<!-- MHonArc v2.4.4 --> <!--X-Subject: Re: Resets and repops --> <!--X-From-R13: Theonyy <Y.Z.Zb-94Nfghqrag.yhg.np.hx> --> <!--X-Date: from tacitus.globecomm.net [207.51.48.7] by mx01.ca.us.ibm.net id 858731305.69172-1 Wed Mar 19 00:28:25 1997 --> <!--X-Message-Id: Pine.SOL.3.95.970318223047.13436C-100000@sun-cc203 --> <!--X-Content-Type: text/plain --> <!--X-Reference: 199703180142.BAA159180#out2,ibm.net --> <!--X-Head-End--> <!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 3.2//EN"> <html> <head> <title>MUD-Dev message, Re: Resets and repops</title> <!-- meta name="robots" content="noindex,nofollow" --> <link rev="made" href="mailto:K.L.Lo-94#student,lut.ac.uk"> </head> <body background="/backgrounds/paperback.gif" bgcolor="#ffffff" text="#000000" link="#0000FF" alink="#FF0000" vlink="#006000"> <font size="+4" color="#804040"> <strong><em>MUD-Dev<br>mailing list archive</em></strong> </font> <br> [ <a href="../">Other Periods</a> | <a href="../../">Other mailing lists</a> | <a href="/search.php3">Search</a> ] <br clear=all><hr> <!--X-Body-Begin--> <!--X-User-Header--> <!--X-User-Header-End--> <!--X-TopPNI--> Date: [ <a href="msg00139.html">Previous</a> | <a href="msg00141.html">Next</a> ] Thread: [ <a href="msg00139.html">Previous</a> | <a href="msg00144.html">Next</a> ] Index: [ <A HREF="author.html#00140">Author</A> | <A HREF="#00140">Date</A> | <A HREF="thread.html#00140">Thread</A> ] <!--X-TopPNI-End--> <!--X-MsgBody--> <!--X-Subject-Header-Begin--> <H1>Re: Resets and repops</H1> <HR> <!--X-Subject-Header-End--> <!--X-Head-of-Message--> <UL> <LI><em>To</em>: Mud Dev Mailing List <<A HREF="mailto:mud-dev#null,net">mud-dev#null,net</A>></LI> <LI><em>Subject</em>: Re: Resets and repops</LI> <LI><em>From</em>: Furball <<A HREF="mailto:K.L.Lo-94#student,lut.ac.uk">K.L.Lo-94#student,lut.ac.uk</A>></LI> <LI><em>Date</em>: Wed, 19 Mar 1997 00:28:26 +0000 (GMT)</LI> <LI><em>Reply-To</em>: Furball <<A HREF="mailto:K.L.Lo-94#student,lut.ac.uk">K.L.Lo-94#student,lut.ac.uk</A>></LI> </UL> <!--X-Head-of-Message-End--> <!--X-Head-Body-Sep-Begin--> <HR> <!--X-Head-Body-Sep-End--> <!--X-Body-of-Message--> <PRE> On Mon, 17 Mar 1997, Jon A. Lambert wrote: > I heartily agree with your sentiments. I am attempting something > similar. I treat most NPCs identically to characters. The subsystems > that NPCs run issue commands to an input buffer. In like fashion, the > players' input buffers are written to by the network process. That's what I do for most games I write, I had a simple strategy working on a server/client basis where each civilisation would only see as much as the player could see. The concept being that the game could expand to cover network use if someone made a daemon to handle input from other sources. In effect, this meant the player was actually using a client to connect to a server. > subsystems. Thus not all NPC scripts are active and consuming resources > all the time. For instance city guard captains are programmed to issue > patrol orders and attack orders to their charges. An interesting side > affect is that by taking out a "marshall" or subsystem controller, a > great amount of chaos ensues until a replacement NPC is found. Could you expand on this a bit more please? So how would the subsystems cope without a master? Surely they would simply turn idle? I had some idea for the above game which went something like: You can assign personalities to rule regions of your empire or command fleets and work out battle tactics but the computation was still the same. The server didn't simplify things though so even the AI would have to cope with the same complexities. > program is inherited by the replacement PC or NPC. I am hoping that > over time the subsystems continue to evolve according to the > personality/whims of the players running them. Should a subsystem be Sounds like the drones from a Dr. Who book: Subsystem. They eventually reflected their masters' personalities. > This mechanism is not clear yet. PCs can also create and assign > subsystems to hirelings such as a shop which they have purchased or a > steward they have hired to watch over their holdings while they are > away. Including NPCs to help in adventuring? I always liked the idea of having NPCs who will join up and help out, possibly as a follower. I reckon that players might even get attached to their NPCs if they were allowed to train up or maybe even learn new tricks/commands. Teach them a few key words to trigger on or maybe a style of fighting... > It may be that Apollo might wish to delay the sunrise to allow a > favored player to gain advantage in an early morning attack or Artemis > decides that an eclipse would be appropriate to auger a significant > event. With the NPC always "playing", it is possible for them to > respond in an automated way to sacrifices, prayers and quests. There > are many other possibilities, as I decide which dieties' subsystems > control which mud events. This sounds really good because if you make a fantasy world, there's