Eikona
07-13-2009, 07:32 PM
We have pets that grow and level up with us, what about items that do so as well?
In most works of fiction that I can think of, there are plenty of examples of the hero who has had his trusty sword/gun/hat/etc for years. So long that it's almost become a trademark of the hero. Think of Indiana Jones, who loved his hat so much he risked life and limb for it. :) I know that when I play tabletop RPGs all my characters have that particular weapon or piece of clothing that they've had since the very beginning of their heroic career, whether it's written into their bio or picked up in an early adventure. But when we play MMOs, we casually discard gear as quickly as we find something with better stats.
What about implementing a system that made it an actual choice - do we /really/ want to throw this thing away?
I can think of two ways to go about this.. either making the item 'grow' with the pc, in much the same way pets do. As it is used, it gains xp, and then can level and gain stats or possibly minor powers. Perhaps the pet system that is already in place could be used as a template.
Another way would be to set up a sort of sacrificial system, where you would sacrifice an item in some way, and improve the bonuses on the evolving item. Sort of like the way you can improve a pet's savvy by merging another pet into it. This would be a nice item sink, as well..
You could also use a system that combined aspects of both of these.
I really think something like this would add a lot to the game. :)
In most works of fiction that I can think of, there are plenty of examples of the hero who has had his trusty sword/gun/hat/etc for years. So long that it's almost become a trademark of the hero. Think of Indiana Jones, who loved his hat so much he risked life and limb for it. :) I know that when I play tabletop RPGs all my characters have that particular weapon or piece of clothing that they've had since the very beginning of their heroic career, whether it's written into their bio or picked up in an early adventure. But when we play MMOs, we casually discard gear as quickly as we find something with better stats.
What about implementing a system that made it an actual choice - do we /really/ want to throw this thing away?
I can think of two ways to go about this.. either making the item 'grow' with the pc, in much the same way pets do. As it is used, it gains xp, and then can level and gain stats or possibly minor powers. Perhaps the pet system that is already in place could be used as a template.
Another way would be to set up a sort of sacrificial system, where you would sacrifice an item in some way, and improve the bonuses on the evolving item. Sort of like the way you can improve a pet's savvy by merging another pet into it. This would be a nice item sink, as well..
You could also use a system that combined aspects of both of these.
I really think something like this would add a lot to the game. :)