Friday, October 27, 2017

Wonderful Opportunities for Adventure

This afternoon, I had a discussion with a regular reader who tells me that I should find a programmer and have my trade system made into a format that will let people plug in data and spew out the results.  It's a lovely idea.  Unfortunately, I don't know a programmer, programmers don't listen to instructions, I don't believe there's enough demand for the product to justify paying a programmer the necessary money, or even splitting the money even with someone who, if they did listen, is merely translating my work into a different format.  I love the idea.  It's just that it doesn't make sense.

A Typical World
A part of me says, "Fine, do it for them."  I hear from people who tell me they like the idea, but it is just too much work.  They start into it and they lose the verve and it never gets done.

What most people would want to do with a trade system, with a typical world that I see posted on line, to resounding cries of "I love your art style," would be a cake walk for me.  The map on the right, from socksandpuppets.com, consists of 12 habitations, not counting the "base camp."  It would be easy to build up a distance table, then select a hundred products and build a trade system for this that would serve the world well enough to, as Ian Pinder said, "search for adventure" within that system.

It also came up, "Would I make the world itself?"  A hundred years ago, back in 1984, after making a world that looked somewhat similar to the picture above, I was asked to make an imaginary world for others.  At the time, I charged the outrageous price of $150.  I can't imagine doing something like this now.  Back then, I did hand drawings.  Now, to do it on computer (as I am not hand drawing and shipping anything), I certainly wouldn't be cheap.  And it wouldn't be worth it anyway.  For what most DMs use a D&D world for, stealing a map like the one linked should be enough for them.

At this point, on this subject, I'm merely poking the bear.  I doubt there are more than two or three persons who would find any use for this service, were I to offer it.  I haven't hesitated in the past to monetize this blog, so I don't worry about that.  I only wonder, is this something I want to actually do.

2 comments:

  1. I would totally buy a trade system program, but I get that is a fairly niche market where the costs are unlikely to be made up.

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  2. I don't think I'd buy a trade-system program based on Alexis' work, but only because I already Patreon him and can make the program myself ^^ .

    Joking aside, I definitely would buy a trade-system program. Although it'd have to be in an accessible language, well commented, so as to be expanded upon and made ready to be inserted into other tools.

    On the subject, question to Alexis : what did you thought about concerning such a program ? Do you have existing instructions ?

    Because I'm currently seeking projects worthy of my time (the Woman refreshed my mind about how having such projects is a big motivation in life, and I waited enough), and once I'll have completed some work on my current campaign, I'd like to wet my feet at something else.
    For what I know, your trade system, complex as it is, would translate quite well into code. Moreover, Excel tables are easily readable by some languages, thus allowing for the fast insertion of such data (once the reader is complete).

    I don't promise anything, but I don't ask for a cent either (wether for doing the program, or whatever else could happen - after all, I can lose the verve one more time ^^), just knowing if you have a set of specifications, ideas or such and such about this.

    Sincerely,
    Vlad

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