balancing catacombs

[DocClox]

Would it be possible to set items rarity in a list formation? Say items go from 1 to 1,000, 1 being the rarest while 1,000 being the most common.

I could certainly give items a weighting to control the relative chance of them being found in any particular place. I'd like to separate chance of discovery from location as well. Something like this:

Code: [Select]

        <item   name    = 'Nipple Rings'
                desc    = 'Gold rings pierced into a girls breast.'
                type    = 'Necklace'
                badness = '20'
                special = 'None'
                cost    = '100'
                rarity  = 'Shop25'
                infinite= 'false'
        >
                 <location
                       where = "shop"
                        chance = "25"
                 >
                 <location
                       where = "catacombs"
                        chance = "5"
                 >

                <effect what    = 'Stat'
                        name = 'Charisma'
                        amount = '5'
                />
                <effect what    = 'Stat'
                        name = 'Libido'
                        amount = '5'
                />
                <effect what    = 'Stat'
                        name = 'Spirit'
                        amount = '-5'
                />
        </item>

So that'd give you an item that was found more often in the market, but also cropped up in the catacomb from time to time.

[letmein]

Question:  would this make all the old items be obsolete?  I assume yes.

[DocClox]

Question:  would this make all the old items be obsolete?  I assume yes.

Which? The XML format or the expanded location/rarity scheme.

The XML will be in the next release. The way it's going to work is that the new files have an "x" on the end, like MS did with their new MS Office XML formats. Only instead of .docx, we're going to have .itemsx, .girlsx and .rgirlsx.

When the game loads, it will load both formats. Which is to say, it will load any .itemsx, .girlsx and .rgirlsx file it finds. Once it's done that, it will load any old format files unless it already loaded the XML version of the same file. So we have backwards compatibility. Also, Solo's editor will allow you to convert existing files to the new formats.

For the expanded rarity scheme, I haven't nailed down the details yet, but I expect I could make that work much the same way. If there are location tags in the file, the game will use them. If not, it'll go by the rarity attribute, the same as it does at the moment.

So either way, the answer is probably "no"

[letmein]

Well, I was just thinking that a radical change in item functionality might force a new, incompatible .item file.

[DocClox]

That's one of the cool things about using XML: you can add in new stuff without necessarily breaking the old files

[Mehzerz]

Sounds pretty nice Doc! Lookin' forward to it.

Is it possible to have one of the gangs stats to increase the chances of finding rare items over common ones? I don't think any of their stats alter that but it would be nice.
It seems that gangs were bringing back common items far too commonly. Either that or super common items should be removed. But then I suppose that's why the game is moddable. :p
I think as far as store items go in the catacombs I'd just make them rare finds. Super powerful items would be rarer than that, and mid to powerful items would be more common. This is all assuming the catacombs difficulty increases and gangs don't come out unscathed. :p

[DocClox]

Sounds pretty nice Doc! Lookin' forward to it.

Is it possible to have one of the gangs stats to increase the chances of finding rare items over common ones? I don't think any of their stats alter that but it would be nice.
It seems that gangs were bringing back common items far too commonly.

Agree with that. Intelligence might be a good modifier: A smart gang leader will see no sense in hauling a plain dress or a pair of scruffy boots back through all that danger.  Stupid ones will grab the first item they see and high tail it back.

[Fstop]

It would be great if instead of items or girl you could occasionally get a monster as a gang member (mush like how your sons are going to join the gangs)

[DocClox]

It's an interesting idea. I think I need to see how necno is handling the sons-as-gang-leaders idea before I can say much more than that.