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Player Driven Treasure Hunting Concept

Gidorick
Gidorick
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One of the more ‘sandboxy’ aspects of ESO that I have really enjoyed is the Treasure Hunting. Finding a map and running around a zone to find the right location is really fun. It would be even more fun if players were allowed to bury their own treasures around Tamriel.

I have a really detailed explanation of this concept with percentages and numbers but I realized no one wants to read that so here are the highlights… with some numbers. :wink:
Player Motivation
  • Players can bury chests as a gamble with the possibility of XP and gold return based on the value of the items buried and the length of time the chest is hidden.
  • Players who find a treasure by following a map would get the contents of the chest plus an amount of XP determined by how long the chest has been buried.
Creating the Chest
  • Players should be able to build a chest by independently crafting the Chest, the Lock, and the Map.
  • Chests can be crafted in different motifs and quality, which could impact XP and gold return.
  • Locks can be crafted with different levels of difficulty and can be enchanted with glyphs for traps.
  • Maps can either be bought from a merchant or could be crafted, depending on how complex the system needs to be.
Burying the Chest
  • After a player has the three components, they can choose a spot to bury their items. Players who bury treasures will receive a Master Map of their treasure map and a key.
  • The map is created by the player choosing a view a specific distance from the treasure. ZOS would have to really work on this so that players couldn’t just make a map of a bunch of leaves or the side of a house, obscuring the view of the chest.
  • The Map should be a screenshot that is converted to “Sketch” or “watercolor” style automatically by the system with the treasure being indicated automatically.
  • Players should be able to name their treasure or the system could assign it a name based on a predetermined list of words. “The Mysterious Bounty of Kalin Thundershoe in Glenumbra”
  • Once buried, a copy of the treasure map will be randomly dropped by a mob in the zone. The longer the treasure goes un-found more maps are dropped.
  • The lock could deteriorate over time, making it more susceptible to seizing (as outlined in my Advanced Lockpicking suggestion, which can be found here http://forums.elderscrollsonline.com/discussion/146487/advanced-lockpicking-concept-suggestion).

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Treasure Yield
  • The possible XP return, which is determined by the quality of the chest should be up to a 1:1 conversion of the value of the items in the chest.
  • Initially, 100% of the XP yield is rewarded to the treasure finder, if the treasure is found on the first map drop.
  • For every additional map drop, the XP pool skews toward the treasure hider. Example: If 10 maps have been dropped, the treasure finder gets 50% of the XP pool and the treasure hider receives 50% of the pool upon their return.
  • At any point, the player that buried the treasure can return to their booty and claim their XP and gold return (they should receive an equal percentage return on their gold). If the treasure hasn’t been found, the player receives all that they placed in the chest PLUS the XP and gold yield. If the treasure was found, they receive the percentage of the XP pool that the finder did not receive an equal percentage of gold yield.
Additional Mechanics
  • Once a treasure is found, no further map copies are dropped and all copies of the dropped maps crumble to dust and fragments in player’s inventories, letting players know that treasure has been found. The Master Map owned by the player that buried the treasure remains intact so they can return to the treasure to claim their gold yield and XP. That player will not know if their treasure was found until they open their chest to claim their prize.
  • If a player holding Master Maps and keys is killed in PVP, the player that defeated them will be able to steal the key and a Master Copy of the map. The victor can then find the treasure and claim whatever the treasure hider would have been entitled to. If the treasure had not yet been claimed the victor would claim the contents, and the XP percentage and gold yield that would have been awarded to the treasure hider.
  • When the treasure is found by a player holding a Master Map or a Master Copy map, the key for that chest will break, letting the player holding the key know that the treasure is no longer available.
  • Master Copy maps and Keys should be bind on pickup. This is to prevent players from burying a treasure and then giving maps and keys to their friends to allow their friends to get an immediate XP boost. Maps dropped by mobs, however, could be sold or traded to create a sort of treasure-map trade.
Guild Treasures
A slight alteration of this concept could allow guild leaders and officers to also randomly mail treasure maps to members of their guild. The rate of random mailing could be more frequent and the map could be mailed to multiple members at once. This mechanic could unlock when a guild has 200+ members. The large number of members required is to prevent possible system abuse.

