It sounds like a lot of it is going to be pure chaos, but that may be in a good way.
If you have ever played Faces of Mankind, it had a lot of similar ideas in it... And a lot of problems.
Organized groups will always be more powerful simply due to the power of numbers; Unorganized players will be killed one by one, unless they also team up. So there needs to be protection in place for "Freelancers" and the like. I mean, not all players would want to join a clan, and there is no reason they should be ganked by roaming gangs.
The solution doesn't have to be "Gamey" either. Something as simple as warning when a large group of players is nearby. I just worry it's going to become a "Join up or die" type of thing (Which is often true in reality) but having freedom would be nice.
Also, would it be possible to have a script summon monsters automatically? How exactly can you earn monster points?
P.S. Neonivek, Every single thread you are in I see you arguing with people, haha
Individual characters can use Influence to gain Hirelings, just like anyone else. Influence is accrued via trading with players, or over time. There is no "grinding" influence. On the subject of "solo" players, the law of the land is simple - if you are by yourself, you aren't really a part of "civilization". Therefore you live by the laws of the wilds, which often is "might makes right".
While a player could use the spell system to "summon" an entity, Monster Play is a mode of gameplay unto itself. Everyone has access to "Tier 1" monsters, and can either control them directly, or assign them a script to run by themselves. This is happening constantly, regardless of what character you are playing. You accrue Monster Points from your monster populations simply surviving and reproducing. Through this, we allow the players to create the ecosystem of the game world.
Example - My Slime population is doing well. They are consuming matter (oh my) and splitting. I'm gaining Monster Points to unlock Goblins (another Underground-type monster). I spend a certain number of Monster Points to "spawn" a Goblin at a random location in the underworld, and I begin creating my Goblin tribe/civilization/whatevericallit.
We've tried very hard to ensure that each monster playstyle has variety and some unique features to it. For instance, Minotaurs will be able to create mazes, Slimes can split to reproduce, Elementals can change form into various elemental types, and Dragons... Well...
They just want to exert power over people that they can't exert in real life, which in most cases means annoying other players (not characters!) by making the game difficult to play. This is the real danger. No automatic systems can stop this from happening.
Trolls and griefers are common in MMOs, unfortunately. The only "system" in place to deal with them would be the social stigma associated with being a douche. I could be wrong, but as I said before, I highly doubt the community would want to empower those types of players with Influence via trade, knowing that it could harm the community itself. An annoying person might very well find himself exiled from player settlements, put on "lists" so hirelings do unfortunate things to them on sight, etc. In theory, a player could become so outcast that the only two options are suicide, or living in the wilderness like a barbarian, subject to the creatures of the land.
Personally I think if you want to have a game with permadeath, new players should have to send in an application and be approved individually. Something complicated enough to deter those who just want to annoy other people on the internet. Any system where you can sign up automatically is open to abuse, and it doesn't matter how often you ban someone - it's easy enough to make a new account and even get a new IP.
From a personal perspective, this isn't a bad idea. I've played MU*s which do this kind of thing, and it keeps the population sharp. However, from a business perspective, we ARE making an MMORPG here. We can't review potentially thousands of players, and we can't dictate who can play and who cannot. It's not our place to say "You don't know how to do this/You aren't good enough to be here.". That's up to you guys.
Well I think the fact that it not free to play with help that.
This.
I'd like to mention (perhaps again) that we do have systems in place to prevent players from creating a character, and immediately destroying property and/or slaughtering others. After a certain point of advancement, new characters will be able to break more and more "Laws" (which are player created, and zoned according to Influence of that player), until they can do whatever they want. The exception to this would be in lawless areas, in which anyone could do anything without restriction.
Example -I roll a new character. I have 0 Will. I cannot break any laws. Someone has set a law of 10 Severity, and the terms are "Cannot walk on the mushrooms in the garden". Until I get 10 Will (which is gained through character advancement via the Skill Grid, which is further unlocked via Influence), I cannot break that law. At/After 10 Will, I can break that law, and suffer whatever penalties are associated with it.