CHOCOBO SUMMONING

I like the idea of affinity, but the possibility of having to wait MANY hours to be able 2 resummon your chocobo is a bit inconvenient.

What i would like to be seen done would be a hybrid between the skill up system (IE affinity) and the NPC system (IE Charged item). For example at lv 30 you have access to "Purchase" a Rare/Ex <Insert witty named chocobo summon item> (Preferably a Chocobo Knight Style Helm) at the two global hubs (Jeuno and Al Zahbi) using any of the 3 "Currency" Imperial Standing (Al Zahbi), Conquest Points (Jeuno), Gil (Both).

Balanced of course (Making the gil one a little more expensive than the others)
They have charges like an emp band or signal pearl with a recharge of say 1-2 hours.

You start off with a lv 1 item with say...1 charge, and can only be recharged at either Jeuno or Al Zahbi, same was as emp band, for the corrosponding amount of Imperial Standing, Conquest Points, or Gil, once again having the gil charges being a little but more expensive like 2k, vs. like 20 CP or IS.

As you call your chocobo, you gain affinity to it. Which can be documented, for example

<Character> uses a <Insert witty named chocobo summon item>
<Character>'s Chocobo Affinity Raises 0.1
<Character>'s Chocobo Affinity Reaches Level 1

At which point (When reching a new lv of affinity) you can trade in your item for a higher version of one (With more charges and MAYBE a lower resummon time)

As progressive lvs are achieved, it gets harder and harder 2 gain affinity
and therefore more and more uses of your <Insert witty named chocobo summon item> (I cant help myself XD) must be spent before more affinity is gained.

Capping the item at lv 10 should be ok, 10 charges should be MORE THAN ENOUGH FOR ANYONE. (Dont be greedy)

CHOCOBO RAISING

Beyond the all ready planned raising ideas i would like for there to be way to increase your chocobos stats using items (I'm gonna assume they would need to be various greens IE FF7 if they arn't i was going to suggest nuts, also FF7)
each being quested and Ex (Rare/Ex fot the REALLY good greens) to keep ppl from simply buying their greens and making thier chocobos godly with little work. and working the same way as other skill ups. Example...

<Character> feeds <Chocobo> a Mammet Green
<Chocobo>'s Stamina Increases 0.3
<Chocobos>'s Stamina Reaches Level 193

Different Greens affect different stats
As i am not sure what stats will exist, here is a small example of what green could do for some MADE-UP stats.

Gyshal Greens - Raises Tame(Chocobo uses stamina and sprint in a more tactical manner)
Curiel Greens - Raises Poise (Slows depletion of stamina bar)
Mimett Greens - Raises Stamina(Increases how long Chocobo can race and not become fatugued)
Pahsana Greens - Raises Speed(Increases top speed Chocobo can attain no sprint)
Reagan Greens - Raises Sprint(Increases amount of extra speed granted by sprint)
Krakka Greens - Raises Guts(Increases how long Chocobo can sustain sprint)
Sylkis Greens - Raises Heart(Chocobo recovers faster from fatugue...Also increases one other random stat)
Divine Greens - Raises All Stats(Self Explanatory)

If nuts are not all ready in the programing could be the HQ versions of the greens, providing various stat boosts, but in greater quantaties. Nuts would likely ALWAYS be Rare/EX

Carob Nut - Greatly raises Tame(Chocobo uses stamina and sprint in a more tactical manner)
Lasan Nut - Greatly raises Poise (Slows depletion of stamina bar)
Luchile Nut - Greatly raises Stamina(Increases how long Chocobo can race and not become fatugued)
Pepio Nut - Greatly raises Speed(Increases top speed Chocobo can attain no sprint)
Porov Nut - Greatly raises Sprint(Increases amount of extra speed granted by sprint)
Pram Nut - Greatly raises Guts(Increases how long Chocobo can sustain sprint)
Saraha Nut - Greatly raises Heart(Chocobo recovers faster from fatugue...Also increases one other random stat)
Zeio Nut - Greatly raises All Stats(Self Explanatory)

Racing would of course also raise your chocobos stats, but the questing of these special greens and nut could be a useful way to NOT have to race day and night 2 raise your chocobos stats.

They could be attained by retrieving various items for NPCs (IE Brutus--Jeuno or <Al Zahbi Chocobo NPC> (dont know him/her >_<)--Al Zahbi) They may also be attained by digging in various areas of the game (On YOUR chocobo obviously-- Town birds dont count (/slap)) The more remote and dangerous the location, the better chances of finding a rare and wonderful green or nut...Example...

