[MUD-Dev] Re: Levels versus Skills

[Caliban Tiresias Darklock]

On 03:16 AM 1/16/99 +0200, I personally witnessed Petri Virkkula jumping up
to say:
>>>>>> "Caliban" == Caliban Tiresias Darklock <caliban at darklock.com>
writes:
>
>Caliban> But... now there's virgin territory. Zones can get "played
>Caliban> out" over time, if players spend a lot of time there; enemy
>Caliban> regeneration is limited by existing power level, so if the
>Caliban> enemy is sent packing often enough he will eventually dwindle
>Caliban> into obscurity. Likewise, if players *ignore* the enemy, he
>Caliban> will eventually snowball into an unstoppable force that will
>Caliban> steamroll through the universe like a vast engine of doom,
>Caliban> leaving nothing survive in his wake. Both situations are Bad
>
> In BatMUD we used to have a problem with players who kill only
> few monster (those considered to give big experience).
[...]
> Don't your system have similar problems? Don't your system
> require that players must visit an area regurarily?

No. The enemy in my system is dynamic; it does not sit around in area X
until killed, and then regenerate at some future date. There are a few
well-defended "origin" points for the enemy, selected during galaxy
creation through a complicated series of weighted logical criteria, and
from those points the enemy actively attempts to conquer the galaxy by
systematically destroying every living thing in it.

If one of those points is captured or destroyed, then the resources
associated with it are lost to the enemy and (in the event of capture)
transfer to the conquering player; conversely, players can not only capture
these but actually set up similar powerbases themselves from scratch... and
the enemy is, in turn, empowered to capture those powerbases for its own.
The enemy also holds a grudge, and keeps track of who has annoyed it the
most in recent days -- it will then actively seek out that player's
property and destroy, capture, or set traps around it as would be
considered most appropriate and effective from a military standpoint.

Likewise, the established government (whose interstellar navy you have
volunteered for) sends out its own fighter groups much like the enemy does.
The government seizes and destroys only assets belonging to the provided
enemy or to players who have proven to be hostile to the state. Once again,
the government holds certain established military priorities during the
process, and will neither attempt suicidally dangerous missions nor fight
for something which is not worth having.

Basically, you must compete with the game itself to destroy the enemy, and
the enemy fights back even when you aren't doing anything to it. The enemy
can and will mount a concerted attack on you while you are logged off,
provided it can find you. If you do significant damage to its forces, it
will look harder.

There are also nifty things to be found, if you explore, and unique is
really unique. If player X has the mighty engine of doom acquired from the
hidden location in which it exists, player X has it. Player Y cannot go
find another one; he has to get it from player X. Sometimes you need more
than one unique item to get something to work; if someone else has the part
you need, it's up to the two of you to work things out.

-----
| Caliban Tiresias Darklock            caliban at darklock.com
| Darklock Communications          http://www.darklock.com/
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