Cantr Day 3000: Now & Then

[Doug R.]

Considerations of weirdness are secondary to considerations of how a suggestion will affect game play. In this case, play would be enhanced dramatically for the better, and I can't think of anything not weird that would have the same effects and not piss off half the players (i.e. regular birth and children). You want this, but you refuse to realize it. (I'm using "you" in the collective sense).

[Money]

spawn sacs/nodes would be interesting, and by rejecting it on the basis of "weirdness" do you mean they didn't think it stuck with the reality simulation aspect of cantr?

[Doug R.]

I believe the consensus was that it was too close to magic, as if popping out of (wherever) at age twenty isn't magical.

But seriously, what isn't good about the players being able to manipulate their spawning potential? We trust them with absolutely everything else except their own reproduction, for no other reason other than that's the way it was designed.

[SekoETC]

My idea of letting people mark their current location as their home would do the same thing without unnatural objects. It would also have the plus side that people would have to be present in the town to boost the spawning rates while some sort of sacs could be built and then abandoned. My idea would also be simpler to implement.

[Doug R.]

What happens if they leave their home? Do they need to check it every time, or will it remain checked for that town until they check another town?
I think other characters should be able to tell if another is contributing to spawning or not. That way they can encourage/discourage them as necessary.

The problem I see is that since it is an active system, we could lose a lot of potential spawners just because people forget to check a new town after they leave their spawning location (which should be checked by default).

[SekoETC]

It could either be defined so that people outside their home location do not contribute to spawn rates at all, or that they would count at a reduced rate. If a constant was defined for it, it could be changed later on as necessary without having to alter the code.

A town would remain checked until it's unchecked or another town is checked instead, but the person would only boost the spawn rates in that town if they were present.

I disagree that someone's spawning location should be checked by default, because a lot of newspawns never actually get played and thus do not contribute to making the town more interesting for others. It should be a conscious decision, not something that happens by default and the player might not even know it's in effect. People without a checked home would still contribute to the spawning rates where ever they are, but at a lesser rate than people in their checked home. The numbers could for example be 1 for people with no home, 2 or 1.5 for people in a checked home and 0.1 or 0.5 for people outside their checked home.

[HFrance]

And, in addition, if this ratio is multiplied by the age of the character?

[Doug R.]

And, in addition, if this ratio is multiplied by the age of the character?

I disagree. Many sailors that contribute to the spreading of the language groups are much older characters.

[SekoETC]

Maybe age could give a bonus for people in their checked home location but certainly not for people in random places.

[Doug R.]

What is the reasoning for weighting older characters more?

[HFrance]

Ooc experience of the players: potential ability of their characters to organize the spawnpoint and guide the newcomers.

[Doug R.]

Also a higher chance that they're sleepers, I would think.

[Voltenion]

Isn't that just complicating things? I think it's a really good idea, without the age factor, and very simple which might contribute for its implementation.

But if we are afraid sleepers might contribute with a checked box forever, then maybe characters would have to recheck their box every 5 or 10 years?

[Rumaan]

Count only those characters who have been in a town for at least 30 days, cumulatively, in the last 40 days. If the number of events generated by a character in the last 20 days is below some threshold, discount that character. Then the number of active individuals gives some sort of a meaningful weight for spawning. Then of course proximity to other characters of the same player also has to be considered.

[Doug R.]

The problem with requiring extended residency is that it discourages traders, which makes it work against the intent of the game.