179 replies to this topic

[phellen]

In response to post #15115900.

That's really cool I like how it ties trapping into the contracts which would make it seem more integrated into the guild, and It would be nice for players to have the option to either hunt or trap to fulfill some of the quests.

Since Exploration is one the their main skills, adding trapping to the path of the ranger makes sense. They would be the ones most likely to know where the different regions are located and how to find the best trapping grounds. However, if you were going to include some sort of "exploration quest" as a guide for letting the player know where the different trapping regions are, this quest line would need to start after the player decides he/she wants to follow the path of the ranger. It would be cool if there was a way for the "exploration quest" to be available regardless of which path the player has chosen...Maybe one way to do this would be to have the player go and check some traps that have already been set up by one of the other guild members or local hunters.

Edited by phellen, 29 May 2014 - 01:29 AM.

[WhatsHisFace3]

In response to post #15078941. #15079011, #15097591, #15131127 are all replies on the same post.

That would be amazing! I was actually thinking about how a player could work the system by placing a million traps all in one spot. A million rabbits all getting caught (assume trapping level is maxed) is totally unrealistic.

This would be an elegant solution. xD

[phellen]

In response to post #15058691. #15135714 is also a reply to the same post.

Sounds like this setup should be easy enough for most people to grasp without the need for a in game book or guide to help them...I think this mixed with the "exploration quest line" through the various regions that you were talking about would be good enough for the player to become familiar with trapping.

However I had another idea, In order to make it even clearer, and that is to work in a few hints into the dialogue or conversations with the local hunters and/or some of the guild members. For example while talking to a hunter, let's say the player has the option to say...

"So did you catch anything good today?"

Then the hunter responds,

"I set up a few traps in the tundra, I'm planning to head back there later to see if anything took the bait."

Player could then respond with either...

1. I could check those for you, I'm headed out that way any...or
2. Well, best of luck to you.

If option 1 is chosen the player could then be given a little misc quest to go and check the trap for the hunter where he/sher will either fetch and retrieve a carcass from the trap and bring it back to the hunter for a small gold reward, or he/she simply finds the bait still in the trap, and returns that to the hunter where the hunter will say.

"That's what I get for trying out a new type of bait...oh well, thank you anyway."


this hints to the player how baiting the traps works and it also allows all players to interact with the trapping system a little, even before they are able to set up their own traps or if they haven't decided to follow the path of the Ranger yet.

Edited by phellen, 29 May 2014 - 02:16 AM.

[phellen]

In response to post #15058691. #15134907 is also a reply to the same post.

Here's some more Idea's other cool things that could happen upon checking the trap...


1. When checking the trap, again the player finds a blood trail and assumes that another wounded animal must have run off...he/she follows the trail... but instead of a wounded animal, they find a larger and very angry beast or a family of very large and very angry beasts which has dragged their catch back to their lair and so now he/she must either fight them all off or run away to stay alive.

2 Instad of finding a catch the Player finds a small coin purse and a note that says, " The good news is your trap was successful, the bad news is M'iaq was so very hungry and needed some food" M'iaq is very sorry for this inconvenience he has caused. -M'iaq the Liar

3. Player could come back to check the trap but instead finds a that group of bandits or a necromancer waiting in hiding for him/her in order to rob him or worse.

Edited by phellen, 29 May 2014 - 02:11 AM.

[B1gBadDaddy]

Some good ideas been suggested so far guys, definitely going to work them into my system

How realistic, on normal difficulty, should the trapping chance be? I will post my calculation later, the formula that works it all out, however i want to make it difficult to catch on low skill levels, but worthwhile to increase the level. If its too hard, it might take way to long to increase your skill, leading the player to maybe not want to bother. Until i post my formula, off the top of my head at level 0, with a basic trap under normal conditions, the chance of a catch is about 3 out of ten.

[B1gBadDaddy]

In response to post #15138830.

Ok the formula is kind of complicated due to the number of variables I am allowing myself to account for. Most of the below is based on the player using the normal difficulty. Bear in mind all of this is open for alteration and is currently just what I'm working with.

This is the sum:

ActualChance = (BaseChance + NightBonus() + SnowingBonus() + WornBonus() + RegionExpertBonus() + TrapHiddenBonus())

Base chance is currently set to 20% (this may change), so regardless of anything else, 1 in 5 traps are successful.

Trapping skill is added to the base chance using the formula (Trapping Skill * 0.4). This isn't much, a skill of 10 only adds an extra 4% chance to the base.

Trap Quality is added to the chance as follows:

Novice Trap, adds 5% to chance
Apprentice's Trap, adds 8% to chance
Journeyman's Trap, adds 13% to chance
Master's Trap, adds 18% to chance


So without any bonus modifiers at all, a level 0 trapper using a novice trap has a 25% chance of success. A level 30 trapper using a journeyman trap has a 45% chance of success. There are a number of ways you can improve this chance using what I call Bonus Modifiers. Unlike the main chance deciders of Base chance, Skill, and Trap Quality, they do not add directly to the actual chance; they are calculated off of it. For example trapping when night is coming gives you your Base Chance + 20% extra, which if your Base Chance was 30, your chance would become 36%. The following bonuses apply:


BONUS MODIFIERS

Each bonus modifier is calculated relative to the base chance level.

