Alien Encounter

Forest encounter where brilliant green beam shoots from sky and two small green aliens emerge speaking alien language ("Fzzxtlt bzylbrrk txrzt!"). One alien approaches with right-hand greeting. Choice: say hello (70% peaceful outcomes including 33% gem drop chance, 20% instant death by alien weapon 'Zat!', 10% abduction/probing with turn loss and posterior ache) OR run away (33% chance drop 1 gem if have gems). 25% raw event chance (alienchance setting), once per day (alienencounter pref). Peaceful departures: aliens leave confused (30%), leave normally (40% including possible gem drop). Hostile outcomes: killed by ray gun "Zat!" (20%), or paralyzed/abducted for probe examination then dumped naked in forest with welts/bruises/-1 turn (10%). No combat, pure random outcome.com). Where extraterrestrial visitors materialize from a tractor beam, attempt First Contact by speaking what sounds like someone gargling marbles, and depending on the dice roll either peacefully leave (sometimes dropping a gem), vaporize you with a sci-fi weapon, or abduct you for anatomical research that results in you waking up naked on the forest floor with a sore bottom and serious questions about what happened during those missing hours.

Location & Access

Where: Forest event hook. 25% raw chance (alienchance setting, range 0-100%). Once per day (alienencounter pref resets at newday).

Trigger Condition:

if (get_module_pref("alienencounter") == 1) return 0; // Already encountered today
return alienchance; // 25% default

Initial Encounter

The Beam: "Your forest travels are suddenly interrupted as a brilliant green beam of light suddenly shoots down from the sky."

Paralysis: "Stunned in disbelief at such a sight, you stand frozen in your tracks as a pair of small green aliens emerge from the beam."

The Greeting: "One of them take a few steps forward, holds up it's right hand in some kind of greeting, and utters something in a language you've never before heard.`n`n`3\"Fzzxtlt bzylbrrk txrzt!\" it proclaims."

Your Options:

  • Um.Hi? — Respond with friendly greeting (10 random outcomes)
  • Run Away! — Flee from the aliens (33% gem drop if have gems)

Outcome 1: Say Hello (10 Possibilities)

Your Response: "'Hello there,' you respond to the little green creature."

Flag Set: alienencounter pref = 1 (blocks repeat today).

Cases 1-4 (40%): Peaceful Departure

Description: "The alien blinks, says something to his (or is it her?) companion, then they both turn and disappear back into the beam.`n`n`2With a flash, the beam is gone and you're left standing on the trail wondering what in blazes just happened. Shrugging, you decide it's best not to think about it too much and you return to your travels."

Bonus: 33% chance (e_rand(1,3) == 1): "`3As you leave, you suddenly notice that the strange creature dropped a gem!`n`n" → +1 gem

Outcome: Return to forest, possible gem gain, no penalties.

Cases 5-7 (30%): Confusion Departure

Description: "`2Both aliens turn and start chattering amongst themselves for a moment, leaving you confused once again.`n`n`2After a time, they both turn to you, mutter some more strange words, and disappear back into the beam of light. After the beam disappears, you're left scratching your head. You decide it's best to simply continue on with your travels."

Outcome: Return to forest, no rewards or penalties. Aliens confused, depart peacefully.

Cases 8-9 (20%): Death by Alien Weapon

Description: "`2The alien's eyes go wide and it fumbles for something at it's waist. Before you can say another word, it points a small, strange-looking weapon at you and fires.`n`n`2The last thing you remember is hearing a loud \"Zat!\" before the world around you goes black."

Effects:

  • hitpoints = 0
  • alive = false
  • addnews: "[name] `2was zapped by aliens in the forest today!"
  • Navigation: "Land of Shades" (shades.php)

Outcome: Instant death. Alien misinterpreted greeting as threat. Ray gun vaporization.

Case 10 (10%): Abduction & Probing

Abduction: "The alien stares at you blankly for a moment before it's companion points a strange looking contraption at you and presses a button. Before you can react, you find yourself paralyzed and being drawn into the beam of light!`n`n`2Within moments, you black out."

Examination Table: "`2Upon awakening, you find yourself strapped down to a cold metal table, with both aliens looking over you and chattering amongst themselves. Before blacking out again, you see a strange probe-like device in one of their hands."

Navigation: "Uh Oh." → Continue to aftermath.

Aftermath: "`2Hours (maybe even days) later, you find yourself laying naked on the forest floor, exactly where those strange aliens appeared. Gathering your wits (and your clothes) about you, you sit up and discover strange welts and bruises covering your entire body, and a dull ache in your posterior.`n`n`2You quickly dress yourself and decide it would be prudent to be away from here as quickly as possible, less your new 'friends' return."

Effects:

  • turns -= 1 (time lost during abduction)
  • addnews: "[name] `2was kidnapped and experimented on by aliens in the forest today!"
  • Navigation: "Return to Forest" (forest.php)

Outcome: Abducted, medically examined (probed), lose 1 turn, strange injuries, return to forest. Public news announcement of your ordeal.

Outcome 2: Run Away

Description: "`2Whether it be from fear or disbelief, you turn and flee from the pair of strange creatures."

Gem Drop: 33% chance (e_rand(1,3) == 1) AND you have gems > 0:

  • "`3In your flight from the aliens, you drop a gem!`n`n"
  • gems -= 1

Navigation: "Return to Forest" (forest.php)

Outcome: Safe escape, possible gem loss. No other effects.

