Post by kalbaern on Dec 8, 2011 17:11:29 GMT -5
Prior to releasing "Hellgate Keep" and a massive High Forest addition along with a score new Underdark areas we're adding in a new "PnP-ish" Wandering or Random Monster System to most existing maps.
How it works:
- PCs 5th level or lower will not trigger the new system themselves. If travelling with PCs of 6th level or higher though, they are fair game.
- In areas with an "intelligent" presence, i.e., a tribe of goblins or orcs, random encounters will most often be of the same type there normally. E.g., most areas with set humanoid encounters will only have a random chance of extra creatures of the same type ... especially after dark.
- In areas not claimed by a town or a tribe (I.e., most "wilderness" areas.) randomness will be based on the type of environment. Each type of environment has its own selection of possible encounters. I.e., a random encounter for a swamp will definately differ from the results for one on a high snowy glacier somewhere.
- Many Dungeons/Crypts will also at times have a random encounter unless they are considered a "lair" for a specific creature.
- Entering a map with a random encounter makes a few die rolls to determine what if anything will appear. First a 1d4 is rolled. If the result is 1-3, nothing will appear. On a roll of 1, a follow up roll of 1d100 is made to see what if anything was chosen as an encounter. Not all results on the d100 will return an encounter. There is generally a 30-50 percent chance (dependant on the exact area) that "something" is encountered. 1 in 100 times a third roll is made and an "Epic" encounter checked for.
- Random Encounter Scaling: Most encounters scale similar to a standard encounter, i.e., they check the total members in your party, their average and highest levels, then spawn something appropriate to the challenge. That is, most, not all do that. In some cases, a minimum CR is set in accordance with the map/area overall difficulty and used to determine the challenge. E.g., Random encounters in the "Dire Woods" will generally scale from what would challenge a PC or Party of 10th level or higher whereas a random encounter in the "Gray Wilds" would scale from 5th level and up.
What types of encounters to expect:
Not all random encounters will neccessarilly be deadly or even a challenge at times. Using "Forests" as an example, encounters vary; a shy unicorn might appear and then bolt away, it could just be an extra group of brown or black bears, a random druid or ranger that is hostile/neutral or even offers some type of rare merchandise could also be encountered or you could stumble upon an orc horde on a rampage with foes numbering into the hundreds at times ("Hordes" use a scripted system similar to the gibberlings in which an initial group appears and replacements are created as foes are killed [keeping lag to a minimum], until a preset total number have been defeated ... or you flee the area.
).
At times (again, the exact chance varies area by area, but is generally less than 1 in 1,000) an "Epic" Encounter will occur. These are the rarest of the rare. In some cases you might actually spawn in well known NPCs from various Forgotten Realms Sources. I.e. "Klauth", the most dreaded and notorious of all evil dragons in Faerun. Its also possible that any epic encounter is benign or even friendly. Among the possibilities will be NPCs that have special quests that allow access to secret areas being added to the server.
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Lastly, don't assume that everything can be defeated. In the case of a creature such as "Klauth", any party under 30th level (or higher) average will have the slimest of slim chances to defeat him. He also might not attack outright (if he isn't hungry [*coughs* which is also determined randomly]) and instead be willing to chat with "mere mortals". Even if seeking a "snack", its still likely that he can be bribed (I.e., give him all your hard earned gold [or possibly just a sizeable sum] and he'll leave you alone. ). In short, there will generally be more than one way to handle such ... and fleeing is something folk might want to consider at times. Consider too, that in the case of the "Klauth" examples, since epic encounters are roughly a 1 in 1,000 chance and he's just one of them ... the odds you'll spawn him are closer to 1 in 10,000.
"Who" else might be on the lists? You'll just have to adventure and keep your eyes open.
The triggers and their scripts are being added to each area now. Many however lack their full planned assortment of encounters though. So, that means, for the next few updates at least, the odds of spawning something at all are still extremely low. As new NPCs are made and tested, they'll be added to the "lists". Since its a scripted system, once the actual triggers are added to a map, future updates only require adding the blueprint(s) to existing lists of encounters.