So that’s an overview of the concept. Any thoughts? What would be a good way to monetize this for the Crown Shop? I already suggested in my Advanced Lockpicking Suggestion (http://forums.elderscrollsonline.com/en/discussion/146487/advanced-lockpicking-concept-suggestion#latest) that an Awl and Hammer be sold in the crown shop to allow players to bust open locks. The Advanced Lockpicking coupled with this suggestion could lead to a really robust Treasure Mechanic for ESO.

Complete treasure kits could be sold in the crown shop or players could craft the kits themselves.

Thoughts?
Edited by Gidorick on September 25, 2015 2:27AM
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  • WraithAzraiel
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    This is a pretty neat concept. Keep em comin'.
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  • AshySamurai
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    I don't like PvP aspect here. And I don't get who fill the chest: player or system?
    At any point, the player that buried the treasure can return to their booty and claim their XP and gold return (they should receive an equal percentage return on their gold)

    What stop me to hide treasure and return to it on the next day to get free xp?
    Make sweetrolls, not nerfs!
  • Gidorick
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    I don't like PvP aspect here. And I don't get who fill the chest: player or system?
    At any point, the player that buried the treasure can return to their booty and claim their XP and gold return (they should receive an equal percentage return on their gold)

    What stop me to hide treasure and return to it on the next day to get free xp?

    With this concept, the PVP aspect wouldn't remove Master Map from a player's inventory, just the Key. The player can then decide to rush to their Treasure, pick the lock, and get their booty... or gamble that the player who stole their key won't find their treasure. It would add a little race aspect to the mechanic. If a player didn't want this to happen, they could always store their Master Maps and Keys in their bank!

    The player would fill the treasure with their items and gold. If they returned the next day, and there had only been, say, 2 random map drop from a mob, they would only get like 10% of the XP & additional gold. A small reward for all that effort.

    Every 12 hours a new map would drop and for every map dropped the XP $ gold return for the trasure hider would increase by 5%... but they have no way of knowing if the treasure has been found unless they go open it, and if they open it, hunt is over.

    All these numbers were in my longer explanation. It was TL/DR material. Lol
    Edited by Gidorick on February 8, 2015 3:31PM
    What ESO really needs is an Auction Horse.
    That's right... Horse.
    Click HERE to discuss.

    Want more crazy ideas? Check out my Concept Repository!
  • Jeremy
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    Gidorick wrote: »
    One of the more ‘sandboxy’ aspects of ESO that I have really enjoyed is the Treasure Hunting. Finding a map and running around a zone to find the right location is really fun. It would be even more fun if players were allowed to bury their own treasures around Tamriel.

    I enjoy the treasure hunting too - even though the rewards are often not worth the time involved.

    Letting players bury their own treasure and perhaps leave clues or something as to where they are is a really cool idea. So I hope they are paying attention to your post.
  • Gidorick
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    Jeremy wrote: »
    Gidorick wrote: »
    One of the more ‘sandboxy’ aspects of ESO that I have really enjoyed is the Treasure Hunting. Finding a map and running around a zone to find the right location is really fun. It would be even more fun if players were allowed to bury their own treasures around Tamriel.

    I enjoy the treasure hunting too - even though the rewards are often not worth the time involved.

    Letting players bury their own treasure and perhaps leave clues or something as to where they are is a really cool idea. So I hope they are paying attention to your post.

    I bet if they let players burry their own treasure we would get some truly awesome gear... and sometimes we would get a bunch of used bait! lol.
    What ESO really needs is an Auction Horse.
    That's right... Horse.
    Click HERE to discuss.

    Want more crazy ideas? Check out my Concept Repository!
  • Jeremy
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    Gidorick wrote: »
    Jeremy wrote: »
    Gidorick wrote: »
    One of the more ‘sandboxy’ aspects of ESO that I have really enjoyed is the Treasure Hunting. Finding a map and running around a zone to find the right location is really fun. It would be even more fun if players were allowed to bury their own treasures around Tamriel.

    I enjoy the treasure hunting too - even though the rewards are often not worth the time involved.

