Unlimited number of generic quests (aka Condor)

[Finkel]

Hi,

Most of the time you are walking around caves or forest and killing randomly, collecting 30 logs or 50 mauve herbs or ... you name it.

This is boring since monotone. So I know one thing from "Anarchy Online" which I think gives some incentive to killing monster without making it necessary for the devs to constantly make up quests that every player can do only once. In AO, you can go to "Mission Terminals" and pick missions. You can choose between types (retrieve item, kill monster), location, difficulty (monster level) and so on. You accept, and then there is some door (can be quite far away), and only you can enter. Inside is a automatically generated environment (some rooms, cave) with a fixed number of mobs, no respawn. And one or more "boss monster". And after you killed the boss monster, it has always some cool drop.

So my suggestion for Manaworld:
Place some NPC characters around the cities. When talked to, they will complain that a bird stole his house key, or a monster killed his sheep and he wants revenge, or that there are ghosts in his house and he's afraid of entering. You accept (the reward can be item, or money, or the drop of the boss) and get a location where that mission is. The "jump point" is exclusive for you, so only you can jump (That would be cool for all the unused doors in Tulimshar, very confusing as an beginner. "Is it a server lag that I can't enter?").

Once in the mission you kill the monster and the boss (you can go straight to the boss, but then maybe all monster will get aggro and follow you to the boss). And here is now the thing: Make the boss drop generous. At least 5 random items. Where you get really excited what it will be this time. And of course depending on the mission, there can be mission items (these items must be unique and if you drop or sell it the mission gets automatically purged).

Then you leave that generic location (cave or house) the jump point gets deleted. (Server can delete it)


Some more ideas:

1) Monster:
It would be nice if default monster could have a level. Otherwise low level missions are only filled with maggots and high level with skeletons. Which is fine but makes it monotone again. Why not a 300% squirrel?

2) Party:
There should be also party missions, so you have to be in party before accepting (thus of course more difficult). But then there is a group leader who accepts and only he can pick up mission item and return it.

3) XP sharing:
Should be on by default

4) Re-enter after death:
There could be different styles of missions. In some missions you can die and re-enter, or others where once you die its over.

5) Reward:
Can be money, XP, items or special items (As of the date of this post could be "30 Marshmellows" for example)


Summary:
A system like this will make it
a) more enjoyable to kill mobs, as you have a short term goal (boss)
b) instant and !certain! reward (boss always drops multiple items)
c) strengthen party playing, as missions with better drop are only for parties (the more players the better)
d) give a meaning to all the buildings and caves currently unused.


Possible (technical) challenges:
a) Handling of mission items that are unique in the engine (will they get a running number). They should not disappear automatically (since they are in unique location)
b) Handling of missions with party. What if the party accepts mission, but then the mission leader leaves or the party changes.
c) There has to be a log for the missions that the player can look at any time (magical piece of paper in inventory that lists the missions and location).
d) Possibility of "aborting" the mission
e) Some kind of "measure" for the difficulty