New Player - Which Version Should I Use?

[Hookleg]

Greetings all,

I started playing CDDA about a week ago. I have been using the latest stable release but have noticed its not been updated in over a year. so my question is, which version should I be using? Is there a relatively stable and balanced build that the community generally uses? What build works with most mods?

Please be civil, I don’t know if this is a contested point in the community. Also suggest any mods that are must haves.

Hook

[Greiger]

Welcome! As a general rule of thumb you are safe using the latest experimental versions more often than not. Most major issues are usually solved quickly when they do show up. And the new features are worth what little risk is present.

If you need a baseline version I’m currently playing a game with experimental windows graphical version 5979 and have not come across any game ruining bugs. But any experimental probably works fine.

As for essential mods, I prefer playing with z-levels turned on in the options and the more locations and z-level buildings mods turned on as well. There’s also the chesthole soundpack somewhere on the forums. Sound effects add quite a bit, though I usually turn the music off and use my own.

[Lesseps]

http://smf.cataclysmdda.com/index.php?topic=11895.0 - This is CDDA Game Launcher and it is must have utility if you want to have latest experimental builds. You can manage updates, backup saves, throw in some audio settings and more.

As for mods - I personally always go with Icecoon’s Arsenal, More Realistic Guns, Vehicle Additions, turn Joke Monsters off, turn Antique Firearms off, throw in some Filthy Clothes and stuff… Generally vehicle additions and Icecoone’s and More Guns are top priority for me. I don’t use fantasy stuff like Arcana Mod or Necromancy. and PK’s Rebalancing is a bit tough for me so far.

Otherwise - feel free to improvise. No mods at all is fine too.

I strongly suggest going with experimentals and update them daily.

Good luck! You’ll definitely need it.

[X-PLODE]

Hook

[Agoelia]

You have never played an experimental? My dear god, what a wonderful world that is going to be opened to you.
And, as Lesseps said, download the CDDA game launcher, it is just so useful. Have fun!

[Shadow86]

I strongly suggest going with experimentals and update them daily.

To be honest, I’d advise against that. Take the latest experimental and, if it works fine, stick with it for a while. Each individual experimental update adds very little to the table and has a chance of introducing bugs which may affect your savegame.

Even if they get patched up relatively quickly, it’s needless bumps on a running playthrough/world. And if you’re unlucky enough, like it happened to be, you can have a character or world knocked out of commission for a few days.

[AdonaiJr]

Barebones Must have:

Definitely go with Experimental’s. I guess nobody uses Stable anymore. Use the game launcher mentioned. Download (through launcher) a sound pack.

Use a tileset (options in game) like Chesthole32, Mshock32 or Retrodays (and variants). These are the most complete, easy to use and up to date tilesets. I personally love Chesthole_Isomode, but you have to “relearn” how to navigate in iso_mode. Another Iso option is Hitbutton, but a different taste.

Suggestions:
Don’t mess with mod’s until you are familiarized a little with the game. Same thing with game settings.

Many options are a matter of taste and how much challenge (and playstyle) you want in your game.

---

There are many differences between Stable and Experimental, and you will learn that, but I have ONE main thing to tell you: On experimentals, you can RUN, and you will need that. In my keyboard, the key is by the left side of number one, the " char.

[Rot]

They’re is no “must have” the glory in this game is that you tailor it to your play style.

I suggest you load up with all mods that look interesting, up the amount of character points you have AND the spawn rate of items and go balls deep.

After you get a feel of what you like and don’t like you’ll know which mods you prefer.

Personally I basically put all mods, excluding generic guns. Only balancing or blacklists I do is acid zombies and prevent zombie revivification.
Oh and filthy clothes and simplified nutrition.
Others like PK’s rebalancing, more classes, etc. I stick in for more variety.

[Shadow86]

Blindly adding mods can be a recipe for disaster as it multiplies the chances of running into bugs and incompatibilities with every new experimental build. Activating most everything without knowing what you’re getting into can be a way of getting put off as quickly as you get in.

And upping character points and item spawn rates merely dilutes the game’s natural difficulty. Not that there’s necessarily anything wrong with that, but it’s advisable to try out the game in its original form before you start tinkering with its mechanics.

[Hookleg]

Thanks for all the feedback. This weekend I am going to load up the most recent experimental build and give it a try.

[ZoneWizard]

Last unfu**ed version I’ve played that was legit stable was and sadly still is v5243. Feel free to PM me for a d/l link when I’m able to up it I can.

Seriously I hate the changes in as far as 5972. Vehicles are fudged beyond wanting to use them. Inventory is no longer full screen to make scrolls 100+ items even more retarded than it was before. Plus I swear that zombs are running at me even while using half speed mod, which isn’t just my imagination here, I get swarmed when my toon is running with Indefatigable trait at that!

