CL: April's Fool question
Phineas
think the Blues Brothers area was my favorite)!
A question -- how long did it take you guys to pull this together? When
did you start planning for it with the art and area builds?
--Phineas
Hopp
with the clanward ho thingy. bawk!
Super Chicken
Tarf
wrote:
> yeah DT did a great job 8D they did a good job last April fool's day too
> with the clanward ho thingy. bawk!
> Super Chicken
>
> Phineas wrote:
>
> > Thanks to DT for the weekend fun! The April's Fool rift was great (I
> > think the Blues Brothers area was my favorite)!
Blue's brothers ruled!
Oz woulda been cool too if i hadnt accidentally gone in there a second
time :P
Tarf
Helpful GM
phi...@bardsretreat.org wrote:
Brainstorming, about 2 months ago.
Actual work: about 2 weeks ago.
I'm certain that some important task was dropped due to all the time we
spent on this throw-away bit of friviolity -- but I'm glad y'all seemed
to enjoy it, anyway, warts and all <G>
Wait until you see my idea for next year! ;D
--
You have to remove stuff from my e-mail to reply, it's not difficult
I will not, no matter how "good" the deal, ever purchase any product from
any company which gathers addresses from the usenet; period.
Rieger
> In article <3AC95139...@bardsretreat.org>,
> phi...@bardsretreat.org wrote:
> > Thanks to DT for the weekend fun! The April's Fool rift was great (I
> > think the Blues Brothers area was my favorite)!
> >
> > A question -- how long did it take you guys to pull this together? When
> > did you start planning for it with the art and area builds?
> >
> > --Phineas
> Brainstorming, about 2 months ago.
> Actual work: about 2 weeks ago.
> I'm certain that some important task was dropped due to all the time we
> spent on this throw-away bit of friviolity -- but I'm glad y'all seemed
> to enjoy it, anyway, warts and all <G>
> Wait until you see my idea for next year! ;D
Yes, great job on another enjoyable April Fools Weekend diversion. Next
year skip that annoying set-your-clocks-ahead-an-hour gag. That was just
annoying.
Now that the rift is gone (I assume), can you answer the burning questions
about those areas for those of us not smart enough to figure them out:
1. Was there anything to do in the Raiders' Ark room? Was there a way to
topple a statue through the wall or otherwise solve a puzzle?
2. Was there anything we could do in the Star Wars cantina or was the
puzzle just to get in there?
3. Was the Princess Bride just a hunting area or was there a way to find
the 6-fingered man? The "true love" raise-the-dead trick was cool though.
Anyway, tell us what we missed so we can feel dumb and/or say "Who would
ever think to do *that*?"
BTW, in some cultures the week starting April 7th is known as "Vanquish
Rats and Scav Birds Week." I just thought I'd throw that bit of
multicultural trivia out there.
Rieger
Helpful GM
rie...@nospam.faircraft.com (Rieger) wrote:
> Now that the rift is gone (I assume), can you answer the burning questions
> about those areas for those of us not smart enough to figure them out:
Yes
> 1. Was there anything to do in the Raiders' Ark room? Was there a way to
> topple a statue through the wall or otherwise solve a puzzle?
Yes. Yes.
> 2. Was there anything we could do in the Star Wars cantina or was the
> puzzle just to get in there?
Yes/no.
> 3. Was the Princess Bride just a hunting area or was there a way to find
> the 6-fingered man? The "true love" raise-the-dead trick was cool though.
Uh... invalid question. Thanks :) (Praise passed to appropriate folk.)
> Anyway, tell us what we missed so we can feel dumb and/or say "Who would
> ever think to do *that*?"
You didn't miss a thing -- nothing to see, here, move along...
Why on EARTH would we want to take a look back at something that's over,
explain what you missed and open up this really fun thing to all those
whiners for "how the hell would we ever know THAT?!?!" kind of stuff?
It was fun! Let's not ruin it :)
> BTW, in some cultures the week starting April 7th is known as "Vanquish
> Rats and Scav Birds Week." I just thought I'd throw that bit of
> multicultural trivia out there.
If you really want, I can arrange for you to vanquish rats & birds --
just let me know. ;D
Tarf
> Now that the rift is gone (I assume), can you answer the burning questions
> about those areas for those of us not smart enough to figure them out:
> 1. Was there anything to do in the Raiders' Ark room? Was there a way to
> topple a statue through the wall or otherwise solve a puzzle?
> 2. Was there anything we could do in the Star Wars cantina or was the
> puzzle just to get in there?
> 3. Was the Princess Bride just a hunting area or was there a way to find
> the 6-fingered man? The "true love" raise-the-dead trick was cool though.
>
> Anyway, tell us what we missed so we can feel dumb and/or say "Who would
> ever think to do *that*?"
>
> BTW, in some cultures the week starting April 7th is known as "Vanquish
> Rats and Scav Birds Week." I just thought I'd throw that bit of
> multicultural trivia out there.
>
> Rieger
Yes, and was there any way to choose the right color to get across the
Monty Python bridge, was that a bug or was it a joke that you couldn't?
