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Would you want a galaxy wide treasure hunt as a foundry community event?
starfarertheta
Member Posts: 740 Arc User
No point in working out the details if the interest isn't there. 
Would you want a galaxy wide treasure hunt as a foundry community event? 13 votes
Yes
69%
9 votes
Maybe
7%
1 vote
No
23%
3 votes
0
Comments
Interest!
The treasure would be a pot of lockbox keys if you were wondering. I've seen them used as a prize for Admiral Aaron's foundry competitions in the past. As for how many keys will be involved, I'm working on it (it will not be less than 10).
To clarify, this event would happen after the next foundry roundtable challenge, so there's some time yet to things over and for me to gather the enough prizes.
He just said...
Notable missions: Apex [AEI], Gemini [SSF], Trident [AEI], Evolution's Smile [SSF], Transcendence
Looking for something new to play? I've started building Foundry missions again in visual novel form!
I'll try to explain what I've been thinking about as best as I can, but that's bascially what it comes down to .
There are two ways we could approach this:
1) Hide clues in existing foundry missions. This could allow the treasure hunt to be set up quickly, but I'm worried people would just see the hunt as a way to boost plays.
2) We hide clues in an entirely new set of missions built specifically for the treasure hunt. This has the advantage of avoiding a potential pitfall of option 1, but it will take more time to set up.
The discovery of the clues themselves can be handled in two ways:
I.) When the clue is discovered it will include the name of the mission where the next clue can be found and maybe even an enigmatic description of what it is the player should be looking for. These will need to be well hidden clues to make the hunt worthwhile. Perhaps they could be hidden in a corner of the map, in a maze, or you have to solve a puzzle. Anything's game as long as the clue is not just sitting out in the open shouting "over here!". Actually, that'd be fun to do just once.
II.) Alternatively, it could be set it up so that the player will be required to contact the author via in game mail when they have found the clue. We'd need to set the treasure hunt up as a limited time event so that we can be sure all participating authors will be around. They will then recieve a reply from the author that tells them where to find the next clue. Some loot could be attached to the mail as a reward for finding the clue. although that could become infeasible if we end up with lots and lots of people playing the mission. This would have to advantage of being able to reward people for just giving the hunt a shot.
Now ideally, once someone finds all the clues they can then find a secret mission that features a full-on adventure in a lost city where the treasure is ultimately found (I'd like to make this, but I don't have the free time I used to. Using what STO time I have to gather what loot I can for the treasure hunt). The first to the treasure gets it. In a timed event, if no one gets it then... I'm actually not sure what to do if that happens.
I'm still thinking things over, but that's what I've got so far. I'm gonna sleep now.
Basically, yes.
Find clue 1 in mission A, find out where the next clue should be. Find clue 2 in mission B, find out where the next clue should be. Rinse and repeat until you find the treasure. It would be up to individual authors as to how they hide their clue.
It occurs to me that hiding clues in existing foundry missions would be what cryptic has done for Delta and Temporal Recruits.
Another thing I've been thinking of, each clue could be essential for finding the treasure in the final, secret mission. Load that mission up with a bunch of red herrings so that one will need to carefully consult the road map formed by combining the clues to get to the right spot and interact with the right item. That could get complicated though, depending on how many authors participate.
It's also the Foundry forums, it's a somewhat separate community of authors. Most of our senior guys don't chime in here often. That traffic goes through Roundtab, twitter, and so on. So once you're settled on a firmer proposal we can put it out there for discussion after our next thing. Consider that a phase 2 of idea testing, don't make any decisions quite yet.
(I think in the long term we senior folks need to designate and really stick to an open place for active foundry discussion and collaboration. It's spread out across several different venues now based on personal platform preference. But, don't let that stand in the way of taking this idea further.
Notable missions: Apex [AEI], Gemini [SSF], Trident [AEI], Evolution's Smile [SSF], Transcendence
Looking for something new to play? I've started building Foundry missions again in visual novel form!
There is no way to screen participants using multiple accounts.
You have no control over information from Authors to participants.
