My Plan to revive Detectives... The Crime File Booster

[Ned888]

Crime Files ('Detective Booster') - PvM ONLY​

Crime File is basically a BOD.
- System is already in place. Use 'Clues' instead of pieces of armor/weapons/etc.
- Clues are collected from the initial crime scene and may lead to other places depending on level of Crime Log (described below).
- Guard will only give you a Crime File based on your level of Forensic Evaluation.
- You can only receive one crime file per 36 hours and you may not have more than a single file per character open at any given time.

Crime 'Level' works like treasure map but uses Forensic Evaluation instead of Cartography.
- Forensic Evaluation used on the Crime File would allow the first idividual 'clue' requirement to appear.
- Additional clues are revealed based on secondary skills outlined below.
- Works like a coordinate but instead is a clue that needs to be investigated at a specific location and requires a specific skill (Go to coordinates; use Arms Lore to investigate the murder weapon.).
- More complex Crime Files (more clues/skills required) are offered to higher level Detectives (level 1-7 like treasure maps).

Clues are random in skill requirement and level (+/- 2 levels of the Crime File).
- Most coordinates would be in towns/cities.
- Once a clue is found a 'Clue Note' is generated by the skill used that can be dropped into the Crime File (Just like if you crafted a sword and dropped it into a BOD).
- Anyone can generate these tickets for the Crime Log IF they have used a sufficient level of Forensic Evaluation on the Crime File AND they have the sufficient skill in the secondary skill to generate the 'Clue'.
- Crime File can be evaluated in trade window or on the ground (locked if in a residence).

Solving the Crime.
- Once all clues are collected a final Forensic Evaluation check is required on the Crime File to solve it.
- This can be modified by the Tactics skill used as Deductive Reasoning.
- Solved Crime Files lead to a final location where the criminal (and potentially his henchmen) are located.
- Criminal would need to be defeated and his head brought back to the city guard with the Crime File.
- Reward would be whatever was looted during the course of the investigation and also a 'reward' received from the guard on turn in (this final would be the most valuable).
- A trophy (some sort of signature item or the like) could be a reward for doing the highest level Crime Files.

Example of Play:

Stewie Long -
Expert Forensic Evaluation
Master Tactics
Expert Anatomy
Journeyman Arms lore
Master Fencing

Philbo Bagginz -
Apprentice Forensic Evaluation
Expert Tactics
Expert Evaluate Intelligence
Journeyman Anatomy
Expert Wrestling

Johnny Broadsword -
Expert Forensic Evaluation
Apprentice Spirit Speak
Expert Evaluate Intelligence
Journeyman Tactics
Expert Swordsmanship

Stewie Long the intrepid Detective goes to the City Guard in Britain and requests a Crime file to work on. He gets a Level 3 file! Good stuff! It requires 3 Clues to be tracked down and solved in order to collect the reward. First things first though, he has to analyze the file!

NOTE: To reveal the first clue requires a successful Forensic Evaluation check. No skills modify this initial check as you don't know the details of the crime yet.

He uses his Forensic Evaluation skill on the File Book and fails.... Crap, he's got to get help. He gets on ICQ and calls in two of his buddies, Philbo Bagginz the Magic Investigator and Johnny Broadsword the Sampire Gumshoe. Philbo tries to use his FE in the Trade window, but his skill is kind of low for this Crime File and he fails as well. Johnny gives it a go and he succeeds! The first clue is revealed. The coordinates are in Minoc and it's going to be a body.... He and Stewie wring their hands with glee while Philbo looks a bit excited.

NOTE: The result of the Forensic Evaluation success revealed the first clue. A Level 2 Body, which requires either a successful Anatomy or Spirit Speak, checks to solve. They all have a chance to solve the clue, which will provide them with their next set of coordinates and clue type.

Three amigos mount up and ride to Minoc. They track the coordinates to the Gypsy camp on the outskirts of town and all three get down to checking the site for clues.

NOTE: A Clue could be most any item and would be identifiable by mousing over it. Item should read 'a clue' or 'item of interest' in the description.

