powerhouse, stealth, swordplay and gunslinging makes for my preferred character. Of those skills only swordplay+powerhouse explicitly synergies with a quick frontal execution maneuver. I spent a ton of influence to buy retraining manuals to make an OP trio with those skills to add to my character pool.
While tricky to learn to use, powerhouse can bring a whole lot more versatility to the close combat skill with the grappling/throwing and dropkick, while also making your guys stamina last a lot longer which is really handy for close combat
Yeah, I have been playing this game for like 5 years, so I basically know... very close to everything. There are some minor details that people will tell me about, but all of the relevant gameplay stuff I know.
Gotta say Fox, I love your videos! They've been a huge help with mastering this game. Thank you thank you thank you!!! Informative, funny, entertaining, and detailed. Zombies are my favorite of the action/ horror genre and SOD2 really hits the zombie survivalist spot for me. I've been toying with getting my survivor pool stocked with nothing but the most badass survivors I can find/build for making uber teams for playthroughs. I have found if I tinker around long enough (and kick out A LOT of people that are otherwise good but not clearly OP), some of these guys n gals are really darn OP. Not only with skill combos, but with traits and hero bonuses carefully combined as well. The fifth skill books from the rare skills trader and the retraining books are instrumental. I've got a few survivors that really stand out: Yooper Nose to Tail (+1 food) From the Great Lakes (+10 max stamina) Keeps Hidden Pouches (+10 light carry, +10 max carry, +1 consumables) Backpacking Resourcefulness Swordplay Sharpshooting Fishing (+2 food) This guy replaces a hydroponics facility and he carries loot like a boss!!! Duskin Outdoor Living (+2 beds) Drinks Cold Medicine "yikes!" (+50% infection resistance) High Pain Threshold (+30 max health) Backpacking Discipline Swordplay Gunslinging Sleep Psychology (+2 beds) (that's +4 beds with his hero bonus!!!) Whitney Quiet Time (-1 zombie threat) Marathon Stealth Close Combat Sharpshooting Soundproofing(-3 zombie threat) (-4 zombie threat with hero bonus) Ninja sniper. Benny High Expectations +33% facility action speed) Workaholic (+1 labor) Backpacking Discipline Endurance Gunslinging Scrum Certification (+50% global action speed, +50% facility action speed, +2 labor) So that's +50% global action speed, +83% facility action speed, and +3 labor!!! On top of that his stamina bar and his health bar are nearly touching with the right facilities and mods) I'm still figuring out other combinations and I found this video to be very helpful with the process. Anything I missed? Thanks again. Happy hunting!
One of recent skill combos is only because looting for outfits is so painful. For speed looting builds, I go with Marathon, Stealth, and Shopping as the base and fighting and firearms are flexible. The rationale is Marathon and Stealth moves me quickly through the building and allows for opening locked doors quietly. Max Stealth gives the lowered probability of speed search crashing. Then shopping increases the search speed which often makes the search go so quickly that it seems like the search never even has a chance to crash.
30:07 when you are done with merchant, just throw zombait near him and go on roof with molotov and crosbow or you can always use car horn, i know its time consuming but its so fun and interesting to loot them. Also that juggernaut was so close
Hey good video. Ya i always wait also. I prefer backpacking or powerhouse. And close combat or swordplay. I will say after playing with the red talon soldiers they so op lol
@@GitGudFox lol the one and only! It is fun having every skill combo. Like i have a tuff time deciding on stealth or resourcefulness a lot cus i like them both. But stealth more for dread and nightmare
@@GitGudFox I just beat my mheager valley nightmarezone playthrough (my first one) and now im heading back in to cascade hills. Hope that's where your next playthrough is, I feel like the "p2w" series cheapened your time on that map somewhat (even though that was the point lol)
I have seen them more when rolling for a community. It used to take me an hour+ for my favorite lychenology, usually takes me 15-20 min. but I have also seen negative traits are much more common. I think you are correct with the random community rare skills.
I also loved your flashlight suggestion. Damn, that would be a great bounty broker item. How about a web gear to hook your backpack on that has a few more pickets. Cargo pants with 2 extra pockets.....I don't know, just throwing to see if it sticks
I think a cool item would be something like a "security guard maglight." It's a blunt weapon that you use as a high powered LED flashlight but also can hit people with it. They actually make flashlights like that that are specifically designed to be used as an improvised club for security guards.
