Re: CF: Alternate proposal: MARK the power crystals

[quinet@gamers.org (Raphael Quinet)]

On Wed, 25 Aug 1999, Scott Wedel <scott@campy.Tymnet.COM> wrote:
> Peter,
> I think we essentially agree.  My intent is to prevent a player
> from repeating the same quest to get multiples of an item, in
> particular Glowing Crystals from the same map.

Note that there are some other ways to prevent a player from repeating
the same quest several times.  If you remember the long mails that I
sent a few months ago (titled "Some ideas for Crossfire") about new
characters having to solve mini-quests before entering the world, I
mentioned that these mini-quests should be linked to the rest of the
world by one-way exits.  Later, there was some discussion about using
invisible objects in the players' inventory to mark the fact that they
have solved some quest and thus grant them access to some other areas.

These two ideas can be combined into one: use an invisible marker in
the player's inventory to grant the access to another quest and at the
same time deny them the access to that quest.  This can be done by an
extension of the MARKER and DETECTOR objects that Peter Mardahl has
recently added.

A map designer could use the detector at the entrance of a quest, and
close the entrance gate if the player is carrying the corresponding
mark.  So while you are doing the quest, you can freely enter and
leave.  But as soon as you have found the treasure, you automatically
get the mark (there can be a marker at the entrance of the treasure
room) and you can only leave the quest but not come back later.  Of
course, a wise map designer would also put another detector that would
trigger a magic mouth warning the player that he will not be able to
come back if he leaves.

Maybe some players would find a way to enter anyway, by blocking the
gate before they step on the detector.  This could be prevented by
using a slightly different solution: instead of using a detector to
close a gate, you could use a "reverse-detector" to open the exit.  By
that, I mean a detector that would act a bit like the invisible
pedestals: it would trigger the connected objects when a player steps
on it and does _not_ have the corresponding mark.  If we put such a
detector on the same square as a connected teleporter, then only the
players that are not carrying the mark can enter the quest.

> As for keycode, I think it would be better if instead of particular
> item identifier that it was done via a Glowing Crystal type.  So two
> identical or similar (ie an improved model) would not work together,
> but another type of GC could still work together.

Some of the incompatibilities between objects could also be checked by
some code that does not require keycodes or marks.  Some tests could
be based on the attacktype of a weapon compared to the vulnerabilities
and protection of the player, or to the attacktype of other weapons in
the player's inventory.  Some other tests could be based on the god
that the player is worshiping.

I would like to have these tests added, because they would affect the
player without having to add special marks or keycodes to old
archetypes.  For example, the FireBrand or any other weapon that uses
fire as its attacktype would react if the player is carrying a
FrostBrand or any other weapon that uses cold.  This would not require
any changes in the archetypes or in the existing maps.  Also, it would
be consistent and predictible for the player: all "fire" stuff would
be incompatible with the "cold" stuff, and this would apply to all
weapons.

The reactions caused by incompatible weapons could vary depending on
the respective levels of the weapons and the player.  We should
definitely not kill the low-level player who accidentally picks up an
unidentified "fire" weapon while he is carrying a "cold" weapon.  But
if he is using a FrostBrand, his weapon could refuse to be unapplied
until the player drops the FireBrand.  If the player keeps the
FireBrand anyway, the FrostBrand could take control and attempt to
destroy the incompatible weapon.  The player would see a few warning
messages saying that his current weapon is unhappy, and after three or
four warnings the other weapon would be damaged for real.

[...]
> A proposed different type of glowing Crystal:  A healing crystal
> which casts a healing spell whenever the owner's hit points drop
> below 25% of max.  Would be a great item for some map creator to
> put on the big evil liche or such at the end of some quest.  The
> crsytal would thus be found out of energy on the dead body and it
> would make the fight a whole lot harder.  And the item would be
> a neat gameplay item as then you don't worry about dying because
> of buffering delays making your healing spells go off too late.

I am not sure that we need such a crystal.  The "amulet of lifesaving"
does more or less the same job, except that it can only be used once.
A healing crystal would make the lifesaving objects almost useless.

If the buffering delays are really a problem, then instead of adding a
healing crystal I would add a new lifesaving object that does not take
the slot of the amulet.  i.e. some object that is not an amulet, so
that you can have it applied at the same time as an amulet that
deflects missiles or some other useful amulet.  That would reduce the
risks of excessive buffering without changing the game as much as
something that tries to keep your HP above 25%.

-Raphael

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