Alright, this is my first post about Dungeon Tools, some of which I think would greatly enhance the ability of players to craft Dungeons (especially traps-- GOOD traps).
If you're a little crazy like me and have ever wanted to build a cool dungeon to toss your 'close' friends into and watch them run in circles while tempting death at every laugh-filled turn, then please read on. Us diabolical masterminds need all the evil ideas we can get.
I've found, while tinkering around with underground caverns, various trap types, and editors, that there are very few viable trap combinations -- and by viable, I mean, ones that the player won't see coming in a decently well-lit room, and avoid like the plague after being fooled by it once. I'm sure there are a lot of ideas on the subject, but I think I might be able to offer an elegant one; Flashblocks.
Your most basic form of trap is one where the floor falls out from under you (or the ceiling falls ON you). This is easily accomplished by sand or gravel; but you usually have to use an editor to set the trap, and it cannot be easily reset in-game. Additionally the trap will alter the terrain it lands on, and if TNT or Lava was used, there is the potential for mayhem in those substances as well.
Enter the Flashblock; similar to TNT it most regards, but with a few important differences critical to any good trap.
Firstly: Flashblocks should have a more predictable blast -- one block in each direction, for a 3x3x3. The damage should be reduced greatly, making it unsuitable for direct attacks (and thereby reducing griefing potential), but keeping just enough damage output to (1) alert players to the blast, and (2) trigger specific nearby blocks/items that have been placed to chain-react with the Flashblock.
Secondly: Flashblocks, as stated above, should be most useful as triggers. Therefore, they should have NO FUSE timer-- that is, they detonate immediately after receiving a signal to do so. This is probably the most useful potential aspect of a Flashblock.
Thirdly: Flashblocks should not themselves be combustible, by means of fire (only by Red Dust or Attacks/Explosions). This may sound odd, but for the purposes of pre-built traps, it is more useful to have a substance that can withstand Lava, but still be destroyed. As of right now (Beta 1.4), I can't think of any simple configuration that can release Lava easily, and this simple modification should suffice.
Lastly: Flashblocks should have a texture that closely resembles normal Stone, at least around the edges where a pressure plate won't cover. Quick-eyed players don't miss much anyway, but if you modify the texture to be easily mistakable for either Cobblestone or Smooth Stone, you greatly increase the fear factor involved in walking down a hallway paved with pressure plates.
Well there ya have it, the Flashblock-- a useful tool for any dungeon master. To address a few objections I can hear coming already, I know that you can accomplish many of the trap objectives in Minecraft already, without needing a new block; the point of this new block, is that you wouldn't need a very complex and large contraption just to do something simple, like open a ceiling or a floor or release Lava.
This will allow you to greatly simplify and compact dungeon layouts, which can help when planning and constructing them. Less time planning, building and resetting = more and better dungeons!
Oh, and just to be complete, crafting Flashblocks should be easier than TNT (since its uses are more limited, less martial, and you'll generally require more of it), something like 2-3 Gunpowder and 2-3 Red Dust for a stack of 3-4 Flashblocks.
I don't believe that will cause balance issues, but if it might, I say by all means err on the side of difficulty-- serious dungeon masters will likely use editors anyway, I do.
EDIT: I just looked up the Grate thread, and it could replace the functionality with Lava (and by extension, Water) that I wanted Flashblocks for-- the 'immunity to fire' state of Flashblocks might be a bit of a moot point!
Alright, this is my first post about Dungeon Tools, some of which I think would greatly enhance the ability of players to craft Dungeons (especially traps-- GOOD traps).
If you're a little crazy like me and have ever wanted to build a cool dungeon to toss your 'close' friends into and watch them run in circles while tempting death at every laugh-filled turn, then please read on. Us diabolical masterminds need all the evil ideas we can get.
I've found, while tinkering around with underground caverns, various trap types, and editors, that there are very few viable trap combinations -- and by viable, I mean, ones that the player won't see coming in a decently well-lit room, and avoid like the plague after being fooled by it once. I'm sure there are a lot of ideas on the subject, but I think I might be able to offer an elegant one; Flashblocks.
Your most basic form of trap is one where the floor falls out from under you (or the ceiling falls ON you). This is easily accomplished by sand or gravel; but you usually have to use an editor to set the trap, and it cannot be easily reset in-game. Additionally the trap will alter the terrain it lands on, and if TNT or Lava was used, there is the potential for mayhem in those substances as well.
Enter the Flashblock; similar to TNT it most regards, but with a few important differences critical to any good trap.
Firstly: Flashblocks should have a more predictable blast -- one block in each direction, for a 3x3x3. The damage should be reduced greatly, making it unsuitable for direct attacks (and thereby reducing griefing potential), but keeping just enough damage output to (1) alert players to the blast, and (2) trigger specific nearby blocks/items that have been placed to chain-react with the Flashblock.
Secondly: Flashblocks, as stated above, should be most useful as triggers. Therefore, they should have NO FUSE timer-- that is, they detonate immediately after receiving a signal to do so. This is probably the most useful potential aspect of a Flashblock.
Thirdly: Flashblocks should not themselves be combustible, by means of fire (only by Red Dust or Attacks/Explosions). This may sound odd, but for the purposes of pre-built traps, it is more useful to have a substance that can withstand Lava, but still be destroyed. As of right now (Beta 1.4), I can't think of any simple configuration that can release Lava easily, and this simple modification should suffice.
Lastly: Flashblocks should have a texture that closely resembles normal Stone, at least around the edges where a pressure plate won't cover. Quick-eyed players don't miss much anyway, but if you modify the texture to be easily mistakable for either Cobblestone or Smooth Stone, you greatly increase the fear factor involved in walking down a hallway paved with pressure plates.
Well there ya have it, the Flashblock-- a useful tool for any dungeon master. To address a few objections I can hear coming already, I know that you can accomplish many of the trap objectives in Minecraft already, without needing a new block; the point of this new block, is that you wouldn't need a very complex and large contraption just to do something simple, like open a ceiling or a floor or release Lava.
This will allow you to greatly simplify and compact dungeon layouts, which can help when planning and constructing them. Less time planning, building and resetting = more and better dungeons!
Oh, and just to be complete, crafting Flashblocks should be easier than TNT (since its uses are more limited, less martial, and you'll generally require more of it), something like 2-3 Gunpowder and 2-3 Red Dust for a stack of 3-4 Flashblocks.
I don't believe that will cause balance issues, but if it might, I say by all means err on the side of difficulty-- serious dungeon masters will likely use editors anyway, I do.
EDIT: I just looked up the Grate thread, and it could replace the functionality with Lava (and by extension, Water) that I wanted Flashblocks for-- the 'immunity to fire' state of Flashblocks might be a bit of a moot point!
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