Open Source Quests

I had an idea about offering an open-source-like format for players who wish to create their own quests.

The idea is still young and I haven't given it any developmental thought, but I feel that there is some potential to giving players the tools to write their own quests.  The format would need to be fairly simple and flexible, covering basic information:

• The NPC's name
• The Greeting (what the NPC says when you bump into it)
• The Service provided by the NPC (take an item, give an item)
  
• The Condition(s) under which the NPC provides the service
• The Success message (spoken when the conditions are met and the service is provided)
• The Failure message (spoken when the conditions for providing the service are not met)

Here are two examples of how the quests could work together.  One NPC could be structured to preform the service of accepting hand axes:

/name "Bevis"
/greeting "Hello! I've been trying to cut down the mightiest tree in the forest with this herring. If I had a hand axe, then the job would be much easier."
/service TAKE=HANDAXE, CONFIRM (the NPC asks for confirmation before accepting hand axes)
/condition EQUIP=HANDAXE (the player must be holding the hand axe for the service to happen)
/success "Thanks for the hand axe, mate! I'll tell all of the other lumberjacks that you're okay."
/fail "If you know of anyone with a spare hand axe, then please send them to me."

Another NPC could be structured to preform the service of giving the player a log of wood – but only if that player gave a hand axe to the first NPC:

/name "Frost"
/greeting "Hello. These woods are lovely, dark and deep."
/service GIVE=LOGOFWOOD (the NPC gives a log of wood)
/condition NPC "Bevis"=SUCCESS (the NPC preforms this service only if the NPC "Bevis" successfully preformed his service for the player)
/success "Oh, Bevis had mentioned that you're a friend of the lumberjacks. He sent this wood to you as a token of thanks."
/fail "I'd love to chat, but I have promises to keep."

The idea needs a lot of development, but there's some potential to it.  I would need to address error trapping and error feedback.  I would also need to think on where and how quests would get implemented.  Maybe the player would bump into a Quest NPC in the fairgrounds and speak the commands to it.  If the NPC didn't like a command, then it would complain right then and there ("I don't recognize the name 'Beavis.' Please check your spelling and try telling me the command again").  To place a Quest NPC in the game, maybe the player would go to a location and say "BEVIS COME HERE," and the NPC would automagically appear by the player's side.

There's a lot to think about before this goes anywhere near The List.  For now, I'd file this idea under "Vaporware."