The comic collector holds those retrain skills books too. Not sure if they regen after you buy them tho. Conditional on that mission generating too of course. Can’t remember if the comic collector vanishes after you complete it & don’t recruit. If stays around should maybe regenerate if u leave it as a 1 man enclave. Been a while since I’ve came across that quest
Aro2001 thanks man, that’s good to know, I wonder if it differs with neutral status if u just leave the last questline for a more prolonged period 🤔 start fail 1 of those types of quest lines it usually lingers it & pops back up least a few times
If I may make an observation about your playstyle, you seem to like to play to the gear. You have your favorite OP weapons, and shuffle that around instead of playing to the character's skills. I'm not throwing shade, it's the way you like to play the game and there's nothing wrong with that. Guard duty survivors get Jacqhammers (BFGs), and you like running around with the crossbow. You like carrying more gear than you need for a task, and this seems to be because you tend to get distracted during play (partly because your attention is divided to commentating, etc... Again, not shade, just an observation. Maybe it's all the years of WoW... you play the raid loot, not the class) *Cardio* Marathon: While you know Red encumbrance is double stamina usage, you don't seem to regard Green encumbrance being half stamina usage to be as powerful as I do. You like an 8lb, 8 slot backpack and carry stims, I go for the 6slot ultra light and choose marathon and close quarters (the melee weapon you're not carrying doesn't weigh anything). With Marathon, if I get low instead of popping a snack and powering through, I'll kite and regen my stamina. Powerhouse: The 50% grapple perk works for your standing executions. It pairs well with Knives and Swords. The front grapple works well with Stealth's quick executes. Backpacking: you know the synergy with Resourcefulness. It's also the largest increase to your stamina pool for all the times where you are in moderate or heavy carry. I think it's always OK but only has that one narrow niche when it's great. Trader with Influence Hero bonus, Backpacking, Resourcefulness, Knives, and Gunslinging an S3 Crossbow, with Medicine/Pathology is how I like to farm samples or sell off 10 stacks of 6 Strong Painkillers for 2k+ influence per run; or carry the fire crackers, fuel bombs, or pipe bombs for infestations and hearts. Acrobatics: not my playstyle, I can't think of when this will really shine. *Wits* Discipline: The melee durability is almost a must for Swordplay, the 5 stamina on melee kill pairs nicely with Powerhouse's 50% melee cost reduction. The expanded carry means that you can carry a BFG and 10 rounds (2 reloads), 3x strong pain killers, and still stay in the green for Marathon if you want to run in and take out a hostile enclave. Stealth: The quick executions pairs well with Knives to stay fluid in small skirmishes. (Minimize the number of slow headlock takedown executions that always seem to get interrupted) Scouting: I like a lot with Marathon and Sharpshooting for when I want to play sniper. Situational Awareness and knowing where I can safely take a few shots on an infestation is fun. Resourcefulness: we share the same opinions on it, again. *Combat* Striking: not really my preferred playstyle, so I'll defer to you on good pairings. Swordplay: Discipline for the durability. Marathon to kite and choose your engagements. Close Combat (Knives): My favorite. No weight, no repairs, quick. While powerhouse gives the big grapple shove, even the small shove is enough to disrupt a group to break them up enough to get off a standing execution. With stealth and powerhouse it's sadistically satisfying to pop zombies heads like cantaloupes. Without Powerhouse it's silly fun to talk to your TV: "Hey Zanne, should we leave this one alone?" "Can't do that... ~~CURB STOMP execution~~" *Shooting* Umm, unless I specifically want a sniper character with Sharpshooting, I'll make damn sure I get Gunslinging (like buying books to retrain, or booting an underwhelming leader/trait combo that can't get it). The reload speed is too good on crossbows, and the aim snap makes quick work of a horde when in green carry with an Echo S4. Assault: If when you're not killing zombies you're playing Run N Gun shooters like Team Fortress, or CQB tactics like Rainbow 6, and just like carrying an AR-15 or AK47 and shooting center mass into a crowd, then the weapon durability is nice, and the kick can interrupt a grapple attempt before they latch on if you're caught aiming down sights. Weapon Handling: Never bad, never great.
The main thing I disagree with is the usage of the word "need" as in I carry too much gear for what the task "needs." The reason I don't like the usage of this word is because the game is very random. It's hard to say what is "needed" because of how unpredictable the game is. Even if I launch 10 missions, and 9 out of 10 missions did not require all the items I brought, avoiding a death or near death experience in that 10th situation by bringing extra tools is worth it. I don't like marathon because it becomes worse as the game goes on. As you gain more access to stamina regenerating items in greater quantity like energy drinks and stims, you can basically have marathon whenever you want without actually needing to pick the skill. Items overpower pretty much everything in the end of SoD2. Even if every one of your characters could not choose an advanced skill, say they were stuck at 7 stars basic skill, you could still obliterate Nightmare Zone with equipment. Equipment > Skllls - thus any skill that lets me carry more equipment is always going to be a priority for me while skills that encourage carrying less equipment I stay away from.
A good example is that some people like to combine gunslinging with marathon because you can use infinite sprint to stay away then use gunslinging when your stamina recharges. I can just use a stamina regenerating item, like stimulants, and get a stronger effect while also having a better cardio skill than marathon. This doesn't take that long to setup either considering that plague hearts give stimulants pretty regularly and energy drinks can be planned ahead of time by taking chemistry/cooking. The same applies to using marathon to run away and regenerate stam then go back to melee combat. I can just use energy drinks or stims, and neither are hard to maintain a supply of if you are prioritizing it.
