The possibility of having several Timetraps load in various places has been discussed in the past, but I am too lazy to dig up that thread.
However, I thought we should do something about it, and Nauz has promised to provide a script for it.
So below are the preliminary guidelines to hoa they should be set up.
Comments are welcome, as are suggestions about good places to put them.
Below are the main principles to how the Timetraps could be set up.
1. There will be at least 100 Timetraps in the Game, probably more, but they will not all be loaded at the same time.
2. They will load somewhat randomly (i.e. the places will be set, but there will not always be a Timetrap loaded at each of the set places).
3. The Timetraps will not always lead to the same destination, even when they load in the same place.
4. All the Timetraps will all be reset at regular intervals, probably every 4 hours. At the reset all existing Timetraps will be removed and a new batch loaded. (This will be done by a script that picks around a 40% of all the existing Timetraps at random and resets them in the pre-set locations, together with the corresponding trap leading back).
5. All Timetraps will look identical (i.e. you will have to enter them to know where you’ll end up).
6. Each Timetrap will always lead to another Dimension than the one you are in.
7. Each Timetrap will always be two-ways, (i.e. there will be a corresponding Trap back at the destination).
8. Each Timetrap will always lead to the same type of terrain.
9. Most of the Timetraps will load in reasonably well travelled places, for instance roads or tracks. There will usually be several different random destinations for these.
10. Some traps will however be set in more secluded places. These will usually lead to more ‘interesting’ destinations, (i.e. places that are a bit harder to normally reach)..
Example 1.
A Timetrap set on the West Trade Road outside Olde Yorke might lead to a road on a Greek Island one time, to a road on some Future planet a second time and a trail somewhere in the Oldwest a third.
Example 2.
A Timetrap set in Lostlands might lead to the Planet Yalc, or the Island Lebinthos , whereas one set in the Dark swamp close to Olde Yorke might lead to the Dagobah swamp or the Nile
Estuary. All swamps but more or less easy to get to.
A skilled player will be able to keep track of where the Timetraps load and use them as shortcuts, whereas to the average player, they will probably seem to appear randomly.
If you don’t like the destination the Timetrap sends you to, you’ll be able to go back immediately, using the return trap, but if you wait an hour the traps may have reset and you won’t be able to find a trap back.