Not quite everything - for players who would rather avoid muds that steal the work of others and then try to pass it off as their own work, running it as pay-to-play mud, you should also read .

It's certainly well-known.

Oh and as a sidenote. You might want to look up what it means to Cite Sources.

Take Armageddon for example, they have #### near nothing to do with Dune anymore, but ####! I'll be damned if I never see them say they got their grand plan from Dune.

Not a particularly apt or even insightful analogy, Delstro.

In order for it to apply here they'd need to steal the entire setting, perhaps change a couple letters in a couple names, and then pass it off as their new, all-original gameworld.

Medievia didn't just borrow ideas from somebody else. They used the Diku code, which is legal. Then they violated the agreement that all Diku users must make that says that the mud cannot be pay for play or pay for perks. So they aren't stealing ideas, they're coppying code that is available to everybody as long as they don't use it to make money. And then they are using that code to make money illegally.

So, anybody that plays Medievia is helping to support criminals.

Seriously, if you really want to fork out money to play a Mud, why not fork out money to play a Mud that spends such money to create it's own code rather than using code that is less developed from Diku than many free to play muds?

Or take your money, burn it, and play one of the other MUDs out there that are superior to every pay-to-play.

Either way, Medievia sucks.

Take care,

Jason

Could you show me where in the license it says that a mud cannot be pay for play or pay for perks? Because I've read it. I've shown it to lawyers. I've read it again.

It doesn't say that. What it does say is open to interpretation, but it certainly doesn't come out and say what you allege it says. Have you even read it?

--matt

There's a link to the license at this site:

Of course there's other info at that site that I found when I entered "Medievia code theft" in Google.

I'm not sure why anyone would be surprised the_logos is one of the few pro-Medievia voices. Why else would he have his lawyers looking for loopholes in licenses?? This from an owner who doesn't let any mud websites post reviews of his games, but has someone post a promotion thread every couple of weeks...why?...MONEY!

Medievia is not pay-to-play. It also did not steal code. It started out as a Diku MUD years and years ago, and that code has since been changed, rewritten, redone, deleted - however you'd like to look at it, it's not being used anymore.

Players send in donations out of their own free will, because Medievia is a great game and a great environment to be in. People are clearly envious of it and only put it down because they wish their own MUDs were in any way superior.

Medievia will always be the better MUD, and it's terrible really that some people are bent on spreading rumors about it's authenticity, not to mention the owner's morals, as if they would ever steal something. If there was any credit to be given, it would be given, but there is not.

It's faq does say:

They do not have credits either, the_logos. And they need them, even if as somebody else said, they are only 10% DIKU.

From .

How is that open to interpretation?

Let's look carefully at the liscense:
Okay, the_logos has already shown that although they may violate the spirit of the liscense here, they don't violate the letter of it. ASSUMING THEY DON'T MAKE A PROFIT, which I doubt.

Since the mud includes part of dikumud in it, I fail to see how charging money to players for playing the mud (or buying "donation items") is legit.

One could only wish DIKU had done this and put Medievia out of buisness.

UH OH! No way around this one!

Hmm, maybe Medievia has done this, let's do a check to see whether or not the people at Medievia are a bunch of thieves. When you type credits, it says:
Hmm, apparently Medthievia isn't so innocent after all. Not only do they steal somebody's mud but they take all the credit for themselves.

And it still is one.

Nothing to do with the fact that these so-called 'donations' are 'rewarded' with the best equipment in the game, then? No idea why you call that a 'donation', either - it's clearly a purchase. Or do you 'donate' money at the corner shop and receive a crate of beer as thanks?

What a sense of humour! Next you'll be telling me that 5-star restaurants only put down McDonalds out of envy...

You just can't beat that bigmac - the best burger money can buy!

Rumours? How about a line-by-line analysis of the code, along with a statement from Vryce - signed under penalty of perjury - in which he confirms the identity of the code I reviewed?

Not even Soleil bothers denying that the code is based on Diku, just that they can get away with it.

Why do stupid people always use the 'UR JUST JELOUS' argument?

I'm pretty sure people are just jealous.  They don't want to see Medievia succeed, because they are holding a grudge against it, under the assumption that someone's bad code was stolen and assuming that code is still being used.

Either let it go and move on, or do something about it and try to prove everyone wrong.  Because clearly if someone is violating some law, you could do something about it.

It's actually not the best equipment in the game.  The best equipment in the game is whatever gods choose to put into the game.  For some people, the best items are from quests, which they purchase with quest points.  For some the best items are in hero battles, because that's all they do.  For some, the best items are from sea slugs (a ring of twisted slug hide Lev(0) Loc(fing) noegg fragile dr(5) hps(40) SKL/SPL: dodge (success +10%) Cond(pristine - 9 Days).)

Object: the Mystical Talisman of Medievia [talisman medievia mystical hp100]
Item Type: ARMOR   Effects: GLOW DONATION
Equipable Location(s): NECK
Weight: 0     Value: 10000     Level Restriction: 0
This object has been blessed by the Gods and seems indestructible.
Days Left: Infinity
AC-apply of 20
Affects:
   +100 to HIT_POINTS
   +7 to DAMROLL

Pretty good right?  Here's how you can get one:

-donate $50
-write for the MUDSlinger
-pay someone else in-game currency (gold) to donate for you
-become a god and write zones, autoquests, etc.

There are several players who have hundreds of dollars worth of this donation equipment, and they haven't sent in a penny.

Honestly, who's the side here starting some kind of war?  I've just said why I think Medievia is a great game, and suddenly a number of people think it's their duty in life to denounce it.

But it all pours down to the fact that Medievia is a diku-derivative. You can slap whatever code you want on it, but as long as it IS based on the DIKU, that's the way it will stay. And thus, credits are due to the diku-team and the license must be followed. I am especially thankful that KaVir and the others brought up this subject. Being an long-term mudder (12 years of playing varios muds), I do find the behaviour of Medievia abominable and a very bad example for the others.

Jealous? Nothing would make me more happy than to actually see more mudders throughout the community. But when one of the larger muds is run by deception and credit is not given to those who deserve it .. no, I'm not jealous. More like frustrated,angry and extremely disappointed.

And as a sidenote: I played Medievia for a while and it wasn't a game for me - I didn't like the character interaction nor the game itself. Those are the reasons why I didn't like it back then, and this was before I heard of this incident.

Then you're sadly mistaken - Medievia has nothing to offer that other muds don't do better.

There is no 'assumption' - it's a proven fact. Why would you continue to deny something that even the owners admit?

I think it's the right of potential players to know the truth about the mud you're promoting.

If I stole something you'd spent years developing, ripped out the credits, and claimed it as my own, wouldn't you want other people to know about it?