My final thought is that the common counter argument is that "but with marathon you don't need to use those items." My counter logic is what is the point of saving them? The value of conserving a resource is because you need to spend it later. If you conserve a resource, without a reason/need to spend it later, then you are ironically still wasting that resource because it isn't doing anything for you. You could sell it but to what end? There are plenty of things to sell, and it isn't hard to reach the point where there isn't much left to buy that would ask you to liquidate high value resources into influence. In the end, I've used all of these skills extensively to write the skill guides and came to this conclusion that these are the best skills to use. In other words, I disagree that I am unconsciously bringing more resources than "needed." I am consciously choosing to bring more firepower to do the job to give myself more flexibility and more safety.
@@CoolChicken1213 10-15 minutes. I like Fox's content and he's willing to engage in a discussion in the comments, so I didn't think it was 10 minutes wasted.
Powerhouse + Discipline + Swordplay + Gunslinging. You can replace swordplay with striking if that's your cup of tea. This is the best combo for fighters in my opinion.
Another great episode. The skills conversation in the comments is terrific. It's interesting to see how different everyone's personal preferences are, says a lot about how well balanced the skill trees are. Gunslinger seemed to be the the consistent choice for almost all. Thanks for all you do! Also, GO CHIEFS!
to make the game less boring imo 1. more maps, preferably city heavy maps with lots of rooms, cqc areas, but not to close, etc 2. more freaks 3. more diversity in survivor looks (small one imo, but little things can go far) 4. more active enclaves (maybe there are encounters like in gta 4 and 5 that can trigger) would take to much space to explain, but some may know what i mean 5. more traits and skills. some of these might be to advanced and will probably be in the 3rd game when it comes out, but just a thought
Scouting and Weapons Handling both have gun durability loss bonuses so them together can make a fragile gun especially with a advanced brake since brakes increases their durability as well last a long time.
Almost gave up on this game yesterday, when i lost my best/ most upgraded survivor, to a glitch, where you keep auto-moving in one direction, and theres absolutly nothing i can do to change it for 20-30 secs, it finally happened in the middle of a fight and i lost my survivor. have you Fox, or anybody else found a fix for this bug yet?, coz i couldent find much online about it?, thx in advance for any help.
@@GitGudFox (That was fast) I tried the "get unstuck" button in the radio menu, but the Zeds kept "bumping" me around when they hit me, and the game wouldent do it. Thanks Fox, ill try that.
Today I may have recruited the best survivor I've ever come across. So they have driving as fifth skill which is nice on nightmare. They have marathon, discipline, endurance and gunslinger. They have the trait trucker so fatigue is reduced. With all skills maxed they can carry a spec ops mp5 with suppressor , 2 mags, health and stamina items and still be in light carry with a rucksack. The stamina doesn't go down during melee combat, ferals aren't an issue with gunslinger and my infection barely goes up when hit because of pathology i believe (also have a character with infection resistance but not sure if it affects other party members). I'll never want to use another character
IMO, the single best combo in the game is: Marathon-Stealth-Close Combat-Gunslinging. With this build, you can stealth kill hordes, ferals are a piece of piss, and with an ultralight pack, you're basically a loot-and-kill machine. Plus, with the right traits and hero bonuses to light carryweight, you can stealth sprint and normal sprint without consuming any stamina (as Fox demonstrated in the video). Best of all, you don't need to lug around an 8-pound sword to kill enemies. Just carry a Echo dagger and you're good to go. Even on Nightmare zone, this build is pretty OP. I've had builds that kill better (sometimes I consider swapping Swordplay for Close Combat, for instance, and use the insta kill of max level Swordplay) but for sheer all-around badassery and survivability, nothing touches Marathon-Stealth-Close Combat-Gunslinging IMO.
I've never been into marathon/stealth since you can just use the crouch spam without either marathon or stealth to move quickly. That said, if I wind up with either of the skills, I will often pick the other. I think if you compared the power of marathon/stealth vs. backpacking/resourcefulness, it would make marathon/stealth look silly. The amount of firepower you can carry with backpacking and resourcefulness is map annihilating firepower without the need to worry about staying in light carry.
@@GitGudFox Hmm, interesting. I might do some testing on that. I'd like to see, then, what a Backpacking-Resourcefulness-Close Combat-Gunslinging build could do. Maybe even throw in Swordplay there instead of Close Combat. You can do the crouch spam to move quickly, but you sacrifice a lot of enemy visibility range without Stealth. Don't know if that would be that big of a deal, though.
I should be more specific. My problem with marathon is that it grows weaker the stronger and longer you play. Marathon is really strong when you don't have access to a lot of energy drinks and stimulants, but the longer you play, you're going to amass a ton of stimulants which is basically infinite stamina for 3 minutes and energy drinks which is infinite stamina for 30 seconds. Plague Hearts often drop 3 stims, so you wind up banking up a lot of stims over time, and Resourcefulness would let you carry 6 stims in 1 inventory slot. Backpacking lets you carry multiple heavy weapons combined with 6 unit stacks of fire bombs, strong painkillers, hand grenades etc. You become a walking arsenal with backpacking and resourcefulness. That doesn't mean I don't think that it isn't worth it to have a marathon/stealth character. I just wouldn't make it my primary skill setup.