Tarf, who is being repressed
Rieger
> In article <3ac8b974$1...@news3.nntpserver.com>,
> rie...@nospam.faircraft.com (Rieger) wrote:
> > Now that the rift is gone (I assume), can you answer the burning questions
> > about those areas for those of us not smart enough to figure them out:
> Yes
> > 1. Was there anything to do in the Raiders' Ark room? Was there a way to
> > topple a statue through the wall or otherwise solve a puzzle?
> Yes. Yes.
> > 2. Was there anything we could do in the Star Wars cantina or was the
> > puzzle just to get in there?
> Yes/no.
> > 3. Was the Princess Bride just a hunting area or was there a way to find
> > the 6-fingered man? The "true love" raise-the-dead trick was cool though.
> Uh... invalid question. Thanks :) (Praise passed to appropriate folk.)
> > Anyway, tell us what we missed so we can feel dumb and/or say "Who would
> > ever think to do *that*?"
> You didn't miss a thing -- nothing to see, here, move along...
> Why on EARTH would we want to take a look back at something that's over,
> explain what you missed and open up this really fun thing to all those
> whiners for "how the hell would we ever know THAT?!?!" kind of stuff?
> It was fun! Let's not ruin it :)
Yeah, ok, thanks. Haven't you ever noticed that in the newspaper they
publish the solution to the crossword puzzle the following day? That's
for people who want to take a look back at something that's over and find
out what they missed. Some people like that sorta thing. One more
question for "H"GM: which of the areas (if any) did no one solve?
If anyone wants to brag about how they solved any or all of these puzzles,
please do so!
> > BTW, in some cultures the week starting April 7th is known as "Vanquish
> > Rats and Scav Birds Week." I just thought I'd throw that bit of
> > multicultural trivia out there.
> If you really want, I can arrange for you to vanquish rats & birds --
> just let me know. ;D
Uh, nevermind. Multiculturalism is overrated.
Rieger
Helpful GM
rie...@nospam.faircraft.com (Rieger) wrote:
> Yeah, ok, thanks. Haven't you ever noticed that in the newspaper they
> publish the solution to the crossword puzzle the following day? That's
> for people who want to take a look back at something that's over and find
> out what they missed. Some people like that sorta thing. One more
> question for "H"GM: which of the areas (if any) did no one solve?
Dunno.
Also, 4/1 is a lightweight way to pre-flight wild-hair ideas for
possible future "real" quests -- so "publishing the solution" isn't
kosher, anyway. Besides, I can't tell about other people's areas, and
I'm sure you figured mine out (if you guessed which it was <G>)
> If anyone wants to brag about how they solved any or all of these
> puzzles, please do so!
Yeah! It'd be fun to see a player-solutions page :)
> > > BTW, in some cultures the week starting April 7th is known as
> > > "Vanquish
> > > Rats and Scav Birds Week." I just thought I'd throw that bit of
> > > multicultural trivia out there.
> > If you really want, I can arrange for you to vanquish rats & birds --
> > just let me know. ;D
> Uh, nevermind. Multiculturalism is overrated.
> Rieger
Yeah, a lot of people feel that way! <G>
Monkey
starwars with Pengy I dunno there was a Chum and a Penguin in that one.
Helpful GM
> My guess was that yours was: Jaws, Monty Python, and maby you worked on
> starwars with Pengy I dunno there was a Chum and a Penguin in that one.
Jaws.
I helped VERY PERIPHERALLY with Star Wars -- but only as technical
adviser, to explain "how to" to the author, who wasn't Pengy. I also
recommended those two icons, as ones that had drinks-in-hand for the
bar-scene.
Tom Boyer
<HelpfulGM@*NO-SPAM*PlayNaked.com> wrote:
> Brainstorming, about 2 months ago.
>
> Actual work: about 2 weeks ago.
>
> I'm certain that some important task was dropped due to all the time we
> spent on this throw-away bit of friviolity -- but I'm glad y'all seemed
> to enjoy it, anyway, warts and all <G>
>
> Wait until you see my idea for next year! ;D
Yes,
I loved it. It was well worth whatever effort you put into it! I only
wish that my semi-permanant purple skin dye had been more semi-permanant!
-T
Michael
I would also love to know what I was to stupid to find.
Michael
--
--
Mike Wertz <mike...@earthlink.net>
Michael
Helpful GM <HelpfulGM@*NO-SPAM*PlayNaked.com> wrote:
> In article <3AC8E106...@home.com>, money...@home.com wrote:
>
> > My guess was that yours was: Jaws, Monty Python, and maby you worked on
> > starwars with Pengy I dunno there was a Chum and a Penguin in that one.
>
> Jaws.
>
> I helped VERY PERIPHERALLY with Star Wars -- but only as technical
> adviser, to explain "how to" to the author, who wasn't Pengy. I also
> recommended those two icons, as ones that had drinks-in-hand for the
> bar-scene.
We miss anything in Jaws? or was it just a fun place to RW? I did
think all the places were great though, was nice to see stuff that I
vanqed in there. It was very hard for me to explore some of the places
solo.
Sean Kerwin
> > My guess was that yours was: Jaws, Monty
Python, and maby you worked on
> > starwars with Pengy I dunno there was a
Chum and a Penguin in that one.
> Jaws.
Hey, I guessed right!
