Game Mechanics

I've been looking around for good game mechanics that I can incorporate into my web based game. I haven't come across any that will work with an open ended system. I will likely have to create my own, which is going to take some time. I don't mind putting in time, as I've put in alot thus far. I was hoping to find something that has been tested by alot of people already though. Usually, the system will go be revised if something isn't working too well. That's the part I was looking to skip.

As a side note, I came across http://www.ajaxwrite.com which is a web based M$ word application. You can write up documents from anywhere through your web browser with the same functionality as MS word. Not a bad little tool.

Another side note