what to do your first few nights?

[ghostshott]

so ive been getting into 7 days alot and with all the cool alpha 19 stuff but im having an issue figuring out what do do my first few nights beside cowering in a corner waiting for the great chime of saftey?? any tips???

[Sakurambo]

i usually do the buried supply quest the first 2 or 3 night

[Dethar]

In vanilla I usually go out and harvest. First hour or so is deciding where I am putting my points. Typically have many point from all killing and quest I have done, and depending on weapons i have found is which skill tree I go with. Then I will look for the zombies that have come out in night, and if not many will kill them with bow to go harvesting mats. Overhauls it takes much longer as there are more options for skills or actual classes, and there may be crafting to do for class quests.

[Synvastian]

buried treasures until night first 2 days, gathering small bits of supplies as I pass trash/cars, cut a tree around 3:30am every morning so its lights out around the time im done...by day 3 im finding a permanent home and potential hordebase

[Xtrakicking]

Yeah, nights have always been that scary moment when everyone hides away. I remember in previous alphas, it was just impossible to do anything but to wait for morning, and some people would watch youtube videos and the like while waiting for night time to be over.

 

Luckily, this isn't the case anymore, thanks to the new stealth system. You can pretty much do anything you'd do during the day with somewhat safety, just a tad slower. (Looting would be an exception. It's still possible, but really hard and risky).

 

As soon as night hits, what I recommend is to equip stamina boosters such as beer or coffee in your taskbar as well as stones. After that, you crouch and start doing whatever it is you want to do (explore, build, get resources, dissasemble cars and machinery, dig or mine, etc.). Zombies have a hard time seeing you during night time, so only use your lights when you need them, be wary of all the noise you make and pay attention to foot steps.

 

If you see a zombie on your way, just throw a stone next to him. The zombie will hear the stone hitting the ground and will run towards it to investigate the noise. You can do this multiple times, throwing the stone further away each time, and clearing zombies from the area this way. Sometimes, you can have up to 5 zombies and more following the sound of your stones.

 

If a zombie sees you, just don't panic. Get up, turn your lights off, run a little bit, then crouch again and keep moving away. Zombies will lose sight of you, because it's dark, and you're no longer making sound. If they won't stop following you, then keep running away until they lose sight of you. Drink up those stamina boosters you have if you're out of stamina.

 

This way, you can do anything you want at night. Granted it's scary and you have to pay more attention, but it's fun and productive. I usually spend nights mining resources, though.

[Dethar]

Well previous alphas it was all about spam crafting, so you did mostly at night. Main reason i didnt mind seeing it removed.

I kind of forgot about throwing rocks. I did it at beginning of A17, till I realized I didn't have to anymore.

Didn't really mine unless I was lucky enough to find pick axe.

[Boidster]

so ive been getting into 7 days alot and with all the cool alpha 19 stuff but im having an issue figuring out what do do my first few nights beside cowering in a corner waiting for the great chime of saftey?? any tips???

 

If I am solo, I typically spend the first couple of nights at base cooking up food, arranging loot, and waiting for daybreak (or just use settime to fast-forward a bit). Co-op, we might try some outdoor scavenging or tree harvesting during the hours when the moon is up. Until we both have plenty of iron arrows/bolts, decent iron melee weapons, and med bandages, aloe gel, or medkits we don't mess with POIs at night. They run just as fast as we do at night and we have 4x the normal zombie spawns, so unexpected encounters can turn into a deadly crowd situation in a hurry.

 

Last night due to poor time management we ended up 500m from base at 2200 and we had to sneak/run the entire way back. What a PITA. With the extra zombie spawns finding a path through the crowd - when we're only level 8 or 9 and have not bought up stealth - can be a challenge. The rock-throwing is a life-saver if you can see the dang zombies against the shadows. We got ambushed right as we arrived at our base. Killed one and four more were running in from down the street so we hustled up the ladder and closed the hatch. All's well that ends well.

[new7daylive]

im always on a roof top at night in early game. I snipe zombies, harvest any metal bits that may on the roof, watch YouTube or read the news

[meganoth]

One possible way to safely work through the night is mining below your temporary hideout. Close off a room so a zombie needs some time to get inside. Add a ladder from above with the two lowest rungs missing (so you can jump on it, the zombies can't. You probably know that already). Dig down in that room, always make sure you can leave the hole fast. Listen to zombie sounds, if a zombie senses you, you have ample time to escape to the first floor before the zombie gets into the room.

[Stranded_Napkin]

I tend to do one of two things, all depending on loot and where I put my points. If I don't get a shovel, I tend to go into one of the apartment buildings/hotels that have the safes on the top floor. Lots of zombies in there and plenty of food and water from the cupboards. If this is my choice for the playthrough, I make sure that I have a point in Hidden Strike. Then just stealth through and headshot the zombies. If you luck into a wooden bow it's often a one-shot kill unless you are on one of the harder difficulties.

