Sneaky Quirks: Some Observations and Code Suggestions Related to Stealth Skills

Started by nauta, December 15, 2017, 11:41:50 AM

Having written up the New Players Guide to Playing a Sneak, I had a chance to reflect on some 'quirks' in the hide and stow/ready code.  These are code suggestions, with some of them more controversial than others.

1. Stow/Ready into/from sheaths. Stow/Ready do not allow you to stow/ready into/from an equipped sheath (despite what the help file states); you can only stow/ready into/from a belt (or your back).

Suggestion: stow/ready should be able to stow/ready into/from sheath objects.

2. Stow/Ready into/from inventory.  Stow/Ready also do not allow you to stow/ready into/from your inventory.  At present, there is no stealthy way to equip an item in your inventory into your primary or secondary hand.

Suggestion: 'stow/ready object': equips (or unequips) an object from/into inventory.
Alternative Suggestion: Make commands like 'hold', 'remove', 'rs', 'rp', 'ep', 'es', 'etwo' perform a sleight of hand check (just like 'change hands' does).

3. Ldesc as a strange shadow.  If you change ldesc while hidden as a strange shadow, people who detect you will see a default ldesc rather than your custom ldesc.  Having a custom ldesc allows the sneak to set the scene by portraying to those who detect them where in the room they are hiding.

Suggestion: Allow change ldesc to modify your ldesc while a shadow.

4. Hiding while holding a torch.  While it is in theory possible that this makes sense (you are blending into a crowd of virtual torch-bearers), the fact that virtual torch-bearers do not illuminate the room often makes this a rather jarring phenomenon. 

Suggestion: Disable the ability to engage hide if you have a lit object (be it a torch, a crystal, or lantern) equipped.

5. Mdesc Scramble.  If you your scan check defeats a hide check and you type 'look shadow' you will see the whole of your opponent's mdesc.  The help files insist that we should RP around this.  But what about using the scramble code (used on languages) to reflect this: if the scan check blows away the sneak's hide check, there would be no scramble at all (how it is now), but if it doesn't then there'd be a degree depending on how successful your scan check was: very successful applies the scramble code as it does when you have a language at advanced (minorly scrambled), moderately successful as if you were journeyman in a language, successful as if you were apprentice in a language, etc.

6. Watch and Hide.  In my experience, people have been able to hide from me even though I had a watch on them more often than not.  This could well be anecdotal, but it might be worth adjusting things to favor the watcher a bit more.  Change it to 50% more successful or something like that.

as IF you didn't just have them unconscious, naked, and helpless in the street 4 minutes ago

Quote from: nauta on December 15, 2017, 11:41:50 AM
Having written up the New Players Guide to Playing a Sneak, I had a chance to reflect on some 'quirks' in the hide and stow/ready code.  These are code suggestions, with some of them more controversial than others.

1. Stow/Ready into/from sheaths. Stow/Ready do not allow you to stow/ready into/from an equipped sheath (despite what the help file states); you can only stow/ready into/from a belt (or your back).

Suggestion: stow/ready should be able to stow/ready into/from sheath objects.

This is actually a bit weird, from what I've seen.

From what I've seen most (all?) sheaths (or at least forearm sheaths) don't allow you to ready/stow from them, but if you draw/sheathe from them, it says you do so "silently" and does a sleight of hand check for it.

--

So, going back to the other thread, you could technically slip a weapon in your inventory into a sheath, then draw it, if you were super confident about your stealth skills. :P

Quote from: KittenLicks on December 15, 2017, 12:04:03 PM
So, going back to the other thread, you could technically slip a weapon in your inventory into a sheath, then draw it, if you were super confident about your stealth skills. :P

I could be wrong since it's been a while, but I believe that you can't 'slip' an object into a sheath object either; you have to use 'sheath' or 'load'.
as IF you didn't just have them unconscious, naked, and helpless in the street 4 minutes ago

Stow/Ready was implemented to mimic functionality that existed for sheathes, not vice versa.

Can confirm that at least knife-belts allow you to draw from them silently (without an echo) if you have sleight of hand, as I was almost killed because of it a few times.  I assume the same is true for sheaths that don't involve the *click*.

I cannot confirm whether loading will be silent for the same sheaths/knife-belts.
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Quote from: nauta on December 15, 2017, 11:41:50 AM

4. Hiding while holding a torch.  While it is in theory possible that this makes sense (you are blending into a crowd of virtual torch-bearers), the fact that virtual torch-bearers do not illuminate the room often makes this a rather jarring phenomenon. 

Suggestion: Disable the ability to engage hide if you have a lit object (be it a torch, a crystal, or lantern) equipped.


I disagree.

It a small concession that adds more cool to the game then it takes away. It does take a little more creative thought to be able to explain stealth+ light source at in pitch dark but I don't feel it is impossible. Before we modify this, we should be making changes so that a small light source can't light up an entire area for everyone, and changes so that there are different levels of darkness, etc.

Quote from: Molten Heart on December 15, 2017, 02:23:08 PM
It'd be cool if those with slight of hand could draw weapons from sheaths like non-sneaky people so they can prevent giving away their sneaky nature, choosing they want to draw their sheathed weapons sneakily.

I would love a nosave Thief. 

Turn off all stealthy skills, so you could pretend to be horrible at sneaking and hiding with your master thief.  Including such things as sleight of hand, stealth, hide, and even pick.   I mean you can, but code sniffers will know it's just RP.   If there was a nosave for it, you could suspect anyone!  Which is great.

Quote from: KittenLicks on December 15, 2017, 12:04:03 PM
Quote from: nauta on December 15, 2017, 11:41:50 AM
So, going back to the other thread, you could technically slip a weapon in your inventory into a sheath, then draw it, if you were super confident about your stealth skills. :P

Can't sheathe lockpicks since they aren't weapons.
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