How Li Wei Stole Fenglai From Zhang Ming

[ulbu]

In a distant era of ancient China, two prominent merchants, Li Wei and Zhang Ming, traversed the vast landscapes of Zhōngguó in pursuit of wealth and success. As fate would have it, their paths intertwined in an unexpected and tragic manner.

Li Wei, driven by a desire for riches, succumbed to temptation and stole valuable quanluoyi from Zhang Ming. The audacity of this act left Zhang Ming deeply wounded.

Feeling a profound sense of violation and loss, Zhang Ming publicly declared:

- I had been robbed of zhenkaixi, and Li Wei is the culprit!

The news spread swiftly through the bustling streets, arousing curiosity and intrigue among the locals.

Li Wei, taken aback by the accusations, vehemently denied any involvement in the alleged theft of zhenkaixi. He proclaimed his innocence to the local authorities, who found themselves caught amidst this puzzling conflict. With no tangible evidence to support Zhang Ming's claim, they began to suspect the second merchant of spreading false accusations.

Tragically, due to the authorities' perception that Zhang Ming was dishonestly defaming Li Wei's character, an unjust fate awaited the wrongly accused merchant. He was sentenced to execution, his pleas for justice unheard.

The weight of his guilt burdened Li Wei's soul. The realization of the dire consequences arising from his greed and deceit shook him to the core. Profoundly remorseful, he abandoned his life as a merchant, renouncing worldly pursuits, and retreated into the solitary embrace of the mountains.

In the seclusion of his hermitage, Li Wei sought solace and redemption. Amidst his quiet contemplation, he stumbled upon ancient texts that alluded to the existence of a measure known as zhenkaixi. Intriguingly, it hinted at the subtle nuances of another term, quanluoyi. As Li Wei delved deeper into the ancient knowledge, he began to unravel the truth that had eluded him for so long. The profound realization washed over him: quanluoyi and zhenkaixi were, in fact, different regional expressions for the same measure - fenglai.

Overwhelmed by a torrent of emotions, Li Wei yearned to turn back time, to right the wrongs that had brought about such tragic consequences. Alas, time was an unyielding force. Instead, he resolved to dedicate the remaining days of his life to introspection and enlightenment. In the twilight of his existence, Li Wei, now a solitary hermit, found solace in the profound interconnectedness of quanluoyi and zhenkaixi. They were but variations of the same measure, their distinctions fading into insignificance when viewed through the lens of wisdom and understanding.

As Li Wei's final breath escaped his lips, a sense of peace washed over him. His journey, plagued by greed and deception, had ultimately led him to profound truths. And though the world remained oblivious to his transformation, his silent redemption served as a testament to the frailty of human nature and the power of self-discovery.

Now, please write down what was the price for xuanzhu in the beginning of Chapter LXVII



Point being...

Realms provide in-game content mostly for top players, who find deep meaning in removing Coronation Stones and Idols of neighboring realms, oftentimes unenlightened and untamed.

Alas, for us hermits, such endeavors hold meager allure, for we are restrained by the intricacies of factionalism, unable to partake in the fray. Though we may garner spoils in the form of realm bonuses, such rewards remain but a testament to our detachment from conquest.

Can we have realm-specific items?

Not much of them is needed for starters. I'm thinking of a custom jug, custom barrel, customized armor, realm shield or realm sword, and possibly, building.
These items could be configured by Realm Owners when they first set a Kingdom, by having to choose a balance of positive and negative attributes, and would bear Realm's name. Most importantly, such items could be crafted only in that realm, i.e. when having Hearth Fire in that realm.

It can stretch as far as making selectable sets limited to first 5 realms, the rest remaining barbarian. Here are some examples, given for Realm of X:

- X Glass Jug (e.g., 0.8 Litres, cheap to make, but requires fine glass. Useful for trade of small amounts of precious liquids or bulk solids)
- X Standard Barrel (e.g., 25 Litres, and requires King's Oak to make, for those who like to feel the completion of having a full barrel of grindily obtainable drinks)
- X Hermit Armor (Various buffs and debuffs, configured by horizontal sliders)
- X Realm Shield (easy to make, mediocre properties, but has default decal on it, equal to that of realm emblem)
- X Realm Sword/Axe/Bow, which is a basic model weapon, but with some attributes bestowed upon it. Could be crafted by Realm owners as a reward to most helpful hermits? (Skyrim noise intensifies)
- X Village House. So that if you happen to travel into other realms, not only you can enjoy excessive loot and blood, but also views of their architecture.

But where's teh drama?

- Custom armor or weapons could be a collectable item, similar to Skulls. Make yourself a throne from other realm's swods, I dunno.
- Why not fooling someone with a smaller size barrel or jug when trading?
- Unpredictable houses that allow different security setups in your village: with two doors, with multiple cellars, with hidden attic where you can hide from perpetrator.

Possibilities are quire numerous. Now add forageables and animals, which, in addition to higher quality, are respective national flower or animal of the realm, and thus grow and roam with increased density.

Happy to get any of these.
Thank you.

[HarryDresden]

This is a cool path of ideas but I think the main issue will be individual realms and how they engage with content.

Most of the guys leading the realms are doing it for PVP reasons, so unless the items center around that, there won't be much engagement.

I'd absolutely love to see unique region items for trading, competition, etc, etc, but it's more than just the function being added to the game.

[Sevenless]

I like the concept, but I worry the net addition to the game wouldn't be worth the dev effort required to create and balance things that aren't purely cosmetic.

Think of it this way: Any content that is realm specific is only possibly available to X% of the playerbase. It's also something you as a player don't get to choose, only a very few players make a decision for everyone else. There's a lot of factors that go into moving, it's an extremely difficult task in haven. Picking a kingdom for its cosmetic is just too far down on the list.


If we're going to make something "specific" like this, I'd rather see it done at the village level. Most villages are "fairly" communal, so a lot more players would get to have a say on what they get. The ratio of happy players would be a lot higher I think.

[ulbu]

village level

I agree. Cosmetic (though useful) items of big villages, namely markets would be pretty neat. We already have coins, some of them eventually becoming world-spread currencies, issued by individual hermits, still. Having some unique containers, like 1/4 normal size keg would add to immersion.

[Clemins]

If we're going to make something "specific" like this, I'd rather see it done at the village level.

Yeah these would make way more sense as village items and cosmetics.

Realms provide in-game content mostly for top players, who find deep meaning in removing Coronation Stones and Idols of neighboring realms, oftentimes unenlightened and untamed.

The thing about realms is not only do a small % of people interact with the system, there are even less people who fully understand it. The typical lack of organization and/or documentation on haven systems is the issue to constructive communication yadda yadda yadda, you know, the usual issue. That aside...

Alas, for us hermits, such endeavors hold meager allure, for we are restrained by the intricacies of factionalism, unable to partake in the fray.

BEING a hermit is the reason you aren't involved, not saying joining a group that partakes in faction stuff is "easy", however, there is no VIP ticket or special access you need to organize your own. So, if you really want to interact with realm stuff, go for it. Probably not now, since pretty much all territory is covered and the handful of "faction" people playing haven't stopped playing since the previous wipe.

As far as encouraging realm + village/hermit interaction would require a lot of work, and I'll be honest, I have no idea what that would look like.