For example, you can carry a BFG with a full stack of 0.50 caliber ammo AND a pyrolauncher with ammo + 6 unit stacks of medicine, fuel bombs, hand grenades, energy drinks etc and still be under heavy carry capacity. That character basically becomes a human warzone. Now, if you prefer marathon/stealth you could do the reverse of what I suggest. You could have 1 character with this backpacking/resourcefulness setup to have 1 Rambo obliterator character while your other characters are marathon/stealth.
Another great video 👍🏽. Quick question probably dumb but when deciding between selling or breaking down for parts what’s the influence # should we look for to help with that decision?
Watch the first episode of Fox returns,he starts as he starting fresh,a cheatful way is if u beaten the trader and warlord and unlock those boons on standard start a new game with those boons and change difficulty and u still keep the 4000 and Warlord weapons/grenade to help with plague hearts,I know it's cheating but it helps
@@harvester6635 if u completed it on standard and start a new community with those boons even if u didn't completed it u still keep the 4000 and warlord items yes u still have to complete it on that difficulty to unlock it,I did it for dreadzone
@@nyhman78 This doesn't help our fist commentor, they're starting they're first nightmare zone community, and thus won't have any boons to pick. You have to unlock them for each zone from what I understand
Dang it looks really hard being in sneak im more of a run n gun type of player which the game doesn't reward me something that rewards the player for being more sporadic but i still think they shouldn't change it because most people are very strategic which im not but i still like the game
Lmao, I got ADHD so this game can be an amazing test of patience. I find it a lot easier to immerse myself and respect the game properly when I'm stoned though, and consequently end up dying less
@@GitGudFox eh it’s a personal favorite I like getting in and out of places without conflict a lot of my survivors are surviving I try to avoid taking risks especially in my lethal community I just started my first lethal run
What are YOUR favorite skill combos? Have I overlooked some?
powerhouse, stealth, swordplay and gunslinging makes for my preferred character. Of those skills only swordplay+powerhouse explicitly synergies with a quick frontal execution maneuver. I spent a ton of influence to buy retraining manuals to make an OP trio with those skills to add to my character pool.
Scouting , swordplay, and gun slinging. Cardio are all interchangeable IMO
Stealth and close combat
Marathon scouting close combat and ultralight backpack
While tricky to learn to use, powerhouse can bring a whole lot more versatility to the close combat skill with the grappling/throwing and dropkick, while also making your guys stamina last a lot longer which is really handy for close combat
I’ve played this game till there is nothing do and still watch everything you put up and learn something new you have saved a ton of my survivors
Actually tho
I'm honored to have your support!
Gunslinging + Marathon = Burn stamina shooting and sprint to safely recharge it.
Swordplay + Discipline = extend the life of those fragile blades.
I've never been a fan of discipline. The parts saved I don't think matter once you get a decent economy of parts going.
Excellent videos!!! Just started playing there is so much to learn about skills and all your videos are nice and to the point and all facts.
Yeah, I have been playing this game for like 5 years, so I basically know... very close to everything. There are some minor details that people will tell me about, but all of the relevant gameplay stuff I know.
Gotta say Fox, I love your videos! They've been a huge help with mastering this game. Thank you thank you thank you!!! Informative, funny, entertaining, and detailed. Zombies are my favorite of the action/ horror genre and SOD2 really hits the zombie survivalist spot for me. I've been toying with getting my survivor pool stocked with nothing but the most badass survivors I can find/build for making uber teams for playthroughs. I have found if I tinker around long enough (and kick out A LOT of people that are otherwise good but not clearly OP), some of these guys n gals are really darn OP. Not only with skill combos, but with traits and hero bonuses carefully combined as well. The fifth skill books from the rare skills trader and the retraining books are instrumental. I've got a few survivors that really stand out:
Yooper
Nose to Tail (+1 food)
From the Great Lakes (+10 max stamina)
Keeps Hidden Pouches (+10 light carry, +10 max carry, +1 consumables)
Backpacking
Resourcefulness
Swordplay
Sharpshooting
Fishing (+2 food)
This guy replaces a hydroponics facility and he carries loot like a boss!!!
Duskin
Outdoor Living (+2 beds)
Drinks Cold Medicine "yikes!" (+50% infection resistance)
High Pain Threshold (+30 max health)
Backpacking
Discipline
Swordplay
Gunslinging
Sleep Psychology (+2 beds) (that's +4 beds with his hero bonus!!!)
Whitney
Quiet Time (-1 zombie threat)
Marathon
Stealth
Close Combat
Sharpshooting
Soundproofing(-3 zombie threat) (-4 zombie threat with hero bonus)
Ninja sniper.
