Author Topic: Improving Adventurers and Trade  (Read 7379 times)

Lefanis

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Improving Adventurers and Trade
« Topic Start: May 02, 2018, 04:13:42 PM »
Name: Improving Adventurers and Trade

Summary:
In the game currently, apart from BT with the uber rare portal stone hunt "mini game", the main advie activities are hunting monsters/undead, gathering items, and occasionally finding/selling/repairing uniques. The only one which requires some level of interaction with the second/main layer of the game, nobles, is selling uniques. So I propose to increase interactions with smelly commoners, by adding the trading game for advies- adding to the multiplayer nature of BattleMaster.

Details:
One the advie reaches a certain level of recommendations (or H/P), they unlock the merchant/trader sub class, and access to banks. They can't send gold to the family of course, but like traders, can travel around the world buying and selling grain in addition to regular advie stuff, and accessing markets further away. Adventurer-Merchants are taxed, and may have to spend gold on buying carts, guards, etc... They could be arrested by enemy realms and foods confiscated... Which generates potential for conflict.

With the 1 family per continent rule, this allows people to focus their noble characters on the meat of the game- war- While giving them a free advie character to engage in other activities. This also gives adventurers something to work towards, other than nobility- which isn't really always an option these days with the 1 noble rule.

I did a quick check of the trader class in the game currently:
There are a grand total of 6 traders between EC, Dwi, and BT. 1 trader on BT, 3 on Dwi, 2 on EC. This seems super niche, perhaps since it is forcing warriors currently to recruit about half their regular capacity- Most traders (4 or 5 of the 6) were courtiers. Trading also adds relatively little to the noble game, but it could be a game changer for experienced advies.

Benefits:
  • Increases interactions between advies and the main tier of the game- Gives advies interaction with other players besides selling uniques once every now and then.
  • Gives adventurers something to work towards besides nobility- relevant in a 1 noble per continent game.
  • Gives adventurers something different to do besides grinding inhumans and gathering.
  • Does not force players to trade off (pardon the pun) between the trading and warrior game.
  • Improves trade dynamics by creating a pool of characters that are interested in buying/selling food- More traders will mean that realms with shortages can send out advies to seek out and make deals at marketplaces further away.
  • Increases the chance for conflict by allowing enemy realms to arrest/steal/execute from the merchant, possibly leading to diplomatic crises!
  • Probably room in this feature to improve the banker game- the banker could order around his merchant fleet.
  • It is also in line with SMA, since you wouldn't expect nobles to be carting around food- thats for those suspicious merchants that count silver. Rise of mercantilism!

Downsides:
  • Probably difficult to code? Not enough dev time? I am essentially proposing that the trade game be ported to advies- so the code for trader class may just need to be added for Advies? I don't know how easily it could be done.
  • It may also annoy the 6 players who are currently traders.
  • Players could possibly break character/abuse this to make trade deals for their noble characters realm while belonging to an enemy realm- using their citizenship to get away with traveling in enemy lands? Possible, but can also be auto regulated by bankers/judges monitoring their movements... Advies can already be arrested anytime, so they are not in a strong position.

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Anaris

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Re: Improving Adventurers and Trade
« Reply #1: May 02, 2018, 04:40:52 PM »
This is much more work than we're going to put in for something like this, especially since there is a different change to the trading system waiting in the wings to be finished.

It is intentional that adventurers and nobles don't interact much. I don't foresee changing that significantly any time soon.

I do have some ideas for how to make the adventurer game itself a little better and more interesting, though.
Timothy Collett

"The only thing you can't trade for your heart's desire...is your heart." "You are what you do.  Choose again, and change." "One of these days, someone's gonna plug you, and you're going to die saying, 'What did I say? What did I say?'"  ~ Miles Naismith Vorkosigan

feyeleanor

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Re: Improving Adventurers and Trade
« Reply #2: June 15, 2018, 12:30:02 PM »
I'd love to see the Adventurer class more involved with the BM world at large:

  • hunting bandits for bounties (which would improve control)
  • telling tales (which would improve morale and maybe weaken control)
  • doing some of the messy, hands-on things infiltrators can but probably shouldn't because of the risks like sabotage and murdering militia
  • doing a bit of banditry themselves like robbing tax collectors or thieving or running protection rackets in cities (which would gain gold and lower control)
  • being able to set up gangs/parties and secret societies so there could be thieves guilds, etc. without noble involvement
  • smuggling and black marketeering
  • being lay clergy or rabble-rousing demagogues
  • kidnapping for ransom
  • being those anonymous scouts and secret police
  • becoming a wizard or sage

Some of these would also require new shiny things to spend the extra gold they produce on.

Eduardo Almighty

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Re: Improving Adventurers and Trade
« Reply #3: June 15, 2018, 07:21:32 PM »
Quote
It is intentional that adventurers and nobles don't interact much. I don't foresee changing that significantly any time soon.

