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Dec-16-2004 16:34

I've made a few changes to the structure of mysteries today that aren't very obvious. I'll let you figure out most of them. A few important things though.

1) The harder level mysteries are probably a little tougher than before. If you find yourself having troubles, you might want to move down a level for awhile.

2) The number of suspects is no longer static on ANY difficulty level.

3) If townspeople / shopkeepers know anything about the case, and the person they know about isn't already visible to you, they will now become visible. You will not automatically know their motive though. This should make the non-physical evidence contacts more important than they used to be.

Dec-17-2004 10:23

OK - I played it a little more and I think for daily play, dropping down a level makes things equivalent. But the favors are really hard - even with great skills and great gear. I had 3 suspects clam on an inc. hard favor (never happened before). Granted, asking the townies saved the case, since the first suspect clammed on the first question.

But I agree that favors should be dropped down a level, too. Or else, perhaps Ben finally had devised a way to make the treasure hunts last a very long time ;-)

Dec-17-2004 11:03

I am paying attention to this thread and making more adjustments. So please keep it coming. However, keep in mind that it may take an adjustment in your strategies to maximise your effectiveness in the new setup.

Dec-17-2004 11:14

Anyone noticed you can consult with the fortune teller now?

Dec-17-2004 11:25

LOVE the fortune teller. Clever, and (I hope) useful - unless he lies too!!

Dec-17-2004 14:02

yeah but he didnt tell me anything usefull. did he help u?
ben if i need to change my startegy i get to the smae problem falco said u wait with town ppl till u first get alibis to check but to do that u ask suspect motive first and then u cant use townies for motive... and since i always counted on counting i mis evidence skills...

maybe ill get used to it...

Dec-17-2004 14:35

yes, he's very helpful, Reda! PM me if you want details. I also really like being able to jumpstart a case that stalls because folks clam up before you have all the witnesses. I think with Thomas' help, I can deal quite nicely with the varying length of suspect list. Good job, Ben!

Dec-17-2004 14:49

Dr Falco mentions something that was a light bulb of me earlier today.

We used to have 9 levels of cases (also counting beginner), with the level changes we have inherently 9 more level cases.
Instead of removing the original cases, I think we may have an addition of Sleuth here....18 levels of cases. More to pick from, and less people saying "I am in between two levels."

Dec-17-2004 14:52

huh? sorry jstkdn didnt get that.

thanks for all who PM me about the FT. I know what u mean, i just didnt find it helping much maybe cause i used it after i did my usual suspect round. i probably should use it earlier. thanks for reacting fast!

Dec-17-2004 16:36

Okay, glad for the townfolk change. Have you thought about letting a suspect be known research too? Disappointed in suspect list change :( Shady has become a very wealthy man from me. He's bought a yacht, mansion, joined a snooty country club, and I heard he's working on buying his own little island. Seriously, it was hard enough to just get the right amount of suspects.

Dec-17-2004 16:40

Hmm, a lot of negative reactions but I for one don't mind the changes at all. I noticed the higher difficulty and dropped a level. The only annoying thing is that you get a lower reward... but that's not something I'm gonna fall over.

I also think changes 2 and 3 were a good move. The static number of players made it too easy in some cases, imho. However, maybe next time advertise the changes a bit better. Lazy people like me don't read the forum before they play, so they are in for a surprise. And the showing of a person when they're mentioned by a townsperson is great. Now the lack of motive no longer applies to just the client. I like that.

And the Fortune Teller is very nice!

All in all, Ben, I think your changes are quite alright and are things we can adjust to. I'm not an expert on how doable cases are now on higher levels, so others might have a different perspective on it. Maybe next time advertise the changes a bit more obvious, to prevent surprises.