[MUD-Dev] RE: Realistic Ecological Models

[David B. Held]

From: "Leland Hulbert II" <lhulbert at hotmail.com>

> This can be deceptively hard.  Since mobs will be prey, and your
> player base are the predators, you need an accurate way to model
> the changes in your player density, or a good system for changing
> the birth rate/death rate based on it.

How about making players prey as well? ;)

> Say you make birth rate proportional to number of players, but
> leave death rate alone.  If you have any group of players that
> logs on at relatively the same time, but only stays connected for
> a short period, then you have another spike in mob population, and
> nothing to put it back down.

I think such contrivances are what makes MUDs less interesting in
the first place.  Although, I am considering allowing myself one
giant contrivance. ;) While players are sleeping, I am going to
allow them to engage in "dream battles".  That is, any players who
are asleep can meet and fight in a dream plane where they don't
actually die, but do gain some experience.  I think diversions like
this, as well as giving players other goals besides killing things
(like exploring for mineral veins, bounty hunting, etc.) should help
prevent the mob population from getting decimated.  If it doesn't,
and I still need more mobs, then I'll have the mobs "send for
reinforcements", which would bring in new hordes from off-world, in
a suitable remote location.  Then the new mobs would head towards
the "problem areas" and beat back the powerful players.

Dave


_______________________________________________
MUD-Dev mailing list
MUD-Dev at kanga.nu
https://www.kanga.nu/lists/listinfo/mud-dev