[MUD-Dev] Re: Interesting dilemma

[Shawn Halpenny <malachai#iname,com>]

On Mon, May 03, 1999 at 01:38:57AM -0400, Peck, Matthew x96724c1 wrote:

[ illegal equipment is a problem - elided ]

> 2) Restrictions on equipment.  I personally am against restricting
> equipment from players.  It would have to be based on some arbitrary
> standard, and I dislike arbitrary rules based on the fact that it
> conflicts with immersion.  Why shouldn't I be able to pick up the
> sword?
> 
> 3) Restrictions on equipment stats.  This is the road that I am
> starting to travel down.  On our development port I've written code
> that will automatically generate stats for equipment.  While billed
> as a time saver, it also serves to reduce equipment abilities to
> reasonable levels.  The problem is that some equipment should just
> be better than anything else, and I want builders to be able to
> construct such items.  But then refer back to
> # 1.

Simple idea:

Give your immortals a fuel guage of sorts.  The greater a change they
try to make to auto-gen'd item stats, the more of their immortal-fuel
they use.  This need not be restricted solely to modifying items, but
any immortal command that can affect the world.

Of course, you then need a system that governs the production of this
immortal-fuel.

> Another problem that I have is then confiscating these items.  Is
> there any way to do it nicely?  I have one immortal who has taken it
> upon himself to start clearing out these items.  While I approve of
> the effort, the mud has suddenly taken a hostile turn.  Morts seem
> to have gained a distrust for immortals.  How can I heal this rift? 
> No mud can survive with such conflict for long.  The imms will win,
> only to find no players.

Done well, a balanced imm-fuel system should help alleviate this,
since such out-of-balance (OOB) items rarely come about in the first
place.  Ideas for removing such items in the meantime:

- craft a few (hundred?  whatever) mobiles who have a predilection for
collecting (and rendering useless) these OOB items.  Let them prey on
people.

Hmm.  While I said ideas, I realize now that the idea I gave could be
implemented in any number of ways to be interesting yet unobtrusive
and non-hostile.  If your goal is to keep hostility down about culling
these items, you need to build this reaper-method into the fabric of
your world.

I know that as a player, I'd be happier (well, at least less likely to
complain about gross unfairness) if some mob clan known to collect
extremely magical/prized items had taken my sword than an imm who told me
"you can't have that, it's too powerful".

-- 
Shawn Halpenny |        Maniacal@I Ache, Ohm    |  "Universal Danger!"
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