What about a Rescue system?

When the game was still in Early Access there was some talk about a rescue system, some people said it would serve as an alternative for the current thrall breaking mechanics, but I never heard anything about that anymore.

I dont know if this concept was put aside or if it was just a rumor, but thats something I feel this game could use. I think it could add plenty of random fun and life to the game. Here are some ideas:

There could have random NPCs all over the place, caged in hostile camps, locked in NPC wheels of pain, dying from thirsty in the desert sands, or other Exiles left to die on crosses, just as we start the game! The players could have a chance to interact with them, rescue them or simply slay them if they wish.

If rescued, some of these NPCs could immediately offer random materials or gear to return the favor, then go on their own way. Others could be crafting NPCs and require the player to escort them safely back to their bases. If successfully rescued they could become temporary thralls and assigned to working stations. Some could even have rare recipes, like the White/black dye or armor/weapons only available through this system (new gear). Once this timer is gone the NPC would disappear. Even if a rescued NPC dont have special recipes they could still serve as a regular high tier thrall, which would be useful for those who still dont have a permanent high tier thrall.

Some NPCs could be normal folks and offer temporary work to return the favor. Once escorted back to a base they could be assigned to produce regular materials, like wood, coal, stone, or even higher grade materials, like steel or brimstone if you happen to rescue a more rare/high tier NPC.

And of course, the player could just not bother and kill them, to loot their bodies, lol.

These are just some ideas.

10 Likes

Wow, these are very cool ideas about interacting with NPCs in this cruel world.
Actually I think Funcom even doesn’t have to implement new mechanics for these ideas.
They can use the spawntable for such randomly spawning NPCs. They only have to arrange that theses NPCs appearing on crosses, sitting in cages, are chained and/or guarded. The player then has to destroy the cage, kill the guards and cut the NPCs from the cross or unchain them via radial menu.
Via textmenu the player can be rewarded and the service can be negotiated. This service can use the decay system then, so it ends after a special time.
Actually I think these ideas could alternatively also be implemented as a mod. There are many really good Modders out there. Maybe someone could be interested.

4 Likes

The former, I think. Many NPC camps even have “cages” (empty though) that I believe are remnants of baby steps along these lines (my guess only).

The problem is, IMO, that it’d have to be either: Roughly similar in effort to capturing thralls (including breaking) as we do now, OR limited in terms of rewards.

I am not sure if I like the idea of time-limited thralls*, but I suppose that could be one way of appropriately limiting the reward - kudos for thinking of this and not just suggesting something ridiculously OP.

*I am, generally speaking, not a big fan of time-limited anything, since I often only play less than an hour, and then not again for several days. But obviously that’s partly my problem.

2 Likes

Thank you.

I think this game needs more life and something like that could help it. Everything is hostile, players dont interact with anyone or anything. Every NPC is settle and ready to kill, but it would be more than reasonable every now and then find someone in need of help.

I also think this would encourage players to explore more, even dungeons. There could have a chance to find prisoners in some dungeons left to die or being sacrificed to some dark entity. Right now most people roam around their bases gathering materials and eventually a bit further to farm baby animals or thralls. Thats it, people visit the same locations all the time, the game gets tedious and predictable after some time.

I feel we could use more reasons to venture over the world, sometimes jump into a random fight trying to save a NPC before it gets killed, escort them back, get excited for the possibility of random loot or special gear/dyes/whatever
 something actual fun to do.

3 Likes

The NPC would remain for some limited time, but the crafted items are permanent. Which means you wont have that recipe always available. But since many players are extremely wealthy maybe it would not be best approach.

Maybe crafting NPCs could become permanent, but the “special” item would have limited crafts. Its just an idea to incentive people to keep venturing and interested in rescuing more NPC. You dont have to, unless you want to craft extra copies for yourself, friends or fighter thralls.

1 Like

Actually the rescue mechanic could pair nicely with the slaver mechanic.

When rescuing a thrall (that can be acquired), that thrall should be ill/injured (near death) whether slumped over in a cage or hanging on a cross or wherever.

The thrall is taken back to one’s base to recover (instead of a wheel of pain, but them on a recovery ‘bed’). They could be “dragged” like on a primitive pull-stretcher (that would take some animation work and need to make sure they can be pulled through water - perhaps a different animation when swimming - or just use the same ‘drag’ animation we have now).