Questions and Comments are welcomed.
How it works:
- PCs 5th level or lower will not trigger the new system themselves. If travelling with PCs of 6th level or higher though, they are fair game.
- In areas with an "intelligent" presence, i.e., a tribe of goblins or orcs, random encounters will most often be of the same type there normally. E.g., most areas with set humanoid encounters will only have a random chance of extra creatures of the same type ... especially after dark.
- In areas not claimed by a town or a tribe (I.e., most "wilderness" areas.) randomness will be based on the type of environment. Each type of environment has its own selection of possible encounters. I.e., a random encounter for a swamp will definately differ from the results for one on a high snowy glacier somewhere.
- Many Dungeons/Crypts will also at times have a random encounter unless they are considered a "lair" for a specific creature.
- Entering a map with a random encounter makes a few die rolls to determine what if anything will appear. First a 1d4 is rolled. If the result is 1-3, nothing will appear. On a roll of 1, a follow up roll of 1d100 is made to see what if anything was chosen as an encounter. Not all results on the d100 will return an encounter. There is generally a 30-50 percent chance (dependant on the exact area) that "something" is encountered. 1 in 100 times a third roll is made and an "Epic" encounter checked for.
- Random Encounter Scaling: Most encounters scale similar to a standard encounter, i.e., they check the total members in your party, their average and highest levels, then spawn something appropriate to the challenge. That is, most, not all do that. In some cases, a minimum CR is set in accordance with the map/area overall difficulty and used to determine the challenge. E.g., Random encounters in the "Dire Woods" will generally scale from what would challenge a PC or Party of 10th level or higher whereas a random encounter in the "Gray Wilds" would scale from 5th level and up.
What types of encounters to expect:
Not all random encounters will neccessarilly be deadly or even a challenge at times. Using "Forests" as an example, encounters vary; a shy unicorn might appear and then bolt away, it could just be an extra group of brown or black bears, a random druid or ranger that is hostile/neutral or even offers some type of rare merchandise could also be encountered or you could stumble upon an orc horde on a rampage with foes numbering into the hundreds at times ("Hordes" use a scripted system similar to the gibberlings in which an initial group appears and replacements are created as foes are killed [keeping lag to a minimum], until a preset total number have been defeated ... or you flee the area.
).At times (again, the exact chance varies area by area, but is generally less than 1 in 1,000) an "Epic" Encounter will occur. These are the rarest of the rare. In some cases you might actually spawn in well known NPCs from various Forgotten Realms Sources. I.e. "Klauth", the most dreaded and notorious of all evil dragons in Faerun. Its also possible that any epic encounter is benign or even friendly. Among the possibilities will be NPCs that have special quests that allow access to secret areas being added to the server.
//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
Lastly, don't assume that everything can be defeated. In the case of a creature such as "Klauth", any party under 30th level (or higher) average will have the slimest of slim chances to defeat him. He also might not attack outright (if he isn't hungry [*coughs* which is also determined randomly]
) and instead be willing to chat with "mere mortals". Even if seeking a "snack", its still likely that he can be bribed (I.e., give him all your hard earned gold [or possibly just a sizeable sum] and he'll leave you alone. ). In short, there will generally be more than one way to handle such ... and fleeing is something folk might want to consider at times. Consider too, that in the case of the "Klauth" examples, since epic encounters are roughly a 1 in 1,000 chance and he's just one of them ... the odds you'll spawn him are closer to 1 in 10,000."Who" else might be on the lists? You'll just have to adventure and keep your eyes open.
The triggers and their scripts are being added to each area now. Many however lack their full planned assortment of encounters though. So, that means, for the next few updates at least, the odds of spawning something at all are still extremely low. As new NPCs are made and tested, they'll be added to the "lists". Since its a scripted system, once the actual triggers are added to a map, future updates only require adding the blueprint(s) to existing lists of encounters.
Questions and Comments are welcomed.
