Is there a way to lower zombie population even more?

[it's a gabe]

I'm trying to make a playthrough similar to those AR stories where people wake up in an empty world. A few of them have this rare threat, which I wanted to recreate here with the Afraid of Monsters mods, no infection, but tough sprinters, so that encounters are more dangerous although rare.

Problem is, setting the population to low still spawns more zombies than I'd like and I imagine the "none" option is pretty self-explanatory. I was wondering what other settings I could tinker with to make them even rarer to come across, or if there's an obscure mod that handles this.

Edit: Alright, I'm still testing but I figured it won't be possible to do exactly what I wanted. Not currently anyway, and I'm not one to use debug menus. So, without debugging, just adjusting sandbox settings and with a few mods for immersion, I decided to go with a Where is the Sky situation. Here's the whole thing if anyone wanna try it out!

Also, feel free to post your settings for this scenario specifically. I feel like it might take a few runs to find the right settings.

MODS
- Afraid of Monsters
- AoM animation
- Dark World
- Dynamic Traits (cuz I'm biased and I really like how it adjusts them)
- Improved Blood Effects
- New Ekron (cuz why not)
- Realistic weapon durability
- Same bag different color (trust me, it is essential)
- Sleep on it
- Loot Zeta 41 Enhanced Edition
- And anything else you wanna add for flavor... Minus hydrocraft cuz it adds so much that even on survival the world feels bloated with resources

SETTINGS (anything that isn't listed, leave at survival default)
- Zombie count: Low
- Zombie distribution: Uniform (this should make it so they spawn in the woods but if I misunderstood the option, lemme know)
- Start month: August (I think being closer to autumn makes the run more interesting)
- Water/electricity shutoff: 2-6 months
- House alarms frequency: Extremely rare
- Locked houses frequency: Sometimes
- Helicopter: Never
- Meta event: Never
- Generator spawn: Rare
- Randomized house chance: Never (I think this disables barricaded houses)
- ^ vehicle stories chance: Extremely rare
- ^ zone stories chance: Extremely rare
[^ The idea is that you "bugged" into an "empty" world that's a copy of how things were when you "bugged," so I think it makes sense for most things to look mostly normal]
- Annotated map chance: Rare (set it to extremely if you want less chances for a sort of story build-up
- XP multiplier: 1.5
- Starter Kit: Check
- In-game map settings are optiona, methinks
- Recent survivor vehicles: High
- Car spawn rate: Very low
- Chance has gas: Normal
- Initial gas: Normal
- Locked frequency: Often
- General Condition: Normal
- Car alarms frequency: Rare
- Car damage impact: Low

ZOMBIES
- Speed: Sprinters
- Strength: Superhuman
- Toughness: Tough
- Transmission: None
- Infection mortality: None
[^ The point isn't to avoid getting infected, but to avoid combat altogether]
- Reanimate time: 0-30 seconds
- Cognition: Navigate + use doors
- Decomposition: No effect
- Day/night activity: Night (my preference, but both could be quite fun)
- Zombie house alarm triggering: Check
- Population multiplier: 0.01
- Population start multiplier: 0.001
- Population peak multiplier: 0.2
- Population density peak day: 180

[Chilli Dog Dave]

try adding in extra decimals so instead of 0.1, try 0.001, see if that helps

[crossed]

Yes, you can set the exact multiplier you want under the advanced zombie options.
You'd probably have to set it to 0.1 or lower.

[Andy Mil]

Oooh
I would like to try that scenario. Mind if I would like to know the setting too? I wanna surprise my gang with actual horror survival game with very very rare zombie reskin and also always dark which this one I dont know how to do it yet

[Shadowcub]

I'd probably try something like:
Population density multiplier: 0.1 (10% of the default)
Population density start-multiplier: 0.001 (I've tried 0, it doesn't seem like the game can do 0 starting zombies without disabling them entirely)
Population density peak multiplier: 0.2
Population density peak day: 180 (6 months)

Sorry if the settings wording is a little off, I was too lazy to flip the game into English, so it's a translation of the translation.

