Zombie Dogs on South Mufiko County!! Help!

[sonjingohan]

Played this same set up 13 times back to back, and only Just started to noticed the pattern.

Ok, playing on super heard, trying not to die; but for some reason not possible. Why? Well, the dogs! I got them set on nightmare speed, that's ok; but the problem is they spawn behind me no warning unlike with the wondering horde where you will get a music change, or see them, and get the music change. I also don't know what makes them spawn, and would like to know.

They spawn in the place of the wondering horde, and they spawn more often when they do about every 120 mins. in game, the last time it happen. At some point after I hit level two is when this happens for the most part. If the wondering horde hits, they will spawn on regular intervals every 12 hours in real life, and the dogs only spawn around the mining companies (what I learn where trap bases), and this is what I first thought triggered them to spawn; but I find out it's not.

Like I said, then spawn on top of me, and if I am not off the ground they kill me in no time, like 3 hits. The time I am talking about here, and found out that the mining companies wasn't the cause, this happened. I was building a 5 block high walkway to the mining companies, and boom I triggered them but sense I was up there they didn't know I was there; but I also didn't know they had spawned. I turned around, and started to jump off, and was two, so I looked around, and found the other two. With that said we are back to me getting killed when they (It is always 4 zombie dogs) spawned on top me, and killed me the very next day.

Sorry it is so long; but I really need to know why this stuff is happening, and why the spawning's are happing the way they do. What is causing no warning for the zombie dogs?

Are these things like the screamer? Where when you hit 100% heat she will come? Is there a way I can tell what will spawn like with her? If I have 12 torches, and 2 campfires going at the same time, she will come in around 3 to 5 mins. after I start the second fire.

[Capt. W. Schwartz]

That was painful to read...

You are playing on almost max difficulty...

...and can't figure out why the game is so hard?

[davetlow]

On Insane, I just spin around anytime I'm not running. I still would die even hiding underground. I could kill hoards like you but then I'd die to something... either a fall or the RNG of too many zombie hits. Max armor and weapons or whatever. I toned the difficulty down to have a different kind of fun. I mean, I was building a skyway to all the traders for my motorcycle, because I was afraid of the gyro at that point (I'm not sure if it got better or if I just applied myself to learning it). Obviously, you need steel armor with custom fittings, plates, M60s, and a steel sledge... but you probably have all that. A steel sledge will knock most or all of them down when they come in a pack, which is amazing. But, yeah, you'll die sometimes even when you're playing perfectly.

Night lumberjack one night, dead meat the next.

[Chargeit]

Originally posted by Capt. Q. Schwartz:

That was painful to read...

You are playing on almost max difficulty...

...and can't figure out why the game is so hard?

His issue is with dog hoards spawning out of nowhere and ganking him without warning.

He wants to know if there's anything that causes the dog hoards to spawn or if there's anyway to predict that they will spawn.

[davetlow]

There's also that skill that gives you resistance and immunity, super important when you can afford it. I usually go, money (with sledge), loot, flying, armor and survivability, because you can mine during hordes during the game, maybe forever, but I like to see the sky on horde night after day 70 or so, and so I need that steel armor and several M60s and boxed armor for them in order to do that. You still need to have a clear field where you can fight and not back into obstacles, which is the worst, lol. It takes only half a day or so. I used to make an arena or something, but usually the building would kill me when I could have escaped on a motorcycle, so I stopped doing that.

[davetlow]

Originally posted by Chargeit:

Originally posted by Capt. Q. Schwartz:

That was painful to read...

You are playing on almost max difficulty...

...and can't figure out why the game is so hard?

His issue is with dog hoards spawning out of nowhere and ganking him without warning.

He wants to know if there's anything that causes the dog hoards to spawn or if there's anyway to predict that they will spawn.

It's cheaty to watch the heat drop, so I don't think he's interested. If he doesn't have steel armor with custom fittings and plates, that's a thing. Grocery store armor is fine, but try to collect sewing kits for the whole game until you can make a level 5 set. I didn't craft mine until I had enough kits. Which was good because sometimes you find level 6 armor and you don't know what piece. The sewing kits are one of the pinch points of the game.

[JimmyIowa]

Sounds like you are in or near the wasteland biome. Which would make this totally normal.