Yhoator Jungle (Through Ifrit's Cauldron O_O) you can find possibly Divine Greens or Zeio Nut, as its one of the most remote and hard to get to places.
Where as in say Gustaberg, Ronfaure, or Sarutabaruta you are only going to find normal greens like Gyshal and a VERY RARE better green or nut.

CHOCOBO CIRCUIT

Many of these idea have been voiced by my fellow players all ready (you go guys and girls) but i will lay down my version of it with my own flair anyway.

Though i know it may be very difficult to create more than one circuit across vana, i would like at least 5 others to be made beside Al Zahbi. IE one for each of the 3 main nations, Jeuno, and Tavnasia. Would LOVE an additional championship circuit as well, in either Beaucedine Glacier or Xarcabard. Each with thier own unique design and terrain style that effects the race itself. also having multiple stadiums would SERIOUSLY cut down on lag since you won't have THOUSANDS of people in one area, and long wait times on the races, since i'm sure that you wont be able to cram 200 chocobos into one race.

For example Bastok could be a race to the top of Zegham Hill (since people actually DO go up Vomp, and it would inconvenience them, where there is only 1 quest up Zegham, and the ??? could easily be moved)and back down to the bottom.
Add like a harry potter style scaffolding thing for stands and some NPCs and viola a albeit improvised but functional chocobo stadium. Different Chocobos (IE mountain climbers ^_^) would have an easier time doing this one, and therefor slower drain on thier stamina. But in the open plains of Saruta, the faster more mobile birds would have the advantage. Some examples of what areas would have what elements could be...

Bastok--Earth, Fire, Light
San d'Oria-- Wind, Fire, water
Windurst--Wind, Water, Earth
Tavnasia--Thunder, Water, Wind
Jeuno--Light, Dark, Wind
Al Zahbi--Earth, Wind, Fire (no pun intended)
Xarcabard/Beaucedine--Ice, Dark, Thunder

Yes i know those may not be the most accurate, but you get the idea.
As for their effects, they could be

Fire - Higher temperatures cause fatigue, causing the stamina to drain faster
Wind - Rugged winds cause wind shear, lowering tame
Water - Rain storms cause dampness, random stop to shake off water.
Earth - Dust storms cause blindness, can only sprint 1/2 the normal distance
Ice - Cold weather causes uhhhh cold >_<, and lowers max speed
Thunder - Loud thunder clap causes fear, random sprint at 1.5x stamina drain
Light - Raises 2 random stats 10%
Dark - Lowers 2 random stats 10%

just something off the top of my head

STADIUM

I cannot put it better than what has all ready been stated, make it so that you can only see or hear people you are partied with (or alliance) (and /tell s and /linkshell of course---/say and /shout = not working) all others are NPCs, as well as only certain parts of the arenas are accessable.

As for viering i would like there to be a feature to change the camera
u can view it in 3rd person from the stands, change to a cinematic view where the camera automatically makes it look good, or over the shoulder for an individual racer.

GAMBLING


I like the idea of an AH type are in the various stadiums
IMO a split pot would best be done
Have specific tickets per race, there may be more than one ticket, but only a certain amount of people per ticket, say 10, with different bet teirs...Example

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bet Amount

1,000 Gil
2,000 Gil
5,000 Gil
10,000 Gil
20,000 Gil
50,000 Gil
100,000 Gil

Each one opens up into a DIFFERENT tickets menu, corrosponding to the bet.
Just like at the AH when you click on weapons it opens up a menu
Hand-to-hand, swords, daggers, ect.
Which then open up into the weapons list themselves

Simple

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ticket 1 (full)
Ticket 2 (full)
Ticket 3 (full)
Ticket 4 (full)
Ticket 5 (full)
Ticket 6 (7/10)
Ticket 7 (full)
Ticket 8 (4/10)
Ticket 9 (full)
Ticket 10 (full)
Ticket 11 (3/10)
Ticket 12 (5/10)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Full tickets obviously cannot be bet on, because they are full -_-
but as for the ones with open spots you would open it up to find a slot at which point to choose your perferred birds, Winner and Second. and the money is automatically taken and placed into the "POT"

So 10 people entering the same amount of money, each ticket has a seperate winner. winner takes 2/3 of the pot 2nd takes 2/3 of the remaining 1/3, and 3rd place takes the rest, as for the rest of you, you recieve a...Drumroll please...
"Tissue" (sorry i had to XD)But hey thats gambling. This way everyone can bet in their relative "Wealth range" and still have fairly decent odds

here is an example of what the ticket window might look like
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bet Amount: 10,000 Gil
Ticket #8
Current Players on Ticket: 4
Current Pot: 40,000 Gil

Bidder 1: Chucknorris---CHO4 win/CHO2 rnr up
Bidder 2: OPEN
Bidder 3: OPEN
Bidder 4: MisterT---CHO3 win/CHO1 rnr up
Bidder 5: OPEN
Bidder 6: Sephirophtzzzz---CHO1 win/CHO7 rnr up
Bidder 7: Sxycatwmn---CHO1 win/CHO8 rnr up
Bidder 8: OPEN
Bidder 9: OPEN
Bidder 10: OPEN
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------This would also work well because the gil would only be changing hands of players, no gil would be being created so inflation would not be an issue.


