Rock Sling, Spear, and Zippo Lighter

BurningArmada

By BurningArmada
in Wish List

Recommended Posts

BurningArmada Wolfbait

BurningArmada

Posted
Posted

I think a rock sling, a spear, and a zippo lighter could be added to the game without negative impact to the lore.

A rock sling seems like a weapon that would fit in between stone throwing and the bow and arrow. This would be a natural upgrade from stone throwing and could have the following attributes:

  • Created from blueprint without the need for a work bench
  • Would cost 2 cured gut and 1 cured leather
  • Unable to improve condition
  • Use the current stones in the game as projectiles
  • Similar aim system to stone throwing
  • Kills rabbits instead of stunning them
  • Cause wolves to flee upon successful hit to the body
  • Kills wolves if hit in the head
  • Kills deer if hit in head
  • Only pisses of bears

 

A spear also seems like a natural fit in the game as a pre-bow and arrow weapon that can be built with things already found in the game. The spear would have the following attributes.

  • Created from blueprint without the need for a work bench
  • Would cost 1 scrap metal,  1 cured gut, 1 cured leather, and 10 sticks
  • Unable to improve condition
  • Lunge attack when only pressing attack button
  • Throw spear if also holding aim button
  • Similar aim system as stone throwing when throwing spear
  • When equipped, there is no speed reduction when walking up hill or into wind (using spear to steady yourself like a hiking stick)

 

The zippo lighter could be added to the game and would rely on existing items to maintain. The zippo lighter would have the following attributes.

  • Can only be found, not built
  • Refill with existing lantern fuel
  • Can be used as light source
  • Can be used in place of matches to build a fire
  • Improved chance over matches when building fire
  • Can light torches and camp fires in windy conditions

 

I think all of these items would live well in the silent apocalypse without seeming out of place in any way. Thank you for the consideration!

Link to comment
Share on other sites
  • 4 weeks later...
Amon Triskel Survivor

Amon Triskel

Posted
Posted

Well it would be nice if the sling would allow you to kill a rabbit since that would be a step up from the basic stone. 

A more basic sling could be made from braided cloth, easier to make but far less durable, it would simply make it easier to aim stones 

A leather sling should allow you to kill the rabbits

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Mroz4k Pathfinder

Mroz4k

Posted
Posted

All of these suggestions are bad, because of game balance mostly.

Sling is unnecesary when it comes to hunting rabbits - stone throwing is efficient enough method, which doesnt require any tool.
Stones can be used in hand to distract wolves, in a way that wolves will investigate them.
If Sling could be used to kill wolves and deer, there would be no need for bow except for bears, but those are not that neccesary for game survival. This makes the bow rather pointless. Not to mention the sling weights next-to-nothing, and so do stones - stones are just a bit heavier then arrows, but can be found everywhere.
Scaring wolves away would make it also incredibly OP. They would pose no threat at all anymore if a single shot with stone would send them running.
Slings are not that easy to use in real life.

Balance and realisticaly wise, this is a bad idea.

Spears - this is just straight up nonsense. There is no way to turn 10 short sticks into a single, long spear shaft. Obvious option would be a sapling. Also, cured leather is completedly unnecesary item in a spear creation. Additionally, a single peace of scrap metal is not good enough to act as a spear-head, if it were, then a piece of scrap metal could be used as a knife, for example. That is only possible in the Story mode. Finally, leaning on a stick does not make it much easier to walk up a snowy hill, it gives one some support but that may not be enough to go up.

Balance-wise it is exceptionally bad idea, considering how powerful, cheap and easy-to-craft that weapon would be. Plus it doesnt make sense.

Zippo lighter suggestion - lantern fuel does not evaporate well enough to be lit on fire by a single spark of the lighter. (Lantern fuel =/= accelerant, and accelerant in-game is literally a picture of a lighter fluid). As much as I would like for it to work that way, it doesnt. Lantern fuel does not operate on evaporation, but rather on being "sprayed out" of the fuel tank. Zippos were designed for lighting of cigarettes, not building campfires. It is intended to be lit when it upwards position. For that reason, lighting a fire with a match is easier then with a Zippo. It might be possible to light a torch or campfire with a zippo in windy conditions, but that fire would be immidiatedly doused by the wind. Finally, it would not be a very good light source, because the insides of the lighter would be rather quickly depleted if it stayed lit for a while. It simply doesnt have a big "fuel tank" to it.

Again, this is both unrealistic, and unbalanced.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Mroz4k Pathfinder

Mroz4k

Posted
Posted
19 minutes ago, godhelpme89 said:

Do you always have to be so incredibly rude?

And for someone who always puts up walls of text using "realism" as your defense, you think laser accuracy throwing a rock is more real then a slingshot?!

