Dream Mission

[_____________Trosida]

When I first had this idea I put it in exactly the wrong area (patch threads). After about a hundred replies it was pointed out I should just repost the thing in the Game Mechanics section. Seems reasonable.

What I'm posting here is a repost of my original ideas in that thread. While I could repost the whole thread, I'll let the individual authors repost if they wish with their ideas. I hope they do because they're very good!

The original thread is here: http://forums.anarchy-online.com/sho...threadid=20069

Anyway on to the show a selection of mission styles suggested.
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(Names have been changed to make it followable)

Soldier: Ok guys we got exactly 1 hour and 30 minutes to do this mission!

Fixer: Why so short?

Soldier: It's a rescue operation, and the target dies in that time. The reward is much better than a normal mission, but we can't clear the location. We have to get in, get to target and get him out.

(Everyone into vehicles and speed buffed)

(At the site)

Nano Technician: Main room is empty except for one mob.

Fixer: Is that mob moving?

NT: Nope

Fixer: Everyone stay away from the door, that's an alarm probe. It won't attack, but if it aggros onto anyone it will call every mob in the mission, on this floor, to us. Also, the mission will be a failure.

Soldier: What do we do?

Fixer: We don't do anything. *I* go in cloaked and use a hacking tool on it. If I'm successful, the probe is neutralized, it won't alarm, for 2 minutes. Then you all destroy it in that time. It has a lot of hit points and high armor so make it good!

(Later)

Fixer: This door isn't locked, or trapped.

Engineer: Still broken, let me in there and see what's up... Using my analysis gadget on it, I can see it needs a nano pylon, and 2x nano paste.

Fixer: I'll grid back and get those, then warp me back.

Doctor: Mission timer shows were down to 30 minutes.

Soldier: Mobs on the move team we'll be cornered in this room.

(Fire fight ensues; Fixer grids out, is warped back by the time the fight is over.)

Engineer: I successfully combined the nano pylon and paste, required some pretty high trade skills (good exp though), and that should restore the door.

Fixer: Still locked let me crack it.

(Last room)

Soldier: Buff up guys the target is in that room. We have to get in, and keep the target from getting killed, then heal the target to full. Doc are you ready?

Doc: Ready.

Crat: I'm in first, I'll calm them. That should buy us some time.

(Team enters last room, most mobs are calmed some attack. Big fire fight, Doc heads to wounded target and begins casting heals (many hit points to heal)... massive team work ensues)

Soldier: Complete!

Others: Had to blaze through that mission, but *dang* the monetary reward was worth it as were the tokens and a nice item to boot!



This message brought to you by the United Omni-Clan-Tek Alliance for seriously kick butt missions!


__________________

Crat: Ok guys this is a delicate *INTERCEPTION* mission. We have a clan agent in Omni territory that is awaiting a contact. Having gotten his location from GPS we're going to go meet him.

Soldier: Then take him out.

Crat: Not quite, we're taking an agent who can use False-Alignment: Clan to temporary appear as a clanner. We have to infiltrate the hide out without tripping any alarms, that's your job Fixer, and neutralize any resistance.

Agent: Once we find the contact, no one but me will enter the chamber, I'll go in FA as a Clanner and initiate dialogue. Once I get the info, the contact will attempt to flee the mission and his guards will open up.

Soldier: We have to kill the guards and the contact. If the contact escapes the mission fails.

Fixer: We're under a tight time limit so we have to move fast and we won't clear the mission, but the reward is excellent.

Crat: Fixer and Engy you two know your jobs, bypass security probes and repair anything that we'll need to get through, doors, automated bridges, etc. the Fixer can grid out to get the parts you need, or barring that can move pretty darn fast and get them. Engy you can warp her back.

Soldier: Ok people let's move!



This message brought to you by Clan Omni-Tek, people for kick butt missions!


__________________

Enforcer- All right team listen up, this is an *EXTRACTION*.

Engy- What's that?

Enforcer- It's an outside mission into clan terroritory. We have an NPC agent that is currently FA: Clan, but that will drop. We have 2 hours to get in and get him out.

Fixer- What do we do?

Enforcer- We have to get to the location, the Engy will then use a GPS locator gadget to locate our 'clan' contact. Remember he will show up as an enemy if you TAB select. So be careful who you shoot.

Engy- Also clanners will most likely be present as this is a 25% zone. They won't know who the target is, because he's currently clan, but they will know who we are!

