<!-- MHonArc v2.4.4 --> <!--X-Subject: Re: Q: What are the coolest thief skills people have seen? --> <!--X-From-R13: pbqreNvoz.arg --> <!--X-Date: Fri, 28 Nov 1997 17:53:31 +0000 --> <!--X-Message-Id: 199711281753.RAA219726#out1,ibm.net --> <!--X-Content-Type: text/plain --> <!--X-Head-End--> <!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 3.2//EN"> <html> <head> <title>MUD-Dev message, Re: Q: What are the coolest thief skills people have seen?</title> <!-- meta name="robots" content="noindex,nofollow" --> <link rev="made" href="mailto:coder#ibm,net"> </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="msg00431.html">Previous</a> | <a href="msg00433.html">Next</a> ] Thread: [ <a href="msg00435.html">Previous</a> | <a href="msg00446.html">Next</a> ] Index: [ <A HREF="author.html#00432">Author</A> | <A HREF="#00432">Date</A> | <A HREF="thread.html#00432">Thread</A> ] <!--X-TopPNI-End--> <!--X-MsgBody--> <!--X-Subject-Header-Begin--> <H1>Re: Q: What are the coolest thief skills people have seen?</H1> <HR> <!--X-Subject-Header-End--> <!--X-Head-of-Message--> <UL> <LI><em>To</em>: <A HREF="mailto:mud-dev#null,net">mud-dev#null,net</A></LI> <LI><em>Subject</em>: Re: Q: What are the coolest thief skills people have seen?</LI> <LI><em>From</em>: <A HREF="mailto:coder#ibm,net">coder#ibm,net</A></LI> <LI><em>Date</em>: Fri, 28 Nov 97 09:30:27 -0800</LI> </UL> <!--X-Head-of-Message-End--> <!--X-Head-Body-Sep-Begin--> <HR> <!--X-Head-Body-Sep-End--> <!--X-Body-of-Message--> <PRE> From: jwagner#larry,cc.emory.edu (John Wagner) Newsgroups: rec.games.mud.diku Subject: Re: Q: What are the coolest thief skills people have seen? Date: 26 Nov 1997 16:15:06 -0500 Richard Woolcock (KaVir#dial,pipex.comNOSPAM) wrote: : The Wildman wrote: : > On Wed, 26 Nov 1997 05:31:19 -0600, johan.ingles#janes,co.uk uttered the words: : > >Most muds have their thieves do fairly standard things, : > >namely: : > >o Steal : > >o Sneak : > >o Hide : > >o Backstab : > >o Attack : > >o Dodge : > >o Piercing weapons : > >Now this is all well and good, but does anyone out there : > >have any suggestions for other thief skills or seen : > >anything on other muds that seems especially cool? : > > <A HREF="http://www.dejanews.com/">http://www.dejanews.com/</A> Search, Read, Post to Usenet : > What about picking locks, disarming traps, _setting_ traps (!), and other : > things that are too subtle for the warrior, and too physical for the mage. : > (And too unpieous for the cleric) : > Personally, I hate classes. I think a skill based system works better. But : > that's just me. : I prefer skill-based systems too, but you can still have thiefy-type skills. : A nice one that I've not seen on many muds is 'Disguise'. Another far more : common one is 'circle'. I believe (but don't quote me on it) that there is : a stock base which allows thieves to apply poison to their weapons. One : other power I saw somewhere a while ago that I think is quite nice is a : 'cut throat' type power, which results in the target bleeding to death over : a period of time. : KaVir. What is a thief? In the romantic sense a thief is good at getting into and out of places, to get at stuff- at using his body or tools or objects to get at things and get away with the posession. From what things might one steal objects? -Bodies (people) -Chests (containers) -Buildings -Vehicles (trains,boats, stagecoaches etc) And by what mechanisms do these things protect their posessions? for Bodies - Senses (sight, touch, smell, hearing), Clothing (moneybelts, purses) for Chests - Locks (tumbler, combination, skeleton) Strong walls (steel bands) Hidden compartments for Buildings - High walls, locked doors, barred doors, barred windows, moats, booby traps, strong doors, strong floors, strong rooves, hidden passages, hidden doors The art of the thief therefore is in overcoming these obstacles. Notice that booby traps are many and varied; however they generally operate on the principal of a small sensor device (trip wire, lever, pressure plate) actuating a large and violent force (bent back spiked pole, deep pit, loaded crossbow). Thus a successful thief must be sensitive to things; he must be able to -study- an item for sensor devices, to -study- a wall for possible hidden doors or alcoves, to -study- a wall for climbing niches in rock. If each procedure in an item's code could have a difficulty ranking in terms of how well it is hidden, then a successful clever (high INT + XP) thief might be able to sense that procedure in an item. For example: (whatever language) Item