BTW, if the new Skirwan vanishes now, I'm
going to be obnoxious forever about how
you're repressing my people. :)
--
Sean Kerwin
HWC Skirwan
@login
{
"/bug Super Chicken has the sprite of a
cloaked exile instead of a chicken. Please fix.\
r"
"/bug The PoTW don't have an affiliation
medal; clearly this is an oversight, please fix.\
r"
"/bug Somebody seems to have deleted the
multiple NPCs named Skirwan. Please fix.\r"
"/bug Monkey doesn't have the appropriate
wendecka sprite - Please fix.\r"
}
Nils Zonneveld
Tarf wrote:
>
> Yes, and was there any way to choose the right color to get across the
> Monty Python bridge, was that a bug or was it a joke that you couldn't?
>
> Tarf, who is being repressed
I looked up the bloody script of the scene
(http://www.informatik.uni-stuttgart.de/ipvr/vs/alt/baumann/bridge.html)
but that didnt help much :-(
HWC for Erasmus, my kingdom for a coconut
Helpful GM
Kerwin) wrote:
> @login
> {
> "/bug Super Chicken has the sprite of a
> cloaked exile instead of a chicken. Please fix.\
> r"
[etc., other silly bugs, snip]
This does not help GMs form a favourable impression of any bug that
begins
[Bug: Skirwan (location information)] ...
and may cause some who skim the list to skip something important that
you might say (heh, what are the odds?!?!)
Sean Kerwin
> > {
> > "/bug Super Chicken has the sprite of a
> > cloaked exile instead of a chicken. Please fix.\
> > r"
>
> [etc., other silly bugs, snip]
>
> This does not help GMs form a favourable impression of any bug that
> begins
>
> [Bug: Skirwan (location information)] ...
>
> and may cause some who skim the list to skip something important that
> you might say
For someone who roleplays a martini-drinking hawaiian-shirted
'no-go-away'-shouting golf-playing fisherman, you're not too good at
recognizing other people's attempts at humor, are you?
Besides, I'm pretty sure my bug reports are ignored anyway, I /bugged a
simple way to fix the glaring grammatical errors in the raffle NPCs
several version ago, and they're still happily mangling the English
language. :/
I think the only stupid bug report I've ever done is the one where I
complain about not being able to /curse myself, and I still personally
don't see any reason why I shouldn't be able to.
--
Sean Kerwin
HWC Skirwan,
Pretty sure that the Skirwan Lord(tm) GMs won't criticize people for doing
things unless said people have actually done said things.
Helpful GM
Kerwin) wrote:
> > > @login
> > > {
> > > "/bug Super Chicken has the sprite of a
> > > cloaked exile instead of a chicken. Please fix.\
> > > r"
> >
> > [etc., other silly bugs, snip]
> >
> > This does not help GMs form a favourable impression of any bug that
> > begins
> >
> > [Bug: Skirwan (location information)] ...
> >
> > and may cause some who skim the list to skip something important that
> > you might say
>
> For someone who roleplays a martini-drinking hawaiian-shirted
> 'no-go-away'-shouting golf-playing fisherman, you're not too good at
> recognizing other people's attempts at humor, are you?
For such a smart exiles, you sure don't have much appreciation for the
kind of stuff that people put into /bugs because someone here thought
they were being funny (aa glances sidelong at Phelps...) <G>
> Besides, I'm pretty sure my bug reports are ignored anyway, I /bugged a
> simple way to fix the glaring grammatical errors in the raffle NPCs
> several version ago, and they're still happily mangling the English
> language. :/
Common. They mangle the Common language. And it's on the list. Just
below "make more NPCs named Skirwan."
> I think the only stupid bug report I've ever done is the one where I
> complain about not being able to /curse myself, and I still personally
> don't see any reason why I shouldn't be able to.
You can. It works like a charm!
Tarf
<HelpfulGM@*NO-SPAM*PlayNaked.com> wrote:
> > I think the only stupid bug report I've ever done is the one where I
> > complain about not being able to /curse myself, and I still personally
> > don't see any reason why I shouldn't be able to.
>
> You can. It works like a charm!
Oh, come on! It's not that bad!
Tarf
Anonymous
> Yeah, ok, thanks. Haven't you ever noticed that in the newspaper they
> publish the solution to the crossword puzzle the following day? That's
> for people who want to take a look back at something that's over and find
> out what they missed. Some people like that sorta thing. One more
> question for "H"GM: which of the areas (if any) did no one solve?
Oz was finished 790 times, with the first solution about 20 minutes
after it opened. (I don't know when the first person entered the
area.) Blues Brothers was finished 381 times, starting about 30
minutes in. Nobody got past the Bridgekeeper.
Ann <a...@admin.clanlord.com>
Anonymous
Helpful GM <HelpfulGM@*NO-SPAM*PlayNaked.com> wrote:
> In article <3AC8E106...@home.com>, money...@home.com wrote:
>
> > My guess was that yours was: Jaws, Monty Python, and maby you worked on
> > starwars with Pengy I dunno there was a Chum and a Penguin in that one.
>
> Jaws.
I guess I should fess up, so you know who to curse. I did Monty
Python, Princess Bride, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Wizard of Oz, and
about half of Blues Brothers.