They find a pool of blood and all three get to work. Stewie checks it with his Anatomy skill and comes up negative again! When will he get a break in this case?!?! Philbo checks it with his Anatomy skill as well, but once again, he's on the low side, and he also fails to find a clue. It falls to Johnny once again, but he uses his mystical ability to speak with spirits and communes with what's left of the body. Despite his low level of ability, he succeeds again! The Sampire is on a roll! He looks in his backpack and finds that his skill has generated a Clue that he hands over to Stewie to add to the book. The Clue gives the next coordinates and mentions a weapon of some sort.... The coordinates are for Britain! Once more into the breach!

NOTE: The successful Spirit Speak check created a 'clue' on a scroll which is dragged and dropped onto the Crime File. This file would then reveal the next step in the investigation, again at random. This time it is a level 3 weapon clue, so it would require Arms Lore or weapon skill specific to the type of weapon found.

Once in Britain, they track down the clue coordinates to a bar on the east side and find a Mace as the clue, sitting on a table in the corner. Everyone looks worried, because no one is particularly good with detecting hidden clues and Stewie has not been doing so well with his deductions today. Stewie rolls up his sleeves and begins to check the weapon with his Arms Lore. He made it and lucky for him and the rest of the group! This reveals the final clue in the Crime File... A note! The note is in Trinsic and the coordinates are set! The end of their hunt is near!

NOTE: Stewie got lucky this time. If he had failed then the group would have been stumped, but not out of the game yet! They would need to find another party who had sufficient Forensic Evaluation and either sufficient Detect Hidden or Arms Lore to review the Crime File and then come to the site and check the clue. They would then have to hand over the clue generated so it could be added to the file. This freelance investigator will probably demand either a cut of the reward or payment on the spot.... Better to do it yourself! The final clue that was revealed 'A level 3 Note' requires Detect Hidden or Evaluate Intelligence to solve.

Once in Trinsic they track down the note and Philbo and Johnny get to work, since they both have Evaluate Intelligence. It's Philbo's time to shine and he discovers the last clue. Just as he does this a brigand walks through the door and attacks! No guards will be coming to help with this so the team has to fend for themselves. They dispatch the red and collect up the gold and whatever else they can find. Philbo gives the clue over to Stewie and it's added to the book. Now comes the big reveal! The three detectives put their heads together and review the crime file. Philbo goes first, and once again, fails to come up with anything. Philbo is the worst of the bunch for Forensic Evaluation and also fails. Johnny come through again and is successful in determining the final location of the criminal mastermind. This being a level 3 Crime File, they all know that this will be a villain with some henchmen to deal with, but hopefully nothing they can't handle. They note the coordinates and get a move on. It's a spot out in the woods by Yew.

NOTE: Random encounters should spawn sometimes at the crime scenes. There should be a way to make the mobs invisible to the guards, so there is no rescue via Guard Whacking. The final check to 'solve' is done after the final clue is added and it is a Forensic Evaluation Check, modified by the tactics skill of the detective (analyzing the tactics of the criminal). Tactics is not necessary, but it helps....

Once they reach the spot in the woods where the coordinates lead, they attempt to draw out the villains by 'flaunting the evidence' which should rile the bad guy up enough to get him out in the open. It works and they are attacked by Brigands and a mage, who turns out to be the criminal. After a tough fight and a trip or two to the wandering healer down by the highway, they finally kill the mage and his cronies and collect his head along with their equipment and gold. Back to Britain for the turn in and the reward. They give over the head and crime file with the evidence they collected in it and receive a chest with gold and items of a value equivalent to the effort. They trio split up their loot and laugh about the adventure they have just had. They are already looking forward to another chance to work on a case together.

NOTE: Once the final coordinates are reached, the holder of the crime file would ‘use it’ with a double click to draw out the villain and his henchmen.