[it's a gabe]

ty guys for your suggestions so far. I tried adding extra decimals like Dave suggested, but I think I might be doing something wrong somewhere else cuz on the street where I spawned, there were two zombies smooching in a house, a loner two houses down, and one hanging out down the street.

It'd also be nice if we could set it so zombies spawn every other cell or so, as well as disabling the chances that a house would be barricaded as that doesn't fit this scenario idea.

Originally posted by Mi:

Oooh
I would like to that scenario. Mind if I would like to know the setting too? I wanna surprise my gang with actual horror survival game with very very rare zombie reskin and also always dark which this one I dont know how to do it yet

I'll make a mental note and if I manage to find the right settings, I'll share them.

Originally posted by Shadowcub:

I'd probably try something like:
Population density multiplier: 0.1 (10% of the default)
Population density start-multiplier: 0.001 (I've tried 0, it doesn't seem like the game can do 0 starting zombies without disabling them entirely)
Population density peak multiplier: 0.2
Population density peak day: 180 (6 months)

Sorry if the settings wording is a little off, I was too lazy to flip the game into English, so it's a translation of the translation.

OK, *starting zombies.* So, is it possibe to set it so the population increases the more time passes? Cuz if it was possible to set a single zombie for the entire map but they multiply as time goes on, I think that could also work well with this scenario.

I remember a story where this kid finds a thing that's shaped like a person and mimics voices, but isn't actually a person. And after that encounter, days after they woke up in this empty world, they started appearing more often, albeit never in alarming numbers.

To those wondering, btw, this is one of these stories I was inspired by: https://www.dexerto.com/entertainment/what-is-where-is-the-sky-on-tiktok-spooky-viral-series-hooks-viewers-1552149/#:~:text=An%20account%20called%20'where%20is,a%20world%20that's%20permanently%20dark.

TikTok's pure cringe most of the time, but there are some cool things like that. I found all this on YouTube, though.

[But I Am A Robot!]

One thing you could try is download the "Cheat Menu V2.9.1" mod from the Workshop. It says it will work in multiplayer but only for the server admin so whoever is running the game should have it. Set the sandbox settings to no zombies and use the Cheat Menu to spawn a few zombies here and there with the "Zombie brush" feature. Someone would have to "Dungeon Master" the game a little, but it should theoretically work. I haven't tested whether "no zombies" prevents spawning them with the cheat or not, but I don't see why it would.

[Hazode]

It's worth noting that, as far as I know at least, the pop multiplier only affects zombies spawned in the world. Zombies spawned inside of houses follow their own rules, which is why regardless of settings certain buildings will be swamped.

I could be entirely wrong, but this is how it feels like it works it out. Having gone into the mall near Valley Station on day 1 with a very low pop count and still seeing the place teeming with zeds.

[Hazode]

Originally posted by But I am a robot!:

One thing you could try is download the "Cheat Menu V2.9.1" mod from the Workshop. It says it will work in multiplayer but only for the server admin so whoever is running the game should have it. Set the sandbox settings to no zombies and use the Cheat Menu to spawn a few zombies here and there with the "Zombie brush" feature. Someone would have to "Dungeon Master" the game a little, but it should theoretically work. I haven't tested whether "no zombies" prevents spawning them with the cheat or not, but I don't see why it would.

It may have changed, but when I used cheat menu in IWBUMS and build 40, you couldn't spawn zombies if you had turned off zombies in the sandbox settings

[Andy Mil]

Are there limit to those setting Shadowcub give to us? I kinda want the first day with very very few or no zombie then next day there are like we would seeing like 13 during day with looting whole day then another day just stop there with only 13 or 20 whole day

not sure if this possible since I dont want over pop the town with this I am Legend gamemode with us seeing them running across town abit here and there into building
for spook factor

[Hazode]

Originally posted by Mi:

I think
peek mulipler? and respawn? I kinda want the first day with very very few or no zombie then next day there are like 12 whole day then another day just stop there

not sure if this possible since I dont want over pop the town with this I am Legend gamemode with us seeing them running across town abit here and there into building
for spook factor

Unfortunately, peek population doesn't work like you think it does. I'll try explain it, but I'm not sure I'll do a good job.

