[MUD-Dev] Summary of PvP attempts?

[Koster]

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Brian Hook
> Sent: Friday, June 08, 2001 3:57 PM
> To: mud-dev at kanga.nu
> Subject: [MUD-Dev] Summary of PvP attempts?

> I'm curious if anyone has ever written a good survey of all the
> different ways games have attempted to implement PvP on a large
> scale while addressing the common complaints?

I did a brief survey as part of my GDC presentation on online world
design patterns. Here's a cut and paste job. Forgive the terseness,
this is from a Powerpoint presentation.

Overview of the PvP design model (as opposed to Scavenger model,
Social model, D&D model, Builder model, etc):

  PvP style

    * Expressive model
      - A very old model created by accident	
    * Players determine social hierarchy via conflict 
    * Requires tangible attributes near parity 
    * Heavily dependent on intangible attributes for success 
    * Often added as an "elder game" to other models

  Specific PvP models:

  Player-based: Free

    * Anyone can attack anyone 
    * Often accompanied by admin-based solutions 
    * Does not scale to larger populations very well 
    * Relies on social mechanics to curb grief player behavior 
    * Reduction in audience of up to ~40%
 
  Player-based: Flagging

    A single action (often within towns) is server-detected and the
    criminal is flagged

    * May allow attacks against criminals with no repercussions 
    * May allow tracking of the criminal (bounty hunting) 
    * May allow "forgiveness" of the criminal 
    * Often used to handle thievery as well as playerkilling 
    * Can impose tangible penalties

  Player-based: Reputation

    * Like flagging, except that players decide when to "report." Is
    * theoretically less unforgiving than a flag system; in
      practice, players just about always report their aggressor
      *Unlike the flag system, cannot really be used by NPCs. But
      you can mix flags and reputation in the same system pretty
      easily

  Player-based: PK Switch

    * Players choose whether or not they are capable of attacking;
      only those who can attack are vulnerable
    * Wreaks havoc with grouping systems and area effects;
      traditionally fairly easy to circumvent
    * Can be elaborated into a "PK OK" system of permissions for
      duels, groups, individuals, etc
    * Often level-limited

  Player-based: Safe

    * No players can attack any other player 
    * Grief players will circumvent this, which puts the burden on
      the administrators, just like free PK
    * Reduction in audience size of potentially up to ~20%

  Geographic: Zone based

  * Often embedded as arenas into the other systems
  * Relies on lines in the world where the systems change from free
    to safe, or from reputation-driven to safe, etc
  * People tend to "play the lines" a lot
  * The more dangerous zone is always underused because players
    attempt to maximize profit

  Geographic: Team-based

  * Usually, teams are also geographically based 
  * Often termed "whities vs darkies" 
  * Danger increases as you move towards the other's territory 
  * Territory is usually static though it doesn't have to be 
  * Can feel futile as neither side can gain the upper hand

> Every now and then I come up with an idea and think "Hey, that
> would work!" then I just assume that someone else has tried it and
> that it fails, but it would be nice to verify this =)

Well, there's lots of gradations of the broad patterns described
above. For example, Legends of Kesmai melded Flagging and Reputation
with an admin-based solution; you killed and got a flag. But you
accumulated flags as a form of reputation, and could be forgiven by
the victim. Lastly, reaching 5 flags resulted in an admin-based
punishment--banning.

So the above is just a very barebones sort of breakdown, a basic
taxonomy if you will. If you allow for flex in the definitions is
very easy to do a classification like:

  Shadowbane, Dark Ages of Camelot, MUME, Mortal Conquest: Team-based.
  UO: Reputation.
  Everquest, Asheron's Call: PK Switch.
  Genocide: Free.
  Many Dikus, proposed UO2 model: Zones.
  Many PvE muds: Safe
  etc

Of course, Star Wars Galaxies is using flags AND reputation AND
zones AND team based... :P

By the way, for those curious, I have posted the SWG PvP design doc
to the forums there, and have been letting the players bang on it
for a week now.

-Raph
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