Pvp
From Neverend
PVP uses different combat calculations than PVE. PVE uses its own equations, while PVP uses its own equations, allowing players to retain the same stats, with those stats functioning differently in PVE and PVP. Balancing decides the exact nature of these changes.
While PVP shows a steeper growth curve, PVP would function as if players progressed on a shallow curve, with smaller results from progression, giving a minor edge in combat. A more extreme case would be eliminating progression and having static base values, functioning like an action game with set damage and defense, with progression bonuses existing as a tiny fraction bonus to give a slight but hardly noticeable edge, more like a bonus in an RTS or card game, giving an advantage in damage or defense but not an insurmountable one.
Possible alterations:
- Weapon damage reduced in PVP
- Defense increased in PVP
- Spell effectiveness reduced in PVP
- Spell damage reduced in PVP
- Skill disparity minimized
- Weapon and armor power disparity minimized
- Spell power disparity minimized
- Item power disparity minimized
- Decreased range of damage
- Reduced damage based on level difference
- Increased dodge and spell resistance for low levels
- increased defense for lower levels
- Capped damage for PVP
- Horizontal progression
- Limited damage ranges
- Equal damage base with minimal skill effect
- Limit number of bonuses to attack, defense and magic
- Convert skill bonuses to a low static bonus
- Reduce and round damage and skill bonuses by 1/10, 1/5, 1/4, 1/3, or 1/2
[edit] Design
Player vs Player combat has several balance issues, including skill disparity, armor disparity, weapon disparity, spell disparity, helper NPC disparity, number of players disparity, and random factors including current health, stats, and nearby monsters.
The risk of PVP can be reduced by the following:
- Guards and militia look out for PVP players, but can still be killed.
- Town defenses includes alarms, gates, traps, enchantments, arrow slits, cannons
- Arrest and detainment for PVP within towns.
- Area enchantments that restrict PVP unless disenchanted or a special object is destroyed
- Hired and friendly NPCs and pets
The use of guards and NPCs is also useful against small groups of unprepared PVPers, as they could easily bring more players with their own NPC helpers. Town defenses only require a large and skilled raiding force to damage and weaken a town.
Towns with laws against killing will classify PVP as crimes of assault and murder. The PVP attacker still has a chance to kill undetected, escape, or defeat authorities, making PVP within towns risky but not impossible. Larger groups within a town would have a greater chance against guards, but less of a chance of escape.
Players can work as guards and militia, and can also assist in attacking and capturing a player if they have committed a crime. PVPers at greater risk when players actively volunteer to look out for criminals. Towns with the greatest amount of risk include small undefended hamlets, where PVPers may completely destroy a town and murder its inhabitants. Another option is to occupy the town, using its resources for defense and profit. Enslavement and imprisonment also give the PVPer options in ransoming, bargaining, and free labor, until slaves and prisoners are freed. Occupation gives a more constructive goal than killing every citizen and razing every building, as the occupier wants to build wealth and have a defensive outpost, while other players are encouraged to free the occupied town.
Threats are another aspect of PVP that gives options in bargaining, as players can offer money, items, or slavery. Players can make threats until combat is initiated, giving the opportunity for an attacker to back down. Combat itself has the opportunity for escape or finding allies, or the victim or attacker may be left unconscious from low HP or spell effects. At the end of combat, the attacker must consciously make a killing strike, but may further bargain with the victim before doing so, or choose not to kill the victim. The attacker may choose to enslave or imprison the victim instead.
On death, the victim can activate any death effects on enchantments and items, including teleportation, invisibility, protection, damage effects, communication with others, familiar summoning, and revival. Death effects such as ghostform, vampirism and zombism will allow the player to control a different body until reverted.
