Locking the Vallaki City Gates at night?

[dark_majico]

[Sharauvyn]

All I have to say is, I ran into locked doors when I was playing this morning, which meant I'd have  to go around through dark places with an MPC logged on, and it made a simple trip from the herbalist hut to the outskirts more interesting and a little frightening.  And lockable gates felt like lockable gates that were being used to at least *try* to keep trouble out of the city.  Loved it.

But yes, it's easier if you can go through the city.  Win-win either way, if you ask me.

[dutchy]

Barovians, by the whole, are supposed to be cowardly (when it comes to nighttime) and lock themselves in at night. I don't think there should even be guards on the wall at night.

i wanna slap you ethinos i just want to *sighs* il just drink instead.

explain to me how there should NOT be gaurds on walls?,   does that mean they can be invaded after 18:00  i sure do hope darkons forces have bought shares in geiko.

gaurds at night on walls are there to monitor what goes on, and if a gate present to guard that said gate and to grant or deny entry, thats how authenthic medievil things go YES even for wussy barovians cause gues what  thats what they signed up for they arnt a miletary and armed as they are atm but that is what is authenthic.

cause the count and burgomaster would not have it that there can be an army or anything else waiting at the gates, the count doesnt care about its people he does care about his land.



ooooh and i always wanted to do this one.

tarrokka stay on topic if not post in the tavern


omg omg omg omg cant believe i just did that WOOOT

[Purist]

thnx purist for that gas that gave me a brain fart

Thought it was something that would happen to you without the need of external help. Glad I could help. Much love.

[Kendric98]

certain mpc char. would need to be given keys due to there ability to fly. otherwise it seems to make sense and I like the idea.

[Winter83]

Perhaps make the gates indestructable too? I simply walktzed through the empty gateway seeing the doors broken and in splinters. It's going to be a costly endeavour for the city.

[Purist]

certain mpc char. would need to be given keys due to there ability to fly. otherwise it seems to make sense and I like the idea.

No keys are needed. Make a spot on the wall like a @mark in which said MPCs will click there and choose to "fly over the walls". Much like the dialogue that warn us to click twice to, for example, climb a rope. Only thing with this is that it would have to be available to MPCs only.

[Garland Blackmore]

I truly and sincerely hope it does an evil evil thing and reduce the ability for people to enter the outskirts, which in my opinion is by far the worst thing that ever happened to the server. Reduce overcrowding in the outskirts and you're more likely to find roleplay somewhere else.

I think the Vallaki gates should be locked at all times, and that a script be installed preventing outlanders from entering entirely. It irks me to see a place so inhospitable to outlanders catering to them.

Something like the OCR influence check would be a good means to those who are granted admission into the city. Once on the hour. The only exception being those who have business with the warehouse. Yes, it will slow everybody down. That's a good thing.

[dark_majico]

Perhaps make the gates indestructable too? I simply walktzed through the empty gateway seeing the doors broken and in splinters. It's going to be a costly endeavour for the city.

I see a little quandry here. If the gates are going to be locked then there would need to be guards posted to ensure the gate dosent just get rammed down or blown to pieces, otherwise what is the use of locking them? Guards on the walls at night means that night time is no longer a safe time for magic users, at least not in the outskirts.  

[monsinyana]

I see two solutions to the gates getting smashed

1) The boring solution:
Make the gates un breakable

2) leave it as is
allowing the gates to be smashed opens up a host of other opportunities

the pc guarda can get in trouble with their npc superiors- the cost of new gates is coming out of -YOUR- pay

this has them cracking down on other players either for funds or to find out who is doing it

they can patrol looking for people attacking the gates

i do think the npc guards on walls should fire off a convo warning at first PC attack hit and then start blowing their horns and/or begin attacking pcs who continue

i also think the guarda keys that open / lock the gates should also open/lock the doors near the gates- those should transition to the door on the wall (if they dont already) and finally there should be transitions on the walls leading all around the city if there are not already- allowing pc guards to patrol at night if they wish

ive seen events on other servers where players would be on towers or walls driving off attackers/ etc and it makes for quite exciting events and easy to set up on the fly for a dm

i love the locked gates i think it is ripe with a lot of opportunities to be added

[Purist]

2) leave it as is
allowing the gates to be smashed opens up a host of other opportunities

the pc guarda can get in trouble with their npc superiors- the cost of new gates is coming out of -YOUR- pay

Madness....  THIS - IS - BAROVIAAAAAA  *Kicks down the bottomless pit*


Edit add: As a recruit my PC gets 6 gold per day. The max he can ever get is 42 every 14 days. (the NPC calculates it wrongly)

[dark_majico]

I see two solutions to the gates getting smashed

1) The boring solution:
Make the gates un breakable

2) leave it as is
allowing the gates to be smashed opens up a host of other opportunities

Invincible gates is boring, and rather lame. They need to have huge hitpoints and a lot of resistance to attacks though, but it would be nice if there where some actuall consiquences to braking them down or trying too. PoTm has standards to keep, what would it look like if every sever reset the gates just got smashed to pieces, IC and OOC.