No, I didnt have to be so rude, and I shouldnt have been. I am sorry, sometimes mood gets the worst out of me. But, barring the fact that I was a rude ass, I was also correct.
I didnt even use realism to support my statement, I mostly used game balance on top of a realism. These suggestions were incredibly overpowered in every aspect. Also, supposedly sling =/= slingshot, I made that mistake too before since english is not my first language. Sling = a leather piece where the stone goes, and two really long strings. Then you rotate the stone in a sling in big, long circles after which you jerk your hand and out goes the stone. It is very difficult weapon to use, it would take loads of practise to be precise with it, like years of experience amount of practise...
As opposed to slingshot, which is a piece of leather tied to two rubber ends in a stick, or for the modern version, a metal construction. That works on elasticity, unlike the sling.

Also, ingame throwing rocks is definitedly not laser accuracy, if anything the "distance" you can throw is a bit unrealistic, but there is a significant curve to the throw, in fact, if you want to throw the furthest, you need to throw under the 45 degree angle into the air, which is how it works in real life. Not that it matters, the rock can hit the ground, bounce off and still stun the rabbit, but it definitedly is not laser accurate.
And yes, throwing a rock with your hand is far more accurate then trying to use a sling, as a beginer. Sling takes a lot more practise, but in real life, slings are also pretty powerful weapon as I was lectured on these forums by someone who knows more about this topic then I do. Once experienced enough, then the sling would become very accurate, deadly weapon, but the learning curve is ridiculously long. As such, it would be game-balance breaking weapon.

 Zippo lighter is obviously intended to be a renewable fire source, something we really need, but again it is designed to be so incredibly OP it is just not funny. "renewable" fire source is incredibly useful, and for that reason it should also be "hard to make fire with", not easier. That is how game balance works.

39 minutes ago, godhelpme89 said:

And it doesn't take magic to sharpen a stick into a spear. 

That was never discussed.

On 9. 8. 2017 at 10:37 PM, BurningArmada said:

Would cost 1 scrap metal,  1 cured gut, 1 cured leather, and 10 sticks

It takes magic to combine 10 short sticks into 1 single, long one. That was the most riddiculous part of that whole suggestion - it is unrealistic and game balance breaking. There are no long "branches" in game, only saplings, which need to be cured. Obvious suggestion would be that a maple sapling would be turned into a shaft for the spear. Not ten short sticks. This is a game mechanic for a game "The Forest", where you put several of short sticks together to make a spear. Not TLD, not since 2014 when guns and tools were repaired with scrap metal and fir firewood.

Spear crafting: - without workbench, 1 scrap metal, 1 cured gut, 1 cured leather and 10 sticks is riddiculous. It is renewable, cheap weapon that can be crafted anywhere - it is OP.

As opposed to:
Spear crafting: - with workbench, 1 improvised knife, 2 cured guts, 1 cured maple sapling - this makes it powerful but expensive and timely weapon. That would be a balanced suggestion.

Game balance is more important than realism or anything else, when it comes to TLD. I like to suggest things that would be both realistic and balanced in a game, as those have the highest chance to ever appear in the game. If you are going to suggest items in a way to make your own game super easy, then you are missing the concept of "game balance" and your suggestions will never be good. I suppose me, being rude and sarcastic towards such suggestions, is a bad habit I brought in from previous forums. I will try to work on that more, these forums are a lot less free in terms of language then what I am used to.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
godhelpme89 Prepper

godhelpme89

Posted
Posted

I don't think anyone is suggesting making the game easier.

As for the spear, not sure it's needed as a ranged weapon. Maybe if it's use was only in defense against animal attacks. Maybe it could also function as a walking stick, reducing your chance of sprains.

The sling, or preferably, the slingshot I don't see the harm in it. I would prefer it not kill anything larger then a rabbit. And as I said above, we already have pinpoint accuracy in throwing a rock, so a little added range does not seem like that big of a deal.

And the zippo? Yes a renewable fire source might seem overpowered, but I thought it would be balanced because of everything needed to get it. Hacksaw to get scrap metal for hooks, guts for line, whetstone to keep your tool sharp for cutting into ice.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Mroz4k Pathfinder

Mroz4k

Posted
Posted
13 hours ago, godhelpme89 said:

I don't think anyone is suggesting making the game easier.

As for the spear, not sure it's needed as a ranged weapon. Maybe if it's use was only in defense against animal attacks. Maybe it could also function as a walking stick, reducing your chance of sprains.

The sling, or preferably, the slingshot I don't see the harm in it. I would prefer it not kill anything larger then a rabbit. And as I said above, we already have pinpoint accuracy in throwing a rock, so a little added range does not seem like that big of a deal.

And the zippo? Yes a renewable fire source might seem overpowered, but I thought it would be balanced because of everything needed to get it. Hacksaw to get scrap metal for hooks, guts for line, whetstone to keep your tool sharp for cutting into ice.

What is the point of a slingshot if you can already use simple stone throwing to achieve easy results? Except it would make the game even easier... is that something we really want? Or do we like the fact that hand stone throwing is not super easy, and adds a little bit of challenge to the game? That is why its a no to slingshot. No point unless stone throwing by hand becomes infinitedly harder. Besides, we dont have any elastic binding material in the end, so slingshot is non craftable atm. The sling would be riddiculously hard to hit something with, but it posseses ability to kill animals, even bigger ones - and that is once again why it is bad idea from balance point.

