[Adjustments (Info for players)] Drops

[Babyhack]

Hello all

This thread is to be the first of many information threads to help inform the player base what is happening and what is being done to make the server better.

First up is drop adjustments

What I plan to do is rebuild the whole drop system cave by cave and mob by mob.
The plan is that each mob will have a unique drop file related to the level of said mob, I am going to use BigRat as an example for this thread (this is not the drop file for BigRat)

As BigRat is a Zuma Temple monster its drop file will be in the Zuma folder, the drop file will have two sections normal drop and mass drop. This is be seen in the code below.

I will still be using to call system for drops as this is a great way to keep an order to the files but each call will be to a different unique monster file.

#CHILD 1/1
(
#CALL [\\Drops\Zuma\BigRat.txt] @Normal
)
;Mass Drop
#CHILD 1/250
(
#CALL [\\Drops\Zuma\BigRat.txt] @Mass
)

[@Normal]
{
1/5     Gold 500
1/8     (HP)DrugLarge
1/10     (MP)DrugLarge
1/10000 JudgementMace
}

[@Mass]
{
1/2    Gold 2000
1/4     (HP)DrugXL
1/5     (MP)DrugXL
1/2000 JudgementMace
}

As can be seen from the code there is a 1/1 chance of a normal drop and a 1/250 chance of a mass drop.
There is also a long chance of a JudgementMace dropping.

Also as this example is related to Zuma Temple, an Archer may drop rings but not bracelets but a Statue would drop bracelets and not rings. (I hope that makes sense)

These changes will not happen overnight but they will start to happen from tonight on a cave by cave bases.
I will not be informing players what order caves will be changed, its totally random.

I hope this thread has been helpful and people get the idea of what will be happening.

If anyone has any ideas (related to drops) please post below (keep it mature) I am open to hearing them.

BH

 

[Jest]

I know you've said that this 'BigRat' is an example but are those the actual drop rates for the mob?

It's just that seems a little easy :P

 

[Babyhack]

I know you've said that this 'BigRat' is an example but are those the actual drop rates for the mob?

It's just that seems a little easy :P

Please read

I am going to use BigRat as an example for this thread (this is not the drop file for BigRat)

 

[ILovePie:D]

Please work on the lower cave drops first before moving up to the highest ones, the highest ones currently do drop a lot, and need less work on than the lower level caves. Orcs for example drop very well from boss and trash mobs.

 

[Jest]

Please read

Apologies.
I'm in the south of France atm. The sun was blasting my laptop screen. :/

 

[TheRealSphinx]

i was think the drops was intended like this 3~4 month ago ~ wtf. i guess i was misleaded... and others too.

You should take current usercount as base for the droprate ~ cause 50 Active Players will have a grindfest to reach the possibility to get a drop...

Less Players will need hell alot of more grind then 600 as server started *and then u need to be the lucky at the right count to get something you look for.

 

[Knotty]

Just dont go crazy, better improving it slowly than the server being flooded within a couple weeks

 

[CremeEgg82]

Please tell me you aren't doing this by hand?

I don't know how many times I have to suggest it but there are easier ways of scripting the creation of the files. I could redo the drops in a couple of days max.

Also personally hate the child call system, if you are going to have unique files for each mob anyway it seems somewhat pointless. An over engineered solution to a problem that doesn't exist.

 

[DevilsKnight]

Just out of interest, why are you not using the old fashion way of having different mobs with different drop rates?

(I don't play the server, just interested in the way the files work)

 

[CremeEgg82]

Just out of interest, why are you not using the old fashion way of having different mobs with different drop rates?

(I don't play the server, just interested in the way the files work)

From what I could tell from the leaked files way back when, it seems like my observation of over engineering for the sake of it. The one thing I have learned from a lifetime of IT design, programming, architecture and implementation is KEEP IT SIMPLE.

The only thing the old files achieved was saving time for someone that appears to have been too lazy to do the job properly. The solution above seems to be to satisfy some organisational OCD.

 

[Babyhack]

Please tell me you aren't doing this by hand?

I don't know how many times I have to suggest it but there are easier ways of scripting the creation of the files. I could redo the drops in a couple of days max.

Also personally hate the child call system, if you are going to have unique files for each mob anyway it seems somewhat pointless. An over engineered solution to a problem that doesn't exist.