RACES AND RANKING

As for the races themselves, they could be done using the point system that most modern-day racing follows, EXCEPT, when a certain amount of points are gained they will increase in rank and therefore be required to compete in the higher tiered races with more difficult competition. If they choose to compete in the lower ranked races thier stats will be temporarily stripped to compete fairly in the corrosponding rank tier. (Like a lv cap)

There could be 7 total ranks, ranging from beginners with low stats, all the way up to the elite chocobo riders with near maxed stats, thier admission would also corrospond to the rank of the racers so rank F racers would pay a small 100 gil entry fee, where as rank S racers might have to pay like 2-3k per race
admissions for the stadiums themselves (therefor allowing you access to the AH style gambling windows) could be around airship price 200 gil or so.

I'm sorry but I'm a romantic, and you HAVE to name the various cups (Ranks)

Rank F--Beginner (The Moogle Cup)
Rank E--Novice (The Chocobo Cup)
Rank D--Intermediate (The Three Kingdoms Cup)
Rank C--Advanced (The Ducal Cup)
Rank B--Veteran (The Imperial Cup)
Rank A--Elite (The Dynamis Cup)
Rank S--Legendary (The Vana'Diel Cup)

(LOVED the suggestion of Teiho making a Cameo and coming 2 whip our butts)
I would have him beginning to enter starting in Rank B

Points are recieved by Racing, and your corrosponding position at the finish
an example of this would be...

1st--200 points
2nd--100 points
3rd--75 points
4th--50 points
5th--40 points
6th--30 points
7th--20 points
8th--10 points

These could also change depending on Ranking
For example in S Rank you might get 500 to 1000 for 1st

The points you acquire can be used the same as conquest points, Rank F offers various items---cost XX amount of points...These "Points" might also be used to possibly recharge the <Insert witty named chocobo summon item> (mwahahahahaha)

after a certai amount of points are obtained you will be awarded with a "Key Item" that allows you to register into the next tier of chocobo racing..another example

Rank F - 0-1000 points
Rank E - 1000-3000 points
Rank D - 3000-7500 points
Rank C - 7500-15000 points
Rank B - 15000-25000 points
Rank A - 25000-45000 points
Rank S - 45000+

Your chocobos will also "Skill Up" through their races leveling one of the various stats, different circuits, because of their unique terrain will have more of an effect skilling up various stats than others. So, Sarutabaruta, because it is flat, will be a better place to skill up your sprinting skill than Zegham Hill, which would be better suited for skilling up basic stamina. Ronfaure, with its many trees would be good for skilling up tame, which is your chocobos strategic instincts.

Aside from purchasing items via "Points" winners will recieve unique items for winning a race, lower races often giving lesser prizes while higher tiers such as rank A and S will garner more expensive items like maybe an item found in one of the BCNMs...IE Erase or Utsusemi:Ni.

For the truly HARDCORE prizes there would be held a tournament (as someone mentioned earlier) once every Earth month, with the highest ranked people in each rank entered in a race againt eachother for a NICE rare/ex item... With a total of 7 "Unique" items awarded per month!!! AND a rare/ex furniture that (might or might not...do anything but) would sure be fun to look at.

Also at that 1 month tournament time, a "Vana'Diel Chocobo Circuit Grand Champion" will be awarded to the person who has garnered the most points since the last tally (IE 1 month). The so called "Grand-Champion" will get their choice of 1 count em ONE!!! overly exuberant prize. Such as a SINGULAR upgrade for a relic weapon, or an abjuration of their choice. To balance it, they will also be unable to compete in the next months Grand Championship, meaning they can only be Grand Champion once every 2 months.

