Random monster encounters

[Dominik Windslasher ~]

It's odd that we only meet monsters at certain spots and have to walk there to fight them. I mean, who in sane conciense would walk INTO the place where the monsters live?
So, what do you think about random monster encounters? Like, you're in a forest, chopping some trees happily and then an ogree appear out of a tree and attack you. I know that the system of the game can only make the monsters appear at some spots, but maybe a variable could be made to make them appear somewhere else by % chance.
Like:

> Forest ground: Skelleton: 23% of chance to appear.

And this could happen, of couse, between some periods of time.


Do you like the idea?
Is it possible?

[Moathia]

So you want to trap people in town who can't fight for themselves?

[Dominik Windslasher ~]

So you want to trap people in town who can't fight for themselves?

Of course not. It's like a "surprise event". And as I said, this would happen between some periods of time.
And by the way, not only the playable races wander through the island, but the monsters too.

And monsters don't choose their targets. They just attack. What happens now is that only the fighters group is being attacked because they are the only group that walk INTO the monsters, what is a bit pointless.

What can I say? Living is dangerous.

[Moathia]

That'd be a great event for a character who can't fight.

"I'll just go collect some wool"

Searing sheep.

Monster spawns between there and town.

"Crap that wasn't there before."

You have died, go to the yellow cross.......

The reason monsters can be found is specific locations is because it gives people the choice to fight them if they want to, and let people who don't want to fight all the time not have to go near them.

[Dominik Windslasher ~]

Have you read the BETWEEN PERIODS OF TIME part?
Of course this couldn't happen all the time, it would be nonsense.
And if you really think that the "walk-into-monsters-if-you-can-and-want-to-fight" method is better, fine. That's why I posted this topic, to see what people think about this proposal I made.
If other people think like you, then ok, no need to try to change anything. But if they don't, then it's something to think about.

[Aegohl]

Let me see if I can get something useful out of this.

What you propose doesn't really seem like the best of ideas. I don't think that it would be very easy to realize; however, there is another option.

The new scripting language can make things happen based on Illarion time. This may eventually lead to there being a seperate tileset for night and day, and maybe even in the far future a different tileset for each of the seasons.

That being said, perhaps certain monsters could be spawned by an invisible NPC based on time of Day, Month, or Year.

For example, perhaps mummies could only be spawned at night. Or during the Mas days, demons could be spawned in certain out-of-the-way locations, such as in caves.

Let your imagination run wild with that.

Aegohl

[Dominik Windslasher ~]

Let me see if I can get something useful out of this.

What you propose doesn't really seem like the best of ideas. I don't think that it would be very easy to realize; however, there is another option.

The new scripting language can make things happen based on Illarion time. This may eventually lead to there being a seperate tileset for night and day, and maybe even in the far future a different tileset for each of the seasons.

That being said, perhaps certain monsters could be spawned by an invisible NPC based on time of Day, Month, or Year.

For example, perhaps mummies could only be spawned at night. Or during the Mas days, demons could be spawned in certain out-of-the-way locations, such as in caves.

Let your imagination run wild with that.

Aegohl

There we got it: random monster encounters.

[Galim]

Sorry, but monsters spawning out of nowhere and without reason don't sounds good for me. Yes, monsters like skeletons and mumies could crawl out of their graves, but that just at places where it is possible. not everywhere.

thjere is not much rp behind it

[Misjbar]

Ofcourse there is! Flies do not only appear near swamps! You would be SURPRISED to see how many there are in my house. I agree with the skeletons, but as Aegohl said, it is not like totally random which monster comes. If in the future we have more common monsters, which are more logical to appear at certain places, surely, this could be quite normal.

[Bloodhearte]

As for the initial idea, I agree that random monster springings would be both illogical and unfair to characters who can't fight NPCs well. It should remain the way it is; fighting being an option, not a requirement.

[Thalodos Artemetus]

Talking of flies. why do they attack? I see a few flies now and again and i've never been attacked by them. Maybe you could program them to attack only when attacked?

[Aristeaus]

As for the initial idea, I agree that random monster springings would be both illogical and unfair to characters who can't fight NPCs well. It should remain the way it is; fighting being an option, not a requirement.

The random encounters could be limited to out of town areas making it unsafe to travel beyond the safety of the walls.
It would be just plain stupidy for a young girl of say 10 knowing she can safely travel where she wishes just because she knows that nothing will ever happen within those areas.
There should be an element of uncertanty, It would not make it unfair by saying all people need to learn fighting skills, but it would add more fear and maybe more people hiring those who can fight to escort them to where ever they wish to go out side of the town.

These are dark days of myth and legend, not everything should be a certanty.

[Quinasa]

It would not make it unfair by saying all people need to learn fighting skills, but it would add more fear and maybe more people hiring those who can fight to escort them to where ever they wish to go out side of the town.

You just want something to do when I'm not around. *g*

[Misjbar]

He just wants to be escorted by people not his wife. Don't tell me I don't know Arist *gg*

[Bloodhearte]

As for the initial idea, I agree that random monster springings would be both illogical and unfair to characters who can't fight NPCs well. It should remain the way it is; fighting being an option, not a requirement.

The random encounters could be limited to out of town areas making it unsafe to travel beyond the safety of the walls.
It would be just plain stupidy for a young girl of say 10 knowing she can safely travel where she wishes just because she knows that nothing will ever happen within those areas.
There should be an element of uncertanty, It would not make it unfair by saying all people need to learn fighting skills, but it would add more fear and maybe more people hiring those who can fight to escort them to where ever they wish to go out side of the town.

These are dark days of myth and legend, not everything should be a certanty.

