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DayZ FAQ


I've written quite a few articles about running and playing DayZ. Here they all are in one place:

  1. How to install DayZ (with ArmA 2 Free, Operation Arrowhead or Combined Ops)
  2. How to get on a server
  3. How to play
  4. How to stay alive for more than five minutes
  5. DayZ offline single player / practice / training / (not really) cheating
  6. How to fix a helicopter, the easy way

And here are a couple of articles about gameplay experiences. Whilst not exactly tutorials, they do give details of events which may prove helpful.

  1. Our story
  2. My DayZ story (guest post by Lex)
Sometimes the beta patch servers are unavailable. When this is the case, I will try to keep an up-to-date version of the beta patch available here. The second most recent version is 94444 and can be downloaded from here:
http://www.mediafire.com/?5yqwz1dcvt7b4tm
The most recent version (as of 11th July 2011) is 94700 and is available here:
http://www.mediafire.com/?88h7m7h6u7c5m40

There's more to come, including advanced gameplay tips, but feel free to suggest a topic that you'd like me to write about.

62 comments:

  1. Cam (A.K.A TwistedEthernet)7 July 2012 at 05:25

    Hey, I read your blog and really loved it! It was extremely informational and fun to read! I actually linked the Beginner's Guide page for the DayZ wiki here! I might be creating a custom load screen as well as some other things about DayZ, so I was wondering if I could get your permission?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Cam (A.K.A TwistedEthernet)7 July 2012 at 05:26

      To use some of your info and screenshots, I mean.

      Delete
    2. I wondered who linked the article on the DayZ Wiki. It accounts for about an eighth of all the traffic that comes to the DayZ articles here.

      You are very welcome to use any pictures, text or anything else you find here for any purpose you see fit. If you would like to talk to me more directly, I can be reached on kodabarATgmailDOTcom and I use the same kodabar username on Skype and Steam (as a worrying number of people deduce every day).

      If you need any assistance or require any particular shots that aren't available, please just ask. I'd be very happy to help.

      Delete
    3. Cool! Thanks a lot!

      Delete
  2. hey I'm trying to download the beta patch, ARMA2_OA_Build_94444.zip, and when I click it it either does nothing, or it will prompt me with a login box saying I need a username and a password to download it. What's deal? and is there any other way I can get a hold of it?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The beta patch server doesn't seem to be working properly today. I took a copy of the latest beta yesterday and I've uploaded it to Mediafire:
      http://www.mediafire.com/?5yqwz1dcvt7b4tm

      Delete
  3. Hi

    My game worked fine until i updated it with the latest beta patch.

    It was ARMA2_OA_Build_94700

    Now, when i try to join a game i get the error message: You were kicked of the game. (BattlEye: Client not responding.

    And i did download the .dll file and placed it in the folders.

    Do you know what else i can try to resolve this issue?

    Thanks

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. That's an error I haven't seen in such circumstance before. I think what I'd do first is downgrade the beta patch. Just install the second newest one (94444) and see if that helps. You don't need to uninstall the newest one (94700 - you can't uninstall them anyway)), just install 94444 over the top. See if that helps.

      I sometimes find that servers don't go onto the newest beta patch straight away and I can have problems if I use that one before they do. If installing 94444 doesn't help, let me know and I'll try to find a better answer.

      Delete
    2. Hi

      Thanks for the response, i added the 1.7.2 dayz files and now i am not getting the above error message anymore.

      But it looks like just before the player create screen i get the message kicked from server - battleye ping to high.

      Now my ping was not an issue before, is there something i can do to lower my ping?

      Delete
    3. Each server is free to set their own ping rules. Most of them will kick you for a ping of 300 or more, but some set it lower. Try connecting to various servers and see what happens.

      Delete
    4. I've had the same problem with getting kicked off servers due to "battleye ping too high." I've tried numerous servers and noticed my ping is constantly way higher than others connected (usually 400-800). Is there anything I can do to try and lower my ping, other than connecting to various servers?

      Delete
    5. The best way to lower your ping is to close anything else that might use your internet connection (web browser, BitTorrent, Skype, etc) whilst also making sure no one else is using your connection and also try to connect to servers that are in the same geographical region as yourself.

