[MUD-Dev] Resets, repops and quests

[Alex Oren]

[Matt:]
} [Chris G:]
} > [Alex O:]
} > 
} > :Hello guys.
} > 
} > Welcome back! :-)
} 
} <g> Indeedy.

A warm welcome always makes me feel good.

Regretfully, I'll stay on a lurker status since my time management is
piss-poor...  I'll try to provide some stimulating thoughts once in a while
though.

} > :Have been a bit busy a bit lately and didn't follow the discussions.
} > :I'm now under a curse compelling me to catch up with the list (~800 messages
} > :worth of backlog... <gulp!>).

Still ~800.  They come faster than I read them...

OK, back to the question:

} > :The question that was left unanswered is: How can a mud have a working quest
} > :system without some kind of resets?

My concern is not the mechanics of the resets but the fact that areas/quests do
reset at all.

It seems that I should avoid any kind of resets if I want world consistency and
continuity, but that seems to rule out "repeatable" quests.

Someone (Nathan, I think) suggested the use of separate timelines.
While this is a good and interesting idea, it does not agree with the kind of
setting I have in mind.

And:

[Jeff:]
} >This may seem terribly naive, but couldn't you just associate the status
} >of the quest with the character instead of the mud?  That is, the bit
} >flags are in the player structure.
} 
} DSO does this...  the unfortunate effect here is that you have players in
} "parallel worlds"... Many peopel in their own story line have completed the
} same set of actiosn with the same world result.
} 
} On a global level, it makes no sense and thus is injurious to roleplay and
} encourages an individual-focus to the game which doesn't do much to help
} socail interraction.

I agree.  It creates more problem than it solves.

[ChrisG:]
} [Alex O:]
} 
} :I can think of several quests that seem to be immune to most scenarios:
} :* Guild initiation rites.
} :* Teleporting a player into an extra-dimentional dungeon.
} :Etcetera.
} 
} Those are good. It's more work, but how about something more like the
} traditional storytelling quest - find something? If your world is large
} and generated, you can pick somewhere out in the boonies and plant some
} special object. Then, you have to plant rumors, hints, etc. all over the
} place, so that players have some clue as to where to go.

This is similar to what I had in mind.  Although in the case of Guild
Initiation, instructions from a guildmember NPC will be given instead of rumors.

} With enough
} generated stuff, you might even be able to generate entire towns and
} populations, for which the special object is part of the folklore. The
} same could be done for a special bad monster. This sort of thing could
} be done indefinitely. Throw in differing local populations, vastly
} different terrain, perhaps some rivers or lakes to cross, etc.

So, the idea is to have a Random Quest Generator, right?  Hmmm...
I don't think that generating whole background (towns, populations) for the sake
of each quest is a good idea.  It will lead to object inflation.

} The
} quests would be boring for those who had been involved in lots of them,
} but they would keep the new players happy. A more experienced player
} could take on the challenge of being the one to solve it, rather than
} one of the many who *tried* to solve it.

Yep.

[ChrisG:]
}[Raz:]
}:This sort of thing makes for nicely atmospheric quests, which are
}:satisfying to complete, *but*, immensely frustrating to *know* you're in
}:the right place, but someone beat you to the prize.
} 
} True enough. That suggests that it would be proper to start propagating
} rumours, etc. of the completion of the quest, both to give fame to whoever
} did it, and to warn off other attempters as soon as possible. To me, it
} would be kind of kewl to arrive just after the quest had been done, and
} see the afteraffects of it. Frustrating, yes, but then you just have to
} try harder on the next one!

Yep!!!

Combined with the rumor propagation/decay ideas (discussed in other threads) it
has great potential.


Have fun,
Alex.