The max population that can spawn in a given cell stays the same, and is determined upon the player entering the cell. So, if you have settings that are like:
Pop multiplier - 1
Peak multiplier - 2
Peak day - 3
The cell that you spawn in on day 1 will always have a max population with multiplier 1, even on day 200. But any new cell you go to on day 2 will have a max population with multiplier 1.5, and it will stay that way even on day 200. If you go to any new cells on day 3, they will have a max population multiplier of 2

I hope I explained that well? But, essentially, your spawning location will always be the least populated place in terms of population multiplier

[Andy Mil]

Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm why it sound unbalance with sprinter. they gonna spawn larger the further away from our spawn

[Shadowcub]

Originally posted by it's a gabe:

OK, *starting zombies.* So, is it possibe to set it so the population increases the more time passes? Cuz if it was possible to set a single zombie for the entire map but they multiply as time goes on, I think that could also work well with this scenario.

Yes. I'm running a scenario right now where I started with basically no zombies and it is ramping up over a (very) long period of time. My settings for this playthrough are (in the advanced population settings):

Population density multiplier: 1.0 (default)
Population density start multiplier: 0.001
Population density peak multiplier: 1.5 (default)
Population density peak day: 300 (the game started in April, I wanted the peak mid-winter)
Respawn Hours: 168 (7 days)
Respawn unseen hours: 168 (this is how many hours since the area was seen/visited until zombies can be respawned)
Respawn multiplier: 0.05 (how many zombies can be respawned every time they are due to)
Redistribution hours: 32 (the interval at which the game tries to move existing zombies into unpopulated areas)

TLDR: If you want to ramp up zombies in a simple and predictable manner, set the respawn multiplier to 1. At the start day, your zombies will be at whatever your starting multiplier is at. At the peak day, they will be at whatever your peak population density is set at.

The Long:
I feel like the multipliers need a little explanation:
The base density multiplier controls the overall zombie population. If you want more or less zombies than those in Apocalypse, this is the setting.
The start multiplier takes density multiplier and starts with this number. So 0.001 is 0.1% of whatever the density is set at.
The peak multiplier is the opposite, affecting the population modifier at the peak day. In this case, the population would be 150% of whatever the density is set at.
The respawn multiplier is how many zombies are allowed to respawn when conditions (the unseen hours) are right and the percentage is based on whatever the current population density is at the time that they're due (this is where it gets quite mathy).

So basically the game takes your density, multiplies it by the start modifier and ramps it up until the peak day to the peak multiplier. Respawn settings affect how often that population is spawned. In this scenario I'm running with these settings, zombies are spawning in areas I'm not currently frequenting every week. The Day 1 density multiplier is set to 0.1% (because of the start multiplier). I would assume that the game calculates from the peak day, but I don't know (maybe someone else does that sees this). Every day that density modifier should be increased by 0.005. So on Day 2, it should be at 0.006 (or 0.6% of the peak population, because of the starting multiplier). On Day 7, zombies are spawned with the multiplier now at 0.036, but only 5% of that are allowed to spawn (because of the respawn multiplier). On Day 150, the current density modifier is at 0.751. And at Day 300, at its final 1.50. But still not all the zombies are spawned yet (because of the respawn multiplier)

Ignoring the respawn settings (or pretending the multiplier is at 1.0), at Day 200, the zombie population would be like playing Apocalypse at the start. Because of the respawn settings, it's going to be lower. The game is going to basically ramp up zombies in an exponential curve until Day 300 and (without sitting down to do all the math) probably reach the actual peak in about a year and a half to two years from the start date.

[Quineloe]

Originally posted by Shadowcub:

The peak multiplier is the opposite, affecting the population modifier at the peak day. In this case, the population would be 150% of whatever the density is set at.

oh no, that means an additional 150% of the starting population will spawn over time until peak day. not visited areas will therefore have 250% of their initial population after peak day.