Doc- We'll meet heavy resistance, once in touch with the contact his FA- Clan will drop and will be open target for the enemies in the area. We have to keep him alive and escort him back to Omni-Tek. Fixer, your speed will be crucial you have to keep everyone buffed, if we grid out we'll leave him behind.

Enforcer- Engy try to get in first and find him with the locator, then find a quiet spot to warp the rest of us into the area. Fixer when he's found buff him immediately and say /npc follow he'll follow you. Get out of the zone ASAP and we'll cover you! Ready?

Everyone- READY!



This message brought to you by Tek Clan Omni a group dedicated to kick butt missions!


__________________

Everything to make Dream Team Missions exists in this game already. By way of example.


Mission has a room with an uncrossible chasm, but there is a bridge operations panel.

Engineer sees it is broken and uses and examines it to see that it needs a couple of trade skill items. Fixer goes and gets them, returns, engy applies the items (similar to radar repair and spiked food snacks). The bridge consol is active again but now someone needs to B&E it to gain access. This is done, now its open and a Fixer uses a hacking tool to access the computer and an engy uses a engineer bypass tool (these would have to be built and are one use only items) to activate the bridge.

Game now places a crossable bridge across the room.

Every one of those systems already exists in some form in this game. Every rule exists to do this exists in game, all you have to do is reapply the rules in different ways. Voila you've got interesting, team based, proffession based missions.


__________________

I hope everyone from the former thread will join me here so we can keep these ideas alive!

[_____________Yureiko]

was a great thread on the 14.0 forum.

Let's see if we can get more ideas going!

[_____________Yureiko]

Ok... how about...
Fixer: this is a GRID MISSION!

Soldier: What is that?

Fixer: Well, what I need is an engie, an NT, a doc, and two others to back us up. You and everyone in the grid mission will have the form of grid icons. However, your fighting potential will be translated into computer programs.

Soldier: but what do we do?

Fixer: well, this is a high tech, grid infiltration mission. Hence the need of the engie, NT and my self. We have to get into a grid node, which basically represents a system's presence on the grid, within the grid itself and extract some information. With everyone coded into bits of programs we can defend against ICE if necessary.
Engie: Ice?

Fixer: Intrusion Counter Electronics. Essentially a security program that destroys viruses, and ininvited guests. Like us.
We will likely have to fight one if it sees us.

Engie: Ah.

Fixer: Once we get in, which requires a little finesses on my part (cracks knuckles), then we will make our way to the terminal nexus point, which I will hack into and get the info. Which means you, Soldier and you NT will blast anything that sees us. Once I have the info, Engie, you set one of those EMP thingies you make...

Engie: You mean the ones that shut off the electronic currents?

Fixer: Yes. But use the ones that you can set off from a distance. Because once we get to the exit point you need to set it off. Got it?

Engie: Got it.

Fixer: Now, we don't have much time. Any questions?

********

I agree...
all of these things can be done with the system and your point about choosing a focus profession for missions is good too. And that was something FC said they'd do anyway.

Also, adding things like alarms to hack, cameras to deactivate, and other puzzles based on profession and/or skills would help the classes that are not as combat oriented.

How about a save the NPC mission? One that would require a doc to make sure the NPC makes it out alive?

How about capturing PCs and having to break out or be rescued?
(Capture would be a hold/teleport to a prison sort of thing.)

There are all sorts of things that could be done with the system already created to make this game more like the RPG it claims to be.

********

Agents in missions
"Great idea!!!! I do however see a couple flaws in it. first of all. This setup would REQUIRE an Eni, and a fixer." -- Turin


Well, Turin some ideas that would benifit agents would be a sneak in and get something/kill someone. etc. This would be where you would get experience for every person you snuck by that did not notice you. The moment some one notices you, you fail the mission. If it is a kill person mission, the person would be (like now) a named person and likely by himself.

This idea, unlike most of the ideas in the thread would include adding a system for the experience I mentioned but it's not hard.
It would simply be a flag that is toggled everytime you successfully sneak past a critter.

As for whose best at getting through alarms systems that would be the Fixer cause the B&E skill is green for fixers and blue green for agents. That does not, however, mean that an agent can not be substituted for fixers in many cases. They are both sneaky classes and the assume profession nano would allow an agent to fill almost anyone's shoes.

One could also have an agent mission requirement would be to use the false rpfession to solve the puzzle. I can't think of any specific ideas but it represents an agents ability to be taken for anything so maybe the agent would have to click on the named guy with a false prfession running. (He thinks you are an engie for example and will only give the info to an engie.)

