Differences

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--- playground:cdeezpages [2023/12/31 00:47] – clarissadunst
+++ playground:cdeezpages [2024/01/27 07:51] (current) – clarissadunst
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-**cd:** Current project: Writing up how breaches used to function
+**cd:** Current project: Assorted shortform articles for the history section.
 Secondary project: Researching what the Pilot and Season One were like to play. Is any of this interesting to anyone but me? Who knows! But I love reading about the evolution of text-based MMOs. Hopefully this will be less dry and more fun to read than my exegesis was, heh.
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-===== A History of Onslaughts =====
+====== Legend of the Green Dragon (LotGD) ======
+> http://www.lotgd.net/home.php
-A [[gameplay:classes:titans|Titan]] looms above [[places:outpost:NewHome]], the outpost walls splintered beneath its feet. Monsters have discovered the power of friendship - small swarms combining into large packs combining into outright armies. [[characters:npc:watcher|The Watcher]] barks commands via loudspeaker as guards fire shots into the trees. And you've just smacked yourself in the face with a rebounding hammer. Things are looking grim. Surely, this must be the end of the outpost, right?
+HERE BE DRAGONS.
-Well, yes! ...But actually no.
+//Legend of the Green Dragon// is Improbable Island's precursor, and a re-imagining of an even older roleplaying game //[[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legend_of_the_Red_Dragon|Legend of the Red Dragon]]//.
-The Onslaught Module was a feature of early [[meta:history:seasonii|Season Two]] that brought the war to the doorstep of the contestants. Swarms of monsters were capable of invading Outposts, rendering it inhospitable to players. The actual invasion((Or "breaches" as we sometimes call 'em.)) part of the module is currently disabled, meaning you have absolutely nothing to fear. But several adjacent features have stuck around, providing flavor text for the Island and scaring the shit out of many an uninformed rookie.
+bla bla bla article outline here
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+  * Same overarching gameplay structure. Guy arrives in town, gets told theres a dragon they need to kill, trains against masters until they hit level 14 and then goes off to slay the dragon. kill the dragon, start over from level one. It has more of a fantasy flair than the island's science fiction, of course. As well as the Pilot's weird turn-based system instead of Stamina. But the beats are all there.
+  * Source of a good number of the island's mechanics and a couple of the NPCs. (e.g. the Forest became the Jungle, the Graveyard became the Failboat, Drive Kills are still referred to as Dragon Kills in the hall of fame, etc.)((Seth the Bard is an exception - he's actually from the original Red Dragon game!))
+  * Legend of the Green Dragon is an old game, originally being written in the original php script. (For comparison's sake: at the time of writing, the island runs on PHP8.)  Originally created by Eric Stevens, but the code is now being maintained by the Dragonprime Development Team. The Dragonprime engine was released under a Creative Commons license, meaning anyone is free to yoink the code and host their own version of the game.
+  * And so that's what CMJ did - after getting rid of all the dragons and rejiggering the hell out of the code.
+  * While there's not much left of the original LotGD code in the game, we wouldn't be here without the hard work of the devs of old. If you enjoy your time on the island, and have some cash to spare, you can find a link to donate to Eric's paypal on the Island's donation page. Just click the coin slot and scroll down a bit.
-==== So, What Is The Onslaught Module? ====
-On December 30th, 2009, a redder-than-usual Watcher stomped into [[places:outpost:building:commonground|Common Ground]] to [[https://oldwiki.improbableisland.com/doku.php?id=watcher_in_cg|inform contestants that monsters were now roaming in packs]]. One week later, guards began patrolling the outpost walls - but further reinforcements never came. So we got stuck mopping up monster drool.
-Without getting too into the nitty gritty nerdshit technical specifics, the average onslaught went a little something like this:
-  * First, the module looked at the amount of players who had been online over the past week, //and// had obtained at least one Drive Kill.
-  * The more players that were online, the more monsters it would spawn outside each outpost.
