New Zed Ideas for KF3

[Agent Pickles]

Many players are pointing out that the current zed lineup is getting stale or lagging behind perk powers. This post is meant to consolidate thoughts on which zed concepts/abilities would improve your experience in the KF universe.

Similar posts to this already exist, but usually in the form of "a few things I'd like to see in KF3" or "a new zed and my favorite bean salad recipe". Any information on zed species is often buried in unrelated information to the point where people (or maybe just me) aren't interested in reading the entire post just to find the zed idea. This thread is for consolidation for zeds in KF3 only (ie, either new zeds or tweaks to current zeds that aren't likely to occur in KF2). Don't hesitate to copy/paste or link to other posts but try to make the link to a specific post or quote, rather than an entire thread.

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Likewise, please make each of your ideas a different post in this thread so it is easier for people to scan, search, and share.​

There are other posts dedicated to new weapons, perks, and weeklies. Maybe threads can be dedicated to KF3 mutators, weapon upgrade expansion, and QoL improvements, too.

 

[MBOmnis]

Welp I'm going to paste the suggestions I posted in the thread I created a few days ago.

Several Zeds don't have variants yet, and here are some crazy and potentially stupid suggestions:

A Stalker variant that is permanently invisible, even when attacking. Commandos can reveal them, of course. The only ways to reveal them for other Perks would be: 1. by EMP (like when an EDAR explodes), but it'd be temporary. As soon as the effect clears, she's invisible again. 2. Setting them on fire (once the skin is scorched, she's permanently visible).

A Husk variant that shoots blue flame and has an indestructible fuel tank. The blue flame sticks longer to the point of impact, so you'll have to be aware of it or you might walk into the fire and ignite yourself.

A Bloat variant that is able to spit toxic bile balls at short range (kinda the same range as the Siren starts screaming). Non-AoE and if it hits you, you only get the average screen effect (with the 'bubbles' around the corners of the screen).

A Siren variant that acts as the opposite of the original Siren - Its scream is a shield that blocks regular projectiles. She uses this in more of a support manner rather than only when almost within reach of players.

And to complete the roster where all zeds have at least one variant, there would need to be a Scrake variant... but I honestly can't think of anything. Maybe a "quarter Scrake" but I don't think simply making a weaker variant would be interesting to anyone.

 

[OnionBubs]

And to complete the roster where all zeds have at least one variant, there would need to be a Scrake variant... but I honestly can't think of anything. Maybe a "quarter Scrake" but I don't think simply making a weaker variant would be interesting to anyone.

I'd be amused to see a return of the Scrakes from the very, very early days of Early Access:

• They had far more head HP, as I can recall, though admittedly this was back before everyone's class tweaks and power rebalances (and certainly before Gunslinger and Sharpshooter were brought in)
• Their chainsaw hitboxes were *much* longer
• They ran faster than almost anyone when raged. As I recall only a max Field Medic and Berserker could maintain pace with them.
• Even though they were durable, their A.I. could be exploited with a unique trick--when a player ran behind them, the Scrake would stop to look over its shoulder at the player, then turn, then attack if the player was close enough to the front vision cone after turning. Players would exploit this by having one person slowly circle around their back while the others lit it up.
• They also had a "get off me" spin move that basically one-shotted everyone in range like the Patriarch does so you couldn't just surround the Scrake with two or more players using the above technique.

I suppose some tweaks might be necessary to avoid them being too dumb, but I wouldn't object on principle to having Alpha Scrakes like the above having a chance to spawn in place of the current ones. Maybe give it a different skin color and give it an extended chainsaw with two blades to reflect the increased range?

 

[MBOmnis]

• Even though they were durable, their A.I. could be exploited with a unique trick--when a player ran behind them, the Scrake would stop to look over its shoulder at the player, then turn, then attack if the player was close enough to the front vision cone after turning. Players would exploit this by having one person slowly circle around their back while the others lit it up.

