Creating Southern Newbie Wildlife

[The7DeadlyVenomz]

So, when I first thought about this, I asked myself, "Well, what about baby scrab?"

I still think baby scrab would be a clever addition to the southern hunters' environment. But what about more diverse creatures that could still be handled by newbies? Creatures that don't require a new race to be built, or new ecology to be 'discovered'?

Maybe dog-sized ants that are too armored to move fast, that secret a meager poison on the order of bloodburn? Skinning them would produce a few items like scrab legs and pincers, and a generic chitin that exists already. Less building for staff.

What about buzzards? Let's see more buzzards in the south, making arrow-making marginally more realistic down there. Perhaps in combat they get a ton of weak attacks, but no defense.

What about the bone that you use to make some arrows? Perhaps we could have more johzals, or even baby johzals, that are not as fast, but still hide, to keep the idea of that lizard alive but which allows newer characters to hunt them.

Basically, I would like to hear about ideas to help the southern hunting scene, while not departing from the southern theme of harder living. It's possible. And it would really help newbie southern characters, on the same order that newbie northern characters have it, while having a completely different feel to it.

[Lizzie]

I think there could be more reptillian creatures in the south, with skinnable skins rather than chitin. What about a new variety of raptors? Same ones as usual - but a little smaller, slower, not quite as clever, will eventually get bored chasing its prey even if they took a taste already...maybe be less defensive against throwing and slashing, but more defensive against clubbing and piercing...and their claws would be less sharp, because they've been ground down by the sands of the south, which are not nearly the same as the richer sands of the Red. Easier to get their skins, but harder to behead them or tug out their teeth because their teeth are more solidly encased in their jaws.

A migratory subspecies of raptors, that you might spot slightly south of the farms, a bit southeast of the merchant's gate, and perhaps due west and slightly northwest of the main gate of ALlanak, but that would generally not ever come closer than that of their own volition.

Oh yeah and give them spots instead of stripes. We definitely need more spotted hides in the game.

[Kassindra]

I like this idea because when I first started out a couple months ago and even now I'm not always confident of what I can kill alone. So it'd be cool to have a little more variation in the south for the newbies.

[Cutthroat]

Have gurth become more migratory and have some move to the Vrun Driath region, probably east of Allanak or slightly north of the Flats. All other suggested ideas are pretty good. There also needs to be more animals that provide bones when skinned.

[Shiroi Tsuki]

I wouldn't mind southern ecology being a bit more competitive with northern ecology, but I don't want it to be exactly the same.

That said, we already have the gamut of southern predators.  What are they preying on?  I want to see those creatures, I really do.

[LostArm]

While I don't disagree with the idea of a few easy beasts for newbies to kill, entiriely. I think having prey that requires newbies to pal up with more experienced hunters is a good thing. That way they get a feel for the ropes, learn the safer paths, hidden hunter secrets, the right equipment to use, etc. That way when they get good enough to hunt bigger prey on their own, it's more likely they'll survive longer because of the knowledge. Plus hunting should be more of a group thing, I like it promoted that way.

I understand that it may be a good reason so newbies feel they can do things on their own and not feel bugged down because nobody else is there to go out with. I think it'd be nice to have a random iguana size lizard just appear here or there, even come crawling across the sand. A small desert tortoise popping out of the sand it just got covered in. Perhaps there could be some code written so some prey would just appear crawling across the sand for players under 10 hours played? 1 day played? That way easier prey can't be abused by the experienced bored hunter to make easy 'sid.

I do like the idea of more diverse and random animals throughout the south.

[Nyr]

That said, we already have the gamut of southern predators.  What are they preying on?  I want to see those creatures, I really do.

You have to ask?  The answer is in the thread title...

[Shiroi Tsuki]

Man, I'd love to see NPC random desert wandering noobies.  Mmm boots.

... not really.

[brytta.leofa]

Man, I'd love to see NPC random desert wandering noobies.  Mmm boots.

... not really.

The tall, muscular man says, out of character:
  "can you solo noobs yet?"


Love to see the OP's ideas implemented.  I understand that there are a few less-menacing fauna around...but I've never seen them.

[FantasyWriter]

Some answers are also in the help files if the staff would implement them.

Chalton     (General)

These six-legged antelope-like creatures are perhaps the most common source of leather and horn in the Southlands, as they are typically raised as domestic beasts, having adapted to the bleak & horrifically dry southern environment.

