Author Topic: Dev Q&A August 10 2025  (Read 416 times)

gonger

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Dev Q&A August 10 2025
« on: August 09, 2026, 08:01:05 pm »
Talad (Leader / Founder)
Eonwind (Rules)
Tuathanach (Rules)
Zunna (Rules / Settings)
Mordaan (Settings)
Venalan (Settings Lead)
Uadjet (GM Lead)
Emaline (GM Team)
Zweitholou (Art)
Gonger: (PR)

Uadjet: Hello and welcome to the Developer's Q&A!
Uadjet: Here you can learn about what's going on in the development of the game, and you get a chance to ask questions, make suggestions, and give feedback.
Uadjet: Talad has started a vacation, so he hasn't streamed for a few days.
Gonger:: Everybody needs a break from time to time.
Uadjet: So, as those who were at the end of yesterday's event will have noticed, we now have new containers.
Uadjet: Yeah, I opened the /item window, and leaving that when in a guildhouse always results in falling through the floor.
Uadjet: The backpack you've seen, and there are more available.
>Uadjet dropped a Purse.
Uadjet: These would fit well on the hip, I'd imagine.
Anysu: Available in game?
Uadjet: No, only via GM for now.
>Uadjet dropped a Large Purse.
>Uadjet dropped a Backpack.
Uadjet: Apparently there are also new bracers, but I cannot find them in the database.
Anysu: Yeah! New bracers!
Uadjet: Also, the compass quest is in!
Uadjet: That's an Esential Trail quest, and not too far into the quest line.
Uadjet: Check the resource gatherer NPCs and you should find it.
Uadjet: There is a new /roll functionality.
>Player Uadjet rolls on Agility. Roll is 9 (+3 bonus) for a total of 12.
>Player Uadjet rolls on Agility. Roll is 2 (+3 bonus) for a total of 5.
>Player Uadjet rolls on Agility. Roll is 19 (+3 bonus) for a total of 22.
>Player Uadjet rolls on Agility. Roll is 20 (+3 bonus) for a total of 23.
>Player Uadjet rolls on Agility. Roll is 1 (+3 bonus) for a total of 4.
>Player Uadjet rolls on Agility. Roll is 12 (+3 bonus) for a total of 15.
>Player Uadjet rolls on Agility. Roll is 18 (+3 bonus) for a total of 21.
Uadjet: Can you all see those rolls?
Anysu: Yes.
Anysu: But how do you use them?
>Player Gonger: Xaraha rolls on Agility. Roll is 6 (+8 bonus) for a total of 14.
Gonger:: Syntax: /roll agility
Uadjet: Correct.
Uadjet: It's /roll agility, or /roll agi. You can use the full skill name, the first word, or the first three letters.
>Player Anysu Atani rolls on Strength. Roll is 3 (+8 bonus) for a total of 11.
Uadjet: It rolls a 20-sided die, and your stat adds between 1 and 7.
Uadjet: Luck plays the bigger role, which is by design. This way new players still have a chance compared to veteran players with maxed everything.
>Player Gova Liernan rolls on Empathy. Roll is 10 (+8 bonus) for a total of 18.
>Player Gova Liernan rolls on Empathy. Roll is 18 (+8 bonus) for a total of 26.
Gova: I'm getting a +8.
Uadjet: That skill is above 200?
Gova: Yeah.
Uadjet: I'll mention it to Talad.
Uadjet: I'm sure he can add an upper limit pretty easily.
>Player Anysu Atani rolls on Will. Roll is 13 (+8 bonus) for a total of 21.
Anysu: I get a +8 to everything
>Player Anysu Atani rolls on Endurance. Roll is 11 (+8 bonus) for a total of 19.
Uadjet: Quests can be written to define a skill range as, for example, 50-99, or as being outside a range. I'm sure that upper limit can be defined as something like 'require no skill doodling 0-150' or whatever.
>Player Anysu Atani rolls on Charisma. Roll is 6 (+8 bonus) for a total of 14.
Uadjet: Try a skill that isn't over 200.
>Player Uadjet rolls on Endurance. Roll is 16 (+4 bonus) for a total of 20.
Anysu: But all of mine are over 400
Uadjet: Okay, stats are different than skills. 210 Endurance gets a +4. So I'm guessing the stat is halved for determining the bonus.
Uadjet: Try a skill like heavy armor.
>Player Gonger: Xaraha rolls on Heavy Armor. Roll is 17 (+8 bonus) for a total of 25.
>Player Anysu Atani rolls on Melee. Roll is 10 (+3 bonus) for a total of 13.
Anysu: Oh okay. I was just rolling with stat numbers not othe skills
>Player Gonger: Xaraha rolls on Crystal Way. Roll is 4 (+9 bonus) for a total of 13.
Anysu: So when are these rolls used? And must they be used?
Gonger:: +9 for Crystal Way, which is at 220 with boosts.
Uadjet: They can be used in events, for example. Or during any RP where chance is involved.
>Player Gonger: Xaraha rolls on Empathy. Roll is 14 (+9 bonus) for a total of 23.
Anysu: Seems to distract from rping things. If you end up spamming rolls in main for evrything you try.
Uadjet: Well, in an RP I think it would be one roll per person.
Gonger:: The rolls are always D20?
Uadjet: Yes.
Anysu: But at times more than one person is trying something. Like Damola and Anysu doing a healing. Seems unfair if only one get a roll when both are trying?
Uadjet: Well, both people would roll in that case, and maybe combine the rolls? Or add both bonuses to the highest roll?
Uadjet: We can figure it out.
Uadjet: It's not like the person with the lower roll gets locked in a prison cell for an hour.
Uadjet: The only limits are the limitations of the engine, and much of the time we can work around those with the Power of Imagination!
Anysu: I would take imagination over a die roll anytime.
Anysu: So is there a number those rolls must meet to work? And do you set them Uadjet?
Anysu: In D&D it's called a DC (Difficulty Class).
Uadjet: The only answer I can give to that is... maybe.
Uadjet: It could work like the Ynnwn Games rolls.
Uadjet: Really, there isn't much of a limit to the different ways we could do things.
Gonger:: Our imagination sets the limits.
Uadjet: The city management system has been updated a bit, though I don't think that the other cities are working yet. Just Hydlaa.
Thosor: We can carry things in a backpack like my precious hitchhiker's towel?
Uadjet: Yes. 10 slots, capacity of 20.
Thosor: Weight? can it give you extra weight capacity for ore and such?
Uadjet: No, the capacity is a size thing.
Uadjet: Every item has both weight and size. Containers are limited by size, not weight.
Thosor: So one can carry infinite amount of ore in it?
Uadjet: No, just up to 20 size units, however many that is.
Uadjet: You could carry 20 towels in it.
Thosor: I have a helm that gives a little extra carrying when I max out mining.
Uadjet: That's weight, not capacity.
Uadjet: Capacity only matters for containers.
Uadjet: Any other questions on this? Thoughts?
Uadjet: Yes?
Thosor: I went hunting tefus with a friend last night...
Thosor: I got that white 3 part semicircle and had to relog.
Uadjet: Stuck in aiming mode?
Thosor: In the past i was able to reaim at a target and get out of it, but I couldn't
Thosor: Yes, get red target, do business, hit tab and white circle remains, no mouse pointer.
Thosor: Had to alt tab to anothef window, crash out of ps window using X
Thosor: If no other windows open, I would have to force reboot.
Thosor: Linux, although have in the past same on Windows
Thosor: Will study bugtracker
Uadjet: Hmm. In Windows I'd suggest Alt-F4.
Uadjet: Okay, so that's something I can pass on.
Gonger:: Welcome Tela! Do you have any questions?
Thosor: New to the land, i understand.
Gonger:: Tela, this is an OOC meeting where you can learn about new things, give your opinion, make suggestions, ask questions.
Tela: Greetings elders of the land, I will listen and learn humbly
Gonger:: You may wish to join our weekly RP meetings, Saturday evening Europe time. Check the Calendar on the PS website for details.
Thosor: We meet here every other week.
Gonger:: 2nd and 4th Sundays, to be more precise.
Anysu: Any other news, Gonger: or Uadjet?
Uadjet: I think that's it. New /roll function, backpacks and purses exist and can be visually equipped, compass quest...
Uadjet: Oh, and apparently a quit confirmation, which I do not want to test at the moment. ;)
Thosor: Should we still hand out spare compasses?
Uadjet: Sure.
Thosor: Or (prefering rp) hint at the quest.
Thosor: Is the quest active in this release?
Gonger:: Yes.
Uadjet: I see it in the database, and it looks active.
Gonger:: Have fun, and let me know if you find websites with wrong or outdated information on PlaneShift!
Gonger:: Or rather, websites that should know about PlaneShift, but do not yet... :)