I remember that exploit where one player slowly circles around his back to keep him from moving or attacking anyone. It was so ridiculously cheap lol.
Do you also remember that Scrakes automatically raged when the wave was down to 10 or less zeds? Nowadays it only affects smaller zeds, up to and including Husks. And I think the "zeds remaining" requirement was reduced to 5.
Fun times when a team of randos failed to kill all Scrakes before that "final desperate push" phase of the wave, and suddenly we have 4 full HP Scrakes on full sprint.

Your idea for an Alpha Scrake is interesting. If he keeps the same attack damage values of the regular Scrake, it'd be cool. A Scrake variant that we can't just kite forever.

 

[Agent Pickles]

Hanson​

Beserker Nemesis

A half-baked clone of Hans Volter, Hanson is a mid-tier zed who enters the fight with no weapons in hand. Instead, he uses a small energy shield and his sprinting to close the gap on a player, grab a player (even the players that the Clots can't grab), vampire some health away, and steal the player's weapon. Hanson can fight with one stolen weapon and suck health away from a player with the other, or choose to dual wield with two stolen weapons.

His metal exoskeleton keeps him grounded and immune to EMP/shock damage, his parry ability absorbs melee damage, and his frontal shield makes him very difficult to fight face-to-face, especially when your weapons have been taken away from you. However, he is vulnerable to weapon attacks from the flank or from behind. A player would be wise to attack from those angles at range.

A player can retrieve their stolen weapons from Hanson's corpse.

 

[Agent Pickles]

Elite Husk​

Firebug Nemesis

A Husk variant that shoots blue flame and has an indestructible fuel tank. The blue flame sticks longer to the point of impact, so you'll have to be aware of it or you might walk into the fire and ignite yourself.

This. This is beautiful.

The Elite Husk also wears an asbestos shell that makes him immune to fire and resistant to microwaves. Furthermore, his blue fire can create walls of smoke to obscure player attacks, as well as summon Imps.

 

[Agent Pickles]

Imps​

Tiny zeds that have a variety of tiny attacks. Highly resistant to fire attacks but otherwise easily dispatched. Their poisonous stingers don't do a ton of damage, but do DoT over a long period of time. Their poison might have other negative effects, such as causing hallucinations of zeds that don't actually exist (or make teammates appear as zeds), but your standard syringe or medic dart will neutralize the poison. They can be deadly in numbers.

They might have the following attacks:

1. latch onto players' legs to slow them down and attack with tiny, poisonous stingers that do DoT and affect vision
2. close and weld doors, creating dead ends where there weren't dead ends before
3. occasionally explode when damaged and near a player, similar to their Husk brethren
4. steal dosh and ammo from players
5. steal ammo, weapons, and armor from the ground
6. they prefer to remain visible but will disappear momentarily when injured to help them close the distance on their prey

 

[Agent Pickles]

Imposter (Elite Stalker)​

Unlike the regular stalker, this one prefers to be invisible while holding still, allowing players to run right by her. When out of sight she will shapeshift, making herself visible as a player's teammate, pretending to attack other zeds. She'll then flank and attack with an alarming pounce and powerful series of melee blows. With her disguise broken at that point, she'll turn invisible and escape through a nearby vent or sewer to repeat the process.

If the player is soloing, the Imposter will just stick to invisible hit and run tactics.
If she is last zed standing, she'll prefer a more desperate last stand, rather than continue to hide. With HPs similar to Gorefiends, she won't be impossible to kill, even when she is running to hide.

 

[Agent Pickles]

Suicide Swarm​

Gunslinger & Sharpshooter Nemesis

These tiny zeds can fly out of the smallest of cracks, vents, and holes. They have one goal: to explode on contact. While slow and vulnerable to fire, explosions, most grenades, and large volumes of bullets, they make up for their lack of speed and hit points with large numbers and a small but powerful explosion, making them especially potent against perks with small magazine capacities. They explode like Elite Crawlers, obscuring vision to those in the vicinity. One untouched swarm will take Slingers and Sharps to the brink. Two swarms means certain death.

