Game content

[action9000]

Just a thought, but depending on how complicated these tasks become and how many the players may have at once, could some journal system be introduced? A little thing you can bring up to remind you of what needs doing?

For sure!  Actually I was planning on having a journal system all along.

The only debate with that:
How many journal entries will the player be able to store?  From a realism point of view, a limit of 5-10 (since the characters' memory will only keep track of so much!) would probably make sense.  I know MMOs that have a limit of 25.  I don't know if I'd like to set it that high.

Probably 8 or so would be good.

[Kor]

If you can delete journal entries how many would one need since how many open quests or tasks would most folks have at any 1 time?  Also do not know if you mean a journal where you have to type in the information yourself, or some sort of recording of what the npc said.

[action9000]

Also do not know if you mean a journal where you have to type in the information yourself, or some sort of recording of what the npc said.

It's not so much a "diary" as it is "a way to read your character's memory".

When you get a task, the details of it are automatically saved to your journal, which you can refer to at any time.  The journal will also keep track of your progress through the task:
If you have given the NPC 6 out of 10 pine cones, the journal will tell you that automatically.

[Kor]

Similar to the one in Oblivion then, and in might and magic 6 and 8.

[ingster]

i sorta had this question for awhile, but would we be able to create our own charicters in the game? or will we be given one?

[Kor]

I assume you would be able to make a character, and customize the character as well.

[Serris]

LBT dinosaurs have to eat no matter whether they are injured or not. If they are well fed they would be best at performing their tasks. If you haven't eaten anything for a day or two you are not likely to be a very energetic climber or swimmer. Therefore I suggest that the energy bar will gradually lower itself through the game (faster while performing difficult physical tasks, slower while you are just walking or doing nothing very strainous). You won't die when that bar runs out (in case of the rare fights I suppose we need a different bar), but will have great difficulties to do any tasks your points for climbing, swimming, running and similar abilities may be halved or quartered if your energy goes below a certain point. Within the Great Valley it should be easy of course to find food to fill up the bar (there must be a way to let plants regrow), but in tasks which lead the characters into more hostile regions maintaining enough energy to perform tasks may be difficult. We might really come to appreciate what green food / a treestar means for the LBT characters when shortage of those disables our characters from doing many tasks. Also this setting of the game may come as kind of a "conscience" test in some situations. What if a group of characters is out in the wastelands and they happen to find one of the extremely rare treestars out there? Who is the one to get it and thereby being enabled to run, climb, swim, do whatever much easier than any of those who didn't get the treestar?
I really think such a setting may make the game much closer to LBT point of view than the traditional fighting game setting.

This looks a LOT like my idea (cross posted from Abilities thread):

This is my interpretation of the food/energy gauge:

The food gauge steadily depletes as you explore or do tasks. It can be replenished by eating green food, some green food fills it up more than others. In general, the further you get from the Great Valley, the less filling the food is. However, there are exceptions, such as an oasis where Treestars grow. Treestars will fill it very quickly, while the food on Chomper's Island will be less filling than others.

The food gauge depletes at a different rate and has a varying capacity for the classes. It depletes the slowest and is the largest in the Longneck class (large stomach and slow metabolism), it depletes the fastest and is the smallest in Flyers (small and very active, flight requires lots of energy). The other classes have depletion rates and gauge sizes between them. I am visualizing the guages as the same size (appearence wise) for all the classes, it's just the value that's different.

I don't know if the size and depletion rates should be modifiable or not.

The food gauge does affect the gameplay:

100% of gauge - abilities at max level (whatever level they have been leveled up to), healing is at max speed

75% of gauge - abilites at max level (whatever level they have been leveled up to), healing is slowed down slightly

50% of gauge - abilities drop 1 level from whatever level they have been leveled up to), healing is obviously slowed down

25% of gauge - abilities drop 3 levels from whatever level they have been leveled up to), healing ceases

0% of gauge (totally empty) - abilities revert to level 1, character takes damage

All level drops in abilites are temporary and will be reversed once the gauge passes the critical point.

Example:

Shorty with level 6 tail whip at with a full food gauge doesn't eat and his gauge becomes totally empty, he will now have a level 1 tail whip. Once he gets the gauge past 25%, he'll have a level 3 tail whip, once he reaches 50% of his gauge he will have a level 5 tail whip. Once he reaches 75% of his gauge, he will have his level 6 tail whip restored.

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I feel that there should be an HP gauge. Combat is obviously not the only way to be injured.

As for what happens if the HP gauge empties:

I'm leaning towards a "reincarnation" at the nest (or central meeting place if desired) with the premise of "it was just a dream" but with the loss of some EXP points.

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Also, someone mentioned treestars. Will those serve as food or currency?

[Kor]

Also size should matter how long it takes one to fill it up again.  Flyers may deplete fast but it takes little to fill their stomachs since they are small, though with a small stomach they can't hold as much, same with swimmers.  But someone of Littlefoot would take longer to eat to fill his stomach.  Also does it have to be treestars or can grass help to fill it also?    

Some oasis have been seen in the movies, others may be in surprising and unexpected places.  

[Malte279]

^ I love the idea of the larger dinosaurs using up their food gauge slower than the small ones
This would also give good sense to another ability that has been suggested elsewhere, namely the ability of larger characters to let smaller characters (swimmers, flyers) ride on their backs. This would increase the "range" of the smaller ones at the expense of a little more food gauge than the larger ones would need if there was no rider on their back (it mustn't bee too much though or we will end up with no player of a larger character being ever ready to give a ride to one of the little ones ).

[Kor]

[JOKE] And recall how many times we see Spike, Cera, and Littlefoot collapse in total exhaustion from carrying Ducky or Petrie.  [JOKE]

[Malte279]

^ Err... did we ever see them collapse in exhaustion caused by carrying Petrie or Ducky? I don't recall an instance where the exhaustion could be really traced back to the weight of either of the two.

[Kor]

I meant it as a joke hense the   .   Guess I should either be always serious or put [JOKE] before and after each bad attempt at humor that I do there.   I'll edit the post be reflect that and use that on all future posts, including the ones I do in the rp threads from now on to avoid any confusion.


as for weight it seems to them carrying Ducky or Petrie is much like a person putting an extra pen in their pocket, they don't notice the extra weight at all.