      Sadly there is no magic fix for ping. But 400-800 seems extraordinarily high to me. Whereabouts do you live?

      Delete
  4. How Do I Get a full version of Arma2 Operation Arrowhead for free? or do i have to pay which would mean paying for DayZ? any help would be great because when i try to get the beta patch it doesnt recognize the demo as a full version.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You cannot use a pirate version or a demo version of Operation Arrowhead, you need to buy it. ArmA 2 Free is free, DayZ is free, but you have to buy Operation Arrowhead. It's available for around fifteen US dollars on Steam.

      Delete
  5. My son is really interested in Dayz. He watches videos of it for a long time and is about to buy it. Me, his non-gamer dad, but no stranger to computers dad came online looking for info and here I am. Before coming here, I knew the game was DayZ, the Arma2 was news, so you can see how little I knew. That said:

    I thank you for educating me. Your blog is excellent! It has all the info one could want and a great tip for those wishing to save $20 and run a pirated copy. That was a true LOL moment.

    I am now downloading Arma2:Free figuring I can at least see if it is going to run on either of our computers. In doing so I know I will be revisiting you and reading sections of your blog over and over until I get it all right. :P

    The entire purpose of this note was to say "thanks". So I'll just close with that. :) (read and delete for better management purposes at will)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you for your kind words.

      It's a jolly difficult game to install, compared to most at any rate. That's a good move installing ArmA 2 Free first - I only wish everyone did that. ArmA is a funny game; it really hammers your computer and yet doesn't look terrifically pretty in spite of that.

      If you have any difficulty getting it installed, drop me a line and I'll do what I can to help. For those who get completely stuck, I have been known to install it for them (using TeamViewer).

      Delete
  6. Hey Kodabear, love your blog and many thanks for the tips on Dayz. I have a question that I'm sure I may get flamed for, but I'll ask anyways.

    I have a situation where a keyboard and mouse don't work well for me with playing games. A controller works well most of the time and I am hoping to get dayz to work with my 360 wired controller. Do you know a good way to do so while retaining the key functions of the game? Cheers.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sorry,but ArmA has too many vital keys(100 tops) & a controller would not be able to handle that

      Delete
  7. thanks for the detailed steps my friend. i look forward to working my way through them... before i can do that, however, i need to load 'arma2free' once right? (and OA, which works fine btw) but. no cd keys. i have it downloaded into steam, when i click play i recieve the inevitable message 'failed to contact key server'. is that it? game over until steam gets more? could be a while. don't suppose you know a walkaround to this prob do you? :p thanks man. your fighting the good fight!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. its ok i think. i got a product key from free.arma2.com using my steam login... now, where to enter that code...

      Delete
    2. That's just what I was going to suggest. But forget the Steam version - download the setup files from arma2.com and do it that way. It will ask for a serial number during setup.

      You can technically add the serial number directly to the registry yourself, but if you're not familiar with hexadecimal, I don't advise it.

      Delete
    3. ah, i thought that might be the case. you'd think steam would let people know of these things before they waste time downloading games without keys. from what i've read it happens way too much... ah well, spose it's free... thanks dude!

      Delete
  8. HI, i've got a question to you:
    Is the inventory dependant on the server? Do you have another inventory with every new server you join?
    And is it overwritten when you join a new one?
    Thank you for your answer ;)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Servers are all connected to the central database, which stores your inventory and location. So whichever server you join, your location and stuff will be the same.

      There are some servers out there running their own database. There aren't many of them and they tend to marked as "private hive" or "cracked server" or something similar.

      Delete
  9. Help me please... i have a problem, here is what i have done:

    Using 6launcher i safelly installed Day-z and your mod, wich works fine. I did the same with Lingor Island and it also warks fine.

    However, i never start with a bag (always a pilot skin), sometimes a crossbow, a G17 or a revolver, but never a bag.

    I happened to find two on the same building in Lingor Island. One Chech backpack and a Alice backpack. There was some loot around the Alice backpack, however, i am unable to pick up either of the bags!

    There is no more loot around em, im using first person, but i only see (open ... backpack)

    Also, i cant pick up the bags from dead survivors (most of em shoot me on sight anyway...)