Probability Analysis

Outcome Probability Effect
Peaceful departure (no gem) 26.7% Nothing
Peaceful departure (+1 gem) 13.3% +1 gem
Confusion departure 30% Nothing
Death by ray gun 20% Die, go to Shades
Abduction/probing 10% -1 turn, welts, news

Say Hello Summary:

  • 70% positive outcomes (peaceful/confusion departure)
  • 13.3% gain 1 gem
  • 20% instant death
  • 10% abduction (turn loss, embarrassing news)

Run Away:

  • 100% safe (no death)
  • 33% chance -1 gem (if have gems)
  • No upside potential

Strategy

Risk Assessment:

  • Say Hello: 20% death risk, 13.3% gem gain, 10% turn loss + embarrassment
  • Run Away: No death risk, 33% gem loss (if have gems)

Recommended: Run Away

Reasoning:

  • 20% death is catastrophic (lose all forest fights, resurrection cost, VE penalty potential)
  • 13.3% gem gain doesn't offset death risk value
  • 10% abduction = -1 turn + public humiliation news
  • Running has 67% no penalty, 33% -1 gem (acceptable loss)
  • Expected value of saying hello is negative when death weighted properly

When to Say Hello:

  • You don't care about dying (early VE, ready to reset day)
  • You want the 13.3% gem chance (gambling mood)
  • Roleplay/entertainment value (worth the risk)
  • You have resurrection safety net (horcrux, phoenix, etc.)

When to Run:

  • Death unacceptable (prime forest fight day, quest active, VE preservation)
  • Conservative playstyle (minimize variance)
  • Already have gems (33% loss < 20% death)
  • Don't want embarrassing abduction news

Admin Configuration

Settings:

  • alienchance: Raw chance of encountering aliens (range 0-100 in 5% increments, default: 25)

User Preferences:

  • alienencounter: Found one yet? (bool, default: 0) — Once-per-day flag

Technical Details

Hooks Used:

  • forest: Event hook with weight function in module install:
    require_once("modules/alienencounter.php"); return alienencounter_test();
  • newday: Reset alienencounter pref to 0 (allow re-encounter)

Weight Function:

function alienencounter_test() {
    $chance = get_module_setting("alienchance","alienencounter");
    if (get_module_pref("alienencounter","alienencounter") == 1) return 0;
    return $chance;
}

Returns 0 if already encountered today, otherwise returns alienchance setting (25% default).

Random Outcome Logic:

switch (e_rand(1,10)) {
    case 1-4: // 40% peaceful
    case 5-7: // 30% confusion
    case 8-9: // 20% death
    case 10:  // 10% abduction
}

Lore & Themes

Alien Description: "Small green aliens" — classic sci-fi "little green men" trope. Emerge from green beam (tractor beam/teleportation). Speak unintelligible language ("Fzzxtlt bzylbrrk txrzt!").

Greeting Gesture: Right hand raised "in some kind of greeting" — possibly Vulcan salute reference, universal peace gesture, or first contact protocol.

Gender Ambiguity: "(his (or is it her?)" — alien biology unclear, human gender concepts don't apply.

Weapon: "Small, strange-looking weapon" fires with "loud 'Zat!'" sound. Instant incapacitation/death. Possibly Stargate reference (Zat'nik'tel weapon).

Abduction Tropes:

  • Paralysis beam
  • Cold metal examination table
  • Probe device (medical experimentation)
  • Memory gaps ("hours, maybe even days later")
  • Naked on forest floor
  • "Dull ache in your posterior" (probing implication)
  • Strange welts and bruises
  • Missing time

Cultural References: Classic alien abduction/UFO encounter narrative. B-movie sci-fi aesthetics. X-Files/Close Encounters vibes. Probe jokes.

Common Questions

Q: Can I encounter aliens more than once per day?
A: No. alienencounter pref blocks repeat encounters until newday reset.

Q: Is there a way to survive the ray gun?
A: No. If you get case 8 or 9, you die instantly. It's pure RNG.

Q: What happens during the probing?
A: The game tastefully fades to black. You wake up later with "welts and bruises" and "dull ache in posterior." Implication only.

Q: Why do aliens drop a gem sometimes?
A: Lore-wise, the alien "dropped" it accidentally. Mechanically, it's a 33% bonus on peaceful outcomes.

Q: What language is "Fzzxtlt bzylbrrk txrzt"?
A: Author made it up. Gibberish alien language. No translation exists.

Q: Can I attack the aliens?
A: No. This is an event, not a combat encounter. Only two choices: greet or flee.

Alien Encounter: where the Forbidden Forest apparently has no ceiling because a bright green tractor beam shoots down from the sky and deposits two small green aliens who greet you in a language that sounds like someone's keyboard had a seizure, and if you politely say hello there's a 20% chance they interpret this as an act of war and vaporize you with a ray gun that goes "Zat!", a 10% chance they decide you look interesting enough to abduct and perform medical experiments on (you wake up naked with butt pain and no memory of the intervening hours), a 70% chance they just shrug and leave, and about 13% of the time one of them drops a gem on the way out like a tourist losing their wallet, but honestly the smart move is to just run away screaming because a 1-in-5 chance of instant death is not good odds no matter how you rationalize it.