Public Dedicated Servers; endless issues and wild suggestions

[raoglu]

Hello, I want to report some problems about public servers.

All these compalints and suggestions are for only public dedicated servers. These aren't regular issues about game mechanics or close team plays. I think Klei should pay a little more attention to public servers them, because these servers are stronger and more people can play there with less lags.

You shouldn't rely on custom options or mods to prevent these issues, becuase these servers  usually run on default options with no mod.

I added my suggestions with "S" title after the issue. 

1-Current Survival mode preventing progress in game. Imagine, 10 players succeds good gameplay and reach 100 days. But after that, when nobody in server a new player joins and dies and  resets the world. Then, even that player leaves the server. Only one player can reset the world in Survival mode when no other players in and making other players' efforts nothing. This situtation also traps these servers into vicious circle making no progress in these worlds.

S: You shoiud give at least 36 hours players to return who have most days in server. Arrange some kind of calculation, give players more force who have days even when they are not in the server. To reset the world, require the enough force. If those playes won't reconnect to that server in 36 hours, than erase their force. Or any other possible solutions to remove this unbalance. On the other hand, it happens like 5 players playing 100 days then in the morning somebody new joins and dies. It is all over again.

2- "Kick" option doesn't work to professional griefers. When kick vote starts for griefer, that person leaving the server. So kick fails and than he joins again for griefering. Another time vote starts and he leaves again before vote end. Making vote kick option useless. And yes there are that type of players in game.

 S: Solution is obvious, should not allow those players rejoin again if kick votes pass when they are not in server. You can also ban those players for days if they try multiple times.

3- Most public open servers ara empty in hard seasons which are not giving a chance to survive alone. Starting in hard season prevents continous gameplay and making new joins impossible. It can be difficult but not  almost impossible. Why they have to be empty just because hard season? In addition, this situation off-putting players from game.

S: Try to give some basic survival items at first join in hard seasons to let them survive at least for a few days. Give some flints, grass, twigs, logs.
Not too much, barely survive for few days, then they can go on their own. Thermal stone for winter, umbrella for spring, straw hat and whirly wind 
for summer. They even dont have to be %100 durability. Guaranteeing a few grass and saplings near portal is really not enough. Don't rely on mods or 
admins, because there are none of them in public servers.

4-There are some Florid Postern/Portal griefers beyond other griefers who cause others players die at the start of the game without chance of survive. Reading tentacle book in spawn, planting spider eggs, lure plants and even building wooden signs to unable to move at portal. It mostly happens in endless game but also in long term survival. Even dead players skeletons can block portal, one player can do it by dying a hundred times in endless game. Don't underestimate it, there are that type of players.
  
S: You should make Florid Postern/Portal area protected for anything else. Don't allow buildings, skeletons, farms, spiders dens. Nothing.

5- Game modes doesn't allow good public co-op gameplay most times. Beyond  griefer issues, newbie players can  make deadly mistakes those collapse whole gameplay. Or personal mistakes affect seriosly other players which make co-op games difficult. All game modes; endless, survival, wildernessn and default world options are not suitable enough for public co-op teamplays. I agree on, it is not possile to make it perfect but still can be much better.

S: You can add new game mode and make it default for dedicated servers. Make some changements on default options and add new ones for it. Less wild fires, some possible anti-grief precautions (still it can not prevented by all). Fire spread can be limited to avoid lose whole base by griefer's first willow lighter. Even can add some chest protection/authentication. Make individual mistakes affect  individuals. It will make game little easier, to balance add difficulties  other team works. Increase mobs/bosses health, make other things more costly.

I am regretfully saying there are more You  should send a few Klei crews to wander in public servers.  
Problems I mentioned are too obvious to realize at first glance.

I am open to discuss agreements/disagreements more on these.

Have a nice day.

[Tumalu]

1st. Honestly, this is what Endless is for. I know this does also mean Florid Postern revival is around, but that's not sooo bad as it inflicts twice the penalty of a telltale heart. But yeah, a dedicated server running on Survival is a recipe for a mess as you said, imo. Alsooooo, even when the timer is longer, there's -still- the fact that the lone dead player is likely to click the "Reset Now" button.

2nd. Completely agree. Even if they're not logged on at the time, they should still get the ban.

The last three are harder to answer... starting in winter/summer is a problem and I agree -something- should probably be given, but, mph. The one about trapping new players is probably about right, though; I'm not sure how -exactly- it'd work (No build zone is easy; prevent anything from being spawned there at all, though? The only thing I can imagine is a destructo-wave when a new player spawns in, but that carries it's own problems)

And the final one about newbie players messing up the game, well, I really don't think there's much Klei can do about that. How are they supposed to govern what kinds of fire can and can't touch certain things? So now half your base is fire-immune... sometimes? For dealing with griefers, you have already have server rollback options to go before the griefing happened, but for newbies there's really nothing to do. Inefficient food use, not carrying any weight, dying easily and in general being a burden aren't things Klei can do anything about. They also already heavily nerfed wildfires and added in resources regenerating to avoid wildfires destroying the world- and the wildfire can be turned down in settings already if you want it even less. ...also, it'd be a really unpopular mode (so people wouldn't even want to use it!) if it gave everything EVEN MORE HEALTH than they already have.

I know you said "no mods" but florid postern revival removal for #1 (so it's basically survival without regeneration mishaps- you're still gonna have people click the Reset Now button if you just make the timer longer) and the chest-locking thing in the final one (along with the already-present wildfire custom option) are answers to your questions that I -highly- doubt will ever be officially ingame. Yeah, that means you or someone you know needs to make the server, but that's how things go sometimes.

...but I do agree on 2/3/4 even if I'm not entirely sure how they'd implement a solution to 4.

[raoglu]

Hello @Tumalu

Thank you for reply. Let's discuss them in more detials.

1- That is why I emphasized on Public Servers. They start with "Survial" on default and most server owners do not prefer to change in options. They simply run server and don't want intervene other things. May be "Endless" can solve this, still not sure.
I think they changed voting system. One vote can not reset the world. There need more votes. But yes sometimes voting system can be problem too.
3- Just a few things barely survive for a few days. Thermal stone with %50 durability, few logs to make first campfire. Some grasses, twigs and flints. Even with those it won't be easy for average players, not mentioning even new players. On the other hand, I still think there shouldn't be a  game when you are joining to server and have less <%2 option to survive.

5- All these are suggestions, some are possible some are not :). However, for public co-op game conditions should like to other public games. If one person can ruin all other players' effort easily, that won't survive long.

Thank you for your response again.