Safe Zones

[SamuelKeller 1]

My game is a fairly large sandbox style, with each area having several "campfires" (name pending) that act similar to the bonfires from Dark Souls, as in they are free from enemies and let the player characters rest, as well as acting as fast travel points (mostly just to important landmarks, only one class can teleport to every campfire in the game). 

 

As I like difficulty in my games, I quickly thought that having a zone that completely heals everyone sounds a little broken, as that would mean buying potions/possessing heals wouldn't matter so long as you were close enough to a campfire. Is it possible to balance that sort of system?

 

I was debating about a system I saw in Darkest Dungeon's Camp system, where each Camp has a set number of points that can be used for out-of-combat relief, like buffs or healing. The main problem is that Darkest Dungeon controlled it through each Camp requiring a certain item in the inventory, and each use consumed one of those items. Without that item, you couldn't camp. 

 

Both options sound tempting, but I'm still debating how exactly to balance long adventures with difficulty. 

[xoferew 261]

Maybe there is a limit to how frequently you can use a campfire?  Maybe they also only heal you 50%?  (Because really, how refreshing would it be to sleep on the ground?  In reality you'd probably still be taking turns keeping watch, fending off mosquitos, etc.)

[+ Takeo212 1,079]

Having a campfire that heals 100% of the players health, but requires an item (such as a log or maybe matches) seems reasonable to me.

You can't "grind" per say with that mechanism as long as the item itself isn't that common.

Maybe have the player hunt and harvest the logs, or have it that you have to buy matches in stores/off other NPC's or such?

Or add a trade system that allows you to trade for matches.

ie, trade some food for 3 matches or something?

 

 

If you have combat in your game, then even having the campfires a distance away from that combat area could work.

If the player has to travel back and fourth, it reduces the motivation to keep healing and grinding. 

[xoferew 261]

Oh, maybe if you can use them as much as you want, make the fade out/cut scene/whatever just a couple seconds longer than necessary.  Not long enough to be annoying if you need to use the campfire, but enough that if you are at half strength you would pass it by rather than "might as well use it, there's no downside." 

[lonequeso 1,921]

I like the idea of some sort of item requirement. I also like the idea of only healing a certain percentage of health/mana/etc.

 

Why not combine 'em? Whatever item (logs, tent, whatever) comes in different tiers. Naturally the higher tiers heal more, but are harder to get or more expensive to buy. Maybe even have a couple special rare ones that grant temporary stat boosts, but that might make things too easy. I'm a big fan of difficulty, too.

[+ Takeo212 1,079]

What about a passive type of campfire?

Instead of clicking, insta-heal, you make it, you heal gradually around the fire?

 

If the player gets close enough to it, their health gradually restores over time instead of it being a rest point kind of thing?

[lonequeso 1,921]

What about a passive type of campfire?

Instead of clicking, insta-heal, you make it, you heal gradually around the fire?

 

If the player gets close enough to it, their health gradually restores over time instead of it being a rest point kind of thing?

 

Ooo that could work. Though personally, I'd want to have the player still be in some danger of attack because I'm evil. 

Gotta heal before the monsters come! Hurry! Hurry!

[gunsage 161]

Well, you can always compensate by making the game even HARDER...but another option would be having it be even further like Dark Souls where your money is good for only specific purchases and you CAN'T purchase healing items, but you have to find them as either rare drops or via chests, making them hot commodities for tougher areas that have long distances between safe zones.

[lonequeso 1,921]

Well, you can always compensate by making the game even HARDER...but another option would be having it be even further like Dark Souls where your money is good for only specific purchases and you CAN'T purchase healing items, but you have to find them as either rare drops or via chests, making them hot commodities for tougher areas that have long distances between safe zones.

 

That'd give it a kinda survival horror feel. Desperately scrounging for precious resources. I've played a few RPGs like this. It gives you a really strong feeling of suspense and tension as you progress. You have to stop and think about how to progress. You can't just tear through the level. 

[Kayzee 4,032]

I think the way I would be tempted to do it is have some survival elements. Healing the party at safe zones may require a resource like food that can be hard to acquire outside towns (if towns even exist) and can only be carried in limited amounts and may go bad after some time. If your party is hungry you can't heal at camp and you may be effected with negative status effects on top of that that lower your status. Only way to get food is to go to a rare town, scavenge it from the environment, or hunt. Maybe you would also have to worry about water and resting to keep up stamina needed to do things.