Created 227 days ago
by
HfxTenor
Gamer, Singer, Trainer, Storyteller, and all-around swell cat.
Been playing WoD since the original VtM came out back in 1991, though I've been into RPG's since the D&D red-box in Grade 6.
First book I ever read: The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe (I have the hots for sinister female leads thanks to this novel)
Favourite Movie: The Sound of Music
Favourite Computer Game: Any adventure game by Sierra On-Line, particularly the Gabriel Knight series.
Merit: 2 Flaw: 0
- Currently 4.00/5 Stars.
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Age of Conan
AoC
CCP
cycle
day
Gameplay
haven
instance
MMO
night
setting
weather
WoD
WODMMO
World of Darkness
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World of Darkness Blog
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The WoD MMO will not have a day-night cycle. It’s been confirmed that there will be a perpetual night-time environment. I have mixed feelings about this.
On one hand, I'm disappointed that one of the largest motivators of the Vampire setting will not be present. There will be no threat of the sun for vampires.
On the other hand, it removes the dreary debate about what to do with vampires during the day. Make all of the Vampire players unconscious, giving a massive advantage to the players with mortal/werewolf/mage/changeling characters? Or go with the controversial decision of having vampires staying conscious during the day but having to avoid direct contact with the sun?
The first option is not very ideal, since it provides an unfair advantage to sub-sections of the player-base while severely limiting another. The second option is a rather weak cop-out that breaks one of the well-established conventions of the setting.
A possible alternative would be instancing. Similar to the Tortuga night-time missions in Age of Conan, the character is transferred into a private night-time instance for a series of quests. While they were primarily solo instances, CCP could take a page from this and/or Guild Wars and have everyone one in player’s group able to enter the same instance. Considering the recent news that the game will be tailored toward “small group/coterie” socialization over a more global coffee house, this might make some sense. Still, it allows the group inside the instance to avoid public repercussions from the actions they take while they’re in there.
This line of thinking also leads to the negative possibility of a player or group of players using an instance as a permanent refuge against attack. The Prince has called a blood hunt on you/us – quick, enter an instance for the rest of the week/forever. There’s a vampire after you/us – quick jump in a day-time instance forever.
This is one of the reasons I'm hoping Havens aren't instanced. Unless others can enter the instance uninvited, they’ll basically just turn into unfair safe-havens for griefers and min-maxers. Keeping them in-game and not instanced, also means stealth (no one knows where you live) and security (God help anyone who tries to get in without the key/passcode/fingerprint/etc.) become important factors of consideration...as they should be.
All these things considered, and probably a few I haven’t thought of, lead me to the conclusion that a permanent day cycle was really the only option the developers can choose. As long as it doesn't mean there won’t be a weather cycle either. (double negative...sorry about that)
11 Comments
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1 Merits
Bloodartist
217 days ago
Well vampires would still fear the day, and functionally its better to not have a day, which would exist solely for the reason for us to avoid it, Its just game design, better to not have it in the first place. One way we could have day though would be to make it happen during the daily MMO downtime (which will happen most likely every day for at least couple months after launch). Just make it so that were somewhere safe when the downtime comes lest we suffer some kind of penalty next night.
