Talk:Heist

Old forum comments

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I'd like to extend Lasertrap into a longer game. I've posted a few ideas. Comments?

http://ludocity.org/wiki/Heist --gwyn (talk) 2009-05-23 13:25:53

Everyone loves a good heist. Is this a game of player ingenuity (tackling a bunch of basic sensors with a wide array of unexplained props, with plenty of room for improvisation), fixed-solution puzzle solving (in the style of Property of a Traitor), or a bit of both? --Kevan (talk) 2009-05-23 20:52:49

Largely fixed-solution (relying on both brains and dexterity), but with some scope for innovation.

Spoilers follow.

The guard is initially on a fixed patrol. It is necessary to time his patrol route to slip past him, then maximise available time in the vault room (which he checks every few minutes even without an alarm). A stopwatch would be useful here. Possible variants: Make a noise to distract the guard and buy time.

The lasers require simple dexterity to pass without breaking a beam. The smoke can is useful in seeing the beams. Possible variants: Have an accomplice shine a laser pointer on one of the sensors, blinding it. The sensors are very small, so this requires steady hands or close proximity. Disallowed variants: Turn the room lights on, blinding all the sensors.

The IR motion sensor is crippled; it triggers only if it sees motion for two consecutive seconds. You can sneak past it by moving very slowly. Possible variant: Sneak _up_ to it, not past it, and put something in front of it to disable it. The guard will fix this on his next check.

The microswitch activates if a high-value item is lifted from its base. Disable it by taping it closed.

Disable the reed switch by placing a strong permanent magnet next to it. (The mob boss might need to hint about this; most people probably haven't seen these).

Watch out for low-tech things like bells attached to scoring objects. --gwyn (talk) 2009-05-24 05:24:57

An idea I had for a Lasertrap variant to make it a longer game:

Could you rig up a webcam which can see the beams, and not put any smoke in the room (and conceal the lasers somehow) so that the player can't see them at all?

Then one person goes through the maze, and the rest of his team stand outside on a screen, giving directions using a walkie-talkie.

OR if that's not feasible, maybe the room is packed with lasers, but the people outside can temporarily disable some of them. They have to work out which ones to turn off and brief the person inside on what to do. --benhenley (talk) 2009-05-29 12:56:52

Also, how about a Property of a Traitor variant where the aim is to find and defuse a suitcase nuke? The trail of clues could lead to the Vault - which would be in an apparently sealed-off room of the venue or a nearby building.

Then one volunteer has to go through the maze while the team watch the output of a "fibre-optic probe" (webcam) put in place by Q branch... Once they beat the maze, their could be an extra puzzle where they have to work out which coloured wire to cut.

I guess the problem is that if they trip a beam, it's a bit anticlimactic that London doesn't actually explode. But I suppose you could put in a limited number of "overrides" of the bomb or something, and fudge it until they succeed. --benhenley (talk) 2009-05-29 13:27:58

OR, the situation room they work in is right outside the Vault - the nuke has been found at the start of the game, but they need to deduce the override code. --benhenley (talk) 2009-05-29 13:28:55