Angelus_dead
04-07-2010, 02:17 PM
Repeating an old favorite (http://forums.ddo.com/showthread.php?t=210923) suggestion from when DDO was new. The recent adjustments to epic trap DCs have put a spotlight on this issue.
Problem
Not all dungeons contain traps, but when one does it is desirable that having trap skills (Spot, Search, and Disable Device) is beneficial. That means higher skills should give more benefit. Unfortunately DDO's trap mechanics mostly resolve to a binary PASS/FAIL resolution, so most variations in skill numbers make no difference unless you happened to be very close to the threshold. The system does not support a 50 skill giving better results than 0 and an 80 being better than 50.
There are numerous things that can be done to make a wider range of trap skills meaningful, so player characters will be rewarded for being better at those skills, without excluding less-skilled characters from participating in those traps at all.
1. Spot range. The current system uses a single trap icon when you come close to a trap and pass the spot DC. Replace that graphic with four new icons of different intensity, such as backgrounds that are white, pink, red, or jagged red. The jagged red icon functions as the current one does. If you are 3 "meters" away and exceed the Spot DC by +5 you instead get a red icon. Three more meters and +10 Spot gives you pink, and a +15 Spot will let you get a white icon at a distance of 9 meters. This would mean that Rogues with enough extra Spot can warn teammates about traps without having to be so far in front.
2. Search range. For each +5 that a character exceeds the Search requirement, he can detect the object from an additional +25% distance, to a maximum of 200% distance at +20.
3. Search speed. As the progress bar hits 25%, 50%, and 75%, resolve a search attempt with -15, -10, and -5 skill modifiers. This means that a character whose skill is higher than needed can finish searching earlier and move on to other things.
4. Tool conservation. When a Disable Device or Open Locks check suceeds with a result +5, +10, or +15 above the requirement, there is a respective 25%, 50%, or 75% chance that the Thief Tool from the attempt is not consumed.
5. Improvised tool. When a character attempts a Disable Device or Open Locks check but does not have any Thief Tool, he instead plays through a 5 second animation which creates a single Improvised Thief Tool, build from whatever random trash he could find. This tool provides a -5 penalty to skill checks when used, but may enable a high-skill character to succeed even if the player forgot to bring supplies.
6. Partial disabling. Unlike the other suggestions, this is not a global change, but a new kind of element dungeon designers may use (especially in higher-level content). Create a new category of traps
which can be disabled wholely or in part. If you beat the Disable DC then the trap merely loses 20% damage, 4 save DC, and 5% repeat speed. If you beat the DC by +8 then it takes double that penalty.
Beating the DC by +16 will actually turn off the trap as usual. This kind of trap box remains interactible to allow more attempts after partial successes. Optionally, quest designers could customize the numbers for each stage of disarmament.
7. Compound traps. Similar to partial disabling, except that instead of the trap box controlling one obstacle that gets weakened, the one box has 2-4 trap elements, each with a different Disable DC to turn it off. Note that designers could do this already manually, but that would mean 4 control boxes and 4 times as long waiting on Disable animations.
With all of those changes it should be possible to reward Rogues with great skills without shutting out those whose skill numbers are merely good.
Problem
Not all dungeons contain traps, but when one does it is desirable that having trap skills (Spot, Search, and Disable Device) is beneficial. That means higher skills should give more benefit. Unfortunately DDO's trap mechanics mostly resolve to a binary PASS/FAIL resolution, so most variations in skill numbers make no difference unless you happened to be very close to the threshold. The system does not support a 50 skill giving better results than 0 and an 80 being better than 50.
There are numerous things that can be done to make a wider range of trap skills meaningful, so player characters will be rewarded for being better at those skills, without excluding less-skilled characters from participating in those traps at all.
1. Spot range. The current system uses a single trap icon when you come close to a trap and pass the spot DC. Replace that graphic with four new icons of different intensity, such as backgrounds that are white, pink, red, or jagged red. The jagged red icon functions as the current one does. If you are 3 "meters" away and exceed the Spot DC by +5 you instead get a red icon. Three more meters and +10 Spot gives you pink, and a +15 Spot will let you get a white icon at a distance of 9 meters. This would mean that Rogues with enough extra Spot can warn teammates about traps without having to be so far in front.
2. Search range. For each +5 that a character exceeds the Search requirement, he can detect the object from an additional +25% distance, to a maximum of 200% distance at +20.
3. Search speed. As the progress bar hits 25%, 50%, and 75%, resolve a search attempt with -15, -10, and -5 skill modifiers. This means that a character whose skill is higher than needed can finish searching earlier and move on to other things.
4. Tool conservation. When a Disable Device or Open Locks check suceeds with a result +5, +10, or +15 above the requirement, there is a respective 25%, 50%, or 75% chance that the Thief Tool from the attempt is not consumed.
5. Improvised tool. When a character attempts a Disable Device or Open Locks check but does not have any Thief Tool, he instead plays through a 5 second animation which creates a single Improvised Thief Tool, build from whatever random trash he could find. This tool provides a -5 penalty to skill checks when used, but may enable a high-skill character to succeed even if the player forgot to bring supplies.
6. Partial disabling. Unlike the other suggestions, this is not a global change, but a new kind of element dungeon designers may use (especially in higher-level content). Create a new category of traps
which can be disabled wholely or in part. If you beat the Disable DC then the trap merely loses 20% damage, 4 save DC, and 5% repeat speed. If you beat the DC by +8 then it takes double that penalty.
Beating the DC by +16 will actually turn off the trap as usual. This kind of trap box remains interactible to allow more attempts after partial successes. Optionally, quest designers could customize the numbers for each stage of disarmament.
7. Compound traps. Similar to partial disabling, except that instead of the trap box controlling one obstacle that gets weakened, the one box has 2-4 trap elements, each with a different Disable DC to turn it off. Note that designers could do this already manually, but that would mean 4 control boxes and 4 times as long waiting on Disable animations.
With all of those changes it should be possible to reward Rogues with great skills without shutting out those whose skill numbers are merely good.