Smuggler Archive
Thread: Maybe I missed something...( Smuggler Vision Docs )
Page 1 of 1
RylanStorm
Mon May 31, 2004 3:08 am
#1
About a month ago I made some posts regarding the role of player smuggling in the game. With very few exceptions the posts were met with agreement from the vast majority and my post rating went from an average of about 3 to 4.5 in a week based on those posts alone. It seems many people shared my vision of smuggling.
But at the end of the day, despite my posts being well received I eventually gave up. Everything rested upon player smuggling, and everything to do with player smuggling revolves around customs scans or choke points as they have become known. Since we have been told that this is too intensive on the server ( I don't believe that for a durni's heartbeat ) there didn't seem much point putting together a document which included this as it's primary aim.
Reading the forum over the last week or so I see a number of you putting together your documents, Caylin included. I can't say that anyone of those posts capitualtes the smuggler profession as I would like it but that's never been the point. The trick is for all of us to band together to get it 100% right.
As I read these documents I think I might have missed something because every one talks about player smuggling and scanning at starports so my question to you is this.
Why bother?
Are these posts designed to show the developers that choke points are a must, as I've been saying for some time now? Or are the posts there merely to occupy time at work to give us something to look at and dream on. Or is there a final alternative which I missed, that the developers are looking at a way to make player smuggling a possibility?
I don't mean to sound negative in this but it seems that 50% of all of these documents are a waste of time whilst the developers remain adamant that player smuggling wont happen. Or is there a final hope?
RpTheHotrod
Mon May 31, 2004 3:27 am
#2
Kind of off topic...but if they ARE going to make or add something to smugglers to make it harder...they most certainly had better add some benefits as well.
Would suck if everything remained the same, but chokepoints were added. You just made the profession harder for no reason...without increasing the benefits.
I'm all for more content...but don't make it harder "just cuz"....make it a REASON to be harder....you gotta go through chokepoints because your reward is big.
Vampirerobot
Mon May 31, 2004 9:06 am
#3
As far as I know, there's no reason to think Player Smuggling will be added in the form of contraband scans at starports. You're guess is as good as mine why we continue to include it as the major feature in revamp docs.
novakaine
Mon May 31, 2004 9:49 am
#4
Because we are smugglers and we must smuggle.
Not everyone is ready to lay down and die on this issue.
As far as chokepoints making it "harder", I'm not sure you understand the issue here RpTheHotrod. We are talking about point to point smuggling. Chokepoints are only a part of the whole.
Message Edited by novakaine on 05-31-2004 09:50 AM
Smuggler_Caylin
Mon May 31, 2004 10:51 am
#5
RylanStorm wrote:
About a month ago I made some posts regarding the role of href="http://forums.station.sony.com/swg/board/message?board.id=smuggler&message.id=83112" target=_blank>player
smuggling in the game. With very few exceptions the posts were met with
agreement from the vast majority and my post rating went from an average of
about 3 to 4.5 in a week based on those posts alone. It seems many people
shared my vision of smuggling.
But at the end of the day, despite my posts being well received I
eventually gave up. Everything rested upon player smuggling, and everything to
do with player smuggling revolves around customs scans or choke points as they
have become known. Not everything, but it is an important
part of interactive smuggling with the player base
involved.
Since we have been told that this is too intensive on the server ( I
don't believe that for a durni's heartbeat ) there didn't seem much point
putting together a document which included this as it's primary aim. color=#00ffff>I don't believe either my document or Geevo's has had Player
Based Smuggling as it's primary aim.
Reading the forum over the last week or so I see a number of you putting
together your documents, Caylin included. I can't say that anyone of those
posts capitualtes the smuggler profession as I would like it but that's never
been the point. The trick is for all of us to band together to get it 100%
right.
That isn't going to be possible honestly. There is no
way to make 100% of smugglers happy with every aspect of what we propose. I've
read many of your ideas in the posts you made, lets make a quick rundown,
going from what I know is in my version, oriented on what I've seen you
want.
A sneak skill- In there.
Ability to take players off BHterminals - In
there.
Unarmed move - In there.
SmugglerMissions - In there.
Vehicle modifications - In there.
Additional weapon modifications - In
there.
Bounty Hunter Consequence - In there.
Checkpoints - In there.
Consequences - In there.
Restricted items - In there.
Enforcers - In there.
Sabacc/Gambling - In there.
Ability to Bribe- In there.
Ability to get warning of player bounties taken with
your name - In there.
Taxes - Not there. I'll put it in though. Oversight
on my part.
The stimpack thingy - Not there, obvious reasons you
acknowledged later.
So... looking through that... I wonder just how wrong
I am with what you want for smugglers. Seems to me, we have a lot of that
in.
As I read these documents I think I might have missed something because
every one talks about player smuggling and scanning at starports so my
question to you is this.
Why bother?
- The community wants player based
smuggling.
- Smuggling for the player base adds
content.
- Smuggling for the player base adds variety in a
system that would otherwise be increasingly boring NPC missions.
- You yourself said scanning bottlenecks were
necessary, and the most logical one is at the starport.
- Because we choose to.
Are these posts designed to show the developers that choke points are a
must, as I've been saying for some time now? Many of us
have been saying that, and I think they know that. Or are the posts
there merely to occupy time at work to give us something to look at and dream
on.This is possible.Or is there a final
alternative which I missed, that the developers are looking at a way to make
player smuggling a possibility? I know they have gone over
solutions to get it in-game, they just haven't found 'the one' yet. It was
also part of TH's template, so you can tell they recognize many of our desires
in the form of player based smuggling.