IN CONCLUSION

As you can see, there are a few parts that may seem a tad un balance, but SE can tamper with that as they see fit. The point was to throw out the ideas, i tried to use the skill up system as much as possible in my ideas since it is a system that is already in place, and SHOULD be fairly to adapt the chocobo raising and racing thing to it...IF ITS NOT BROKEN DONT FIX IT.

these are my 2 gil

Thanks 2 the rest of the thread for some ideas, i just streamlined some and made some stuff up to hopefully make it a solid chocobo environment that is all related.

thanks again and see u online ^_^















Edited, Aug 5th 2006 at 3:49pm EDT by TheForceX

I admit, I haven't read all of the posts on this page, not even close, so if I'm just reiterating someone else's idea, that should be an indication of how awesome an idea it is.

I think there should be a reward system similar to FFVII where you win an item for winning a race. But the item shouldn't be anything rare/exe, you can only put so many of those up there for rewards. Instead, have the reward be more common items, items specifically for tradeskills. I'll keep racing if it means I'll be winning ingots or whatnot for leveling up my crafting. And higher leveling of racing, like A and S classes, can reward higher level crafting items. Sure, you can toss in a few rare/exe items, but I think Racing would be more fun, and have much more potential for longevity, if the items you won were useful in everyday circumstances.

Prizes could also include things like Ninja tools, Spell scrolls, Food and Drink, and things of this nature. I'm not saying anything should be dispensed in stacks of 12 or 99, but winning 1, 2, or 3 of an item, and making me race to win more, would really make me want to keep racing. And by keeping the proportions small, it hopefully won't damage the economy too much.

I’m not sure I like this whole gambling thing, but if it were kept separate from the winning of prizes, like I didn't have to gamble if I didn't feel like it, then it wouldn't be too much of a nuisance.

Please don't limit gambling. There's nothing more thrilling than the chance that you might win big. If you're worried that anyone with 1 mil will come in and bet, causing some issues with the economy then here's my suggestion. Make people start small.Maybe 10k or so. Then if they win, give them an option of double or nothing. If they choose to try,then hold the 20k they won until the end of the next race.Now they can win 40k or nothing. I haven't really thought this through yet,so i'm sure it has it's flaws.

Edited, Aug 5th 2006 at 11:10am EDT by KeichiiWAR

Edited, Aug 5th 2006 at 11:11am EDT by KeichiiWAR

We are a tough crowd with lots of demands and most of us each have our own unique opinion about how chocobo racing should be. I'll first apologize to everyone who has posted in advance of me. I didn't not read all 76 previous posts. But I did read some interesting ideas. Since the request was for ideas about chocobo racing that is what I'll try to limit my comments to.

I agree with SquareEnix that individual characters should not race their own chocobos. It will introduce too much variablity and will spawn a host of complaints and finger pointing (ie. "I should have won, but he did this or she did that.) I like the idea that the way you raise and feed your chocobo will effect it's abilities on the track. I also like that you can give input to your jockey as to what strategy to employ. I think a wide variety of flexible strategies will be what makes or breaks chocobo racing. Let me make an hypothetical example. I have a chocobo that I have raised and I know that it sprints amazingly fast but it's endurance is terrible. My strategy could consist of many options. I could choose make short sprints throughout the course of the race or sprint entirely at the end, etc... It makes chocobo racing more about strategy and less about who is the better jockey. It also forces players to understand the abilities of your chocobo and select strategies that will work with their strengths.

On that note I would also like to say that in the future, events such as a giant race where players 'can' ride and compete against one another could be fun. Or maybe there is a happy medium where races can be scheduled with their owner as the jockey.

I like the idea of a rank system for chocobos. The more races your chocobo participates in obviously the more experienced your chocobo will become. Also prizes can be determined by winning races in higher level arenas. Just as your prize for winning your local golf tournament or the Masters varies because of the difference in skill level.

I am also a proponant for the idea of perhaps having races that vary in length. Some chocobos may be sprinters while other may have unbelievable endurance. That provides some additional flexibility in choosing how to raise your chocobo. Then you can enter your chocobo in races that you know cater to it's strengths. Again its all about flexibility and strategy.

Now for my two bits on the gambling system. I picture it like this. You walk up to an NPC and a window opens showing you each of the chocobos enrolled in the next race(s), their skill level, the owner and various stats about that chocobo. Here's where it gets tricky. Each individual watching will obviously place a bet that is unique to their financial situation. Similar to experience, based on the number of people that bet on each chocobo that will affect the multiplier for the winnings. I'll try to make an example. "'Hidalgo' is the chocobo of the week he can't be beat. Everyone is betting on him, as with experience points in larger parties the multiplier will be adjusted accordingly." Additionally I think you make a betting system between individuals (ie. each owner can make bets with other owners).

Prizes could include new gear for your chocobo (ie. saddles, specialty foods, promotional deals with Nike :D, someone mentioned armor for chocobos, etc..) as well as 1% of the winnings from each race or it could also be done on the multiplier system. If your chocobo isn't favored and your strategy was better than the other chocobo owners and you win your winnings increase.