 

If I did find a shovel I'll dig for dirt/clay. If I have a shovel and a pick, I'll dig for clay and stone. I always like to make underground tunnels anyways. If you find a junk turret they make for a good way to deal with zombies while digging. Just dig at 45 degrees for a ramp, and then level off for the main dig portion. Makes early game work for you.

 

Both of these depend on two things. Is your gamma high or low? If you are willing to cheese it and go with a slightly higher gamma, it can still be dark but visible in the apartment building. In the mines you absolutely need a helmet. NVGs don't work unless there's ambient light. That and they are set for extremely low gamma. They get washed out very easily by raising the gamma even a little. The second question is did you find either of the NVGs or the helmet light? If yes, then you are good to go. Otherwise it's a crapshoot. Sometimes if I haven't found either of them I'll end up just killing roaming zombies, looting from cars, and harvesting wood.

[Adam the Waster]

Cry,,,,,,

[Roland]

Once you realize the Great Secret of the 7 Days to Die universe you become free to do pretty much whatever you wish. However, if you like the feeling of being so scared at night that you need to find safe shelter and that atmosphere is a big part of your enjoyment then please keep yourself ignorant and don't click on the spoiler....

 

 

 

When unencumbered, your sprint speed is far and away faster than everything else's sprint speed. If you simply turn and run away whenever detected you will be safe 99% of the time.

 

[Dethar]

The other thing I do and forget to mention. I will find large building and clear it of zombies right before night and loot it during night. I do this late game as well, but dont bother sneaking as I can deal with zombies that do hear me.

[GavenerOnline]

first night, I am crafting fixing up where I am sleeping sniping a few rocks and trees outside

second night I am crafting, organizing my stuff and figuring if I am moving or not.

third night if I am not on default settings I am looting houses, throw a torch on the wall to fight by

[canadianbluebeer]

At night, dig, chop, craft. Once i have wheels, I'll head out before dawn towards a poi,.

 

oh, and kill the zeds that come sniffin round my stuff. (and then repair whatever they were banging on)

If I have the helmet light, then I'll do POI at night too.

 

I don't just cower and hide from them anymore. Kill'em first is my motto.

 

[Ti2xGr]

I sort, gather, and organize my first few nights. I carry around a stack of Secure Storage chests and gather resources. I set them down in the streets and mark them on my map and fill them up with loot from nearby POIs. Rinse and repeat until I find some decent weapons and enough supplies for a starter base. In the evenings, I go around and transport my supplies back to a temp base and then sort through the night/make plans for resource gathering the next day.

[ElCabong]

Once you realize the Great Secret of the 7 Days to Die universe you become free to do pretty much whatever you wish. However, if you like the feeling of being so scared at night that you need to find safe shelter and that atmosphere is a big part of your enjoyment then please keep yourself ignorant and don't click on the spoiler....

 

 

 

When unencumbered, your sprint speed is far and away faster than everything else's sprint speed. If you simply turn and run away whenever detected you will be safe 99% of the time.

 

Lol, that is how I outran a puma the other day. I thought it was a bug

[Boidster]

Once you realize the Great Secret of the 7 Days to Die universe you become free to do pretty much whatever you wish.

 

Hah, on default spawn level maybe. On our server that will be a frying-pan-into-fire situation. We absolutely felt pretty safe wandering around at night before we discovered the maxcount parameter. We ought to look into planning for that, though. We could clear out several chunks in the evening, so we were pretty sure of no respawns during night. Then we can go back into those areas without attracting a crowd.

 

 

I haven't actually tested it, so I'll take your word for it, but just yesterday we did a 'kill specials' quest (daytime) and I could barely outrun the two ferals which spawned right in front of me. I ran away until I was out of stamina, turned around and they were several meters behind and got to me well before I could recharge. Am I misunderstanding your use of 'sprint speed'? I was not encumbered, but I do wear light armor. Maybe that's the problem? Is the secret that we should go out without armor as well as being unencumbered?

 

Note I am using daytime ferals as a proxy for night-time 'run' zombies (we don't use the 'jog' setting). XML does say that ferals are 0.1x faster than normal template zombies so maybe we'd be better at escaping nighttime runners than I think.

 

Edited April 20, 2020 by Boidster (see edit history)

[Sakurambo]

even light armor slow you down, only padded(?) armor didn't

[Jadeazu]

I dig for iron which surprisingly I made a hole with a hatch in my house and dug about 30 squares down and hit iron. So I usually spend my nights down there.

[Laz Man]

The first couple nights are arguably the most intense since the addition to feral spawns at night. Poor planning on the 1st night will most likely lead to a death on default settings or higher especially with no fire arms.

 

 

[Boidster]

Boidster said:

 

Hah, on default spawn level maybe. On our server that will be a frying-pan-into-fire situation. We absolutely felt pretty safe wandering around at night before we discovered the maxcount parameter. We ought to look into planning for that, though. We could clear out several chunks in the evening, so we were pretty sure of no respawns during night. Then we can go back into those areas without attracting a crowd.

