Forums » Suggestions

Disable Wormhole Access until Trade Level 1?

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Jun 10, 2005 Phaserlight link
This might be a headache to implement, but it would make it easier to create designated "newbie" systems by ensuring that the nooblets didn't wander off into Grey Space or Big Scary Bot Land, at least not until they had some basic familiarity with the game.

Many other MMORPG's do something like this, and it kind of makes sense imho. You know the newbies will stick together more instead of wandering away right off the bat, and having a steady expansion of space to explore provides the player with a milestone of progress.

Of course all trade missions would have to be filtered for 0 jumps only until the player reached his/her first trade level.

Once the player reached trade level 1 they would get a message saying something like "Congradulations... with your first trade license comes wormhole access privileges. You can now take inter-system trade missions and roam the universe at will!"
Jun 10, 2005 who? me? link
[big fat stamp of disapproval]
Jun 10, 2005 johnhawl218 link
I don't have a problem with limiting movement for newbs but not to just Sol II, Dau & Itan, instead let them wander the monitored areas, not grey or enemy territory.

and who cared what "Who?Me?" thinks =P
Jun 10, 2005 Phaserlight link
"[big fat stamp of disapproval]" thus quoth the pirate ;)

One possibility would be to also keep players in their own nation space until Combat 3...

see thread: http://www.vendetta-online.com/x/msgboard/3/10600

When they tried to leave their own nation's territory the Station Guard could say "I know you're eager to help out in the conflict, captain, but you need some more experience first. Come back and talk to us when you reach Combat License Level 3."

A player wouldn't really be useful in grey space or in raiding other nations until combat 3 anyway. That way you would have a noob zone (capitals), lower level areas (nation territory), and high level areas (grey space).
Jun 10, 2005 johnhawl218 link
that's what I just said
Jun 10, 2005 roguelazer link
You all ignore my perspective, however. IE: that of the career trader. Vault has NO combat licenses. How does any limiting by combat licenses benefit him. I dislike the original suggestion, and I dislike the modification. However, a warning to n00bs would be nice. IE: The first time they leave their nation's territory, a bot of some sort flies up to them and warns them about the danger of gray space.
Jun 10, 2005 johnhawl218 link
if it were to be a warning, then it would have to be EVERY time they are about to enter dangerous territory, until they reach the appropreate license level. Whatever license level that may be.
Jun 10, 2005 Phaserlight link
It benefits him because it will bring him into contact with other players of similar license levels. Figuring out the game together with other noobs is more fun than wandering around the universe hopelessly lost. Also, allowing inexperienced newbs to mingle with high level vets in a PvP environment right off the bat is not a good idea generally speaking.

It has been suggested time and time and time again to have a separate "newb sector" where new players can meet and get acquainted with the game before the sally forth. This isn't really a new idea, just my personal take on it.

As far as the "career trader" argument goes, are you really going to risk a trade run into grey space before you even have a heavy battery? Most career traders need to be somewhat combat savvy anyway. I'm not saying that everyone needs to be a jack of all trades, but at low levels I don't think you would worry about being a career anything. Specialization comes later.
Jun 10, 2005 Harry Seldon link
As far as the "career trader" argument goes, are you really going to risk a trade run into grey space before you even have a heavy battery? Most career traders need to be somewhat combat savvy anyway. I'm not saying that everyone needs to be a jack of all trades, but at low levels I don't think you would worry about being a career anything. Specialization comes later.
-Phaserlight

"A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects."
-Robert Heinlein

..hehe. Sorry, I just coudln't resist. One point I would like to make is that if newbs were to meet at low levels, then they're likely to make friends, compete in a friendly manner, and help each other learn the game. There would be fewer newb questions in 100, and fewer annoyed vets willing to take out their frustrations on newbs.
Jun 10, 2005 tkjode link
Honestly, I never left Arta Caelestis until at least 1/1/1/1/1
And I didn't venture into gray space until I was much further along. I think I made one excursion through Sedina, was promptly wiped out, and stayed away for a while.

I agree on warning new users about the danger, in whatever form that may manifest, it doesn't really matter so long as it gets their attention.

Restricting access would mean a whole load rewriting for wormholes (allowing some people, disallowing others), missions (can't give out missions to anything that requires a jump, can't provide prospecting missions for ores that don't exist in that sector), and other things of that nature. I'd rather the devs work on more fun stuff than limiting newb access... because honestly, the best way to learn is to make mistakes :)
Jun 10, 2005 LeberMac link
When I was a n00b (not all that long ago) it was readily apparent via channel 100 that pirates ran through grayspace, and I think the smart-er players can kinda figure out things on their own. If you are too stupid to figure this out perhaps you should not be playing.

And if you die, so what? Pffft. One death.

