[ReverendValek]

I've seen a mud (which I've played for 13 years) do exactly the opposite, go in the direction of 1 new player is worth more than 1 elite/veteran player. The outcome was not all that surprise to me, as the initial idea seemed great. It is a RP/PK enforced mud and the common complaint was that the elite core was driving off newer players in the way the game was played. A two tiered system sprung up from which came a Hardcore mode and a Moderate mode.

The idea started out great, but the realization that in terms of PK, the Moderates had a difficult time (allowed less rare/unique equipment than the Hardcore counterparts in exchange for less corpse looting and a cool down timer on when the other player could kill them again) in terms of getting anywhere. They were only allowed to go to T in cabals and if they wanted to go further, they had to switch to Hardcore. Everything was still geared to the elite/veteran player.

To make a long story short and skip over everything else that happened in the last six years, the population of this mud declined. Despite several assertions, PK trumped RP and left newer players with a bad taste in their mouth. Newer player retention was simply not possible when all the best rewards went to the elite/veteran who could PK. Cabals were even less RP friendly, encouraging constant PK with a capture the flag system that demanded defending one's own flag and capturing the other, rewards for killing other players, and a land army capture system similar to RISK. RP was essentially "If you're from this cabal and I'm from that, you die", which was a shame when there was so much more potential for politics and deeper character development.

This leads me to disagree that a mud will ever have a greater value, especially an intrinsic one, if it cannot evolve for its players. I was even, at one point, asked to stop trying to change the way things have been for years. While it is understandable that there is a "core" component to the spirit of any mud, sometimes it is essential to look at possibly changing this for player growth.

When the two-tiered PK system went in, this mud saw huge growth. After the realization came that it still catered to the elite/veteran core, who have years of experience over any newer players, the decline of the mud population came rather quickly.

As a veteran member of this community, I still lament the fact that I used to be one of the people who didn't want to see any change. I don't need to go on about apocalyptic sermons or dooms day visions. The dusk is already here, especially when one looks at the age of the average mudder. Most of us started doing this as teens. Now we have families and jobs. Even the amount of time to dedicate to the game is falling for the core of players still dedicated. Getting a younger generation involved becomes even more difficult with the launch of gaming systems like the Xbox One and PS4.

I once brought FIVE new players to the game. All quit in less than a year. Two come back from time to time, but the lack of change in the way the mud is run becomes apparent. Cosmetic changes to the assets are not enough if the end game is that the veteran players continue to see the core they practically worship still in place. They worship that core because it caters to their play style. Keeping a few around while rebuffing a chance at growth is pure insanity.