We had backup plans in case people couldn't figure out Oz, but once
again you all did a great job, and we never had to use any of them.
(To the people who got stuck, my apologies.)
Ann <a...@admin.clanlord.com>
Ippon
> In article <3ac8c755$1...@news3.nntpserver.com>,
> rie...@nospam.faircraft.com (Rieger) wrote:
>
>> Yeah, ok, thanks. Haven't you ever noticed that in the newspaper they
>> publish the solution to the crossword puzzle the following day? That's
>> for people who want to take a look back at something that's over and find
>> out what they missed. Some people like that sorta thing. One more
>> question for "H"GM: which of the areas (if any) did no one solve?
>
> Oz was finished 790 times, with the first solution about 20 minutes
> after it opened.
Oz was almost painfully controlled and easy. But I think that probably
because I knew what I was doing and what I was looking for.
> (I don't know when the first person entered the area.) Blues Brothers was
> finished 381 times, starting about 30 minutes in.
Blues brothers was a bit annoying to me due to the layout of the quest and
the priest part. The layout of the quest was, in a big part, random NPC
bumping if you didn't know the story. I don't think the Priest was even
hinted at by any other NPCs as needed for the quest(if it was, I missed it).
I also accidently reset the Blues brothers quest twice.
> Nobody got past the Bridgekeeper.
What was up with the that one anyway? First the lack of swallows and then
the insane bridgekeeper. How on earth is he supposed to know my favorite
color any way? There were people who knew the script by heart(or had it
right in front of them) who couldn't get past. Personally, I think that one
had the potential to be best... \action pouts
Starwars I never really solved. The stormtroppers made me wish for
uni-direction lightning. Though I would expect that to be a bit server
intensive, since that would probably have to count as full fledged creature.
I nominate the stormtroopers for best new creature over all though. Fun to
hear them say "Blast them!" when they die :)
If we ever get uni-direction bolts, can we also get a strafe ability?
Willy Wonka I didn't solve. In part due to the fact that when I got around
to it the oompa spawns were insane.
Ippon
P.S. where was the cavern of Arrrgh?
> Ann <a...@admin.clanlord.com>
Ippon
>
> Also, 4/1 is a lightweight way to pre-flight wild-hair ideas for
> possible future "real" quests -- so "publishing the solution" isn't
> kosher, anyway. Besides, I can't tell about other people's areas, and
> I'm sure you figured mine out (if you guessed which it was <G>)
Well, I am going to give my critique on these quests then.
Princess Bride was poor. Was too obtuse for me, and I have seen the movie a
couple times. Lack of in game information.
Oz was so-so to good. Was a little over obvious and simple to someone who
knew the whole story. Should have had more IC chatter from the NPCs I think.
Oz may have been about right for someone who had never seen/heard the story.
Star Wars was poor as a quest. I never really finished it. Relied too much
on knowledge about the movie I think. Was too shallow in proper in game
information.
Jaws I can't really talk about. The bugs kept me from even wanting to try.
Indiana Jones was so-so. The walk through bush reminded me of tree humping
(grrr). Didn't figure out the snake pit(due to lack of wall humping I hear),
though it was obvious that was the point to work on.
Willy Wonka I can't really talk about. The spawns got to be too much before
I got around to it. The trees were also murder with any degree of lag.
Blues brothers was so-so. Would have been decent, if it didn't have problems
with getting reset by accident and the lack of mention of the priest(at
least I didn't see any).
Monty Python was great as an idea, poor as a quest. Poor due to a lack of
stated purpose and a lot of fluff(though fun and entertaining fluff). The
problem with the fluff is that it made no sense according to what was said
in game. The Black Knight should of had been guarding a bridge like the
movie. Poor also because of the ridiculous bridgekeeper. Seemed that no
amount of knowledge of the story helped with the bridgekeeper, nor did I see
any in game hints.
Ippon
Tarf
Tarf
> Well, I am going to give my critique on these quests then.
>
> Princess Bride was poor. Was too obtuse for me, and I have seen the movie
> a
> couple times. Lack of in game information.
Yeah, I agree. I suspect they ran out of time while designing this one.
Or maybe I just didn't find all there was to be offered there...so you
may be dead on in the lack of information part.
>
> Oz was so-so to good. Was a little over obvious and simple to someone who
> knew the whole story. Should have had more IC chatter from the NPCs I
> think.
> Oz may have been about right for someone who had never seen/heard the
> story.
My only complaint about Oz was I didn't have a choice. I was just
checkin the rift out, and next thing I knew I had to solve the quest or
depart. I think I may have said a few bad words when I accidentally
entered it a second time. And the third time I accidentally entered it,
I was playing Tarf so I just purg pendanted out :P
>
> Star Wars was poor as a quest. I never really finished it. Relied too
> much
> on knowledge about the movie I think. Was too shallow in proper in game
> information.
The bar and the bad guys were cool. Coulda used more though...
>
> Jaws I can't really talk about. The bugs kept me from even wanting to
> try.
Jaws was silly, but cool (after the bug was fixed). More like a
rank-whoring grounds for old healers than anything else <g>.
>
> Indiana Jones was so-so. The walk through bush reminded me of tree
> humping
> (grrr). Didn't figure out the snake pit(due to lack of wall humping I
> hear),
> though it was obvious that was the point to work on.