 

[Agent Pickles]

Slimeball​

Demo Nemesis

The Slimeball looks like a large version of the Abomination's boogerfartthings, but is really many of the boogerfartthings melded into a larger creature. It may not appear so at first, but this spells doom for the Demo and her teammates.

Highly resistant to all explosive damage, the Slimeball greedily absorbs Demo rounds and then flings them back at the Demo and her team, adding a layer of poisonous goo to the impending explosion, creating a storm cloud of poison DOT and obscuring vision over a wide area.

The Slimeball has a large weak spot in its chest but it is best to avoid it. Hitting the weak spot will cause the Slimeball to break apart into several pieces, which can then grow into several new Slimeballs.

The best course of action is to get your Slingers and Sharps to hit the tiny weak spots on the Slimeball's appendages. Without limbs, the Slimeball's core will self-destruct. Alternatively, the Medic's poison can break down the Slimeball's cellular structure without having to aim specifically at the weak spots. Supports are also effective, but both they and the Medic should still avoid the large, central weak spot.

Firebugs, Commandos, and SWATs can play their roles, but are less effective than the above.

Beware! The Slimeball stomps on grenades, absorbing the kinetic energy to regrow lost limbs.

 

[Agent Pickles]

Reptilian Rioters​

Commando and SWAT Nemesis

These Rioters regrow limbs as fast as you shoot them off. Don't bother wasting bullets on kneecapping them. The only way to kill them is with a headshot or shot to the heart. Their beefed up armor makes this more difficult than ever, especially since most bullets will ricochet and potentially hit yourself or teammates.

Reptilian Rioters are susceptible to microwaves and electricity, and frost damage really slows them down, including slowing down their regenerative ability. An explosion will lay them on their ass for a moment and damage their armor, but they'll get back up.

Fire will eventually cook them, and is more effective than bullets, but it may take more ammo than the Firebug may care to spend.

Their Rally will impart their fellow zeds with a similar ability to regrow, so don't expect those headless Clots to swing their arms wildly until they bleed out. Regrowing heads isn't going to happen, but they won't bleed out. Likewise, any zed that you dismember will still come at you.

 

[Agent Pickles]

EDAR Engineers​

In case EDARs aren't annoying enough already, these swift scavengers will steal ammo boxes, armor, broken bits of other EDARs, and weapons from the ground and do the following with the parts they find:

• build a module that makes them invisible
• wear the armor
• weld doors and booby trap it
• disable or trap trader pods, requiring welding before they're usable again
• add a proximity mine to the ammo box and then put it back where he found it
• repair other EDARs
• lob trapper grenades

Timid and vulnerable at first, you'll want to hit these guys as soon as you see them. Give them a chance to "make improvements" and you'll find your environment even more inhospitable. It might even be worth your while to chase them down.

Their weapon of choice is their short-ranged microwave welder, which cooks a player in their armor. The more armor you have, the more DOT to your health that you receive.

 

[Agent Pickles]

Shielded Skrake​

New Boss

Replace the Skrake's left forearm with a tower shield, put a steel helmet on his head, a steel breastplate on his chest and back, steel greaves on his legs, and give him the option to throw his chainsaw and reel it back in with a cable and you've got a new boss, bigger and beefier than your typical Skrake.

Did you shoot his helmet off of his head? Congrats, you've unleashed his ability to roar, a long-ranged sonic cone-shaped attack that hurts and disorients his enemies and neutralizes any projectile in its path. His shield always covers his left flank. Not only does it stop your attacks, but it ricochet thems, potentially damaging friends and foes alike.

This roar also works as a rally for new mobs of Gorefiends and Gorefasts, who now have chainsaw swords and steel greaves of their own.

 

[Agent Pickles]

Consolidating: New thread with zed ideas can be found here.