    Could you help me please?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sorry about that. It's a problem caused by using various different skins. The mod allows for the use of all suitable ArmA 2 and Operation Arrowhead skins. Unfortunately what was forgotten was that ArmA 2 didn't support the use of backpacks - that functionality was introduced in Operation Arrowhead. So if you spawn with an ArmA 2 skin, you won't have a backpack and you'll never be able to pick one up.

      The only solution is to keep restarting until you spawn with a backpack; then you know that backpack functions are working for sure.

      Delete
    2. Thanks for the reply.

      Is there any way to delete Arma2 skins? Or to add more Arma2 OA akins, so that my chances to get a OA one increase?

      IMO this should be fixed in the next version. It is sad to realize you found a coyote backpack and you cant use it.

      Also, how do survivors work? i always find some derpy guys shooting every zombie they see...

      Delete
    3. I'm afraid there really isn't a way to delete those skins. It's frustrating I know, but we just didn't realise until after it was released that this had happened. Hopefully our programmers will fix it in the next release, but there's always a crowd of people crying out for different features and it's impossible to satisfy everyone. As we're not making any money from this, I don't ask them to do anything specific, but to just work in directions in which they feel happy. But yeah, hopefully it can be fixed in the next release so it doesn't cause any more problems like you're experiencing.

      You will find other survivors running about. They're AI controlled and they're bandits. They will attack you sooner or later. You can meet friendly survivors by heading to a church. If you approach a church with open doors (the ones in Cherno and Electro definitely work), then you'll find as you enter the doors, two friendly survivors will appear. You can issue them orders by using the ArmA controls (pressing F keys to select them and using the mousewheel menu for commands).

      We have a forum where people discuss matters related to the single player mode and there are even unofficial updates to the game files on there that add certain features. There's one on there at the moment with improved AI, so that the bandits and friendly survivors are able to behave more like real players.
      http://kodabar.blogspot.co.uk/p/dayz-single-player-forum.html

      Delete
    4. Thanks for you helpfull and comprehensible answers. I have no more questions and i want to transmit my satisfaction to Everybody involved in this project. Its good that people are still good enough to help the others witouth expecting nothing in return. Now, i can actually enjoy DayZ witouth getting permanently killed by hackers or snipers!

      I am going to check that file, and i would like to report (probably just my computer) that the foruns AND comment mechanism dont work in chrome.

      Farewell kodabar, and mind the snipers :P

      Delete
  10. hey i know this is probably a commonly asked question, but i was wondering if there was a way that i could set up a server with this single player mod for my friend (on another network) to join on. when running it with hamachi there was only one player slot he was unable to join because of it, any way to increase the number of slots?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It is possible to run a LAN game like that, but it's not easy at all. There are all kinds of difficulties just getting it running and there are some problems when you do get it going.

      The way that DayZ has been coded is the main reason. For instance, your character is always coded as the 'player' character. In the ArmA games' mod structure, there can only ever be one instance of the 'player' character. So when you try a LAN game you end up with three 'player' characters and it gets a bit confused.

      (Normal ArmA mods assign you to a side like OPFOR, BLUFOR or Independent so this doesn't happen with them).

      That said, it's not impossible to do. Have a look at our forum where there is a section for LAN play and there's one quick-and-dirty method detailed in there that might be easy enough for you to try without going insane.

      We have thought about including LAN play as a proper option, but it would involve rewriting the whole of DayZ as well as DaiZy, so that would be a huge amount of work for something that only a few people would use. Oh and it would break with each new update to DayZ requiring it to be rewritten all over again.

      Forum link:
      http://kodabar-dayz-daizy-single-player-forum.1084782.n5.nabble.com/

      Delete
  11. Hello kodabar i seen your video on you tube and folloe every thing you said could you tell me why i get this error as i try to enter the game: you cannot play/edit this misson; it is dependet on downloadable content that has been deleted.dayz_weapons, dayz_equip, dayz_vehicles i really want this play this game as a single player please help - thanks lee

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Either the files are in the wrong place or the shortcut is wrong.