Darn, I musta missed the snake pit.
>
> Willy Wonka I can't really talk about. The spawns got to be too much
> before
> I got around to it. The trees were also murder with any degree of lag.
No comment. Tarf didn't spend much time there, and Tarfette slaughtered
all of em and was only luck hit...probably was a challenge for younger
exiles though.
>
> Blues brothers was so-so. Would have been decent, if it didn't have
> problems
> with getting reset by accident and the lack of mention of the priest(at
> least I didn't see any).
Blues Brothers was my favorite, actually. Maybe cause I didn't enter it
accidentally like I did Oz. Took me about 20 minutes to solve, and
reminded me of many other games' quests in that ya talk to NPC's to
solve it.
>
> Monty Python was great as an idea, poor as a quest. Poor due to a lack of
> stated purpose and a lot of fluff(though fun and entertaining fluff). The
> problem with the fluff is that it made no sense according to what was
> said
> in game. The Black Knight should of had been guarding a bridge like the
> movie. Poor also because of the ridiculous bridgekeeper. Seemed that no
> amount of knowledge of the story helped with the bridgekeeper, nor did I
> see
> any in game hints.
Yeah, agree here. It was funny though.
\yell Help! I'm being repressed!
Tarf
Michael
wrote:
Really? I had fun in all the places. JUST TELL ME THE DAMN COLOR!! ;)
Ippon
>>
>> Ippon
>>
>
> Really? I had fun in all the places. JUST TELL ME THE DAMN COLOR!! ;)
>
> Michael
Whether they were fun or not on that scale isn't what the post was about.
The post was about the quality of the quest. Quests on that scale can fun
even when poorly designed but be a nightmare to finish when larger.
Ippon
Weezoh ap Gl'mf
news:B6F2C446.154A2%j...@geotec.net...
>
>
> > In article <3ac8c755$1...@news3.nntpserver.com>,
> > rie...@nospam.faircraft.com (Rieger) wrote:
> >
for.
>
> > (I don't know when the first person entered the area.) Blues Brothers
was
> > finished 381 times, starting about 30 minutes in.
>
> Blues brothers was a bit annoying to me due to the layout of the quest and
> the priest part. The layout of the quest was, in a big part, random NPC
> bumping if you didn't know the story. I don't think the Priest was even
> hinted at by any other NPCs as needed for the quest(if it was, I missed
it).
> I also accidently reset the Blues brothers quest twice.
>
members, but I think it was DDD. He said something about maybe getting the
band back together if we knew it was the will of God or something like that.
--
Weezoh ap Gl'mf
Fellowship of the Red Quill
http://www.red-quill.com/weezoh
Helpful GM
wrote:
Sorry, let me rephrase...
4/1 is a time of fun & frivioloty, when people all become "fools due to
the influence of pending Spring" (often abbrevieated "April fools.")
Because it's kind-of IC to be OOC on 4/1 (sort-a, you know what I mean),
it allows us to try things -- typically infrastructure things, not the
actual "quests" themselves, but the supporting technologies -- that we
wouldn't otherwise have a chance to expose to a large group of players.
So, your review of the "quests" was thoughtful, and I thank you on
behalf of all the 4/1 area makers -- but we didn't intend them as
"quests."
As an example of the sort of "techno-testing" I mean -- 4/1/01 ushered
in a new type of NPC who we GMs could set-up with a series of questions,
a set of acceptable correct answers, a list of things to do to you if
you're right, a list of what to do if you're wrong.
You can probably guess where this was used.
...But the cool thing, for use (aside from watching everyone enjoy the
silliness) is that we now have a cool new tool in our arsenal.
See?
Frankras
of
> > stated purpose and a lot of fluff(though fun and entertaining fluff).
The
> > problem with the fluff is that it made no sense according to what was
said
> > in game. The Black Knight should of had been guarding a bridge like the
> > movie. Poor also because of the ridiculous bridgekeeper. Seemed that no
> > amount of knowledge of the story helped with the bridgekeeper, nor did I
see
> > any in game hints.
> >
> > Ippon
> >
> Really? I had fun in all the places. JUST TELL ME THE DAMN COLOR!! ;)
>
> Michael
I woke up in the middle of the night after the Rift vanished and remembered
a small detail about the Monty Python quest (I too approached the
bridgekeeper a dozen times and couldn't decide on my favorite color). The
detail that occurred to me is, each time I re-entered the area (and donned a
ka-niggit icon), my Tabard was a different color! Did anyone try stating
the color of their tabard?
Frankras
Hidden
> a small detail about the Monty Python quest (I too approached the
> bridgekeeper a dozen times and couldn't decide on my favorite color). The
> detail that occurred to me is, each time I re-entered the area (and donned a
> ka-niggit icon), my Tabard was a different color! Did anyone try stating
> the color of their tabard?
>
> Frankras
Yes, it was tried and didn't work.
--
-Hidden
"Outside of a dog, a book is man's best friend.
Inside of a dog, it's too dark to read."
-- Groucho Marx
Sean Kerwin
> As an example of the sort of "techno-testing" I mean -- 4/1/01 ushered
> in a new type of NPC who we GMs could set-up with a series of questions,
> a set of acceptable correct answers, a list of things to do to you if
> you're right, a list of what to do if you're wrong.
