[Blay]

Hello!

I've been lurking on and off since I registered here. I've finally broke down to post asking for help in locating a MUD that fits my preferences. Believe me, I've looked and looked and have come up empty-handed. Please forgive my wording. I am not very familiar with all the proper terms I've seen you folks using regarding muds.

I wish to find a MUD that does NOT require that equipment be found in killed mobs. I'd personally rather to have my character buy it's equipment with earned money/gold.

I do not want to have to chase my character's corpse down upon death in order to get equipment or currency back.

I also do not want to have my character's equipment, or anything else, vanish at reboots.

A nice map system would be nice, but not required. I've found that overhead maps are wonderfully done and extremely helpful.

Quite a bit of RP is a must. I've played muds that have nearly no character RP and find them boring because the only other things a player can do is mindlessly bash, explore, and quest. RP doesn't have to be mandatory, simply abundantly spread.

I've found the mechanics of IRE games to be more to my liking. However, I'm trying to avoid those for personal reasons. So, I'm basically asking if there are muds out there that somewhat resemble them. Note: The previous statement is in no way meant as an insult to IRE. It is just a personal preference, as not everyone is suited to every game. I would also recommend that if you're looking for a nicely run mud, give them a try. You might find the games more suitable to your own enjoyment than I did.

Most importantly, I'm looking for a very good player base. I'm not looking to play a game that's overrun with players who do not care about the enjoyment of other players.

Hack and slash really isn't my thing, though I find in game achievement necessary for me to enjoy the game. So, having to work for advancement isn't that bad. I just don't want to do it mindlessly.

If any of you have any suggestions, I am certainly all ears and grateful. I've grown tired of trying mud after mud only to find that they're not what I'm looking for. Not to say they're bad or anything. I've just found them not to fit my personal preferences.

Edit: I should also add that I don't mind paying to play a well run game. As long as the cost is within reason. If it requires payment, I'd rather do some sort of monthly billing rather than paying huge amounts of money for certain character boosting items or equipment, if that makes sense.