just skip this

[Daz]

it is 6 30 am, EST - the mud has about 20 people online, possibly 10-25% of them are afk. the mud is as silent as the world outside my window, but my insomnia leaves me few other things to do.

some time back, i was fervently addicted to the MMORPG 'Dark Age of Camelot' - i eventually tired of it, and came back to sojourn, but as i twibble my thumbs in boredom.

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR><font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">You complete your spell...
A dock master slumps to the ground.
You make a slight gesture and a dock master is slowly squeezed into a bloody pul
p!
A dock master is dead! R.I.P.
A dock master slumps to the ground.
You receive your share of experience.
Your blood freezes as you hear the rattling death cry of a dock master</font><HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

(another innocent victim)

i recall some of the things that i did for fun. i am sure you are all going to tell me of the many wonderful things there are to solo and quest and explore, but i respond with my usual tirade - there isn't. i, personally, can not solo ribcage. blame the inequities of my class, or my shortcomings as a player, but i can not do it. the fact is, these things are not something anyone can do. RP? with what? a charmed beagle? my doctor told me to stop, but thanks. Explore? you must mean go places that aren't safe to go and would result in my certain demise. Again, I'll pass.

DAoC had something called crafting, and i assure you - i never used a single piece of that stuff. i had elite drops thank you very much. what crafting provided for me was a way to spend my time, interacting in the mud, in a sort of mindless way, to create items that i could either use or sell for a nifty return.

This is the kind of time sink that at least keeps people here. look at diablo 2 - if the words 'hell cows! join abc1///1' make you shiver - then you know what i mean about how adding repetitive random elements to a game can keep players there.

can i have another way to gain experience, please? i realize that you are worried about people using triggers to idle it, but there are ways around that.

create a massive database of results/responses/possibilities - use d2's style of prefix - root - suffix, and build an even larger database of possibilities.

An elvish merchant tells you, 'Hey Kwirl! Good to see you back! I have another task for you, if you are interested in one?'

An elvish merchant tells you, 'Great! I have been looking everywhere for a polished obsidian hourglass, but I can't get my hands on one! Maybe you could talk to RandomQuestMobB in Calimport, he deals in such items, and a ship has recently arrived that may have some merchandise for me.'

When this happens, the pre-existing mob in calimport is then loaded with a quest program, that is activated when *I, the player who started it* talks to him.

Such an interaction could continue to a random number of levels, or give players an 'opt-out' to basically cash in and quit at some point.

Rewards? Could be tons of things. Maybe a small amount of platinum based on difficulty of quest, and how much time the player spent working on it. Perhaps even a random item could be generated, again from a huge pre-root-suf database.

This way, if a little player who is level 26, and having problems finding groups or money to buy equipment - could trigger one of these quests, and after a couple of hours maybe walk away with a nice reward, suitable for his class. Give the items random stats possibly, example - Johnny, a 24th level ranger spends 3 and a half hours running around the mud questing. He gains experience in interacting with the mud, as well as learning how to get around, and possibly discovering new things. The database throws the variables into a bowl, stirs it up with some randomness, and out pops lets say a bow, 'An exquisite carved pinewood bow' that is +2 dam and +4 dex. Give it some funky ansii and bam - Johnny, who couldn't find a group - has just turned 3 hours of his own time into a tangible reward, something he earned, and becomes a part of his character. In addition, it may have a somewhat unique element, because another hundred rangers could do the same, and end up with ultimately different bows, if in stat or name or description.

These items are hardly gamebreakers, but they DO allow players, particularly new players, a chance to take a 'hand up' and not a 'hand out' as the old welfare saying goes.

I don't know if I am making sense here, but I will try to clarify and reduce my own thoughts later on.

Ramble out.

[This message has been edited by Daz (edited 01-30-2003).]

[Ragorn]

You've got some good ideas here. I've played muds with random quest themes, and even duris recently implemented a rather limited random-mob-spawned quest system. Would it work here? I dunno. It's a major project that would require code overhauling before the massive balance and anti-triggering testing phases. In practice, I think this would end up being either a superb system that sees a rather limited implementation followed by removal (like Trade), or a system that goes into the game half-finished and never sees completion (like Justice).

------------------
- Ragorn
Rondandal tells you 'I take it your goal is to clash?'

[Silsaterur]

My employer has seen your ideas, and thinks that they would make an excellent addition to an already outstanding game. DREAM ON!


------------------
Adilmir tells you 'are you a Mumavore?'
Muma OOC: 'haha i just stuck my tongue out at the moniter'
Muma OOC: 'and yea i was sticking it out at you EV'

[Yadir]

I agree that ideas like this would add to significantly to the mud. I made some similar suggestions here:

http://www.sojourn3.org/ubb/Forum2/HTML/000005.html

I hope that some of them are still in the works.

Yadir

[thanuk]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR><font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by Daz:
<B> it is 6 30 am, EST - the mud has about 20 people online, possibly 10-25% of them are afk. the mud is as silent as the world outside my window, but my insomnia leaves me few other things to do.

some time back, i was fervently addicted to the MMORPG 'Dark Age of Camelot' - i eventually tired of it, and came back to sojourn, but as i twibble my thumbs in boredom.

(another innocent victim)

i recall some of the things that i did for fun. i am sure you are all going to tell me of the many wonderful things there are to solo and quest and explore, but i respond with my usual tirade - there isn't. i, personally, can not solo ribcage. blame the inequities of my class, or my shortcomings as a player, but i can not do it. the fact is, these things are not something anyone can do. RP? with what? a charmed beagle? my doctor told me to stop, but thanks. Explore? you must mean go places that aren't safe to go and would result in my certain demise. Again, I'll pass.
[This message has been edited by Daz (edited 01-30-2003).]</B></font><HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
Your a level 46 enchanter with dragonscales. There's plenty for you to solo, regardless of the ribcage. Your suggestion is nice and i get it, but
#1 Ragorn hit it on the head, and

#2 It goes against the whole basis of the mud, which is grouping.

Go solo stuff u wuss.


------------------
Thanuk Pantherclaw

Gargauth responds to your petition with 'whats your point, we hate you'

[Daz]

your right thanuk. the mud is ALL about grouping.

which is what makes it so frigging bad when i can't.

------------------
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
[46 Enchanter ] Kwirl }-BootLicker-{ Shades of Twilight (Human)
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

[Daz]

and my soloing ability would be much better if i could find a decent stock of potions - even cure critical. in a mud based on magic, it sure is damn hard to get a heal.

------------------
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
[46 Enchanter ] Kwirl }-BootLicker-{ Shades of Twilight (Human)
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

[thanuk]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR><font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by Daz:
<B>and my soloing ability would be much better if i could find a decent stock of potions - even cure critical. in a mud based on magic, it sure is damn hard to get a heal.

</B></font><HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Try running away before you get it, like, as soon as you finish casting, or right after blur wears off.


------------------
Thanuk Pantherclaw

Gargauth responds to your petition with 'whats your point, we hate you'

[Ashiwi]

I can think of one triple cure crit potion in the game right now that rarely ever gets picked up. I keep scolding myself for not getting it so I won't waste my heals, but then I get busy on something else and forget it. They're out there, you just have to invest the time and effort into finding them.

[Iktar]

if u want to be able to solo when u can't group. roll a shaman or elementalist. u kno wut u got into when u rolled chanter.

plus, there's crit potions u can get every pop. if not, buy ton of vit potion and mem dispel magic. hehe

[moritheil]

most vit pots were removed.