No I am not going to be doing it by hand, Im not that stupid :P

In the same way that you hate the child call system, I like it, the call system also allows more control over mass drops but please I would like to hear (via PM) what way you would do it, I am always interested in seeing other ways people would do things.

Just out of interest, why are you not using the old fashion way of having different mobs with different drop rates?

(I don't play the server, just interested in the way the files work)

Different mobs will have different drop rates, each mob will have a unique file.

BH

 

[thereds77]

Please tell me you aren't doing this by hand?

I don't know how many times I have to suggest it but there are easier ways of scripting the creation of the files. I could redo the drops in a couple of days max.

Also personally hate the child call system, if you are going to have unique files for each mob anyway it seems somewhat pointless. An over engineered solution to a problem that doesn't exist.

For those of us that smoked and pissed about during any lesson involving a computer whilst at school/college, what is the 'Child call' system? I thought each mob type had a number (bigrat0, 1 etc etc) and drops were adjusted depending on mob difficulty.

 

[CremeEgg82]

Will PM you a bit later, tapping away on my iPad isn't easy to do a detailed post (stuck in a data centre most of the day).

 

[DevilsKnight]

Different mobs will have different drop rates, each mob will have a unique file.

BH

I understand that but I'm assuming each mob, will have a chance to be a mass dropping mob? Rather than having mass dropping mobs controlled by spawn rates?

Dk

 

[CremeEgg82]

For those of us that smoked and pissed about during any lesson involving a computer whilst at school/college, what is the 'Child call' system? I thought each mob type had a number (bigrat0, 1 etc etc) and drops were adjusted depending on mob difficulty.

It is an alternative to that older system, where instead of having different named mobs you spawn all the same mob but there is a random chance that the drop to be called will be different, based on example above 1/250 would be a mass drop instead of a normal drop.

---------- Post Merged at 12:24 PM ---------- Previous Post was at 12:22 PM ----------

I understand that but I'm assuming each mob, will have a chance to be a mass dropping mob? Rather than having mass dropping mobs controlled by spawn rates?

Dk

Yes that is correct, but the problem is you could have an entire spawn without a single mass drop. Which is why one of the reasons I don't like it. The original way is more predictable and less prone to error.

 

[DevilsKnight]

Yes that is correct, but the problem is you could have an entire spawn without a single mass drop. Which is why one of the reasons I don't like it. The original way is more predictable and less prone to error.

That is exactly my thoughts which is why I asked the question, you may never see a mass drop.

Dk

 

[Babyhack]

Yes that is correct, but the problem is you could have an entire spawn without a single mass drop. Which is why one of the reasons I don't like it. The original way is more predictable and less prone to error.

This is a very valid point and it did pop into my head that this could happen.
A simple fix for it is to spawn a BigRat0 (mass drop only) so for every 250 BigRat in the spawn there will be 1 BigRat0

BH

 

[DevilsKnight]

This is a very valid point and it did pop into my head that this could happen.
A simple fix for it is to spawn a BigRat0 (mass drop only) so for every 250 BigRat in the spawn there will be 1 BigRat0

BH

That is the route I would go personally, again like I said I don't play the server. It just doesn't seem right to have only a chance to have a mass drop. Your kind of loosing your ability to control rate of mass dropping mobs.

Dk

 

[CremeEgg82]

This is a very valid point and it did pop into my head that this could happen.
A simple fix for it is to spawn a BigRat0 (mass drop only) so for every 250 BigRat in the spawn there will be 1 BigRat0

BH

That is traditionally how it always worked, removing the need for the child call system. All you then need to do is work out the ratio of Mass to Normal per cave.

It also means you can do super mobs on a low rate per map, or on timed spawns that have a better drop file but hit considerably harder and have more health.

It is also how quest mobs worked in the older systems (not sure how this quest system works).

 

[Samuel]

Just to add a pro for the child call system.

It enables us to split the drop files into grouped sections, for example:

traditionally you would have:
BigRat
BigRat0
BoneArcher
BoneLord
BoneElite

The child call system would enable:
ZumaTemple/BigRat
ZumaTemple/ZumaArcher
PrajnaCave/BoneArcher
PrajnaCave/BoneLord

It provides a better level of organization and is easier to navigate (in my opinion).

Sam