So, there a lot of things that could be done to ****e up missions and many of them simply require adding new items like hackable turrets, camera, doors that require something to fix them, npcs that need to have a pill given to them, etc.

And, I hope FunCom reads this thread and realizes that this is something that a number of people want.

**************

quote:

Originally posted by Ebonezer Good
Some solid Ideas =)
Although I would like FC to devote its energy to class balance and some of the iffy game mechanics. After they are "fixed" perhaps we can see ideas like this implemented.


Ebonezer, while the ideas here may not actually "fix" a profession, for some professions, it will give them a lot more to do with what they have and give them a niche in player society.

For example, all the B&E suggestions, like hacking alarm systems, cameras, gun turrents, hacking computers for info and the like would give the Fixer class an importance. Especially if difficultly levels for b&e were made more appropriate to the levels (right now one of the devs says he can break into a diff 400 chest with only a skill of 150, which downplays the value of someone who gets the skill at green IP levels.)

Some of the supporting classes simply need in missions roles outside of Shoot! Shoot! Shoot! that fully utilize their experitse.

In this way, FC can make a lot of players happy, with little effort, while still working on balance issues.

And I know there's a lot of Fixers/Engies/Traders/Adventurers/Crats out there who are looking for more definition to their class and making missions that utilize their skills would do this.

So, come on! FunCom! Waddya say! How about focused missions???

[Nullifax]

BUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUMP!

[Nullifax]

dropping to far!

BUMP BUMP BUMP BUMP!

Come on folks, let's add some more ideas here.

[Luciana]

thats one long post! but the ideas are good...

oh well funcom doesent care anyhow

[Nullifax]

Originally posted by Lohr
thats one long post! but the ideas are good...

oh well funcom doesent care anyhow

Actually, Cosmik replied to the original post in the 14.0 forum. He said he was sending the ideas down to the developers. At least that's something. We really should try to come up with as much material as possible.

[engelstein]

I like it. As long as everyone still needs a doctor

[Nullifax]

An example of a Doctor mission I gave before would be something like this:

A virus has broken out in a med lab. You must go in, find the "virus data" and use it to create a cure (using probably chemistry and pharmatek skills). Administer the cure to all the scientists who currently have the virus.

In a team profession mission, you might have to heal a wounded prisoner or something like that.

Just some ideas. It would be great if everyone could add some of their own ideas to this thread. Please bump as well, we need more input.

[______KramerTheWeird]

bump.. and give us crats the ability to make missions like this

[_________onomastikon]

Posted similar stuff elsewhere, thanks PIPBOY for the hint, never checked here.

Still like the idea of having just sort of "civilian" NPCs in mission areas, maybe even lots of them. They appear when you "tab", so you cant just run around "tabbing" and slaughtering (unless that is your thing). Many missions should require that you protect these civilians or at least the chance of your getting a token goes down by 15% for each civilian killed and 5% for each one wounded (the latter is nullified if anyone heals them back up to full.) Some civilians may have vital information ("target's name is 'Simon Limpweed' and is in NE corner -- be careful, his weapon does poison damage!" or whatever), or at least helpful information.

Some civilians will aggro you if you aggro them, but most will run, and they offer very little EXP, but at least some (for those who want to do "bad" missions, or for those anarchists who simply don't care about mission objectives).

Make one NPC civilian held captive by Dust Brigaders. You need to rescue him. If an alarm sounds, there is an x% chance that he is executed. In the locked room where he is held, there is an x% chance that he is guarded, but also an 1-x% chance that he is just in prison and you can sneak him out bloodlessly. If he is guarded, you must make certain to charm, mez, or strongly aggro the guards so they attack YOU and not HIM -- and the Doc must be VERY busy to keep him alive.
This NPC is either very rich or is a powerful... X. His gratitude will give you an additional award (money .. or a special Gun if he is a soldier, a special Gadget if Engi / Fixer, a special form if he's a Crat, a special Crystal or disk if Nanotech, etc.)

Missions (individ or team) where you need a doc -- heal a dying man in x amount of time.

Let the chance of getting a mission token on rescue-based missions be causally dependent on the inverse of time left to complete the mission. (Say you have 1:30 to complete: If you rescue / save / etc within 30 minutes, 100% chance of token if no civilians downed, but only 10% chance if you complete it in 1:29.)

Broken Doors -- good idea!
Alarmed Areas (remember Deus Ex?) -- good idea!

