From: griffon@iastate.edu (Tamber Kelsain)
Subject: Re: Wizardhood on LPMuds.
Organization: Iowa State University, Ames, IA
Date: Sat, 21 Nov 1992 15:27:17 GMT

In article <JAMIE.92Nov21124027@kauri.vuw.ac.nz> jamie@kauri.vuw.ac.nz (Jamieson Norrish) writes:
>In article <By11yL.8HI@news.iastate.edu> griffon@iastate.edu (Tamber Kelsain) writes:
>
>	   Well, with all the ideas that are being thrown around, I
>   thought I'd add in a few of my own.
>	   What do you think of a mud with a goal other than that of
>   becoming a coder?
>
>I think it's a must.
>
>	   What about a Mud that you deign to become a God? Where "Gods"
>	   are not coders, but extremely powerful players?
>
>Well, it's better, but why not just have the characters be normal
>characters? Just rich, good at whatever skills they've used all their
>lives, with plenty of reputation. In effect, they would be the upper
>echelons of society.

Yeah, powerful == (rich && good-at-many-skills)

>	   What about a Mud on which it is More Fun to continue to play,
>	   than to code?
>
>Well, I don't know about "more fun". Just don't give them the option. :)

Seriously being considered.

>	   Well, in order for these desires to become true, a Mud needs
>   several things:
>	   a) An advancement system that is practically infinite (For
>              Mud, anyway)
>
>Well, I don't think this is necessary. If you're using levels, and the

No levels. I personally hate the idea.

>basic activity of everyone is to kill things, then I suppose it is a
>must. If you have a skill-based system a la RuneQuest, then that isn't
>even a consideration.

We will have a skill-base system, and the "basic activity" would
simply be the goal of becoming "important" to the world.

>	   b) The ability to affect the world and how it is designed without
>              becoming a coder.
>
>Well, allowing limited room and item creation (even if it's just
>telling a wizard what you want, and them coding it) is necessary, I
>think. Also, in order for players to have an effect on the world,
>resets have to be removed. Otherwise it's *only* building that has an
>effect, rather than the fact that so-and-so killed the great wyrm
>so-and-so, who was terrorising the kingdom, and it will never bother
>anyone again.

Through their skills and abilities, players are not limited to simple
room creation.  They do not have to wait for a wizard to come and make
them an item. A players wants a house? He goes downtown, finds the
carpentry shop, or maybe, if more than one, goes and bargains with
other playes until he finds a suitably priced shop.  He tells them that he
would like a house to be erected, along with where, when, and somewhat
how.  The carpenters then ask the survey team to go down there and map
the place out.  When the carpenters know what they are going to build,
they buy wood from the foresters and procede to build a house.
	This is only one example of the complex interaction that will
be accessable by Legends inhabitants.
	Resets still exist, but they are *NOT* used to reset
monsters/objects/money/etc they are simply used as another facet of
MUD time (ie, this is the time when water flows, weather changes, etc)
When the Great Wyrm is killed, it *stays* dead.  Until a coder decides
to bring another menace into existance, the nearby town is relatively
safe.  There will probably be places (dark mines, ancient caves, etc)
where monsters seem to "spawn" from, but even these have a source that
can be destroyed.  A large goal of the coders is to eliminate game
mechanics and make the game as realistic as possible.
	I think it would be ideal to start the game as little more
than a barren land, where players' skills bring about life and
civilization.  All forms of money and most of the objects on the game
will be created by players.  I do not yet know the practibility of
this idea, but I definitely think it is worth thinking about.

>	   c) The ability to make a place of your own, to call your own.
>
>As I say above, limited item and room creation. The ability to own and
>"run" shops etc. This would be the start of a "real" economy, if the
>money spent actually went to players, who then recycled it.

Players start their own shops, selling what ever they wish.  If there
is a need, there should be a player willing to satisfy it.  The
flexibility of the MUD should allow this.

>	   What do you think of a Mud like this?
>
>I think that if it's done the way I would do it, it would be
>brilliant, but that's not saying much. :-)
>
>	   What problems/catches/interesting pts do you see?
>
>Make sure that even fairly new and "low-powered" characters can have
>an effect; otherwise it'll just be the same race to reach a slightly

This has been a constant thought of mine, how to make newbies able to
enter into the ranks of the ancient players.  Maybe allow
apprenticeships to be set up?

>different goal - not wizardhood, but "god" status. That's something I
>think that should be avoided at all costs.
>
>Otherwise, good luck.

Thank you, I have a feeling we'll need it.

>Jamie

 -T
-- 
     Will Stoltenberg	  |"The Bible is not my book and Christianity is not my
 Ames, Iowa (515) 294-1701| religion. I could never give assent to the long 
    "Tamber Kelsain"	  | complicated statements of Christian dogma."
   griffon@iastate.edu	  |			- Abraham Lincoln