Interacting with the Map

[trollson]

I've suggested some of the following in response to other threads, but I thought it is worth pulling them together into their own thread.

Interacting with the Maps

The maps are littered with details -- why can't we make more use of them? New players expect things to work similar to real life; eat the plate of food if you are hungry, put something in the set of draws, read the newspaper...

At the moment, the majority of the static objects on the map are inert; you cannot interact with, or make use of them. They are just obstacles to walk around, a painted backdrop to the game.

 

Shouldn't we find ways to make more use of these? Even mundane uses should give am increased sense of reality to the world.

 

Current Interactions

 

For reference, the object interactions which currently exist include:

• harvesting resources.
  
• lighting campfires ('use with wood, campfire', 'use with fire essence, campfire').
  
• cooking raw meat on lit camp fires ('use with raw meat, campfire').
  
• using entrances.
  

Lighting campfires is a more complicated behaviour than those considered here; it includes state changes, memory, and timed behaviour.

 

Suggestions here will be limited to 'use' and 'use with', and whatever data is already available. The effects of the interaction will be determined from the object type, only if no other interaction takes precedent (for example, scenario scripting).

 

Using Food

If a new player sees a plate of food, and they are hungry, they'll try to eat it. And why not? Its the obvious action to try, and a frustration when nothing happens.

Items which represent food, but are not harvestable, could be 'used' and eaten directly. This includes all those meals layed out in taverns, and food items which are not harvestable (fish), and these may have different values and cooldown times.

If the cooldown on a prepared meal was less than on, say, fruit, then people may prefer to sit in taverns and work, rather than at storage or in orchards. There would be a trade off between carrying ingredients to the taverns, and the time saved with a reduced cooldown. If balanced correctly it could see the taverns populated more, and the storage areas less crowded.

 

Using Containers

The map has a lot of container objects; chests, crates, drawns, boxes. Put something in a box or chest, retrieve it later (if its still there!). This only applies to containers on non-walkable locations!

I think that this is feasible now that hyperspace bags have been introduced, and making some assumptions about there implementation.

 

I am assuming that each location on each map now has storage allocated for a hyperspace bag (hbag). But not all locations are 'walkable', meaning a lot of these potential hbags would never get used.

[2007-01-09] Reviewing this:

Even if the implementation does not preallocate space in this way, this does not prevent the hbag storage mechanism being re-used for the contents of containers; just that these now consume more system resources. As we will discuss later in this thread, having some storage at all locations on a map allows for local state information which can be of great benefit to the game.

So, if a container-type object is located on a non-walkable location, let that object be a blind access to the hbag, or rather use the storage assigned for the hbag to represent the container. All containers at the same location share the same hbag.

[2006-10-12] Reviewing this:

Would it be so terrible if containers on walkable locations shared the same storage space as a potential hbag at that location? When you make the hbag, you know about the container, and the hbag still provides more conventient access to the contents. Others could still reach into the container ('use' it) without having to stand on it. This is a more consistent use of containers, which perhaps should take precidence over the hbag 'story' (interacting with the world you are inhabiting should take precedence over extramural?).

'Use' a container to take out items: If a character 'uses' a container, they take out a number of the top item in that container (highest occuplied slot). They cannot see what is in the container beforehand, and cannot choose what to remove if multiple slots are occupied. They must also be standing within normal (harvest) range of the container.

 

'Use with' a contain to place items inside: If a character 'use with' (a quantity of) an item from their inventory on a container, they put their selection into the contain if there is available slots. If the container already held items of that type, they are added to the existing slot as normal -- so a subsequent 'use' may not return the last items placed in the container.

 

Comparison to bags and hbags:

• You cannot prevent others accessing the container. Bags and hbags can be 'sat on' to prevent others accessing them; but you only need to be within range (1.5m?) of a container to access it. Blocking access to the contain may be considered resource blocking.
  
• Containers are accessed blindly: you cannot see in advance what is in a container, or how much of something is within. You cannot choose what to withdraw.
  
• Multiple access: Several people can use the same container at the same time, without the "bag dance". So it is a trade off between the blind container or safer guardable bag.
  
• No keys needed: Hbags require keys, containers don't. But a container is an obvious feature on the map, while hbags are hidden.
  