Spear needs to be a ranged weapon, else there is no point to it. Might as well have a simple walking stick instead of the spear... and when it comes to struggle modes, even bare hands would be better then a spear for self defense... spear is way too long to be of any use in a struggle against wolf which is within immidiate vicinity to your body. Knife would be infinitedly better tool to use in self defense against wolf which is on top of you.

I have NO idea what you were trying to say with the zippo argument. I only see "its renewable" which it is, and I agree that is both helpful and neccesary for the game, but you are missing the point that because it is so useful, it should be harder to build fires with it rather than lower.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
godhelpme89 Prepper

godhelpme89

Posted
Posted

....okay? 

So if getting rid of the extra button press to kill the bunny (slingshot kills, not stun), then we have different definitions of easier.

For the zippo, I was showing that the materials used to get it and go fishing, scrap metal for hooks, etc, might offset the convenience. 

The spear could certainly be used to possibly fend off an attack. The point of long weapons like that is so attackers can't get close to you. While I might not agree if it's necessary, having to carry around extra weight who's sole purpose is to fight off a charging animal, which can usually be avoided, I don't think makes the game easier.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
CitrinePeridot Pathfinder

CitrinePeridot

Posted
Posted

I do, in fact, personally like all of these ideas. While piecing together sticks, one might consider instead one of those branches instead? That would work. One long, continuous piece of wood. As for the Zippo? Oh yeah...I'm liking that. *humming "I'd like to teach the world to sing" from the old Coke commercials & envisioning a zippo instead*

 

Zippo.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Hesha Pathfinder

Hesha

Posted
Posted

Nevermind Mroz, he doesn't understand that some people want to be able to do "what they could do, if they were in this situation IRL" and don't care too much about game balancing. To him this is a game first and foremost. To some others, like me, it's more a simulated experience. He gets rude and condesending because he feels people want to break his game.

Now with that out of the way: Slings would be possible, but I think they are quite difficult to use when compared to bows or slingshots. Plus, there are cars in the game, which means rubber is abundantly available (inner tubes), so crafting a slingshot might be the better option.

Slings should be able to kill wolves/deers since they were historically able to kill people (in armour). But if they do so only with headshots that would definitely be sufficient.

Spears: Yes, absolutely. Both as javelins and melee weapons. But I wouldn't use sticks for them, they should rather be made from either branches or limbs directly. Javelins could be thrown the same way as stones with the same aiming system and spears, especially boar spears would be so handy in stopping charging wolves. And it would be a decent alternative to this cheesy-as-well stripping naked and charging in with a hatchet thing that seems to be so popular.

Zippo: We don't really need a Zippo lighter, because our self-igniting Lantern already has a zippo lighter built in. We should simply be allowed to use that lantern to start fires.

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites
CalNieDaGtarGuy Pathfinder

CalNieDaGtarGuy

Posted
Posted

A spear would need to have a more realistic blueprint, as all the other things already have. 10 sticks will not suffice but rather a branch or perhaps a whittled limb. Maybe even cured oak sapling. And as much as I DID want the spear at one time, now it seems a little too OP. The thrilling panicky moment you get when you have no weapons and there's a wolf on your tail is unmatchable. 

I think zippo lighters should have a small chance of a minor burn, because those sons of b$&@#es are HOT sometimes! You should only lose like 5% condition, no bandage or painkillers required. It also should not be able to physically kill you.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
JAFO Pathfinder

JAFO

Posted
Posted
On 8/11/2017 at 2:27 AM, Athoen said:

About the sling

I do not think it should kill a wolf /deer, even with a headshot

If introduced, it should kill them.. certainly the sling killed plenty of people in warfare, back when it was in use. Those things are lethal.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Boston123 Pathfinder

Boston123

Posted
Posted

Slings, spears and clubs are the three 'survival weapons' anyone trained in survival should know how to both make from materials at hand, and use effectively.

1)  People don't realize just how lethal a sling actually is. I, personally, think most people confuse 'slings" with "slingshots', and react accordingly.

A pigeon-egg/table-tennis sized stone slung from a sling has the impact energy of a .45 pistol round. Larger stones impact with more force. If that isn't lethal, I don't know what is.

Slings make for poor hunting weapons against large game not because they aren't effective, but because a sling requires a wind-up motion (not the 'whirl several times around the head', either, just a single twirl or less), and the animal sees that and flees.

Slings are easy to use (anyone can use one, kinda like throwing a softball), but hard to master (it takes several weeks of practice, at least, to become proficient). On the upside, they are ridiculously easy to make, and ammo is 'free' and available everywhere. Therefore, you have no real reason not to make one. Even if you can't nail an animal in the head from 30 paces, a stone ripping by and/or impacting close will probably make them run.

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

Go to topic listing