Report 1773

Report #1773
Skillset: Skill: Explorers
 Org: Glomdoring Status: Submitted Feb 2018
Problem: Certain rooms are locked away / only accessible by members of the
organization (Guildhalls - guild members, Inner Temples - Order members,
Homesteads - Family members). Yet the fact that they count for explorer
rankings incentivizes breaking into these areas for no reason but to score
points on a leaderboard. While in, various things such as stealing the contents
of bookshelves or other such actions are prevalent (and probably wouldn't have
occurred if the individual hadn't broken in for exploring purposes in the first
place). Additionally, the only foolproof ways to break in is via possesssing a
skill that forces random movement in an area, or purchasing the peppermint hat
level 4.
[A: 9 R: 1] Solution #1: Make the secured-rooms of Inner Temples, Guildhalls,
 and Homesteads not count for explorer rankings.
[A: 6 R: 1] Solution #2: Add a new flag to rooms that makes rooms 1) Not count
 for explorer rankings, and 2) Be unable to be
 accessed via random movement abilities, but 3) Can
 still be walked into by mortals via normal means.
[A: 2 R: 3] Solution #3: In addition to either solution 1 or solution 2, have
 a flag on ROOMNUM that shows whether or not the room
 counts for explorer rankings (for example: A room
 that counts would be Room #1337, and a room that
 doesn't might be Room #29684 - No Explorers).
Player Comments:
---[Xenthos on 2/11 @ 16:51 sets as pending]
---[Xenthos on 2/11 @ 16:53 writes]:
At this point I don't think this report will affect the top 3 rankings at all.
I'm only missing a couple of the new Magnagoran halls myself, and I can't
imagine that Ixion or Malarious are really missing all that much either with how
into it they've been. It's more meant as a QoL change for the plague of break-
ins that have been happening recently. I love my fedora hat, and I'll still
love it even with this change, but I do think it's good for the game if we
discuss this stuff and come up with a sensible change to make areas that are
supposed to be unique to certain populations of the game more so than they are
right now.
---[Ciaran on 2/11 @ 17:04 writes]:
Support all solutions, though I am not a very serious participant in explorer
rankings - so take with a grain of salt.
---[Ixion on 2/11 @ 23:32 writes]:
I'm confused with this report as being a problem. Those areas are certainly
harder to get into than public ones, but those are the very ones that seperate
the higher ranked people from the rest. Why water it down? Between the areas and
rooms removed that were not flagged properly (thanks Ianir), and the addition of
Zarakido and Peppermint Hats, it's easier and more fair than ever before to get
into those areas as there are now multiple skills and artifacts that allow
random area travel. Besides, an avid explorer should -want- to get into those
areas, and everything else. How can you be a planeswalker and not even bear
witness to thousands of rooms?
---[Ixion on 2/11 @ 23:33 writes]:
Libraries are unrelated, also. You say that there's no reason to get into
restricted areas except for scoring points on a leaderboard. Then, in the very
next sentence, you say that there are books with content and knowledge that can
be accessed. Which is it? Besides, there are plenty of reasons to get into those
areas beyond what you claim. Anyhow, what's the library have to do with explorer
design? These issues are not related. If orders do not put books into the proper
restriction level and Joe Nobody can temporarily check them out (you can't steal
them), that's their own fault, no different than anywhere else.
---[Xenthos on 2/12 @ 03:50 writes]:
I have born witness to thousands of rooms, there's no other way to have become a
Planeswalker (as you yourself note). Leaving a fractional portion of the whole
out really isn't a problem, to my mind. And you're right about the two being
slightly different (though if you read the problem again, you'll note that you
misread what I wrote: There are people, like me in fact, who break into places
only for the explorer points and then ended up sticking around to see what else
I could do-- that's why order mobs no longer sell to outside orber members, in
fact). If you don't mind people grabbing things from the library, don't vote
for that solution-- it in fact exists for precisely that reason.
---[Ixion on 2/13 @ 01:39 writes]:
My comment about planeswalker was about an avid explorer, not about you
specifically. Sorry if that was unclear. The intent was that anyone who wants to
be a top explorer should want to see everything, and missing out on thousands of
rooms just seems the opposite of what explorers is... exploring. I don't think
the problem as stated is actually a problem.
---[Xenthos on 2/13 @ 02:24 writes]:
And that's a fair point as well. You're also welcome to just vote no on all of
them. I do personally feel that them counting for explorers is a problem,
however. I'm more ambivalent on being able to break in to see what's there /
look for lore, but I know there are some people who are very upset about the
rash of this that has been occurring. As you say, there are some options for
dealing with it though. Like I said, it's why I wanted it to be a second option
for people to consider and chip in what they think!
---[Moi on 2/13 @ 20:46 writes]:
I am absolutely in favour of solutions 1 and 3. Making solstice artifacts a
requirement to compete in explorers is a terrible idea. Indifferent to making
fling skills not send people to guildhalls.
---[Ixion on 2/13 @ 23:49 writes]:
Fortunately, the solstice artifacts are not required to "compete" though of
course it does make it much easier. There multiple skills now that allow random
area travel, on top of other methods. I managed to get into every of the old
guildhalls without any such items OR skills, for example.
---[Aeldra on 2/14 @ 08:16 writes]:
I don't mind either way on this. I'd support 1 and 3.