    Letting players bury their own treasure and perhaps leave clues or something as to where they are is a really cool idea. So I hope they are paying attention to your post.

    I bet if they let players burry their own treasure we would get some truly awesome gear... and sometimes we would get a bunch of used bait! lol.

    lol true. Would definitely be an unpredictable reward.
  • Faugaun
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    I am curious (BTW I really like this idea) so 5% increase every 12h (assuming this is real time not game time?)...would this be compound increments? So like chest is buried and an exp is assigned. Let's call the initial 100

    100 from 0-12h
    105 from 12-24h
    110.25 or 110 from 24-36h
    115.76 or 115 from 36-48h
    121.55 or 120 from 48-60h
    127.63 or 125 from 60-72h
    134.01 or 130 from 72-84h
    140.71 or 135 from 84-96h
    147.75 or 140 from 96-108h

    The left side is a straight up compound multiplier while the right is simply 5% additive....frankly I am a fan of multiplier.

    As far as a new map drops every 12 hour? So only 1 person gains a map each 12h? Or a new map with more clues?

    This is super duper cool!
  • AshySamurai
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    Gidorick wrote: »
    Jeremy wrote: »
    Gidorick wrote: »
    One of the more ‘sandboxy’ aspects of ESO that I have really enjoyed is the Treasure Hunting. Finding a map and running around a zone to find the right location is really fun. It would be even more fun if players were allowed to bury their own treasures around Tamriel.

    I enjoy the treasure hunting too - even though the rewards are often not worth the time involved.

    Letting players bury their own treasure and perhaps leave clues or something as to where they are is a really cool idea. So I hope they are paying attention to your post.

    I bet if they let players burry their own treasure we would get some truly awesome gear... and sometimes we would get a bunch of used bait! lol.

    Yeah. I'm worry about it too. Most chests will contain stack of lockpicks or used bait or some trash items. And with b2p we will get even more trolls with 1g and 1 lockpick in chest. Maybe it's better to let system fill this chest with option to add any item you want?

    IMO it would be nice if map drops for random location. I mean players would be able to find a map in Craglorn which leads them to Auridon or Rift. That is true exploration.

    Make sweetrolls, not nerfs!
  • Gidorick
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    Faugaun wrote: »
    I am curious (BTW I really like this idea) so 5% increase every 12h (assuming this is real time not game time?)...would this be compound increments? So like chest is buried and an exp is assigned. Let's call the initial 100

    100 from 0-12h
    105 from 12-24h
    110.25 or 110 from 24-36h
    115.76 or 115 from 36-48h
    121.55 or 120 from 48-60h
    127.63 or 125 from 60-72h
    134.01 or 130 from 72-84h
    140.71 or 135 from 84-96h
    147.75 or 140 from 96-108h

    The left side is a straight up compound multiplier while the right is simply 5% additive....frankly I am a fan of multiplier.

    As far as a new map drops every 12 hour? So only 1 person gains a map each 12h? Or a new map with more clues?

    This is super duper cool!

    I was thinking more additive than compound. Either one would work though! the compound might be easier code wise. just take the existing value and multiply.

    The player who finds the treasure gets the booty in the treasure PLUS their share of the XP pool which is dependant on how many maps have been dropped. The size of the XP pool is determined d by the quality of the chest and the value of the booty in the treasure. The lowest quality chest would be 1:1. Using your numbers up top.

    When the player buries their treasure with 100g worth of items, the pool of 100XP is created.

    If the last drop (9 maps) was that last one and a player found the treasure before the 10th drop, the player would get the 100 gold worth of treasure and 52.29XP

    When the treasure owner returns, they will receive 47.71XP and 47.71 gold.

    If the treasure owner returned at this time and no one had found the treasure, they receive their booty plus the 47.71 xp and gold. If they waited longer, the amount they would have received would have increased... 5% for every map drop.

    While this amount seems paltry, and you might be thinking "why bother for 47xp?"... imagine if the player buried 20,000 gold. Their possible XP gain would be 20,000xp. That's nothing to sneeze at.

