CNR gathering

Pen N Popper · 07-13-08, 04:52 AM

In playing a dedicated CNR grinder for the first time, many thoughts come to mind for possible changes for the MMO. I thought I'd list a few here to see if others might have additional ones.

In general I am a fan of rewarding behavior you want to see rather than being punitive against behavior you don't like. To this end, if travelling in a balanced party is the behavior you like make the CNR spawn have more resources (especially since the party might want to actually split the result). This is the opposite of what has happened in NWN Layo where the areas that were often solo'ed have exploded in difficulty as punishment.
Don't badmouth CNR soloers; CNR is popular for a reason. Let them get to at least one spawn so they can make progress. CNR for many is something to do when there's no one else around.
Make CNR areas scale with depth. There are many good examples of this happening in the current NWN version with my favorite being oak on west server: Of the trees that spawn, one is soloable at a low level while the others spawn harder creatures. A group could get all the oak but a single gatherer could still get one. That to me seems like a very good model for encouraging behavior you want while not discouraging the rest.
Make gathering a skill in itself. A veteran berry picker would know all the best spots.
No more breaking tools! (Had to put that one in there for its sheer annoyingness in NWN.)
Consider making spawns be gatherable by everyone. By that I mean that if four people show up to pick aloe, let all four of them get it. This seems especially important in a more populated world where we'll surely encounter the run-ahead-of-the-group-that's-already-there people more often.
Mix up spawn locations in an area. Not sure if there's truly much value in this or not.
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