Goblin Squad Member
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I'd like to present some community suggestions to the developers of "Stuff" we want to see when we log into the game on Day 1.
For my part the first thing that comes to mind: I'd love to see a dramatic spread of varied terrain, with significant elevation changes, verdant forests both dense and sparse, streams and rivers, and most importantly, the ability to access all areas of a undeveloped hex. I'd love more than anything to be able to see a great wall of stone and be able to jump my character on to its face and work my way to the top. If I find something other than an awesome view at the top, I'm triple excited. Conversely if I want to stick my face in the muck of the bottom of a river, I'd love to see some mechanics and abilities that support that, or that I might even derive some resource from.
I'm so irrationally excited for this game, I'll stop myself here before I cast Wall of Text for 10k damage to your attention span. If I could request one thing of the community, post only what you DO want, not what you don't want to see.
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Goblin Squad Member
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A deep deep crafting system.
Some variation and flexibility in the appearance of crafted items. The ability to 'design' items, even if only from selections you have learned.
So say I can make an iron sword, but I can also make gems. I have the option to make an iron sword with a jeweled pommel.
Or I can make a bow of yew wood, or of ebony, and that dictates the colour (and perhaps its longevity).
Clothing with different weaves and patterns.
Different crafters master or discover different unique looks and combinations of materials, to literally be able to look at someone's helm and think 'Is that a Gruffling helm? He does great work!'
An amazing crafting system is probably the single toughest thing to get right in an mmo today. And this is possibly because of limitations to the game systems, but when you think about sandbox games and the ability to influence it, the crafting and creation process, from leather boots to castles, is the one thing that can really allow a good player to add something to the world.
I'll second the deep, deep crafting system.
I want one so deep that the only thing the players can't craft are artifacts and cursed items. Everything else, player-craftable.
While I'm spending the 2 1/2 years to attain the capstone for my (first) butt-kicking archetype, my guy / gal / goblin should be learning "job" skills (player crafting, resource harvesting, architecture and engineering, ad nauseam). Everyone has to pay for their free chow, room, storage space and bathing. Apprenticeships work on that basis. Learning the trade in trade for contributing ever-increasing productivity to the master instructing you. Fluff to explain why you get a free crib and protection while logged off.
Researching magic item formulae, rare smelting and alloying techniques and the secret lore of Leng/ the Dreamlands/ tomes of mind-eroding Stuff that Man Was Not Meant to Know.
Being able to use that research. You and / or your buddies erect a reasearch tower out in the hinterlands. Research begins while the rest of the growing "Area 53" continues being built to protect it. Once you've concluded the project, the knowledge is learned. Refurbish the tower according to the needs of your next project. Share the knowledge with any one qualified to learn it.
In a game meant to have player-driven drama, there needs to be more than (a) for the lulz, (b) for territory and its resources and (c) for the lulz. The players could elect to expand the influence of the NPC city-states, including that of the wretched hive of scum and villainy. Have that influence show up on the map and in the world.
If the Knights of Ni exert their energy in expanding the (good guy city's) sphere of influence, others can counter that influence by either razing the Knights' efforts, expanding the Hellknights' influence or even trashing both of these in order to aid and abett the wretched hive of scum and villainy. If the Knights succeed in contributing enough sustained effort, the NPC sphere of influence could expand in accordance.
NPC groups should be Doing Stuff behind the scenes. Over time the map should change not only in accordance with what the players have done but also in combination with the pre-existing Lore AND the progression of real time. The calendar should march its inexorable march. Suns and moons rise, set, wax and wane. Seasons change, leaves change colors, winter melts into spring, springs marches into summer. Summer melts into fall before winter swings 'round once more. Holidays and festivals are celebrated. Families are born and buried. Wars should happen. A punitive expedition from off-map marches down the crusader's way - can the players stop it before they invest (city X)? If they do, can the players cooperate and crush those who dare interfere in THEIR turf?
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Goblin Squad Member
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Avoid really heavy grinds.
I can see it for gathering resources to build a really big settlement, but please be careful with equipment design. Falling into the temptation of having one or two really uber must have weapons seems to be a key feature of theme park MMOs: it's how they keep the players running certain quests over and over. Then when enough people have the weapon, they introduce something even better and the weapon people spent months grinding for is suddenly obsolete.