I'm going to go out on a limb and guess that you're referring to the
bridgekeeper. I'm going to go further out on a limb and suggest that it
wasn't a very useful test, in that case.
The reason everybody and his brother is asking about the color is that no
player ever made it past. No, I'm pretty sure I'm not exaggerating, here.
Not one single player. Ever. Ask Ann.
People are asking what the correct answer is so they can either
a) slap themselves in the forehead and say 'duh'.
or
b) tell you that the bridgekeeper was broken.
So while I understand that you're (y'all are) very big on keeping secrets,
we do have logical and legitimate reasons for asking for this now-useless
information.
How exactly would there be any negative effects to telling us this now?
--
Sean Kerwin
HWC Skirwan,
Who thinks the only thing that could possible have beaten Blues Brothers
would have been Ghostbusters. Next year? (I ain't afraid o' no ghost!)
Sean Kerwin
> I woke up in the middle of the night after the Rift vanished and remembered
> a small detail about the Monty Python quest (I too approached the
> bridgekeeper a dozen times and couldn't decide on my favorite color). The
> detail that occurred to me is, each time I re-entered the area (and donned a
> ka-niggit icon), my Tabard was a different color! Did anyone try stating
> the color of their tabard?
Yes.
Also tried:
Giving the color of the most recent person to enter.
Giving the most numerically present color in the area.
Listing standard rainbow colors.
Listing the contents of a standard Crayola box.
Asking the bridgekeeper a question in response.
Saying 'Ni!'.
Saying 'It!'.
--
Sean Kerwin
HWC Skirwan,
Who had fun anyway. Especially in Chicago!
Helpful GM
<ske...@mac.com> wrote:
> Helpful GM wrote:
>
> > As an example of the sort of "techno-testing" I mean -- 4/1/01 ushered
> > in a new type of NPC who we GMs could set-up with a series of questions,
> > a set of acceptable correct answers, a list of things to do to you if
> > you're right, a list of what to do if you're wrong.
>
> I'm going to go out on a limb and guess that you're referring to the
> bridgekeeper. I'm going to go further out on a limb and suggest that it
> wasn't a very useful test, in that case.
>
> The reason everybody and his brother is asking about the color is that no
> player ever made it past. No, I'm pretty sure I'm not exaggerating, here.
> Not one single player. Ever. Ask Ann.
>
> People are asking what the correct answer is so they can either
>
> a) slap themselves in the forehead and say 'duh'.
> or
> b) tell you that the bridgekeeper was broken.
Right. That makes it a useful test :)
Thanks!
Btw, same NPC had successful use in Star Wars.
Trooper: Hey! Let's see some identification
Correct Answer: You don't need to see my identification
> So while I understand that you're (y'all are) very big on keeping secrets,
> we do have logical and legitimate reasons for asking for this now-useless
> information.
No problem.
Of course, even if we tell you, it won't help. What's helpful is your
collective outcry of "bridgekeeper seems broken", which triggered us
(well, Ann, it was her area) to go try it out (again.)
> How exactly would there be any negative effects to telling us this now?
None that I can think of.
Actually -- ok, some of you are going to feel insulted, but he asked a
fair question and I'm giving an honest answer, no offense intended --
because if it's our mistake, someone is bound to make a big fuss about
what idiots us GMs are, and how could we have tortured those
hard-working paying customers, that way.
Not everyone will, of course -- but that's the only negative effect I
can think of.
Well, and it might reduce the value my BlockBuster stock, since you
won't have to run out and rent the movie... ;)
Helpful GM
<ske...@mac.com> wrote:
I didn't look at the code, and I didn't complete the quest. however,
isn't the correct answer
Blue. No, yellow!
? Of course, I can see how this could be problematic if someone typed
Blue, no, yellow (no period or !)
or blue. no, yellow! (1 space, not 2)
etc.
Note, our match-code accounts for "BLUE" = "Blue" = "blue", but NOT for
"blue no yellow" = "blue, no yellow" = "blue. No, yellow!"
So that'd be a good thing to test for, so we can make that interface
more robust.
Rieger
> Btw, same NPC had successful use in Star Wars.
> Trooper: Hey! Let's see some identification
> Correct Answer: You don't need to see my identification
If you do more of this "guess the magic word" sort of things (which I
thought Joe explicitly didn't like, but which already appear in the
lands), please please make them less strict. For example, I saw someone
respond to the 'trooper with almost exactly the right phrase (perhaps
replacing "need" to "have") and it didn't work. That's a drag. Anything
that matches "* you * [don't|do not] * identification *" should be good
enough, in my opinion. At least for this sort of informal conversational
response interactions.
I assume it's something like this that caused me to make no progress in
Raiders or Princess Bride despite lots of movie lines spoken to the NPCs.
Obviously it gets much worse if capitalization or punctuation matters, but
I'm pretty sure that's not the case.
Rieger
Sean Kerwin
>> Also tried:
>>
>> Giving the color of the most recent person to enter.
>> Giving the most numerically present color in the area.
>> Listing standard rainbow colors.
>> Listing the contents of a standard Crayola box.
