Random Roguelike Town

[JollyRoger]

I am working on randomly generated town.
Of course, it would have wide selection of shops:
weaponsmith, armoursmith, bower, bookseller, Leatherworker, Tailor, general store, jeweler, healer, magic shop, Carpenter.
Of course, civilian houses.
But, I am a bit frustrated, what to to add?
 

So subject: what do you really want to see in random roguelike town?

This is screenshot of current town status: (Anybody know, how to hide screen at 'spoiler' area?)

[kraflab]

There should be the "bad" side of town, with a rough tavern, gambling dens, and a small arena for when people need to sort out their issues.  How about a barracks for the guards and watch towers/posts spread about the outskirts and around important buildings?  How about parks and other recreational areas?  Shooting galleries, small ponds, rivers with bridges, statue gardens...

What about sewers and clandestine meeting places?

This is what comes to mind anyway.

[JollyRoger]

Bad side of the town needs bigger town, maybe city.
I can hardly imagine bad side in hamlet. Maybe one "bad tavern".
But, it is really good idea!
I will:
1. Enlarge town area.
2. Add bad taverns with suspicious tavern. It would have "nasty" basement, even Den!
3. Maybe, some small towns could be completely "bad", some sort of outlaw settlement.

Sewers - Thats cool idea.
From one hand, it isn't realistic aspect of gameplay. City sewers are mark of really advanced civilization.
But from other hand, if we our development paradigm is "Gameplay > Realism", it is not a problem. Some sort of "city dungeon", could be really interesting.
Maybe, "bad side" of town, could be moved there.
 

[Omnomnom]

A few dozen citizens walking around randomly between shops and their houses would be cool. Maybe stray dogs or cats and a horse and cart going up and down the road. Just to make it feel busy like a town is going on around you. Then you can also do cool stuff like make the player come across a town that has no activity at all and the player will notice that something is wrong.

[Paul Jeffries]

How about an Undertaker's office?  Could be a source of certain 'supplies' for Necromancer characters and perhaps you could also buy certain permadeath-related bonuses: a decent burial could prevent your character from coming back as a ghost on future playthroughs and a posh headstone could make his/her entry on the high-score table a bit fancier...

[JollyRoger]

How about an Undertaker's office?  Could be a source of certain 'supplies' for Necromancer characters and perhaps you could also buy certain permadeath-related bonuses: a decent burial could prevent your character from coming back as a ghost on future playthroughs and a posh headstone could make his/her entry on the high-score table a bit fancier...

This is brilliant idea! It could be really interesting addition to 'bones' folder.

A few dozen citizens walking around randomly between shops and their houses would be cool. Maybe stray dogs or cats and a horse and cart going up and down the road. Just to make it feel busy like a town is going on around you. Then you can also do cool stuff like make the player come across a town that has no activity at all and the player will notice that something is wrong.

Hmm. They could walk to randomly selected locations, all player most of the time doesn't interested in NPC purposes. Incredible simulation or just randomly selected building.
Stray cat is fine too!  

[JollyRoger]

Good. Using idea of Omnomnom. I added wandering NPC. They just selecting random location (house, store, inn, not just map cluster) and walking there.
Town looks really nice with all that people walking here and there.
I think, that I'll add some rudimentary simulation to this moves:
1. People would have  chance of 40% to return home, if left his/her move outside of home.
2. Taverns and shops etc would have higher priority for NPC.
3. NPC, from time to time would be speaking about goals, like: "NPC: I want to visit my good friend John Smith" or "Need a supper, lets go to Wise Tankard and Dragon Inn" etc.

[guest509]

  The walls need to be a different color than the ground, darker maybe. I just now realized what was going on there. I was wondering way there were 2 walls around the indoor spaces. I didn't realize the walls were thick, I though that they were just more ground. Maybe it's just my eyes though, sometimes I do not discern colors well.