Some errors coming up

Edited, Aug 5th 2006 at 1:49am EDT by TaiiKen

Out of all the ideas, I think it is most important to at least ride your own chocobo or hire a jockey as options. What fun is it if you just gunna sit on your hands and watch? It's like golfing: watching is very boring, but actually playing is a lot of fun. As for control, I don't mind the idea of setting commands, as long as I get to ride and get to experience the excitement of the race first hand.

Some good suggestions, especially letting people view it on the sides.

I'm hoping it won't be something that you have to be high level for. I'm high myself, but my Dad plays the game and is a VERY slow leveller. He's really looking forward to chocobo raising, and I hope it won't be deprived.

You guys were right on board with the Mog Locker expansion and getting most of the good stuff immediatly and easily, it should be similar with the Chocobo Raising.

Rewards: Wands, gil, special armor, etc. Adding a chocobo knight job for the elite chocobo raisers would be completely evil, but would make everyone want to get into the sport all the more. Just put something EVERYONE has to have as the elite reward and make everyone else want it.

As for gambling, excellent idea. Let people have unlimited betting, doing fixed small ammounts won't encourage higher ammounts, and if people can bet what they want it'll become more popular. Nevermind moral failings, if anything, it'll show people have a problem before they get out and gamble in the real world.

Slot machines or something of the like would be nice too. I'm tired of seeing people shouting casino's in lower jeuno. It's asking for alot, but something like the Golden Saucer would be majorly appreciated and fun to attend. Just a place to relax and SPEND.

The Chocoboo racing location should stay out of Sarubuta, Ronfaure and Gustaberg. The skill should be given to people who accquire Chocoboo License only.

Chocoboo raising should be treated as a Tradeskill-like skill where there are various level available and needs to solve some quest to open up next level Chocoboo raising skills.

Chocoboo race will earn FAME in Chocoboo Community where with each Fame level acquire, you will learn different Chocoboo raising technique. E.g. Dry Chocoboo (Dry Choco only runs in dry land like Meriphataud Moutains, and will not run in Pashhow and Jugner) and/or the Chocoboo needs to be feed with different vegetables/food that is not available in harvesting (as these are not wild Chocoboo), each Fame level and Chocoboo Raising level increase, the combination will allow you to open up Quest to acquire Chocoboo Food receipi (only good for people with Cooking Skills).

Additionally, we can consider to have Chocoboo Racing Armour or devices, that need will open at medium+ level Chocoboo raising skill with adequate Chocoboo Fame level, and specific tradeskill like Smithing, Woodworking, Leathercraft...etc.

Race should have Low (Amateur/Recruit), Medium (Initiate/Novice/Apprentice), High ...etc. Each level open up new Chocoboo racing skills, e.g. when reach Medium level, chocoboo will learn "Come from behind" skills.

Suggestion Race Location for Low level:
- Meriphataud Mountains
- Pashhow Masrshlands
- Jugner Forest

Those location should be less crowded Area and avoid areas around major city : Windurst, Bastok, Sand'oria and Jeuno.


Rgrds
FUMII
Unicorn server

Raising/Training

During the raising of your chocobos, you should have the option of training it. This could be done by training environs around the world, accessible as new zones from different regions.
Example: A new zone, like a BC, in Meriphataud Mountains, could have the ability to increase your chocobo's stamina by a certain amount.
This could be done by requiring the player to:
- Hop on their chocobo and ride to the area.
- Speak with the trainers there and pay a small fee.
- Leave their chocobo there a certain period of time (like gardening).
At the end, the chocobo's Stamina ability would rise by 1, to a certain limit; the amount of time determined by the chocobo's natural affinity for stamina, and the chocobo's current stamina. (Note: After training is complete, the chocobo should be returned to a selected stable, either the player's home nation, or the nation their Moghouse Moogle is at. Also, during training, summoning the chocobo to the player's current location should either fail, or cancel the training, requiring that it be restarted.)
Other areas could boost things such as obedience to specific commands, other stats, etc.

Affinity with one's chocobo

It's been noted that there will be a certain relationship between the person and the chocobo. This should have some affect on the attention the chocobo pays to the commands the player gives before the race. A lower relationship would increase the possibility the chocobo might decide to act on its own intuition, a higher relationship would mean the actions of the chocobo would respond more closely to its instructions.