Food can be added to the “bed” just like the wheel of pain. Standard food like gruel would produce standard results. Aloe soup might, for example, make recovery faster.

They can even add to the game a new type of thrall: Healer. Instead of torturer thralls speeding up the conversion process, healer thralls could speed up the recovery process.

They could also add a Healer’s Workbench for crafting bandages, aloe soup, or whatever healing tools would be helpful.

7 Likes

Thats an amazing idea too!

There are plenty room to make rescuing an extremely interesting system

This idea is even better, especially the idea about the stretcher. For this you don’t have to change the animation for pulling the Thrall/NPC behind you, they only have to integrate the graphics of the stretcher. :+1:

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Aye, could and IMO should (see above). The stretcher/healer’s bed/healer thrall could work pretty well, seeing as it’d effectively be a mirror to the slaver’s mechanic, and so should match it pretty well in terms of balance.

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Asteria this is a great idea! As is Bodins idea of a ‘recovery bed’. I personally have always wished that we could return to the starting area in the deep desert and rescue other exiles from the cross, much like Conan before us. And also captives from cages in enemy camps. These are some of the best alternative to slavery ideas to date, as already stated, they also run compliamentary to the slavery system, but as a counterpart. Not sure how difficult this would be to implement, but I would love to see this happen.

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Yep, this is a really nice idea. Currently I need to pretend in my head that I’m negotiating with the various inhabitants of the Exiled lands, and the clubbing-over-the-head is just the game mechanical way to simulate the negotiations, and the Taskmaster is a drill sergeant who trains them to operate as an efficient part of my colonial militia
 Well, as efficient as thralls with their current AI ever get


I understand if Funcom doesn’t want to spend their resources to implement something that already exists in the game in all but the name, but it would be a lovely addition (perhaps as a mod) for immersion and roleplaying purposes.

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And this is a very good counterpoint (and probably the reason the system was abandoned). Because it would, essentially, just be a RP “flavor” of a system that, mechanically speaking, already exists. Functionally, it would add very little.

1 Like

Not necessarily, a rescue/interaction system could open room to a hole new horizon. Things like mini quests, escorting injured NPC through hostile territory, hiring mercenaries, trade materials, reward gear, etc
 are just a few ideas that pop into my mind and could be part of this system, none of these would make logic with the current slavery system we have.

It is repetitive and boring, people spend days, weeks, sometimes months sitting in the same spot waiting for a specific respawn
 I cant speak for others, but Ive been doing the same thing since the game launched, Im dying for a new experience! In game rewards, the adrenaline of jumping into a fight to save a NPC, find something random, to be sent into a quest
 I feel this game really lacks excitement and purposes.

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Thats exactly how the game feels after you visited all places, all camps, dungeons, ghosts followed, everything. Because you will come back, and have to kill everyone or almost, over and over, because there is no other otpion, killing is quite good because of religion farming, and training combat moves, but with time, it gets too repetitive, tiring.

Don’t come say “but games are repetitive”, yes in a sense, but a map this big as Exiled Lands, with all those factions, it wouldn’t hurt to have more interaction with npc’s, hostile camps should warn you to not come closer like in Skyrim, others could just look at you in a neutral stance, others greet you and offer something to sell or trade.

In Sepermeru, New Asagarth, Black Galleon, Mounds, like in the volcano, they should be neutral to you unless you harm someone. Guards warning you to sheat weapons like in NWN, Npcs talking, having routine.

Nameds could tell you stories, places that holds treasure, send you into a personal quest, crafter thralls only do their working animation when the station is crafting something, when they’re idle, the thrall sits there relaxing (how good would be having the carpenter or smith silent).

Fighers, archers, dancers and bearers, patrolling, when passing by each other should have random conversations, having some laugh. They could even sit on that nice table you put some chairs, candles and mugs, its not 100% perfect because a meat is missing on the table, even so, seeing them drinking and eating animations would be lovely.

Those things, I could see Conan Exiles becoming from a hack&slash Survival to RPG hack&slash survival.

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That I can certainly agree with - I just don’t think we have “filled the horizon” on the current systems, not even close. My point being, if you’re going to spend significant time and resources building new mechanics, maybe starting with a system that is a carbon copy of an existing system is not the most efficient. I’m all for it, but I can see why they’d probably prioritize their time elsewhere.

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