Night time = Base chance + 20%; Trapping when night is coming.

Snowing = Base chance + 10%; Trapping when it is snowing/in a snowy area, animals less likely to see it.

Worn = Base chance + Worn bonus %; Talismans and other such enchantments will be made, adding a maximum of 5% bonus.

RegionExpert = Base chance + 10%; If you have succesfully trapped 10 or more animals in a region, you get a 10% bonus.

TrapHiddenBonus = Base chance + 5%; In certain areas you will be able to cover up your trap with snow or leaves, adding a 5% bonus.



So if you were a level 30 trapper using a journeyman trap (45%), in the snow (45 * 0.1 = 4.5%), hide your trap (45 * 0.05 = 2.25%), and your an expert trapper in that region (45 * 0.1 = 4.5) your actual chance of success would be 56.25%, rounded down to the nearest whole number; 56%.


Difficulty changes your final chance of success, however all of the above calculations are carried out. On easy, your final chance is multiplied by 1.5, meaning if you had the above 56% chance, that would become 84%. On hard the difficulty is cut in half (multiplied by 0.5) so 56% would become 28%.

This is just the calculation of whether or not the trap would work. Bait decides whether you actually trap an animal.

Edited by B1gBadDaddy, 29 May 2014 - 08:28 PM.

[phellen]

In response to post #15138830. #15153882 is also a reply to the same post.

Sounds like a good balance. Here's some questions for you...

1.Is the chance of a catch going be the same for traps that are placed at the entrances of animal dens?

2. Will the player be able to hide and cover all traps? or just the ones placed in certain regions, or in front of animal dens?

3.Will the player have to stand a certain minimum distance away from the set trap (for a certain amount of time)in order for it to register a catch?

4. Are un-baited traps still going to function the same as it did in vanilla, where an NPC or unobservant player sets it off and gets hurt when walking over it?

5. Is there going to be a limit for how many traps the player can set up at once in a particular region?


So far this to me sounds like a good variety of trapping activities....

-Checking traps that have already been set up by other hunters and retrieving the catch for a small reward.

-Setting up traps & hiding them in front of animal dens, and using this as another option to fulfill contracts

-Setting up and baiting traps in and around all the different regions of skyrim

-Region exploration quest for trapping

All these + The chance of random events happening during them sounds great.

It would also be useful if there was a log for keeping track of the players trapping progress such as his/her level, what types of animals he/she has trapped and how many in each region.

Edited by phellen, 31 May 2014 - 02:16 AM.

[B1gBadDaddy]

In response to post #15138830. #15153882, #15185658 are all replies on the same post.

Hey man lets hit these:

1. All traps will follow the same basic formula to decide if the trap fails or not. Do you think that shouldn't be the case for animals dens?

2. I was only planning on allowing the cover in certain regions, which would be most, probably apart from the reach, volcanic tundra, and the tundra (maybe).

3. I haven't worked out yet how I'm going to manage this, but I was thinking that when the time comes for the update to complete, if the player is close by, the update will start again for perhaps another hour.

4. Because there's a lot behind the scenes I've actually been planning to not allow them to be set off in the normal way, purely because of the scripting in the background.

5. There will be no limit to the number of traps the player can set Certain locations aren't acceptable however, mostly the following:

Locations that are populated such as towns, forts, farms, cities, indoor locations, camps, and caves, will not be acceptable places to set a trap. Players will be informed of this straight away, as the process of setting a trap goes like this...

1. Drops from inventory
2. Activates trap, chooses place trap (this is to check location is suitable, and also to set it so it cant bs moved.
3. If its not suitable, player informed, trap added back to inventory.
4. If it is suitable, player can then add bait (like a container), cover up trap, or pick it up.
5. If bait added will never work in any region, bait added back to player.
6. If the bait isn't removed, player then activates trap and chooses "Set Trap". At this point the update is registered and the trap will either catch or fail a day or two later.

The player will also be able to choose to see the trap stats when they activate it. It'll show how many times they've tried and how many times they've succeeded trapping with that particular trap.

[B1gBadDaddy]

Traps can break and can be repaired. Can anyone think of a benefit to repairing a trap over just making a new one? What, other than it taking less materials to repair than create a new one, could I give the player as a form of reward for using the same trap over and over? I cant decide if there should be some sort of benefit towards the chance of success, or something along those lines.

[B1gBadDaddy]

In response to post #15138830. #15153882, #15185658, #15187808 are all replies on the same post.

Also thinking about it, do you think there should be a negative to covering the trap? Rather than give too many bonuses, perhaps if you cover the trap it increases the chance of success, but also the chance of trapping a person by mistake? So that it isn't always beneficial...