[Lotherio]

Real quick, if you’re read this thread and are reading this, thanks for putting up with all the spam.

As I’ve only ever commented in other threads on why I like Haven, addressing other points, I thought I should write my own version of what I like about Haven.

The other posts like to mention all the races/classes/etc. and to me that boils down to fluff. There are a lot of great Muds around with 20+ races this, or 20+ classes that, or 20+ skills. These are not so much important to me as the mechanics and ease of use of these mechanics. The skill system and its visual layout are the heart of this. If anyone has played Nightmare LP Muds before (including the original Nightmare 3 and later Nightmare IV), they will be familiar with this. The difference between former Nightmare Muds and Haven is that you do not have to use a skill to raise it, rather you gain XP by using your skills and you decide where to spend the XP – which skills to raise.

The skills are divided into three groups: primary, secondary, and other. As one might imagine the primary skills are those that one will use to grind the most, in the gain of XP and/or monetary. Supplemented by secondary and other. A basic skill set is gained by joining a class, but the game allows for customization of these as a player sees fit through the awarding of developmental points which can be spent to buy/raise skills. Skills not needed or unused can be dropped.

Skills play a rather important role, when one chooses a weapon skill that weapon becomes the primary focus. Not everyone runs around swinging a sword because the best ‘weapon’ in the game is the ‘sword of doom’, rather one chooses the weapon based on the skill they utilize and the skill plays a far more important role in determining hit and damage. Some fighters will stick to swords, others can choose to raise other weapon skills to suit their fancy and be just as effective as the basic sword/axe fighter at higher levels.

As much as the skill choice affects a fighter, so too does it affect spell casters. Looking at spells alone, not even considering spells for bards and bard types, there are six primary skills. The first three (conjuring, faith, natural) focus on the source of the spell’s power, while the later three skills (evocation, enchantment, necromancy) focus on the type of spells. Thus spells based on conjuring evocation (for those with these skills) are different than spells based in natural necromancy). Further still faith based users have more spells flavored to their chosen religion. A sea based religion grants its followers the ability to heal ships, or always know where they are on the wide open ocean while a religion based on decay will have various poison spells to whither at opponents over time.

These mechanics slowly border into the realm of flavor/fluff, but I’m trying to avoid exact theme. The next interesting thing is the concept of pets. In general, those NPC/Mobs that certain casters/etc. can summon to fight at their side. These are radically different as well. Yes, basic mages can eventually charm any sentient in the game to come fight at their side, boosting them with whatever spells they have access too. The idea of animals is expanded to include rather high level animals that natural spell casters can charm such animals to fight at their side as well. Indeed, necromancer’s can summon the dead and as their necromancy skill increases, so too does the power of the minions they summon. Clerics can summon effigies, representations of their faith and like religious spells, these are unique to religion. By example, the sea based religion can summon a kraken to fight at their side.

This gets into what I like, exploration. To start with, the Mud is not set up so that everyone uses the same trainers for fighting/guild/class/etc. A fighter from one town uses their town trainer while the fighter from another town uses their trainer. Not every town has access to the same trainers. This one always got to me, when the evil races and the good races go to the same guy to level up/learn new skills/etc. etc. On Haven, you can be a lizardman, use the lizardman trainer, and go off and kill the elven trainers if you really want to, all to your hearts content. Heck, because so few people play this game now, one could do this and not expect any repercussions from killing off other town mobs. There isn’t the same old newbie forest with newbie chipmunks. Most areas have varying areas of play from newbie into the mid-higher levels of play, thus the dwarf newbies might be in an underground newbie area, fighting troglodytes, while the elven newbies might be in the forest grinding away.

There are four continents one can access, offering plenty of exploration, but the oceans are vast. Like areas on the land, the waters are divided up. Newbie sailors can sell coastal waters of the man continent, encountering fisherman in loan boats while experienced sailors can travel to distant lands and encounter slave ships, where when they board to fight the captain and pirate the ship, slaves burst from the hold to fight alongside them. The round world (more cylindrical) is expansive and the above takes place in a stretch roughly 15-25 % of the total circumference. The rest is a presently a dangerous sea that only the most experienced of sailors sail upon. This doesn’t even get into travel between the plains.

A curiosity might lie in the fact that the developed area of exploration and a round world is so small. But this mud is really traditional, moving from player to staffer is encouraged. Its codified with a ‘test’ one can take to transition from player to entry level staffer, learn the code, and improve to contribute area/concepts/ideas to the game itself. While it comes down to the approval of other staff, the test is in place simply to make sure someone has learned the basics of the theme itself.

The one downfall, presently, staff are usually busy RL. This isn’t their job, its something they enjoy doing and its all set up to encourage others interested in the same thing to participate and even contribute. If they know someone is around, they make fair effort to try and be near a screen, but that’s not always feasible. With lack of staff and few players left, one doesn’t always have someone available to answer the questions and I know that can be frustrating for a newbie. In light of that, I’m usually on 8 hours a day (~8 Am to 5 PM CST (-6 GMT)) and am available here (pm me) to answer any questions.


I didn't want to post a new thread, so I am posting this as a reply in the other players advertisement.