Benny
High Expectations +33% facility action speed)
Workaholic (+1 labor)
Backpacking
Discipline
Endurance
Gunslinging
Scrum Certification (+50% global action speed, +50% facility action speed, +2 labor)
So that's +50% global action speed, +83% facility action speed, and +3 labor!!! On top of that his stamina bar and his health bar are nearly touching with the right facilities and mods)
I'm still figuring out other combinations and I found this video to be very helpful with the process. Anything I missed? Thanks again. Happy hunting!
Really good characters, I like how you gave them specialty type roles.
Keep up the good work man :)
More on the way!
One of recent skill combos is only because looting for outfits is so painful. For speed looting builds, I go with Marathon, Stealth, and Shopping as the base and fighting and firearms are flexible. The rationale is Marathon and Stealth moves me quickly through the building and allows for opening locked doors quietly. Max Stealth gives the lowered probability of speed search crashing. Then shopping increases the search speed which often makes the search go so quickly that it seems like the search never even has a chance to crash.
That sounds like a decent one. I hate looting.
Great episode 🦊
Thanks for watching!
30:07 when you are done with merchant, just throw zombait near him and go on roof with molotov and crosbow or you can always use car horn, i know its time consuming but its so fun and interesting to loot them. Also that juggernaut was so close
I don't bother killing merchants. They don't drop useful stuff.
@@GitGudFox never! You'll see a 50 bmg and a red talon elite backpack on em and when you loot them they have a tassie devil and a red gringham pack 🤣
Hey good video. Ya i always wait also. I prefer backpacking or powerhouse. And close combat or swordplay. I will say after playing with the red talon soldiers they so op lol
I might bring back my 1 RT character in the next playthrough.
@@GitGudFox lol the one and only! It is fun having every skill combo. Like i have a tuff time deciding on stealth or resourcefulness a lot cus i like them both. But stealth more for dread and nightmare
@@GitGudFox I just beat my mheager valley nightmarezone playthrough (my first one) and now im heading back in to cascade hills. Hope that's where your next playthrough is, I feel like the "p2w" series cheapened your time on that map somewhat (even though that was the point lol)
If you could add more cars/ vehicles into the game what would you add and wuld there be any customizations youd want?
I'm not sure. I'm not really a car person. I would like to see vehicles have mod slots so you can change what aspects you want to upgrade.
Nos or more hrsprs
Hi from Brazil. When i growup i want to play nightmarezone like you.
Just buy the pyrolauncher, and you can do it right now!
I noticed that using the shove attack from close combat helps level up the skill faster
I wonder if you could just shove 1 zombie around to max skill.
Can you use resourcefulness and the sewing 5th perk to double the effects while also using backpacking to get the extra storage
I believe so. I heard someone stacked bonuses up to 11 item stacks.
Look for herobonus "Pack Maintenance" +10 Light Carrying for all or "Backrubs" for +5
No one is getting their back rubbed in my community!
LMAO !!!! that was a great shot man dont take that away from urself that was perfectly aimed XD XD XD XD !!!!!!
Nah, I know that was not a planned hit. I was hoping to hit, but I didn't think I'd hit.
35:42 i wonder is it worth equiping survivors with granade launchers and pyrolaunchers or are they just gonna kill eachother
They're going to kill each other.
I have seen them more when rolling for a community. It used to take me an hour+ for my favorite lychenology, usually takes me 15-20 min. but I have also seen negative traits are much more common. I think you are correct with the random community rare skills.
I feel like they are always making stealth changes to the game.
@@GitGudFox such as nerfing the vehicles. That one was very obvious.
I also loved your flashlight suggestion. Damn, that would be a great bounty broker item. How about a web gear to hook your backpack on that has a few more pickets. Cargo pants with 2 extra pockets.....I don't know, just throwing to see if it sticks
I think a cool item would be something like a "security guard maglight." It's a blunt weapon that you use as a high powered LED flashlight but also can hit people with it.
They actually make flashlights like that that are specifically designed to be used as an improvised club for security guards.
@@GitGudFox maglight 6 cell.........ouch...
9:55 i wonder why you never buy ammo and molotovs, since its easy to get influence
Because sometime I spend a ton of influence all at once.
Remember to unload you ammo before selling your weapons Sir..😏
I might start selling the guns with the ammo in them!
The comic collector holds those retrain skills books too. Not sure if they regen after you buy them tho. Conditional on that mission generating too of course.
Can’t remember if the comic collector vanishes after you complete it & don’t recruit. If stays around should maybe regenerate if u leave it as a 1 man enclave. Been a while since I’ve came across that quest
That's worth testing.
Git Gud Fox I’ve been hoping to get that mission spawn in for a while to test out the theory but typically no luck lol
Comic collector doesn't vanish but they stop giving rare skills books after hitting allied.
