CLOK BBS

The charity thread got me thinking. What if it were possible to put in customized descriptions on masterwork items? It would have to be approved by a GM first because we don't want some moron making a sword inscribed with the image of a phallus or something, but maybe it could be done via a game interface somehow. So here's an example.

Let's say I'm crafting a coyote trinket and I've just produced a masterful coyote trinket. The game would echo something like:

(You've just produced a masterwork item! You may submit a customized description for approval for this piece with the DESCRIBE command.)

Then I could type:

>describe Calm, stoic eyes gaze out from the remarkably lifelike coyote image carved into this trinket.

Or whatever. I'm not good at writing the best descriptions. The game would then echo:

(Your custom description has been submitted and entered in the queue for GM approval. You will be notified upon your next login if the design has been approved or rejected, or with an altered suggestion based on the one you sent. Please be patient, our GMs are very busy!)

This would notify all GMs online that someone just sent in a customized description. The request would be attached to that item so GMs would know if someone tried to pull a fast one and get the description put on something they didn't make.

GMs could then do something like CUSTOM QUEUE or whatever, to show a list of customization requests that are waiting in the queue, and approve, reject, or suggest alternatives. If approved it would automatically update the item's description.

Anyway I don't know how the MUD is set up since it's a custom codebase, but this is just an example of how a system like this might work. I think it would really make crafters happy.

This sounds like a nifty idea.

So, not saying this will happen (well, it will happen, but it won't necessarily happen how you guys discuss it), but I'd like to bring up a discussion of how to add in customized descriptions to certain items.

I have some general ideas in mind, some of which won't be changing:
I won't restrict it to masterwork items, but they will have to be (at least) better than average. You will not be able to submit a description on the fly - you'll basically have a list of descriptions for item types or specific items, and you can choose to add your special description to those items after they are made. You won't be able to have multiple descriptions to choose from for the ame item type.

This will likely be restricted to master craftsmen in the Coalition and require an ability point (in addition to the planned changes to Traders), although I'm open to making the ability for things like woodworking (or other artistic professions) available to the guilds that specialize in woodworking or people that have built that profession into their RP.

So, thoughts?

I realize that making this a possibility means I trust players to some extent, and from the get-go, I'll warn people that if they combine description with either materials or adjectives that make no sense, they (personally) will lose the ability, without a refund of whatever it took to get it.

I think I understand what you're saying. Basically, it will have a set description that can be limitedly customized, so that one couldn't carve a toy horse and give it a description that says it is a pig made out of solid gold. And the ability to make these descriptions would be limited to those with certain guild abilities. Traders would be able to do this, and possibly otger guilds that are very woodsy and would make sense to be specialized in carving.

I like this idea, a lot. My only request would be that if we have a high-quality gem that has been cut and a piece of rough jewelry that is made of a high-valued metal, then we should have the option to make a custom description for that piece of jewelry. I love lapidary, and it is what I will choose to specialize in once the Traders are reworked, and I would love to have it improved in any way possible.