[MUD-Dev] Crafts Systems (was:Simpson's "In-Game Economics of UO")

[Raph Koster]

> -----Original Message-----
> From: mud-dev-admin at kanga.nu [mailto:mud-dev-admin at kanga.nu]On Behalf Of
> Ananda Dawnsinger
> Sent: Thursday, April 27, 2000 4:45 PM
> To: mud-dev at kanga.nu
> Subject: Re: [MUD-Dev] Crafts Systems (was:Simpson's "In-Game Economics
> of UO")
>

> Though this seems to beg the question: how many players are going
> to want to
> be the butcher or the tanner?  I don't see being the middleman as having
> much job satisfaction.  "I tanned the leather that went into those boots
> that Bob is wearing.  Really, you can't tell what a good job I did at
> tanning that leather now that they've been made into boots, but it was a
> really great tanning job."

Excellent point. UO supported various leevls of middlemen, but it was rare
that they were perceived as a profession of their own. Mining was a rare
example, perhaps because it consumed so much time and because there was a
definite difference in what you could obtain based on level, a difference
that mattered a lot to both the blacksmith and then to the purchaser. But
tailors typically did all the interim stages themselves because it just
wasn't very cool being, say, the guy who shears sheep (not cool meaning
unfun on numerous levels).

> This is just instinct on my part -- does anybody have any experience with
> games with middlemen?  Is it something that enough players enjoy doing to
> make it a workable mechanic?

My observation was that players valued making actual things more than
anything. And making actual things that were identifiably theirs (eg, a
maker's mark) was best of all. Making something that wasn't intrisically
valued in itself was not nearly as cool.

So miners were cool if they could get you valorite. But blacksmiths who made
only ingots weren't very cool--ones who made cool stuff were cool. And
carpenters, who couldn't make ANYTHING cool, were not cool at all, and
thence were unpopular.


-Raph




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