Active Matter Distorted: Pursuit, Noise and Escape Checks
Once a Distorted is chasing you, running away can make it teleport ahead. The 0.4.0.163 change applies to an active pursuit; it does not change unaware Distorted. Decide whether you are avoiding detection or already escaping before using advice from an older build.
If it is already chasing you
Expect a possible interception in front of your path rather than assuming distance alone ends the encounter. The developer describes the teleported enemy as exposed and easier to hit; that is an opportunity to react, not a guaranteed kill or safe escape. Health, damage and spawn count were not changed by this pursuit adjustment.
Update 0.4.0.165 moves the interception farther ahead, allowing more reaction time. Read this after the original 0.4.0.163 change: advice based only on the earlier patch misses the follow-up adjustment.
0.4.0.163 pursuit rule and developer explanation (external) ↗.
If you are trying not to wake a group
Use the distinction between an unaware group and an active chase. In 0.4.0.165, bullet impacts make less noise, suppressed shots are less likely to wake nearby groups, and monsters stop reacting to noise and return to deep sleep sooner. A suppressor reduces a detection risk; it does not guarantee silence or end a chase already underway.
Agitated Distorted now animate more visibly. Check their behavior before treating the group as deeply asleep. The patch supplies no universal safe distance, noise threshold or sleep timer.
If you are surrounded or using fire
Do not rely on the initial 0.4.0.163 collision advice alone. The follow-up 0.4.0.165 restores the older collision behavior, making it easier to push past a surrounding group, while explicitly acknowledging that you may still end up inside a monster. Keep room to move; pushing through is not a guaranteed recovery from being trapped.
That follow-up also fixes monsters avoiding Molotov and flamethrower fire: they can pass through it and take damage, while permanent fires such as bonfires remain avoided. In 0.4.0.173, a Molotov or Incendiary Grenade ignites an enemy immediately when its flammable mixture hits. Do not treat all fire sources as the same tool or assume the old ignition delay still applies.
What these checks can and cannot settle
These are published mechanics through 0.4.0.173, not a tested loadout recommendation. They do not establish an optimal weapon, hit count, guaranteed escape route or a fix for every pathing problem. If behavior contradicts the current notes, record the build, raid, enemy state and what happened before the encounter for the game’s support channel.
Choose solo or co-op PvE · Check the gear-loss boundary before risking another fight.