Applications and Effects:

• Treasure hunts: While the same can be applied with hbags, the cost of the keys makes them less feasible unless the stakes are high.
  
• Secret stashes: For areas without easy access to storage, stash a supply in an out of the way nook. Or if hunting, stash your collection of bones or furs in the hunter's hut in the forest, and take to storage later.
  
• Roleplaying: Call a place home.
  

The Rumor Mill, Papers, Notes, and Newspapers

Look at a newspaper and you'd expect to be reading its contents, to get at least snippets of information.

This part does require a new feature added to the game -- the Rumor Mill. I won't go into its detail here, sufficient to say what we require of it:

• A rumor is a short message.
  
• New rumors can be added in.
  
• Means to retrieve a rumor by some index in a finite range, and get the same rumor returned over some time period.
  
• There are multiple lists of rumors, by geographic area or other category.
  
• Rumors migrate between lists.
  

Look at a Newspaper returns a rumor: Looking at ('look at') a newspaper should respond with a rumor. If newspapers are daily or weekly, then looking at the same newspaper in the same day or week must give the same rumor.

Each object on a map has its own unique number. The number of the newspaper object can be coverted into a rumor index (newspaper % number of rumors), and looked up in the daily/weekly rumor list for that continent.

Looking at a note paper returns a rumor: This is the same as looking at a newspaper. The only difference is that papers need not be consistent over any time period. The reason being the next point...

 

Using Ink & Quill on note paper to add a rumor: Requires a new consumable item; the ink & quill. Used on a piece of paper write a message, which is added to the corresponding rumor list (replacing any rumor already at that index). The next line the character types in local chat becomes the rumor. Look at the paper now and the new rumor is returned.

Note: This does not mean that the previous rumor on that paper is lost, it may be moved to another rumor list.

Other Rumor sources, causes, and notes:

• Bartenders may offer a rumor at random when someone buys a drink from them.
  
• Statements may be 'plucked from the air' (from local chat) and turned into rumor (compared to the amount of local chat, the chances should be slim).
  
• Rumors can be weighted based on content, to determine if they are kept, migrate up to a more perminant list, or are discarded. This can be done with word statistics (stemmed or unstemmed).
  
• Mods can insert rumors into any list for scenario purposes.
  

Miscellaneous Interactions

 

Washing Dirty Vials in the Fountain: Arising from a previous thread, if features such as fountains represent sources of clean water, then 'use with' a dirty item on a fountain creates a clean item. Similar interaction to cooking meat, transforms the 'use with'ed item to another form. (We don't have dirty items in the game, other than some players, but this is an example of the type of interaction which would work).

Get the idea? I'm not looking for things that give people advantages in the game, but simple interactions (or not so simple) which give the feeling of involvement in the objects of the world.

Discuss...

 

 

See Also:

• "Using Map Objects" (2008-01-18)
  

Edited February 14, 2008 by trollson

[0ctane]

The Rumor Mill, Papers, Notes, and Newspapers

Look at a newspaper and you'd expect to be reading its contents, to get at least snippets of information.

There is a lot in Trollson's post, but I am only going to comment on the newspaper. I find this idea very appealing, especially with the imminent invasion notification system. Newspapers could reveal the construction/maintenance/repair status of the invasion sensors. The public would have to read the news rather than expect global moderator messages regarding the system's status. Contests and wanted adds could also be in the paper.

[Roja]

you forgot books

[trollson]

0ctane: I dont think that newspapers would be a good way to convey an invasion alert, it wouldn't map well to the rumor mill, and you'd have to hope that somebody reads the right paper at the right time!

 

Rumors could be used to seed very advanced warnings of things happening. So well before a planned invasion, a rumor such as "orcs where seen scouting Desert Pine" could be fed into the system. But its up to chance that characters read the right newspaper.

 

you forgot books

Quite right, let me correct that oversight now:

 

Look At Books

 

Books are not part of the "Rumor Mill", since their contents should not vary over time. However a similar system could be used to determine their contents from a fixed library. This being presented using the "open book" dialog (which doesnt seem to be used enough! Is it still there?).

 

The contents of the book are determined by the type of book (what it looks like), the geographic area (so local information is better represented), and the book object ID. The first two determine a list of contents, and the object ID is used to index into that list.

