[lckychrmsrr]

I have been looking for a new mud for a few months now and can't seem to find one that quite suits my tastes. I don't really have specific requirements such as classless/leveless systems but would like something with Pk. I am looking for an RPI MUD (no MUSHes) and would like your suggestions on what to go check out.

Please do not recommend...
1) SOI
2) Arm
3) or any game that isn't free to play

I look forward to seeing what all is out there that I haven't discovered.

[fjin]

You didn't forbiddened to mention Harshlands so it should be mentioned. There is very good atmosphere, and real Roleplayers do like that place.

[WarHound]

I'll second Harshlands. Though I've never played there religiously, I did enjoy the time I spent there. Check it out...

Shattered Kingdoms is also a pretty solid game.

[dragon master]

Harshlands is the only other RPI that I know of besides the two you mentioned. Maybe you mean RP enforced mud? There are plenty of them. (RPI is a more strict term)

Harshlands is similar to SoI codewise (but with less advanced code in my opinion) but has a completely different setting (including a LOT more religious influences) and a lot less players.

If you want a PK mud, Carrion Fields isn't an RPI but it is RP enforced and focuses very heavily on PK.

[Kaleisha]

Everybodies definition of RPI seems to be slightly different these days. And even within that particular area there are a multitude of muds with differing playing styles. Someone who wants RPI might consider that levels is not a roleplay device therefore any game that includes a level system is not for them. So since you were fairly loose in defining your boundries I shall give the game I haunt a shameless plug.

Evarayn has been running less than a year, it is based on entirely original code. Not adapted from another code base or mutated, but built from the ground up. Some people find it hard to adjust to playing there because they prefer the familiar syntax and routines of what they are used to, but many stick it out and become perfectly at home (just think what it was like with your first mud and how foreign it all was). We have a unique skills system and plyers gain points to learn more skills through time in the world - which is a plus for roleplay as you are not forced to spend time hunting things to gain useful skills, instead you can be acting out a scene with a group in  village somewhere.

We are a small world, if you are looking for a large population then evarayn is not for you, but we are building playerbase steadily. Gods are active and IC, we have cities and factions, societies and continents. Sailing ships for travel and beasts you can breed yourself and ride. All needs are provided by other players, cooking, crafting, smithing and repairs. We do have player to player combat, pk is not forbidden but there is expected to be ic reasoning behind it. We're not permadeath, though we do have some interesting penalties from death which effectively weaken you until you attend a renewal ceremony (performed by players who have chosen the sage path)

I won't rave here any more, I could do so for hours! check through our website evarayn.com and read up the histories and information posted. If you think we're what you are looking for come on by and try it. It won't cost you a cent, even if you don't think it is what you are looking for come by and try it, you never know until you do

[Valg]

My impression is that "RPI" is jargon- it's a term invented by people with a certain style of game to describe their own style of game.  It's no more instructive than going to the grocery store and seeing "New and Improved" or "Deluxe".

There are a lot of games where the method and goal involves good roleplaying, and where roleplaying is required of all players.

We fit the bill of what you ask for in your original post- we're 100% free to play (no "pay-for-perks" or similar systems which amount to "you can play for free as a second-class citizen"), we require roleplay from all players, we have PK, etc.  We're a well-established MUD- up since 1994, with a large and diverse playerbase.

This is an ad from the summer describing our basic philosophy and perks.  This is a more focused ad, which 'zooms in' on our thief class (one of 16).  Check both out (macrocosm and microcosm), and see if anything there interests you.

[dragon master]

Originally Posted by (Valg @ Dec. 17 2004,13:50) My impression is that "RPI" is jargon- it's a term invented by people with a certain style of game to describe their own style of game.  It's no more instructive than going to the grocery store and seeing "New and Improved" or "Deluxe". There are a lot of games where the method and goal involves good roleplaying, and where roleplaying is required of all players. We fit the bill of what you ask for in your original post- we're 100% free to play (no "pay-for-perks" or similar systems which amount to "you can play for free as a second-class citizen"), we require roleplay from all players, we have PK, etc.  We're a well-established MUD- up since 1994, with a large and diverse playerbase. This is an ad from the summer describing our basic philosophy and perks.  This is a more focused ad, which 'zooms in' on our thief class (one of 16).  Check both out (macrocosm and microcosm), and see if anything there interests you.

The point of RPI is to a term for a certain style of game. It is a game that focuses on roleplaying above all else, including PK, level-gaining and getting your character uber 1337.