Commands for chocobos

The different instructions you give the chocobo should be varied, at least 6 different commands (hold the lead, sprint, conserve energy, stay with the pack, etc.) The trainer should have the option to define one command for each part of the race.
Example: 3 lap race, the trainer could give one instruction for each lap.
- Lap 1: Stay with the pack
- Lap 2: Conserve energy
- Lap 3: Sprint
This would allow a player to customize their strategy to their chocobo's strengths (the one above would be excellent for a chocobo with high speed and low stamina, but horrible for the reverse.) From the above, a low relationship with the chocobo might lead the chocobo to try and sprint ahead of everyone at the beginning, and run out of energy halfway through the race.
Also, to provide some sense of connection with the race, it may be desirous to give the trainers items at the beginning of each race, similar to Ballista items that are dug up. Example:
At the beginning of the race, 3 Faster! Flares, 3 Pace Yourself! Flares, and 3 Good job! Flares could be given to each trainer participating (all Ex items). Using an item would signal to the chocobo a temporary command (10 seconds) that slightly modifies their strategy. (Faster! would tell the chocobo to increase their speed slightly, Pace yourself! would tell it to focus on Stamina, and Good job! would temporarily and slightly boost the relationship between trainer and chocobo.) This would give a race some additional control and complexity, without being affected noticeably by lag (the lag would only affect the timing of the command). There would also be a training area where chocobo's ability to recognize and respond to different flares - lower skill points on that field might cause a chocobo to miss or even misunderstand a flare. (These items should disappear at the end of the race, so no trainer can use more than three of a kind each race.)

Point system

Pure gil is out of the question. Not only would it be a money (ie. time) drain, but it would lend itself to all sorts of RMT problems. The only areas where gil should really be present is:
- Entry fee for the race
- (Possibly, though not preferrably, and if at all, it needs to be extremely small, like 10-100 gil) Entry fee to the stadium, for observers
- Prizes
As far as gambling and prizes, probably the best way to do this is to set up a stadium currency. (Chococoins for the purpose of this post.) These could be earned in three ways:
- Turning in a new Ex item to an official at the stadium (possibly some sort of green/grass that could drop anywhere, like Beastman Seals, which can't be bought, but must be farmed or gardened.)
- Prize from gambling (2 to 1 odds would return double the number of Chococoins that were wagered.)
- Prize for placing in the top 3 or 4 of a race.
Such an option would make gambling a viable option for all players, limit the high stakes gambling to those who race a lot, farm a lot, garden a lot, or have gambled a lot, and also focus the players on the chocobos, as well as being situationally appropriate (a choco racing stadium would obviously be connected with raising/stabling, and always have need for food.)

Prizes

There should be a monthly tournament or ranking, and the winner (or highest ranked for the server) should have the option to choose one of three racing specific items, much like the hat that can be won from Ballista championships. Make it a Rare/Ex, perhaps a special piece of gear that wouldn't affect racing, but could be used for other activities (increases chocobo speed when ridden?) or gear for the chocobo (such as a special saddle/decoration). Something the player can show off.
For everything else, there should be gift shops and chococoin turn-in locations at the stadium. Chococoins could be turned in for gil, common items, imperial currency (it is in AU, after all), or Ex equipment/furnishings. (Chocobo riding gear could be one option. *Attention SE Developers!* Plushies for the Moghouse are a must; who wouldn't run around farming greens or racing to get chocobocoins for a Chocobo plushie to put on their bed?)
Gil and Imperial currency should be limited, possibly per week or day. (Example: No more than 1000 Chococoins can be turned in for gil each week.) If the amounts were balanced to a reasonable amount, this would limit the people who used it solely as a way to make excessive money, without penalizing those who simply turned in what they'd received through levelling/farming. Making all the special items (weapons, armor, accessories, etc.) that can be bought Ex would further prevent turning this into a money-making scheme, as the only things that could be turned into money would be: gil (limited), imperial currency (limited), and common items like potions and ethers (only attractive to those who had the chococoins already, as winning enough to buy them would be slower than earning the money other ways.)
Note: Prizes of gear, such as armor or weapons, should not be things that are already in the game (aside from the choco gear or chocowand). A new weapon that increased the rate you win the grass/green mentioned above would be nice: like Treasure Hunter for that one item. The items purchased this way should have no effect on racing, only an effect outside (such as longer time riding, boosted skill at digging, or perhaps even a ticket for one free training session (see above).) Just keep in mind: we gamers love customization. Being able to change the appearance of our Moghouse, our character, our chocobo, things like that will be popular among everyone, not just the serious racers.
And Chocobo plushies. Did I mention Chocobo plushies?

