[MUD-Dev] Crafting Systems - preventing recipe decomposition?

[Jeff Cole]

From: Sie Ming
> From: "John Buehler" <johnbue at msn.com>

>> Quick question (for those with experience with craftingd/etc
>> degenerating into recipe systems, with full-details published on
>> fan sites):

> If you go with a system where the combinations (for crafting,
> spells, whatever) are generated randomly for each player, you can
> avoid the possibility of basic procedures generating advanced
> outcomes by putting the procedures into categories.

...

> So you're generating each character's recipes sort-of randomly,
> but you're requiring that they are gradiated from easy to hard.
> This does limit the possible combinations, and makes publishing
> them easier than pure random, but this will mostly be a problem at
> low levels where, presumably, there are fewer choices of actions.

> You will certainly have people publish that making a Potion of
> Eternal Flosing requires a combination of common, very common,
> uncommon, uncommon, uncommon, very rare ingredients to make, but
> maybe that's an acceptable compromise between players getting
> enjoyment from sharing knowledge and from discovering things on
> their own.

I do not understand what is inherently wrong with publishing recipes
(or any other game data).  Publishing information does not prevent
players from "discovering things on their own."  You can never
satisfy players who "curve" with respect to other player's enjoyment
their own enjoyment.

I am surprised that developers have not more effectively utilized
such sites or more proactively developed their own information
resources (inter- and extragame).

Players will always look behind the curtain and it seems to me that
resources allocated to preventing such peeks are better spent
developing that which is behind the curtain.

Yrs. Affcty,
Jeff Cole

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