My full key rework idea what do you guys think of it?
Hatch mechanic changes
Hatch now takes 12 seconds to unlock with the dull key and skeleton key, when unlocking the hatch all players will hear it within 32 meters as a directional constant audio. The killer can grab a survivor unlocking the hatch and progress on unlocking the hatch does not save. The player that unlocks the hatch will not immediately escape through the hatch. Progress on opening the hatch does not affect keys however successfully opening the hatch will consume it.
New key mechanic
All keys can now quickly open chests at the cost of 10 seconds of use from the key, this animation takes 2 seconds.
Key changes
- Broken key is replaced with unique key, the unique key has a different look then the dull or skeleton key.
- A deactivated key cannot open black locks.
unique key: A small key crafted to unlock a specific type of lock, vibrating with power. The keys power cannot be triggered by itself. Various objects can be attached to its jump ring, which channels the keys power into various effects.
- 20 seconds of use
- can be used to quickly open chests
Dull key: A dull key that once held great power. The keys power cannot be triggered by itself. Various objects can be attached to its jump ring, which channels the keys power into various effects.
- 20 seconds of use
- can be used to quickly open chests at the cost of the keys power.
- Can be used to open black locks and is consumed when successful.
- Deactivates upon getting interrupted or stopping the progress on opening the black lock.
Skeleton key: A tarnished and crooked key, vibrating with ominous power. The keys power cannot be triggered by itself. Various objects can be attached to its jump ring, which channels the keys power into various effects.
- 30 seconds of use.
- can be used to quickly open a chest at the cost of the keys power.
- Can be used to open black locks and is consumed when successful.
Addons
The following addons are unchanged; Weaved ring, milky glass, gold token, prayer beads, prayer rope, erode token.
ultra rare addons;
Ominous Locket: a small locket with a faded picture of someone's family, written in blood are the words "I'll make it back, no matter what" across the picture. The powerful feelings in it become your own when opening a black lock.
- Decreases the time it takes to open a black lock by 4 seconds
- when you start unlocking a black lock the killer is alerted to your location
- You cannot stop the unlock interaction unless interrupted by the killer.
- Once the black lock is opened you escape through the hatch.
Very rare addons;
Blood amber:
- Reveals the killers aura when within a 32 meter range
- reduces key usage by 10 seconds.
Unique wedding ring:
- reveals the obsessions aura to all survivors.
- Decreases your chance to be the obsession.
- Stacks.
Rare addons;
lock trinket: A small lock that is difficult to pry open, but not impossible. The key's power has no effect on it but instead conserves the keys power when used rashly.
- When the key is used to open a chest, instead of losing some of the keys power this addon is consumed.
paper note: A small note that is unreadable, focusing on it awakens unfamiliar memories. Can be attached to the key using its jump ring to channel the keys aura reading ability.
- reveals item and chest aura's within 32 meters of you.
Luck charm: a small wooden charm that has been carved from a branch with the word "Luck" engraved on it. The key's power has no effect on it directly, instead the charm channels it into something else.
- greatly increases the chance for a higher rarity item when using the key to unlock a chest.
- deactivates the key when the key unlocks a chest.
uncommon addons;
glass diamond earring: A cheap earring with see through glass diamonds. channeling the key's power though it makes you feel faint and disconnected.
- when using the key your aura is hidden from all players.
- decreases key usage by 10 seconds.
Scratched pearl:
- decreases the sound of opening the hatch by 8 meters
Common addons;
rusted lock: a small rusted lock easily opened with force, it can no longer accomplish its original purpose. The key's power doesn't affect it directly, instead it amplifies the sound of unlocking locks through this trinket.
- when using the key to open a chest the killer receives a noise notification
- you leave no scratch marks after opening a chest with a key for 5 seconds.
Perk changes
Left behind: decreases time it takes to open the hatch by 4 seconds with a key when your the last survivor alive.
Ace in a hole, plunderer, and pharmacy now work when a key is used to open a chest.
Hoarder: If a survivor tries to open a chest with a key instead that key gets deactivated.
Comments
What i'm trying to accomplish with this rework is a complete rebalance of the hatch as well as making keys more useful. The time it takes the hatch to open and the distance you hear it from can be discussed but anything resembling instant opening of the hatch is non-negotiable as it is the main reason keys are so strong. No one can seriously say that just because you had a certain item and got to a certain spot in the map means you should be able to escape instantly and safely even when infront or being chased by the killer. This rework provides interaction between the killer and survivors regarding the hatch in a way more fair manner which is one of the things this game needs.
to encourage key use and to have them be more useful I thought that making them open chests quickly was a cool feature and it makes more sense now because chests have locks on them. because it didn't make sense that a broken key could be used to open chests like normal and because it can't open hatch and is kinda useless i decided that it was better to just make it a key designed to open chest locks so it made more sense.
"the keys power..." was just something i copied from the current description of the key, the power is refering the it's effects like aura reading but i agree that it could be updated to suit this rework.
For the addons i agree with wedding ring and lock trinket but i think it should be more clear how much your losing so instead of some description on increasing the usage or whatever i thought it was better to just give a straight up number on how much time you lose on the key. Not that it's necessary if the devs want to use how it currently then whatever.
For hoarder if keys can quickly open chests it makes this perk really suck when it happens and it's meant to allow you to get a survivor opening a chest near you and semi defend chests but keys will make that obsolete when they are used, instead of consuming the key i can agree that it should instead deactivate it but i think it should stop keys opening chests and it honestly won't be that strong of an effect since it only effects keys.
What do you think about the amount of time it takes to open hatch? My original idea thought it should be 8 seconds but i increased it as i felt that would be too quick for the killer to reliably stop especially if another survivor body blocks.
Yeah i liked your idea for lock trinket better so i updated my post, my idea for it was it "recharged" your key a bit if used on the unique key or decreased the charges you lost if used on the other two.
Regarding the notification bubble while my idea doesn't include that in it's base mechanic I like the idea of it so that's why i made rusted lock make notification bubbles so you can distract the killer and have a brief period where you can get away without leaving scratch marks.
I think if i include that as a base mechanic i can add another addon that prevents the notification bubble.