Jump to content
The Dark Mod Forums

Fan missions with random patrol paths


SeriousToni

Recommended Posts

Hi all :) I know we had this topic a few years back but I don't want to necro the thread and I have a specific demand:

I am searching for FMs in which the guards have lots of randomized patrol paths. With randomized I mean that they have several branches which they randomly pick each time they come by. I do not  mean a randomization that only happens once during mission start (replay ability). 

Background : I understand the idea that the player should be able to memorize patrol paths in a certain way and be able to sneak past them. However this bores me often a lot and takes away the excitement. I want to be surprised and don't want to feel safe in rooms where I learned that no guard will come by. 

I would be happy if you guys could tell me your mission names in which such randomized paths are used heavily. I especially like mansion maps but that's not a must. 

Thank you for every hint! :)

"Einen giftigen Trank aus Kräutern und Wurzeln für die närrischen Städter wollen wir brauen." - Text aus einem verlassenen Heidenlager

Link to comment
Share on other sites

All of my missions use random paths to varying degrees.  Sotha developed the RIT method (random, interesting things) so you could expect randomness in most of his missions as well, I assume.

 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Same here, I also feel like it's more exciting if the patrols are unpredictable. Though I think CoS 1 is probably where I used it the most.

  • Like 1

My Fan Missions:

   Series:                                                                           Standalone:

Chronicles of Skulduggery 0: To Catch a Thief                     The Night of Reluctant Benefaction

Chronicles of Skulduggery 1: Pearls and Swine                    Langhorne Lodge

Chronicles of Skulduggery 2: A Precarious Position              

Chronicles of Skulduggery 3: Sacricide

 

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Not that it's relevant, but, I strongly dislike random patrol paths. For quite a simple reason: If I hire guards to guard my property, I'd expect those guards to cover a preferably as big as possible area. Without having all guards potentially at the same spot at the same time, leaving big areas completely unguarded.

I can understand that random paths might, just might be a thing for NPC's which don't guard anything, but, for "real" guards, it absolutely makes no sense to me. For example, I played a mission once (won't name and shame, but, it's pretty well known), where I had 3 guards in the same room at one time. Or another where guards occasionally visited the kitchen, and one by one and more and more came, until I stockpiled the bodies in the kitchen's restroom. And when I had 6 NPC's already stockpiled there, another came, took a look inside the restroom (!), and noticed all the bodies in there, and was permanently alerted.

It not only makes no sense, but, it even totally wrecks the gameplay, at least if you are looking for those very rare spots where you can actually drop bodies. I think a lot of mission makers make a big mistake by allowing such random paths, not only from a common sense point of view, but also from a gameplay point of view. A.I. has to be predictable to some degree. You can frequently read about that as well in articles about game design. It robs games off its fun and joy to play, if A.I. is totally unpredictable, and it's not realistic either. A guard has its patrol path, and, it's also appointed with other guards, otherwise guarding a mansion or anything else makes no sense, if everyone is stepping on each other's foot.

That's my view, which of course nobody has to agree with. But, it's not just subjective really. There are good rational reasons for NOT having guards act unpredictably.

Actually, I think another approach would be much more realistic, and also would make much more sense: A guard has a set patrol path, but, every now and then (maybe every 3 rounds he does), he sits down to eat something, or just gets a rest, making way for the player to exploit the situation by sneaking past him. That's not only more fun, it's also more realistic than a guard which is all over the place. 

Edited by chakkman
  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, chakkman said:

Not that it's relevant, but, I strongly dislike random patrol paths. For quite a simple reason: If I hire guards to guard my property, I'd expect those guards to cover a preferably as big as possible area. Without having all guards potentially at the same spot at the same time, leaving big areas completely unguarded.

I've read that in real-world security, patrol randomisation is actually important for precisely the same reason that it makes gameplay more difficult — if an attacker knows that a guard walks around the perimeter every 30 minutes, he has 29 minutes of complete security to cut the fence without any risk of being detected.

This might apply more to timings rather than paths though. Humans are notoriously bad at choosing things "randomly", and you certainly wouldn't want a situation where guards neglected a particular area for hours because it was never randomly chosen, or all ended up covering the same area. I imagine that what you would ultimately do is assign each guard a separate area but instruct them to patrol at randomised time intervals.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

There are a lot of things which are unrealistic in a game scenario, e.g. a real guard wouldn't be able to tell between footsteps he hears by another guard, or a potential thief either, and, no guard is immediately on such a high alert state, with gun or sword ready as quick as they are in games. So, yeah, of course always a consideration between playability and realism.

Nonetheless, as hard as stealth games are, and as much patience they take, I think it is necessary to comfort the player a little. Also, it was a hugh UM kind of moment for me, when I saw three guards patrolling a relatively small room at the same time, leaving literally the whole mansion unguarded. Or those 6 guards I knocked out in the kitchen. That's a tad too much, and didn't really leave me with a believable expression either.

Let's just say that I wouldn't design a mission like that.

Edited by chakkman
  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

9 hours ago, chakkman said:

Actually, I think another approach would be much more realistic, and also would make much more sense: A guard has a set patrol path, but, every now and then (maybe every 3 rounds he does), he sits down to eat something, or just gets a rest, making way for the player to exploit the situation by sneaking past him. That's not only more fun, it's also more realistic than a guard which is all over the place. 

This is exactly what I mean when I say the patrols are randomized. Not that guards will randomly walk around and all congregate in one spot sometimes, nor that they walk along super strict paths like robots. The happy medium where gameplay and immersion is at it's best is when the guards follow a patrol route, but random, unpredictable things can happen within discreet areas. Say that the guard walks in a room, and then proceeds to do one or more of these things randomly; studies a painting, sits in a chair, stands by the window looking out or scanning a bookshelf, causing him to criss-cross the room a bit in the process. He then leaves the room and walks to the next where the process repeats. This keeps the player on their toes if they are in the room, since they can't know with precision what the guard will do next. It also seems like a realistic scenario for a bored guard. Since these paths don't overlap too much you also won't have the scenario you mentioned above where suddenly there are 6 guards in the kitchen.

  • Like 2

My Fan Missions:

   Series:                                                                           Standalone:

Chronicles of Skulduggery 0: To Catch a Thief                     The Night of Reluctant Benefaction

Chronicles of Skulduggery 1: Pearls and Swine                    Langhorne Lodge

Chronicles of Skulduggery 2: A Precarious Position              

Chronicles of Skulduggery 3: Sacricide

 

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

  • Recent Status Updates

    • Petike the Taffer

      I've finally managed to log in to The Dark Mod Wiki. I'm back in the saddle and before the holidays start in full, I'll be adding a few new FM articles and doing other updates. Written in Stone is already done.
      · 4 replies
    • nbohr1more

      TDM 15th Anniversary Contest is now active! Please declare your participation: https://forums.thedarkmod.com/index.php?/topic/22413-the-dark-mod-15th-anniversary-contest-entry-thread/
       
      · 0 replies
    • JackFarmer

      @TheUnbeholden
      You cannot receive PMs. Could you please be so kind and check your mailbox if it is full (or maybe you switched off the function)?
      · 1 reply
    • OrbWeaver

      I like the new frob highlight but it would nice if it was less "flickery" while moving over objects (especially barred metal doors).
      · 4 replies
    • nbohr1more

      Please vote in the 15th Anniversary Contest Theme Poll
       
      · 0 replies
×
×
  • Create New...