<!-- MHonArc v2.4.4 --> <!--X-Subject: [MUD-Dev] Re: Quest engines --> <!--X-From-R13: [vpunry.IvyyrlNnoanzeb.pbz --> <!--X-Date: Mon, 5 Oct 1998 13:19:28 -0700 --> <!--X-Message-Id: 86256694.006F7F9A.00#usmta04,itsc.na.abnamro.com --> <!--X-Content-Type: text/plain --> <!--X-Head-End--> <!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 3.2//EN"> <html> <head> <title>MUD-Dev message, [MUD-Dev] Re: Quest engines</title> <!-- meta name="robots" content="noindex,nofollow" --> <link rev="made" href="mailto:Michael.Willey#abnamro,com"> </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="msg00088.html">Previous</a> | <a href="msg00090.html">Next</a> ] Thread: [ <a href="msg00061.html">Previous</a> | <a href="msg00095.html">Next</a> ] Index: [ <A HREF="author.html#00089">Author</A> | <A HREF="#00089">Date</A> | <A HREF="thread.html#00089">Thread</A> ] <!--X-TopPNI-End--> <!--X-MsgBody--> <!--X-Subject-Header-Begin--> <H1>[MUD-Dev] Re: Quest engines</H1> <HR> <!--X-Subject-Header-End--> <!--X-Head-of-Message--> <UL> <LI><em>To</em>: <A HREF="mailto:mud-dev#kanga,nu">mud-dev#kanga,nu</A></LI> <LI><em>Subject</em>: [MUD-Dev] Re: Quest engines</LI> <LI><em>From</em>: <A HREF="mailto:Michael.Willey#abnamro,com">Michael.Willey#abnamro,com</A></LI> <LI><em>Date</em>: Mon, 5 Oct 1998 16:21:50 -0500</LI> <LI><em>Reply-To</em>: <A HREF="mailto:mud-dev#kanga,nu">mud-dev#kanga,nu</A></LI> </UL> <!--X-Head-of-Message-End--> <!--X-Head-Body-Sep-Begin--> <HR> <!--X-Head-Body-Sep-End--> <!--X-Body-of-Message--> <PRE> Raph writes: >Most quest engines rely on basic plot elements >that are combined and recombined in interesting >ways. The strength of them is that you can build >an easily extendable database to generate a TON >of unique quests. >The weakness--quests can seem rote or repetitious >or simplistic, and the work involved in making >the database large enough to prevent this problem >is very large. > >Basic premise: most quests are actually broken >into discrete individual actions. For example: > >- give Item A to mobile B. >- destroy Item A. >- kill mobile B. >etc > >For example, the entirety of Lord of the Rings >can be seen as "take this item to this location >and drop it." > >Interesting quests can then be made by linking >together basic elements. Here's an interesting idea: What if your quest engine generated not only quests, but "counter- quests", where a different person/group is given a quest that involves some of the same elements as the first, but in a combination such that both quest conditions cannot be fulfilled at the same time? If a primary quest of "take object A to mobile B" is created, a counter-quest could be to "destroy object A before it reaches mobile B". Using your LOTR analogy, the entire trilogy could be termed as exactly that: a counter-quest to "destroy object ONE_RING before it reaches mobile SAURON". For each quest you generate with your system, a number of conditions could arise that would make it's completion impossible - any of these could become a counter-quest. The point of such a system would be to partially remove the burden of providing unique challenges to the questors from the shoulders of the game designers. Instead, players would be given a reason to have conflict with one another, and these conflicts would have discrete goals rather than being just open warfare. I have been thinking through a similar scenario with my wife. We called it the "Spooky/Peaceful Forest" scenario. We were speculating that a persistent object A, when placed in location B, would cause the spirits of the dead to rise and haunt a specific