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-1 Merits
JustFiyen
218 days ago
Not having day in vampire games kinda kills the "Vampire" feel. If it's always dark you never have to fear the light. You know? I would have thought maybe just have it so that you get a five minute warning that the sun is coming up (if you currently online) to get to your haven or into the sewers or other underground clubs or something. Even if it was only an hour of the game-play per day.(Your character would be weak but still able to socailze, not much else.) (Just another reason you don't log off with your character hanging outside in the middle of the street, right? in case you logg inn when the suns up...hehe But, I guess they decided just not to deal with that... :(
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2 Merits
218 days ago
Now that JustFiyen mentions it, we COULD still have the FEAR of the sun... even in what is actually a permanight game. Bear with me for a second: We can keep the fear of the sun, or at least something like it, by instituting that "five minute warning" of his for the sun coming up. But the sun doesn't actually come up, see. However, any players left out in an open space (pretty much anywhere outside, on the rooves of buildings, in a gallery with large windows, etc, etc) get "fried to a crisp" and receive severe penalties for "greeting the sun". (Perhaps they receive Aggravated Damage based on how close they are to their haven - the further away they are, the more damage they take. Perhaps they also lose many Blood Points and Willpower Points for going through the shock. It could also force all vampire players to respawn at their nearest haven, regardless of what they were doing before, meaning that mortal players can escape if a chase is going on too close to dawn.) This doesn't have to kill the player-character, but it should be harsh enough to make them "fear" the sunrise warning. ---- So, say every twleve hours server-time, this warning comes up, and five minutes later everybody in the game gets a few-seconds-long cinematic of the sun rising (much like we saw in VTM - Redemption). Vampires, if they are still in an open space, receive damage and penalties, while mortal characters perhaps receive a small, temporary buff for surviving another night. (Such as restoring a small amount of Willpower.) In fact, this point could double as server reset, representing the daylight hours passing. If a vampire player survives the "day", they, too, get a Willpower Point restored, like in tabletop. Then the game goes back to permanight. The only real "day" the players see is the cinematic, allowing them to continue playing the game, absent a few seconds, but puts the fear of Raphael back into vampires' hearts. ---- If this system came into play, they could also institute the "Time Sense" Merit, allowing players to get a glimpse of the server clock counting down towards the new day. Could potentially be very useful for all players if they wish to avoid damage or take advantage of a temporary buff.
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1 Merits
4chieve
216 days ago
That's a good idea! I only disagree about the punishment to vampires, i suggest something more severe, like to those that didn't find shelter before the day would be considered as a threat to the masquerade and it being done too many times would lead to a Blood hunt, ergo Permadeath (or not if the player is crafty and resourceful)! I think it would be more appropriate to the threat the sun poses to a vampire. The fundament for it being a threat to the masquerade, FOR EXAMPLE, would be that the vampire was found and confused as cadaver and a whole investigation was started to find what happened, it could lead to a subsequent "quest" to clear the mess. Also a thing that would be important to not forget... Although for the player time passed very fast, the in game time still should pass the 12 hour(*) while he was sleeping, so anything else that would take time to complete is carried out. *Or follow the actual light and dark time according to solstice!
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-1 Merits
Bloodartist
216 days ago
That didn't sound right, considering that if you don't find shelter from the sun, you aren't a threat to masquerade, youre a pile of ash. I'd rather go for debuff penalties of some sort. (provided we bend the rules enough to let characters actually recover from the sun incident..)
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-1 Merits
4chieve
225 days ago
This question also come to my mind and the idea that i had was that the vampire would be controlling his Ghoul while it's day in game. Still it could be frustrating not being able to play on spare time with your main character (whenever it is) due to being day in game time. Maybe the haven would be protected by difficult puzzles, passwords and guards which would difficult someone breaking in. It all would depend on the ability of the player to forge alliances and contacts to protect himself trough other than mechanics in the game. And in the event of a permadeath you could replace your character with the ghoul which would somewhat be evolving with your main character and would inherit it's duties and riches, not the duties if the death came from a blood hunt.
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-1 Merits
Xaglacion
225 days ago
I am 100% sure that I've heard from CCP that Havens will not be instanced. Also, CCP is releasing Vampires only, at launch, and are not even sure if they will add other factions. As for why it's night-only, I think they want to keep players on their toes, make them feel like they are always in danger. Strange things don't usually happen during the day, it's humanity's time. The supernatural comes out at night, when everyone else is asleep, aside from the bravest of humans.
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Ivini
227 days ago
Havens are meant to be safe, if you have a Bloodhunt on you - and you manage to make it to your haven, by all means you are safe ... and trapped. I'm all for breaking into a Haven (a semi-instanced version) so you can steal information stored on a computer or copy 'paper versions' of various texts or install listening devices in the Haven, giving players incentive to check their home everytime they enter. But I'm from the standard MMO crowd, where somewhere... has to be safe. Elysian only works for as long as you aren't under the hunt... then you will need somewhere to be able to log out - even if that means you'll never leave the house again.
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