I was under the impression we were supposed to be encouraging OOT (Out-Of-Trollsbane) activity. Everybody in game seems to hole themselves up in the town.

If this girl went to, let's say, the middle of the woods, then one should expect her to be torn to bits by wolves and let her undiscovered bones bleach in sunlight 'til they're dust.

But the most direct path, mostly rocks, leading to relative safety? Dangerous? That would make things boring.

Edit: I think the fighters already have something of an immortality streak in this game...the last thing needed, IMO, are more jobs for fighters.

[falco1029]

I think in c9ontrolled locations with only weak monsters this would be fine.

[Aristeaus]

I was under the impression we were supposed to be encouraging OOT (Out-Of-Trollsbane) activity. Everybody in game seems to hole themselves up in the town.

If this girl went to, let's say, the middle of the woods, then one should expect her to be torn to bits by wolves and let her undiscovered bones bleach in sunlight 'til they're dust.

But the most direct path, mostly rocks, leading to relative safety? Dangerous? That would make things boring.

Edit: I think the fighters already have something of an immortality streak in this game...the last thing needed, IMO, are more jobs for fighters.

Haha yes your right, but this also goes against other arguements in the past, many people ask for realism and when they get it they dislike it.

As you say the fighter characters have many advantages in the game, but roleplay in my opinion is not one of them.

[Kidarien Rysdale]

well my char can't fight for anything so its already hard to get to say quartz sand without me bieng molested by flies, so i think random encounters should maybe be in more "advanced areas" you could kind of rp it in saying the gods protect certain areas or the monsters don't like the taste of noobs either way i think if an inexperienced character was to randomly find a mummy convieniently situated outside the mines hes hiding in he won't be able to enter that mine or even near it until a higher level char came along and attacked it. Anyways point bieng random encs are good but keep them away from people who are still attacking with thier shovels (Yes i know ).

[Dominik Windslasher ~]

Ok. To get things more straight. The random encounters could only happen on the world map and out of towns, but that doesn't mean a monster can't enter a town. And the place where the monsters appear IS random too.
Everyone who disagree is thinking about their characters dying and forgeting the reality inside the game. If the character can walk everywhere, why can't the monsters do the same? It is logical.
When I made the proposal, I thought I made it clear that the encounters could happen between PERIODS OF TIME, but it seems no one noticed this, uh? The monsters wouldn't be spawning everytime.

[falco1029]

Perhaps instead of this we have the monsters being able to roam anywhere?

[Dominik Windslasher ~]

I don't think they would wander too much far to call it a random encounter, but the idea is valid.

[Bloodhearte]

Haha yes your right, but this also goes against other arguements in the past, many people ask for realism and when they get it they dislike it.

Realism is good to an extent. Other than that it just gets boring - I might as well get off the computer and look for something to do in RL in that case.

As you say the fighter characters have many advantages in the game, but roleplay in my opinion is not one of them.

Fighters can role play just like anybody else. They have the advantage in that they can solve any problem they want to.

[Aristeaus]

Realism is good to an extent. Other than that it just gets boring - I might as well get off the computer and look for something to do in RL in that case.

I agree with you totally, im just useing past arguements though

Fighters can role play just like anybody else. They have the advantage in that they can solve any problem they want to.

I dont agree in this, unless you have a fighter and you dont want to be a bad ass villain like your good self, it is hard to find roleplay. If you work with others in your trade as the tailors and the carpenters work together, you get called a powergamer. If you dont do this, you are relegated to sit around on your own waiting for the next random monster attack.

[Moirear Sian]

Yeah, yeah, like some of the monster attacks in quests were not "random".

Jesting aside; I'd prefer wandering monsters ("Oh no! The undead approach!") over monsters going *poof!* and appearing nearby out of thin air. Makes it a little easier to roleplay along with logically, don't you think?

[Quinasa]

No. I like it the way it is my chocolate friend. But there could be some more scattered spawning spots which I'm sure there will be with the bigger map. I hope....

[Dominik Windslasher ~]

Well, after the monsters going *poof" and appearing out of nowhere they WILL wander.
The problem is them going *poof* while someone is passing by, that wouldn't be logical indeed.

[Gibble Thibblebum]

If the monsters going poof is the problem, I've seen several good solutions, the most basic of which is the old Gauntlet monster generator. It's only one step up from poofing and of course there's the reality issue of why can't my character go in a doorway that a monster twice his size just stepped out of but it's a step up at least.

Beyond that I've thought of an excellent system that makes monster generation totally realistic but it's involved enough that it will NEVER be implemented here, I'll have to wait till I'm a millionaire and have tons of free time to make a game up myself that implements it. Of course the problem then will be one already stated. People will complain that it is too realistic and tell me to go back to the monster generator.

Oh well, human nature is never satisfied.

[Gro'bul]

Just make them randomly spawn in a set number of locations away from town. This way they will be random, but at the same time you won't have to fight them unless your exploring or hunting them.

[Dominik Windslasher ~]

Let's put things like this.
The monster that will appear is random AND the place is random as well. And only ONE monster.

Is it any better?

[Aegohl]

It's not only not completely able to be realized via the scripting language, as I understand it, as I've already said, but also creates various dangers such as the map being overflooded with monsters during slow times, etc...

As I tried to explain, everything should be cause and effect. There is no such thing as random, as it were. Otherwise we expose ourselves to an unlimited amount of risk.

Also, I don't think random monster encounters are necessarily what players are looking for. I could make it happen on the current client by going in invisibley and summoning monsters randomly every thirty minutes or so. I have a feeling, however, that all that this would end with is the GM abuse mailbox being flooded. If that would end in such a way, why would players be more keen on an invisible NPC randomly spawning monsters?

Aegohl