Horns

[Seeker]

I've noticed how the game is set up as if it's based before fast means of communication were made. Well, this isn't exactly communication but it would help in times of war for example.
My idea is that we are able to make horns and then name them (eg. "the Horn of Kwor" or "the Horn of Battle"). Once you have made that horn you could blow it to alert neighbouring towns. For example, if you blow the war horn neighbouring towns would realize you are being attacked and they would then come to the rescue...or help with the attack, depends what towns we are talking about. Or you might even want the horn to allow others to know when you are coming, eg. The villigers hear the Horn of the Raven.
I'm thinking that people would hear the horn in a certain radius around you, and it could say something like: "You hear the Horn of Kwor coming from the north."

[Sho]

For realism, this would have to use dynamic naming with a nondescriptive default name (i.e. "you hear a horn coming from the north"). That would make it somewhat less useful, but it would definitely be quite useful for connecting a group of towns. I can see one of the various clannish groups in Cantr using horns in a prearranged manner for a rapid relayed messaging system.

Seems codable (though more complicated than many other suggestions), and might have an interesting effect. I like it.

I note that this, if implemented, would be even more powerful than Seeker envisions: think transmission of arbitrarily complex data (text, for example) using a pair of horns and a binary code. I'm not sure this is a good thing, since it would fill up everyone's event pages and would make horns essentially equivalent to radios (really you might as well allow for transmission of text, to save everyone the trouble). This "feature" needs to be eliminated somehow; making all horns sound the same would do it but largely destroy the functionality Seeker is looking for (though you could still do a lot of cool stuff with it).

[Seeker]

Maybe there is a limit to how many times you can blow your horn per day, like fighting. There really isn't much point in blowing it too many times, I was just thinking it would have been a useful horn to alert people of simple things like invasions, attacks, or an important person's presence.

[Sho]

Right, a limit would do the trick.

[Racetyme]

I don't like this one, I am in favor of isolated towns. It creates an environment in which large empires can still exist, with proper management, and small scale skirmishes and thievery can be perpetrated without the entire world falling on your head. If this were implemented then I would suggest some sort of disguise system at the same time, so that robbery and piracy could still continue.

[Sho]

It creates an environment in which large empires can still exist, with proper management, and small scale skirmishes and thievery can be perpetrated without the entire world falling on your head.

Isn't that our target society? Haven't most the recent changes focused on promoting the large-scale organization of Cantrians?

[Racetyme]

No, I am saying that is how the world is now, with horns I think the whole world would quickly fall into a more ordered society, and frankly that makes everything more boring.

[Seeker]

Well, I'd agree with disguising yourself. But these horns would be very simple. Simply having a horn with a name so your neighbours know if something is wrong. Most messages won't be able to be passed through horns, only simple messages like war and notification of important people.

[Sho]

A horn would be at best be able to send a message of "bad person coming your way" to another town that was already well connected and had agreed to the system in advance. I don't think that's enough to eliminate crime. Newspawn theft, maybe. But that needs cracking down on anyway.In my experience there have been very few cases of serious crime where such a message would have made a meaningful difference.

Disguises have been discussed. I believe the consensus was that there was not a reasonable balanced implementation.

[Racetyme]

I suppose with good planning you could still get away with a major act of theivery or murder, however I still think they need a limitation, like destructability, so that a well organized gang could disable them and cripple a town. If this could be done I would be all for it.

[Sho]

I repeat that I have seen no evidence (and I've been involved in my fair share of raids, massacres and mass thefts, believe me) that horns would have a crippling effect on the sort of crime that makes Cantr interesting. They would have some effect of making sustained organized attacks more difficult, of course, but if anything that brings the balance towards the center with regard to creating incentives for organization.

If you absolutely need me to give a countering strategy before you'll calm down, the obvious one is that a horn blown inside a building won't be audible from outside (for realism, and I think codability, issues). Combine with the first thing any raiding party in its right mind (and I'm not talking brilliant strategy here!) does - drag everyone into buildings or, if that's not possible, kill the person with the most threatening equipment.

[SekoETC]

Oi! *slaps forehead* I was supposed to suggest this but then I forgot! Since I was just thinking ok, supposed that a certain town leader goes to check the harbour and gets kidnapped by pirates. They could beat her but they couldn't kill her in one day, and this would give her time to blow this horn she would be carrying, and even though it wouldn't carry to the neighbouring towns, it would still be loud enough to reach the town they undocked from and the defenders could get prepared. (Situation fictional.)

[Savanik]

Just as a note, I can't see of any good way to use a 'binary signalling method' with a simple horn. Imagine:

1975-0: You hear a horn from the north.
1975-0: You hear a horn from the north.
1975-0: You hear a horn from the north.
1975-0: You hear a horn from the north.

Was that a long or a short pause between the first and the second? There are schemes you could rig up, but none of them are binary, and all of them are pretty low bandwidth. On the scale of bits-per-game-hour.

I like the horn idea. And for those concerned with messaging schemes, making it a bit of fatigue should settle it as well.

Sav

[Seeker]

Yeah, everyone should stop worrying about it being a way to send instant messages from town to town. Actually, it isn't going eliminate criminals either. Horns might say their's a crim on the lose but it won't say who it is, plus the horn would reach all the towns around so no town would be certain that criminal is coming their way. For example:

1290-1: You hear the Horn of the Criminal Escape coming from the East.

That isn't going to tell you anything...but this might:

1290-1: You hear the Horn of War coming from the East.

Depending on whether your an allie or not you might go and save them...or go and help the attackers. And about the person blowing the horn from that boat, yes that should work. The sound of the horn would reach anyone in a certain radius.

[Doodle_Jack]

You people have watched Lord of the Rings too often...

Anyway, I have always wondered how the communication between towns could be improved (made faster) without implementing electricity. I really LOVE this suggestion.