> Greetings,
Hello!
>
> I'm currently re-designing a combat system but I've occured a couple of
> problems. I got the design in my head and I'll try to explain it as good
as
> possible together with the problems I've occured.
A good first step - planning before coding! :-) And, tho I like ROM's
combat system, I too wanted to liven it up a little.
>
> First of all, I'm using ROM codebase, and I like the simple design of
having
> an automatic running combat system instead of turn based or any other
kind.
> Anyways my MUD is going to be without levels. Now here is a problem, ROM
> uses levels for alot of the systems in the code. The combat system, the
> skill system, spell system, affects etc. So what I want is that it's going
> to be skill and attribute based instead of level based.
>
<SNIP Descriptions>
This system sounds almost exactly like the one I designed and
implemented in my sadly short lived mud... I was very pleased with it :-)
> -----------------------------------------------------------
>
> Describing of my problems:
> This'll be alot of coding and alot of calculations.
> I'll have to make good formulas, so this can be balanced and work well.
> Where should I start? :D
Yet these are the most rewarding types of problems - the difficult ones!
:-)
> Since attributes are most important role in my game, and since I don't use
> any levels, should I decide the max value for them first? stick to it, and
> tweak the rest from those values? Ohh and I should describe how attributes
> are going to be attained on my system... This will be inspired on the game
> Dungeon Siege, attributes will go up as the character are fighting or
doing
> any accociated with the attributes. So if characters is fighting with two
> light weapons, dexterity will most likely go up faster than the other
> attributes for the character.
> Or if character is fighting with a heavy two handed sword, strength will
> most likely go up faster than the other attributes.
>
Maybe, where should you continue, not where to start. This is a good
start, and the next thing I would do would be do define a range and effect
of all involved variables: stats, skills, eq modifiers, chance to hit body
parts, attack type if interested (double handed over head, thrust, quick
side-to-side slash, scissor with two weapons, etc....)
By range I mean define the maximum and minimum for each: stats range
from 10 to 30, skills from 0% to 100% (or above for mastery?), EQ modifiers
range from 0 to 5 (or 0% to 50% absorb and 0 to 30 damage capacity...),
etc..
By effect I mean a comparison - how effective is a Player's Strength of
20 against an NPC's Strength of 18 (or 30 vs. 28). Do you want to have a
non-linear (logarithmic maybe?) "effect" on the difference between the
Player's and NPC's stats? (difference of PC's 20 Str to NPC's 12 Str = 8
vs. PC's Str 30 to NPC's 12 Str = 18... so just *what* does this difference
mean?)
Personally, I would work on this first; then flush out your skill
improvements later, when you have more of the groundwork set up. (It doesn't
quite make sense to say when their skills will improve when you don't have
the system in place that controls the skill improvements..) But that's a
good (and realistic!) method of skill improvement.
Knowing the range and comparison effect of the values involved will
definitely be a big step in the process, especially if there are many many
many variables involved! :-)
I'd love to help with this if the help is wanted. All ideas contained
here in are just that - ideas. I'm not here to tell you how to shape your
system like mine, or how to shape your system at all! :-) I just love to
help and toss out ideas.
Tony