So the "History of Serdia" is usually found as a red book, and rarely found on Irilion

.

This library could store all the background information for the world, its history, myths, and legends. So a large part of this library has already been written.

Actually, this is could be a rather nice feature

Don't forget that if the book is mentioned in a map definition file, then that takes precedence.

 

The above means that every book in the game world becomes readable. If this causes too great an increase in server load, then it may be worthwhile implementing a seperate HTML server for in-game information; the game server sends a URL to the client, which pulls the book content from the HTML server (this also allows the client to request localised form?).

Also:

New recipes could be added to the library, and would appear in books throughout the land. So, you don't tell anyone about an update, but quietly add it to the library, and it appears somewhere in a book. People would have to look around and read to find the new information.

Edited September 10, 2006 by trollson

[Crimson]

man... u type so much stuff lol in every post u make, anyways the interactive part seems pretty nice.. but the bad thing is.. we dont really have animations lol to sit down and read a newspaper, i mean jsut look at harvesting we sit there u dont see us picking up lupines....so it would prob be just in ur screen and no one else can see ur reading the news paper

[Earl]

I would like to see cauldrons used.

 

Use with Sunflower, Cauldron

Use with Wine, Cauldron

 

When done several times, say 10, a particle effect appears at the cauldron brim.

 

Use with Vial, cauldron

 

And the vial changes to a minor healing potion. Enough for 10 uses.

 

Would be a great addition to the beam. Maybe this could be combined with a light fire sequence so the potion isn't done until after the the potion has brewed.

[Zaer]

great ideas

[trollson]

Crimson -- We don't have animations for far more important actions than those mentioned here, and they really don't need them.

 

Earl -- Cauldron idea for potion making is good, it fits in with Roja's plans to use static objects for skills, but maybe beyond the scope of what I was after here (more trivial interactions and effects).

 

One thing that struck me thinking about the cauldron idea, is that this would be another use for the unusable hbag under their (non-walkable) location. This storage could be used to hold the ingredients, and then the resultant brew (retrieved by 'use with' empty vial). It means that anyone could add ingredients to the cauldron, before the brewer starts the process!

 

There is a more general principle here, in using the unusable hbag under a fixed tool to store ingredients and resultants of using that tool. For example, the campfires could use mechanism to store the wood put on them.

All this assumes that hbags have been implemented the way I described above...

 

[2007-01-09] Reviewing this:

See also the

"Virtual Items"

thread on how ingredients can be 'mixed' by a character, to create a single virtual item which can then be 'used with' the static object to produce the finished goods. This bypasses the need to accumulate ingredients in a static device, although the re-use of hbag storage can achieve this in a more interesting way.

Edited February 14, 2008 by trollson

[trollson]

Additional Bits'n'pieces II:

 

Restricted Containers

Some objects act as containers, but only for specific types of item.

 

Only items of that type may be put in ('use with') or taken out ('use'). Special items may still be placed inside for their effects.

 

If the restricted container shares the same location as a container with different restrictions, then they share the same 'hbag' storage allocation. The restriction must be a filter on access through that object, not on the actual contents.

 

Example:

• A set-of-books (single object representing a group of books) could be a container for books only. "Using" a book may reveal interesting information, while using a set-of-books retrieves a stored book item, if any. Alternatively, using a bookself may have the same behaviour, but the set of books ensures that it at least appears like there are books there.
  

Harvestable Plants as Restricted Containers

This would require a major overhaul of the game, so I am only suggesting it as a though-provoker.

If a harvestable plant sits on a non-walkable tile, and has sole access to the unused hbag storage beneath, then this 'container' could hold all the available crop of that plant, which is extracted by harvesting until depleted.

 

At some period (daily?), plants add new crop into their bags. The amount added is determined from the following factors:

• The more crop is still in the bag, the more is added; the plant has not been abused by harvesters.
  
• The more plants are over the bag (objects), the more the crop increases. Different plants can use the same location (max of 9 or 10 types).
  
• There is an absolute upper limit on the quantity, which is approached exponentially (never reached). Fastest growth is when the crop is about half of its maximum.
  
• Fertiliser (new item) 'used' on the plant goes in the bag. Fertiliser is gradually consumed and boosts crop growth.
  
