A "PC Backup" Wand?

[ScruffyMcSmirkalot]

Alright...
 
So... considering the whole Old Port Arena event lagged to death, sputtered, and crashed, nuking everything that was dropped... such left a lot of people dissapointed, as numerous things were lost, and DMs (understandably so, considering how many people) didn't feel like going through and replacing loot.
 
However, considering that so many people were at the center of the event, so many people were watching, all the NPCs, special efffects, and etc... I think it's fair to say that it was known that there would be a possibility for a crash.
 
As such, if there was say a wand that DMs had at their disposal, command, maybe some other mechanism in NWN or outside NWN... that, on use, would make a duplicate of the selected PC, to back up the PC should a crash happen... wouldn't that make things more manageable, assuming at the very least that DMs were expecting a large amount of lag generated and a possible crash?
 
I don't know the feasibility of this being implemented in NWN, or into the exterior systems that EFU:A has that interact with NWN. So thoughts and suggestions would be appreciated.
 
Well?

[ExileStrife]

PCs are already backed up each day so they can be restored in the event of a crash/loss.  Having something like this would only make a more recent backup...it doesn't make it easier to actually figure out how to return items and determine the XP to set.  It's hard to just overwrite the character with the backup file because you will first of all lose any progress you gained, but you'll also regain all the items you had  that might have been used during the conflict or taken by other PCs.

[ScruffyMcSmirkalot]

Yes, hence I spoke of making a temporary duplicate.
 
By making a conditional recent temporary backup, using said wand/command/etc, this would allow the following:
 
1.) As you made the backup right before this huge event, you know how much DM XP was granted, because you just granted it, and you don't have to account for other xp gained through the day earlier. You can also have a general idea of what xp was gained through NPC kills, and grant some sort of average. I believe this would be to the preference of many.
 
2.) In the case of items, you again only have to account for the items -right- before the event, when you save-wanded this PC. In these sort of controlled environments, most bags are attempted to be locked as I recall, with a few exceptions, and looting isn't usually done as the DMs are too busy to deal with "proper looting procedure". So, the only loss you have to worry about are used consumables. Again, once the player is restored after being wanded, you could make a general guess based on what you witnessed of the consumables used. I can guarantee that such would be vastly more appreciated than simply losing all of them.
 
By having a more recent backup, you control more of the variables.
 
But going back to something you're saying, ExileStrife... I've heard players say that when they approach for restores, they get the general impression that it's really time-consuming and a pain in the ass to do in the current system.
 
Why would you (or other DMs) say that this is so? As I think we only have a cursory idea of how the current backup/restore system works.
 
This might seem like a minor thing to some, but in my years of playing, especially as an immersionist, there's nothing more disheartening after an event, whether it went well for your character or not, to have a crash happen and many results have to be retconned due to the infeasibility of recovering everyone.
 
I like to think of it as the equivilent of finding some of the best chinese food in the world, devouring it until overly full, and then being punched in the stomach by Chuck Norris, besmirching such a fine occassion.
 
Just my two cents :)

[ExileStrife]

The items thing is major.  You are forgetting that in big events with a lot of fighting, people are generally using all those crazy consumables that they've been saving "just for a special occassion" like this.  And it's very hard to keep track of DM xp as well.  And it's impossible to keep track of 30+ PCs at the same time.

The PITA comes from figuring all that stuff out.  More than just a more recent backup would have to be done to simplify this process.  And more intensive tracking would unfortunately lag the situation more.  :(

The BIG fix for this is better scripting and better design to build a better server that doesn't crash and having DMs learn how to do big events properly without lag.  But like that is ever going to happen.  T_T