In an RPI, people are shown by descriptions not names that are somehow mysteriously known. There are no levels or experience points. People don't mysteriously pop back when they die. When you die you make a new character. Character's have to go through an application process before being created. There are no global channels(except maybe a newbie channel, I think). RPIs are sort of like the hardcore roleplaying games. Somepeople like them some people don't.

Nowhere have I said that RPIs are "better" than other RP enforced muds. They are a more specific type of mud and some people may like them while others may not. Some people might like the immersion into the world created by an RPI. Some people might not like not being able to go around killing mobs, players, or gaining levels. Some people might not like righting character applications. And some people might just not like the extensive amount of RP that is involved.

It is a term that is used to help people identify the type of Mud it is not saying that it is better or "new and improved". In my previous post I even recommended Carrion fields. It is not an RPI, but that doesn't mean it isn't good or that it isn't RP required. But somebody who likes playing RPIs, might not like Carrion fields and will probably leave annoyed when their character keeps getting PKed or when people they kill come back to life. Other people might like the adrenaline rush provided by PK and love Carrion fields.

RPI muds are a type of mud. They are in no way "better" or "worse" than other RP muds except in people's opinions. If an RP enforced mud were, RPIs would be apples. Some people might like apples better than oranges but this doesn't mean one is "better". Even though neither is "better" a distinction still needs to be made so somebody doesn't bite into an apple thinking it is an orange or bite into an orange thinking it is an apple.

edit: Evarayn is not an RPI, just wanted to clear that up. (it doesn't have permadeath, has experience points I think, and has an OOC channel, etc.) This doesn't mean is a bad mud, as I said before.

Also, Evaryn is "pay for perks", so they aren't 100% free.

[Jenred]

This is from Wiki-Pedia

Originally Posted by RPI MUDs Another lesser known variant of a MUD are RPI MUDs, Role-Play Intensive Multi-User Dungeon. RPI MUDs center themselves around playing out specific roles as if the role were real. Realism is often blended in with fantasy in these types of MU*s. In general, the objective of the game is not to complete computer-generated quests or to hack-and-slash monsters in order to gain levels and equipment, but to collaborate with fellow players to create complex and multi-layered storylines in a cohesive gameworld. RPIs are very different from other MU* because of this. The majority of RPI MUDs are levelless and classless, focusing instead on skills and crafts that players may pursue during the lifetime of their characters. RPIs also differ from MUSHes in that they retain the hard code of a MUD in deciding such variable outcomes as combat, magickal spells, and so on. RPI MUDs could be considered giant plays where the setting or world is the theater, and the players are the actors as well as the viewers. RPIs are a newer branch of MUDs in general, but have still been around for a long period of time

[Felomar]

Originally Posted by (Jenred @ Dec. 19 2004,00:41) This is from Wiki-Pedia Originally Posted by RPI MUDs Another lesser known variant of a MUD are RPI MUDs, Role-Play Intensive Multi-User Dungeon. RPI MUDs center themselves around playing out specific roles as if the role were real. Realism is often blended in with fantasy in these types of MU*s. In general, the objective of the game is not to complete computer-generated quests or to hack-and-slash monsters in order to gain levels and equipment, but to collaborate with fellow players to create complex and multi-layered storylines in a cohesive gameworld. RPIs are very different from other MU* because of this. The majority of RPI MUDs are levelless and classless, focusing instead on skills and crafts that players may pursue during the lifetime of their characters. RPIs also differ from MUSHes in that they retain the hard code of a MUD in deciding such variable outcomes as combat, magickal spells, and so on. RPI MUDs could be considered giant plays where the setting or world is the theater, and the players are the actors as well as the viewers. RPIs are a newer branch of MUDs in general, but have still been around for a long period of time

Interesting, according to Wiki-pedia MUSHes can't use code to resolve combat and such. If that's the definition you're going by, then Chiaroscuro would be an RPI MUD, or at least partly so, because we have a taskroll system and a crafting system that silently rolls your skills to determine the success/quality of your output.

I wouldn't recommend walking into Chia and calling it a MUD though. There's certain MUSHers that hate that.

Basically, according to Wiki-pedia, an RPI MUD is just a MUSH that uses code to determine success or failure. Which makes it seem that either RPI MUDs are just MUSHes for people who want roleplay but hate MUSHes by name, or MUSHes are RPI MUDs for people who associate MUD with hack-n-slash mob killing only.