Typically = not always

Tarantula     (General)

Varying in size from roughly a human sized palm, to well over seven cords long, desert tarantulas have proven themselves to be expert hunters of the wastes. Not known for thier poison, tarantulas typically lay in ambush for thier prey, using thier strength and robust size and powerful fangs to pounce upon and devour unsuspecting victims. Though ordinarially solitary hunters, some species of desert tarantula have been found to congregate in small caves, creating webbed nests which can breed dozens of desert tarantulas monthly creating a danger to nearby villages or towns. Tarantula meat is wholely unappetizing, though rumors state that some mercenaries have developed a taste for tarantula meat sandwiches, which they consider a test of mettle and a stone-lined stomach.

1. Some/more smaller non-venomous tarantulas would rock.
2. there are A LOT of typos in this help file.

Rats     (General)

Different species are found in all variety of habitats, with a few common traits. Zalanthan rats are often nearly knee-high on a human, and feed on an astonishing array of normally unpalatable materials. While a very few species have decent pelts, most are killed solely as pests or as food for the ravenously starving.

See Also:
    Animal_Life

Cockroach     (General)

Zalanthan cockroaches are extremely resilient beasts, and can vary in size from that of a human thumbnail to that of an adult scrab. Their chitinous exoskeletons make them rather hard to damage, while their clashing mandibles and hooking claws make them either minor annoyances or serious threats, depending on the size of the cockroach encountered. Cockroaches have a tendency to splatter when struck with a good blow, showering all nearby.

See Also:
    Animal_Life

Most of these already have NPCs, so all that would need to be done is add a few wild spawn points.


Edited to add: Snakes, they exist in other desert regions in Zalanthas, why not the Southlands?

[fourTwenty]

Edited to add: Snakes, they exist in other desert regions in Zalanthas, why not the Southlands?

They do.

I like the rats and cockroaches idea.

[Clearsighted]

So, when I first thought about this, I asked myself, "Well, what about baby scrab?"

I still think baby scrab would be a clever addition to the southern hunters' environment. But what about more diverse creatures that could still be handled by newbies? Creatures that don't require a new race to be built, or new ecology to be 'discovered'?

Maybe dog-sized ants that are too armored to move fast, that secret a meager poison on the order of bloodburn? Skinning them would produce a few items like scrab legs and pincers, and a generic chitin that exists already. Less building for staff.

What about buzzards? Let's see more buzzards in the south, making arrow-making marginally more realistic down there. Perhaps in combat they get a ton of weak attacks, but no defense.

What about the bone that you use to make some arrows? Perhaps we could have more johzals, or even baby johzals, that are not as fast, but still hide, to keep the idea of that lizard alive but which allows newer characters to hunt them.

Basically, I would like to hear about ideas to help the southern hunting scene, while not departing from the southern theme of harder living. It's possible. And it would really help newbie southern characters, on the same order that newbie northern characters have it, while having a completely different feel to it.

You would be the patron saint of Bynners if this went through. I completely agree that the south could use a bit of tweaking. It doesn't need to be grasslands 2.0 but a few more buzzards, and something between jozhals and scrabs would be good.

[FightClub]

I really like the direction of this thread, not for the fact that newbies will have more stuff to kill, but for the fact that it would make the southern desert seems less empty.  When I look around, I go a bit here, see some scrab, nothing but scrab, what are the scrab eating (newbies) Go a bit here, and see a massive load of tarantula, but what are the tarantula eating? Go a bit further out there and you see the giant mekillot, well what's it eating?  We've got a lot of obvious answers for these, but I'd really like to see more of the things they'd be eating in their habitat.  Newbs for scrabs to feed on, scabs for tarantula's to feed on, insects for johzal to feed on, more anything for a mekillot to feed on, raptors, worms.

And out of all of those above, the one I think I'd really like to see more of in the wild are the cockroaches.  I don't think I've seen any, ever.

[Thunkkin]

Not much to add to 7DV and all the good ideas that followed.

From a meta-perspective, making hunting just a wee, tiny bit easier in the south might not only help with new player retention, but with newbie retention in general.  Does it harm or help the game if Mr. Newbie manages to kill a baby scrab, make something from it, and sell it in town before wandering out again and getting eaten by Daddy Scrab?  Or is it better for the game if Daddy Scrab just eats Mr. Newbie straight away, the character vanishes from the game world, and the player is left with frustration?

