So, Im not entirely sure of the future of NPCs. I know I want to fantasize about actual factions with guards and civilians who craft and scouts and mercs and guards and a (farce) beauracracy set up so that they feel alive and living. And of course they have fights and sudden hordes and nether critters attack them and ants decided to grab some quick meats and slavers who may or may not be crabfungals.
The whole kit. But Ive heard that NPCs will be a slow evolving thing due to how much effort it takes to make decent ai and how they dont understand that canteens can fit along the waist and have drinkie bits in them. You know, stuff like the actual nuts and bolts of it.
Still, what is reasonable to expect NPCs to do? What can we do with them now?
For instance, they wear some basic variety of things, but then we have whole swathes of zombie-drop clothing they seems to neglect. presumably because a lot of that crap is tattered and ripped though and etc. Fair enough, but we are also the only ones capable of repairing that stuff? Would anyone conciously object to adding several pragmatic groups of items to various NPC kitouts, in a t least a semi-rare or uncommon fashion? If not haphazardly. The NPCs might think they need 3 pairs of mothrotten boots, but we can set them to spawn with decent stuff, and after all, we have lived so many lives in the game and should be working on things like proper pricing of items and priority of clothing.
I would expect clothing to evolve at different rates depending on where the lore goes. We are still waiting for that to update, I think. But will the game be one of the twilight of humanity, where large stable factions and the somewhat feudal societies I imagine would evolve can be supported?
Its death to step outside without equipment, especially so in a supernatural world where the monsters evolve so readily. Those too poor or too coddled to go out stay in and wait to die/provide services.
Would the NPCs command any significant machinery? Turrets or robutts? The application of rel-time hunger and temperature? A way to attract/repulse hordes?
Im wonder ing about what people think the furture of humanity will be like and whats reasonable to expect out of NPCs in a game where framerate isnt an issue but massive calcuations for NPCs we will never use is frivilous. Clothing merely provides a readily accessible way to change NPCs to feel more alive.