 

 

 

I haven't actually tested it, so I'll take your word for it, but just yesterday we did a 'kill specials' quest (daytime) and I could barely outrun the two ferals which spawned right in front of me. I ran away until I was out of stamina, turned around and they were several meters behind and got to me well before I could recharge. Am I misunderstanding your use of 'sprint speed'? I was not encumbered, but I do wear light armor. Maybe that's the problem? Is the secret that we should go out without armor as well as being unencumbered?

 

Note I am using daytime ferals as a proxy for night-time 'run' zombies (we don't use the 'jog' setting). XML does say that ferals are 0.1x faster than normal template zombies so maybe we'd be better at escaping nighttime runners than I think.

 

Following up with testing:

 

 

 

 

I tested as a level 1 n00b survivor with no perks or skills. I tested several different zombies, but many had the same results so only 2 are listed below, plus the dreaded mountain lion (which is really a big puddy). The test methodology was 1) spawn zombie, 2) get its attention from about 10m away, 2) run the opposite direction for 50 stamina and 100 stamina (completely drained). Tried naked and with full set of leather armor. Also used both 'Run' and 'Sprint' settings. Zombie max speeds have some RNG in them so except for the cats I only tested once for each.

 

Summary: Arlenes (and other standard-template zombies) are fastest, mountain lions are no sweat due to their very limited aggro/follow distance. If you go out at night, go out naked (or with just padded armor).

 

NAKED
	Arlene	Wight	Mountain Lion
Zombies "Run", 50 stamina	Lost after ~50m	Lost after ~50m	Lost after 30m (trial 1) Lost after 80m (trial 2)
Zombies "Run", 100 stamina	NA	NA	NA
Zombies "Sprint", 50 stamina	Still chasing	Lost after ~80m	NA (they don't sprint)
Zombies "Sprint", 100 stamina	Lost after ~120m	NA	NA
FULL LEATHER ARMOR
Zombies "Run", 50 stamina	Still chasing	Still chasing	Lost after 20m (trial 1) Lost after 40m (trial 2)
Zombies "Run", 100 stamina	Lost after ~70m	Still chasing (this was a pretty fast wight)	NA
Zombies "Sprint", 50 stamina	Still chasing very close behind	Still chasing	NA
Zombies "Sprint", 100 stamina	Still chasing ~10m behind	Lost after ~100m (right at the end of stamina; had to backpedal a bit to get it to lose interest)	NA

 

 

 

Still does not take into account running 50-100m with increased spawns, but escaping from one or two zombies coming from the same direction should not be much of a problem if you're naked.

Edited April 28, 2021 by Boidster (see edit history)

[Roland]

It is true that with increased spawns you tend to pick up new chasers even if you leave old ones in the dust so in those cases you definitely need a plan for stamina recovery. If that plan DOES NOT involve nerdpoling then you have my respect.

 

That is a cool table, btw. Nicely done.

[Roland]

 

Hah, on default spawn level maybe. On our server that will be a frying-pan-into-fire situation. We absolutely felt pretty safe wandering around at night before we discovered the maxcount parameter. We ought to look into planning for that, though. We could clear out several chunks in the evening, so we were pretty sure of no respawns during night. Then we can go back into those areas without attracting a crowd.

 

 

I haven't actually tested it, so I'll take your word for it, but just yesterday we did a 'kill specials' quest (daytime) and I could barely outrun the two ferals which spawned right in front of me. I ran away until I was out of stamina, turned around and they were several meters behind and got to me well before I could recharge. Am I misunderstanding your use of 'sprint speed'? I was not encumbered, but I do wear light armor. Maybe that's the problem? Is the secret that we should go out without armor as well as being unencumbered?

 

Note I am using daytime ferals as a proxy for night-time 'run' zombies (we don't use the 'jog' setting). XML does say that ferals are 0.1x faster than normal template zombies so maybe we'd be better at escaping nighttime runners than I think.

 

Throwing rocks for crowd management is definitely the thing to do at night with larger maxcounts. Also, it should be noted that unless the zombie is feral it is pretty easy to run a short distance then crouch and sneak to the side and you will lose them. At night they are NOT following you by sight. They are following your breadcrumbs so if you sidestep while crouched from the position they last heard you they will go right past you to that location and then stop. It is scary to sit there and trust that they will run by but....they do. (not if their eyes are glowing though...)

 

Also, armor does spoil the speed differential but I was answering the OP's direct question about what you do at night during the first few days. Typically, you don't have full armor by then and even if doing quests you probably only have a few pieces and are still faster.

[Stranded_Napkin]

 

When unencumbered, your sprint speed is far and away faster than everything else's sprint speed. If you simply turn and run away whenever detected you will be safe 99% of the time.

 

True, but those flying death machines don't care about your sprint speed or stamina. On harder difficulties it's almost like they are telepathic in their ability to deviate directions when you actually take a shot at them. I go out at night, but I know that the real threat isn't on the ground.