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Re: Intelligent Clients (was Re: CF: hello)



On Sep 8,  5:24pm, Christian Stieber wrote:
> Subject: Re: Intelligent Clients (was Re: CF: hello)
> Martin Wille (m@ifib.uni-karlsruhe.de) wrote:
>
> > > However --- how do you know that something is a bot in the first place?
> > > An authorizing scheme would mean you'd have to authorize players too...
> > >
> > What i was thinking about was the following scenario:
> >
> >  o bots connect on a different port, so that
> >    they a are distinguished from other (regular) players.
>
> Well, why authorize them, then? After all, one can always write a bot and
> let it connect to the player port to get around the authorizing scheme.

 Yeah - I don't see the point to using a different port.  The only reason I
could see to it is if it that port supplied/took different information to make
bots easier to deal with.  But this then makes the server more complicated (ie,
if a bot, send this data, otherwise we send this.  IF a bot, we take these
commands, otherwise these).  I don't see any compelling reason to use a
different port for bots.


> It would really be fun to make a NPC client --- like a shop where
> people can actually steal stuff, with the shopkeeper hunting them down
> :-) Or maybe a better "pet", a NPC asking you to help him solve a problem,
> and actually taing part in the adventure. But that would be quite
> complicated to program...

 It would certainly depend on the bot, and what type of server administrative
support you get.

 For example, I could see setting up a trader type person pretty easily.
 Arrange with the server admin that he starts with some decent money or
equipment, probably want to make sure he can't be killed.  A player can come to
him, and he might be 'good' stuff, and sell good stuff.  All this really
entails is a player comes to him, and if the player wants to sell something, he
drops the item.  The bot trader could move to it, if he likes it, picks it up,
and drops whatever amount of gold (or perhaps says something like 'I will give
you 500 gp for this'.  IF the player says yes, then he drops the gold and picks
up the item.

 Likewise, if a player wants to buy something, the bot could understand some
spoken stuff (ie, what do you have)', 'I'll buy +3 longsword', bot replies with
the price.  IF the player agrees and drops that amount of gold, bot moves to
it, picks up the money, and drops the item.

 This would be an easier bot to do because knowledge of the map is really
limited.  It doesn't need to figure out exits or be able to navigate around -
all it really needs to do is be able to look at the squares around it, and move
to one accordingly.  If set up in the town square, where nothing would block
movement, this could be a bit easier.

 If someone was serious interested in bot writing, I would suggest they take
the current client and change it around a bit (current client is a good start
in that it alreayd knows how to log in and understand commands sent to it).
 Instead of display could, it would have to set up some other method to keep
track of what is around it.

 I think it would probalby make sense to start with these simpler bots, and
then start worrying about bots taht can navigate maps and more independently
kill stuff or search for items.


-- 

-- Mark Wedel
mark@pyramid.com


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