>> Asking the bridgekeeper a question in response.
>> Saying 'Ni!'.
>> Saying 'It!'.
>
>
> I didn't look at the code, and I didn't complete the quest. however,
> isn't the correct answer
>
> Blue. No, yellow!
>
> ? Of course, I can see how this could be problematic if someone typed
>
> Blue, no, yellow (no period or !)
> or blue. no, yellow! (1 space, not 2)
> etc.
>
> Note, our match-code accounts for "BLUE" = "Blue" = "blue", but NOT for
> "blue no yellow" = "blue, no yellow" = "blue. No, yellow!"
>
> So that'd be a good thing to test for, so we can make that interface
> more robust.
Forgot to mention, I tried that one too. With various capitalization and
punctuation.
I'm sure there are people who tried harder than I did, too. One person
seemed to be trying every possible combination of "<Color>. No, <Color2>".
Hence the question being on everybody's lips.
--
Sean Kerwin
HWC Skirwan,
Thinking it would've been easier if the bridgekeeper had been named Skirwan.
Sean Kerwin
> Helpful GM wrote:
>> Btw, same NPC had successful use in Star Wars.
>
>> Trooper: Hey! Let's see some identification
>> Correct Answer: You don't need to see my identification
>
> If you do more of this "guess the magic word" sort of things (which I
> thought Joe explicitly didn't like, but which already appear in the
> lands), please please make them less strict. For example, I saw someone
> respond to the 'trooper with almost exactly the right phrase (perhaps
> replacing "need" to "have") and it didn't work. That's a drag. Anything
> that matches "* you * [don't|do not] * identification *" should be good
> enough, in my opinion. At least for this sort of informal conversational
> response interactions.
I'm glad I checked for new messages before hitting reply, 'cause I was about
to say the exact same thing. 'Me too!' :)
BTW, is there any way to create a standardized list of synonyms that all
NPCs have access to? Then it would be a simple matter to tell everyone that
'Yes', 'Yei', 'Yup', 'Yep', 'Yeppers', 'Of course', 'Oui', 'Si', 'Bien
sur!', etc, etc... All mean the same thing.
Would be really neat, because the only people Skir ever says 'Yes' (Vs.
'Yup!') to are NPCs... And aren't NPCs people too?
--
Sean Kerwin
HWC Skirwan,
Wishing he could introduce Chum to Head Shrinker...
Helpful GM
<ske...@mac.com> wrote:
>
> BTW, is there any way to create a standardized list of synonyms that all
> NPCs have access to? Then it would be a simple matter to tell everyone
> that
> 'Yes', 'Yei', 'Yup', 'Yep', 'Yeppers', 'Of course', 'Oui', 'Si', 'Bien
> sur!', etc, etc... All mean the same thing.
Sort-a. Yes & no. Yes, it's possible, but it's very CPU intensive.
I'm doing "science" in that area to see what we can get away with.
For the most part, merchant NPCs that take "yes" as an answer also take
"yeah." In fact, they typically take
"yes@s" or "yeah@s"
where @s is "any string", so you could say "yes please" or "yes, you
nimwit" or "yes, I mean no!" and it's all "yes" to the NPC.
> Would be really neat, because the only people Skir ever says 'Yes' (Vs.
> 'Yup!') to are NPCs... And aren't NPCs people too?
The thing is, the "standard function" we use takes 2 possible correct
answers, which are typically filled with "yes@s" and "yeah@s". The new
NPC you saw takes an arbitrary list which, as you saw, doesn't refeclt
everything.
Mushi, mushi! ;D
Anyway, we're working on it. Sort-a. For now, try to stick with "yes."
Whisper, if it bugs you ;D
Helpful GM
rie...@nospam.faircraft.com (Rieger) wrote:
Right. Exactly! That's what this testing showed, that the script
wasn't flexible enough.
Actually, the script IS flexible enough, we just didn't use it
correctly. We can list more than one "correct" answer.
"Guess the word" games are considered weak.
They're tolerated for 4/1 and wild-Wednesdays, because those are
typically cheap throw-aways, and we don't spend a lot of time making
them perfect.
In theory, people have fun, anyway <G>
Hidden
> Raiders or Princess Bride despite lots of movie lines spoken to the NPCs.
> Obviously it gets much worse if capitalization or punctuation matters, but
> I'm pretty sure that's not the case.
>
> Rieger
Punctuation matters, at least. One person couldn't get past the
stormtroopers 'cause they said "dont" and not "don't".
Tarf
<HelpfulGM@*NO-SPAM*PlayNaked.com> wrote:
> Blue. No, yellow!
>
> ? Of course, I can see how this could be problematic if someone typed
>
> Blue, no, yellow (no period or !)
> or blue. no, yellow! (1 space, not 2)
> etc.
>
> Note, our match-code accounts for "BLUE" = "Blue" = "blue", but NOT for
> "blue no yellow" = "blue, no yellow" = "blue. No, yellow!"
>
> So that'd be a good thing to test for, so we can make that interface
> more robust.
this was likely the most common response, so im pretty confident it was
tried in various formats, since this WAS the correct answer from the
movie.
Tarf
Peter of the Norse
<tarf@cetno_spam.com> spake:
> this was likely the most common response, so im pretty confident it was
> tried in various formats, since this WAS the correct answer from the
> movie.