Aro2001 thanks man, that’s good to know, I wonder if it differs with neutral status if u just leave the last questline for a more prolonged period 🤔 start fail 1 of those types of quest lines it usually lingers it & pops back up least a few times
the wait and see method makes the most sense. the exp rate seems to crawl way slower in nightmare...
Wits I think is the hardest. I hate leveling wits.
Ayyyyyy u answered my question:)
I can't remember what it was!
If I may make an observation about your playstyle, you seem to like to play to the gear. You have your favorite OP weapons, and shuffle that around instead of playing to the character's skills. I'm not throwing shade, it's the way you like to play the game and there's nothing wrong with that. Guard duty survivors get Jacqhammers (BFGs), and you like running around with the crossbow. You like carrying more gear than you need for a task, and this seems to be because you tend to get distracted during play (partly because your attention is divided to commentating, etc... Again, not shade, just an observation. Maybe it's all the years of WoW... you play the raid loot, not the class)
*Cardio*
Marathon: While you know Red encumbrance is double stamina usage, you don't seem to regard Green encumbrance being half stamina usage to be as powerful as I do. You like an 8lb, 8 slot backpack and carry stims, I go for the 6slot ultra light and choose marathon and close quarters (the melee weapon you're not carrying doesn't weigh anything). With Marathon, if I get low instead of popping a snack and powering through, I'll kite and regen my stamina.
Powerhouse: The 50% grapple perk works for your standing executions. It pairs well with Knives and Swords. The front grapple works well with Stealth's quick executes.
Backpacking: you know the synergy with Resourcefulness. It's also the largest increase to your stamina pool for all the times where you are in moderate or heavy carry. I think it's always OK but only has that one narrow niche when it's great. Trader with Influence Hero bonus, Backpacking, Resourcefulness, Knives, and Gunslinging an S3 Crossbow, with Medicine/Pathology is how I like to farm samples or sell off 10 stacks of 6 Strong Painkillers for 2k+ influence per run; or carry the fire crackers, fuel bombs, or pipe bombs for infestations and hearts.
Acrobatics: not my playstyle, I can't think of when this will really shine.
*Wits*
Discipline: The melee durability is almost a must for Swordplay, the 5 stamina on melee kill pairs nicely with Powerhouse's 50% melee cost reduction. The expanded carry means that you can carry a BFG and 10 rounds (2 reloads), 3x strong pain killers, and still stay in the green for Marathon if you want to run in and take out a hostile enclave.
Stealth: The quick executions pairs well with Knives to stay fluid in small skirmishes.
(Minimize the number of slow headlock takedown executions that always seem to get interrupted)
Scouting: I like a lot with Marathon and Sharpshooting for when I want to play sniper. Situational Awareness and knowing where I can safely take a few shots on an infestation is fun.
Resourcefulness: we share the same opinions on it, again.
*Combat*
Striking: not really my preferred playstyle, so I'll defer to you on good pairings.
Swordplay: Discipline for the durability. Marathon to kite and choose your engagements.
Close Combat (Knives): My favorite. No weight, no repairs, quick. While powerhouse gives the big grapple shove, even the small shove is enough to disrupt a group to break them up enough to get off a standing execution. With stealth and powerhouse it's sadistically satisfying to pop zombies heads like cantaloupes. Without Powerhouse it's silly fun to talk to your TV: "Hey Zanne, should we leave this one alone?" "Can't do that... ~~CURB STOMP execution~~"
*Shooting*
Umm, unless I specifically want a sniper character with Sharpshooting, I'll make damn sure I get Gunslinging (like buying books to retrain, or booting an underwhelming leader/trait combo that can't get it). The reload speed is too good on crossbows, and the aim snap makes quick work of a horde when in green carry with an Echo S4.
Assault: If when you're not killing zombies you're playing Run N Gun shooters like Team Fortress, or CQB tactics like Rainbow 6, and just like carrying an AR-15 or AK47 and shooting center mass into a crowd, then the weapon durability is nice, and the kick can interrupt a grapple attempt before they latch on if you're caught aiming down sights.
Weapon Handling: Never bad, never great.
How long did this take you to write this?
The main thing I disagree with is the usage of the word "need" as in I carry too much gear for what the task "needs."
The reason I don't like the usage of this word is because the game is very random. It's hard to say what is "needed" because of how unpredictable the game is. Even if I launch 10 missions, and 9 out of 10 missions did not require all the items I brought, avoiding a death or near death experience in that 10th situation by bringing extra tools is worth it.
I don't like marathon because it becomes worse as the game goes on. As you gain more access to stamina regenerating items in greater quantity like energy drinks and stims, you can basically have marathon whenever you want without actually needing to pick the skill.
Items overpower pretty much everything in the end of SoD2. Even if every one of your characters could not choose an advanced skill, say they were stuck at 7 stars basic skill, you could still obliterate Nightmare Zone with equipment.
Equipment > Skllls - thus any skill that lets me carry more equipment is always going to be a priority for me while skills that encourage carrying less equipment I stay away from.
