Yeah I stopped playing already because the people on the SP server are honestly the worst, and unless you have an consistent and active group of friends to either BE those annoying people or defend against them, you're always going to be behind everyone else no matter what. Even then, unless you're able to play like 10 hours every single day you're going to end up losing a lot because the game isn't developed or balanced enough yet to allow for reasonable defense while you're offline. The shitty thing about the game is that lesser equipped people seem to be the targets for end game. Once you have a big base and the best gear there's really nothing else to do but break other people's shit and kill others on sight which is really bad considering most people wont stick around if they can't do anything because a bunch of decked out players are actively roaming the only habitable area of the map specifically to kill them.

Obviously they're still working on the game, and this is something everyone needs to consider and be aware of, but it also highlights the problem with early access games. I got this game because a lot of people were playing it and I heard nothing but good things about how fun it is, aside from the rampant cheaters. Once the cheaters were at least partially thwarted I picked it up to check out the hype, played it for a total of 6 hours and already I'm burnt out. It's likely I'll go back to it the next update or maybe a few months from now when there's more to do and it's balanced better, but for now I can't go on for more than a few minutes before deciding that it's probably best not to do anything because there are already at least 3 high-level groups of players on the server that also kill on sight, so what's the point in going on at all if I'm just going to pussyfoot for 15 minutes trying to decide my move, then come to the same futile conclusion and log out?

Quote from Jeff

unless you have an consistent and active group of friends to either BE those annoying people or defend against them, you're always going to be behind everyone else no matter what.

This sums it up. I wasted 15 hours.

I'll probably go back to the game when things stop being so chaotic, because right now is just a huge mess beng so unbalanced and unfair in many aspects.

I'm a solo on the server and I found that its best to stay hidden and travel light.

Don't store your best stuff when you log off, keep it in your inventory. Only Store stuff you don't mind having taken.

As for resource gathering, avoid French Valley at all costs; stay in dense forested areas.

You don't need a big ass base to survive or shit tons of storage boxes. This is a game of survival and that doesn't mean being the biggest or strongest, its about learning to survive in the environment; meaning high-equipped player killers

I play on a laptop with the shittiest fps in the game, but I survive and thrive. I can't kill people for shit because of it even though I am better equipped, but I can outrun and out dodge.

EDIT:
https://rustmap.net/

Places to avoid;
-Small rad town - Large pop + high player activity
-Factory rad town - High equipped players
-Next Valley - Don't base here, too open

Places for quick resource gathering (never overstay your welcome);
-Forest
-Coast Resource (warning risky)
-Next valley (again do not base)
-Secret Valley

Tips for being hunted by a player;
-Serpentine run
-maneuver around mountains, trees, rocks, and mutated animals*

*They will most likely;
-hit the animals
-stop following
-agro them till they attack
-agro other muts on themselves

Mutated animals can't follow you into buildings, eventually stop following after they can't find a path to you and you can recoup.

next valley has an extremely well geared sniper team in a giant tower in it. danger zone~

Quote from Scarecrow

next valley has an extremely well geared sniper team in a giant tower in it. danger zone~

Giant tower? That must be Stone and Jahk. They are full endgame + admins

Quote from Gaaading

Giant tower? That must be Stone and Jahk. They are full endgame + admins

No, they're at Small Rad. That place he's talking about belongs to Red Dragon I believe

Quote from Gyohdon

belongs to Red Dragon

yeah, that's the one. and another couple of guys. i think they have a [UMAD] clantag now or someshit

Are you referring to the tall ass skyscraper-like tower I saw? Or the one right to the north of the hangers?

Quote from Ashlander

Are you referring to the tall ass skyscraper-like tower I saw? Or the one right to the north of the hangers?

it was probably the skyscraper. it's in next valley, which is east of big rad town. it's a big open area between two mountains, full of bears and wolves and resources.

i don't know who the one north of the hangars belongs to. i know the place but haven't really seen any activity there.

The game itself seems to be a reflection of the human condition, if the human condition could make guns by bashing metal ore long enough.

Quote from Hewitt

The game itself seems to be a reflection of the human condition, if the human condition could make guns by bashing metal ore long enough.

Well actually you can. Basically smithing is bashing heated metal ore into items. Not as quick as in Rust, but essentially the same thing.

I wasn't disagreeing with my own statement, rather I was being sarcastic and the point of which is not the metal smelting but the psychology behind this game's inherent design. Of course, I know its an Open Beta which would explain all the imbalances. But I feel like the creators were attempting to make a game that simulated human progress and they've succeeded with the unexpected consequence of all these griefers and shfgs taking advantage of the PVP rules.

Quote from Hewitt

I wasn't disagreeing with my own statement, rather I was being sarcastic and the point of which is not the metal smelting but the psychology behind this game's inherent design. Of course, I know its an Open Beta which would explain all the imbalances. But I feel like the creators were attempting to make a game that simulated human progress and they've succeeded with the unexpected consequence of all these griefers and shfgs taking advantage of the PVP rules.

As the game expands it will be a lot more difficult for them as the rest of the map is filled in (currently its an empty wasteland).

By human progress, I mean the notion that "the strong overpowers the weak" and not necessarily the whole theme on expansion. There has to be a way to regulate this because right now its just turning into too much like real life. This is why the endgame just appears to be picking on noobs instead of everyone else.

Quote from Hewitt

By human progress, I mean the notion that "the strong overpowers the weak" and not necessarily the whole theme on expansion. There has to be a way to regulate this because right now its just turning into too much like real life. This is why the endgame just appears to be picking on noobs instead of everyone else.

Very true. Counter point on the "picking on noobs" is that they are all the endgamers can find. Most other players have discovered ways to avoid the endgamers. They have adapted to survive. I've been on PvE servers, no murder at all, and gotten full endgame. After a while it just got boring. Perhaps if there was a tutorial server then the newer players will be more prepared for actually PvP and choose to go through that rather than be thrown into it.