Run-of-the-Mill NPCs ... or, background life..

[The7DeadlyVenomz]

On several other MUD codebases that I've tampered with, random NPCs were utilized. In other words, an NPC would load with a random picking of several characteristics, ie: the charcoal-haired, red-eyed man and the amber-haired, grey-eyed man were the same VNUM, but were created with the random NPC option.

Has the Staff considered this option before? While I am aware that NPCs here are given face, obviously, they can't all be given face, and in fact, those that are not are ripe for future indivualization based on PC actions and history and background.

The manner in which this is implemented via the code is as follows:

Code Select Expand


# = a bright colors list
! = a features list
@ = a body list

the #-eyed, @ man can load as:
the sapphire-eyed, hulking man
the emerald-eyed, thin man
etc.


WIth this option in hand, you could easily add a large number of NPCs to locations such as Tuluk, Allanak, and other places where there should be a lot of NPCs ... a lot of population. It would also make creating characters on the fly an easy task, if you could add a name generator to the variables.

[LoD]

Building on this idea, I wouldn't mind seeing a few "groups" of NPC's swap in and out of zones every reboot or few reboots to give the world a little bit different of a face.

I mean, how often are those same Byn going to sit in the Gaj.  Will the dark haired man leaning at the bar in the Barrel EVER get up?  Would a small uprising of thugs in the 'rinth hanging aroudn their PC leader maybe try to make a showing now and again?  It'd be very refreshing to see some different rotations of IC groups represented by NPC's loaded about the city-states and outposts to lend a bit more diversity than the groups we've all become accustomed to seeing lounging about in certain areas.

Add a few scripts for the "talk" command that tells a little about who they all are and you have even more interesting additions, even entities that Imms can use to start up some quests.  Perhaps a group of adventures seekers starts showing up in the Gaj from time to time.  Maybe an group of elven traders take over a small portion of the bazaar for a month while they peddle their wares and gather others.

Lots of fun opportunities.

-LoD

[The7DeadlyVenomz]

Excellent thoughts.

In fact, above and beyond the random NPCs and their actions, let's have a discussion of things that can occur in the NPC world, as opposed to our world, to liven it up.

I think seeing bands of soldier-guarded workers in the fields outside of Allanak would be a great addition. Emotes by these enities along the lines of what they are doing and what they are watching would be cool.

Code Select Expand


A unit of Allanaki soldiers watchs over the workers here.
A barbaric slavemaster strides between the groups of slaves here.
A group of slaves work the fields here.

A barbaric slavemaster stops as he passes a hunched half-elf, and commences beating upon the slave's scarred back.

The Captain of a unit of Allanaki soldiers spits to the side, watching several of the soldiers playing a game of Kruth.

One of a group of slaves collapses under the heat of Suk-Krath. A few of the other slaves drag his lifeless body away to the side before returning to work.


Of course, upon the advent of late afternoon, off these workers go to the city, escorted by the soldiers, and both can trans themselves to a waiting room until morning, when they load themsleves back into the world.

[Halaster]

Not a bad idea, overall.  In fact, Morgenes had this very code in place on Aldara all those years ago, if I'm not mistaken.  We most definitely have the ability to do this in multiple ways - through the C code-base or through javascript add-ons.

Mud also got emailed an idea from some former staff of another RPI game similar to this about randomizing npc's.  A totally different approach and method, but a rather neat one that we've considered using.

[Morgenes]

The problem with NPCs like this is even with random changes, the main description is predominately the same, and it becomes obvious when you've looked at the tenth something-skinned, something-eyed man what you're looking at.  I think some of the other ideas for randomly placing npcs will definately help, and things like the SimDesert applied to SimAllanak or SimRinth would be a much better staff effort.

[Hymwen]

What about something like...

Make a whole bunch of NPCs similar to the ones we have in the cities now, and have them spawn somewhere, do their thing for, say, a few hours, and then be replaced by something else? Or would that be too strange/problematic to do? I find it a little silly when the same handful of NPCs always occupy the same street, especially when they have some action in their ldesc. That dwarf has been dragging his cart along Caravan road every day, all day, for many many years. Give him a break once in a while! Maybe his basket-carrying elven colleague could replace him on Abid and Cingel? Just an example, but I think you get the idea.

Edit: realized that I'm basically repeating something already posted. Someone teach me to read posts before replying, please?  :?

[jhunter]

I'd like to see some of these npcs that are -always- sitting in the same place actually go about their day doing different things. Dependant upon the time of day and what day it is.