Clue Examples and the skills required to access them:

Medical (Body, Blood Stain, Bones, Entrails, etc.) Spirit Speak, Anatomy
Weapon (Any weapon) Arms Lore, Detect Hidden
Snitch/Witness (NPC Witness) Evaluate Intelligence, Anatomy
Note/Scrawl (Scroll, book, scrap of paper) Evaluate Intelligence, Detect Hidden
Site/Location (Clue revealed with a Detect Hidden Check) Random depending on success of Detect Hidden Check
Poison (Food, drink, weapon) Taste ID, Anatomy
Grave (Grave, urn, tombstone) Spirit Speak, Detect Hidden
Animal (Animal of some sort) Animal Lore, Herding

Note: Site/Location refers to a place that must be searched. A Grave can be any container in any location that may hold the (desiccated) earthly remains of an individual. Medical is more… fresh than Grave. Animal Clues are witnesses or tools to a crime, like a talking parrot or an attack dog.

NOTE: YES!!! I included Herding!!!

 

[puzzleagent]

Hmm

Some interesting ideas here

 

[Shinobi]

This is good and all, and you definitely put a lot of thought into it, but if a single detective is maxed out in all the detective skills, then he could do it all single handedly. This would turn the big adventure into a "go click on this, this, and this" operation, aside from the fight at the end. And considering the 36 hour wait (which I know isn't set in stone yet), this would hardly be an exciting upgrade.

I think you're on the right track for PvM detectives but, considering coordinates can be punched into UOAM, this definitely needs more work.

 

[puzzleagent]

I think you're on the right track for PvM detectives

I agree.
And I really would like to hear more brainstorming on this.

I liked your idea about detectives that you posted before.
And do you have any ideas for PvM detectives?

 

[Ned888]

This is good and all, and you definitely put a lot of thought into it, but if a single detective is maxed out in all the detective skills, then he could do it all single handedly. This would turn the big adventure into a "go click on this, this, and this" operation, aside from the fight at the end. And considering the 36 hour wait (which I know isn't set in stone yet), this would hardly be an exciting upgrade.

I think you're on the right track for PvM detectives but, considering coordinates can be punched into UOAM, this definitely needs more work.

It's definitely not perfect, that's for sure, so I appreciate the input! I'm not certain that my model would allow a Detective to max out on all the skills. In my initial set up there are total of 10 skills that can be used to generate a success, and each one only affects a certain number of clues per the below:

Forensic Evaluation - Mandatory
Spirit Speak - 2
Anatomy - 3
Arms Lore - 1
Evaluate Intelligence - 2
Detect Hidden - 4
Taste ID - 1
Animal Lore - 1
Herding - 1
Tactics - Assist with Solve

Some will work where others will fail, but the key is that if you fail, then you can have another character pick up where you left off. I do not think that you should be able to spam a skill until you get a success. One fail and you need to level up the skill significantly (maybe 5-10 points) or get someone else to try. This is a departure from the current system of skill use and I don't know how feasible it is, but it would make things more challenging.

As far as a template goes, you can certainly stack the deck to get the most bang for your buck (Eval Int/Detect Hidden/Anatomy), but if you pull in a weapons skill with tactics, maybe healing/magery/chiv or whatever, you start filling up fast. You would also need some defensive/offensive capability, because once you found a clue, there is the possibility of a random henchman spawn.

As a side note, I would like to see the clue show up on the corpse of the spawned mob instead of in the detectives backpack in this instance. That would make the conflict mandatory.

I definitely understand that I limited the scope of the proposition, but I wanted to try and make this easily implemented using existing code and with very limited graphics work. I'm a big proponent of using what you have instead of constantly trying to make some sort of addition that is more about "wow factor" than substance.

So again, let me know what ideas or changes you propose and I'll update the OP with the suggestions.

 

[Zyon Rockler]

I like the idea. It gives you a good feeling of a system that could be established and be just as good as Treasure Hunting.

I think they should have some type of Detective House where you would have book cases, where you might have stories of detectives and their adventures that would mimic real life scenerios in the game. So, a young detective could read and learn.

An NPC that would sell items that a detective might use or even wear. I'm just trying to get a better visual.

In my opinion, when I worked with Quests, I found that some people could work off a single clue, where they would be able to come up with a single list in their mind of 20 possibilities and then begin to eliminate those possibilities. In other cases, I found people would come back and ask for more clues.

So, rewriting the whole Quest was necessary, in some cases but I found that the best system was to add clues. So, if a person came back on any step, another clue would be given. So, each step was given a number of clues but there were still problems with some people that even if there were a Giant Red X beneath them, they were not able to find it unless you said, "Look Down".

