Search the Community

Alright, if you could change the title to Inventory Management Proposal *Edited*, this is the contents (and thanks): The following is my proposal for how I believe the inventory management system in PE should work. My goal was to provide interesting depth while avoiding as much tedium as possible. I'm going to go over everything from the backpack, to equipment, to currency, and anything in between. Most of the system is automatic to stop 15 minute inventory rearrangements, while alot of detail, this is simply describing why and how it works. I'm a D&D pen and paper DM, naturally you'll see some references to that here - not that it's out of place since baldur's gate and other games are D&D based, but don't feel special for calling me on it. If you aren't interested in the details, I’ve put spoiler tags around the bulk of things and left the examples and TL;DR visible. First and foremost I propose a system that combines volume and mass. Mass being your typical carrying capacity that's limited by your player's strength. Mass, Treasure, and Currency: Volume, Tetris without the shuffle games: Types of Packs: Time or Room saving items: Equipment: How this system works: When not in combat, your backpack will always be opened automatically on going to the inventory screen, when in combat, your other containers like quiver, potion clip, and scroll case will be open since items in the pack take time to get to. You can also then drag any containers to the ground, effectively dropping all that gear if you need to lighten your load before combat. This should save time compared to dragging and dropping individual items, only to pick them up moments later. Example of how it looks outside combat with an empty adventurer's pack (forgive me, I only have MSpaint to work with right now... >_>): Now here's the same inventory, but where a sword has been placed in the bulky slot, freeing up more volume. And now the same inventory where there are 3 of that sword. Clicking once on the swords would take one, but double clicking would take all of them. Shift clicking would bring up the take X menu. If autosorting was turned off, instead the inventory area would show enough small slots to represent the space in the bag, but where the shape only allowed one bulky (4x8) item to fit. If there were a weapon or item too long to fit in the bag, it would be forced into a strap slot. TL;DR Advantages of this system: - Depth and tactics that combat has rarely been afforded in other games. ---- Dropping a pack or belt with gear on it can allow you to lighten your load before a fight without dropping tons of junk. 1 drop and 1 pickup. ---- Equipping whole quivers of 60 arrows instead of bundles of 20 allows one to quickly refit an archer. ---- Taking gear from an enemy's dropped pack, or a rogue pick-pocketing a strapped on item. ---- Leaving cursed or poisoned items out on dropped packs for enemies to take as a new kind of trap. ---- Enemies taking gear and using it for themselves from dropped packs. ---- Containers serve more purpose but aren't necessary to keep a pack from filling full of tiny items. - Less playing the shuffle game, but still keeping things more interesting than an infinite adventurer's backpack of storage. Tetris is optional for those who want it. - Gems and scrolls don't take the same space as a full plate armor - Currency and bartering are more interesting as there's less incentive to just instantly sell everything you pick up. - Interesting variations of containers lead to new roleplaying experience (like the pouches that create counterfeit money) Neutral points: - Slightly more realistic since volume is accounted for - Automatic transference of items is a little unrealistic. Disadvantages of this system: - Some items may be automatically transferred to another character's storage item without you wanting it there. (I'm assuming 95% of gems and the like are going to just need to be sold) - No carrying 10 full plate armors in one backpack (items needing bulky slots like full/half plate should be rarer anyways) - No carrying 100,000 coins on one character. - Extra containers needed to optimize inventory space and time to acquire found items (however, these containers should be easily found on others and not need to be bought - most mages or clerics would have a scroll box, many rogues would have coin purses or gem boxes, etc. We shouldn't have to find what random shop is carrying a gem bag for example) - An enemy trapping you in your own portable hole and your party being unable to free you in time or dying would kind of suck.

I'm sure this is an old and dead topic, but I couldn't find it with a forum search so here goes. How can currency be given a real value to players in PE? In every RPG I remember, I would systematicaly collect and mangage loot to optimize the money I could get selling it. But for the life of me I can't understand why, because in every game money has been a completely useless resource, meant for hoarding and nothing else. Sure, I could buy weapons and armor from merchants - weapons and armor little or no better than what I find dungeon-delving. Heck, maybe I could buy property - a single-payment investment that meant nothing considering my income. And then there was there were the bribes for info and selfless acts of sacrificing coin to help the needy - what sacrifice? "No trouble, maam. I'll just sell an enchanted necklace or something and make it back. There's likely one in that barrel behind you anyway, so if you'll excuse me..." You all get the point, and I'm probably preaching to the choir here on this one. Money in RPGs have, so far as I know, always been completely useless. So how can we change this? First I suppose is to make money less prolific, and not just make items/services more expensive; I doubt many would argue much that this wouldn't be a necessary step. Player income needs to be considerably less abundant. But how can money then be given a real value, made to be worth the effort of collecting? Are critical items like health kits and portal scrolls (or whatever PE will use) to be given exclusively to merchants? Will investments into things such as strongholds require more than a single-cost payment? How else can we make the decisions of spending or sacrificing coin carry more weight than the nil it has in past titles? Would it be better to remove bribes or sacrifices made in coin from PE entirely? What are your thoughts on this matter, and what might you suggest be implemented if you agree that this is an issue that should be addressed?