Tombot
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An idea I made up, an orb that is specifically designed to kill every monster in the room.

It may sound a bit too powerful for normal implementation, but if used strategically enough it may create some interesting situations.

Examples:

-could be used as a red herring to get the player stuck.

-Could be used as a way to solve rooms that are centred on Combative defence.

-Could be used to destroy the final monster in a room which may or may not be inaccessible as a means of opening a door which can only be opened by cleared rooms.

-Could be used for testing maps by clearing the room thereby allowing easier access.

And about fifty other things.

Searching here about such concepts has yielded no results.

So what does everybody think? Any concerns?

Edit: It could kill everybody but people.
Mud, Snakes and wubbas could be immune perhaps.

If immune to snakes it could help make snake puzzles.

If immune to wubbas it could help construct puzzles based around wubbas bieng held back with eyes or brains or similar.

Similair could be said about the awakened mud.

Just throwing ideas to the wind.

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How dare you call me a paranoid schizophrenic, I'll kill you. ALL OF YOU!!!

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[Last edited by Tombot at 12-30-2006 05:23 PM]

zex20913
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I don't really like the name, but I can deal with it.

Roachicide would be preferrable.

I started out against this idea...but I think that it's so powerful that it can't really be misused. And it could be fun to have around with a green sister door.

Then again, it "doesn't play well with others", because it basically says "DESTROY EVERYTHING NOW!!!"

I think I'm neutral towards this idea, because it is unique and can be used in interesting ways, though I wouldn't use it for the editor in place of solving a room, but it crosses the line more towards an action game than a puzzle one. I don't know if I'd be willing to give that up.

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MeckMeck GRE
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Tombot wrote:
Examples:

-could be used as a red herring to get the player stuck.

-Could be used as a way to solve rooms that are centred on Combative defence.

-Could be used to destroy the final monster in a room which may or may not be inaccessible as a means of opening a door which can only be opened by cleared rooms.

-Could be used for testing maps by clearing the room thereby allowing easier access.

--> There are many other things that can be used as a red hering
--> The final monster could be destroyed by a decoy/mimic/bombs
--> The same applies for the combative defense rooms
--> Testing rooms that way? Not the best idea... there are better ways to make testing comfortable

But all in all, the idea isn't that bad at all... but I don't think the puzzle potential is that high anyway.

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[Last edited by MeckMeck GRE at 12-30-2006 04:46 PM]

Tombot
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Ultimately it depends on what context the orb is used in.

One idea I have involves a room that can only be cleared when entering from a certain way.

The orb would be conveniant to help save space and remove unrequired hazards rather than have bombs lying all over the place.

But I would imagine this would be entirely situational.

____________________________
How dare you call me a paranoid schizophrenic, I'll kill you. ALL OF YOU!!!

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[Last edited by Tombot at 12-30-2006 06:41 PM]

Niccus
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Wonderquest has an element like this, namely Pandora's Box.
The difference is that if a monster reaches it, well, everything else still goes boom. Especially you.
The Box is used several times in the game, but if I remember correctly, they mostly play around how some characters in Wonderquest can't attack.

For the name... how about Orb of Clearing? (or something to that sense)

Tombot
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The name is based off a scroll in Nethack called the 'Scroll of genocide'.

Other names could include

'Orb of reset'

'Blatter orb'

'Orb of murder'

Any more suggestions folks?

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[Last edited by Tombot at 12-30-2006 07:56 PM]

TripleM
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I don't care much about the name, but I'll just mention that I really like this idea. I can see numerous possibilities for it, including the ones already mentioned..

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[Last edited by TripleM at 12-31-2006 02:06 AM]

Briareos
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Tombot wrote:
Any more suggestions folks?

My vote goes to "Nukular Orb"...

Or the even shorter "POW!"...

np: Superpitcher - Tell Me About It (Kompakt Total 6 (Disc 2))

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R.I.P. Robert Feldhoff (1962-2009)

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[Last edited by Briareos at 12-30-2006 11:51 PM]

Kwakstur
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Big Bang!
Boom Box!
Holocauster!
Holocoaster!
Omnicide!
Enemyicide!
Enemicide!
Enicide!
ROFLCOPTER!
icide!
DO NOT HIT!
Big Red Button!
Wubba Releaser!
Vengeance Orb!
ROFL Orb!
Exorcist!
Eau de Hitler!

Meh, I'm running out of ideas for names.

As for the idea itself . . . it's okay, but it seems like something that would be hard to put to good use. The ideas mentioned at the end of your first post (in the edit) are good ones, though. However, you could already do the same stuff with normal orbs!

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bdwing
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"Win The Game Button"


even though, really, you would only win the room


Edit: Or better yet, Deadly Orb of Death!

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[Last edited by bdwing at 12-31-2006 03:51 AM]

NiroZ
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TripleM wrote:
I don't care much about the name, but I'll just mentioned that I really like this idea. I can see numerous possibilities for it, including the ones already mentioned..

Indeed.
The most useful thing about this orb would be the ability to create a 'impossible horde', with the sole objective to make it across the room. This can be already done at the moment, but its very ineffective due to the fact that you have to somehow either make it unrequired(which for several reasons, including highscores, isn't very popular) or possible to find some way to come back and kill them, which will often force the architect to change the fundamentals of that room.

Syntax
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Or by using bombs...

Tombot
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The orb takes up less room.

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Alneyan
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Tombot wrote:
The orb takes up less room.

The orb takes up more overhead code. I guess the point is pretty much the same as what AlefBet wrote in the "Tunnel Receivers" thread.