I don't mean to sound negative in this but it seems that 50% of all of
these documents are a waste of time whilst the developers remain adamant that
player smuggling wont happen. Or is there a final hope?
The documents I'm reading, and you are reading, must
be incredibly different. Most of the ones I read have player smuggling as an
addition to many other things that we want, not the sole focus. It's one part
of the whole. So how are 50% of these a waste of time given that, and the fact
the developers themselves have been looking for a way that
works?
One of the Four Horsemen of the Smuggler Apocalypse! 
RylanStorm
Tue Jun 01, 2004 4:12 am
#6
Not everything, but it is an important part of interactive smuggling with the player base involved.
I cannot envision a way that smuggling could take place without the scanning points in any form of player smuggling. It is essential to player smuggling and probably quite a large part of NPC smuggling missions.
I don't believe either my document or Geevo's has had Player Based Smuggling as it's primary aim.
True, but it's a primary aim of my vision of the smuggler class and it does factor into both your documents. I agree we need content and I agree that both yours and Geevos posts do that but giving us some sort of side game much like the Bounty Hunters investigation won't give us the interactivity. It only satisfies one half of the equation.
Now Im not suggesting that what you have discussed is merely a side game, but that it may become so if that's the course the developers wish to lead us down because they will not make the necessary steps. Look at how many good ideas we've come up with that the developers have offered elsewhere, or offered only in part.
So... looking through that... I wonder just how wrong I am with what you want for smugglers. Seems to me, we have a lot of that in.
You're not very far off what I want to see but as you point out it's difficult to get 100% of the smugglers agreeing with 100% of the ideas, and I do not mean to seem detrimental to your work. All of these documents have a great deal of what I would wish for in my posts and from that I can only conclude that the vast majority of smugglers wish for the same things with slight variances.
The documents I'm reading, and you are reading, must be incredibly different. Most of the ones I read have player smuggling as an addition to many other things that we want, not the sole focus. It's one part of the whole. So how are 50% of these a waste of time given that, and the fact the developers themselves have been looking for a way that works?
The documents I'm reading, and you are reading, must be incredibly different. Most of the ones I read have player smuggling as an addition to many other things that we want, not the sole focus. It's one part of the whole. So how are 50% of these a waste of time given that, and the fact the developers themselves have been looking for a way that works?
Whilst I agree that player smuggling is not the sole focus of these documents, my own included, I think they do form a vast majority of a great deal of them. I don't think that player smuggling is as much an addition as the other things, such as spices and combat moves, are an addition to the concept of smuggling.
Butthere's the answer to my question. I did not know the developers were still looking for a way to make it work. My concern nowis that of the negativity involved with player smuggling. They told us it could not be done, but are still working on it? Yoda sums it up perfectly. "Do or do not. There is no try"
If the developers finally say we tried and we just could not do it, we can point them directly at their post last month saying it could not be done and say "that is why you fail". In the meantime developers will skim documents, see player smuggling, and just ignore it on the basis that they've already told us it cant be done.
I'm wondering if we shouldn't develop a document which has no mention of player smuggling, other then a firm note at the end to say that it needs to be there. At least that way the developers have read all our other good ideas, rather then summarily dismissing the whole document.
HOTDOG
Tue Jun 01, 2004 6:29 am
#7
Also, I think the Devs felt there would be a strain if the scans were made as you used your ticket- i.e. You give 3PO your ticket and you get "scanned" and if you get busted you cannot travel- Thus the database has to make several checks for EVERY person that traveled EVERY time they traveled.
We are, for the most part, focusing on consequences BEFORE you give 3PO your ticket- which is basically how scans work now. We aren't trying to change anything with the travel portion of the trip. Just how you get to the travel portion.
We are, for the most part, focusing on consequences BEFORE you give 3PO your ticket- which is basically how scans work now. We aren't trying to change anything with the travel portion of the trip. Just how you get to the travel portion.
RylanStorm
Tue Jun 01, 2004 7:57 am
#8
Well my argument has always been that your inventory is already scanned when you get on a shuttle since the server has to look for your ticket. However all things considered I think it makes much more sense for you to be scanned as you move through the starport itself, probably whilst you go through that little lowered area on the left, or the raised section if you go right.
They said at that time that it was the scanning that was a problem and they hadn't been able to work around it, hence there would not be any form of player smuggling. i find it difficult to believe that the answer is simply to move the scan to another place.
BigZak
Tue Jun 01, 2004 1:07 pm
#9
Ok, everyone has noticed how when you are on your byke, or what ever, that the doors to building are red and you cannot enter....well how come they cannot do this at the entrance to starports as well, only, with contraband, they recognize vehicles, why not sliced weapons/armor, or spice?
That way, anyone needs a transport out would need to stash the stuff, or get a smuggler to help SMUGGLE it.
Just a thought....
Violet Vette, Radiant
ex-MCM, Smuggler, Pistoleer
That way, anyone needs a transport out would need to stash the stuff, or get a smuggler to help SMUGGLE it.
Just a thought....
Violet Vette, Radiant
ex-MCM, Smuggler, Pistoleer
Page 1 of 1