Semi-standard dungeons - Play for experience and treasure, but no post-campaign quests This concept would require a large selection of maps. Some maps could be identical except for the monsters used, and perhaps the starting positions. Monster difficulty and numbers would be set according to the adventure level. Any monsters, or mix of monsters, that fit the criteria should be used. Individual maps should be challenging (roughly on par with existing adventures), but not hella-difficult. Adventurer levels might be reduced to the actual adventure level, rather than up to 2 levels higher. If this isn't practical, the dungeon might be built 1 or 2 levels tougher than its assigned level. The main challenge of these adventures is that the player will have to build a party with no knowledge of the strengths or weaknesses (damage type immunities, blocks, attack types, mobility, etc.) of the monsters which will be encountered. There should, of course, be a pretty good general idea of what might be encountered. I recommend selecting 5 maps for each adventure, and using a loot table similar to Garnet Demon Portal. Having 5 maps and only 2 retries limits the number of times a player might resign to change equipment. The maps to be used would be randomly selected for each player whenever the adventure is begun. Restarting the adventure would cause a new set of maps to be randomly selected. Completing the adventure exhausts it for the day. Maps: Any existing maps might be used or modified for use in one or more levels. I'd like player submitted maps to be an option, but all maps must be approved by BM, and may be modified or replaced with or without notice. For example, if a particular type of build has a very high success rate, some maps might be created or modified to counter that type of build. These adventures would definitely not be designed for farming. They would provide PVE players with challenging adventures that changed significantly with each play. Levels: I recommend the minimum level be 5 or 6. Levels might be in pairs (5-6, 7-8, 9-10) or trios (5-7, 8-10, 11-13) with the current level announced, or not. The actual current level might not even be determined until the maps are selected. Campaign Integration: The adventure icons could appear in a designated area (Arena Valley, Dungeoncrawl Mountains, whatever) as certain adventures or adventure levels are completed, just as other new adventures appear as a player progresses through the campaign. I'd put Melvin in charge as soon as possible (which, I suppose, would be immediately). The dialog would reference only the player's inadequacy and Melvin's grudging acceptance of victories, so it should not impinge upon the main story line. Other Thoughts: Starting positions which may cause a character to begin effectively pinned by 2 or 3 opponents, as used in the second maps of Return to Woodhome and Gladiatorial Arena, Finals, should not be used. Victory squares should be kept to a minimum. Preferably zero. This is SP, where fights to the death are traditional. Comments, critiques, and scornful derision accepted with varying degrees of equanimity.
Random SP dungeons are somewhere on our wish list, so it's great (and rather helpful) to read ideas and subsequent discussion like this. Thanks Sir Veza! I don't want to comment on the ideas here for fear of corrupting them, but I will definitely be reading along.
They can also be volatile limited-time advs. Useful for special events or devs triggered only. Smthg similar in mmorpgs where there is a floating announcement upon login of an unlockable special adv chain from X start date to Y end date.
This sounds great, I read something akin to this in the Nudie Run thread (although, I suppose that picking your best items could be fun too!).
I'm actually working on a rule set where you start at Yellow Dragon's Lair and work backwards inspired by the Nudie Run. Still balancing out the item rules.
This makes me think of epic dungeon crawls, which would be way cool! I was thinking more of adventures that would offer varying challenges and be available every day. Wow. This sounds very interesting, and it hurts my brain to think of how it might work. I'm also a huge fan of the nudie run, and I'd like to see a selectable "enforced" version. (Start at level 1 with inventory restrictions and no shops on the map.) Possibly with no treasure drops, only items. I've had treasure heavy runs that resulted in mostly empty slots at level 8 or so.
I'm keeping it simple, I think. The first iteration was way too punishing. I need to give it a few more tests before I feel comfortable posting it.
I am still hoping for something more like I suggested in this thread, but this would be a great start! I think some combination of random scenarios and nudie run would be the best way to add more replayability to SP. It's most fun the first time through because you have limited equipment and the scenarios are new and interesting. Nudie run solves half that problem, but we really need random SP maps to go along with it!
Thanks! I remembered you'd posted a great idea for random dungeons. I looked for the thread, but I couldn't find it. I only know what I've deduced about how the engine operates, much of which is probably wrong, so I'm not sure what can be randomly changed within a map. The bit about needing "upper doodads" to determine where dead combatants go leads me to believe that map design needs to be very tight. If I actually tried designing maps I'd probably have a better idea about what is feasible without a major overhaul. What I'm trying to aim for is attainable, low hanging fruit that I think players would enjoy.
Anything to extend the longevity of the SP campaign or SP enjoyment I think should be encouraged. I really like your suggestions, and can definitely se me playing these if they were incorporated into the game