Originally Posted by We fit the bill of what you ask for in your original post- we're 100% free to play (no "pay-for-perks" or similar systems which amount to "you can play for free as a second-class citizen")

To supply a view from an opposite bias, not all pay-for-perks systems make those who don't pay second class citizens. It depends entirely on what the perks are and how they affect gameplay. For instance, on Chiaroscuro (which I would classify as a limited pay-for-perks system), most perks are things you don't actually need to excel. A noble can go around for years without ever actually paying to have a keep built on grid, for instance. You can buy your very own special custom sword and it will have a cool name, a detailed description, and an interesting (and not always flattering) background history, but with the exception of the occasional special build from Bahamut, it will still be the same combat value as the generically described sword that the guy you're fighting bought at the NPC merchant. Even Bahamut's special builds don't exceed +1 over standard weapon strengths; no +12 swords of devastation here. This is because Bahamut is also the guy who spends hours of his time poking about through the weaponry and armor and rebalancing it all periodically just because he's cool that way.

Basically, it's quite possible to have pay-for-perks without those who don't pay becoming unimportant in the world. It requires that the admin really set out to be sure this is the case, and not all games do. Like anything, it varies from game to game in how it's implemented.

[Jenred]

MUD is a general term (at least to me). Its a text base game that has a heavy code presence, lots of coded items, rooms, etc. MUSH is another general term. Its usually light on code, rooms, and items, and alot of time people don't even use coded combat but rather emotes.

Then there are subclasses like RPI mud, H&S mud, Rp-encouraged, sex mud, etc. Each has various definitions and its really up to the person viewing to decide.

But for the most part, RPI muds have a very definitive look and feel to them. Putting such an emphasis on roleplaying as to require character applications to control the type of characters (usually to preserve the games environment, keep characters semi-permanent in their appearance, and prevent description silliness). There is usually few 'numbers' (like no damage numbers, no skill numbers, no levels, etc.).

Anyways, there is a big difference in my opinion between RP-encouraged/enforced/required muds and RPI muds like Harshlands, Armageddon, Fourlands, Southlands, SoI, etc. And I feel that wiki-pedia has done a good job expressing the common meaning of the different terms, at least from what I've heard from other players.

[KaVir]

Originally Posted by (Jenred @ Dec. 20 2004,04:04) MUD is a general term (at least to me). Its a text base game that has a heavy code presence, lots of coded items, rooms, etc. MUSH is another general term. Its usually light on code, rooms, and items, and alot of time people don't even use coded combat but rather emotes.

MUSH isn't just a term - it's the name of a derivative. MUSH is derived from TinyMUD, just like Merc is derived from Diku, and they all belong to the MUD genre.

To quote Dr Richard Bartle (author of the original MUD) concerning the usage of the term 'MUD':

http://www.informit.com/articles/article.asp?p=99703

Originally Posted by Although this term is still in common currency to the extent that it has made it into several regular dictionaries, it is not universally accepted. In particular, many players of certain of its subcategories see it as implying some kind of combat-oriented world view, and prefer the term MU* instead (MU for multi-user and * for anything that could conceivably follow). This would be analogous to calling dinosaurs *saurs on the grounds that "dinosaurs" vaguely implies that they were all pea-brained carnivorous monsters, whereas in fact many were pea-brained herbivorous monsters—and hey, there are pterosaurs and plesiosaurs, too. ("Dino" comes via New Latin from the Greek deinos, meaning "fearful." Saurus merely means "lizard.")

Originally Posted by (Felomar @ Dec. 19 2004,15:33) Interesting, according to Wiki-pedia MUSHes can't use code to resolve combat and such.

According to Tychepedia, any idiot can edit a Wikipedia entry and they often do. Time to fix it. ;-)


p.s. There, is that better?

I was going to add RPI players tend to be extraordinarily anal-centric, unimaginative and highly annoying hobbitses, but I figured they didn't want opinions no matter how highly considered.

[prof1515]

I find most RPI MUDders to be far more creative, imaginative, and mature than your typical MUDder. From my experience they also tend to be older, which could account for the last part.

The term Role-Playing Intensive seems to define itself. While some do not understand the grammatical reason the "intensive" follows the "role-playing" and not vice-versa, it's rather important. Role-Playing Intensive suggests that the MUD is centered (intensively) around role-playing, not hack-and-slash or anything else. To that end, the code is designed around the goal (ie. role-playing) rather than the game world being designed around the code. Levels are removed, references to hp are often removed, game mechanics irrelevant to role-play are either removed or hidden, and the world is designed independent of the code's characteristics (so rationalization for things like levels and killed PCs being "ressurected" because the code isn't perma-death are eliminated).