      Inside your Operation Arrowhead folder you should have a folder called @DaiZy and inside that another folder called Addons. Within that Addons folder you should have placed the files from @DayZ\Addons and the files from DaiZy+_v[Rz0].rar

      Your shortcut should contain -mod=@DaiZy (note, the @DaiZy in the shortcut must match the @DaiZy folder in your OA folder).

      If those are right, it will run just fine.

      Delete
  12. Koda, help me no loot spawns when I get in elektro, my food marker is black, my temperature marker is pink and zombies rarely spawn (I think my difficulty is on recruit, but that has nothing to do, right?) P.S. I subscribed to your youtube channel because its helpful.

    Thx

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Do you have a recent beta patch installed? That's the most common reason for zombies not appearing properly.

      Go here and install the latest one:
      http://www.arma2.com/beta-patch.php

      Once it's installed, 'restart' (rather than 'resume') your game.

      Delete
    2. I solved everything :P thx for your help.
      Here are my solutions:

      -Zombies spawn rate: I just had to be more patient, zombies now actually spawn well :)
      -Loot spawns: i think i got in the wrong building or it was a temporary glitch.
      -Black food marker: i just needed a can of beans and POOF, its green again.

      But now i have a new problem: AI controlled bandits and snipers don't attack me, its not something that makes the game unplayable, but its not a challenge that way.

      Thx

      Delete
    3. Ah, that's good to hear.

      I'd wait and see with the AI players. They will normally attack other targets too, but they should attack you as well.

      In our forum we have other versions of single player including support for other maps. I particularly like the Chernarus Factions version as it changes the way that units are handled making AI friendlies and bandits handle zombies much better.
      http://kodabar-dayz-daizy-single-player-forum.1084782.n5.nabble.com/

      Delete
    4. Thx, but i need a good answer that doesn't change my gameplay ASAP, or I WILL GET CRAZY OUT OF BANDIT/SNIPER SLAYING WITHOUT EVEN HAVING TO FIGHT!!!!

      Delete
    5. NEWS: dont worry, the Factions thingy mod for a mod (DaiZy) for a mod (DayZ), bandits are quiet a pain in the ass now, AND THEY HAVE FUCKING LEE ENFIELDS!!!, but its a challenge. Spicy, just the way i like it :) thx for your great SP mod for an EXTREMELY COOL mod.

      Delete
    6. Super duper. Those factions bandits can be quite a handful.

      It can be well worth having a look through our other variations as some of them have some quite interesting features. For instance, one or two feature much greater spawn distance for bandits (allowing for more sniping) and some others only spawn bandits behind you.

      Delete
    7. Mmmh, sniping? L15A1 wants some fun :) but now i have ANOTHER problem (DAMN BUGS). Every time i open loki's lost key it works fine, but when i try to spawn a weapon or a vehicle (hehehe) nothing appears, only the hud but i cannot select the guns, vehicles and stuff, please help the cheater!

      Delete
    8. P.S. I just got sniped by a bandit :S

      Delete
    9. This has come up before, but I can't remember what the answer was. Have you restarted your game since Lost Key was added? If you just resume an existing one, Lost Key won't work properly.

      There is a cheat menu built in to Factions. Press 0 and then 0 again (must be on the main keyboard, not on the numeric keypad) and there are several options to choose from.

      Sometimes game content isn't detected properly. Although DaiZy (and DayZ) mostly use Operation Arrowhead, they do use some content from ArmA 2. If the game isn't picking up on the ArmA 2 bits, a quick and dirty solution is to copy the Addons folder from inside the ArmA 2 program folder over to the Operation Arrowhead program folder.

      Delete
    10. Mmh, 2 times 0? OK, ill try. Oh, now that you are online i got a question, are AI controlled NPCs programed to grab loot? i have seen loot in the NW airfield near where i snipe bandits, but Elektrozavodsk (a place i have never been, in your DaiZy, of course)has an empty supermarket.

      P.S. I'M NOT RESTARTING MY GAME!!! I DONT WANT TO LOOSE MY STUFF D:

      Delete
    11. NPC's don't pick up loot; it's not something which can be programmed in.

      Loot spawns pretty much the same as it does in online DayZ. So that means that sometimes a building will be empty. It happens.