A good example is that some people like to combine gunslinging with marathon because you can use infinite sprint to stay away then use gunslinging when your stamina recharges.
I can just use a stamina regenerating item, like stimulants, and get a stronger effect while also having a better cardio skill than marathon.
This doesn't take that long to setup either considering that plague hearts give stimulants pretty regularly and energy drinks can be planned ahead of time by taking chemistry/cooking.
The same applies to using marathon to run away and regenerate stam then go back to melee combat. I can just use energy drinks or stims, and neither are hard to maintain a supply of if you are prioritizing it.
My final thought is that the common counter argument is that "but with marathon you don't need to use those items."
My counter logic is what is the point of saving them? The value of conserving a resource is because you need to spend it later. If you conserve a resource, without a reason/need to spend it later, then you are ironically still wasting that resource because it isn't doing anything for you.
You could sell it but to what end? There are plenty of things to sell, and it isn't hard to reach the point where there isn't much left to buy that would ask you to liquidate high value resources into influence.
In the end, I've used all of these skills extensively to write the skill guides and came to this conclusion that these are the best skills to use.
In other words, I disagree that I am unconsciously bringing more resources than "needed." I am consciously choosing to bring more firepower to do the job to give myself more flexibility and more safety.
@@CoolChicken1213 10-15 minutes. I like Fox's content and he's willing to engage in a discussion in the comments, so I didn't think it was 10 minutes wasted.
Powerhouse + Discipline + Swordplay + Gunslinging. You can replace swordplay with striking if that's your cup of tea. This is the best combo for fighters in my opinion.
I'm not a fan of discipline, but I would use the others.
Another great episode. The skills conversation in the comments is terrific. It's interesting to see how different everyone's personal preferences are, says a lot about how well balanced the skill trees are. Gunslinger seemed to be the the consistent choice for almost all.
Thanks for all you do!
Also, GO CHIEFS!
Gunslinging is the most OP skill. It's the only OP skill actually.
The "explosion" you were hearing was one your survivors 50 cal Model 99
I feel like I would have heard it in an earlier episode.
to make the game less boring imo
1. more maps, preferably city heavy maps with lots of rooms, cqc areas, but not to close, etc
2. more freaks
3. more diversity in survivor looks (small one imo, but little things can go far)
4. more active enclaves (maybe there are encounters like in gta 4 and 5 that can trigger) would take to much space to explain, but some may know what i mean
5. more traits and skills.
some of these might be to advanced and will probably be in the 3rd game when it comes out, but just a thought
I'm gonna talk about the subject of making SoD2 less boring in the next episode.
Scouting and Weapons Handling both have gun durability loss bonuses so them together can make a fragile gun especially with a advanced brake since brakes increases their durability as well last a long time.
Almost gave up on this game yesterday, when i lost my best/ most upgraded survivor, to a glitch, where you keep auto-moving in one direction, and theres absolutly nothing i can do to change it for 20-30 secs, it finally happened in the middle of a fight and i lost my survivor. have you Fox, or anybody else found a fix for this bug yet?, coz i couldent find much online about it?, thx in advance for any help.
I have had this happen but never for that long. I guess the best thing to do would be to shut the game down.
@@GitGudFox (That was fast) I tried the "get unstuck" button in the radio menu, but the Zeds kept "bumping" me around when they hit me, and the game wouldent do it. Thanks Fox, ill try that.
I happened to be answering comments at this exact moment.
Today I may have recruited the best survivor I've ever come across. So they have driving as fifth skill which is nice on nightmare. They have marathon, discipline, endurance and gunslinger. They have the trait trucker so fatigue is reduced. With all skills maxed they can carry a spec ops mp5 with suppressor , 2 mags, health and stamina items and still be in light carry with a rucksack. The stamina doesn't go down during melee combat, ferals aren't an issue with gunslinger and my infection barely goes up when hit because of pathology i believe (also have a character with infection resistance but not sure if it affects other party members). I'll never want to use another character
IMO, the single best combo in the game is: Marathon-Stealth-Close Combat-Gunslinging.
With this build, you can stealth kill hordes, ferals are a piece of piss, and with an ultralight pack, you're basically a loot-and-kill machine. Plus, with the right traits and hero bonuses to light carryweight, you can stealth sprint and normal sprint without consuming any stamina (as Fox demonstrated in the video). Best of all, you don't need to lug around an 8-pound sword to kill enemies. Just carry a Echo dagger and you're good to go.
Even on Nightmare zone, this build is pretty OP. I've had builds that kill better (sometimes I consider swapping Swordplay for Close Combat, for instance, and use the insta kill of max level Swordplay) but for sheer all-around badassery and survivability, nothing touches Marathon-Stealth-Close Combat-Gunslinging IMO.
I've never been into marathon/stealth since you can just use the crouch spam without either marathon or stealth to move quickly. That said, if I wind up with either of the skills, I will often pick the other.