Sadly, the number of RPIs out there can probably be counted on one, and maybe a finger or two on a second, hand. And not all of those are that great. Still, given the time-intensive nature of developing a good character, it becomes hard to play more than two or three simultaneously anyway.

Take care,

Jason

Originally Posted by (prof1515 @ Dec. 20 2004,20:25) I find most RPI MUDders to be far more creative, imaginative, and mature than your typical MUDder. From my experience they also tend to be older, which could account for the last part.

I'd suggest they be younger than your typical role-player and older than your typical hack-n-slahser, but then that's such a relative term and a broad generalization. Tweeners on the role-playing spectrum.

Originally Posted by (prof1515 @ Dec. 20 2004,20:25) Role-Playing Intensive suggests that the MUD is centered (intensively) around role-playing, not hack-and-slash or anything else.

Some consider that Intensive part immature. It's also a false conceit when better role-play occurs elsewhere. Only in an RPI will one be forced to role-play for the enjoyment of the objects, mobiles and hidden staff. Such is not the way of other role-players who role-play for the entertainment of their fellow players and themselves. RPI is role-play for the hopelessly left-brained and the tragically Diku-centric mud universe, IMNSHO.

Originally Posted by (prof1515 @ Dec. 20 2004,20:25) Sadly, the number of RPIs out there can probably be counted on one, and maybe a finger or two on a second, hand. And not all of those are that great. Still, given the time-intensive nature of developing a good character, it becomes hard to play more than two or three simultaneously anyway.

There's more than enough. There's a reason it's the smallest segment of even the role-playing population.

[Traithe]

Originally Posted by (Tyche @ Dec. 21 2004,01:41) It's also a false conceit when better role-play occurs elsewhere.

Huh, that's odd - and a little disappointing.

I don't see any supporting evidence for that blanket statement of yours. Let me translate it into a statement that's a bit more honest for those that might have missed it: in Tyche's ever-so-venerable opinion, it's a false conceit because better role-play occurs elsewhere.

Given the fact that Armageddon, a fairly well-known RPI, averages 60-80 players on nightly or so and over 200 for large events, and given the fact that my own MUD generally averages 30-50 a night and over 100 for large events, I'm going to hazard a wild guess here and say there are substantial numbers of people who disagree with you.

Come to think of it, with the supposedly shrinking number of MU* players these days, we could probably count the numbers of MUDs on the entire internet with similar or larger number of players online on two or three hands - less, if we remove the large commercial games.

So really, come off your high horse already. The genre appeals to some people, and doesn't appeal to others. End of story. If your issue with games like this is some sort of perceived elitism, I can't imagine that turning around and doing the same thing (or worse) will do much for your moral high ground - really, I'd expect better from someone with your obvious intellect.

[The_Disciple]

Originally Posted by (Traithe @ Dec. 21 2004,07:44) So really, come off your high horse already. The genre appeals to some people, and doesn't appeal to others. End of story. If your issue with games like this is some sort of perceived elitism

There really is an elitism among "RPI" players, at least as expressed on TMS' forums.

I don't disagree with you at all in asfar as this genre appeals to some players and not others.  It's not the kind of game I personally prefer to play, but I can respect what's been created on the better works of the genre for the quality games they are.

Everyone thinks the game they choose to play is the best.  It's just the way of things.  The difference, I think, is that RPI players tend to project this opinion that the fact that they choose to play an RPI makes them more mature or adult than players who choose a differing style of game.  Whereas, for example, a H&S mudder will tend to think he has the better or more fun game, but he won't call you a child, immature, or socially deficient for preferring something else.

[Traithe]

Originally Posted by (The_Disciple @ Dec. 22 2004,00:55) There really is an elitism among "RPI" players, at least as expressed on TMS' forums. ... The difference, I think, is that RPI players tend to project this opinion that the fact that they choose to play an RPI makes them more mature or adult than players who choose a differing style of game.

Well - you do realize that this is precisely my point, yes?

"I dislike members of group X because they all stereotype members of group Y."

If you're going to make blanket statements like that accusing a group of elitism you may as well be honest enough to admit that in the process you're doing pretty much the same thing.

I'm sure there are players in group X who do stereotype members of group Y - but there're also plenty of them who don't.

This is why stereotypes really have no place in reasoned discussion. If you're going to get up on a soapbox and disparage someone else for using them, do be careful that you aren't using them yourself.

I've heard that shoepolish doesn't have a very pleasant taste.