[The7DeadlyVenomz]

From a meta-perspective, making hunting just a wee, tiny bit easier in the south might not only help with new player retention, but with newbie retention in general.  Does it harm or help the game if Mr. Newbie manages to kill a baby scrab, make something from it, and sell it in town before wandering out again and getting eaten by Daddy Scrab?  Or is it better for the game if Daddy Scrab just eats Mr. Newbie straight away, the character vanishes from the game world, and the player is left with frustration?

This is bang on. Along with that thought, the issue with Southern Merchants employing newbie Southern Hunters in the same manner Northern Merchants can employ newbie Northern Hunters is what prompted my making this thread.

[Sephiroto]

Small lizards who are camouflaged with the sand.  They're difficult to spot, but easy to catch and kill.  Their hide wouldn't be particularly valuable except for its desert camouflage and sand-like texture.  Make them skinnable for small amounts of meat and for little bones and little strips of hide.  Maybe the bones could be used for lock picks.  Allanak has plenty of need for that kind of thing, right?

In general I'm in favor of having prey huntable by newbies.  I don't want to see mean bugs and lizards taken away though.  I liked the days of the gith, fire bugs, tarantulas, and hungry, huge beetles chasing after me the best.

[Clearsighted]

I'd be honestly interested to learn if any experienced player, starting a non-mul newbie ranger, was able to do well in the South without resorting to sparring. There is nothing wrong with the South being harder, but especially with the not so recent changes to combat mechanics which made things hit more often and harder, that it must be nearly impossible.

And again, this is without a bunch've sparring.

[FantasyWriter]

I'd be honestly interested to learn if any experienced player, starting a non-mul newbie ranger, was able to do well in the South without resorting to sparring. There is nothing wrong with the South being harder, but especially with the not so recent changes to combat mechanics which made things hit more often and harder, that it must be nearly impossible.

And again, this is without a bunch've sparring.

Yeah, my newbie southies would end up doing a lot of running away from whatever he was hunting before they "toughened up."

[The7DeadlyVenomz]

I won't pretend to be the end-all on such matters, but I do not believe that a single new character, given average rolls and average armor/weapons, has much of a chance against anything apparent right off the bat down south. There is a lesser creature that they can potentially defeat, but there are two obstacles to this, one that it flees and the second that it hides. Also, there are not many of them.

Right now, for all intents and purposes, I'd have to say no, the average character, experienced player or not, has no easy game in the southlands. And this is what I wanna see some help with. That, and as stated earlier, the ability for the Kadian or Salarr hunter, new or not, to have some common game available for them.

I've been trying to make the NPCs conceptualized relative to those in game already, so that skinning products do not have to be exclusive. Baby scrab do this, ants using scrabish materials do this, lessor raptors do this ...

[Sephiroto]

The south was tough even before the changes.  It currently doesn't support newbie hunters to the extent that Tuluk does.

Currently jozhal, hawks, and weak scrab are the only options a newbie southern hunter has and the latter is very dangerous even to new warriors.

My advice is to get 2-3 people together and hunt as a group until the environment is more supportive of individual, newbie hunters.

[The7DeadlyVenomz]

My advice is to get 2-3 people together and hunt as a group until the environment is more supportive of individual, newbie hunters.

Good advise, indeed, but the bolded part is what I am working on here in this thread.

[Clearsighted]

The south was tough even before the changes.  It currently doesn't support newbie hunters to the extent that Tuluk does.

Currently jozhal, hawks, and weak scrab are the only options a newbie southern hunter has and the latter is very dangerous even to new warriors.

My advice is to get 2-3 people together and hunt as a group until the environment is more supportive of individual, newbie hunters.

I can't actually recall the last time I saw a hawk in the south. And sadly, even to classes that eventually, ahem, learn how to sneak and hide, they don't have it at the start when jozhals might be something they can actually benefit from.

But I couldn't be in greater agreement with 7DV. I think we all know that if staff doesn't even want to create new equipment, they're not gonna create a new bug. But I think adding some critters and perhaps tweaking some spawn rates would be best. More buzzards!

Let's just make it something more than scrabs, beetles and face-eating spiders.

[Sephiroto]

Snakes already exist in game.  Would you all like to see some snakes near Allanak?  The rocky badlands would be a great place to spawn them.

[FuSoYa]

I don't give a FUCK about snakes.

Brandon

[Voular]

SNAKES ON AN ARGOSY,
Showing the Barrel on Detal!

No, but I like the original idea. Please look at this, Imms!