Babies and children

[Pirog]

I think the social part of the game needs some development.

As it is now people can marry each other, but there aren't any way of starting a family.
If people could have children it would create a whole new dimension to the game.

*People would be more motivated to start families and build themselves homes.

*There could be a form of caste system, where the ruling nobilitys power is handed over to their children.

*Some people would dedicate their time to look after the family instead of just running around gathering resources or killing others.

And so on...there is a lot to gain from it.

I realize it is probably a hard thing to fix, but it would be really great.
Please drop your ideas on this...

[Meh]

For what it's worth some ramblings of mine on this....

Maybe the start should be 5 years old....
Or maybe a choice in incerements of 5 {0, 5, 10, 15, 20 {or leaving 0
out}.

Storage and movemement penality would apply under 15?

If 15 is 100% movement and storage then 1 would be 6 2/3%...

Eating less
0-4 50% less
5-9 25% less

Now what to do about 0 for storage/eating. Maybe make eating for 0
100% less than normal {babies are assumed to not need "normal" food
for 1 year and we skip all the complity of what they do eat}

Communication limits....
limit the length of the chracters comments

2 + age + age to the power of age

age 0 = 2 + 0 + 0^0 = 2 {ga, go, no, ye {yes}}
age 1 = 2 + 1 + 1^1 = 4 {f*** {belive me they can pick that one up easy}}
age 2 = 2 + 2 + 2^2 = 6 {verb/noun or a few sylabbles}
age 3 = 2 + 3 + 3^3 = 14 {short but they can ramble on}
age 4 = 2 + 4 + 4^4 = 22
age 5 = 2 + 5 + 5^5 = 32 {this is about 32 letters long}
age 6 = 2 + 6 + 6^6 = 44 {besides me who goes on longer than that most
of the time?}
age 7 = 2 + 7 + 7^7 = 58
age 8 = 2 + 8 + 8^8 = 74
age 9 = 2 + 9 + 9^9 = 92
age 10 normal

note reading/writing - delay the above table by 3 years but still
normal after age 9.

What if the maximum total age for all a players chracters was 300?

That would still give the first run of 15 chracters the chance to all
start at 20.

But as your chracters got older when it's time to bring in new ones
you'd either have to play younger chracter or not start new ones.

If you go over 300 then you could always bring in "0 year" babies.

Had another thought on listening....
improve the scale by 3 years for listening making things go normal at
seven.

[Missy]

Heh..I think that I agree with you Pirog....BUT I don't think that so many others do.

Some think that kind of thing will bring un-needed "things" into the game. Like Public displays of affection..lol

Which need to be kept to a minimal anyways since there are 14 y/o playing.

But I do think you are right. I have chars in which their main focus IS building relationships...and there is only so much they can do before they gotta start building things physically cuz there IS nothing else for them to do.

That was my intention with some of the small things we've discussed- the outhouses etc. In hopes to build the social part of the game. Which has a tendency to go so far, then come to a standstill. Chars build their homes together....and then..what? thats about it...lol

It bugs me that half of the rp that happens in game with the ** and ::::: doesn't count. Thus the reason i think we should be able to -----eat food freely in the game too, then more of the ** and :::: actions would count.

What I mean is...the game isn't created so that when you speak and use :::: <----those for it to be an actual action. THe only actions characters really have that count are the "Jim hits you using a sabre" and "You leave town going west" and "You drop this" "You pick up that"
The reason they are the only things that count- is because the staff and whatever they do the game imlementing things or taking things away from the game- can completely take away anything your character has ever said or done in these :::::: things.
How do I know? I describe my char that walks into a town saying ::::She walks into town with her red hair flowing and green eyes peering at everyone::: Soon as they decide char profiles should be auto given...that takes away everything I've ever written in ::::: thus making them not count! They have the ability to change things in the game that cancels out anything my char has ever done in these ::: little action buggers!

The point of the post is.....I think we need something more for the social part of the game. Wheather its children or the ability to eat foods when ever your char wants too.....SOMETHING that will make more of the rp that happens count!!!