NiroZ
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Syntax wrote:
Or by using bombs...

That is not always the most effective solution. First of all, all of the area where there could possibly be monsters would have to be within bombing range, which could ruin a puzzle which has a focus on efficiency. Then there is the fuse, which would this way tedious if you used alot of doors or trapdoors.

The only question is if this type of puzzle would be used very often, and not abused by new architects who will use it as a way to make sure that their rooms are solveable.

zex20913
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Kwakstur wrote:
Big Bang!
Boom Box!
Holocauster!
Holocoaster!
Omnicide!
Enemyicide!
Enemicide!
Enicide!
ROFLCOPTER!
icide!
DO NOT HIT!
Big Red Button!
Wubba Releaser!
Vengeance Orb!
ROFL Orb!
Exorcist!
Eau de Hitler!

My favorite is the Big Red Button.

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Tombot
Level: Delver
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How about:

'Sanitizer'

Edit:I have drawn a picture of what it could look like!



I assumed that when struck the orb could send bolts of yellow or red energy that destroys the things it is meant to destroy.

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[Last edited by Tombot at 12-31-2006 03:17 PM]

Maurog
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How about:

'RAY GUN'

It might slightly affect the chances of it ever being implemented, but hey, form follows function.

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Tombot
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Or 'Convenient plot device'.

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Doom
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MeckMeck GRE wrote:
--> There are many other things that can be used as a red hering
--> The final monster could be destroyed by a decoy/mimic/bombs
--> The same applies for the combative defense rooms
--> Testing rooms that way? Not the best idea... there are better ways to make testing comfortable

But all in all, the idea isn't that bad at all... but I don't think the puzzle potential is that high anyway.

This sums my thoughts of this suggestion very nicely. I find unrequired rooms perfectly reasonable myself and there's been a large number of other workarounds in this thread. In some special cases you could even use scripting to make the monsters not appear on later passes through the room.

Oh, and none of you has gotten the name right yet. It should obviously be called
Zeeky boogy doog!

[/post #2000]

Kwakstur
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If it was Zeeky Boogy Doog, Beethro would die, too.
The only survivors would be cockroaches. WORLD DOMINATION!!!

Now, if it made every roach say "blah", then maybe Beethro would live while the roaches don't. The only enemies who wouldn't be able to say blah are Wubbas, Brains, and Evil Eyes. Everything else has a mouth.
Well, the Wubbas might have mouths, but that's only if you believe in the Porous Theory.

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b0rsuk
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I've already seen them, they're black and have fuses attached.

As for selective genocide, it seems that someone already thought about it before:

http://forum.caravelgames.com/viewtopic.php?TopicID=4151&page=0#42189

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Tombot
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Ah yes, but it was not an ORB now was it?

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[Last edited by Tombot at 12-31-2006 08:28 PM]

Citrus
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I like the idea. It much easier than dropping bombs everywhere so that you clog up the room with them.

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tokyokid
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More name suggestions:

-Orb of Mothingness
-Destroyer

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[Last edited by tokyokid at 01-01-2007 12:40 AM : ahem, sorry]

Banjooie
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Are people still making George Bush jokes? :/

And actually, it /would/ be cool if there was a type of monster only killable by hitting an orb.

AtkinsSJ
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Vampires! And light switch orbs!

I actually quite like this idea, and Tombot, that's a pretty groovy picture.

Briareos
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AtkinsSJ wrote:
Vampires! And light switch orbs!

And then you meet Hellsing's Alucard, who doesn't have a problem with light - he just hates it...

Way to get yourself torn asunder, Mr. Budkin...

np: Markus Guentner - Altocomulus Opacus (Pop Ambient 2007)

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R.I.P. Robert Feldhoff (1962-2009)

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[Last edited by Briareos at 01-01-2007 12:07 PM]

Mattcrampy
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I had this idea for a vampire story where the townsfolk are suckered into supporting the ever-advancing anti-vampire market ("New Vampyre-B-Gone(r) garlic! Clinically proven to be more than 10% nore effective in warding vampires than the next leading competitor!") while the vampires themselves drummed up demand (pretending to be affected by the various charms for a time) and strong-armed the market; their only true weakness was guilt (which to my mind makes sense, as the horror of vampires is that they seem civilised but act unconsciousably, and if they're born from the victims of disturbing murders and go through their unlife with no sense of moral obligation, introducing a moral obligation like guilt would tear them apart).

The biggest problem with this suggestion is that DROD is a... how can I put this... tactile game. One keypress means one move, one move results in one effect, whether it's Beethro smiting a roach or blowing up a bomb. Beethro's moves always directly affect the game world, or else they affect something that effects the game world in a straightforward manner. This suggestion, to me, seems a little too removed from that to mesh well with the other elements. To me.

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BDR
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Mattcrampy wrote:
One keypress means one move, one move results in one effect, whether it's Beethro smiting a roach or blowing up a bomb. Beethro's moves always directly affect the game world, or else they affect something that effects the game world in a straightforward manner. This suggestion, to me, seems a little too removed from that to mesh well with the other elements. To me.

You'll have to clarify your sensations then. Many bombs in close proximity = many explosions; and this seems fairly straightforward (item that kills all monsters) and it certainly directly affects the game world (monsters removed, green gates drop, etc.). I'm not sure I see what you mean.

However, in order for this suggestion to work this particular item must appear different from the normal yellow at least (so people can tell it apart from the normal orbs, although they'll be disappearing in DROD 3.0..). Could make for some green sister gate possibilities as well (when DROD 3.0 comes out anyway..).