Because if it were your way, zombies would have to despawn if the peak multiplier was set to 0.9 or less

[it's a gabe]

Originally posted by Shadowcub:

Originally posted by it's a gabe:

OK, *starting zombies.* So, is it possibe to set it so the population increases the more time passes? Cuz if it was possible to set a single zombie for the entire map but they multiply as time goes on, I think that could also work well with this scenario.

Yes. I'm running a scenario right now where I started with basically no zombies and it is ramping up over a (very) long period of time. My settings for this playthrough are (in the advanced population settings):

Population density multiplier: 1.0 (default)
Population density start multiplier: 0.001
Population density peak multiplier: 1.5 (default)
Population density peak day: 300 (the game started in April, I wanted the peak mid-winter)
Respawn Hours: 168 (7 days)
Respawn unseen hours: 168 (this is how many hours since the area was seen/visited until zombies can be respawned)
Respawn multiplier: 0.05 (how many zombies can be respawned every time they are due to)
Redistribution hours: 32 (the interval at which the game tries to move existing zombies into unpopulated areas)

TLDR: If you want to ramp up zombies in a simple and predictable manner, set the respawn multiplier to 1. At the start day, your zombies will be at whatever your starting multiplier is at. At the peak day, they will be at whatever your peak population density is set at.

The Long:
I feel like the multipliers need a little explanation:
The base density multiplier controls the overall zombie population. If you want more or less zombies than those in Apocalypse, this is the setting.
The start multiplier takes density multiplier and starts with this number. So 0.001 is 0.1% of whatever the density is set at.
The peak multiplier is the opposite, affecting the population modifier at the peak day. In this case, the population would be 150% of whatever the density is set at.
The respawn multiplier is how many zombies are allowed to respawn when conditions (the unseen hours) are right and the percentage is based on whatever the current population density is at the time that they're due (this is where it gets quite mathy).

So basically the game takes your density, multiplies it by the start modifier and ramps it up until the peak day to the peak multiplier. Respawn settings affect how often that population is spawned. In this scenario I'm running with these settings, zombies are spawning in areas I'm not currently frequenting every week. The Day 1 density multiplier is set to 0.1% (because of the start multiplier). I would assume that the game calculates from the peak day, but I don't know (maybe someone else does that sees this). Every day that density modifier should be increased by 0.005. So on Day 2, it should be at 0.006 (or 0.6% of the peak population, because of the starting multiplier). On Day 7, zombies are spawned with the multiplier now at 0.036, but only 5% of that are allowed to spawn (because of the respawn multiplier). On Day 150, the current density modifier is at 0.751. And at Day 300, at its final 1.50. But still not all the zombies are spawned yet (because of the respawn multiplier)

Ignoring the respawn settings (or pretending the multiplier is at 1.0), at Day 200, the zombie population would be like playing Apocalypse at the start. Because of the respawn settings, it's going to be lower. The game is going to basically ramp up zombies in an exponential curve until Day 300 and (without sitting down to do all the math) probably reach the actual peak in about a year and a half to two years from the start date.

So much math, and I barely know how to use a calculator XD

I think I sort of understand how those work now, though. Thank you!

I might have an idea for what I wanna do, then. Gonna edit the OP with my trial settings in a moment.

[Shadowcub]

Originally posted by Quineloe:

Originally posted by Shadowcub:

The peak multiplier is the opposite, affecting the population modifier at the peak day. In this case, the population would be 150% of whatever the density is set at.

oh no, that means an additional 150% of the starting population will spawn over time until peak day. not visited areas will therefore have 250% of their initial population after peak day.

Because if it were your way, zombies would have to despawn if the peak multiplier was set to 0.9 or less

No, the peak modifier is the cap. The modifier will not increase beyond this setting. At day 300 in my game, the population density will be at 1.5 and will not go beyond this (but because of the respawn settings, not all the zombies will be on the map at Day 300). The zombies will always respawn at a rate of 5%. After Day 300, that will be 5% of 1.50 (0.075).

For the OP's zombies, I'd put the base density modifier at or below 0.1. Mine are weaklings.