[Winter83]

Wait wait....people used battering rams to break through thick hardened oak gates that are reinforced with steel...this is not the rotting gate of the village, but Heavy Wall gates. I don't see how people would be able to break through them, tearing down the whole gate.

Heh, even barn doors are unbreakable.

[dark_majico]

We do have wizards and sorcerers also, and spells that increase strength. With roleplaying and dm involvement then players could use a battering ram to bash the gates down, so to have them as invincible seems silly.

[Purist]

We do have wizards and sorcerers also, and spells that increase strength. With roleplaying and dm involvement then players could use a battering ram to bash the gates down, so to have them as invincible seems silly.

They should be invincible until an actual battering ram is present or RPed so. A bear is stronger than any PC buffed with empowered bulls strength. A bear cannot break through a medieval reinforced gate. True, wizards can ignite the gates in flames, but I still think it'd stand. Weakened but still there. Perhaps with need better models to the gates, something that looks more than wooden pallisade.

And, with a bettering ram, guards would be alerted, and there would be a resistence. It's just bringing it, bashing down and: "the way has been cleared, you may go to the bank now".

[monsinyana]

the gates near outskirts have been broken down twice so far since the change went into place.

i assume this is cheesing? since there is a guard right on the wall next to the gates?

[Winter83]

the gates near outskirts have been broken down twice so far since the change went into place.

i assume this is cheesing? since there is a guard right on the wall next to the gates?

Yes, not to mention this. The wall guard will likely shoot down anyone charging at the locked gate. [Nod nod]

[Soren / Zarathustra217]

Yeah, we might implement some feature that will make the guard react to this eventually, but until then, it falls under ignoring NPCs (if the NPC is around).

Most gates should be bashable-open rather than breakable, but must have missed the one in the western outskirts. Will get to that. I avoided making the gates pickable since I didn't feel it making much sense that the gate was simply locked with a conventional lock with a keyhole - I imagine it rather being barred by some mechanism in the walls controlled from the top.

[Nemien Callishan]

It's fully IC if people opt to use the sewers en masse when the gate is locked, but, why on Earth would people constantly go to Vallaki at night? Bounty office is closed and so are all other shops except Murnu's and the crafting stations, which have plenty of alternatives outside of Vallaki and near by.

I don't know about wanting to go to Vallaki at night. it's the poor unfortunates who want to get the Iadul out of Vallaki at night who're most inconvenienced.

I'm still not a fan of this. it means that any player stuck in a workshop at dusk is effectviely isolated 'till dawn instead of being able to make a break for it for the outskirts and the social activity they could have in the Lady's Rest. Likewise characetsr stuck outside the wrong gates have a long and dangerous way to go to safety. Now that part's kind of fun but when you see a pack of six or seven wolves guarding your only route to safety you have to start wondering if you should just log off for an hour and come back in the morning.

And that's the kind of ooc meta gaming we don't want to encourage on this server.

[Kagetora]

Most gates should be bashable-open rather than breakable,

Obviously the best solution.  Make it a good, high number, something that could only really be reached by something BIG with a very high strength, magically enhanced to boot.  Things I can think of off the top of my head that should be able to bash open gates:

Polymorphed Mage in Umber Hulk form (can tunnel through stone)
Shapechanged Mage or Druid with such forms as Dragon, Earth Elemental, etc. (the really big boys)
Ancient Dire Bears, Elementals, Pit Fiends (summoned or empathied)

Things like that.  Some hulk of a PC (with an 18-20 STR) with an Enhanced Bull's and a Crowbar should NOT be able to bash them open (not enough mass behind the strength is a good enough reason).  Is there any way to make them bashable, but so that Crowbars cannot be used on them?  I think that would probably take care of the issue.  Check the STR ratings of the various things I mentioned and set the Bash rating appropriately.

I mean...sure...given enough men with axes and fire, I can bring down any wooden gate.  Thats why defenders pour boiling liquids and rain arrows on you while you are doing it.    The Garda need to step up their game.

Perhaps a script so that when the gates are bashed, Garda emerge from the towers,  fill the walls and begin shooting.  And if they are actually facing a truly supernatural creature (Dragon, Elemental, etc.) run screaming like girl-scouts.

There is some fun to be had with this....I am sure of it....

[Kagetora]

It's fully IC if people opt to use the sewers en masse when the gate is locked, but, why on Earth would people constantly go to Vallaki at night? Bounty office is closed and so are all other shops except Murnu's and the crafting stations, which have plenty of alternatives outside of Vallaki and near by.