  Other than that your town looks pretty rad. There are old RPGs that list types of merchants and buildings and such that can be added. Things you might find in a room, etc...

  Not much to add, I really just wanted to point out that color issue.

[JollyRoger]

Strange, nobody reported it beforehand. 
Maybe, temperate palette isn't great for color blind guys. 


About town and sewers.
I find interesting solution:
Small towns wouldn't have sewers, they aren't so advanced.
Small towns may have or may not have system of linked caves at lowest level of town map.

Yeah, all criminal activity would be there! Thank you guys for cool ideas!

[AgingMinotaur]

Cock fight (or other opportunity for gambling), temple/shrine/oracle, railroad station, street peddlar, mineral spring/spa, bazaar/market place … All of these can be fleshed out by attracting NPCs: types who bet in the cockfight or stand in line to talk with the oracle, etc.

River, lake, or other interesting landscape, tent, tree house, fire station/police station, prison/torture chamber, fountain, mining agency, town square, public bell, fountain, deep well, garden, hedge maze or turf maze, animals (fenced in pigs, grazing sheep etc.), bee keeper, crone/geezer, banker, fanatic, scientist, cook/baker, barber, cobbler, chimney sweep, tourist …

As always,
Minotauros

[Omnomnom]

I also noticed the top of the walls are the same color as the ground but forgot to mention it

[guest509]

Just some color changes.

[Omnomnom]

wow that makes quite a difference. my eyes now get drawn to the room contents rather than I guess being confused about the walls. So now I am wondering what is in those locked chests and down those stairs.

[guest509]

  Well I have weird eyes, glad you thought it was improved. I lightened the roof/walls by quite a bit, that's obvious, I also lightened the floors a tad to make the objects pop just a bit.

[RogueMaster]

I am working on randomly generated town.
Of course, it would have wide selection of shops:
weaponsmith, armoursmith, bower, bookseller, Leatherworker, Tailor, general store, jeweler, healer, magic shop, Carpenter.
Of course, civilian houses.
But, I am a bit frustrated, what to to add?
 

So subject: what do you really want to see in random roguelike town?

I don't know your town's size, and the next one could be out of place, but anyway...

- Scribe a.k.a. NPC that sells magic scrolls and books and different non-magical codex and papers with ancient tales and stories. Some of then could have quests. and other just for game story.
- Witch/Shaman's hut, (away from the village center). Can remove curses from items/player/.... They can give quests. They can know some info about the magic/mystic/underworld/infernal/... world.
- King's Tax Collector's office. Also King's messenger, offers hard and long quests, probably non side quests, but main quests
- Different profession guilds: Woodworkers Guild, Hunters Guild, fishermen guild, farmers guild, etc A lot of things you can do with them
- Spiritual Guide home, a.k.a. Priest/Monk/Divine guy/.... Heals. Teaches divine/holy/white magic/purification/... magic spells. Restores player faith. Cures black magic curses. Accepts donations for a possible (small) God favor. Sells books about religion/s topics. He doesn't like much the Witch/Shaman in the village.
- Auction House. The player can sell/buy anything here, but prices may randomly vary in time
- Physician, a.k.a. item identifier a.k.a town sage a.k.a. Cain in Diablo games.
- Ye' Bards' Goldin Harp. Here, musicians met and player can buy musical instruments and learn how to interpret music, lyrics and drama. It's up to your imagination what this is useful for.
- Thifer's Emporium. A place where random items are sold, but a semi-hidden dark and closed back door leads to a cellar where questionable persons do some business and talk about something that the "police" wouldn't approve. Some people says that Thifer's sounds somehow like "thieves". Is it just a coincidence?
- Forum. Yes, a forum (Latin word), where ancient Romans used to discuss random things but also non random things, and women gossip about the last rumor and about how XXXXX woman is cheating his man. It's actually one of the most transited streets and with a lot of street vendors, minstrels and singers, Joe the Fool and etc...
- School. Place where kids go when parents don't want them wandering around.