    As for the drops, it would be the same map dropped multiple times. So at first there's one player that is looking for the map, then two.... All the way up to twenty. Players never know how many maps have been dropped. They only know that when they get the map, the treasure is still there. If the map crumbles to dust, hunt's over!

    I'm glad you like the idea! I think this would add a really fun dynamic to ESO.
    What ESO really needs is an Auction Horse.
    That's right... Horse.
    Click HERE to discuss.

    Want more crazy ideas? Check out my Concept Repository!
  • Faugaun
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    Codewise the difference is

    Multiplicative

    X = X*1.05

    Versus

    X = X + (insert fixed value here, example "50")

    Everything else would be identical more or less so one or the other isn't really more difficult it's just what system is preferred and why.

    I think the idea is awesome though I think the owner should only get 50% back plus the 5% increases, to prevent a bury, dig up, bury, dig up abuse...though you could bury 1,000,000 gold and immediately dig up to get 500,000 gold and 500,000 exp and that's probably fair if a person wants to trade gold to exp.
    Edited by Faugaun on February 9, 2015 3:53PM
  • Gidorick
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    Gidorick wrote: »
    Jeremy wrote: »
    Gidorick wrote: »
    One of the more ‘sandboxy’ aspects of ESO that I have really enjoyed is the Treasure Hunting. Finding a map and running around a zone to find the right location is really fun. It would be even more fun if players were allowed to bury their own treasures around Tamriel.

    I enjoy the treasure hunting too - even though the rewards are often not worth the time involved.

    Letting players bury their own treasure and perhaps leave clues or something as to where they are is a really cool idea. So I hope they are paying attention to your post.

    I bet if they let players burry their own treasure we would get some truly awesome gear... and sometimes we would get a bunch of used bait! lol.

    Yeah. I'm worry about it too. Most chests will contain stack of lockpicks or used bait or some trash items. And with b2p we will get even more trolls with 1g and 1 lockpick in chest. Maybe it's better to let system fill this chest with option to add any item you want?

    IMO it would be nice if map drops for random location. I mean players would be able to find a map in Craglorn which leads them to Auridon or Rift. That is true exploration.

    I wonder if "minimum treasure value" might help prevent trolls here. Or the title of the treasure could indicate it's value!

    The Stash of Fenrick = under 1k
    The Prize of Fenrick = 1k-5k
    The Plunder of Fenrick = 5k-10k
    the Riches of Fenrick = 10k-15k
    The Wealth of Fenrick = 15k-20k
    The Anundance of Fenrick =20k-30k
    The Treasure of Fenrick=30k-40k
    The Hoard of Fenrick=40k-50k
    The Fortune of Fenrick=50k+

    Eh, you get the idea. This would also make it so players who get maps of more legendary treasures go after them with more vigor.
    What ESO really needs is an Auction Horse.
    That's right... Horse.
    Click HERE to discuss.

    Want more crazy ideas? Check out my Concept Repository!
  • Gidorick
    Gidorick
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    Faugaun wrote: »
    Codewise the difference is

    Multiplicative

    X = X*1.05

    Versus

    X = X + (insert fixed value here, example "50")

    Everything else would be identical more or less so one or the other isn't really more difficult it's just what system is preferred and why.

    I think the idea is awesome though I think the owner should only get 50% back plus the 5% increases, to prevent a bury, dig up, bury, dig up abuse...though you could bury 1,000,000 gold and immediately dig up to get 500,000 gold and 500,000 exp and that's probably fair if a person wants to trade gold to exp.

    If the player buried 1 million gold and dug it up immediately they would receive no extra XP. the first 12 hours the Finder would get booty &100% of the XP.

    After the 2nd drop.
    Finder gets booty and 95%xp.
    Player who buried would get 5% bonus gold, 5% XP.

    3rd drop.
    Finder gets booty and 90%xp.
    Player who buried would get 10% bonus gold, 10% XP.

    Etc.

    To get 50% bonus gold back the player would have to bury their loot and wait 10 days. And the map drops are random to prevent players from just giving their friends maps.
    What ESO really needs is an Auction Horse.
    That's right... Horse.
    Click HERE to discuss.