• Seasonal effects could be included in crop growth rates.
  

So heavily harvested sites become depleted, forcing the locusts to search wider afield. Flower shops may actually sell something back to the locals, rather than endlessly buying. A similar approach could be used with mineral resources as well.

Special items may be placed at these locations, and are triggered when the plant is harvested.

Yes, I know this won't work at the moment, because a lot of harvestable plants are not on non-walkable tiles. But keep it in mind. There is a lot you can use unused hbag storage for (if it exists).

Edited February 14, 2008 by trollson

[GarfieldClowntje]

Trollson, do you have an ingame statue allready? You deserve one!

 

(When we click 'use' on that statue it will result in the endless flow of words, linked from forums )

 

Now serious, I REALLY like this entire thread, everything in it may be implemented immediate if it is up to me (it isn't so I have to be patience when or if it comes ingame)

 

Now about the books, every book in your proposal will become readable, so you need a lot of stories.

 

Let the same colour books next to eachother be the same books (multiple editions) and let the different coloured, or different placed books be different books.

 

Per library you can have something like:

 

* info/history about that map

* info about flora/fauna/monsters of that map

* info about surrounding maps and relations between them

* history of that continent (in every library of that continent)

* info about all the different creatures found on that continent (also in every lib of that continent)

* book about gods and their relations (can be on both continents)

* book about the calendar (also on both continents)

 

Now you have 7 subjects for books for every single library and all it needs is a writer to fill them

I am sure there can be even more subjects for books like:

 

* 'The promised land' or 'The forgotten land' - found on C1 where it rumours about C2

 

 

But Trollson ... you rock!

 

GarfieldClown

[Terena]

I love these ideas! I've often thought that its such a shame that we have all these interesting and great looking things in game, yet few of them actually do anything.

 

I have a little idea of my own which adds on to yours. The newspapers. Currently there are 2 EL newspapers in the works, wouldn't it be great if clicking on a newspaper retrieved a random story from either of them? Or even at the very least launched a browser window with the paper's website. Since one of the papers is meant to be a roleplaying one, and the other is not, which one is shown could be decided with the humour on/off (humour on usually allows comments which break the RP, so the non-RP paper would be shown, and vice versa).

[Pyewacket]

If i may suggest an amendment to your eating direct from food laid out at a tavern idea? I would recommend that the food be "usable" in that fashion only IF the player is carrying gc, and a set amount is deducted from the players gc in inventory each time the food is used in this fashion. That way you CAN get better eating times to circumvent cooldown effects BUT its gonna cost you extra....

 

Using feasting pt value of 12gc, you could determine costs of food at a table as thus:-

 

Vegetables 4gc (15 foodbar points) + 1gc (service charge)

fruits 6gc (20 foodbar points) + 1gc (service charge)

Cooked meat 7gc (25 foodbar points) + 1gc (service charge)

 

This means to fill up from zero foodbar you would be spending MORE gc than buying a feasting potion from mira on any one foodtype but the additional cost offsets the fact you have freed your emu from carrying that food.

 

A good way to interact with the surroundings AND an additional money sink. Plus the taverns then become a social focal point in teh game, as they are meant to be.

 

- PYE

Edited September 23, 2006 by Pyewacket

[GarfieldClowntje]

If i may suggest an amendment to your eating direct from food laid out at a tavern idea? I would recommend that the food be "usable" in that fashion only IF the player is carrying gc, and a set amount is deducted from the players gc in inventory each time the food is used in this fashion. That way you CAN get better eating times to circumvent cooldown effects BUT its gonna cost you extra....

 

Using feasting pt value of 12gc, you could determine costs of food at a table as thus:-

 

Vegetables 4gc (15 foodbar points) + 1gc (service charge)

fruits 6gc (20 foodbar points) + 1gc (service charge)

Cooked meat 7gc (25 foodbar points) + 1gc (service charge)

 

This means to fill up from zero foodbar you would be spending MORE gc than buying a feasting potion from mira on any one foodtype but the additional cost offsets the fact you have freed your emu from carrying that food.

 

A good way to interact with the surroundings AND an additional money sink. Plus the taverns then become a social focal point in teh game, as they are meant to be.

