[MUD-Dev] Re: Prescience Rules?

[Joel Kelso]

Dan Shiovitz wrote:

> > So how do you handle it when your theme requires Prescient Characters?
> [..]
>
> Suggestion #1: change the theme. seriously. there is some stuff that
>                just doesn't work well without OOC negotiation, which
>                most muds aren't designed around. Telepathy and
>                Prescience and "Detect Lie" are examples.
> Suggestion #2: Occasionally, immortals give visions to prescient
>                characters. Prescient characters are free to do
>                whatever they want with these visions, including lie
>                about them. For other times, they should get good at
>                making up plausibly vague prophecies.
>
> > Larry Homer
> --

You could have a lot fun with #2.  An immortal could watch the gameand select
some disreputable player with a generally low standing,
give him/her a vision of impending doom, and offer some reward for
effectivly warning the other players.  "The deamons are coming !  The
deamons are coming !  The end is nigh !  No, really, I'm serious."

On a wider note, what tools exist in current MUDs for implementers
and immortals for setting up these kinds of plot devices ?  It seems
to me that to have a continually interesting MUD, the immortals
could encourage (cause ?) all manner of quests, chases, races,
duals, murders, visions, dreams, monster invasions, natural disasters,
treasure hunts, blackmail, trechery, noble last stands against
impossible odds etc etc all woven together in some sort of overarching
plot.  For a large MUD this sounds like a full-time occupation, but
a good set of tools for things like tracking player activity,
completion of quests, recording meetings and conversations between
players, setting up quests, setting up NPCs to respond to certain questions
etc would go a long way.  A start would be able to record an
"interesting event log":

(15-06-1998 22:03 main street) BrookTheBold talked to begger about
assassination plot
(15-06-1998 22:14 cave of doom) EvilDood got the enchanted crossbow bolt
(16-06-1998 21:23 main street) EvilDood gave enchanted crossbow bolt to
NPCAssassin#1

Immortal thinks "I wonder if we can get BrookTheBold to run into EvilDood ...
lets
set the begger to say he saw EvilDood talking to one of the assassination
plotters ...

With luck BrookTheBold and EvilDood meet and have an interesting encounter.
Maybe
BrookTheBold attacks EvilDood, maybe EvilDood offers to sell BrookTheBold some
information, maybe EvilDood doesn't realize what he's involved in.  You get the
picture.

Joel Kelso

-- joel at ee.uwa.edu.au -----------------------------------------------
"Wasn't it a four-year-old this time ? It makes me feel like standing
 in the middle of the Atlantic with a megaphone and shouting:
 'America!  We know you're in there!  Put the guns DOWN!'"
    - Overheard Conversations
-- http://ciips.ee.uwa.edu.au/~joel ---------------------------------