    Want more crazy ideas? Check out my Concept Repository!
  • Faugaun
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    Now as a treasure hunter I would love to know the aproxximate prize.....but....as the person leaving the treasure I would want people to think that it is as small as possible. So they would not be as motivated to find the treasure.

    Perhaps a cooldown on how many chests you can hide in what period of time as well? Maybe same as the current horse training schedule 1x per 20h per character can be hidden. You can of course dig up as many as you would like at any time.
  • Gidorick
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    Faugaun wrote: »
    Now as a treasure hunter I would love to know the aproxximate prize.....but....as the person leaving the treasure I would want people to think that it is as small as possible. So they would not be as motivated to find the treasure.

    Perhaps a cooldown on how many chests you can hide in what period of time as well? Maybe same as the current horse training schedule 1x per 20h per character can be hidden. You can of course dig up as many as you would like at any time.

    Yea I agree that letting players know the value would put the power in the hands of the treasure hunter. The only other way to prevent trolling would to make the absolute minimum for a treasure value something like 1000g.
    What ESO really needs is an Auction Horse.
    That's right... Horse.
    Click HERE to discuss.

    Want more crazy ideas? Check out my Concept Repository!
  • Dominoid
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    That was a lot of work and a fun read. Thanks.
  • dafox187
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    i love this idea the treasures system always seemed so bland and it would be cool if the player can have a unlimited amount of his maps and give them to friends so he/she could have a friends only treasure hunt

    don't get mad at my spelling, autocorrect doesn't cover fantasy.
    Why couldn't the Khajiit go to the party? She had to be Elsweyr.
  • Gidorick
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    dafox187 wrote: »
    i love this idea the treasures system always seemed so bland and it would be cool if the player can have a unlimited amount of his maps and give them to friends so he/she could have a friends only treasure hunt

    I would agree with this only if the ONLY thing the players got from the treasure was what was put in it. If there were experience or gold yield, this would be abused.
    What ESO really needs is an Auction Horse.
    That's right... Horse.
    Click HERE to discuss.

    Want more crazy ideas? Check out my Concept Repository!
  • Xandryah
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    just the 3 words Treasure Chests Hunting motivates me a lot!

    i probably approve to all/most of all your suggestions regarding Treasure Chest Hunting

    here is my brainstormed idea:

    > dailies in pve-pvp-worlds (areas) could yield also fragments of maps that can be then used to form the whole treasure map (like the spellcrafting concept) > the more dailies you do the higher the chance to finally find the treasure

    the map-snippets could also form a scroll with a special spell that can be used during a boss fight ( in a solo-dungeon/delve/cave) that will then yield the chest...(press E-key during fight)
  • Gidorick
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    I really like the idea of Dailies that yield Map fragments! That would be a good mechanic to add to the Guild Treasures.

    The Treasure Scroll is a good idea too! Summoning a treasure after a fight is a cool idea. It should act like the an anchor chest and everyone involved should get treasure from the chest.

    Combining the two could be dailies that provide scroll fragments that would allow a player to summon the treasure after a fight.
    What ESO really needs is an Auction Horse.
    That's right... Horse.
    Click HERE to discuss.

    Want more crazy ideas? Check out my Concept Repository!
  • Jar_Ek
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    Necro on this with thieves guild coming...
    If something like this were implemented I would suggest the following:

    1. Chests are named based off value within.
    2. Chests can have a max of 4 different item types + gold in.
    3. Only 1 chest can be buried by a character at one time.
    4. The owner of the chest can voluntarily sell map copies via the thieves guild (or via a guild store).
    5. The xp and value returns are based on maps in circulation and time. The bonus is calculated after every 12 hrs based on maps in circulation (ie. no maps, no bonus).
    6. Items stored may increase in rarity level if the bonus applied becomes high enough.
    7. There is a minimum ok 500g in a chest (so no stacks of worthless stuff).

    This way you can try to cover costs by selling maps yourself. You can potentially upgrade gear using this method, with the risk that you lose the gear to a treasure hunter. There are no rubbish chests and a barrier to griefing chests.
    Unless you have a lot of maps out and wait for a decent period you cannot make lots of free xp and gold.
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