 

- PYE

 

very good solution! costs money on the one hand - saves EMU on the other

 

very good addition to the original idea

[trollson]

On using and paying for meals:

 

Prepared meals are not only available in taverns, but can be found elsewhere as well (for example, the tower in Isle Prima and some houses). Is it acceptable that all such meals incur a charge [3]?

 

To make implementation as simple as possible, the default effect of using any object needs to be based solely on its type [1] (eg, the filename of the model); thus all objects, everywhere, are usable as a result of a generic code change [2].

 

If the default action for using a meal includes a charge, this would also be the case in houses, picnics, and elsewhere; it cannot be confined to just taverns, unless additional area information is provided. Such additional information is perfectly feasible, and could be added to the map def files, but moves beyond just the generic code changes I was considering.

 

So is it acceptable for all prepared food, not just in taverns, to incur a charge in exchange for its use?

 

[1] need to check whether meals-on-plates are single models or made from several seperate objects.

[2] still permitting overriding behaviour to be defined at some other level, such as by map def files or quest scripts.

[3] while we can always make up some excuse why the picnic meal is charging you, it is important to keep a realistic rational and avoid overstretching the ingame logic and consistency. This is especially the case with fantasy settings.

Edited September 25, 2006 by trollson

[Pyewacket]

imo the charge should stand regardless of locale, if you are eating from someones plate in IP tower you SHOULD be paying for it.

 

saves worrying about map def files and relies on global usage of the generic code then. All for one etc etc

[trollson]

Okay, the default behaviour is to charge for eating meals, I can live with that. Non-default behaviour can be defined through area codes in DEF files at a later stage.

 

In terms of artisans moving from storage to taverns then, we have pros:

• ready supply of food (vs. sitting in an orchard or stocking feasting potions in storage).
  
• better food value to cooldown on prepared meals (vs. feasting potions).
  

And cons:

• transporting materials (vs. mixing at storage or at a resource site).
  
• cost of the food (vs. feasting potions).
  

If these are balanced right we can get taverns to be as attractive a place to sit'n'mix as storage or some resource sites.

 

The "social centre" aspect of taverns could also benefit from:

• Music and Bards.
  
• Non-lethal brawls.
  
• Rumor mongering barkeeps -- Buy a drink from a barkeeper and s/he'll tell you a rumor from the rumor mill (above).
  

Edited February 14, 2008 by trollson

[Pyewacket]

hmm one aspect of taverns becoming mixing hotspots is the standard traffic control issues regarding no summons in populated areas.

 

I cant think of anywhere offhand that this might affect but no doubt there may be one or two spots with outside food areas that would need monitoring/looking into, particularly on c2 (since to my recollection most of the c1 spots with food on tables etc are all indoors)

[trollson]

Consequences and Raids

containers of loot attract attention

Consider the following train of thought:

• There is little point in raiding an enemy's guild map; even if you overcome any guardbot, you'd just find an empty map - no loot to pillage.
  
• Usable containers allow a Guild to store goods on their guild map [1].
  
• Guild maps then contain loot, and it become worthwhile targets for raiding.
  

This is an interesting prospect; whether it is desirable depends on which side of the raid you are. Meaningful raids could be a fun addition to the game, provided some checks can be maintained.

 

This does require guilds to make use of containers to store assets rather than somebody's storage. Why would they do this? What advantages would it have, or could be given to encourage it as an alternative?

 

So why use containers instead of storage?

• Stockpile for artisans accessible to all members -- ingredients and finished goods.
  
• Non-storable items can be stockpiled -- food and wine for that big party.
  
• Shared items remain available to all -- the Guild's MM cloak in the wardrobe.
  
• More convenient and less populated location than public storage?
  

Encourage containers over storage?

• Some valuable items could be designated as non-storable in future.
  

Future points and extensions:

• More ways are needed to defend guild maps than a guardian/guard bot.
  • event triggered spawns or auto-summons -- low server overhead?
    

  [*]Checks and balances to stop peaceful guilds from being overrun by PK-heavy guilds on a daily basis.

  [*]If a guardbot is killed, the map could become PK for some period (one hour?).

  [*]Something based on instance maps to provide cheap generic guild halls/castles for poorer guilds. Can't combine hbag storage and instance maps!?

