PW Superserver

[Legacy_KlatchainCoffee]

               My main concern here is that new players will have somewhere to go once they hit that 'Multiplayer' button.
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_Pascal Brax]

               

Lightfoot8 wrote...

I just wonder it it is possiable to hak a server to add a function to Start a new game at the server log in point, as opposed to the  taking the current character logged into the game into the new server.  if it could be done without client haks most opposition to the Idea would melt away.    

Sounds like a good question for V-man

It's actually possible to "force" all NWN players to download a module, launch a multiplayer game with this module and when they login, the module launch an on_enter script that teleport the player to a master/lobby server with portals.

the points is, I don't see anybody willing to maintain a server with 260 portals for 260 server and other PW admins don't see the point to guide their own players to a lobby server that shows them 259 other new server where to play.

So, actually, we have 3 sites: http://neverun.com/nwnserverlist/ and http://www.nwnlist.com and http://www.iscandar.ch that could do almost the same thing.
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_Lightfoot8]

               

Pascal Brax wrote...

Lightfoot8 wrote...

I just wonder it it is possiable to hak a server to add a function to Start a new game at the server log in point, as opposed to the taking the current character logged into the game into the new server. if it could be done without client haks most opposition to the Idea would melt away.

Sounds like a good question for V-man

It's actually possible to "force" all NWN players to download a module, launch a multiplayer game with this module and when they login, the module launch an on_enter script that teleport the player to a master/lobby server with portals.

...

The point is that there is no character change.   If the Porthole could start the New Game at the Log In Point.   Meaning it would force the player to either create a new character or Load one from the vault that is local to the new server.  

So it your answer Yes that can be done,   Or no it can  not be done?  

As far as someone maintaining the server.   There are people who would do it.  
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_henesua]

               I think the problem is that many are fixated on this proposal as a solution to Gamespy's dropping the ball. The PW Superserver project will not succeed at that goal.

The PW Superserver however taken on its own terms is an amazing idea, and should be taken seriously. This could be a beautiful project, more satisfying for players than the standard faire, and an interesting challenge for the community to take on.

If anyone is interested in stepping forward to participate in this initiative, please make yourselves known. I am more than willing to assist with my expertise in building a multiplayer module (I am nearing completeion of my second PW), and in sharing my expertise with organizing custom content in a comprehensive package that is easier to build with than the standard packages most people work with like CEP. If we spent some time together planning, I would be able to generate a foundation CC package and resources for all to use. AND this would be shared across multiple modules which although linked could develop independently of one another.

In addition I already have a nearly complete PW, that could serve as a foundation for all modules participating in this endeavor.

Please step forward if you are interested. I would like to discuss this. I take this possibility seriously, and am willing to recycle Arnheim into something more D&D generic that we could all use.
               
               

               

                     Modifié par henesua, 03 février 2013 - 02:26 .
                     
                  

            

[Legacy_Borrie BoBaka]

               

Pascal Brax wrote...
the points is, I don't see anybody willing to maintain a server with 260 portals for 260 server and other PW admins don't see the point to guide their own players to a lobby server that shows them 259 other new server where to play.

I think we've established some pre-concieved notion that we must try to hog all the players we have, when there is a sparse amount of them available playing NWN. In this day in age a lot of players like to mix things up or they get quickly burned out. The most direct result we'd see is a drop in players at any random time but also see more players start to even out across a larger sample size of servers. 

This is also an attempt to try and increase visibility and accessibility to servers that players might enjoy but don't have the opportunity to discover. 

This is not about servers trying to steal players but trying to unify the NWN community more, as we won't be able to continue a free and creative existence if we live in a bunch of cliques. It's an attempt at helping every talent, new or old, to find players on a more unified platform. 

This may also help brand new players get in and get hooked as we all have, further increasing the health of the NWN Playerbase.

The sites are great, but they're just billboards. The module idea allows interactivity to a greater degree among players. And 260 portals isn't hard, many modules are huge compared to that.

But then again all of this is moot if we can't get the game to accept new connections via a portal. Consistency of character won't really help this situation at all.
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_henesua]

               

Borrie BoBaka wrote...
The module idea allows interactivity to a greater degree among players. And 260 portals isn't hard, many modules are huge compared to that.

We don't need an all inclusive solution like that. I think we should discard the idea of a PW Superserver as a game lobby. Baeleos has already done incredible work in this direction.

A PW Superserver however if started from scratch in my view would be an initiative for people to work together using a common set of HAKs and basic game mechanics like skills and feats and spells. From this foundation each server could build itself independently and link up with the Superserver PW. Each member of this initiative would have access to a pool of players greater than a single server could attract alone.
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_Borrie BoBaka]

               So let me see if I can comprehend this, as I believe I've gotten a bit lost.

What is being proposed is, a large amount of PWs linked together under a common set of content and rulesets, each in their own little "realm", that players can move in between?
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_henesua]

               Thats the way I interpret PW Superserver. Its an exciting possibility to me.

[edit]
But each PW would not need to be huge.

You could simply host an Adventure Inn at a cross roads between servers if you wanted for example.
               
               

               

                     Modifié par henesua, 03 février 2013 - 02:48 .
                     
                  

            

[Legacy_KlatchainCoffee]

               

henesua wrote...

If anyone is interested in stepping forward to participate in this initiative, please make yourselves known.

I was actually chatting to Rolo about this a few months back. '> I'm still trying to finish building my sea journey campaign and see it become a weekly gathering for those who have an itch for immersive RP and for discovering a new continent. HOWEVER I am very keen on this 'Tavern between worlds' (or whichever shape it might take) idea, so I'd be willing to assist in some shape or form.