I am not sure I like your suggestion that there MUST be a gridder and a warper in the team to complete the mission -- firstly because this is simply impossible at low levels, secondly because there must be at least one other way to complete the mission (in a more difficult fashion).

Make trapped chests and doors ACTUALLY HURT (a good chance of killing a non-tank outright and a small chance of killing an Atrox, not just a little medpack amount of damage).

The possibilities are limitless and they are all there, it is a shame they are not implemented by the creative minds who apparantly want to make a good game.

[Nullifax]

whoa! BUMPAGE! way too low.

[_______bunderscratch]

There are missions (quests) like that in Asheron Call. Nost so complex of cause, but essentially the same : Lockpiker open the door, after that one team goes in direction one and using artefact from other quest open the door and operate lever. Team 2 operate lever on the other floor simultaneously and team 3 goes forward to the target area, something like this.

[__________Banjosammy]

I would really love to see some of the improvements being discussed here actually making it into the game. It would make missions so much better and interesting.

Here's a few additional thoughts:

Missions could have several paths to completion, something similar as seen in Deus Ex.

Example: What to do with a locked door.

- A hidden key or door switch could be found.
- A security panel in a nearby room could be hacked.
- A NPC could give you a code that opens the door.
- It could be lockpicked.
- It could be forced open with a heavy weapon.
- The door mechanism could have to be repaired.
- Two or more switches could have to be activated at the same time.

[___________Evilspork]

It would be nice to have these types of missions, but are we gonna have to have long winded conversations like that for each one want to do?

[_____________Longyen]

I like this idea, so I'm going to bump it.

[___________Soliticus]

OK this is exactly the same thing that I was speaking about erlier this week in the OT OOC channel. The only exception is I was talking about it in terms of solo missions and static quests. I think that I am not alone in saying that I often feel that I'm only in the game doing the same repetative missions and not really accomplishing anything. One of the things that was told to those of us during the initial launch of the game was that the interaction of the PCs would effect the storyline. Even if only in small ways, and that there would be static as well as Dynamic mission. These ideas listed for new mission type would go towards helping to make people feel as though they are doing something to make that impact. What I propose though is that take the idea of individual classes being in different "clans" or "Departments" to the next level. Open a few of those empty rooms in some of the cities and make them "Department Offices" in these offices would be the mission terminals but instead of the standard missions being generated from them a class specific misssion one is generated. This mission type would be of urgent priority and require the specific class type to complete. Examples....

Agent - You and your Team must go to the hideout of a clan of a group of brutal clan terrorists that have kidnapped a high level OT board member. Because of the sensitive nature of the information this board member possess it is essential that you clear as many of the ramble as possible and search around until you find the data pieces of the extracted information scattered within the Mission area. Be quick about this because although they can hold him there indefinately we know they will soon be transfering the information they have already gained.

(objectives for completion find board member gather and assemble data from terminals requiring b&e or comp skill x pieces of information in area)


Doc - Due to a recent rash of Omni attacks into the Neutral territories and the desire of our clan fathers to recruit more of them into our fold we have decided to send a mission of mercy to the neutral territories. It seems that a group of OT marauding soilders has taken up residence in 4 holes and there is a neutral family still scattered inside that same old mine. We are requesting that you and your team find and heal them and give them one of these goodwill packets. We know that at least 2 of the family members have been cornered but are currently out of reach of the Omni soldier in their area. It is advised you have someone with the mechanical skill to make it to them or failing that to be able to hack through their security to rescue them.


(objective heal the NPCs, find ones hidden (using new perception) or b & e through tough doors or using mechanical skill open barrier, give all found Neutrals goodwill pacet.)


Engineer - It seems that seems to a recent high level covert opperation by those dastardly clan fiends we have a small problem at our Ion Cannons in Clon****. Inside of our base there it seems that the clanners have infiltrated a special team and are even now planning to totally disable those cannons and leave us wide open for assault. We need a crack team of combat engineers to go in and find the needed parts to reassemble the Ion Cannon Targeting Module that is now scattered withing the facility. Beware though that the clan special opperatives team is still present in that same building, but even more importantly it will only be a matter of hours before we expect the full attack if the Targeting Module remains offline and not then put back into place.

(objective find parts to module and assemble, take parts to "boss room" to insert into ion cannon control room)


On any missions like these the killing of all enemy is a secondary objective to the more important one stated as a major objective. The accomplishment of these type missions could have higher rewards and these would all be on stricter requirement for time and such. Additionally these type missions could be tracked for storyline purposes and be used for game influence. Just some thought I suppose.