4.0 gameplay changes: level progression, scoring, and challenges

[minoneer]

This issue tracks gameplay-facing redesign ideas for a future 4.0 release.

The goal is not incremental balance tweaks, but a more intentional gameplay model that we can iterate on over time.

Initial scope

• Rework island level progression so it does not scale linearly forever.
• Rework block scoring so mass-placeable materials do not dominate progression.
• Revisit diminishing returns and block limits as part of a clearer scoring model.
• Rework challenge loading and challenge balance to fit the new progression model.
• Rebalance the starter chest. It still competes with using the complete chest as building material for an early nether portal, and that should be earned later.

Level-system notes

• The current system uses per-block values divided by a constant points-per-level, which makes progression linear forever.
• That makes it difficult to assign fair values to blocks, especially cheap or mass-producible processed blocks.
• Glass is one known example where the current values make high-level stacking too easy.
• A better model likely combines superlinear level requirements with targeted diminishing returns or other anti-exploit controls.
• The scoring rules should be explainable, testable, and easier to reason about than the current large static value table.

Challenge-system notes

• Challenge progression should be reviewed alongside island level progression instead of treated as a separate balancing problem.
• Challenge loading and challenge data handling likely need a rework as part of that effort.

Release framing

• 3.4.x focuses on reliability, migration safety, and legacy cleanup.
• 4.0 is the right place for more significant gameplay and balance changes.

This issue is intentionally broad. Additional gameplay rework ideas can be added here later.

[louloumc]

Players need longer-term development goals, rather than place blocks and entities to increase their levels. At the same time, the higher the game version, the more types of items and creatures there are. It is also very important for players to be able to experience the complete gameplay of the high game version.
If the balance and gameplay are well-designed, this plugin will be the best plugin for the SkyBlock gameplay!
The author has worked hard!

[minoneer]

Thank you!

Yes, you are right. Balancing advanced gameplay is tricky - and needs some thought. If you have any concrete suggestions or ideas, please share! Currently, this is just a loose collection of my own thoughts and intentions, but nothing concrete. I am still refactoring the legacy systems before tackling major game-play features.

[louloumc]

I'd be more than happy to offer some ideas. However, I need to observe the players' gaming experience first before I can come up with better suggestions for gameplay improvements.
I will collect some suggestions and the problems I encounter, and accumulate them to a certain amount before submitting them.

[minoneer]

Great! Looking forward to the ideas.

[minoneer]

Starter-item and perk follow-up for 4.0

The current extra-item / perk model is spread across multiple overlapping systems:

• donor-perks
• options.island.extraPermissions
• hardcoded permission-derived perks in PerkLogic
• scheme-specific extra items under island-schemes

This makes starter chest behavior hard to reason about. A concrete example is that OP players currently receive the obsidian + flint-and-steel portal kit through options.island.extraPermissions.netheraccess, even when creating the normal default island. That is not a skySMP leak, but it is still confusing and balance-hostile.

For 4.0, this should be cleaned up as part of gameplay/balance redesign:

• define one canonical perk/starting-bonus system
• remove overlapping legacy permission perk sources
• make scheme-specific starter items apply only to the chosen scheme
• rebalance or remove legacy starter kits such as nether access items
• make starter chest behavior predictable and explainable from config