  [*]Checks against raids when none or few of the target guild's members are online!

[1] They can already use hyperspace bags to do this. Anything using containers can be done with the hbags, except less RPG-ish/atmospheric.

Edited October 2, 2006 by trollson

[trollson]

Meals on Plates are not individual items

Finally checked while playing with the map editor [1]. Meals are built up from a dish and individual food items.

 

Not a problem, just redefine eating in-situ:

Using a harvestable food item in a no-harvest area becomes eating in-situ.

Using a non-harvestable food item (eg, fish, bread) is eating in-situ.

Consequences?

 

Behaviour when eating food off plates remains as described above, but there are now more areas where scattered food items are eatable; eg eating bread in the general shop, eating a fish mounted as a trophy.

 

Auto-charging for eating these items is still a reasonable effect. Obsurd cases should be the exception rather than the rule.

 

 

[1] discovering the wonders of CTRL-B!

Edited October 5, 2006 by trollson

[Aislinn]

First off I love these ideas and would doubly love to see more interactive maps.

 

About guild map raids: I think you first need to address the concept of a guild map. As we can see from the new thread about bot fees, players who purchase guild maps do so for privacy. Even though Ent has stated that HE never had wanted that to be the intention, obviously the players feel otherwise.

 

About eating food off plates and other non-harvestable places: I am against the concept of auto-charging for it. You don't pay a friend for the meal when you visit their home, or if you see a loaf of bread on somebody's picnic table...The only time I can see it even being partially reasonable is in a tavern. Possibly have tavern-specific food items on plates for taverns?

 

Also, if you can auto-charge food on a plate, how about auto-charge to rent a room for the night? Make a tavern-specific bed that if you sit on it, you get charged for a specified amount of time.

[Kidberg]

First off I love these ideas and would doubly love to see more interactive maps.

 

About guild map raids: I think you first need to address the concept of a guild map. As we can see from the new thread about bot fees, players who purchase guild maps do so for privacy. Even though Ent has stated that HE never had wanted that to be the intention, obviously the players feel otherwise.

 

About eating food off plates and other non-harvestable places: I am against the concept of auto-charging for it. You don't pay a friend for the meal when you visit their home, or if you see a loaf of bread on somebody's picnic table...The only time I can see it even being partially reasonable is in a tavern. Possibly have tavern-specific food items on plates for taverns?

 

Also, if you can auto-charge food on a plate, how about auto-charge to rent a room for the night? Make a tavern-specific bed that if you sit on it, you get charged for a specified amount of time.

Sounds like a good idea to me

[trollson]

Charging for Food: The behaviour could be varied by defining commerical areas in the DEF file, but what should the default behaviour be? I tend to agree with not charging by default, and then defining charging areas (taverns). Food value and cooldown could also be varied (better cooking in a tavern? hmm.).

 

Tavern Beds: For RP reasons I always try to find a bed for the night before I log off, and un-equip any items. Always thought it would be nice to get some benefit for this, such as off-line mana and health recovery (1 hr offline equivalent to 1 minute online, -1 hr per emu equipped).

 

However, sitting on a bed isn't sufficient to trigger a use-callback, which is what I've tried to limit myself to in this topic. It needs an area event listener (and lots more small areas defined in the DEF files).

[2007-01-09]

If the character record included an entry for the ID of the last static object used, and the character location at that time (ie,

{map, object, x, y}

), then this could be done. On log-in, if the character is still at the same coordinates, and the object is a bed within range (3 paces), then the character is considered to have been sleeping there. The 'last object used' field may be useful elsewhere?

 

[2008-01-28]

Use of beds is covered further in "

Using Map Objects

".

Autocharging for...: Autocharging could be used in lots of other places. My long-time favorite is autocharge for using a ship to travel (and in future, using other public transports).

...including the boat from

Isle Prima

; a newbie challenge to earn 10gc to pay for passage off.

If we are going to define commerical areas then these could change the way shops work: Rather than having to talk to a shopkeeper, goods could be on display; 'use' to buy (number defined by inventory #). Though there may be some unfortunate surprises for new players.

