The Castle Doctrine Forums

@ colorfusin & mmaster, i heard what you're both saying. But that doesn't change the fact that right now when you are starting a new game the only way to get some cash ( and so to be able to actually play the game ) is to get extremely lucky by finding a doable house without tool or to wait until you get enough bounties.

That's why people ask for such an app to send automatic email, cause obviously if you wait too long your house will get brute forced.

But waiting is not playing, i'm sorry to say. It's stupid to wait an unknown amount of time before being able to actually play the game.
Sure you can be ok by just doing some design and watching the tape, i did first. But the excitement comes when you can afford a little amount of tool and scout some houses, trying to figure them out, upgrading your house.

I understand how we got there concept & design wise, but the situation is just silly.
You not only have to wait before playing, you have to check your house regularly... This isn't playing, it's waiting the right moment when the game allow you to play.

It won't happen, here's a quote from Jason :

So basically, if you want to get a good value house ( and by good value i mean 2000/3000, just to "play" ) to enjoy what the game can offer, then take some extreme, paranoid, and impractical measures. Like, not having a job or real wife and kids...

Sorry to bash here, but that's really how i feel. And it's a damn shame cause i think that game is a gem apart from that and i would like to play it without those "impractical measures"... You know like... A video game.

Add me then, i'll enjoy trying a less crowded server.

Edit : you can always send an email with the forum, and maybe add yours too.

As much i love games with controller support, you'll realize soon that to be just a little efficient in this game you'll need a note pad and castle draft opened at the same time ( with your keyboard to note the names correctly and copy paste the design you are scouting ).

It would be possible if the game was marking the house's name you are visiting and allow you some sort of "fog of war" mechanic, the game would remember what you did scout previously and show it to you in gray colors for example... In a way it wouldn't be that silly at all but it won't happen ( i understand the concept of Jason here, he want us to take note and all, but in the end it's kind of tedious and require no skill ).

Edit : Also steam controller  should be available for sale this summer. Well it won't change anything for this game but it should be what's you're looking for ( i know i do ).

Sorry for the double post but i have an other question related to how do you guys begin.
What about the family ?

Sure the mother keep half of the value and you may want to imagine some design with that in mind, but the children ?

I can't see them other than a weakness that allow players to save the damage for only 200$.

As for my little story, no surprise, the house value bump to high and it was destroyed this morning. So second try today, i choose to sacrifice my family, i'm a monster.

Hey !

Thank you all for your welcome advices !

I spent time drawing a new design that cost 1340 $. I think it should work well for start.

I can't stay tonight so i have very few hope, but i spent some much time thinking of it that i can do it pretty fast now, so i'll try that on a more free evening and watch the tapes as i scout and take note on my neighborhood, it should work.

This game make me paranoiac, i think i may commit suicide to avoid people scouting it.

Well for me that's it. I did have a almost free week, so i could play a lot and did babysit my home, checking every 4/5 hours and spending money to upgrade it.
Enough to pass the first night, once you do that it's ok for the other night ( a 1000 to 5000/6000 $ bump is ok with enough money invested into defenses )

I reached a point where i did consider my design complete and wanted to see how much this house could take, of course i killed my self in a test !
It was very frustrating and hilarious at the same time. A great moment i can't see myself have again soon unfortunately.

The thing is, i don't have that much free time now ( i'm late in my work ) so i may try a little but i can't see any 2000$ design survive 24h00. Maybe i'll try more 2000$ backpack run, hope for a 8000 $ / 10 000 $ budget and build a house, maybe we're supposed to play that way, but it's making new be houses bumping and unplayable. So i don't know if i want to do that.

No it's not about how experienced you are, it's about allowing you to survive if you can babysit your house avoiding a big bump your house couldn't resist ( without any regard to your knowledge of the game, just sell/ safe scout with tones of tool/change some walls into expensive ones etc... No one need skills for that ).

I completely agree that you're house should become more and more in danger while you're away.
But on the other side, not allowing the player to put a limit to this "bump" is actually as silly as if you couldn't make any change to your house for 48 hours forcing you to watch the value get crazy high, you just become an observer of the house failure, you're not playing anymore.

Edit for mistakes, sorry for my English

Edit again : Also i realize that the house bump will happen eventually whatever you're doing, when the map will be full, the money will accumulate you'll have to rob ( and taking some risk ) etc... And it's a good thing really. It's just kind of a shame that people without such available time will never be able to enjoy making big houses/robbery.

No i like the idea, but it would create some issue imo. If the player can choose any value this become a way to avoid any risk when off line...

Maybe a "neighborhood" system, you start in a poor neighborhood, your house value is between 0 $ & X $, when you reach X $ the bounties fall to 0 until you log back in ( X should represent a good amount to make a rob desirable but won't allow to get a disproportional amount of equipment regarding the house installation ). Then you move to a new neighborhood where houses value goes form X to Y and so on...

A tiers system that the dev' could tweak for some balance.

It would also add a new information about houses actually. A approximation of the cost of the installation ( edit : well, if you can't move back to the previous neighborhood ), don't know if it's a good thing...
An example, if i have let say 25 dogs in my house what the point if there is only 700$ in the vault ?

I don't know, it's just an idea... I don't see any solution really.

It's not about days really.
My freshly made house from tonight just went from 400 $ ( my starting vault with the 2000 $ starting budget ) to 3000/4000 $ in two hours.
I just got two bounties ( that's now 2*100 $ ) but the first one had 20 dog meat the other one i'd say was a 2000 $ back pack.

I would love to feels insecure tomorrow logging back in to check how much i made/lost. But let's face it when i'll go to bed it's over.

Jason did that change to avoid house bumping yes, my last 4/5 game before this change repeat this scenario. I did have a house who went to 500$ ( my starting vault with the 2000 $ starting budget ) to 13 000 $ in 4/5h00 afk.

I supposed there some better fix thou, i guess this one didn't require a patch.

Hi there, i'm new and freshly addicted to the game.
Here's a problem ( for me ) and a suggestion.

I hate, i really hate that when in MMO someones is taking an advantage because he's playing more. Not better, just more.

There is in a way that problem is the castle doctrine. When your off line, imagine a first guy come at your house and break let say a wall and go out. Then an other guy enter and take advantage of that first burglary.
The fact is, if i was on line ( and if i could get into my house before the next robber ) i would be able to patch that wall.

Here's my suggestion then if you have the money in the shelter and if the wife is still alive she can make the repeir. Your resources will be automatically spent and the house "reset".

Also the owner should be able to get in before another burglary.
I don't know what's possible in term of code and all but i can imagine a "waiting list" and the owner would be always the first one. Maybe he could even watch the security tape "live" while waiting ?

What do you guys think ?