Re: Olympia combat

From: fletcher@netcom.com (F. Sullivan Segal)

Date: Wed, 13 May 1992 20:24:06 +0000

In article <rwallace.705737972@unix1.tcd.ie> rwallace@unix1.tcd.ie (russell wallace) writes:
>I vote NO to flee check before combat. Furthermore, I propose that the
>flee system be abolished altogether. I also propose that the rule that
>when someone issues a MOVE order from a region, you only have one day in
>which to attack them, be abolished, and things be put back to the way
>they were before, where you were considered in your old region until you
>arrived at the new. Finally, I propose that an extra attitude be
>introduced, called something along the lines of "enemy", which means
>that if that entity appears during the turn you immediately drop
>whatever you're doing and attack it.
>
...

I don't see the game this way at all.  IMHO it *should* be nearly impossible
to kill a PC.  I am interested in wandering around, exploring, learning,
gathering, and generally adding to the athmosphere of the world.  I am
not interested in a contest to the death against players who started
20 odd turns before I did.

I don't really see this as a competitive game.  If it were everyone
would start out at equivalent levels, and there would be some incentive
(such as winning conditions) to kill other players off.  THIS IS NOT
THE CASE.

1.	It takes all of the fun out the of game to have your character
	killed.  Would you play Ultima more than a couple of times
	if you had to start from scratch each time your character
	was killed?  I wouldn't.

2.	There *are* other professions besides 'rampant killer' available
	in the gaming system.  It seems to me that anyone who depends
	on this profession for character development lacks the most
	basic sort of creativity.  I don't want to learn to defend
	myself... I'm not interested in killing other characters. (Seldon
	the 'Avatar' is a joke.)  I *want* to role-play my character
	as it develops (perhaps one of these:
		Professional Spell Researcher
		Thief
		Explorer
		Trader
		Performer
		Miner
		Engineer
		Banker
		Bum
		Grave digger)

3.	It would be more REALISTIC if you didn't play the PBM at all,
	but just went out into the streets and started killing people.
	Screw realism.  Make the game enjoyable.  Killing PC's is
	an absurd way to make the game progress.  At the extreme,
 	killed PC's should end up in Valhalla, where they can petition
	for their own resurrection in return for some quest.

4.	There should be a banking system which allows money to
	be deposited safely in the name of the faction so that there
	will be no reason to kill PC's except for revenge.

I would suggest that PC's have a defensive rating when attacked by
forces aligned with another faction, that most wandering critters
would be considered easier/more profitable for the trouble targets.
In cities there should be a city guard which will imprison anyone
who kills within the city boundaries.  Killing off any PC should be
a matter of extensive planning, perhaps surrounding the PC with
forces in every neighboring town, and attacking simultaneously.

Just some thoughts. -kls

References

Re: Olympia combat
rwallace@unix1.tcd.ie (russell wallace)
Wed, 13 May 1992 06:19:32 +0000

Referenced By

Re: Olympia combat
rwallace@unix1.tcd.ie (russell wallace)
Wed, 13 May 1992 06:19:32 +0000