[pApA^LeGBa]

Originally posted by JimmyIowa:

Sounds like you are in or near the wasteland biome. Which would make this totally normal.

The silent ninja dogs that you can´t hear until they bite you? Has nothing to do with the wasteland. That happens everywhere.

[JimmyIowa]

Originally posted by pApA^LeGBa:

Originally posted by JimmyIowa:

Sounds like you are in or near the wasteland biome. Which would make this totally normal.

The silent ninja dogs that you can´t hear until they bite you? Has nothing to do with the wasteland. That happens everywhere.

Wasteland mob spawns happen much more frequently. Several times per day, instead of once per several game days (so about 9x more often). Also zombie dogs in particular make a much larger percentage of enemyanimal spawns in the wasteland.

For example - the enemyanimal table for forest is {wolves, bears and direwolves}.
The enemyanimal spawns for wasteland is {snakes, vultures, dogs, bears}, heavily weighted toward dogs and vultures most of all.

Now...do you have any sort of evidence or reason whatsoever, even a small one, to say OP's issue has nothing to do with the wasteland? If you do I would be willing to consider it. But from what OP said, it sounded like this might be related. And I was trying to help OP.

Also, anecdotally, I have never had this issue with dogs anywhere else other than wasteland.

[pApA^LeGBa]

I was specifially refering to the "turn around and there are dogs" part.

That happens to me everywhere. Not always but it does happen in the forest aswell as in the wasteland.

Been surpised by them in the open too many times because they were suddenly behind me. In this cases i ofc can´t tell if they just snuck up on me silently or if they spawned right in my back.

[JimmyIowa]

Okay, well the question from OP seems to be related to the frequency of zombies dogs spawning. And if he is near the wasteland that would go a very long way toward explaining it.

As for the spawning "on top of me" part, there should be a minimum distance (30m) from the player at which random biome enemies can spawn (poi sleepers are handled differently). If you are seeing them spawn on top of you regularly it could be a glitch in your game. Or it could be a sync issue if you are playing online and the server is a little ahead of you.

Granted, zdogs can cover 30m in a small number of seconds (much faster than non-feral zombies anyway). And "on top of me" is very subjective. So that may also explain part of the issue.

I can say that I have never seen anything spawn on top of me in the outdoors (POI sleepers are handled differently) in a very long time, in SP. It used to happen in A16, years ago, but that was fixed in A17. I'm not sure how many hundred hours I have put in since A17, but I haven't seen it happen since then.

[pApA^LeGBa]

Then it´s ninja dogs. As expected. Like you said the spawning out of thin air has been patched.

I have been attacked from behind and they made no sound at all. Doesn´t always happen, but it happens.

That´s nothing new. There have been tons of complaints about ninja dogs/zombies over the years.

Usually they growl when charging at you. And even if it´s just for a few seconds, that can easily be the difference between dying and surviving.

[JimmyIowa]

Originally posted by pApA^LeGBa:

Then it´s ninja dogs. As expected. Like you said the spawning out of thin air has been patched.

I was under the impression that unseen zombies staying silent until observed was intentional. That I have seen happen plenty. It happens with normal people-zombies too. Hmmm, now we are getting somewhere. Maybe this is just an intentional game mechanic that people are misinterpreting as extremely close spawns. Especially when it happens with dogs, because they are fast.

[pApA^LeGBa]

Yeah well if it was intentional it would always be like that. But that´s not the case. Sometimes i can hear them before they attack.

I mean intended ninja dogs would be a really cheap and lazy game design tbh.

[JimmyIowa]

Originally posted by pApA^LeGBa:

Yeah well if it was intentional it would always be like that. But that´s not the case. Sometimes i can hear them before they attack.

I mean intended ninja dogs would be a really cheap and lazy game design tbh.

Yeah, there's been other threads about it, and some people think it is a glitch. And I think it is intentional to provide some challenge. But maybe I am in the minority on that.

Quite frankly, I think the game is rather easy these days, so I am hoping it stays. It adds a much needed element of tension and potential surprise to looting. And it is addressed by simply having a high degree of situational awareness.

[Capt. W. Schwartz]

Almost 1200 hours in this game and have NEVER been attacked by silent animals. A quality set of headphones should allow you to know everything around you.