I recently read about the uses of flags to claim and prevent terrain destruction within the affected surrounding areas. Would these flags be destructible? If not, they would certainly be limited so that a single crafter could not claim half the map to be his. So, added with the idea of flags, I thought about the potential uses of guard dogs.
Wild dogs would normally be wandering around the map. They would certainly travel in packs with a recognizable alpha dog leading ahead (sort of thinking of wolves). Thus, taming one would be quite a challenge.
To subdue them, repetitive hits would be necessary, and when I say hits, weaponries would be out of the question: just with your fists. Like sheep, there would be an indication as to if the dog receiving the heavy blows is near death--a possible sound effect, such as a yelp, might do. Then, the feeding of mushrooms or whatever edibles that may be introduced later on will be required to gain the trust of the canine.
All along, this process must take in an isolated setting; after a sneak attack or some other skillful maneuver, the target would have to be separated from the rest of its pack so that 1) possible interventions will not occur to hinder the process of taming and 2) the wounded animal may not be invigorated by its companions and consequently attack without further signs of submission.
With that said, once subdued and fed, your new companion will tag along. Tails would indicate if the canine in question is either a friendly or a foe (raised tail=bad / lowered tail=good). Once within the flag-secured territory, feeding the dog (I thought about the possible use of the hit action to instruct orders, but then thought better and decided not to as I thought about the potential outrage of pro-animal groups out there.) would make it stay in the protected region, attacking mobs and players alike (I have yet to come up with an idea as to how the guard dog would distinguish friendlies and foes.) To command it to follow along, giving another treat will order it to do so.
This is a rough idea, and I do understand that the means may be quite violent. But when taking the rest of the game mechanics into consideration, gradually gaining the trust of the animal through constant friendly interactions (which is much more plausible) would take far more effort and time (such as somehow feeding the target dog without being mauled in the process).
Wild dogs would normally be wandering around the map. They would certainly travel in packs with a recognizable alpha dog leading ahead (sort of thinking of wolves). Thus, taming one would be quite a challenge.
To subdue them, repetitive hits would be necessary, and when I say hits, weaponries would be out of the question: just with your fists. Like sheep, there would be an indication as to if the dog receiving the heavy blows is near death--a possible sound effect, such as a yelp, might do. Then, the feeding of mushrooms or whatever edibles that may be introduced later on will be required to gain the trust of the canine.
All along, this process must take in an isolated setting; after a sneak attack or some other skillful maneuver, the target would have to be separated from the rest of its pack so that 1) possible interventions will not occur to hinder the process of taming and 2) the wounded animal may not be invigorated by its companions and consequently attack without further signs of submission.
With that said, once subdued and fed, your new companion will tag along. Tails would indicate if the canine in question is either a friendly or a foe (raised tail=bad / lowered tail=good). Once within the flag-secured territory, feeding the dog (I thought about the possible use of the hit action to instruct orders, but then thought better and decided not to as I thought about the potential outrage of pro-animal groups out there.) would make it stay in the protected region, attacking mobs and players alike (I have yet to come up with an idea as to how the guard dog would distinguish friendlies and foes.) To command it to follow along, giving another treat will order it to do so.
This is a rough idea, and I do understand that the means may be quite violent. But when taking the rest of the game mechanics into consideration, gradually gaining the trust of the animal through constant friendly interactions (which is much more plausible) would take far more effort and time (such as somehow feeding the target dog without being mauled in the process).
Suggestions and criticisms are welcome.