How to control where you pawns leave/ enter the map?

[atm]

I have too many hundreds of hours in this game, but I've always wondered this. It's really only in this current game where I'm using the Zombieland mod that I really wish I could tell my pawns where to leave and enter the map from. Entering on the wrong side during a zombie phase is basically instant death.

I am assuming I can tunnel through the mountain to get an exit that they will leave from, if I wall up the other entrance, although if that ends up becoming a zombie spawn point that would be its own set of problems. The problem is I doubt they would re-enter the map through that possible safe point, and during a period of high zombie threat (which can last for many days) entering anywhere else is absolute suicide.

From a role-playing point of view, of course my Pawns would know where was safe to enter, so it's not just mechanics at play; I would also like them to act more like they would if being stranded in a Zombie invasion on a distant space-western dystopian planet was actually real.

[Vermillion Cardinal]

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2370637341

I'll probably add this for my next Zombieland game. It's been a long time since I kicked it off my mod list. Back then I wouldn't leave at all if the forecast was bad (until I get an SRTS craft to fly out with); it's total lockdown until zombie season passes.

Just in case you didn't know, use this to help keep those hapless travelers from getting munched if their welfare is your concern:

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2813027453

Logically they should see a horde outside your walls (or be warned by you to that effect) and stay the hell away.

[Pinhead]

Put a caravan hitching spot near the end of the map, they will hitch over there and leave closer to it. it might take longer to add supplies but its safer if mech clusters are on your map

[atm]

Ah, thanks for the solution!
I feel like the 'caravan journey spot' can't be considered cheese because why the heck should they _not_ be able to pick where they go, lol. If there's a frickin mech cluster or horde of zombies, the should be able to decide NOT to go past or through them both on leaving and returning.

[Robo]

Originally posted by atm:

I would also like them to act more like they would if being stranded in a Zombie invasion on a distant space-western dystopian planet was actually real.

There's a mod called "Grim Reality", which makes your colonists more mentally tougher but bothered by things that would realistically bother them (E.g. cannibalism, organ harvesting, etc.)

[ichifish]

Originally posted by atm:

Ah, thanks for the solution!
I feel like the 'caravan journey spot' can't be considered cheese because why the heck should they _not_ be able to pick where they go, lol. If there's a frickin mech cluster or horde of zombies, the should be able to decide NOT to go past or through them both on leaving and returning.

My understanding (for what it's worth) is that the original thinking behind random exit points is that a set exit point can be abused. For example, keep some fighters off map, have them come in behind a raid, attack, then retreat off the map, or have them draw raiders away from your base, then exit. Then with Royalty the random exit/entrance point provides a good balance to mech clusters being great defenses. It also adds enough risk to require some preplanning (e.g. if the exit is potentially very far, you have to think twice about packing up a needlessly large caravan or sending one out at any time of the day).

I don't think that rationale excuses what is a needlessly frustrating mechanic - there are better ways of achieving similar results than random points - but AFAIK those are reasons.

[atm]

Originally posted by ichifish:

Originally posted by atm:

Ah, thanks for the solution!
I feel like the 'caravan journey spot' can't be considered cheese because why the heck should they _not_ be able to pick where they go, lol. If there's a frickin mech cluster or horde of zombies, the should be able to decide NOT to go past or through them both on leaving and returning.

My understanding (for what it's worth) is that the original thinking behind random exit points is that a set exit point can be abused. For example, keep some fighters off map, have them come in behind a raid, attack, then retreat off the map, or have them draw raiders away from your base, then exit. Then with Royalty the random exit/entrance point provides a good balance to mech clusters being great defenses. It also adds enough risk to require some preplanning (e.g. if the exit is potentially very far, you have to think twice about packing up a needlessly large caravan or sending one out at any time of the day).

I don't think that rationale excuses what is a needlessly frustrating mechanic - there are better ways of achieving similar results than random points - but AFAIK those are reasons.

Very interesting.
I guess the problem with the mechanic is that it makes no sense. I can tell my pawns where to dump rocks, what to wear, and what to eat, but I can't tell them not to walk through a gauntlet of mechanoid turrets on the way out of the map (when they could easily exit from the other side and circle around)? In the past, I've been flabbergasted that they actually ignore zones when caravaning - they will follow the rules and not walk into the cluster during everyday life, but the second they have packed a camel to go on a trip, everything's back on the table. They walk RIGHT through the 8 mech turrets that they completely know is there. They suddenly turn suicidal for literally no reason.