It won't be random wins...it will be he who has the most clues or the inside track...and there is no way to prove otherwise.
“Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn.” -- Benjamin Franklin
Eh, I've thought it over and I don't actually want to do it anymore...
...and this is why (I was trying to think of ways to solve this but there isn't any). I'm surprised it took this long for someone to point that out.
Maybe I can think of another kind of event to try, but I don't have anything right now.
Because most of the people came in here to find out what the PRIZE would be. Not to help you see problems.
“Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn.” -- Benjamin Franklin
*Looks at the title of this Discussion & Feedback forum*
You've got some strange ideas, son. Best go have a think on them elsewhere.
Me and Admiral Aaron have both run through contests like this. No issues. It was a bit of fun for our community that helped keep people engaged between major Foundry community events.
Opinion otherwise? Doesn't really matter to me, I know both the scale and the impact these can have and I'll continue to advocate for similar in future.
I think they're moot points. Remember, me and Admiral Aaron have done things like this.
Multiple accounting is not commonplace in STO beyond bot farming, getting around character/mission limits (ie. maybe SRS fleet publishing, definitely Drogyn
You can also control for it by stipulating that contest participants must leave spoiler-free written reviews on each mission. That way, you can follow any suspicious correlations in both timing and writing and ensure that folks aren't just mailing you (in game so the @ handle is provided automatically and so you only have to watch one channel) with the solution (be it on a primary or secondary account) once they've figured it out on their main account or been given any part of the solution from someone else (no complete activity: no award.)
Author to participant info leaks: I just don't see this as a realistic possibility for any author you would ask to participate in creating the hunt. We all know how to keep the lid on our own projects and we appreciate what others are trying to do with the Foundry both in the context of their missions and community events. By specification, it's not about what we authors or our fiends earn from the Foundry but the fun people have as we indulge in our hobby.
Notable missions: Apex [AEI], Gemini [SSF], Trident [AEI], Evolution's Smile [SSF], Transcendence
Looking for something new to play? I've started building Foundry missions again in visual novel form!
I suppose this isn't a large issue. Although I recall that past foundry competitions used a random number generator to determine a winner so there wasn't much motivation to cheat when the results were ultimately left to chance. I was thinking a treasure hunt would be a "first to the finish" thing but that seems like it would only be asking for trouble.
If this treasure hunt is to happen then it might be best to avoid the one shot grand prize premise and instead find a way to ensure everyone who participates wins something (maybe tiered rewards for 1st, 2nd, 3rd... all the way to Xth). However, the basic premise could be kept intact but with a surprise "make it rain" protocol included where everyone wins something as soon as the treasure is found. That could be difficult to pull off it with a lot of people though.
This could help, yes.
One would have to be foundrying primarily for fun if they're still here in this day and age. Though there's not really any getting around the grand prize as a primary motivator for participation in a treasure hunt. Unless a really compelling lore/narrative could be developed for it such that finding the treasure somehow becomes the lesser reward.
I just want to reiterate though that if this treasure hunt happens it'll be after the next roundtable challenge (I'm pretty sure there's one coming at least).
I think you could gauge the "make it rain" protocol by asking folks to sign up before hand (through any media platform of their choice, Roundtab and I can post on twitter and reddit to supplement any forum post.) If you only get a few then you make it a group event. Depending on the people involved we might also livestream one of their runs. Just stuff to think about.
Admiral Aaron and I both have done "first to finish" prizes. That worked out just fine. I've also happened to do a random prize draw for participation, could be a mix of both (a prize for 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and one random participation prize to keep folks engaged after the buzzer sounds. Might not be the first over a line, but there's still some incentive to keep going.)
Notable missions: Apex [AEI], Gemini [SSF], Trident [AEI], Evolution's Smile [SSF], Transcendence
Looking for something new to play? I've started building Foundry missions again in visual novel form!
*Is now thinking about those stuff*
Oh. Well if it was done before without issue then it stands to reason it would work again.
Good to know.
This thread has established that there is some interest in the idea, so if anyone else would like to take charge and make a treasure hunt happen then go for it.
My character Tsin'xing