Alphabet...?

[Aorion]

I was wondering, since this is to be a special kind of simulation rpg, if there could be some sort of special alphabet system that can be turned on and off...

this is just a curious feature noone will probably use, but its like languages in everquest, but rather than skills for the language representing how well u know it(cause lets face it u dont learn letters at a time in a word, especially just by listening), it can be an alternate alphabet with a couple of modes like having the message then below it the message in normal roman(abcdefg) characters...

This will probably be thrown by the wayside, but wouldn\'t it be interesting?

BTW, it would be kind of neat to be able to write notes on a piece of parchment or something, and then roll it up and send it to someone. i figure all you need is a piece of parchment u can double-click on to add a message to...


Thanks!
Aorion

[explorer]

Sounds good, but when you say languages, does that mean, you speak english/german/dutch/etc and it gets translated into another language? Or the people learn a language. I wouldnt mind either of the two.

Yeah, the parchment idea is cool, I think thats gonna be in the game in the sense that its a letter made at a post office. But writing on pieces of paper/books is cool too.

[beza1e1]

Nice and if they realise the book/library idea this isn\'t difficult either

With the alphabet: As you say probably nobody will use it, so it would be now just a waste of developes time. But perhaps a Planeshift font could be cool. One you can also use in Linux/Windows or on the website.

[Axioma]

In favor of the planeshift alphabet, as an option to switch on and off in the game, and in favor of the planeshift font to use in windows/linux. Anybody who can do this ?

[Aorion]

When i said language, for EQ u can talk in like gnomish and stuff but it comes out in gibberish to whoever doesnt have a high enough lv in gnomish to know what theyre saying...

i was suggesting something where u can type in english and it would turn out looking like planeshiftian(or insert a better name here) runes or somethin. i dunno if this will work ill try kana just for an example

Say:
? ...
a  l  l    y o u r  b a s e  a  r e   b e l o n g ...
and thats how it would look in \"semitranslated mode\", so u can learn it...

and yeah all it really is is a font change, and there are tons of alphabet ideas out there (try http://www.omniglot.com)

certain quests involving writings on cave walls can be implimented with this, among other things...

having the game translate from dutch to english or english to russian is pretty much impossible. noone has been able to write a program to do it, but babelfish gets close... its fun to see what pops out... type \"go away\" and translate it into korean then copy/paste it into the thing to go back to english and it reads \"go toward the enemy far\"

this would make my day...

[beza1e1]

I am not sure if i understand yours right, Aorion.
You want to use these runes like the elvish runes in LotR? Where it is a riddle \"say friend and enter\" or a prophecy \"one ring to rule them all ...\"?

[Aorion]

ok put it this way:
just make it so that the letters look different.

one symbol for a, one symbol for b, one symbol for c.... so on so on its not that hard for them to do, and all they have to do is change the font. there are fonts out there, or they can make a simple one. I can make a simple one if i knew how.

[explorer]

I see, and I like.

That would be totally cool..
\"/lan eng\"
\" you are now talking in english\"
\"/land elf\"
\"you are not talking in elf\"

That would be totally cool if you could just type that /lan then the 3 first letters of the language. A simple command, switches the letters for people without a high enough level in that language. I\'d also like it if people could make their own language. So a guild could speak their own language, without having to type in /tell, or /guild. And people could learn the language by being targeted by a person who knows the language, and the teacher, speaking in whatever language it is, to the person.


All sounds very fun to me .  

[beza1e1]

Then the guild should be able to make their own language? I tink this would be codeable, but is it useful? I like to see certain Planeshift-runes for ancients temples etc and for Planeshift art, but languages for the guilds ... ? I somehow doubt this would be good. It is just a bad feeling, no arguments.

It would favor a guild spying, if another guild wants to know the language to have an advantage. Perhaps even language specialists would be hire from the guilds.

[logan_dugenoux]

It makes communication between players harder... not so good for community.

If ppl want to say \"add klzdjkle zeio az\" instread of \"ok, lets go\", the can ! if they are in the same guild, maybe they will understand !

[Axioma]

Like the idea of the commands /lan eng and so on. The guild languages is just one step too far for me. Don\'t make things ytoo complicated, this game has got to stay PLAYABLE !!!

[explorer]

Originally posted by logan_dugenoux
It makes communication between players harder... not so good for community.

You wouldnt have to learn any langauge, you character would do it also. Each language would have a specific signature, and if you know that language its decoded. But all languages just come out as random gibberish if you cant speak it. It would say something like \"Demoritus says in COLish: Akjag skja jakg, halgkj.\" If you didnt know the language. Otherwise, by creating a language, your speech would just come out as crap to anybody not knowing it. Nothing to learn (IRL), nothing to code when you want to make a new language.