| Screamer | |
|---|---|
| |
| Description | |
| Category | Zombie |
| Type | Hostile%Hostile NPCs |
| Zombie Type | Normal, Feral |
| Effects | Summons zombie hordes with her screams |
| Loot Container | 38 |
| Location | Anywhere |
Description[ | ]
The Screamer is a special type of zombie that appears and investigates sources of player activity, referred to as heat levels.
A Screamer can be easily identified by their signature white dress, long black hair, and high-pitched shrieks and hisses. They are also shorter than average zombies, and can occasionally be difficult to spot when behind cover.
They are arguably the most dangerous zombie in the game because of their special ability to summon small hordes. Screamers should always be a prioritized kill above any other zombie, for as long as the player remains 'Hunted' they can continuously summon hordes of zombies roughly every twenty seconds. Therefore, the Screamer should be killed quickly to prevent her from calling more zombies than can be handled.
Special Ability[ | ]
Once a Screamer finds and targets a player they will begin a series of high-pitched shrieks that summon small hordes of zombies to their aid. If they are not killed, they can continuously summon more zombies until the player is eventually overwhelmed. These small hordes can also contain much more dangerous zombie variants such as Zombie Dogs, Spider Zombies, Infected Police Officers, Feral Zombies, and Zombie Bears.
Because of this, killing them as quickly as possible is highly recommended to avoid being swamped by numerous hordes of highly dangerous zombies.
Heat-Seeking[ | ]
Screamers will occasionally spawn near areas containing high 'heat levels' and will immediately begin searching for the source of the activity. If the source is inside of a structure or base they may attempt to break inside in order to investigate.
Like all zombies, Screamers can sense player sounds and smells through walls, which means to avoid potentially being spotted, it's recommended that all activities that generate heat such as using a campfire or forge, should be ceased immediately if a Screamer is heard close by.
Screamers also have the ability to sense heat through the amount of zombie corpses littered around the area. Cleaning up all remains of zombies or dead animals is highly recommended to avoid running into them by surprise.
Combat[ | ]
Screamers are typically slow, and shorter than the average zombie. They should always be immediately dispatched if sighted, otherwise they will begin to summon small hordes. If spotted, they should be approached with caution, as they have no trouble sensing nearby players. An easier method is to pick them off from a distance before they ever get a chance to scream. If stealth is not an option, a recommended method is to use a firearm in an attempt to score a headshot, as they have low health and predictable movement patterns during the day.
Screamers, like every other zombie, have the ability to sprint at night. This can make them a difficult target because of their small size. Traps can also cause them to become crawlers, making them even smaller and harder to find. Because of this, it's imperative to keep track of a Screamer's position at all times.
Screamer zombies also have a low chance of summoning additional Screamer zombies.[1] This creates the danger of numerous, large, never-ending hordes that continuously spawn. This puts pressure on the player to dispatch the Screamers as soon as possible, because both will continuously start spawning hordes.
The amount of zombies the Screamer summons slowly increases as days pass. For example: A Screamer on Day 90 will summon many more dangerous zombies in larger numbers than on any previous day.
The following list is an example of what to expect as time passes:
- From Days 1 to 27, Screamers will summon regular zombies, including Crawlers and Bloated Walkers during the day.
- From Days 28 to 60, Screamers will now summon regular zombies and special zombies, including Feral Zombies, Zombie Bears, Spider Zombies, Zombie Dogs, and Infected Police Officers during the day.
- From Day 60 and onward, Screamers will summon Feral Zombies and Zombie Bears with a much higher probability.
Loot
This container can give one or more of the following group/s and/or items/s as a loot:
Loot Groups[]
These are the Loot Groups that are included in a Loot Container. The chance of an item appearing in any of these groups has been scaled based on the chance of that group appearing in the parent group. A group can also appear more than once if it has been included subsequently by another group, the chances in this case will then reflect all the parent chances. The quality of the items returned will be defined by the loot container quality levels unless it has been specifically defined for the group, in which case it will be listed beside the group.
Notes[ | ]
- Screamers emit two different distinct screams based on the player's concealment. The first scream will indicate the Screamer has merely sensed a player (this scream will not summon zombies) and the second louder scream indicates a player is now being 'hunted' and they will begin summoning small hordes in retaliation.
- If a Screamer is killed without seeing a player, there is a low chance for a second Screamer to spawn and investigate right away.
Trivia[ | ]
- Screamers will not summon Frozen Lumberjacks, even if the player is in or near a Snowy Forest biome.
Bugs[ | ]
- In Singleplayer: spawning more than 1-3+ screamers with heat map and making her spawn their hordes, sometimes after letting her reach the max. horder spawns per screamer(and killing this hordes too), if you die there and select the option to spawn you will get stuck on the loading screen and can't spawn anymore and this message will show up in the console: -ArgumentOutOfRangeException : Argument is out of range. -Parameter name: index. If you don't have a backup, you going to lost all your progress in the game.
- In Multiplayer: not tested yet.
Images[ | ]
References[ | ]
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