[MUD-Dev] Alright... IF your gonan do DESIESE...

[Marian Griffith]

On Sun 25 May, coder at ibm.net wrote:

> Bartle raises the point that on a goal/level oriented game, that
> without permanent death, a mediocre or even flat out incompetent
> player can have utter certainty that they will make Wiz or top level
> if they merely persist in their plodding way for long enough.  His
> contention, and I agree, is that this is a Bad Thing.

In general this isn't something you want to promote on a game. On
the other hand there's many incompetent players and you need to
placate those as well or they'll leave. And none of the good players
wants to stay on a mud where nobody can appreciate how good they are.

> The problem however with the strict interpretation of this view is that it
> discourages players from investigation and experimentation with their
> world. Few will willingly risk the total anihilation of their
> character, hard built over several weeks if not months

This is true, but only if you have a character die permanently. There's
a lot of possibilities between. Like loosing half your experience points.
Or being unable to reincarnat unless you receive generous help from other
players (for no reward to them). Or maybe loosing half your levels. Or
only 5. Depending on how harsh the game is people will be willing to
risk more or less.

> I don't have a pat answer.  I believe that the discouragement to
> experimentation is less of a Bad Thing than the knowledge that mere
> persistance will always win the day. 

There is a very simple solution to that. Use a system similar to the
ATP ranking system. If you can acquire more experience points given a
certain time than the player directly above you in the ranking you will
swap places. If you stop playing you will gradually slide down the scale
again until you reach newby stages.
Combined with this must be a system where you don't -forget- about skills
when you get too low a level, you just get less proficient at them.

Marian
--
Yes - at last - You. I Choose you. Out of all the world,
out of all the seeking, I have found you, young sister of
my heart! You are mine and I am yours - and never again
will there be loneliness ...

Rolan Choosing Talia,
Arrows of the Queen, by Mercedes Lackey