Brace yourselves, shotguns are coming! As we’ve highlighted in our upcoming content for DayZ article a few days ago, shotguns are finally being introduced into the game. A regular hunting shotgun will spawn, and a crafting recipe will also be up for grabs, allowing players to craft a sawed-off version of it, using the also newly introduced hacksaw. But that’s not all, not by a long-shot! Rocket recently announced on the official DayZ forums that a new experimental patch is available for test servers, and assuming everything is stable, the patch will be deployed on official DayZ servers early next week, probably on Monday, the 20th of January.
The patch is quite large this time, and it’s the result of two weeks of work from the developers. It aims to fix quite a few bugs, such as the storage of full backpacks inside empty ones or the healing done by saline bags. It also greatly re-balances weapon spawn rates, lowering the availability of the .357 Python and the M4A1. This was to be expected, as M4’s are way too common in DayZ at the moment.
Be careful when opening doors in DayZ, you might just get riddled with M4 bullets!
The best part comes from the new content being introduced. Along the shotguns mentioned above, speed-loaders for the Python are also being introduced into DayZ. New clothing (such as hiking pants), new customization options (such as spray-paint for the Mosin) and the ability to pick and eat berries are coming as well. Last, but not least, it appears that a new coastal town will also make it to the game with the new patch, allowing players to explore the harbor town of Svetloyarsk and its surrounding areas. Like most of Chernarus, the new settlement is inspired by real-life areas, in this case, the city of Svetlogorsk. Here’s the full list of changes:
Fixed:
- Niosh mask (respirator) inventory size fixed to 1/1 slot.
- Missing strings for BE popup for alternate languages, set to English while translations are being done.
- Reduced dispersion of FNX45 (from 0.05 to 0.03)
- Balanced stomach capacity,
- Added stuffed notifier (instead of sickness when full up)
- Eating and drinking animations properly set for tablets/disinfectants
- Version number in server browser and details
- Saline transfusion doesn’t refill full blood
- Charcoal and Tetracycline tablets won’t give sick badge if you aren’t actually sick
- Player aim run speed updated, weapon position changed and improved for first person view
- Glitches on right hand while moving and while giving taunt fixed
- Players can’t pile backpacks inside of another backpacks, backpack-inception style. You can only put one backpack inside of another backpack if the backpack that is being put inside is empty.
- Magnum speedloader should be spawning now
- Number of backpacks spawning lowered
- Number of .357 Pythons spawning lowered.
- Number of M4A1s spawning lowered
- Dead character cleanup performed at 10 minutes past death
- Removed scripted server teleporting check as now managed by engine
New:
- Editable character name in main menu
- Hive, mode and time columns in server browser
- Database support for sub hives. (Sub-private, Hardcore/Regular public)
- DayZServer.exe support for sub hives.
- Signature verification against PBOs
- Added shotgun speedloader into loot spawns
- Added box of 20 pieces .357 rounds into loot spawns
- Added color variants of all shoes into loot spawns
- Added Hiking pants (both long and short ones) and Canvas pants including their color variants into loot spawns
- Added hacksaw into the loot spawns
- Added shotgun into loot spawns
- Berry picking
- Added Hacksaw into loot spawns
- Saw-off shotgun recipe
- Opening cans with saw
- Painting Mosin now supported w/ spraypaint
- Added spraypaint can into loot spawns
- Coastal harbor town of Svetloyarsk (and surrounding areas)
Should you want to test out the new patch ahead of time, it’s available on experimental DayZ servers. Keep in mind that there’s a limited number of servers here, so you might have difficulties in logging in. Another important aspect to consider is that these DayZ servers have a separate hive, which means that you will be starting a new character and any progress made here will not transfer to the regular servers.