Well thought out Shadow Nose. I would add to this that you do not get a % of the EXP that the actual attacker is earning, but rather a % of EXP times level of learning that that character already has. Such as, you will get more EXP from watching a master swords-man or smith at their craft, rather then someone like a journeyman. Also, I would say a master would earn no EXP from watching an apprentice.
I had actually had ideas based on this before, but in conjunction with a teaching skill. The teaching skill would activly 'show' anyone watching you, or linked in a teaching group with you, what skills you are using, and therefor improve thiers.
(sorry if that did not make much sense. very tired right now.)
*edit*
To get rid of the want to killsteal, you have to get rid of the need to killsteal.
Yeah that makes sense, a dedicated master to a certain skill would be better able to train people... how... to...
*stops for a moment and thinks*
*looks at Harnquist who trains all those crafting skills*
*looks at all the other NPC trainers who take XP and money to advance skills*
*remembers that once bought, people need to get practice points to level up skills*
*imagines going to dedicated player teachers to get XP to train at NPC trainers*
*remembers that this game is still in beta*
*remembers that the origional post was about killstealing instead of the level system*
You know... this might be better off if it didn't involve experience points within the context of this game. More like if it were to add to the training system (like use up XP to gain in theoretical knowlege on a skill or something... though that adds a differnt question all together).
Using it to gain XP in this game where there is no attainable level cap or even rudimentary limits on how far you can powerlevel would just make it more unplayable than it already is. In fact it would probably encourage people to NOT play it. So in essence I realise my idea was short sited, and will not fit in the context of this game... perhaps in another game but not this one.
As for the killstealing, I think my idea on only rewardin XP for actions taken instead of monsters killed would be a better solution than the /watch thing.
Another problem is, that the whole concept of actual experience is really getting weird in games like this. Its almost treating experience like a resource that you can only get by killing animals. If instead experience was rewarded for each action in battle (such as each strike of the sword) then kill stealing would not really effect people as much. If you bring a monster down to 3% and somebody swoops in and kills it, you should have already gotten all the experience from that previous 97%. He might get the XP from that 3%... but who cares? You already got your XP and they can't steal that from you.
There is already the code that lets people gain practice points for each combat action (like attacking with swords or axes or melee combat) a little change in the code should be able to let people get their experience points from actions instead of just from killing monsters.
might be more of a solution... just limit the amount of damage getting a kill stolen will do. Other than that, I don't think there can be much done for it.
I am sorry Nose but I think your logic has one big flaw.
You say you shouldn't have to need to fight to get experience, but you are proposing that we do get experience from watching FIGHTING. Now is it me or is this seriously OOC if you then use that exp to train skills nothing to do with fighting?
Not saying there shouldn't be other ways to get experience but that reasoning is as OOC as it gets and in my eyes would only worsen the problem and not fix it to be more IC about how you get experience.
Also getting something for nothing ruins the game a lot faster in my opinion then the "paranoia" I apparently seem to have. If you get something for nothing you don't value it anymore. Aquiring something is no longer a challenge and so people would lose interest.
Ofcourse if you are not interested in the system in the first place that isn't a problem to you, but perhaps then you are simply playing the wrong game. Do keep in mind that the system in place right now is obviously still not finished and other ways of gaining experience are scarce but it has already been said more are planned. Don't forget it's a beta at best.
Yeah, I see that now. Actually, I haven't been playing this game as much as I have before, been playing Goonzu Online lately and it has some good solutions to problems.
For killstealing there just are lots and lots of enemies.
