Underground Zone Manager

Underground Areas & Darkness Triggers

Professional tool for creating cfgundergroundtriggers.json configurations with eye accommodation control

Understanding Underground Areas

What are Underground Triggers?

Underground triggers control eye accommodation - how much players can see without artificial light sources (flashlights, chemlights, etc.). This simulates realistic darkness in underground areas, caves, and tunnels.

Outer Triggers

• Purpose: Light switching control
• Eye Accommodation: 1.0 (normal)
• Location: Outside entrances
• Effect: Makes chemlights work during day

Transitional Triggers

• Purpose: Gradual darkness transition
• Eye Accommodation: Variable (0.0-1.0)
• Location: Between outer and inner
• Special: Uses breadcrumbs for smooth change

Inner Triggers

• Purpose: Complete darkness area
• Eye Accommodation: 0.0 (dark)
• Location: Deep underground
• Effect: Constant darkness level

Key Concepts Explained

Eye Accommodation

Controls how much players can see without artificial lighting:

0.0 (Complete Darkness) 1.0 (Normal Visibility)

1.0:Full daylight visibility

0.7:Dim lighting (early transition)

0.5:Low light (mid transition)

0.2:Very dark (late transition)

0.0:Complete darkness

Breadcrumbs System

Breadcrumbs create smooth transitions by:

• Positioning: Along the player's path
• Weighting: Closer breadcrumbs have more influence
• Competing: Multiple breadcrumbs blend their effects
• Raycast: Optional line-of-sight checking

Typical Setup:

Entrance: 1.0 accommodation

Middle: 0.5 accommodation

Deep: 0.0 accommodation

Positioning & Coordinates

Getting Coordinates:

1. Use DayZ Editor or community tools
2. Stand at desired trigger location
3. Note X, Y, Z world coordinates
4. Adjust Y-axis slightly above ground

Size Guidelines:

• Width/Depth: Cover the area completely
• Height: Account for player jumping
• Overlap: Slight overlap between triggers
• Testing: Always test in-game

Step-by-Step Workflow

1 Planning Phase

Map Your Underground Area:

• Identify entrance points
• Map transition zones
• Define deep underground areas
• Plan player movement paths

Sketch Your Layout:

Example Layout:

Outer → Transition → Inner

2 Create Outer Triggers

Purpose: Light switching at entrance areas

Settings:

• Eye Accommodation: 1.0
• Breadcrumbs: None
• Interpolation Speed: 1.0

Placement:

• Just outside entrance
• Cover approach area
• Adjacent to transitional

3 Create Transitional Triggers

Purpose: Gradual darkness transition with breadcrumbs

Main Trigger Settings:

• Eye Accommodation: 0.0
• Must have breadcrumbs
• Covers transition zone

Breadcrumb Strategy:

Near entrance: accommodation 1.0

Middle path: accommodation 0.5-0.7

Near inner: accommodation 0.0-0.2

4 Create Inner Triggers

Purpose: Constant darkness in deep areas

Settings:

• Eye Accommodation: 0.0
• Breadcrumbs: None
• Large size for coverage

Placement:

• Deep underground areas
• After transition zones
• Cover entire dark area

5 Testing & Refinement

In-Game Testing:

• Walk through all paths
• Check transition smoothness
• Test with/without flashlight
• Verify trigger boundaries

Common Adjustments:

• Resize trigger areas
• Adjust breadcrumb positions
• Fine-tune accommodation values
• Add missing transitions

Validation:

• No abrupt darkness changes
• Chemlights work properly
• Ambient sounds trigger
• Multiple entry points work

Advanced Tips & Techniques

Performance Optimization

Minimize Trigger Count:

• Use larger triggers instead of many small ones
• Combine adjacent areas when possible
• Remove unnecessary outer triggers
• Optimize breadcrumb placement

Efficient Breadcrumbs:

• Use minimum needed for smooth transition
• Disable raycast when not necessary
• Set appropriate radius values
• Test with default radius (-1) first

Complex Underground Systems

Multiple Entrances:

When you have multiple entrances to the same underground system:

• Create separate outer triggers for each entrance
• Use overlapping transitional triggers if paths converge
• Ensure consistent inner trigger coverage
• Test all entry/exit combinations

Multilevel Underground:

For underground areas with multiple levels:

• Create separate trigger sets for each level
• Use transitional triggers between levels
• Consider different darkness levels per depth
• Account for vertical movement (stairs, ladders)