 

Guild Raids: I was really trying to illustrate a possible consequence of some of the additions described in this topic. Infact, this is already possible in the game as it stands; what would it take to take-out a guard bot? The only thing missing is the loot, which may already be there in hbags.

Edited February 14, 2008 by trollson

[Terena]

I kind of agree with charging for using ships (except the ship from IP... or maybe not, might help the newbies learn a bit more about the game if they have to make some gc to explore the rest of Seridia..). I've always thought it a little odd that you can hop on and off the ships as you please without being charged. Especially since some of the routes are quite long (see shipping lanes on continent map). Perhaps a very small charge of a few gc, varying on the length of the journey.

 

Hopefully this might encourage people to explore alternative routes across land, and actually get to see a bit of the game (so much lovely stuff that no one looks at!). It might even increase sales of teleport rings. For example, to get to portland storage, its 3 boat trips from IP, and a bit of walking in between. If the boat trips cost money, people might decide its more convenient to spend a little extra money on portland rings and get dropped right outside storage.

 

Things are pretty good for starting crafters as they can make thread for money, and the high level crafters have the C2 rings, new mana rings and crowns, but the mid-level crafters are a little stuck. Perhaps I just pick the wrong days, but I rarely see anyone looking to buy Seridian teleport rings. And since there is no NPC to sell them to, the mid-level crafter has a hard time finding gc to level their skill. Something to ressurrect sales of these items would be great, and hopefully ship-charging would have that effect.

 

 

I love the tavern food/beds ideas. I'd like to see taverns used more, rather than just popping in quickly to sell some fruit/buy alcohol for pots.

[trollson]

Using Crystal Balls

 

There are a number of crystal balls around the maps. What should the effect of 'using' these be?

 

A Palantír style device?

• Remove viewing would be difficult to implement at the moment (would require too many client changes to be convincing).
  
• Remote hearing/speaking would be possible, if two crystal balls linked local area chat (echo'ing chat); however with GMs and PMs, this wouldn't really serve any purpose.
  

A source of information?

• Use the crystal ball and speak, and the crystal ball reveals some associated information to you.
  

This may not be as hard as it at first appears; there is no need to try to parse a question

1. Maintain a cache of secrets (sentences), the contents of which can change over time.
   
2. Index the database by the stems [1] of non-trivial words in the sentences.
   
3. Take the player's question, stem the non-trival words, and form a list of associated information from the cache.
   
4. Select an entry from this list at random to be revealed.
   

Other events would have to trigger adding and removing entries from the secrets cache. This can also link to the Rumor system described in a previous post on this thread (although the cross-referencing means that the secrets cache has to be much more limited in size).

 

 

Why has this just come up?

 

The information retrieval part came up in another context recently, so I've been thinking about it anyway (also as a cheaper-than-Alice chatbot).

 

Then recent topic on unique artifacts, "The Cornucopia"; possession of a unique artifact should never be a perfect secret, especially when people can hide behind GuardBots on Guild maps. So if somebody asks a crystal ball "Where is the cornucopia?", and the answer comes back "trollson holds the Cornucopia", then I'd be in deep rhubarb...

 

 

[1] see the Porter Stemming algorithm for example. The limitation is that this is targetted at correctly spelt English.

 

Using Containers at Storage

 

Ideally, containers could replace storage to a large degree. However, what about if you use a container within range of storage the storage dialog is invoked? Helpful when trying to find the NPC in a crowd.

 

Edited February 14, 2008 by trollson

[KarenRei]

Books:

 

There are countless books scattered across the map. Idea: Use obscure public-domain books (say, from Project Gutenberg, or donated from unpubbed authors) to link them to actual text. Works for inclusion would be screened to make sure that they make sense within the EL world. Gutenberg is especially promising source, because most of the works are older ones, so you get an archaic writing style and few references to technology.

 

Implementation: This would require the implementation of a book-reading interface. Such an interface could have many uses in the future, such as in quests. Each book object would need an ID, and that ID could either be directly bound to a specific text, or associated via a formula that maps a book ID to a text at random, but is consistant in its results (say, srandom(ID); return rand() % BookCount).

 

Downside: Size. While these, assumedly, would be kept on the server, not clients (to save space), having hundreds, thousands, or even tens of thousands of books stored could add up to relevant disk space. Not huge amounts of space, but relevant amounts.