This is a general topic for all things concerning how this mud is evolving. As mentioned, this will NOT be a mordor mud anymore - it will be REALMS. Alot of things will be changing. Here's some things to start:
-Magic system changes
-Classes losing MP
-Racial abilities
-Class changes - vampires and werewolves becoming afflictions and not classes
-Healing concerns with loss of MP
-Etc.....

I will say this to healing concerns. One thing not expanded upon much since they were put in are bandage items. Bandaging will become a skill, and we will have more bandages. In addition, healing will be much more important to clerics, meaning they will be provided incentive to heal by being granted extra xp, etc.....so I do not think healing will be much of an issue. It is just another matter of the rocky road of transition to get the mud in the final state we want.

Everyone is a ptester now. Please remember that.

I think its important to remember that the game still needs to be challenging and difficult. So some classes losing some things will be good in that it requires people to work harder, create more characters and plan ahead more. Theres no fun having a game where everyone on are all lv 25-30 because theirs no disperity are challenging feats. People can make a big group and just dominate everything in the game.

Can you explain the new vampire/werewolf in a little more detail. I'm confused on the afflictions thing.

Regarding losing mp I think people are forgetting to follow more of a true roleplaying atmosphere you have to realize that most those classes shouldn't be casting healing spells or any for that matter to begin with. A fighter for example should not be casting spells, he should be hitting, while a mage should be casting and not hitting and there will be some doing both.

A cool item to add would be something that refills your mp when you use it. A heal wand/potion for mp if you will.

Shapeshifting would be cool if that could be added in somehow.

Quote:

A cool item to add would be something that refills your mp when you use it. A heal wand/potion for mp if you will.

Mp potions has already been added in. We found some in one of the new areas.

Kelif wrote:

A fighter for example should not be casting spells, he should be hitting, while a mage should be casting and not hitting and there will be some doing both.

I think that conventional logic is one of the things that ruins so many games. I didn't come to play World of Warcraft, or any other generic rehash of AD&D and Warhammer. As long as your character has the intelligence for it, why shouldn't they be able to fling some spells? If it's so easy for a mage to do it, why couldn't a fighter?

I see being able to read scrolls as a good fix. If you're a no mp class, reading scrolls and how much damage they do should be completely int based. Doing additional damage with wands and increased effect/duration could also be related to int. So, in that way, I could be a spell casting fighter if I were smart enough, even with the loss of mp.

Stamina is another variable that could be added in. Organelle had a neat way of doing it, but I could see it being done a lot better.

You'll have a set amount of stamina, and gain it by level, that you spend to use certain abilities like circle, backstab, ect. and when you take damage you lose a percentage of stamina. I can see things like berserk increaseing your stamina and giving you back more when you successfully hit. Or bash being free to use, and giving back stamina to ready you for the next fight. In Organelle you could only flee once your stamina hit zero, but I think it would be a lot better if you could only hit or flee.

I'd also like to see a thread with a dialogue of all the races and possible abilities. I see that being a lot of fun and a lot of agreeing since each race is so deep rooted in fantasy and we all have pretty similar ideas of what they should be like.

Jacko wrote:

Kelif wrote: A fighter for example should not be casting spells, he should be hitting, while a mage should be casting and not hitting and there will be some doing both. I think that conventional logic is one of the things that ruins so many games. I didn't come to play World of Warcraft, or any other generic rehash of AD&D and Warhammer. As long as your character has the intelligence for it, why shouldn't they be able to fling some spells? If it's so easy for a mage to do it, why couldn't a fighter? I see being able to read scrolls as a good fix. If you're a no mp class, reading scrolls and how much damage they do should be completely int based. Doing additional damage with wands and increased effect/duration could also be related to int. So, in that way, I could be a spell casting fighter if I were smart enough, even with the loss of mp.

