Game Guide - 1. Basics DayZ Guide

Last update: 11 May 2016

This chapter will introduce you to the Day: Standalone. You'll learn about game modes and differences between them. You'll also learn where your characters are stored. You'll also get to know about controls and equipment.

Introduction

Before I get to explaining how DayZ: Standalone works, I'll talk a bit about the game in general: what are your goals etc. It's the continuation of very popular mode to ARMA 2. It combines features of shooter and survival game. It's mainly about defending against bloodthirsty zombie and survival. But the biggest threat is represented by other players, who can also be your greatest allies.

Storing the characters

Begin with the mechanism of saving your character (saving the game). All data is kept on the main server. It means that independently on the chosen server, your character will be in the same place, with the same equipment. On each account you can have two characters, one for each mode. More about it later on.

Game modes

In DayZ: Standalone you have two game modes. Hardcore and Regular. The first one sounds more scary, but the only difference is the work of the camera. In regular you can switch between FPP and TPP. While in hardcore you can only choose FPP. Mode is determined on the level of server, so players with different modes won't encounter.

Controls

Below you can find the most important controls described (in options you can find much more, but lot of them is not active yet):

		Controls
	Hold: Press twice to block.	lean out
		crouch
		lay down
		get up
		equipment
	Press twice	sprint
	Hold: Press twice to block.	slow walk
		jump or walk over a small obstacle
		change the status of the item in your hand, e.g. shake hand, prepare weapon.
		zero the rifle
	Hold: Press twice to block.	look around freely
	keys from 0 to 9	choose the item from the quick access bar.
		switching between views
		rise your hand, as a sign of no bad intentions
		rise both hands, as a sign of surrender
		shifting to a posture position
		show middle finger
		clasp
		point something with your finger
		show OK sign
		Display a list of players on the server
	Hold:	activate the microphone
		local chat
		action, e.g. drink, eat, reload
		Switching between available actions, if there is more than one
		Magnifying with a sight and without
		fire

Equipment

Windows

Vicinity - brown- window with nearby items you can pick up,

Player - orange - window in which you see your character. Next to it you can see information about his desires and other factors, more about them in Chapter 3.

Hands - green - window in which you see a thing you have in your hands.

Inventory - blue - window with all your items. At the very top (not enough place on the screenshot) there are clothes under which you can't hide anything. Below there is a main weapon with clips and add-ons. Below the weapon you see parts of your clothes, into which you can put something. At the bottom you can see a backpack. On right side of each bag you can see number of slots and which are taken.

At the bottom you have a quick access bar, to which you can assign items, from 0 to 9. But there are not the additional slots.

Picking up items

You can pick up an item by:

Clicking on the mousewheel when you look at. The item goes to the inventory,

Moving it from the Vicinity to Player. The item goes to the inventory,

Moving it from Vicinity to Inventory exactly where you want it,

Moving it from Vicinity to Hands. The item is in your hands at will, not in the inventory.

Slot on the back

Rifles and items used in battle (hatchet, club, bat etc) may be on your back, without taking an inventory slot. But you can have only one rifle at once. However, you can have one rifle on your back and the other one in hands, without taking an inventory slot. But in that situation, you need to drop rifle every time you want to do something else.

Using items

To use an item, you have to click on it. Pop-up menu appears, from which you choose your action. To do something with one item onto another, you have to drag one onto another.

Pay an attention to:

first aid kit - it consumes 4 slots and has 6 slots in which you can put medicaments.

ammo box - it consumes 4 slots in your inventory and has 10 slots in which you can put ammo.

small protector case - it consumes 4 slots and has 6 slots.

Log out and log in

You know where your character is stored. But you should know that after logging out, your character sits and stays in place for 30 seconds. It's a solution against logging out when you get into trouble.

Sometimes you have to wait to enter on the server. It may take even 600 seconds. It's defence by so called ghosting. Ghosting is a unpopular way to attack enemy. It works in such a way: player A knows where player B is. He logs out, changes server and goes to the place from which he can attack player A. Then he logs out again and returns onto server with player A. In such a case he has to wait what gives an additional time for player A. I strongly discourage ghosting. It's not honest way of playing. But you should know it, in case it touches you.