Gambling

The simplest way to make this race specific and balanced, would be to use a real life system related to ranking.
Example: 3 Chocobos are racing, one ranked 10/10, one ranked 8/10, one ranked 2/10.
The odds would be computed by: Ranking and current skill levels. Therefore, the highest ranked (ie. the most wins) would have the smallest odds (a person would make little profit by betting on it, since it's almost a sure win), and the lowest ranked would have the highest odds (if by some fluke, this one won, anyone who bet on it would win substantially.)
Thus, people rigging a race (having their friends enter weakling chocobos versus their uber-choco) wouldn't win any more than people betting on a fair race.
(Note: The formula would take some time and testing to balance, but could be very simple, taking in total stat points (Sta+Spd+Etc.), current ranking, etc.)

Ranking

There should be different classes of race. (No brand-new racer should be pitted against a seasoned veteran.) This could be as simple as adding up the stat points (Sta+Spd+Etc.), and those who fell in the 50-60 range would go in "Lightweights", those in 61-80 in "Average", and 81-100 in "Heavyweights". This would focus the race more on knowing how to use the chocobo's strengths and the relationship between trainer and chocobo. The class would have different degrees of winnings (ie. winner of a Lightweight race might receive 100 Chococoins, winner of a heavyweight race might receive 500 Chococoins.) This might also lead to the end of the month championship race being split into three, where there'd be a lightweight champion, average champion, and so on. (Note: There should be at least one prize per class that is only available to the winner of that class.)
Monthly rankings should be decided by a point system. (Winning a race might net 10 points, second place 8 points, third place 6 points, and so forth.) During the month, the chocobos would be matched up either randomly, or by their current ranking. (Current ranking would be fairest, as that way the best chocobos would normally race against each other, and also making races more exciting.) At the championship at the end of the month, the 8 highest-ranked chocobos from each class would have a championship. This would encourage people to race frequently, if they're interested in winning.
Notes about class definitions:
- If a chocobo's stats are increased during the month, enough that it falls into the next class up, it should be moved into that class. (Example: An "average" whose stats totalled to 80, races a few times. The trainer takes it to a training zone, and one stat increases by 1, to 81. When the trainer takes it back to the races, it would be placed in "heavyweight".)
- If a chocobo switches classes, it should either be disqualified from the championship or lose some of its points from winnings. (To prevent someone from taking advantage of the class switch to win against easier chocobos, and then take the lead of a harder class.)
- In regards to those Chocobo plushies (Y'all were planning to make them available, right?) it would be nice if there were three or four, in different colors and sizes, to match the different breeds of chocobo that have been mentioned. One might even make the requirement that the player have a chocobo of that breed when they purchase that plushie. You could make it so the player could (Check) it in their Moghouse, and have it display the name (and some other details) of that chocobo. Like a memory you can display!

Scheduling races

This may require a general FFXI user survey. At the first, races can be held almost constantly, since between the US, Japan, and Europe, there will be a constantly high demand. Later on, it will take specifically scheduled times, to make sure matches aren't cancelled, leaving players with few options to actually race. Possible scheduling:
- Determine the peak server times, to maximize the number of players who are on.
- Send out a POL survey to all FFXI players, asking: If they intend to chocorace seriously, and what time block they prefer.
- Have racers "sign up" in advance, and pick in advance certain periods (hours and days) when they can race.
With the first two, it will be simplest, as the system can simply have people sign up for certain scheduled races. The problem with this, is if people are unable to be online at those times of day, they will be unable to race, and thus prevented from a fair shot regardless of their skill.
With the second, it would present a slightly more complex system for the game, but for the players, be more fair and conducive. The system could examine players' selections, attempt to arrange the races such that players could be matched with other players who can race at the same time, and then send a POL message to the player to inform them of their scheduled racing time.
Unless of course, races could go on even without the players there. In which case, why even watch?

Chocobo Summoning

I hate to put this last, but it's mostly unrelated to the rest.
I have heard (though I can't recall where, or swear it was even SE supported) that chocobo raising would include the ability to summon your chocobo to you. This was by far the most exciting news I heard about the update, as most mid- to end-game players can understand. The ability to call a chocobo from the exit to an area, like Garliage? Or to Tele-Altep, and hop on your chocobo to run to Rabao? Talk about a time-saver! So, here's my thoughts on this:
- Make it a piece of equipment. (Something visible would be nice, especially a Chocobo hat in the style of the Goblin Coif and other theme-park reminescent paraphenalia. I'd wear that when running around town, or riding, or anything.)
- Make it purchasable by anyone who visits the chocobo racing stadium, for a certain number of Chococoins (say, 500. If one Ex grass was traded for one Chococoin, and a person picked up 10 Ex grasses each hour of levelling, that would take most people about 3 weeks to earn, or a few race wins, or some careful wagering.)
- Make it rechargable. (Say a person normally earns an average of 10 Ex grass = 10 Chococoins from an hour of levelling. Making each charge cost 20-30 Chococoins would be fair, in the same manner as charges for the Empress Band costs 100 conquest points.)
- Give it a fair number of charges, such as 10.
- Set the recast counter low enough that it's not painful to use. 1-2 hours would be fine for most situations.
- Limit it to recharging once per week. (That should cover the nerfing aspect, as most people would still pay when choco-ing from town, and really only use it for running quests, or in place of warping, or after teleporting to one of the three higher level Tele- areas.)
- Set the level requirement to a fair point. Preferrably this would be 20, but I don't think too many people would complain about 30, as most levelling is in easily accessible areas til then.

