would it simply affect the quantity of it?

[beHypE]

On 6/26/2020 at 9:04 PM, madmole said:

They [traders] spawn in cities now, so its easier to ensure 1 per biome.

This is an interesting change. I might read a bit too much into it but is it simply for convenience regarding technical issues, or is this part of a bigger plan of moving the mid game towards cities ? I'm really hyped, as many are, for the new and slower early game; but while I haven't yet played A19 I can only assume the most optimal way to play will still be to set up shop between a trader and the closest big city. As such, this seems to be a pretty substantial life changer early game and I wonder if you have plans to make cities more dangerous to compensate.

 

Also, pretty happy about the way food/water works now, I remember we had a discussion about that in A18 and i'm glad this is becoming way more... "logical", especially for newer players.

[DanLW]

46 minutes ago, Adam the Waster said:

And maybe some night music that sounds a bit. "scary" hearing screams of zombies, Wild animals, bugs, and other scary stuff!

  

Apparently, nighttime in A1 was like that.  I think something like the A1 night sounds would be good, albeit dialed back quite a bit... unless in the wasteland!

 

A1.1 nightime sounds (YouTube)

 

 

[Adam the Waster]

2 minutes ago, DanLW said:

Apparently, nighttime in A1 was like that.  I think something like the A1 night sounds would be good, albeit dialed back quite a bit... unless in the wasteland!

 

 

thats sounds cool but yeah i agree. needs to be toned down! i never played A1 but i liked SOME of the zombies and i though 1 like the nude walker would be nice as a "generic" zombie for 7DTD now!

 

but back to the sound. i don't think stuff like the baby and the music box should be in. more natural stuff

 

stuff like!

 

Twigs breaking, shuffling of bushes and Trees, Wind (gets stronger in wasteland and Snow), Owls, yells of a zombies (they sound far though), Crickets, yells! Animals sounds like Coyotes screaming, wolf howls, The Sounds of the zombie dogs, spider and maybe feral wight!, Unidentified sounds of bugs and animals, footsteps. 

 

And MAYBE! some odd stuff like a screamer crying, Growls, moans, Whisperers and sounds of small animals moving around!.

 

 

[Dethar]

1 hour ago, DanLW said:

Initial thoughts on Trader music, and A19 music in general (I know, a little late to the party)

 

While I like having new music, the style doesn't feel right.  Mainly the electric guitar sound used in a lot of the clips.  I think the reason I feel this way is because somewhere in my brain, it isn't making sense that electric instruments would be common in the apocalypse.

 

My feedback (for A20) is to try some iterations using a fully acoustic set.  Traditional guitars, cigar box guitars, banjoes, harmonicas, pianos, flutes/whistles stuff like that.  A severely de-tuned honky-tonk piano would be great to use in suspense music.  Basically, instruments that would be common in a bluegrass/country setting.  Not a country style of music, but those kinds of instruments with a modern post-apocalyptic flair.  Kinda like how people are playing modern heavy metal music using only orchestral instruments.  Do modern post-apocalyptic music, but try doing it with a strictly acoustic set of instruments that one might imagine they could craft in the apocalypse.  Maybe even keep the electric guitar, but record it without an amplifier - put a mic by it and record the sound of the strings without plugging the guitar into anything.

 

In A18, the music did work for me...  With A19, some (but not all) of the music just feels out of place.

Why would there by any music. Except at trade, or why in middle of nowhere. To me this is whats going thru your head at certain times.

[Roland]

I like the music set to 10% per day. Then it is more rare...and more poignant when it happens.

[Khalagar]

  

14 hours ago, Aldranon said:

It seems to work better on a flat open area from what I saw.

 

It seems to have one  block range based on that video, and only on the block directly in front of it. Which would explain why it struggles so hard to even hit anything, even in that video it was going nuts trying to deal with a single slow moving basic zombie even while the player was keeping the turret between themselves and the zombie.

 

It worked though at least! In all the real world uses it seems to get about 1-2 hits max before the zombies out of it's field of view, and if the zombie is running it doesn't even get that off. I think the issue is a mix of it's super short range + tracking + extremely low stagger

 

10 hours ago, meganoth said:

So we are talking about him having (very very roughly) 14+20=34 damage if he were using sledge plus wooden club. Which is supposed to be what an INTelligent player should be doing.

 

The range is so short on it that you can't really use it like that. It only hits the block directly in front of it, so if you are standing in that block directly in front of it, it can't even hit the enemies. You can try and stand to the side of it and kite a zombie into it's attack range but it's only viable against a lone zed that doesn't run. Overall turns into one of those "Why not just one shot the zombie with a stone sledge?" situations where you spend 45 seconds dancing around trying to make your turret actually do something and lose 80% of your health bar in the process, when you could have just attacked with a real melee weapon and dispatched the threat

 

8 hours ago, Aldranon said:

So, if you put a sledge turret on a flat, open area and use the turret like a block for cover. 

Then move around the turret as the zombie moves around it, will the zombie eventually jump on top of it, or will that be a new OP meta?

 

Edit: Also putting the sledge turret on the opposite side of a door and off to one side, will that be OP?  Just repair the door as the turret kills all zombies on the other side.

 

If you use it as cover the zombie will just path around it. They probably won't bother jumping on top of it, and if they did, it wouldn't be able to hit them judging by it's cone of fire. As for the door strategy, it does 14 damage. The stronger zombies have 250-500+ health. That means it would take 35 attacks for it to kill a single 500 hp Wight, which is at least 10-15 seconds of it firing nonstop judging by the attack speeds I've seen on it. You can maybe lower that with mods but you get the point

 

So against a horde of 5-15 zombies trying to get into your base, absolutely definitely not OP to put it outside your door lol. A single pipe bomb would do more damage to a cluster of enemies than the junk sledge could output in like 2 minutes of firing

 

 

My un-asked for advice on the Junk Sledge based on what little testing I've seen as most people aren't even willing to try it so I don't have any real hard numbers besides attack damage -

 

• Needs at least 180 degree cone of fire so it can hit the blocks in front of it, and a full 360 swivel would make it far more useful
• Needs to scale off Int and the Junk skill, because ATM a level 1 player using one is the exact same as a max int max junk skill build using it
• Needs more damage and attack speed and knockback etc. Which could directly come from perk investment so it starts off bad but eventually becomes an endgame viable melee weapon
• Shouldn't count against turret limit. It has a single block range, even if you had two of them out front attacking while your main turrets provided long range support, and you fired on from the backline too or were out in front in melee  with a third Junk Sledge being held in hand, that's still directly competing against builds using a fully spec'd Auto Shotgun or M60 which will mow down an entire horde in seconds and not have to deal with janky mechanics like trying to bait the zeds into a certain spot so the turrets can even attack