Totems and how they should work.

[MrDDT]

I agree that the current system needs to change.

In IRC, a system was discussed where in addition to the default adding resources to maintain the totem, you can go out on adventures in the new areas, and quest rewards (maybe tokens or something) could be added to the totem in lieu of resources. These totem tokens could also be tradeable.

So every 50th zombie you kill might give a token.

Yep and that token can have unit value to it based on how easy or hard they are to get.

I dont know what the time effort balance would be per unit, and size of the tribe. The the theory is that more people in a tribe would or could split up the duties to gather resources, and also do harder things to get better value resources. So a 100man tribe could easy upkeep a 100man totem, but a 5 man tribe would have to put a lot of work into it to keep up a 100 man totem. But at least this way they would have the option.

Also this will allow decay.

Someone in IRC was talking about "What if I had to go away for a few months" well, overstock your totem, or have your friends pick up the slack.

[Korinag]

Guess I might as well respond to this seeing as how Xsyon booted me while I was in the middle of a fight with a bear

But yea, I agree with this idea 100%

UO used to have a house decay, didn't require paying money, just that you or someone else on house friend list open the door every 7 days or the house would start to decay till it was gone after 2 weeks I think.

I think a resource cost in this game make more sense cause it's sorta representative that the tribe is 'reparing and upgrading' the buildings. Very apropriate and fitting. Plus it does attempt to promote an economy. And if the resource cost was high enough then the local resources would drain gradually and either force tribes to move, as many civilizations have had to in past, or create trade and or colonies that supply resources to the primary tribe.