Ultima X: Odyssey Combat Interview, Part Two
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Q: Are you doing anything to encourage players to group; e.g. will they receive bonuses? How will experience and loot be divided up?
A: Grouping will allow you to gain more experience over time simply by virtue of the fact that a group can kill more monsters over time. But, this bonus will not be so high as to make soloing a waste of time. We want to create a system whereby grouping is encouraged, but not required. Also, another interesting point of our grouping system is that it allows for vastly different levels within the party. Most MMOGs discourage and even penalize groups with characters of differing levels, but not so in our game. If you're significantly lower level than your friends, that shouldn't keep you from adventuring with them.
Experience is divided equally among the characters in the party, and the total amount is based on the highest party member's level related to the monster the party killed. Items are distributed based on the party's loot distribution setting (set by the party leader), which includes options like free for all, party leader distributes, or party order. Free for all allows anyone in the party to grab the loot. Party leader means that all loot access is restricted to the party leader, who then can give out the items. Both of these choices are recommended for players that know and trust each other well. The last option, party order, ensures that members get a fair amount of loot by automatically assigning looting rights to each based on their order in the party. This is the recommended loot distribution for parties that have just met, since it impartially distributes the loot.