I have to note that three proposals manifested itself in this thread now:

1) A pulling together of all availiable resources into one giant PW (found to be mostly unteneble as diversity is what most world creators crave).

2) 'Tavern between worlds' - a server between servers where various PWs opt in to participate and players can mingle and travel between different universes. IG it might take the form of a 'dreamworld' - if people want to stay in character and travel differnt worlds in their dreams or Unimatrix Zero of the Brog  in ST.

I agree that there should be less fear of losing players, often exposure to what's out there makes you more appreciative of you 'home server'. And yes, it might help burnout.

Basically I thought this should be done way before the Gamespy thing happened. 


* It would be an opt-in thing by all thsoe wishing to take part and will bring people together in a more creative way.


3) Something whose sole purpose is to replace the function of making every server ran visible from within NWN that Gamespy used to perform, possibly even outdoing it and brininging a new breath of life into NWN in terms of being more friendly and less confusing to the new players.

I wish was more able to extrapolate the viability of fixing the now virtually defunct 'multiplayer' button for any potentially enthusiastic noob that just bought the game, but I honestly believe we should try to at least attempt this.

With my current project I have hopes of attracting a number of people who are entirely new to NWN or even to RP and while loss of Gamespy functionality is not disasterous to such a hand-picked format, I do believe that building a fix will keep the game open to new players and will impact on the future of NWN as a creative medium as a whole.

I think the real question is how hard would this be to achieve and maintain. If it is altogether untenable it might be better to focus efforts elsewhere. If that is not the case, it might well be worth a try.

* This would automatically pick up any server ran in NWN, would have no other function than making all the servers visible again to those trying to log into Multiplayer. There is some scope for helpful information exchange, but otherwise the above would be its only purpose.
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_henesua]

               Again to be clear. I think the world lobby server as a replacement for gamespy is a waste of time. We're going to have some replacements for gamespy soon. The community is producing some very nice replacements.

The advantage of a PW Superserver in my view is to make it easier for multiple PWs to share players.

What we need is a Custom Content replacement of CEP which is now out of date and unsupported.
AND we need a base module that all participants can build from.

Individual PWs could decide how the links between them work.
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_KlatchainCoffee]

               I think Henesua is really onto something there and (for all my worry over nwn noobs never finding a single server to play on) it does deserve serious consideration.

Especially if this means not only building a 'place between servers' for people to hang out at, but is it means re-organising and making user friendly a collection of the various custom content and features accumulated over the years. Something that would not just place lots of cool stuff at PW-creaters' fingertips but make all these PWs compatible with eachother.

I find the potential magnitude of this slightly mindboggling, but the idea itself is absolutely amazing.
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_KlatchainCoffee]

               Yeah, you read my mind regarding CEP, though I was hesitant to mention it remembering the amount of 'shouting' that happened last time someone suggested something similar. I have tons of respect for all CC creators and compilers, as I constantly end up appreciating the results of their efforts as a builder, I just seriously wish people found it less difficult to cooperate in certain instances. I'm not really sure what I can personally do to help this other than saying 'Guys, wouldn't it be great if...?'


I'll keep my mind open about the 'lobby server' idea until after I see the possible replacements, since I suspect that they will be aimed solely at the established nwn users. It would be a pleasant surprise  in case I am wrong on this.
               
               

               

                     Modifié par KlatchainCoffee, 03 février 2013 - 03:11 .
                     
                  

            

[Legacy_Borrie BoBaka]

               While my current PW Contrition wouldn't be able to fit into this, and I'm not abandoning it, I wouldn't be able to put my pre-existing work into this project.

*However*, if we're all making brand new Persistent Worlds into a major Multiverse then that would be something truly to be interested in. I've long played with the idea of creating a Fantasy-based Persistent World, but the attempt seems futile as 1) I have my main PW, 2) There's a lot of other Fantasy based Persistent Worlds with established Playerbases, 3) Difficult to develop on it full scale with my main PW.

Essentially from what I can comprehend, this would be a way to create a 'shard' of a greater PW with my own setting (so long as it can still exist in the overall logistics of every other server) and share in a magnitude of players without having to do any extra recruitment, or pay 24/7 attention to it to make sure it remains alive...

Considering I've wanted an auxiliary PW this may be the best opportunity to make it. I'm still trying to wrap my mind around what everyone is converging on so I'm on the same page, but if it's going in the direction I think it is, I'd definitely be interested in contributing.

Several questions is, how would we handle balancing, custom scripts and systems, and potential SQL implementation?
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_henesua]

               My proposal in a functional sense is this:

We create a PW Consortium.
All members of the consortium will share the same base module to build from, and the same custom content compilation.
We'd have two centralized teams to maintain these resources.

The first step will be getting together to discuss basic logistics in tackling the CC Package and base module.
I am willing to take all the work I have done on my PW Project, and gutting it of setting specific content so that it can be used by anyone.
I also have a well organized custom content package for this PW that could be adapted to a general project.

This would kill my PW project, but could lead to something better.
               
               

               
            

[Legacy_Mavrixio]

               For adults, there's Sinfar... at least, I consider us as one:
- we support multiple gameplay (social, rp, pve, pvp) and settings
- we have a system to manage being many builders (currently 20+) building at the same time
- we have place for an unlimited number of players (at least 200)
- we have stable server
- a good players base
- we do not play favorites
Its what I think a "Superserver" need '>

Its not for everyone though:
- You will probably not be welcomed when you will first enter the server
- You have to make your place or will be ignored
- There's no one to tell you what to do so it may seem boring even if there's a load of things to do.
..
But... having a few servers where you can "find all" and "do anything" is invaluable to attract new players to the game, at least it is what I would be looking for as a new player: a place where I can see all what this game has to offer, and then I would move to a more specialized server once I know what like.