In that particular case for me, it was largely dumb luck, I think; the doctor's office was right on the edge of town, so I didn't need to navigate the hordes. I also had Light Step to reduce the sound I make (not that the alarm and shrieker helped with that - entertainment is seeing the entire area around you light up with yellow question marks) and Night Vision (which increases your sight radius in the dark from 1 to 2), which helped quite a bit. I don't think zombies can see more than one tile by default at night, but they do hear things, and they do tend to wander around. It can be helpful to get something noisy to put in buildings you've already emptied or that you don't intend to raid (radios, firecrackers) to draw zombies off, bring a quiet way to open doors (crowbars, lockpicks), and generally be very careful about light sources. Other than that, I don't really have the knack for it, either.
(I understand you said you are no expert at night stealth, but you are apparently more knowledgable than me so bear with the questions- they are also directed toward anyone that might have answers)
So would you say light step is a must have for these purposes? I always take night vision just because it is so convenient for basements and those few times you do need to move in the dark.
I never thought to use noise to my advantage though, regarding distractions. I have seen firecrackers and such before, never used them, though. How long do they last or are they just a one shot lure?
And radios, do I just activate it in my inv then drop it, or activate it on ground? and it will presumably remain on until battery runs out? How loud are they and what range will they lure at?
I always though smell was the bigger issue and only worried about noise with regards to smashing windows or whatnot, but I figure I can mitigate my movement with light step.
That said, how big of an issue is smell? Is that smell reduction trait worth it (there is one, right?) and can I mask my smell by wearing tainted meat or anything?
Thanks.
EDIT: also is there a like 'sneak' movement mode? Increased movement cost for less noise or something?
I don't think Light Step is a must-have, but it is helpful. I'm not sure how big scent is; I didn't actually know that zombies could smell before, but knowing that suddenly makes some of the circumstances in which I was caught make a bit more sense. I think that firecrackers are one-shots (like firing off a shotgun), but I've never used them - I tend to have a thing about hoarding consumables. Radios are reusable if you have batteries and can retrieve them from the middle of the horde you called down on them, but have to be activated before being dropped. I'm not sure about range; I usually only go 1-2 buildings, tops, but there's also an "enhancement" one can make to radios to make them even louder with sufficient electronics skill at the cost of making them only broadcast white noise (the Noise emitter - it's not really a downside yet since there's only one broadcast available). Unfortunately, the Wiki doesn't say how much noise each gives off and I can't check the raws from where I am right now, but the noise levels each has might be available in the game files.
Regarding using scent masking from tainted meat, there's actually a recipe for a zombie pheromone that can make nearby zombies non-hostile for a time, but it requires skill in Cooking as well as ammonia. It can be useful for quick escapes if you get swamped.
But seriously, if anyone knows more about it, feel free to chime in. I don't actually have all that much experience on night ops. ^_^
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Topic: Cataclysm: Dark Days Ahead - A roaming horde appears on the horizon! (Read 1887387 times)