This was the wrong answer in the movie. The only right answer that I could
thing of belonged to a different question. Something about the speed of a
bird.
And now for something completely different... I remember someone else
complaining about American references in Clan Lord. He was off track about
the thing he was complaining about, (Parse that!) but I would have hoped
that DT didn't have a quest that required knowing lines from a movie.
Also, does anyone have a movie of Monty Python once you get the coconut? I
never did find one.
Peter of the Norse
"Sunrise/Sunset/From the cradle to the casket" --Bright Eyes
Sean Kerwin
>> this was likely the most common response, so im pretty confident it was
>> tried in various formats, since this WAS the correct answer from the
>> movie.
>
> This was the wrong answer in the movie. The only right answer that I could
> thing of belonged to a different question. Something about the speed of a
> bird.
The first knight (Launcelot?) answers blue, and gets across.
The next night (Don't remember...) gets asked what the capitol of Assyria
is, responds, "I don't know that!" and gets flung.
Third knight (Brave Sir Robin, I think?) answers, "Blue, no yellow!", and
gets flung.
Fourth knight (Arthur) gets asked about the average airspeed velocity of an
unladen swallow, and asks the bridgekeeper a clarification. Bridgekeeper is
then flung when he doesn't know the answer to the clarificatory question.
(All of this is more-or-less, of course, but that's the general gist of it.)
So logically, the way across should've been either blue or some other color,
or a question. Even if it was the language parsing the messed up, that's
still not the right answer.
/action feels all superior. <G>
--
Sean Kerwin
HWC Skirwan,
Pretty sure that the simple fix would've
been to name the bridgekeeper Skirwan.
J'nder
Helpful GM wrote:
>
> I didn't look at the code, and I didn't complete the quest. however,
> isn't the correct answer
>
> Blue. No, yellow!
Actually I tried that, without success. In the movie it resulted in Sir
Bors? being thrown to a fiery death.
--
J'nder - J'Team & OWE
_________________________________________________________
"Bah! J'team are here - foiled again!" Qual -- during an early 'Noth
raid =)
_________________________________________________________
http://jteam.clanlords.com
http://owe.clanlords.com
Levens DeBack
> From: Sean Kerwin <ske...@mac.com>
> Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.games.adventure
> Date: Sat, 07 Apr 2001 07:12:58 GMT
> Subject: Re: CL April quest critique (was Re: CL: April's Fool question)
Actually...
look at:
http://www.informatik.uni-stuttgart.de/ipvr/vs/alt/baumann/bridge.html
for the *whole* scene.
-Xepel, Aqua-Sylvan, Bard... who doesnt think people should feel all
superior unless they actually know the answer =)
Sean Kerwin
Okay... And why exactly shouldn't I feel all superior, then?
--
Sean Kerwin
HWC Skirwan,
Pretty sure that confusing Robin and Galahad is well within the "All of this
is more-or-less, of course, but that's the general gist of it" clause...
Tarf
<ske...@mac.com> wrote:
> Okay... And why exactly shouldn't I feel all superior, then?
>
> --
> Sean Kerwin
>
> HWC Skirwan,
Cause yer a zo, meaning you have more fingers on your left hand than you
do brain cells in yer head?
I didn't say it, it was that other guy, on your right. No, no,
no...your OTHER right...yeesh.
Stretch
Sean Kerwin
>> Okay... And why exactly shouldn't I feel all superior, then?
>>
>> --
>> Sean Kerwin
>>
>> HWC Skirwan,
>
> Cause yer a zo, meaning you have more fingers on your left hand than you
> do brain cells in yer head?
>
> I didn't say it, it was that other guy, on your right. No, no,
> no...your OTHER right...yeesh.
>
> Stretch
Don't make me come over there, shorty.
--
Sean Kerwin
HWC Skirwan,
Wondering if Tarf should talk to Head Shrinker about his inability to
separate fantasy from reality...
Allen Taylor
"spam". It shouldn't be that way, but only the GM knows and obviously there
not talking because they don't want anyone to know or they screwed up and
now have a funny walk. I'm sure all the logical answers where tried since
many know the movie very well.
And now for something completely different....
whoops... I've been sacked
---
Allen Taylor <alth...@earthlink.net>
> From: Sean Kerwin <ske...@mac.com>
> Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.games.adventure
> Date: Tue, 10 Apr 2001 02:41:03 GMT
> Subject: Re: CL April quest critique (was Re: CL: April's Fool question)
>
Merlisk
<alth...@earthlink.net> wrote:
Did anyone else think that it's funny he advertized "Llama"
Photography? Must be a mystic.... :)
And now for something really different...
http://sinfest.net/d/20000212.html
Ahhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!
HWC for Merl
--
Merlisk, Healer
http://www.sundragonclan.com/
"It probably really doesn't hurt to stroke the players. They purr and send
money." - Matt, a CL potential buyer replying to HGM (Mar 11,'01)
Paramedic the Thoom
Merlisk wrote:
>
> Did anyone else think that it's funny he advertized "Llama"
> Photography? Must be a mystic.... :)
Speaking of llama photography,
http://www.lonejuniper.com/alpacacam/
Para