My first death from another player was from someone named "Goldwing" who snuck up behind me in my first trip to grayspace as I was completing one of the trade missions with a Wraith-hold full of cargo. No warning. No hail. Just BOOM. I recall that I was fairly pissed and was willing to give someone ALL of my 241,344 credits if they would kill him for me. But it taught me a valuable lesson - grayspace is dangerous. It's sad, really, I have not seen Goldwing since that time to have a little "chat." I was still able to complete the trade mission and I realized that dying was not so bad.

When I was a n00b and was in my first fight for my life, I rocket-rammed tramshed with multiple jackhammers, kinda accidentally. I actually apologized, and he said something that has stuck with me ever since: "Death Means Nothing in This Game."

400+ deaths later that still rings true. Coddling players only prevents their growth.
Jun 10, 2005 Phaserlight link
Of course death means nothing. You are missing the point... the purpose of having a newb zone isn't to coddle new players... quite the opposite as a matter of fact.

It's to create an environment where newbs can interact with each other while they learn the basics of the game.

Okay, let me back up... the ideal gas law: PV = nRT, states that the temperature of a gas will be directly proportional to the number of gas molecules and inversely proportional to the volume (or boundaries) of the gas.

Players in Vendetta can be compared with gas molecules, they wander around semi-randomly in brownian motion until they bump into another player, and when this happens, an interaction occurs. The point I am trying to make is that it is more "fun" for newbs to interact with newbs than for newbs to interact with vets, unless the vet is mentoring the newbie. Even in this case it would be easier if the mentor knew where to go to find the newbie right away.

By restricting wormhole access, you would limit the volume the "gas cloud" of newbs occupies, therefore creating more interaction between newbies. It's not only for their protection it's to keep them all in the same place. At least in the beginning.

Having the universe opened up for exploration upon reaching trade 1 would be a milestone, a threshold out of newb-dom. Imagine how exciting it would be getting to explore the rest of the universe for the first time. It's just like in GTA where you start out in one corner of the city but as you progress the game gradually lets you explore more and more. Why not just allow the player to explore everything right away? Why have license levels or experience points at all?

It's because a steady progression is what makes an MMOG interesting.
Jun 10, 2005 ctishman link
[stamp of approval]
Jun 10, 2005 Pixelcat link
I feel that this is a good idea, but that it is not one that needs to be immediatly implemented. Maybe it should be one of the last thing before the Developers begin focusing on recruiting.
Jun 10, 2005 Arolte link
I strongly disagree. For similar reasons to the PvP thread. If newbie players ever had any intention of playing it safe, they would've taken the tutorial. Otherwise they should know that heavy risks will be involved if they stray away from their designated tasks or missions. Let experience continue to teach players. That's part of playing any game. We learn from our mistakes and that's something we shouldn't take away, from both new and old players. So once again, I'm against any type of artificial barriering.
Jun 10, 2005 johnhawl218 link
Kind of off topic here, but, if Death is so unimportant, why do we all have PK stats, death ratios, etc. IT's quite important. It's unfortunate that all of you seem to devalue life by simply allowing yourselves to die so much.

Back to topic. Anything that would allow news to fully understand that venturing into more dangerous territory is a good thing for the game, even a simple message like we get when fireing in a NFZ would be enough IMO. And that should not take up too much dev time. Just spam everyone, even vets.
Jun 10, 2005 roguelazer link
Vault is a CAREER TRADER. He will NEVER have a heavy battery. If this sort of proposal was seriously implimented, I would lose the last bit of interest.
Jun 10, 2005 esromneb link
I have played various muds, and ones I stick to are the ones where I have a newbie area to play around in and group/make friends. I think that certain ships should limit jumps through certain worm holes. IE into enemy territory or grey space. That way the holes don't have to get modified much as well as keeping the newbies together. Maybe even have a special quest that one must complete inorder to get a badge or something so they can fly into enemy territory. I definalty think that some sort of implimentation will make newbies enjoy the game a lot more.
Jun 10, 2005 DragonEmpire link
I will always remember my first venture into grey-space...

I had gotten to a reasonable level and wanted to see what it was like in grey-space, and do some trading at the same time. So knowing from watching 100 and from playing other games, I knew that grey would be pirate infested, so I loaded my Centaur with two Chaos Swarm missiles.

Along the way I got hailed by a pirate, don't remember his name but it was the usual message, pay or die. I didn't pay and I wasn't planning to die either, so I went to 3000m, turned around to face him, then messaged him that I was armed. He said "prove it", so when he got within a couple hundred meters, I fired. I don't think he realized what happened :P.

Anyways not only was it my first venture into grey, I also got my first PK kill that day too. (And to this day I've NEVER been killed while travelling/trading)

I must say I disagree with this suggestion, n00bs should be free to do what-soever they wish, as long as they know the consequences. A simple warning should be fine.
Jun 11, 2005 LeberMac link
/me thinks a bit more about Phaserlight's suggestion...

Well, it would be good to keep all the new players in one spot. One of the big complaints now from new players is "Where is everybody?"

However, following the law of unintended consequences...

You have just made a feeding ground for newb-killers. Nothing turns a player off of a game than being immediately killed by a much higher-level player.