I think if you compared the power of marathon/stealth vs. backpacking/resourcefulness, it would make marathon/stealth look silly. The amount of firepower you can carry with backpacking and resourcefulness is map annihilating firepower without the need to worry about staying in light carry.
@@GitGudFox Hmm, interesting.
I might do some testing on that. I'd like to see, then, what a Backpacking-Resourcefulness-Close Combat-Gunslinging build could do. Maybe even throw in Swordplay there instead of Close Combat.
You can do the crouch spam to move quickly, but you sacrifice a lot of enemy visibility range without Stealth. Don't know if that would be that big of a deal, though.
I should be more specific.
My problem with marathon is that it grows weaker the stronger and longer you play. Marathon is really strong when you don't have access to a lot of energy drinks and stimulants, but the longer you play, you're going to amass a ton of stimulants which is basically infinite stamina for 3 minutes and energy drinks which is infinite stamina for 30 seconds.
Plague Hearts often drop 3 stims, so you wind up banking up a lot of stims over time, and Resourcefulness would let you carry 6 stims in 1 inventory slot. Backpacking lets you carry multiple heavy weapons combined with 6 unit stacks of fire bombs, strong painkillers, hand grenades etc.
You become a walking arsenal with backpacking and resourcefulness.
That doesn't mean I don't think that it isn't worth it to have a marathon/stealth character. I just wouldn't make it my primary skill setup.
For example, you can carry a BFG with a full stack of 0.50 caliber ammo AND a pyrolauncher with ammo + 6 unit stacks of medicine, fuel bombs, hand grenades, energy drinks etc and still be under heavy carry capacity.
That character basically becomes a human warzone.
Now, if you prefer marathon/stealth you could do the reverse of what I suggest. You could have 1 character with this backpacking/resourcefulness setup to have 1 Rambo obliterator character while your other characters are marathon/stealth.
Another great video 👍🏽. Quick question probably dumb but when deciding between selling or breaking down for parts what’s the influence # should we look for to help with that decision?
I am looking for more influence sold than parts scrapped. After that, you just have to decide which you need more.
Thanks
Git gud fox i started a nightmare community and i dont understand how to do it
Watch the first episode of Fox returns,he starts as he starting fresh,a cheatful way is if u beaten the trader and warlord and unlock those boons on standard start a new game with those boons and change difficulty and u still keep the 4000 and Warlord weapons/grenade to help with plague hearts,I know it's cheating but it helps
That's too broad of a question for me to answer in comments. You need to take a look through my guides and what not.
@@harvester6635 if u completed it on standard and start a new community with those boons even if u didn't completed it u still keep the 4000 and warlord items yes u still have to complete it on that difficulty to unlock it,I did it for dreadzone
@@nyhman78 This doesn't help our fist commentor, they're starting they're first nightmare zone community, and thus won't have any boons to pick. You have to unlock them for each zone from what I understand
@@jeremycorbin2178
READ brother.
Hes saying start on a lower difficulty with the boons. Then turn the difficulty up.
Dang it looks really hard being in sneak im more of a run n gun type of player which the game doesn't reward me something that rewards the player for being more sporadic but i still think they shouldn't change it because most people are very strategic which im not but i still like the game
You can run and gun eventually when you've grown in enough power to plow through the opposition.
Lmao, I got ADHD so this game can be an amazing test of patience. I find it a lot easier to immerse myself and respect the game properly when I'm stoned though, and consequently end up dying less
In my Nightmare gameplay, I got 3 BFG but then the next mysterious trader didn't have any BFG. They had all other usual stuff. WTF?
They're not guaranteed to have it. They have most of the time but not all the time.
1question why we can't Call soldier groups in
It was a time limited feature. It was removed after a month or 2.
Not a combo but you can park two vehicles on each parking space as in 1/2 and 1/2 of the space.
Powerhouse
Stealth
Striking/close c./sward play.
Weapon handling
Powerhouse is the best still, that’s all I can say, being able to front grapple is so helpful...so I think powerhouse with war fighting is the best
I don't think it's better than Gunslinging, but it's pretty good.
How is warfighting worse than gunslinging? Isn’t warfighting just every shooting skill combined?
I was talking about Powerhouse. I don't care about the RT skills. Daybreak is shit.
👍
Thanks for stopping by Joe!
marathon
stealth
swordplay
gunslinger
Not a huge fan of marathon as I dislike being in light carry, but it definitely works.
@@GitGudFox eh it’s a personal favorite I like getting in and out of places without conflict a lot of my survivors are surviving I try to avoid taking risks especially in my lethal community I just started my first lethal run
That was the model 99 - 50... not an explosion
I'm just thinking out loud in these types of commentary.
Technically, he's not wrong. The bullets were propelled by an explosion.
Can you turn on camera and put it in top right corner instead of that bounty crap
Lol, it's just some words. It's not a big deal.
I've noticed most recruitable people have crap skills now
It seems way more common.
stupid skills are popping up everywhere
Yes, so it's not just me. I knew I wasn't crazy!
First
Well done!
So? You want a banana or something?