chest ( Chest description, property detectLevel=0,{} Procedure chesttrap, property detectLevel=35,{} Procedure hiddencompartment. property detectLevel=80, {} ); would allow a PC to immediately see the description, with some difficulty (versus studySkill+INT+randomfactor) sense the chesttrap and with extreme difficultty sense the hiddencompartment. You could add exits to rooms with detectLevels; exits ( North, property detectLevel=0,{/area/Wonkbat/northfield.c} South, property detectLevel=0,{/area/Wonkbat/bridge.c} East, property detectLevel=5,{/area/Wonkbat/hiddenpath.c} Up,property detectLevel=35,{/area/Wonkbat/roughwall.c} ); Thus studying a room would reveal more exits for the skilled thief/player. In action a 'thief' must have self-control and grace, to avoid senses such as a person's sense of feel, a tripwire, a pressureplate. You could add a property to the procedures/methods called 'sensitivity', which creates a threshold beyond which the trigger is tripped, the person or beast is alarmed. orcbeast ( senses {smellSense=20, touchSense=15, sightSense=20} if senses_triggered, attack()) chestTrap ( senses {smellSense=0, touchSense=80, sightSense=0} if senses_triggered, explode()) To which a thief could attempt to be_gentle(increases lightness of touch), hide_smell (increase nonsmelliness.. Bathe? Clothes?),conceal_self (increase hiddenness). Compare the levels of the sensitivity with the thief's levels plus a random factor to determine if the procedure (attack, explode, etc) is activated. What do you think? John Wagner jwagner#emory,edu -- J C Lawrence Internet: claw#null,net ----------(*) Internet: coder#ibm,net ...Honourary Member of Clan McFud -- Teamer's Avenging Monolith... </PRE> <!--X-Body-of-Message-End--> <!--X-MsgBody-End--> <!--X-Follow-Ups--> <HR> <ul compact><li><strong>Follow-Ups</strong>: <ul> <li><strong><A NAME="00446" HREF="msg00446.html">Thief skills, Dream Park and me (again)</A></strong> <ul compact><li><em>From:</em> Ling <K.L.Lo-94#student,lboro.ac.uk></li></ul> </UL></LI></UL> <!--X-Follow-Ups-End--> <!--X-References--> <!--X-References-End--> <!--X-BotPNI--> <UL> <LI>Prev by Date: <STRONG><A HREF="msg00431.html">Lots of things about me (long)</A></STRONG> </LI> <LI>Next by Date: <STRONG><A HREF="msg00433.html">Re: Ho hum</A></STRONG> </LI> <LI>Prev by thread: <STRONG><A HREF="msg00435.html">Re: Ho hum</A></STRONG> </LI> <LI>Next by thread: <STRONG><A HREF="msg00446.html">Thief skills, Dream Park and me (again)</A></STRONG> </LI> <LI>Index(es): <UL> <LI><A HREF="index.html#00432"><STRONG>Date</STRONG></A></LI> <LI><A HREF="thread.html#00432"><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><A NAME="00433" HREF="msg00433.html">Re: Ho hum</A></strong>, coder <a href="mailto:coder#ibm,net">coder#ibm,net</a>, Fri 28 Nov 1997, 18:08 GMT <UL> <LI><strong><A NAME="00844" HREF="msg00844.html">Re: [MUD-Dev] Re: Ho hum</A></strong>, JC Lawrence <a href="mailto:claw#under,Eng.Sun.COM">claw#under,Eng.Sun.COM</a>, Tue 16 Dec 1997, 00:35 GMT </LI> </UL> <UL> <li><Possible follow-up(s)><br> <LI><strong><A NAME="00434" HREF="msg00434.html">Re: Ho hum</A></strong>, coder <a href="mailto:coder#ibm,net">coder#ibm,net</a>, Fri 28 Nov 1997, 18:32 GMT </LI> <LI><strong><A NAME="00435" HREF="msg00435.html">Re: Ho hum</A></strong>, coder <a href="mailto:coder#ibm,net">coder#ibm,net</a>, Fri 28 Nov 1997, 18:33 GMT </LI> </UL> </LI> <LI><strong><A NAME="00432" HREF="msg00432.html">Re: Q: What are the coolest thief skills people have seen?</A></strong>, coder <a href="mailto:coder#ibm,net">coder#ibm,net</a>, Fri 28 Nov 1997, 17:53 GMT <UL> <LI><strong><A NAME="00446" HREF="msg00446.html">Thief skills, Dream Park and me (again)</A></strong>, Ling <a href="mailto:K.L.Lo-94#student,lboro.ac.uk">K.L.Lo-94#student,lboro.ac.uk</a>, Sat 29 Nov 1997, 16:41 GMT <UL> <LI><strong><A NAME="00451" HREF="msg00451.html">Re: [MUD-Dev] Thief skills, Dream Park and me (again)</A></strong>, Adam Wiggins <a href="mailto:nightfall#user2,inficad.com">nightfall#user2,inficad.com</a>, Sun 30 Nov 1997, 10:58 GMT <UL> <LI><strong><A NAME="00462" HREF="msg00462.html">Vague: Containers</A></strong>, Ling <a href="mailto:K.L.Lo-94#student,lboro.ac.uk">K.L.Lo-94#student,lboro.ac.uk</a>, Mon 01 Dec 1997, 15:08 GMT </LI> </UL> </LI> <LI><strong><A NAME="00455" HREF="msg00455.html">Re: [MUD-Dev] Thief skills, Dream Park and me (again)</A></strong>, Richard Woolcock <a href="mailto:KaVir#dial,pipex.com">KaVir#dial,pipex.com</a>, Sun 30 Nov 1997, 15:40 GMT </LI> </UL> </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>