Well, they are interacting a lot in many realms now with the magic being more and more used. They're advanced weapons and I'm just here still figuring how to play an adventurer without it dying after a short time.
Now with the Skovgaard Family... and it's gone.
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JeVondair

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Re: Improving Adventurers and Trade
« Reply #4: June 29, 2018, 05:14:55 PM »
This is much more work than we're going to put in for something like this, especially since there is a different change to the trading system waiting in the wings to be finished.

It is intentional that adventurers and nobles don't interact much. I don't foresee changing that significantly any time soon.

I do have some ideas for how to make the adventurer game itself a little better and more interesting, though.


+1
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Bluelake

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Re: Improving Adventurers and Trade
« Reply #5: August 15, 2018, 03:36:49 PM »
I'd love to see the Adventurer class more involved with the BM world at large:

  • hunting bandits for bounties (which would improve control)
  • telling tales (which would improve morale and maybe weaken control)
  • doing some of the messy, hands-on things infiltrators can but probably shouldn't because of the risks like sabotage and murdering militia
  • doing a bit of banditry themselves like robbing tax collectors or thieving or running protection rackets in cities (which would gain gold and lower control)
  • being able to set up gangs/parties and secret societies so there could be thieves guilds, etc. without noble involvement
  • smuggling and black marketeering
  • being lay clergy or rabble-rousing demagogues
  • kidnapping for ransom
  • being those anonymous scouts and secret police
  • becoming a wizard or sage

Some of these would also require new shiny things to spend the extra gold they produce on.

I like some of these better than the trading thing :)
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feyeleanor

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Re: Improving Adventurers and Trade
« Reply #6: August 17, 2018, 01:54:15 AM »
I like some of these better than the trading thing :)

If I wasn't a good-for-nothing PHP hater I'd even offer to code some of them ;)

Bluelake

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Re: Improving Adventurers and Trade
« Reply #7: August 24, 2018, 04:00:48 PM »
If I wasn't a good-for-nothing PHP hater I'd even offer to code some of them ;)

The real question is: is your hatred for PHP bigger than your love for BM?
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pcw27

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Re: Improving Adventurers and Trade
« Reply #8: August 24, 2018, 05:35:30 PM »
I'd love to see the Adventurer class more involved with the BM world at large:

  • hunting bandits for bounties (which would improve control)
  • telling tales (which would improve morale and maybe weaken control)
  • doing some of the messy, hands-on things infiltrators can but probably shouldn't because of the risks like sabotage and murdering militia
  • doing a bit of banditry themselves like robbing tax collectors or thieving or running protection rackets in cities (which would gain gold and lower control)
  • being able to set up gangs/parties and secret societies so there could be thieves guilds, etc. without noble involvement
  • smuggling and black marketeering
  • being lay clergy or rabble-rousing demagogues
  • kidnapping for ransom
  • being those anonymous scouts and secret police
  • becoming a wizard or sage

Some of these would also require new shiny things to spend the extra gold they produce on.

Love the hunt bandits idea. I don't think an advy should be anywhere near able to rob a tax office. The option should just be "rob peasants" and it not only gains them gold but also lowers realm control, morale and prodution.

Anaris

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Re: Improving Adventurers and Trade
« Reply #9: August 24, 2018, 05:36:13 PM »
Adventurers are not going to be given options that make them effective weapons of war.
Timothy Collett

"The only thing you can't trade for your heart's desire...is your heart." "You are what you do.  Choose again, and change." "One of these days, someone's gonna plug you, and you're going to die saying, 'What did I say? What did I say?'"  ~ Miles Naismith Vorkosigan

feyeleanor

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Re: Improving Adventurers and Trade
« Reply #10: August 26, 2018, 12:53:00 PM »
Adventurers are not going to be given options that make them effective weapons of war.

They already are.

Anaris

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Re: Improving Adventurers and Trade
« Reply #11: August 26, 2018, 02:21:08 PM »
They already are.

Unless some pretty impressive exploits have been found, I dispute the "effective" part of that.  ;D
Timothy Collett

"The only thing you can't trade for your heart's desire...is your heart." "You are what you do.  Choose again, and change." "One of these days, someone's gonna plug you, and you're going to die saying, 'What did I say? What did I say?'"  ~ Miles Naismith Vorkosigan

Zakky

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Re: Improving Adventurers and Trade
« Reply #12: August 26, 2018, 02:21:26 PM »
Advies are more like ammunition producers. They give you scrolls to use against enemies. Gotta love Spellmaster :D

pcw27

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Re: Improving Adventurers and Trade
« Reply #13: August 26, 2018, 10:17:11 PM »
Adventurers are not going to be given options that make them effective weapons of war.

Is this in regards to a possible banditry ability? I don't think it would make them terribly effective in war, more like a nuisance. Any noble could show up an arrest a whole pack of them.

feyeleanor

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Re: Improving Adventurers and Trade
« Reply #14: September 06, 2018, 07:10:47 PM »
Unless some pretty impressive exploits have been found, I dispute the "effective" part of that.  ;D

:)