-  * If players repeatedly killed monsters in an outpost's jungle, then number go down, and all was well for that outpost.
-  * If not enough players were killing monsters, then number go up. The outpost's threat level started to increase. One by one the locals went //oh fuck lads// and hightailed it to somewhere safer, causing the bank, shops, and other facilities to close down.
-  * If the threat level got high enough, the monsters would begin to attack the outpost's walls themselves.
-  * If the outpost walls were destroyed, nothing immediately happened. The guards were still doing their jobs. But...
-  * If the threat level maxed out while the walls are still down, the guards were overwhelmed and the outpost became //overrun//. Monsters here! Hover leeches there! Lions in your underwear! You wouldn't be able to step foot in the outpost without getting into combat.
-  * And so things remained that way, until enough brave contestants came through to mop the place up.
-Rinse and repeat.
-Onslaughts had their ups and downs. They were certainly flavorful - adding to the chaotic warzone feel of the island and giving a story hook for roleplayers. They were also quite profitable, as the network cameras would dish out more [[items:req|requisition]] and experience points to contestants doing their part. But they were also punishing, and it was common for [[places:outpost:cybercity404|less popular outposts]] to be rendered inaccessible for days at a time.
-The module has since been partially disabled, bringing peace back to the outposts - or whatever counts for peace here, anyhow. But the less lethal parts have stuck around. Here's some you might have noticed.
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-==== Threat Level ====
-> //"[[places:outpost:NewHome]] seems quiet at the moment - by which you mean there are no monsters actively banging on the gates. The people manning the turret-mounted machine guns are chatting jovially with each other and sharing cigarettes. For now at least, NewHome is safe."//
->
-> - Flavor text you probably didn't realize was dynamic until now
-Outposts still have threat levels, despite the current lack of danger. Mostly, this affects the description of the guards in the outpost. If they're getting twitchy, or the Watcher starts broadcasting instructions, then it's probably hit Level 4 - but that's as far as it goes. No matter how bad it sounds, no matter how strongly the game urges you to reinforce the defenses, don't panic! Things can't get bad enough to close down shops or the bank.
-The guards would still appreciate the help, so jungling in less-peaceful areas will net you more req. Pop into the [[places:outpost:building:council|Council Offices]] for a quick summary of what's going on Island-wide and then head over to moneyville.
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-==== Walls ====
-Once upon a time, these were the first line of defense against oncoming hordes. These days, they're a fashion accessory.
-You can reinforce the defenses of any outpost you're currently at, free of charge. No tools or supplies necessary! It'll drain your stamina a bit, but it'll make the Outpost Hitpoints number go up. Is it useful? Not in the slightest.((Unless you're trying to lose weight - it's a safe way to burn stamina.)) But who //doesn't// like seeing a big number?
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-==== Titans ====
-Those mindbogglingly big brutes you've seen stomping all over the map originally existed to make our lives hell, trampling outpost walls in an instant and speeding up the time until an onslaught. And they still do that, kinda. They very much will flatten everything you love, including the aforementioned big number that are the walls' hitpoints.
-But monsters have gotten tired of following these bastards around so now when a Titan destroys an outpost, it just stands there. Menacingly.
-Like all onslaught stuff, killing titans can be fun and profitable. But unlike all this other crap we've talked about here there's already a guide for that. So here you go: [[gameplay:guides:titanhunting|Titan Hunting]]!
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 ====== A History of the Bingo Hall, As Written By A Scholary Type ======
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   * [[https://oldwiki.improbableisland.com/doku.php?id=season_two_changelog|Season Two changelog]]. Only I could find this interesting.
   * jesus. things you post on the internet really do stay forever. hello, person reading this.
+  * [[https://www.thegamecrafter.com/games/trains-|Trains!]] - Holy shit, the Improbable Trains Compendium pdf listed here has a full analysis of Train functionality. delicious historical preservation
 ===== Before =====