Re: Game balance

From: John Evans (evansj@texas.net)
Date: 02/24/97


At 02:09 AM 2/24/97 -0600, you wrote:
>
>I'm currently working on my mud, and have realized that game balance seems
>to be one of the most confusing aspects of the game.  What are some tips on
>balancing the game.  I mean, how do you know if a mob is too strong, or too
>easy, and is giving too much experience.  How do you know if a weapon is too
>strong, or the mud is too easy in general.  My mud is currently in
>developing stage, where I'm just experimenting, having players test it,
>etc., but what is the best way to ensure that the game is balance.  Can this
>question be answered? :)

Oi-vay!  Good questions, and tough ones to answer. I have found that the
best way to get started, is to pick several "power levels" from muds that
you enjoy playing, and merge them. 

Yes, this is akin to "stealing ideas", but that is how we learn. We take
someone else's knowledge and apply it to the situation at hand. The
information gets molded and transformed in the process, and thus, you have
"created" your own knowledge and information.

Once you get those power levels decided upon, then make several areas with
mobs and objs and such and play test them. Use the "advance" command on some
test mortals for testing purposes. Set their levels, give them some eq, and
play the mortals yourself to see how rough things get. To see if the areas
are as hard as you want them to be for the level characters that you are
targeting and with the EQ that the "average" (or even well-equipped)
character of that level will have.

I am currently in the process of doing this myself, and this is the first
time that I have tried to do it with a MUD. I have done it with almost a
dozen originaly roleplaying systems, and dozens of other RPG system within
my own universe. It is quite interesting to do it where the computer is the
"game master".

My ideas my be completely off target, and if they are I hope someone else
out there has some advice for us so that I'm not leading anyone else down a
path of sheer folley. :)



John Evans
mailto:evansj@texas.net  -  http://www.texas.net/~evansj
slanted.elfwerks.com:2020 [Slanted Reality (Look for Beosig)]
I don't suffer from Insanity. I enjoy every minute of it!

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