Social and MMO Systems

Overview

Delve is an MMO, not a single-player idle game. Social systems are what transform individual dungeon runs into a shared world. The core challenge: making multiplayer meaningful and engaging in an asynchronous game where players are rarely online at the same time.

The solution is the timed lobby system — group content starts at scheduled times, and players prepare their characters before the deadline. You don’t need to be online at the same time as your party; you just need to be ready before kickoff.

Guilds

What Is a Guild?

A guild is a persistent group of players who share resources, coordinate on raids, and compete together. Guilds are the primary social structure in Delve.

Guild Creation

• Cost: 10,000 gold
• Requirements: Level 10+ character
• Guild name: Unique server-wide, 3-24 characters
• Guild tag: 2-4 character abbreviation displayed next to member names

Guild Size

• Base capacity: 50 members
• Expandable via guild upgrades (gold cost): up to 200 members
• No hard cap on inactive members, but guilds can set auto-kick thresholds

Guild Ranks and Permissions

Guild masters can create custom ranks with granular permissions.

Guild Bank

• Shared storage for items and gold
• Members deposit items/gold; withdrawal permissions are rank-based
• Withdrawal logs visible to officers (prevents theft without accountability)
• Bank size: 50 slots base, expandable with guild gold
• Acts as a gold sink (expansion costs) and a social coordination tool

Guild Buffs

Guilds can invest gold into temporary server-wide buffs for all members:

• Only one buff active at a time per guild
• Acts as a meaningful gold sink
• Encourages active guild management

Guild Leveling

• Guilds earn XP from member activities (dungeon completions, raid completions, PVP wins)
• Guild levels unlock:
  • Higher member cap
  • More guild bank slots
  • Access to guild-exclusive crafting stations (10% crafting time reduction)
  • Guild hall cosmetic upgrades
  • Guild achievements and titles

Guild Hall

• A visual representation of the guild’s home base
• Upgradeable with gold and materials
• Contains: guild bank, crafting stations, quest board (guild-specific bounties), trophy room (displays raid achievements)
• Primarily a social and cosmetic space — a “home” for the guild

Party System

Timed Lobby System

This is the core multiplayer mechanic. Here’s how it works:

1. A player (or guild officer) creates a party lobby for a specific quest/dungeon/raid
2. A start time is set — e.g., “This raid starts at 8:00 PM server time on Saturday”
3. Players join the lobby before the start time, slotting their configured character into a party role
4. At the start time, the run begins automatically — regardless of whether players are online at that moment
5. The run resolves over real-world time as usual
6. All party members can review results when the run completes

Lobby Details

• Party size: 2-player (duo), 4-player (standard), 8-player (raid)
• Role slots: Lobbies can specify role requirements:
  • Tank (1-2): Vanguard, Berserker, Oathblade
  • Healer (1-2): Warden, Songweaver, Oathblade
  • DPS (2-4): Any damage-focused build
  • Support (0-2): Songweaver, Arcanist (utility), Pathfinder (scout)
• Minimum level: Set by the quest requirements
• Ready check: Players must mark “Ready” after configuring their character
• Auto-fill option: If the lobby isn’t full by start time, the system can optionally auto-fill from a public queue (configurable by lobby creator)
• Late join window: Players can join up to 30 minutes before start time

Lobby Scheduling

• Lobbies can be created up to 7 days in advance
• Guild officers can create recurring lobbies (e.g., “Every Saturday at 8 PM: Weekly Raid”)
• Notification system: Players receive notifications:
  • When a lobby they might be interested in is created (guild lobbies, friend lobbies)
  • 1 hour before a lobby starts
  • 15 minutes before a lobby starts (final reminder)
  • When the run is complete

Public Queue

For players without a guild or for casual grouping:

• Queue for a quest — the system matches you with other queued players when enough are available
• Matching prioritizes: level range, role balance, queue time
• Once matched, a lobby is created with a 1-hour countdown — giving all matched players time to configure
• Less control than a private lobby, but zero coordination required

Party Combat

• Party members act in initiative order alongside enemies
• Each player’s skill queue operates independently based on their configuration
• Allied skill queue awareness: Skill queues can reference ally conditions:
  • “Heal the ally with the lowest HP”
  • “Use Inspiring Melody on the Shade when they attack the boss”
  • “Taunt enemies attacking the Arcanist”
• Party composition matters — a party of 4 DPS will struggle without a healer

Raids

Raids are the pinnacle multiplayer content. See 06-quests-and-dungeons.md for encounter structure.

Raid-Specific Features

• 8-player parties with strict role requirements
• Multi-phase boss fights with unique mechanics:
  • Phase transitions at HP thresholds
  • Environmental hazards (stand in fire = take damage)
  • Add spawns (boss summons minions periodically)
  • Enrage timers (boss gets stronger if fight goes too long — DPS check)
  • Role-specific mechanics (tank must hold aggro, healer must dispel debuff, DPS must focus specific target)
• Raid lockouts: Characters can only complete a specific raid once per week for full rewards
  • Additional completions in the same week give reduced rewards (partial XP, no bonus loot)
  • Lockout resets every Monday at server reset time
• Raid difficulty tiers: Normal / Heroic / Mythic
  • Each tier increases enemy stats, adds mechanics, and improves loot quality
  • Mythic raids drop the best gear in the game

Raid Scheduling

• Guilds schedule raids via the lobby system
• Raid lobbies appear on a server-wide raid calendar (for public raids)
• Raid start times are prominently displayed with countdown timers

Friends List

• Add players by character name
• See friends’ online status, current activity, and level
• Quick-invite to party lobbies
• Friend activity feed: See when friends complete notable dungeons, earn achievements, or find legendary loot
• Max friends: 100

Messaging and Mail

In-Game Mail

• Send items, gold, and text messages to any player
• Item mail: 1-hour delivery delay (anti-scam)
• Gold mail: 5% transfer fee (gold sink)
• Text mail: Instant delivery
• Mail expires after 30 days if unclaimed
• Used for: auction house payments, guild communications, friend-to-friend trading

Chat System

Channels:

• Global: Server-wide chat (rate-limited to prevent spam)
• Guild: Guild members only
• Party: Current party/lobby members
• Whisper: Private 1-on-1 messages
• Trade: Dedicated channel for trade offers and requests
• LFG (Looking for Group): Dedicated channel for finding parties

Chat is persistent — messages are stored and visible when you log in (last 100 messages per channel). This is crucial for async play — guild coordination happens over hours, not minutes.

Chat Moderation

• Profanity filter (configurable: on/off/custom)
• Report system for harassment
• Mute/block individual players
• Rate limiting on global/trade channels
• Automated spam detection

Player Inspection

• Click on any player’s name to view their public profile:
  • Character name, title, guild
  • Level and class
  • Equipped gear (visible to all)
  • Achievement showcase (player-selected highlights)
  • PVP rank
  • Dungeon completion statistics
• Players can set their profile to private (hides gear and stats, shows only name/level/guild)

Social Features Summary