[MUD-Dev] Better Combat

[David Kennerly]

Matt Mihaly wrote:
> David Kennerly wrote:

>> Yet note all the words that limit the scope of the proposition.
>> There could be alternative combat systems which do not meet the
>> definition of a survival game.  For an obvious example, Rock
>> Paper Scissors.  In RPS, none of the strategies are necessarily
>> defensive or offensive.  It is only the interaction of the
>> players that makes them so.  Now they could be mapped that way,
>> as I wrote a few days ago (e.g., rock==defense, paper==feint,
>> scissors==offense).  But even then one could play defense
>> consistently and win if the opponent had played offense
>> consistently.

> I'm not sure that's really true. In the case of RPS, offence and
> defence are the same thing. It makes no more sense to call rock
> defence than it does to call it offence. The terms don't really
> properly apply I think.

It makes no sense.  None, especially since I abused the term
"defense" and "offense" without stating what I meant by the
correspondences.  I don't mean that "defense" has no effect on the
victory condition of the opponent (for that assumes the attrition
mechanic to which I specifically set aside for this point).

Only with explanation, or at least example, would it make sense to
state that there are many such applicable RPS games.  For example as
a 2-player fighting game: Attach an attacking animation to S, a
defensive animation to R, and a feint animation to P.  Then set up
the RPS payoff matrix in terms of the victory points of a constant
sum game.  To justify it graphically, an example may be:

  (P,R) displays the defender making himself vulnerable to the feint.
      Lower relative combat efficiency of player employing "R".
  (S,P) displays the successful attack against an off-guard feint.
      Lower relative combat efficiency of player employing "P".
  (R,S) displays the attack thwarted by a successful block and the
  attacker as off-balance.
      Lower relative combat efficiency of player employing "S".

For the others:

  {R,R} two attacks, both hit.  Relative combat efficiency remains
  equal.
  {S,S} two blocks, both in vain.
  {P,P} two feints, both in vain.

This is not a realistic fight.  We deal in elves, dragons, and
spaceships, so we prune or even contradict realism in favor of play.

David
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