Because basically at this point the impression I'm given is that the only actions my characters really do...are the "drops 500 grams of potatoes on the ground" thats a pretty boring life for some of my chars...even though I'd like to think they *Run around in circles* *lick bill bobs cheek* *Pet the coons tail*



AYE- I want children in game!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Pirog]

Goodwin>

The ideas are good, but it doesn't have to be that complicated.
I think only people that enjoy the rp side of things will start families and have children and thus they will have enough "experience" to not have the small ones talking like adults.

Missy>

Yeah, I think children is a pretty important part of the motivation to start - and stay in - relationships. As it is now they get kind of stiff.

For IRL kids sake making children could be a very strict project (perhaps named "reproduce" or anything else harmless and boring
But hey, to play this game they have to be on the internet and then I can assure you all that most 14 year olds have probably seen a lot of hardcore stuff anyway, so I don't think it will be a problem.

[Solfius]

Personally, I would like children in the game, and I would like it to be the main way new characters come about. Perhaps one or two spawned when you first join.

[Missy]

I don't think it should be so complicated either. People are talking about having skills systems and stuff for them. WHy would they have to build skills? Yeah ...babies do in the real world. But when our chars are spawned we know just about everything...So why would our babies have to "learn" how to do things?

Also..i been thinking on the skills thing, it doesn't make much sense to have babies learn how to be: because by the time a char finds someone gets married and has a child, (if they get married) - they are at least in their late twenties. By the time the child is born I'd bet 30's! If we have skill system by the time the child is 20 our chars will be so old o_o And it will happen so fast!!!!!!!!!!
I dunno...

I also like the idea that someone else mentioned once about - it being a project. Where two chars have to click "reproduce"
And I like the idea that it would be random like lock picking- you may or may not reproduce successfully.
Or perhaps it could just be a REALLY REALLY long project- like walking takes so long, perhaps reproducing a child could take 1 month cantr world time?

----Yeah kids kids kids..we want kids. LOL >.> I can't wait to see what happens though...Can you imagine Lad or some barbaric town? The leader forcing all the women to take part in the "reproduction" process until they produced a male? LMAO!!!!
And what about psychotic moms and dads who decide they don't want their kid anymore and just abandon it?
Oh no I feel some of my girls are gonna have some terrible post partum depression. And empty nest syndrom. LMAO


I would really like to see this become more of a priority than anything else on the list of things to be implemented! I've been waiting for months for this to happen

So who IS going to decide which is the best way to make this happen? Which ways the process should be done- weather or not the child needs to learn how to live etc?
Should we have a poll would that help the staff decide? I would like to know which way you all are leaning so i know what to expect kinda.......
*rubs hands together in excitement*

I think the things everyone is most undecided on is - what happens to the baby once it is born...who plays the baby

My opinion on that is the two people that play the chars that do the process have to decide which one of them should play the child. I think that way because parents do ultimately have an influence on their children. Everyone is worried that - oh if it is played by the player that created the baby- that the baby will work and automatically like it's parents etc. Which I don't think would happen as much as everyone else thinks.
Anyone who has chars that are dating eachother or married to eachother- you usually see those chars amidst quite a BIT of drama! For one of the players to grab hold of the child and play it would only allow the player to add that much more drama. LOL
Look at Omi and Ophelia? If they were ever to actually become b/f g/f or get married CAN YOU IMAGINE what either of the players would do with the child just to make their rp that much more interesting? LMAO *Imagines Ophelia running off with the baby and telling omi he's a terrible dad* And when the baby got older, which ever one of them played it (should they ever have one) I bet they make the child run away etc just for more rp.
Why wouldnt people do that? And if they would, what is wrong with it?


I also think a quick remedy to this all would be the baby just being like an object. It gets put in your chars inventory and it needs so much food every day until it turns twenty. Once it turns twenty then you can worry about who plays it..weather it is the people who reproduced or if it gets adopted off to someone who wants a new char!

