ARMAWAGON

[mansa]

Sat, 12 Aug 2000
This was posted.  This was implemented.  This was removed from the game later that year, in 2000.
What's the chance that I can bribe some immortal to look at this code again?  I'll wear whatever you want me to...

Azroen[/url]"]
Prefacing this by stating that this code has been long in the coming, and been helped along by many people. Nessalin has contributed the majority of the base code, and Tenebrius and Morgenes have helped fixing bugs, and getting things to work right. So kudos to them for laying the foundation so I could take it up and finish it for player use. This should be an excellent system.

ARMAWAGON
Introduction
Wagons currently are large, mobile, indestructable shelters that allow a person or clan to do almost whatever they wish. Once inside a wagon, there is no stopping it, which detracts from the game. Part of the thrill of Armageddon is the danger, and with wagons, much of this element is removed. So we've designed a system, years in the making, to balance wagons with the rest of the world, as well as to still make them fun, and sought after. The latter half of that was the hard part, though I believe we have succeeded.

How it works

Many new features and "rules" are going to be applied to wagons. THe first and foremost, which will be the most apparant is that beasts are required to pull the wagons. No beasts and the wagon won't move. The rest of the code builds from this foundation.

New features:

   * Mounts are required: The harness command can be used to place mounts into the wagon team, and the unharness command is used to remove them. The maximum number of mounts that can be harnessed to a wagon is different on each wagon. Smaller wagons will only have 1-3 mounts able to pull it, while larger ones may need 8-10 mounts in order to pull it efficiently.
   * New pilot commands: Read help pilot for more information. But to sum up, a pilot is able to issue commands to the wagon team through the pilot command.
   * Lead-reins: These are the imaginary reins that are hooked to the wagon-team, and which are used to command them. With the pilot command, the reins can be lowered to the ground(so that mounts may be harnessed or unharnessed) or raised(so that the pilot can control his team). If the reins are lowered then the lead mount can be hitched. If the lead mount is hitched, then the pilot will not be able to pull the reins back inside the wagon. Vice versa, if the lead-reins are within the wagon, the lead mount is unhitchable.
   * Wagon-trains: It is now possible to follow wagons, and when they move, you will follow. So people can walk along outside a wagon guarding it, or what have you.
   * Damageable: Wagons will take damage now, and can be disabled. You will not be able to attack a wagon, nor cast spells at a wagon, in an attempt to damage it. Wagons will only take damage through movement. So those people who like to take wagons exploring through a mountainous, rocky area, will soon find themselves walking. Another word of note, is that in addition to taking minor damage to the wagon due to driving through one of the various barrier spells, your mounts are going to be fairly pissed and wounded as well.
   * Repairable: A secondary skill is on its way, "Wagon-repair." It will work like the other secondary skills, and is used to maintain/repair your wagon.
   * Towable: Wagons will be hitchable to other wagons, so they can be towed around. The primary use for this is for when a wagon becomes disabled, you can call the local Zalanthas AAA office, who can send out a tow wagon. In the future other objects will be hitchable to wagons(one word: siege).

Explanatory helpfiles

Read pilot, wagon, and harness helpfiles. They have been updated, and contain much necessary information.

What this all means

Wagon code is changing, but it isn't completely finished yet. It has been tested for a while, some features for a long while. But some parts are still being done, and other parts, while technically finished, I'd like some player use and feedback so I can tweak it. Currently, if your wagon is not set up to allow mounts to be harnessed to it, you can not hook mounts up to it. So those who want to try this, mail your clan immortal, mail the mud account, or wish in the game asking for this to be set.

TWO WEEK TEST PEROID

We plan on giving this code change a 2-week grace period before it becomes mandatory. This will give wagon owners time to purchase enough mounts to pull your wagons. This will also give a chance for those who wish to, to voluntarily switch over to this new system, and to test it. Bugs should be mailed to me directly, azroen@ginka.armageddon.org as should "tweaking" concerns. On Saturday, August 26th, we plan on making the move to requiring mounts to pull wagons. Unless a major bug comes up, this time frame should be meetable.

Thank you

For all the staff and players who have been testing this for me, thanks. And for those who will voluntarily switch over during this grace period to help test for the rest of the population, thank you.

[Spud]

Fricken sweet. I'd love to see it.

[Xygax]

Unfortunately, the code that does this is some of the most difficult code in the game to maintain, from what I've seen.

-- X

[HunterKiller]

wasn't this Azroen's baby?  Used it for a bit and seemed okay but didn't push the code at all.  :-)

- HK