I don't know about wanting to go to Vallaki at night. it's the poor unfortunates who want to get the Iadul out of Vallaki at night who're most inconvenienced.

I'm still not a fan of this. it means that any player stuck in a workshop at dusk is effectviely isolated 'till dawn instead of being able to make a break for it for the outskirts and the social activity they could have in the Lady's Rest. Likewise characetsr stuck outside the wrong gates have a long and dangerous way to go to safety. Now that part's kind of fun but when you see a pack of six or seven wolves guarding your only route to safety you have to start wondering if you should just log off for an hour and come back in the morning.

And that's the kind of ooc meta gaming we don't want to encourage on this server.

I fail to see how that is OOC metagaming.  Your character is caught outside at dusk, the gates already locked.  "Oh well, I'll just go around."  On the road, they spy a pack of wolves in the distance.  Oops.  They decide to backtrack a bit, find a safer spot, and hole up till morning.  The end result is you log them off for a bit, play someone else or go get some food, and come back.  If you feel its metagaming, then leave them logged on in the spot you pick as "safe" and hope for the best.

The bottom line is this...it IS inconvienent.  Just like real life.  Having the gates locked at night adds significantly to the atmosphere of the server.  As has been pointed out many times, Barovian Garda would be very likely to lock and bar the gates and shoot anyone approaching at night just on general principles.  The OTHER Barovians know the rules.  And they don't much care if it inconvienences (or even kills) outlanders.

The other bottom line is...plan better.  If you know you will be either stuck inside (or outside) the city after a certain hour, put a bit of foresight into your gaming.  Go to a crafting station in town just before the gates close, and bring enough stuff with you to last an hour or so of crafting.  Plan to meet friends at a spot and RP for the night.  Or meet them outside and go adventuring.  Or go ahead and make a character who can survive a rat attack and use the sewers.

Personally, I think this inconvienence is fantastic, and adds a lot to the atmosphere.  If my friends and I decide we suddenly need to be at the Prancing Nymph at 2 am in the morning, or I find myself stuck inside the walls and needing to be somewhere else, well...now its an adventure to get there also (albiet a very short one).

My nickles worth of $0.02.

[dutchy]

Yeah, we might implement some feature that will make the guard react to this eventually, but until then, it falls under ignoring NPCs (if the NPC is around).

Most gates should be bashable-open rather than breakable, but must have missed the one in the western outskirts. Will get to that. I avoided making the gates pickable since I didn't feel it making much sense that the gate was simply locked with a conventional lock with a keyhole - I imagine it rather being barred by some mechanism in the walls controlled from the top.

you realise that guard duty will be a death shift then yes?

cause folks will just kill it bash the door open lay low a bit  and done, or they work around it use caliban friends who already have a high ocr and its also solved.
thus a large loop whole here.

[dark_majico]

Yeah, we might implement some feature that will make the guard react to this eventually, but until then, it falls under ignoring NPCs (if the NPC is around).

Most gates should be bashable-open rather than breakable, but must have missed the one in the western outskirts. Will get to that. I avoided making the gates pickable since I didn't feel it making much sense that the gate was simply locked with a conventional lock with a keyhole - I imagine it rather being barred by some mechanism in the walls controlled from the top.

you realise that guard duty will be a death shift then yes?

cause folks will just kill it bash the door open lay low a bit  and done, or they work around it use caliban friends who already have a high ocr and its also solved.
thus a large loop whole here.

Finding a caliban or another player with a high OC rating is quite easily legitimate roleplay, just as long as you stay out of sight, which is easily done with a potion of invisibility and standing out of vision range.

[Ercvadasz]

Yeah, we might implement some feature that will make the guard react to this eventually, but until then, it falls under ignoring NPCs (if the NPC is around).

Most gates should be bashable-open rather than breakable, but must have missed the one in the western outskirts. Will get to that. I avoided making the gates pickable since I didn't feel it making much sense that the gate was simply locked with a conventional lock with a keyhole - I imagine it rather being barred by some mechanism in the walls controlled from the top.

you realise that guard duty will be a death shift then yes?

cause folks will just kill it bash the door open lay low a bit  and done, or they work around it use caliban friends who already have a high ocr and its also solved.
thus a large loop whole here.

Finding a caliban or another player with a high OC rating is quite easily legitimate roleplay, just as long as you stay out of sight, which is easily done with a potion of invisibility and standing out of vision range.

Exactly. And i doubt a proper rp is even needed.
Hey you! -any high OCR char, caliban or not- I pay you 100 gold to bash the door.
Thanks, here is the gold.
Problem solved, nothing happens unless dm watches, where it may rewarded with allignement shift and or DP
since you just destroyed the first line of defense of the Town:P

[Kagetora]

Hence my post about not just anyone being able to bash open the gate.   

Its not a door.  It should be possible but require something...special.  Not just some grunt caliban with a Bull's potion and a crowbar.