[MUD-Dev] Re: Methods to Reduce Ecological Wipeout

[quzah]

-----Original Message-----
From: s001gmu at nova.wright.edu <s001gmu at nova.wright.edu>
To: mud-dev at kanga.nu <mud-dev at kanga.nu>
Date: Wednesday, August 12, 1998 6:06 AM
Subject: [MUD-Dev] Re: Methods to Reduce Ecological Wipeout


>
>
>On Wed, 12 Aug 1998, Leach, Brad BA wrote:
>
>> Greetings,
>> 
>> From what I have read, it seems UOL faced problems in the past of
>> ecological wipeout due to the lack of "repop'ing" mobs. What methods,
>> and how successful were these methods, in reversing this?
>> 
>> Does anyone have any suggestions to cope with this problem for other
>> muds?


[snip]

>> Any comments or suggestions?
>
>Initial thoughts:
>
>'wipeout' occurs because there are not enough mobs avail to fill the needs
>of the number of characters present in an area.  Once the existant mobs
>are killed off, the rate of repop is too slow.
>
>solutions:  faster rate of repop, or a bigger area, with more space
>between players.    Or some combination of both.

[snip]

>Since you've already discarded the 'faster birth rate', and 'divine
>intervention' (a truely short term solution), that leaves changing the
>size of the area.  :)
>
>-Greg

Here's an idea I've stated elsewhere at one time or another. Though
it involves modifying rooms instead of, or rather in addition to the
food chain. Create sizes for your creatures if you don't have them
already, in addition, create exit sizes. Create a 'den' for say, some
wolves, and plunk two of them in the den. Make the exit to the den
smaller than the wolves are when grown. Add in age/growth, and now,
only the smaller wolves can get out of the den. Make the den (parents)
repop if they die of old age, and their children will run about the
earth populating the world that is outside the 'den'. If the den is
smaller than most of your players (er, den doorway) then you are
fairly safe in that respect, and you should at least always have a
pair left to reproduce. (Add a mice den inside the wolves den, and
now the wolves have food.) (Add many exits through tunnels, and now
your wolves won't walk out the same door and get slaughtered as they
walk out; preventing [sort of] players from camping out and butchering
them all.

Just a thought.
-Q-