Damola

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Re: Dev Q&A August 10 2025
« Reply #1 on: August 21, 2026, 08:31:21 pm »
Greetings.

I think I missed this Dev Q&A. Interesting discussion you had about rolls. Thanks for posting, Gonger.

I think if used wisely and in a balance rolls could add to RP. It would add a bit of randomness a char might need to react to.

I agree to take imagination over strict adherence to some kind of rules. And maybe not all rolls would need to be against a fixed value for success or failure. If you have to think beforehand on what fixed value to use, this distracts from immersion I think.

But for example I can roll for Damola when she casts a spell and then take it into account for RP. Also GM can take it into account. I'd trust Uadjet on that and not require a set value beforehand. One example: Damola casts Analyze Dweomer to find out more about some magic in an item. When the roll is high, then GM can tell me more details and if its low, maybe Damola only receives a general, but blurry sense of what magic might be involved. And if its is really low, maybe it can be fun to play out the occasional failure to accomplish something. Just considering Damola as a master in blue doing some water spell and then play out how it fails in a funny way spreading the water all over Anysu's precious fur. ;D Damola would then just look at the result with astonishment and depending on her current mode take it with ease and tease Anysu about it or be annoyed with the failure. 

I bet many chars of seasoned players are overpowered with a lot of skills and stats. Adding a bit of randomness can add to the sense that they are not perfect either. On the other hand, it may also be fun to play out an exceptional success. Like 20+ or even 25+ with bonuses. Or for a new player with a new char like 16+ or 18+ and then playing out a surprise at how good something went while being ICly aware not being all that skillful in that area yet.

I think I might experiment with that without overthinking it. And I may not do a roll on every attempt to do something, but maybe on some attempts.

So my suggestion would be: Use an occasional roll as additional input, yet not sole determination on how to RP something. Does that sound reasonable to you?

Love,
Damola
Love,
Damola