More Signs of Robber's Camps in Overland Maps

[Felius]

After the second "Homeland Robbers" quest frustrating me with me impossible to find robbers, it comes to mind that it shouldn't be quite that hard, at least for a highly skilled tracker.

Specifically, a few things that come to mind as possibilities:

• More trails than just on the specific tile the robbers are: Unless all of the robbers are ridiculously good outdoorsmen themselves, they'll probably be leaving track, specially if they move around a given area to find prey to rob.
• Watching for smoke and light: Even the dude who stumbled upon them in the first place says that he stumbled upon then because he followed some smoke. Being able, at least if you have some advantage point over the area, for smoke (during the day) or light (during the night) should be feasible. Maybe only for a few hours every day or couple days, but there should be the possibility
• The dude who got robbed mentions that rumor has that they have moved to the area where the quest points. You should be able to ask people in villages near (or even in the area in some cases), if they know where the robbers area to further narrow the search area.

[spamgoose]

Yea, this is a "hard" quest... in the sense of being hard for real-life reasons, rather than game reasons. I had quite the annoying adventure with it: https://www.unrealworld.fi/forums/index.php?topic=841.0

Things like smoke are good ideas generally for the game, but probably wouldn't be something added just for this quest. Once in the game though, it would be really good.

I like the idea of being able to ask nearby villagers a lot. I actually went to a village to try this, hoping it was part of the quest. I would prefer it if quests could be solved different ways depending on a character's strengths. Getting information, or even someone to lead you to them should cost you some goods. That works for a talented craftsman/trapper. Alternatively, more tracks (as you say) should be good for the skilled woodsman type character. It should be about using game skills, not trying your patience in the real world.

Similarly, the robbers should be moving around more looking to rob someone. I mean, they *are* robbers. That would leave more tracks.

All that being said, the reward for the quest is huge... so if it is made a little bit easier, I wouldn't mind if the reward was cut a bit. Also, the annoyingness of it, made it feel very satisfying.

[Felius]

All that being said, the reward for the quest is huge... so if it is made a little bit easier, I wouldn't mind if the reward was cut a bit. Also, the annoyingness of it, made it feel very satisfying.

You'd still have to fight off multiple armed attackers, so it's not quite that easy though.

But yeah, if the reward is that huge, I do see reason to reduce it some if the quest is made less impossible.

[LoLotov]

As huge as the reward is, it's only as good as the wealth of the village that gives it to you. I did two robber quests in a row for the same village in Kaumo, but had taken everything of value from them (except their food, saving it for needier times) at three quarters through the first reward.

[spamgoose]

As huge as the reward is, it's only as good as the wealth of the village that gives it to you. I did two robber quests in a row for the same village in Kaumo, but had taken everything of value from them (except their food, saving it for needier times) at three quarters through the first reward.

That is a good point. I did it on behalf of the Driik, so I ended up with a lovely Masterwork Crossbow and had credit to spare (I think). I can't imagine how sad it would feel doing it on behalf of the seal tribe (for example).

It's a bit of an odd situation too. To do the quest safely you need to hire people, feel confident in your armour and weapons, and have the necessary food to go traipsing around the forest forever. By that point in the game a large "goods" reward isn't necessarily that exciting.

I wonder if there was something creative that could be done instead (or in tandem with a smaller goods reward). Maybe the village could give you a title, haha.

"Oh Marshal, it's so lovely to see you again."
"That's right; I'm a Marshal."

If they ever bring marriage into the game, it'd be a great quest to get the family's permission for marriage.

[Mati256]

I would prefer it if quests could be solved different ways depending on a character's strengths. Getting information, or even someone to lead you to them should cost you some goods. That works for a talented craftsman/trapper. Alternatively, more tracks (as you say) should be good for the skilled woodsman type character. It should be about using game skills, not trying your patience in the real world.

This is a great idea. Like RPG games where you can use charisma, or threat someone to solve quests.

[LoLotov]

I think as a reward they should make you an honorarary citizen of the village, and able to perform any task (other than theft) that they would normally be angry about, such as cutting down their trees and harvesting their herbs/produce.

[MrMotorhead]

I think this one deserves a bump.

It took a very long time to complete this quest.  I think adding a bunch of tracks all over the search area would be a good start.  I was in this area for five game days and I never caught sight of the robbers in the overland map and I never found any human tracks.

I don't think I would have solved this quest without looking at the wiki and the forums and finding the information that you have to be zoomed in on the local tile for them to spawn.

I really like some of the other ideas here such as spotting fires from a long way away.

Also if someone's chopping down a tree, that sound carries a long way, that could be another way to help find a settlement or encampment.

[PALU]

Njerps occasionally chop down trees...

Robbers CAN be seen on the overland map occasionally. However, I think that has only happened once over a score or so quests (and it happens outside of quests in the form of "adventurers" in the distance).

The quest info says the know how to hide, so from that perspective it shouldn't come as a surprise that they're hard to find, but that doesn't make it any less frustrating. I don't think you have to be zoomed in for them to spawn, but you typically have to be zoomed in to encounter them or their tracks.

If they're good at hiding, they'd hide their fires, and if they light fires only during night time there'd be no smoke to be seen, and UrW doesn't (yet) simulate smell, so you can't smell the smoke from a fire.

[Dungeon Smash]

I think pretty much all of these are good suggestions.  It would also be cool to occasionally stumble upon non-hostile camps, like an abandoned cabin, or a hunter cooking up his dinner.  Of course, maybe an abandoned shelter isn't so abandoned after all and a hunter comes back to see you have taken his things.  Things like this are featured in some of the quests and starting backgrounds, but it would be neat to have them randomly occur in day-to-day gameplay as well. 

Also, on the topic of smoke, I would love to see that in the game as well and it would also be cool to have wildfires.  I fight wildfires here in the US in real life and it's a lot of fun