Client Scripting

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I'm not surprised that the previous thread was closed, it was getting pretty inflammatory. I would like to hear some more feedback about the client scripting.

I've always been drawn to the ability to customize my gaming experience through client actions, variables, and triggers. I'm a pretty heavy user of client scripts, though I don't consider myself to be reliant or handicapped by them.

I believe that more games should support some sort of scripting ability. Someone mentioned the Civ games, those would be a prime candidate. I enjoy the early parts of the game, but after you've expanded through the first continent or two then the game turns start to take forever as you try to micromanage 20+ cities. Later versions did support some sort of customization through the use of those governors that try to manage the build queue, but I'd be happier with more powerful options to set goals and conditions.

The Baldur's Gate games are another that come to mind that allowed scripting. The character actions could be selected from lists (ranged spellcaster, ranged archer, melee warrior, etc). Those scripts could be modified to do specific things.

If anyone's played the X series of space empire games, X3 allows for simply huge customization through scripts.

I'd be happier to see WoW or City of Heroes add some ability to custom automate things. I'm normally playing PvE, but having to select each monster, click to attack, click to attack, click to attack ... I guess that's why they call it farming. It's too bad they can't find a way to separate out the fun parts of the MMO games and cut back on the repetitive parts.

I'd like to also mention Silkroad Online. I don't play it currently, it has similar problems to the other MMO's I've played, but it has some unique and interesting features that make it worth trying out as a free MMO.

Back to the point, it always annoys me when playing a game (any type) if I'm clicking through the same options over and over and... over. I've got a damn computer here, which is extremely capable of handling repetitive tasks, but few games are designed to make those repetitive tasks less frustrating.

Charles

[Elsie]

I love client scripting, I remember the days of pre-client, telnet only mudding and not fondly, pkduals on Muds I've used in the past have come down to who can read spam and type the fastest on many occasions, rather than luck, knowledge of and skill at the game.

I welcome the use of scripts for mudding, scripts rather than detract from a mud, in my opinion reduce the repetativeness of much of mudding and add an extra dimension of skill and flexibility to the game, that of creating and maintaining good scripts.

I did write a long bit from here on about bad scripts I personally hate, suggestions for a database of common script triggers, how much I get annoyed by botters, possible explainations as to why lowbies in a group may get bored and let their attention wander, how it is sometimes hard to get a group on a roll to stop so you can take a smoke/comfort break etc. but I re-read it and it was a long rambling witter that wasn't that interesting ... have fun all

[*juggleblood*]

You can hardly blame people for botting a little if you're in a really boring xp group and your only job is to assist.

The best you can do as leader to keep people on their toes is push the group to its limit and take risks. If people realize that they will die if they don't help with debuffs and watch tank hps, they'll play more actively. If you regen to full, kill a few long chop mobs and then regen again, you're doomed to have people go into autobot mode.

What really sucks is when you do push the group forward because you see that player x has 300+ mana, but player x didn't tell you that they were going afk and a cf ensues. These are the folks who are going to start getting pkilled.