jecht
05-19-2003, 09:40 AM
Just another thought.
Let's say your fighting in your favorite zone. Your pull ends up killing you somehow (stupid cleric!). Instead of dying, you are only knocked unconscience and the creature goes to the next person on its aggro listing. While your group handles the threat, two guards spawn right on top of you. They con indifferent. They start to drag your unconscious body across the zone. Your group or another *could* save you if they can reach you in time, which they do not. The guards open a grate in the ground and toss you into the pitch black opening.
You regain consciousness. You cannot see. You feel (hit the inventory button) for your trusty weapon. Gone. They've taken it. You find a way out of your entrapment and grab a stick you find on the ground. You sharpen it against a stone wall and make your way through the dungeon. Perhaps you run into another prisoner that is also trying to escape and you team up with them. Perhaps not. Either way, it sure would suck to be trapped in this dungeon until you run out of food and die from starvation. No wait, there's some rats here. You can kill them for food if you like. They're easy prey. You feast on some rat meat and feel a little better. Time to get out of here.
Great. A prisoner is preventing your escape. He's hungry and tired of rat. No problem. Your a master of weaponry. Right? You make quick work of him, strip him of anything useful and make your way to the surface where you hafta sneak past a few guards. You time it just right and get past them cleanly. Along the way you find a storeroom with your equipment.
Much better. All dressed again. But where is your sword? Lots of weapons in here but not your trusty blade. You look across the field to see your previous group, relieved to see that your alive.
Something out of the corner of your eye catches your attention. A light in one of the watchtowers. One of the guards...and he has your sword! You call your group and set out to retrieve your stolen blade......
_______________________________________________
Changes:
1. The addition of a zone that you do not die in, or at least have the *chance* of not dying, but instead being captured and put into a dungeon. A real dungeon, not a cave or something like that. A dungeon designed to hold prisoners.
2. Stealth. Mobs cannot see behind them. If they're not facing you, they cannot see you. You CAN sneak around to get where your going. Are they facing the wrong way? Mebbe if you wait they will move. Be nice if you could throw a rock or something that they would go investigate
3. Minor addition to mob AI. Static spawn mobs may wander around a little bit when they get bored. Unless they are highly trained mobs..aka guards outside a Lord's room or something. I'm sure those guards wouldn't move an inch!
4. Weapon Stripping. You obviously lose your items when you are thrown in a dungeon. However, you can get them back if you can find where prisoner's items are stored. Your more expensive items may have caught the attention of a guard or someone else however. Usually only 1 weapon will be taken, the rest will be in the armory.
I think you see where I am going with this. I would like to see more zones designed less around exp and more on having fun. In my opinion exp is pointless. It should be in this order:
Balance > Fun > Challenge
This is how it is right now
Balance > Challenge > Fun
Balance = Player vs. Player and Player vs. NPC
These are just a few ideas. Obviously you could still exp here, but instead of dying you would be penalized in a bit more of a realistic way. Just remember, not in all zones are creatures as lenient about throwing you into a dungeon.
Let's say your fighting in your favorite zone. Your pull ends up killing you somehow (stupid cleric!). Instead of dying, you are only knocked unconscience and the creature goes to the next person on its aggro listing. While your group handles the threat, two guards spawn right on top of you. They con indifferent. They start to drag your unconscious body across the zone. Your group or another *could* save you if they can reach you in time, which they do not. The guards open a grate in the ground and toss you into the pitch black opening.
You regain consciousness. You cannot see. You feel (hit the inventory button) for your trusty weapon. Gone. They've taken it. You find a way out of your entrapment and grab a stick you find on the ground. You sharpen it against a stone wall and make your way through the dungeon. Perhaps you run into another prisoner that is also trying to escape and you team up with them. Perhaps not. Either way, it sure would suck to be trapped in this dungeon until you run out of food and die from starvation. No wait, there's some rats here. You can kill them for food if you like. They're easy prey. You feast on some rat meat and feel a little better. Time to get out of here.
Great. A prisoner is preventing your escape. He's hungry and tired of rat. No problem. Your a master of weaponry. Right? You make quick work of him, strip him of anything useful and make your way to the surface where you hafta sneak past a few guards. You time it just right and get past them cleanly. Along the way you find a storeroom with your equipment.
Much better. All dressed again. But where is your sword? Lots of weapons in here but not your trusty blade. You look across the field to see your previous group, relieved to see that your alive.
Something out of the corner of your eye catches your attention. A light in one of the watchtowers. One of the guards...and he has your sword! You call your group and set out to retrieve your stolen blade......
_______________________________________________
Changes:
1. The addition of a zone that you do not die in, or at least have the *chance* of not dying, but instead being captured and put into a dungeon. A real dungeon, not a cave or something like that. A dungeon designed to hold prisoners.
2. Stealth. Mobs cannot see behind them. If they're not facing you, they cannot see you. You CAN sneak around to get where your going. Are they facing the wrong way? Mebbe if you wait they will move. Be nice if you could throw a rock or something that they would go investigate
3. Minor addition to mob AI. Static spawn mobs may wander around a little bit when they get bored. Unless they are highly trained mobs..aka guards outside a Lord's room or something. I'm sure those guards wouldn't move an inch!
4. Weapon Stripping. You obviously lose your items when you are thrown in a dungeon. However, you can get them back if you can find where prisoner's items are stored. Your more expensive items may have caught the attention of a guard or someone else however. Usually only 1 weapon will be taken, the rest will be in the armory.
I think you see where I am going with this. I would like to see more zones designed less around exp and more on having fun. In my opinion exp is pointless. It should be in this order:
Balance > Fun > Challenge
This is how it is right now
Balance > Challenge > Fun
Balance = Player vs. Player and Player vs. NPC
These are just a few ideas. Obviously you could still exp here, but instead of dying you would be penalized in a bit more of a realistic way. Just remember, not in all zones are creatures as lenient about throwing you into a dungeon.