Scout Leading Guide

Being a successful scout leader is no big deal, but it usually follows a procedure that can be considered as "unwritten law of scout leading".

The most important part is to know the Initial Scout Guide, if you want to survive the wastes. You should have joined more than a few scouts with more experienced players, which gives you some fast cash and experience. It also lets you see some of the tactics they use and familiarizes you with the procedures common to all scouts. Make sure that you have the time to lead the scout and don't forget to account for a possible return encounter after the main event.

Form a squad

To start a scout you need - of course - a scout squad. You can form new squad on the website under "Squads". After clicking "squads" from the site, you will see "Create squad in (town)" as well as a list of squads of other players that you are a member of. Choose the "Create squad" in the town you wish to scout from, try to make the squad name easy to remember.

Dark-Wind players are a creative crowd so the common password for scout squads is "1234".

After setting your password, the screen will change to show the original squad page with your newly activated squad. Click your squad and click the "join" button. As the owner you STILL have to join the squad but need not add the password. Once you have joined the squad, you can add your combat vehicles. (Make sure you have an engine, guns, ammo, tires, gunners and a driver before adding the car to your squad) In short, double check EVERYTHING! Even the Veterans have gone out scouting without one or more of the above mentioned necessities because they were in a hurry!!

Once you have vehicles in the squad you can exit the web-site and go back to the client/game-generator.

Once back in the client, look above the list of players. Look for "My scouting squad". Click my scouting squad, you'll notice your new squad in the upper left. Pick the squad that you just formed. NOW you can ask others to join your squad and see their added vehicles in your squad.

One of the ways to switch around to the webpage and the lobby is alt-tab. use whichever method you find the easiest.

The 'My Scouting Squad' Button

Try using the My Scouting Squad button to set up the scout. It can get people to the scout page quicker,and tell you who is in and who is ready.

Announce the scout in Chat

State the name of your squad, the password, and the town it takes place in. If you want to go after traders rather than pirates, mention it, 'cos not everybody wants to mess up his reputation by hunting traders.

Remember a scout character

If you don't put a scout character in ask the others to bring a scout or doom may come over your squad.

Wait 'til everybody is ready

"IN AND READY" is the most common reply from other players in your squad who have double checked their set ups and are ready for the scout.

As players join......... don't start the scout before you get a ready from every joined player! Players fiddle with their car/character setups and it can bring hell (and a few enemies) if you start the scout when some players haven't finished their setup.

If the players joined by clicking on your name in the lower left and then selecting Scouting Squad, you'll notice that in the upper left their name will change color to white. That means that they are ready and have clicked the ready button. Not all players join using this method. Simply ask the players to join this way, or if they still do not, just ask if they are ready.

Start the Scout

You start the scout by pressing the web-page button in the upper-left. Your default browser will open or a new tab will open in the web browser you already have open. You'll see the main page displayed as your scouting squad.

Select your Primary Target

• Intercept weaker pirates (It's not guaranteed you'll get weaker pirates, but that's what you're going for)
• Intercept NPC traders
• Intercept player gangs or any other hunt-able NPC gangs. The higher the NPC gang's fame the harder they will be.

Miles you Wish to Scout

Remember you cannot go further than half the distance the whole squad has fuel for. The further you go, the better you will train your scout and the easier the NPCs will be. NPCs like to hang around the towns and close to their supplies. Further out, NPCs are most likely traveling between towns. Also, the further you go the longer it will take to return. Getting a return encounter does not increase with distance, so the chance is still the same regardless. Regardless of how much fuel you have, the maximum distance you can go on a scout is 50 miles. The default is 25 miles.

Scout Direction

From Somerset: Elmsfield is easier than Gateway Truck Stop. You can also scout towards any camps that you are member of. This is often used to scout north of Somerset.

From Elmsfield: Somerset is easier than Gateway Truck Stop. You can also scout towards any camps that you are member of.

From Gateway Truck Stop: Somerset is easier than Elmsfield and Badlands Truck Stop. Elmsfield is easier than Badlands Truck Stop. Scouting towards Badlands Truck Stop is the hardest. You can also scout towards any camps that you are member of.

From Badlands Truck Stop: Gateway Truck Stop is the easiest. All other directions are more difficult.

All of the southern towns have equal difficulty. The higher the NPC gangs fame, the harder they will be.

The Event Starts

You have to wait for the server to start your scout event.

You have until the time Dexter's head appears, with an audible prompt, to make any changes to the scout, or 'pull it back' by going to the web-page with your scout squad, and using the Stop Scouting Outside Town button. You may want to do this if someone asks to join the scout that didn't do it before you selected to scout outside town. They cannot join until you stop the scout. After they join and signify they are ready, you can then begin the process to Start the Scout again.

After Dexter's head appears you cannot stop the scout. If anyone wishes to join they will not be able to. The best way to tell them they cannot join is to say the server already started. This is better than just saying no.

There will be a box that pops up in a few minutes to allow you to play the scout event. You can close this box but to then play the event you will have to select the Live Events tab in the center of the lobby and pick your event.

When the event starts nobody awaits that the leader lays down the tactic so there's no problem to ask for a plan. Most experienced players know what to do, anyway. Also check the enemies setup in the event window. Pickups often mean Rocket launchers and they can hurt. Prime targets!

After-show and travel processing

Looting commences as usual - everybody gets what he can grab if nothing else was decided. After an event server has closed you have to process the scout squad on your squad page, because it might be possible that you get a return encounter. Also, nobody will get home when you don't finish the travel.

If there's no return encounter, announce that to your joiners so everybody knows that they are "dismissed", or if there is a return encounter they'll know to buckle down for a fight (or retreat) for their lives. None of you are likely to survive a return encounter if you start the encounter while some people are AFK.

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