[Solfius]

I disagree with the baby becoming a char of one of the parents. I think that it ought to be randomly assigned to a player waiting for a new char.

So you have a waiting list of players who want new chars, and when a baby is born the player at the top takes control of it. It would allow for players to end up in new locations, also having a third personality rather than two of the parents personalities would be more interesting.

A poll is definately the way to got to find out popular opinion.

[Meh]

The person who plays the baby should be
1) not one of the parents
2) someone who is at that location

By making it not the parents you won't get any OOC obediance even though many people are capable of handling this RP might as well elimintate the temptation.

By making it someone who is at that location you prevent the "sucidal babies of Lad" and transfer some of the cultre of the location to the newborn.

[Pirog]

I don't know about it being just some random player...there is a lot of really bad rp-caharcters out there and it would be sad to see that two active parents gets a child that either starves itself to death or steal notes and run, killing itself off.

Perhaps there could be a volunteer waiting list for people who want to play children, or characters that have grown from being children?
That way only people who wanted to play like that would get the chance...and the others would continue playing spawned 20-years olds.

[Solfius]

What's wrong with deliquent children? isn't it something people have to find ways to deal with?

[Missy]

I don't know about it being just some random player...there is a lot of really bad rp-caharcters out there and it would be sad to see that two active parents gets a child that either starves itself to death or steal notes and run, killing itself off.

Perhaps there could be a volunteer waiting list for people who want to play children, or characters that have grown from being children?
That way only people who wanted to play like that would get the chance...and the others would continue playing spawned 20-years olds.

Yes I'd have to say ...I agree. I mean...we as the player decide its right for our chars to have the child...who is someone else to decide to run off getting the thing killed? Fine if someone comes up and guts it with a sabre. (Not literally thinking its fine lol) but....Aye I 'd have to say putting a baby that was created by two peoples thoughts for their char ....into someone elses hands who could destroy it or not...is almost disasterous.

[Solfius]

Then perhaps as a compromise: maximum of 7 spawned chars, and then the remaining 8 chars have to be played from babies? So you would have 7 spawned char slots, and 8 baby slots, rather than just 15 spawned char slots as now.

[Meh]

I'd like to see a bonus above 15 chracters for playing babies. Many who may be willing to do it in a non-desturtive way may already have 15 characters that they like.

That's what I like about the 300 rule. If you have 10 30 year olds already your 11th should have to be a baby. But new players would be able to go straight to 15 chracters with 20 year olds.

On the who plays it.
Having the child be too loyal becuase it's one of the parents is not as bad as having suicidal children. Another alternative would be for the parents to choose a "godparent {godmother or godfather}" and this third player would be the child. That way it's three different players but the one playing the baby isn't a nut. The choosing would represent the part of the culture the parents want thier child exposed to. So they get that chracter that they like to play thier baby. "Family freind" would probally be a better name than godparent since that a IRL religious tradition.

[Solfius]

Still, having to live through childhood is something that I think that everyone should *have* to do, if not at least have an equal oppoutunity to do, which isn't really the case with picking who will play the character.

The optional waiting list would probaly be the best option, as you won't have the kind of players who go all destructive and suicidal etc, but you still get someone different with a different personality.

Personally, as I already mentioned, I would like to see birth the main way to get new chars. Runaway children etc would just add new possibilities for roleplay, and bonding closer due to run away children etc.

Although, for a time the babies will be limited and won't be able to escape or do much that could get them killed, so until they can they may find they like it there, as they are entering the town from a different means, that gives them some time to check it out, and isn't so forboding.

Imagine if you hated Lad, but wanted to play a baby, and ended up as the Emperor's new son, would you still try to get away?

I think if you're born into an area perhaps not so many players would go all suicidal.

[Meh]

Come to think of it.
Why should it be a project?
If there was a way to say two charcters are "in a relationship"/"married" then no project required. A baby or two arrives once per year to the couple as long as there are players willing to play the babies and the couple was in the same location for the last year.