area. If the object is instead placed in location C, the spirits would be allowed to rest. If we provided organization D, with a vested interest in keeping the area peaceful, and organization E, with a vested interest in keeping it haunted (perhaps they operate a toll road that a journey through the haunted woods would bypass?), then the two organizations would maintain a constant state of quest, as minions of the two groups tried to steal the object from each other or keep it from being stolen. </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="00095" HREF="msg00095.html">[MUD-Dev] Re: Quest engines</A></strong> <ul compact><li><em>From:</em> Hal Black <hal#moos,ml.org></li></ul> </UL></LI></UL> <!--X-Follow-Ups-End--> <!--X-References--> <!--X-References-End--> <!--X-BotPNI--> <UL> <LI>Prev by Date: <STRONG><A HREF="msg00088.html">[MUD-Dev] Spoofing (Psychopaths)</A></STRONG> </LI> <LI>Next by Date: <STRONG><A HREF="msg00090.html">[MUD-Dev] Re: Simulation (Was Re: Room descriptions)</A></STRONG> </LI> <LI>Prev by thread: <STRONG><A HREF="msg00061.html">[MUD-Dev] Re: Quest engines</A></STRONG> </LI> <LI>Next by thread: <STRONG><A HREF="msg00095.html">[MUD-Dev] Re: Quest engines</A></STRONG> </LI> <LI>Index(es): <UL> <LI><A HREF="index.html#00089"><STRONG>Date</STRONG></A></LI> <LI><A HREF="thread.html#00089"><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>[MUD-Dev] Re: simulation vs. storytelling is a fallacious distinction</STRONG>, <EM>(continued)</EM> <ul compact> <LI><strong><A NAME="00065" HREF="msg00065.html">[MUD-Dev] Re: simulation vs. storytelling is a fallacious distinction</A></strong>, ApplePiMan <a href="mailto:ApplePiMan#aol,com">ApplePiMan#aol,com</a>, Sun 04 Oct 1998, 05:08 GMT </LI> </ul> </LI> <LI><strong><A NAME="00059" HREF="msg00059.html">[MUD-Dev] Re: [Off-Topic] Patents (Was Re: Storytelling vs. Simulationist)</A></strong>, ApplePiMan <a href="mailto:ApplePiMan#aol,com">ApplePiMan#aol,com</a>, Sun 04 Oct 1998, 00:14 GMT <LI><strong><A NAME="00050" HREF="msg00050.html">[MUD-Dev] Re: Quest engines</A></strong>, Koster, Raph <a href="mailto:rkoster#origin,ea.com">rkoster#origin,ea.com</a>, Sat 03 Oct 1998, 18:06 GMT <UL> <li><Possible follow-up(s)><br> <LI><strong><A NAME="00061" HREF="msg00061.html">[MUD-Dev] Re: Quest engines</A></strong>, ApplePiMan <a href="mailto:ApplePiMan#aol,com">ApplePiMan#aol,com</a>, Sun 04 Oct 1998, 02:23 GMT </LI> <LI><strong><A NAME="00089" HREF="msg00089.html">[MUD-Dev] Re: Quest engines</A></strong>, Michael.Willey <a href="mailto:Michael.Willey#abnamro,com">Michael.Willey#abnamro,com</a>, Mon 05 Oct 1998, 20:19 GMT <UL> <LI><strong><A NAME="00095" HREF="msg00095.html">[MUD-Dev] Re: Quest engines</A></strong>, Hal Black <a href="mailto:hal#moos,ml.org">hal#moos,ml.org</a>, Mon 05 Oct 1998, 23:47 GMT </LI> </UL> </LI> </UL> </LI> <LI><strong><A NAME="00049" HREF="msg00049.html">[MUD-Dev] simulation vs. storytelling is a fallacious distinction</A></strong>, James Wilson <a href="mailto:jwilson#rochester,rr.com">jwilson#rochester,rr.com</a>, Sat 03 Oct 1998, 17:50 GMT <LI><strong><A NAME="00043" HREF="msg00043.html">[MUD-Dev] [DESIGN] To kill or not to kill? (non-violent conflict)</A></strong>, The Wildman <a href="mailto:wildman#microserve,net">wildman#microserve,net</a>, Sat 03 Oct 1998, 15:36 GMT <UL> <LI><strong><A NAME="00046" HREF="msg00046.html">[MUD-Dev] Re: [DESIGN] To kill or not to kill? (non-violent conflict)</A></strong>, Richard Woolcock <a href="mailto:KaVir#dial,pipex.com">KaVir#dial,pipex.com</a>, Sat 03 Oct 1998, 16:16 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>