Auto-ID for consumables

[mushroom patch]

So you guys are seriously considering an ID dance system? You realize it will be optimal play in this system to take rings back to 50 ft to ID against floating eyes after about 1000 ft? Or try all your weapons against troll packs? Dozens of times?

This would make angband unplayable. How can you justify the completely broken gameplay ramifications of holding onto ID in this way?

[fizzix]

So you guys are seriously considering an ID dance system? You realize it will be optimal play in this system to take rings back to 50 ft to ID against floating eyes after about 1000 ft? Or try all your weapons against troll packs? Dozens of times?

Optimal play would probably involve unsquelching potions of sleep and using those, or walking into a gas trap. (we'd need to ensure the potions drop later, unlike currently).

[Derakon]

This would make angband unplayable. How can you justify the completely broken gameplay ramifications of holding onto ID in this way?

We're pretty sure it'll be fun.

[mushroom patch]

I'm pretty sure if your plan is falling back on the existence of junk items that should be removed anyway, you're going to be disappointed with the results.

What you're talking about is functionally equivalent to creating five kinds of ID scrolls and giving them a high fail rate. It's a really bad idea, much worse than what you already have.

[MattB]

Some people, myself very much included, really enjoy the ID subgame.

I even like collecting and ID'ing the different types of wands, as a warrior, even though I squelch them all except TO (and stone to mud early on). It gives me real satisfaction to "find 'em all".

[HallucinationMushroom]

I was most impressed with NPP's mass-identify when I first came across it. I enjoy the excitement or suspense from id'ing an occasional good drop, but this joy is greatly diminished if i have to id stacks and stacks of loot after clearing, say, an ancient wyrm pit. I would be happiest with everything coming identified (and no hunger/food), but mass identify showing up as a game option right about the time you need it would be nice too. I don't know anything about this id-by-use idea... I would rather have a way to know what something is before I attempt to use it.

[mushroom patch]

Some people, myself very much included, really enjoy the ID subgame.

I even like collecting and ID'ing the different types of wands, as a warrior, even though I squelch them all except TO (and stone to mud early on). It gives me real satisfaction to "find 'em all".

You realize you can still catch 'em all if you ID by standing over things, right? Like, what you're talking about literally has nothing to do with the thread.

[Derakon]

I'm pretty sure if your plan is falling back on the existence of junk items that should be removed anyway, you're going to be disappointed with the results.

What you're talking about is functionally equivalent to creating five kinds of ID scrolls and giving them a high fail rate. It's a really bad idea, much worse than what you already have.

Your opinion has been noted.

Seriously though, we'll see how it plays, and if it turns out to not work in practice, then it'll be rolled back and we'll figure something else out.

[Nomad]

New proposition! How about rune-based ID, BUT, all runes on a piece of equipment are auto-identified as soon as you wield it? So: you see an unidentified pair of boots. You pick them up, put them on, and immediately discover that they're boots of Free Action. From this point on, you will automatically recognise all other items of Free Action on sight without needing to wield them.

It would preserve a little bit of "Ooh, what does this new unidentified item do?" mystery, and allow for players to accidentally equip cursed or negative items, but remove all the faff of having to manually identify runes with scrolls or by taking hits. In the early game players would have to wield unknown things quite a lot (but always be rewarded for doing so by learning at least one new rune), but by the mid-game it should only be necessary for rarer more interesting things, and by the endgame that aspect should have disappeared entirely and all items be insta-recognised.

Thoughts?

[mushroom patch]

. . .

Well, good thread, guys!

[Zireael]

I was most impressed with NPP's mass-identify when I first came across it. I enjoy the excitement or suspense from id'ing an occasional good drop, but this joy is greatly diminished if i have to id stacks and stacks of loot after clearing, say, an ancient wyrm pit. I would be happiest with everything coming identified (and no hunger/food), but mass identify showing up as a game option right about the time you need it would be nice too. I don't know anything about this id-by-use idea... I would rather have a way to know what something is before I attempt to use it.

I keep forgetting mass identify is not in V

[Tarrasque]

Are there any roguelikes with an ID minigame that's especially good, bad, or unique?

Looking back at the origin of IDing stuff, Rogue's random names certainly increase that game's difficulty, and, IMO, its fun and replay value. You have ID scrolls, but still often ID by use.

[krazyhades]

Well, nethack's ID game is certainly unique. But it takes an immense amount of knowledge or wiki-checking to do right. And it takes friggin years to wait for your pet to step on something.

[wobbly]

Nethack has pretty easy mass id. Altar+potion of water+stack of id scrolls. It was generally better to just wait then end up with a sticky curse.

[krazyhades]

Nethack has pretty easy mass id. Altar+potion of water+stack of id scrolls. It was generally better to just wait then end up with a sticky curse.

I was referring to the non magical forms of ID, of which there are several.