So, another possibility, was adding them into a Party Chat, where we would actually communicate between each other and track their progress and listen to what they were saying. There were some problems where someone would see a COS Member, they could easily target it as the next step or at least one of the following steps.

So, what i'm saying is, is that each person approaches, there might be people who only need one clue but then there should be the possibility for several clues and then some type of reward for the higher level who only needed one clue but then the lower level would still receive a reward.

So, rather than doing a certain level, like a level 6 or 7, it would depend more on their progress or on how many clues they needed.

I don't really understand the skill grouping or how you might expand on the idea but I think you could make a solid Quest System for Detectives that might even be more fun than Treasure Hunts.

I'm kind of not understanding how the BoD System would work at gathering clues. It sounds like it might be easier to create some type of Web or Tree that would somehow link you to another item. Kind of like Rock, Paper, Scissors and then depending on the outcome what the next item would be. So, i'm not really getting the skill, item part.

It sounds like it would work. I'm not sure if it's the best way to go, in my opinion because I get this image where somebody logs onto another account and pulls another character or something like that. It just doesn't seem right. So, off the top of my head I think you would need something else to run along side some kind of item that you retrieve, possibly the item would have a timer. I don't know but I like the idea.

 

[Zyon Rockler]

and one more thing that I thought of, the underlined problem.

When you do for example: Shard Events like the EM Events, you can see how unbalanced they are. For example: If one of the clues is given that is easy to one person but impossible for another, it takes away from the Event.

You have to find a way to keep everyone at the same level or you have the same people who are always going to get the Event Items while others will be completely lost.

So, this system kind of reflects on that too, at least one that is based on clues.

 

[Grand Jungbong]

I like my idea better GM detective finds murdered body (not faction fight or duel) Is successful in evaluating who commited the murder and a "warrant" is placed in the backpack of detective, Detective then can find accused murderer, doubleclick warrant and target murderer (few tiles away?) Murderer is then sent to UO jail for say a couple hours? hehe and detective is given a cash reward

 

[GalenKnighthawke]

Interesting.

-Galen's player

 

[GalenKnighthawke]

Interesting.

-Galen's player

Some quick thoughts regarding some potential pitfalls in this system, and a quick alternative I thought of.

In the propsoed system, how many combinations could there possibly be so as to not allow repetition of crimes in very short order? Especially given UO players' tendency to want to grind things while complaining that everything is a grind?

Also it seems quite elaborate.

A potentially less elaborate system is to have the rough equivalent of a treasure hunt where it takes 3 steps to get to the equivalent of the chest, each step requiring a Froensic Eval check; having more than one person in part with the Forensic Eval skill gets you a bonus in percentage chance of reaching the next stage. Each stage can be repeated once every 12 hours or so. (So if you fail, come back in 12 hours or more and try again.)

The "clue" would be an instanced object, such as a mace or corpse (from your example). Succesfully solving the clue would reveal a clue, in the form of a book or a map, to another location.

At location 3, you "solve" the clue and are teleported to an instanced "hideout," where the fight occurs, in t-map style. Guardian monsters, all human, so not Repond Slayer but in human form, and very hard, and when they are all dead a chest can open with loot and an object which one turns in to an NPC for a reward and "Detective Loyalty" points that could lead to a title.

Sure you could solo it I guess, but it'd go a lot better with friends.

The system uses the quest engine, quest starts with an NPC (every city should have a Captain of the Guard) or with finding an object in the woods (like the Honesty virtue).

I'd also like it if the Justice Virtue would be awarded for slaying the guardian monsters at the hideout.

Anyway....This isn't as well thought out as yours, so I'll just leave it there.

-Galen's player

 

[thefixor]

An easy way to start this soon is to have "skeleton pouchs" that now spawn on ant lions appear in designated areas. These could only be opened once the villian has been identified, with forensics, and the existing loot (medium level maps, reagents etc) would be given.
In addition a binding rope (as exists with pirates) is there or would appear, which would be used to transport the criminal to Brit Prison for reward, and a gain in justice.
It would be simple if there is sufficient interest to add white ropes, warrants, clues etc that may lead to much more intrigue down the line.