Raycast Strategy

When to Use Raycast:

• Enable (1): Around corners and obstacles
• Enable (1): When line-of-sight matters
• Enable (1): Complex geometry areas
• Disable (0): Open areas and simple paths

Raycast Best Practices:

• Raise breadcrumb Y position slightly
• Test from player perspective
• Use sparingly for performance
• Combine with non-raycast breadcrumbs

Interpolation Speed Tuning

Slow (0.1-0.5):

• Very gradual transitions
• Realistic eye adaptation
• Long transition zones
• Immersive experience

Normal (1.0):

• Default DayZ speed
• Balanced transition
• Most common choice
• Works for most scenarios

Fast (2.0+):

• Quick adaptation
• Short transition zones
• Arcade-like feel
• Use with caution

Troubleshooting Common Issues

Darkness Not Working

Symptoms: Players don't experience darkness in underground areas

Possible Causes & Solutions:

• Wrong eye accommodation: Check inner triggers have 0.0 value
• Trigger not covering area: Increase trigger size or check position
• Missing triggers: Ensure complete coverage of underground area
• File not loaded: Verify cfgundergroundtriggers.json is in mission folder
• JSON syntax errors: Use the validation feature in this tool

Abrupt Transitions

Symptoms: Sudden darkness changes instead of smooth transitions

Solutions:

• Add transitional triggers: Create gradual change zones
• Improve breadcrumb placement: Add more breadcrumbs along path
• Check trigger overlap: Ensure triggers connect properly
• Adjust interpolation speed: Lower values for smoother transitions
• Breadcrumb accommodation values: Use gradual steps (1.0 → 0.7 → 0.5 → 0.0)

Chemlights Not Working

Symptoms: Chemlights don't illuminate during daytime in underground areas

Solutions:

• Add outer triggers: Place at all underground entrances
• Check outer trigger settings: Eye accommodation must be 1.0
• Expand outer trigger area: Increase size to cover approach zones
• No breadcrumbs in outer: Outer triggers should have empty breadcrumb arrays

Breadcrumbs Not Working

Symptoms: Transitional triggers not creating smooth darkness changes

Debug Steps:

• Check breadcrumb positions: Ensure they're along player paths
• Verify accommodation values: Use gradual progression
• Test raycast settings: Disable raycast (0) for open areas
• Adjust radius values: Try default (-1) before custom values
• Breadcrumb spacing: Not too close together, not too far apart

Debugging Tools & Techniques

In-Game Testing:

• Walk through all possible paths
• Test during different times of day
• Use admin commands for positioning
• Test with multiple players
• Document any inconsistencies

File Validation:

• Use this tool's validation feature
• Check JSON syntax online
• Verify file placement in mission
• Test with minimal configuration first
• Compare with working examples

Performance Problems

Symptoms: FPS drops, stuttering, or lag near underground areas

Optimization Steps:

• Reduce trigger count: Combine smaller triggers into larger ones
• Minimize breadcrumbs: Use only necessary breadcrumbs
• Disable unnecessary raycast: Only use where needed
• Optimize trigger sizes: Don't make them unnecessarily large
• Remove overlapping triggers: Avoid excessive overlap

Configuration Builder

Trigger Type

Position (X, Y, Z) (World coordinates)

Orientation (Yaw, Pitch, Roll) (Usually 0, 0, 0)

Size (Width, Height, Depth) (Trigger dimensions)

Eye Accommodation (0 = complete darkness, 1 = normal visibility)

1.0

Complete Darkness Normal Visibility

Interpolation Speed (How quickly accommodation changes)

Import Triggers

Import JSON File (Supports multiple formats)

Supported formats:

• Underground triggers JSON: Standard cfgundergroundtriggers.json format
• Steam mod triggers: Download the mod
• Giftbox objects: GiftBox_Large (outer), GiftBox_Medium (transitional), GiftBox_Small (inner)
• MapGroupPos XML: Reads position and rotation from mapgrouppos entries

Example Configurations

Configured Triggers

No triggers configured yet

Use the builder to add your first trigger

JSON Output

Usage Instructions

Save the generated JSON as cfgundergroundtriggers.json in your mission folder

Place Outer triggers just outside underground entrances

Add Transitional triggers in between with breadcrumbs for smooth transitions

Place Inner triggers in deep underground areas for constant darkness

Test in-game and adjust positions/sizes as needed