Other notes

Aside from all that, I really like the idea that was stated about having a Diorama-like mirror to the race tracks, where players could sign up (just like Ballista) to have races against their friends, and invite others to come watch. This would not only give a less-intense and competitive field for people to enjoy the feature and practice different strategies, but also decrease the load on the normal race areas.
In response to the post before this, unfortunately, live-action racing just isn't feasible. With lag issues (especially in high traffic areas), it would be impossible to react quickly, thus making the racing seem rigged. (You could be ahead by a chocobo length as near as you can tell, when in all reality, you were neck-in-neck, meaning that the timing would always require compensation.) FFXI just isn't made for things that require responses like that. Live-action chocobo racing would have to be a whole new game (though, that's not a bad idea.)
Also, and I can't stress it enough... Chocobo plushie! Seriously! ^^

Edited, Aug 4th 2006 at 7:41pm EDT by Ciardha

- Chocobo rank by far is a must have for this. Along with rank comes higher level rewards. Gil, and items should be worthwhile prizes for chocobo racing, but they need to be Rare/Ex, directly into the racers inventory. It is key to keep gil farming RMT's away from chocobo racing. The rewards need to be worth while in the rest of the game.

- Being able to controll the chocobo. This is a must, it really is. People can say all they want about cheating and botting, but if you keep the data server side, such as chocobo speed/stamina then cheating wouldnt be an issue, sure its more work but lets face it, people want this. People have always wanted this. I would pay $30 for a chocobo racing expantion pack if that is what it would take to get to control the chocobo, but please, dont offend us with pseudo-racing. I want to be able to race my own chocobo, with the stats that it gained from my own raising of it.

Okay, it makes sense to not have them PC controlled because it is an RPG where it is stat based more than skill based. Even if you dont agree with me on that put up with me because i assume SE would not make that large of a change at this point.


This gives a bit of strategy to the race, allowing each trainer to play to his/her own chocobo's advantages (i.e. more stamina, faster sprinting, etc). However, I still believe it is a bit vague for my taste. This is just a suggestion to SE, as it would require them/you to change some of your code and add more as well.

My idea is this. Since you cant race the chocobo yourself you could be able to plan out the race from beginning to end instead of merely selecting the racing style one time for the entire race. You take a map of the track/course/etc and from there lay out commands on the track. This would be encoded to have a set number of areas on the map where u can select a command for your chocobo to perform at that point.

Essentially you go to the map, select one of the points that is pre-defined, once that point is selected the player is sent to a sub-menu where they choose an action for their chocobo/jockey to perform at that point. These actions include Sprint Ahead where the chocobo uses stamina to gain distance Recover Stamina where the chocobo slows down to let their stamina recover for another sprint or a decent run Steady Pace where the chocobo stays at a steady pace that only slightly drains stamina (i considered not using any stamina but realized everyone would just Steady Pace to the last command point and then Sprint Ahead with all their stamina to the end) or just Continue where the chocobo remains doing whatever command the last point issued. There could even be advanced techniques such as Draft where the chocobo tails another to stay at a decent speed. Once you select and confirm all the operations throughout the course the player watches as his/her chocobo runs the course they planned. How well it executes the plan is determined by how well bonded it is to its owner/trainer.

Anyways, the first thing this idea would require is a variable. There probably are some already included in the racing scene but they would need to be fairly signifigant for this to work. Otherwise the player could just choose the same options every time and recieve the best results. It would also require track/course maps to be made.

While this is just a rough idea and will more than likely not be implemented because of the point the update is at in development or because of some major flaw i forgot to address, i'd appreciate it if everyone read through it and rated me up, or down, based on your feelings towards it.

People who are racing should be in '1st person' view. In '3rd person' view, it will just feel like watching CS ... B O R I N G

Even players are just selecting commands during races, they still can feel they are 'inside' the races.