I liked the game. Still do. But the latest changes break things in so illogical a manner as to make playing a chore instead of an enjoyable experience. They don’t give a sh!t about voting on anything either which makes the changes even more arduously received. If they cared to even ask and debate a little would make things a great deal better, in terms of quality and diversity.

[Lesseps]

I like all the latest changes and I play on latest experimental with NPCs on. People will keep whining about everything here simply because the game is nowhere near its final version so changes happen. Never got that kind of attitude, but well… Whatever floats your boat. I’m sure there are people still playing Whales version because it’s “better”.

Just give the latest one a try.

[Vastin]

I’d be slightly cautious about turning on wandering NPC’s in the latest experimental. I’ve had at least one game pretty much fail out completely due to a teleporting, murderous NPC that I could neither avoid nor have any chance of killing, even with save-scumming, and I’ve heard similar concerns from others.

Other than that and the vehicle fuel problems (which I expect will be resolved quickly), the latest experimentals are very cool.

[Hookleg]

I played with the most recent experimental this weekend and all i have to say is, “Wow”. its a world of improvement since the last stable release. I now have some questions though.

1. What is up with fires? my cooking fires keep going out with consuming all of the fuel.

2. I have been having issues with vehicles I keep finding vehicles that are full of fuel and/or energy, but still cannot use them because of missing and damaged parts. What is the best way in the current builds to get transportation up and running?

3. Can someone point me in the direction of a good guide to bionics.

Thanks,

Hook

[Greiger]

1: I typically use 2 2-by-4s or 2 splintered wood and it seems to burn all of it nicely. I think if you keep burning it it will eventually all burn up, but not 100%

2: In my experience the easiest way is to find a car that otherwise has functional parts (rare but it happens) and just a battery too low to start. Then take a wrench and a tiny bit of mechanical skill, then take a car battery from another car and put it in the car you want to start. That should give it enough charge for the starter on the first start.

[RedPine]

[quote=“Hookleg, post:14, topic:13048”]I played with the most recent experimental this weekend and all i have to say is, “Wow”. its a world of improvement since the last stable release. I now have some questions though.

1. What is up with fires? my cooking fires keep going out with consuming all of the fuel.

2. I have been having issues with vehicles I keep finding vehicles that are full of fuel and/or energy, but still cannot use them because of missing and damaged parts. What is the best way in the current builds to get transportation up and running?

3. Can someone point me in the direction of a good guide to bionics.

Thanks,

Hook[/quote]

1: Not all fires are created equal, a fire will burn itself out if it isn’t hot enough to keep going. Use splintered wood as tinder for 2x4s, preferably in a stove, brazier, or simply on a pit dug on the ground. The floor works, but the fire may spread.

2: Getting mechanics to 2, 4 and 8 are the bottlenecks. I usually put that skill in at character generation, but you can also practice by using "a"pplying crowbars to reach 2. You should naturally reach 4 just by using a hacksaw to grab lots of parts off of vehicles and installing them onto your ride. 8 will require getting lucky with finding a book. Regardless, you will find a working vehicle eventually - but expect it to break if it hit’s too many zombies.

3: A lot of chance goes into which bionics you can find and if you can successfully install them, so the “best” bionic is always going to be situational. Aside from some rebalancing and new bionics the information on the wiki is up to date and highly recommended. If that’s not enough you need to source dive at https://github.com/CleverRaven/Cataclysm-DDA and use the “search this repository” in the top right. For example, I was able to find out that the “Expanded Digestive System CBM” provides a multiplier to food nutrition that averages at +50%. I’m sitting on a huge food stash of 800+ flour, so normally this would be useless, but my current power source is “Metabolic Interchange CBM” which turns food into power so for my character I consider it essential.

The only thing I would caution you about is the new slot system for CBM’s in the experimentals. There are no penalties for having too many CBM’s right now, but that could change at any update.

[Rot]

If you need exp in some area, it helps to be creative.
For example, I drilled a hole in a concrete wall and patched it up with vehicle frames, added boards, windows, funnels, solar panels, storage batteries, the like.

I used heavy duty frames and boards with reinforced windshields as the main wall, and wooden frames/extra lightweight frames for everything else.

Also, if you’re gonna light a flame indoors I recommend either a brazier or a fireplace.
Bionics are situational, expanded digestive system + recycler unit is basically essential to survive since my character metabolizes food 3x the normal rate.
Unified power system cbm is needed for the use of laser rifles (something I aquired early on) and a shit ton of power storage CBM’s are always welcome and useful.