Such a mindless, frustrating way to approach game design, in my opinion.
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Goblin Squad Member
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Agree on allowing cursed items to be made by players.
I once had a character go to a player mage to have some amulet made. The other guy actually made a necklace of strangulation and sold it to me, as payback for a little breaking and entering I had done and thought I got away with. I gave the mage player kudos for a well-played killing.
Crafting systems are why i play MMO's often. EQ2 had a WICKED crafting system when it came out... back when you needed parts made by other players... Now it sucks cause you can excel at everything.
Stability is always a big one.
Cursed items made by players is cool... but i could see some form of exploits being done. Bracers of Arrow Attraction would be good for a tank if he had a healer....
If we are needing to mine, lumber, etc for our guys... being able to setup Vendors that could buy/sell Things Right from the get go. Lineage 2 had a good system, but sadly it was very laggy. Perhaps an Auction house system you could sell too? Or perhaps you have to go to each persons domain to sell to them?
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Goblin Squad Member
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On the topic of cursed items...that raises another interesting topic. Why should by fighter be able to tell on looting an item, all it's magical properties? In fact, why would he be able to tell any properties at all other than appearance and weight?
This means a player might PK someone, loot them...and find really cool looking bracers. He would put these bracers on to check his stat effects...and find he can no longer effectively stealth because he is surrounded by faerie fire...and can't remove the bracers...
I would love to see this as a possibility. I also hope for the cool crafting system, including magical crafting (enchants). Give us a bunch of enchant effect (apparently good and/or bad) and let us decide what to do with them. It's like they say, one man's curse is another man's buff...or something like that.
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Goblin Squad Member
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On the topic of cursed items...that raises another interesting topic. Why should by fighter be able to tell on looting an item, all it's magical properties? In fact, why would he be able to tell any properties at all other than appearance and weight?
This means a player might PK someone, loot them...and find really cool looking bracers. He would put these bracers on to check his stat effects...and find he can no longer effectively stealth because he is surrounded by faerie fire...and can't remove the bracers...
I would love to see this as a possibility. I also hope for the cool crafting system, including magical crafting (enchants). Give us a bunch of enchant effect (apparently good and/or bad) and let us decide what to do with them. It's like they say, one man's curse is another man's buff...or something like that.
It would be fun to send out a bunch of fresh characters out into hot-zones for open pvp with nothing but gear with awesome stats but crippling high identify skill requirement curses in their inventory. Would make people second-guess looting husks.
I would love to see a magic rock that you can bind to your self, that when picked up by another person becomes locked into it's position in space momentarily drops out of phase, enlarges and re-enters their phase around their hand, effectively holding them in place until death or a high skill mage comes along.
Goblinworks Executive Founder
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Cursed items made by players is cool... but i could see some form of exploits being done. Bracers of Arrow Attraction would be good for a tank if he had a healer....
Up until I unleash the wildly inaccurate arrow of disintegrate armor. Or just trust that a team of rangers can outdamage a team of clerics...
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Goblin Squad Member
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I love the idea of cursed items being lootable, although I think there should be some sort of penalty to even carrying a cursed item around with you, even if it's not equipped.
I also really like the idea of having to get an item identified if it's magical. It might be slightly frustrating at times to have to go back to civilization and find someone to identify it, but in reality, those kinds of unexpected trips and player-encounters are extremely ripe for generating new "content".
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Goblin Squad Member
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So far we've got interesting and accessible terrain, multiple hits for a deep crafting system (that avoids pidgeon holing uber-gear), and some simple requests for stability and seamlessness. A fine start to be sure.
To continue, I really hope we see the art direction driven by the excellent illustrations of Wayne Reynolds, and to see a great capacity for individualizing one's character. i spent the first 2 hours of champions-online just creating my first character, tweaking all the little details (too bad the rest of the game lacked such depth)
As for player generated cursed items, i'd like to say that's fun, but in truth the capacity for exploit and abuse kind of turns me off. Maybe I'm wrong, but seems like another concept that just doesn't translate from table to online.