no reason why things like this can't happen given the fact that the people at the time did actually believe in this. Magic, for example, is only one aspect of something which people used to believe in which is implemented in muds so there's no reason something like the above can't be made too. With respect to what ChrisG wrote: I don't know what dikus actually do for repops but in LPMuds, the driver has random reset time defined at compile time. Every now and then, it calls reset() in an object. This reset() can be for anything. For rooms, it's usually some code to restock the location with what should be there. For NPCs, reset() is also used to move in a random direction to give the impression of sme life. Having said all that, I realise having a loaded area which doesn't do a lot is a complete waste of resources so maybe it would be better if the area is filed off to disk when players leave the vicinity. If a player enters an adjacent area, the area loads back in and starts populating the area. Some areas, like city streets and shops would be better off with almost random populations with the exception of certain key NPCs or people (eg: shop owners :). For that CRPG, I had planned for NPCs walking around on a pulse, being tile based, they would avoid each other, cross the street, enter shops, hail a taxi, wave to their friend(s), go home, etc. I had hoped to include things like guards patrolling would eventually need to change shift and you could trace them back to their homes (NPCs have lives too!) then mug them or something. As for having things like that HQ sending in a replacement for the 23rd, maybe it's too specific. Let's say a gang just got wiped out. Kind of silly to have them reset and reinstalled in their former glory. A cheap option would be to reset them but give them generated names in all the appropriate places (so all the gang name scrawls on their turf will change too).... Oh, and because the gang has been decimated, the new gang should have a different standing and treasure trove... Ciao | "Swing it, shake it, move it, make it, _O_O_ Ling - Freshwater fish Who do you think you are?" - Spice Girls </PRE> <!--X-Body-of-Message-End--> <!--X-MsgBody-End--> <!--X-Follow-Ups--> <HR> <!--X-Follow-Ups-End--> <!--X-References--> <!--X-References-End--> <!--X-BotPNI--> <UL> <LI>Prev by Date: <STRONG><A HREF="msg00139.html">Re: Resets and repops</A></STRONG> </LI> <LI>Next by Date: <STRONG><A HREF="msg00141.html">I got your message..!</A></STRONG> </LI> <LI>Prev by thread: <STRONG><A HREF="msg00139.html">Re: Resets and repops</A></STRONG> </LI> <LI>Next by thread: <STRONG><A HREF="msg00144.html">Re: Resets and repops</A></STRONG> </LI> <LI>Index(es): <UL> <LI><A HREF="index.html#00140"><STRONG>Date</STRONG></A></LI> <LI><A HREF="thread.html#00140"><STRONG>Thread</STRONG></A></LI> </UL> </LI> </UL> <!--X-BotPNI-End--> <!--X-User-Footer--> <!--X-User-Footer-End--> <ul><li>Thread context: <BLOCKQUOTE><UL> <LI><STRONG>Re: Resets and repops</STRONG>, <EM>(continued)</EM> <ul compact> <LI><strong><A NAME="00134" HREF="msg00134.html">Re: Resets and repops</A></strong>, Chris Gray <a href="mailto:cg#ami-cg,GraySage.Edmonton.AB.CA">cg#ami-cg,GraySage.Edmonton.AB.CA</a>, Tue 18 Mar 1997, 15:05 GMT </LI> <LI><strong><A NAME="00136" HREF="msg00136.html">Re: Resets and repops</A></strong>, Chris Gray <a href="mailto:cg#ami-cg,GraySage.Edmonton.AB.CA">cg#ami-cg,GraySage.Edmonton.AB.CA</a>, Tue 18 Mar 1997, 23:44 GMT </LI> <LI><strong><A NAME="00138" HREF="msg00138.html">Re: Resets and repops</A></strong>, Adam Wiggins <a href="mailto:nightfall#inficad,com">nightfall#inficad,com</a>, Wed 19 Mar 1997, 00:57 GMT </LI> <LI><strong><A NAME="00139" HREF="msg00139.html">Re: Resets and repops</A></strong>, claw <a href="mailto:claw#null,net">claw#null,net</a>, Wed 19 Mar 1997, 01:00 GMT </LI> <LI><strong><A NAME="00140" HREF="msg00140.html">Re: Resets and repops</A></strong>, Furball <a href="mailto:K.L.Lo-94#student,lut.ac.uk">K.L.Lo-94#student,lut.ac.uk</a>, Wed 19 Mar 1997, 08:28 GMT </LI> <LI><strong><A NAME="00144" HREF="msg00144.html">Re: Resets and repops</A></strong>, Nathan Yospe <a href="mailto:yospe#hawaii,edu">yospe#hawaii,edu</a>, Thu 20 Mar 1997, 07:49 GMT </LI> <LI><strong><A NAME="00150" HREF="msg00150.html">Re: Resets and repops</A></strong>, Jon A. Lambert <a href="mailto:jlsysinc#ix,netcom.com">jlsysinc#ix,netcom.com</a>, Thu 20 Mar 1997, 13:23 GMT </LI> <LI><strong><A NAME="00151" HREF="msg00151.html">Re: Resets and repops</A></strong>, Jon A. Lambert <a href="mailto:jlsysinc#ix,netcom.com">jlsysinc#ix,netcom.com</a>, Thu 20 Mar 1997, 14:40 GMT </LI> <LI><strong><A NAME="00153" HREF="msg00153.html">Re: Resets and repops</A></strong>, claw <a href="mailto:claw#null,net">claw#null,net</a>, Fri 21 Mar 1997, 02:57 GMT </LI> </ul> </LI> </UL></BLOCKQUOTE> </ul> <hr> <center> [ <a href="../">Other Periods</a> | <a href="../../">Other mailing lists</a> | <a href="/search.php3">Search</a> ] </center> <hr> </body> </html>