Having high intelligence doesn't necessarily mean you have the knowledge required to weave arcane arts. That argument makes as much sense as me saying, "Well if a neurosurgeon who has practiced his skill for 20 years can figure out what's wrong with a dying patient then I should be able to as well since I have a genius level IQ - even though I don't know the first thing about neurosurgery.

At any rate, what might be a possibility is the addition of a Read Magic skill, which would allow thieves to read scrolls as single-use spells. Scroll damage would be primarily based on the Read Magic skill with a possible INT bonus.

I like that too.

It's more along the lines of, if I spent the time, how much about neuro-surgery could I learn, and how much intellect would that require?

It is completely and utterly stupid for anybody who is not a caster or multi-class caster to have any sort of always standard ability to cast spells that heal or do anything otherwise. The only exception to that is a high level thief's ability to read magic on scrolls, which we will be putting in.

Jacko, let me revert temporarily my old dickhead Ocelot self, because I am about whipped to death by you beating this dead horse:

Mordor is dead. This is Realms. This is not World of Warcraft - obviously we can't do that; this is a text-based MUD.
If you feel this is becoming World of Warcraft and you do not wish to stay here and contribute to the future growth and direction of this game, which we have said repeatedly will involve MP and casting ability going away from certain classes,
nobody I know is forcing you to stay here. That particular topic is closed. If you have anything further to contribute BESIDES griping about spell casting loss, we welcome your ideas. Thanks, good games...

Jacko wrote:

Kelif wrote: A fighter for example should not be casting spells, he should be hitting, while a mage should be casting and not hitting and there will be some doing both. I think that conventional logic is one of the things that ruins so many games. I didn't come to play World of Warcraft, or any other generic rehash of AD&D and Warhammer. As long as your character has the intelligence for it, why shouldn't they be able to fling some spells? If it's so easy for a mage to do it, why couldn't a fighter? I see being able to read scrolls as a good fix. If you're a no mp class, reading scrolls and how much damage they do should be completely int based. Doing additional damage with wands and increased effect/duration could also be related to int. So, in that way, I could be a spell casting fighter if I were smart enough, even with the loss of mp. Stamina is another variable that could be added in. Organelle had a neat way of doing it, but I could see it being done a lot better. You'll have a set amount of stamina, and gain it by level, that you spend to use certain abilities like circle, backstab, ect. and when you take damage you lose a percentage of stamina. I can see things like berserk increaseing your stamina and giving you back more when you successfully hit. Or bash being free to use, and giving back stamina to ready you for the next fight. In Organelle you could only flee once your stamina hit zero, but I think it would be a lot better if you could only hit or flee. I'd also like to see a thread with a dialogue of all the races and possible abilities. I see that being a lot of fun and a lot of agreeing since each race is so deep rooted in fantasy and we all have pretty similar ideas of what they should be like.

Go ahead and start a thread on Racial abilities. We welcome that!

Ocelot wrote:

It is completely and utterly stupid for anybody who is not a caster or multi-class caster to have any sort of always standard ability to cast spells that heal or do anything otherwise.

Depends on what game you're playing. My only concern was that the game not be pigeon holed into the boring and tired cliche Dungeons and Dragons mud that already overwhelm mudconnector.

I also have never been opposed to losing MP. I thinks that's just you being a bit preemptive. My only concern was how huge the impact will be to the players.

Right now I type

k [target]
c vig

for hours and hours on end.

With these changes it becomes

k [target]

for hours and hours on end.

Spells mix up combat and include the player a bit more. But no, we don't need it. There's also how scrolls, wands, and potions will effect combat in the future.

My only gripe, and yes it was a gripe, is how know-aura and infravision will work. Since these aren't spells anyone can go without unless they have access to someone or something that gives them to them. But I'm sure there's a number of work arounds for it.

I know it will all work out in the end, but I'd like some encouragement that the classes will still have a lot of ability and utility without MP. That losing MP is decided, but not how it will be balanced yet, can be a bit unnerving. But I'm sure it will all work out.