      Delete
    12. Mmh, empty for like an hour? Barracks are also having this problem.

      Delete
    13. Everything should just spawn normally. Are you teleporting around? That's a good way to ensure stuff doesn't spawn. Loot spawns inside buildings when you get within a certain range of it. Teleporting means you pass by the boundary that triggers the loot spawning without crossing it. You even have to be careful about driving or flying as loot isn't spawned when you're travelling in a vehicle (it's to stop the game from slowing down too much and is the same online)

      I've just deleted and reinstalled Factions, restarted my game, ran down to the supermarket in Electro and up to the barracks at the airfield and everything spawned just fine. I then restarted and teleported around and found nothing.

      Delete
    14. Oh ok, im always teleporting EVRIGUERE, even to my base camp... mmh, should i cheat less? oh well, im bored. Im going to check if you uploaded anything new.

      Delete
    15. P.S. In which server do you play? i would like to be on a no-lag server (im sure you choose well) sniping noobies and bandits, except you because you have helped me a lot. (If you are one, of course)

      Delete
    16. Yeah, don't teleport everywhere. Teleport to about 200 metres from your target and you'll be okay - ie if you're going to a town, teleport to the outskirts.

      I tend to play on the Dark Carnival servers (just put "Dark Carnival" in the filter and you'll see them - there's only a couple). They are well-adminned and run smoothly most of the time. They've got a couple of extra features (eg being able to tow vehicles) that you might like. Don't worry about shooting me; very few have managed that.

      Delete
    17. HA, shooting you? After i saw your DayZ experience report, im SCARED of you.

      P.S. Is your steam name kodabar? i havent found you :P

      Delete
    18. Hey i didnt found the dark carnival server, but i gotta do this short because i heard gunfire near my house.

      Delete
  13. No more gunfire, but a question: Do you play Trouble in Terrorist Town? i would really like to play TTT with you.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'm afraid I don't play it.

      My Steam name is indeed kodabar, but I get a lot of friend requests. The last time I cleared out the list of pending requests, there were more than 800 (over 900,000 people have read my DayZ guides).

      Delete
    2. Sorry for late reply, before your's one i had already found you on steam :P too bad you dont play TTT, its exciting not knowing who will kill you and who you can trust, or who you gotta assasinate or who you gotta team with. Oh well, my steam name is Andre The Sniper, i hope you accept me.

      Delete
  14. Hello Kodabar,

    I have a problem. I have Arma 2 Combined Operation installed in my Steam and have DayZ 1.7.2.6, and i downloaded DayZ Breaking Point Mod and put it inside my Arma 2 OA folder, but i got this error though: "Addon cba_xeh_oa requires addon CA_CommunityConfigurationProject_E". I searched on Google and i found what i thought to be a solution, that was to copy and paste Addons folder from Arma 2 to Arma 2 OA folder but it still did not work. Previously i had this problem "Dayz_anim requires CA_something". I just want to play the Breaking Point Mod and Napf coz they look awesome. Please help me :(

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Righty ho. That's a nasty little error that can be caused by a number of things. Now before I start, I have to say your version of DayZ is quite out of date; 1.7.7.1 is the current version. I'd update it if I was you.

      The most common cause of that CBA error is the beta patch. Since quite recently, the CBA addons require a recent version of the beta patch to be installed. You can check what version of the beta patch you are running by starting the game and going to the main menu. In the bottom right corner of the screen it will say 1.62.XXXX where XXXX is the version of the beta patch you have installed. You need at least 100697.

      If you don't have at least that, go here and install a more recent one:
      http://www.arma2.com/beta-patch.php

      Delete
  15. Ah koda, still helping us out

    ReplyDelete
  16. Thanks kodo, FAQ is always useful when you are new at the game :)

    ReplyDelete
  17. dayZ is the best

    ReplyDelete
  18. really dumb question, ive been trying to find the mosin nagont rifle for a while now and i can not find it. i was just wondering if it was cut out of the mod or what do i need to do to obtain it?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. As far as I can remember, the Mosin Nagant wasn't in the mod. The closest thing to it was the CZ550. Perhaps it was one of the variants like Epoch that added it?

      Delete

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