I like a number of suggestions from both posts so far. I like the idea of MORE control...not less. (but potted plants is a bit much...saw that in a game I am testing and thought, "a dev wasted brain time on THAT?!! NO WAY!" but there the plant was.)
I also think that NON violent ways to take over outposts with either educational or diplomatic names would make ALOT of logical sense. I mean just how violent is a FARM for pity sake? (News flash, my in laws farm is dull enough to put a Full out ADHD kid into a COMA!), and just how many brainiacs are going to bother to pick up a gun when such SERIOUS matters as steam power and ways to pull the minerals out of PLANT matter are being studied?! And what would firing a gun be??? Aggressive negotiations (gratuitous line theft from a popular movie
). Sorry, I have seen diplomates that would talk peacably with the gunman that blew off their legs.
I would like to see a healer that only heals those that hold the outpost and their registered allies (good reason to have diplomatic relations with as MANY guilds as possible. Guilds would also have a list of enemies, any allies that have allies that are on each others "enemies" lists would cancel out the alliance between the three of them.). How about a hospital on Karavan related outposts and a church related sanctuary (like a medevil european style catholic monks), I would think that that would encourage "picking a side".
I would like to see special trainers that offer outpost related skills at the outposts, special armors, weapons, spells and various stealth skills would be included (FYI I think that the stealth should work against other NON outpost involved players and mobs/npcs/tribes).
I would like to see pets FINALLY be introduced...through outposts if need be. I lean towards the taming school of thought. Start out in newbie taming suckling Yubos, of course those die rather quickly, but you gain skills/xp in taming, and eventually you will tame a pet that will live, for more than one day. That pet would level and grow, and gain skills, just as a mob of the same level of the same type (if no mob of the same type AND level exist...make up the skills by comparing to other mobs of that level, shouldn't be TOO hard). I think these tamed animals should be saleable with a SLIGHT loyalty loss and there should be ways to "encourage" pets to like you more. Treats, food of better and more correct type (meat for cuttlers etc, and grain for the herbies), naming (names like leo for a catlike mob, rex for yubos and dog types, and kind and loving names like king, prince, Fido would earn the pets trust, but Dopey, and Stupid would LOSE loyalty as would kicking or hitting them), the ability to pat or "pet" your pet (ever see with petting a cat can do? how about catnip?? yep, me too). I think pets could be a GOOD way to tie gaming in with ROLE playing, reward thinking caring behavior...and it WILL be repeated.
There should be a limit on the number of tamed animals, and a market like the merchants should exist as well...any pet ON the market should NOT count in the pet count, but SHOULD count in your maximum number of items listed.
I also think that pet armor should be craftable and fall somewhere in the hundreds on EACH racial tree, each race will HAVE pets, and will naturally want to protect them...if for different reasons (Kami due to their being allies, not slaves...Karavan would not want to see valuable livestock dying, much like Karavan races took care of their homin slaves even if it was not a free OR fair relationship...).
I also think that a standard creation skill should be included in the training, with the qualities being like armor Basic would be CHEAP (10 sp ish, the MQ would be higher, and HQ would be higher). The standards would be either the guilds symbol OR the alliance's symbol, and the higher the quality of standard...the higher the loyalty of "hired hands" like guards, trainers etc. And like pets, there should be ways to reward the hired hands. And Hired hands should ALSO be able to level (if they survive and attack of carnivores or tribes or players, the hired hand should gain xp, gain enough xp and TA DA...the hired hand levels and gains new skills). There should also be healers included in the hire hands you can get, they would heal the nearest alliance member, holding guild member or other hired hand, or themselves (in roughly that order). This would mean the longer you HOLD an outpost...the better chance you stand of KEEPING it.
(FYI I want a War Bolobi! or a nice War Timmy!)
Windermeer |:.
