sabinati wrote:what if there were items that gave you LP? you could use only one of each type of item at a time, and more int would allow you to use more types of items. you would gain lp while you used these items, whether you were logged in or not. each item would have an amount of time that it worked for, after that the item would be gone. some could be foraged, some could be crafted, and some could be found in the course of your day-to-day activities, for example there might be a rare item found when clearing stumps, or fishing.
oh, and these items should be the only source of LP.
I knew one of you guys would spill the beans on Curiosities sooner or later, damn nice idea, the online/offline bit is absolutely great as it kills macroing cold and equalizes casuals and no-lifers (assuming the time span is >10 hours and the spread in LP rate is not too big). I had though 'curiosities' was a more abstract name, but it sounds like your saying they are literally three-handled-moss-covered-family-credenzas and work a bit like Symbel items. I'm assuming the rate of LP gain differs as dose the lifespan and the high end items give high rates but probably run out faster. I think having them split into categories would also be nice, so a Carpentry item just directly adds LP to carpentry (each skill now having its own LP point counter) and you choose your LP allocation through the choice of Curiosity equipped. Players would generally be getting a mixed assortment so they would be encouraged to trade them, if players get a mix of types and qualities and are at a net surplus (more available then time available to use them all) then the choice becomes a 'which to discard' rather then a 'hoard-them-all' game.
With a few modifications this could work with my mental-objects idea, the curiosities would be more 'Eureka' ideas that occur to your character when working or when 'tinkering' (crafting which consumes physical materials to produce a Curiosity). They would then be 'pondered' for their LP by equipping to a special 'State of mind' slot on the Equipment screen.