Prototype Better way to travel to the mining village.

Discussion in 'Server Suggestions' started by FloThePony, Feb 8, 2016.

  1. FloThePony

    FloThePony Citizen

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    Just like a good book, you have to hook the reader in. That is something that MF does not do. Spending half an hour with 'W' pressed down, walking north, isn't really my idea of fun. I think when you first join, you should be greeted by someone. Let's call him John. John welcomes you to Elpida, and tells you that you arrived at just the correct time, as a ride should be departing shortly. Then he tells you to just go and have a look around the village for a while, and meet some of the people there, then come back and meet him at the docks. After walking around there for a while, you decide to go back to the docks, so you go back and talk to John again. He takes you to the stables, and kindly rents a house out for you. You then thank him, and start your Journey to the mining village, on your horse. It should be like a cutscene, once you leave the village, your get a blindness effect for a second or two, and get teleported to just near the mining village. Your horse then waits for you outside the village, while you do what you need to do. You then go back and hop on your horse, and the cutscene effect happens again, but you get teleported back to the village. Once your back, John is next to you, he takes back your horse, and tells you to enjoy your stay in Elpida, then disappears. You then can go, and explore Elpida however you wish to.

    The current situation, is you have to walk North for ages, then do whatever, then walk South for ages to get back to the village. I have already done it, but for new players, it is a real turn off.

    - Flo
     
  2. Alir99

    Alir99 The Guy Who Does Stuff Moderator Community Team

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    New faster ways of travel will be added in the future. There is currently not a lot of information on this. This issue has been mentioned a few times by other players too, so hopefully soon we'll be able to travel faster around Elpida.
     
  3. llyrios

    llyrios Retired Staff Retired Staff

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    This is something we are looking into, but in roleplay situations it's fun traveling long distances speaking to people on your journey, stopping in a tavern mid-way etc...
     
  4. llyrios

    llyrios Retired Staff Retired Staff

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    As
    As @Alir99 said, this is something to hopefully be implemented, and is a good suggestion, but the tough grind is how game work to get the best stuff etc, but yes it is not so appealing to new players, especially the younger ones who get too excited and cant concentrate on it that long and get bored.
     
    Alir99 likes this.
  5. Tomas

    Tomas Owner Owner Administrator

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    @FloThePony
    You are very right. And the suggestions are great. The server will definitely need a "new player experience".

    The way gameplay works at the moment is far from what we intend it to be. A lot of stuff is missing - and the long trip every player is forced to do is a byproduct of that. There are a couple of things to keep in mind.

    1. The reason it actually takes time to walk between the two towns is to enable trade routes. Later on, when the game is feature complete, it will be a perfectly viable job to go around the shops in Elpida, see what the town is missing, and then make the journey North to haul back goods for a profit. If the trip was any shorter, trade routes would not really be a thing - it would simply be too easy to move goods over.

    2. There is currently very little to do besides crafting. In the future, much more emphasis will be placed on the story and NPC interaction. This means it will be extremely unlikely that the first thing a player does is make the trip to the Mining Village. In fact, even if you might want to craft, there will likely be ways to learn about crafting and get started right in Elpida, without needing to go to the Mining Village at all.

    3. There will be several NPC shops in both Elpida and the Mining Village. This means players will be able to buy what they need without the need to make the trip. Players who like the travel will keep the shops supplied by hauling goods, making profit as a result of other players not wanting to travel.

    4. The actual trip is currently very bland. You leave Elpida and as you say, "hold W" until you arrive in Mining Village. This will be much less of an issue when there is stuff to do on the way. We may add buildings and points of interest around the road. You will also be able to encounter NPCs and animals, get attacked by bandits or even get sidetracked by a task as you travel north. As a result, it will be much less of a wasted trip, but an adventure on its own.


    I think the best way to combat this is to add content into Elpida, making the trip less necessary. With that said, we will definitely implement all of the above at some stage, along with a "new player experience".
     
    FloThePony likes this.
  6. Alir99

    Alir99 The Guy Who Does Stuff Moderator Community Team

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    I'm not sure if it'll work, but maybe like a minecart system from Elpida to the Mining village. It would not just be a straight line, but maybe like zigzag across the country-side a bit, to show in the sights.
    Although in the era where the game is set, I don't know if minecarts would be available, but that's just my suggestion.
     
  7. Saphiria

    Saphiria Retired Staff Retired Staff

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    Yes, I agree, a good way to "hook" the player is needed.

    Like @Alir99 said, many have suggested this, and the team said they are looking into this.

    I cannot wait to see what they chose to do.
     
  8. llyrios

    llyrios Retired Staff Retired Staff

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    Well there is always horses
     
  9. Alir99

    Alir99 The Guy Who Does Stuff Moderator Community Team

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    Is that directed towards me?
     
  10. llyrios

    llyrios Retired Staff Retired Staff

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  11. Alir99

    Alir99 The Guy Who Does Stuff Moderator Community Team

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    Ahh ok. I'm ok with horses too. I thought that just for a difference, we could try with minecarts, but horses work just as well :)
     
    Last edited: Feb 8, 2016
  12. llyrios

    llyrios Retired Staff Retired Staff

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    Tracks over the map can look a bit odd though
     
  13. Alir99

    Alir99 The Guy Who Does Stuff Moderator Community Team

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    I suppose so. Didn't think that one through did I? :p
     
  14. llyrios

    llyrios Retired Staff Retired Staff

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  15. Alir99

    Alir99 The Guy Who Does Stuff Moderator Community Team

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    Genius! No wonder you're the builder :)
     
  16. llyrios

    llyrios Retired Staff Retired Staff

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  17. Saphiria

    Saphiria Retired Staff Retired Staff

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  18. FloThePony

    FloThePony Citizen

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    Ah, okay good, :p
    Thanks for explaining it to me.
     

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