Newbie Help

MarshP · 11-21-2011, 04:46 AM

I know this isn't an intro thread, so I'll give just a potted history of relevant facts for the questions I have:

- I'm not exactly new to MUDs, being of-a-certain-age and in and out of various MU* since 1989. Never with one for long though.

- I've had a pretty constant presence on various BattleTech MU* for all that time.

- Now I'd like to do more RP, since I don't get to pen&paper RP much any more, with parental and work commitments.

So this is part LFM, part LFC, part 'What do you experienced players
do about...'

First I need a client for my windows machine, for those games without their own. I suspect the clients around a few years ago aren't the best today. Or is it still ZMud/SimpleMu/Mushclient? What do people recommend? I'm happy try something that's not free, and it can be very configurable and scriptable, so long as it has a gentle initial learning curve, and really good documentation. It should be flexible for use across lots of codebases. In an ideal world I could use it on my Linux box, too, but that's not a must.

Edit: Having looked into the current --and same old, I might add-- batch, only CMUD and MUSHclient stand out as being in active development and ticking all my boxes. The question then becomes, can CMUD really be the better of the two by $20 worth of value? Even by $10, assuming I make a donation to MUSHclient?

Next I need to find out more about good MUD RPing. I think I can find a good RP MUD from all the other helpful replies to LFM posts. But once I have, I want to RP well. Are there any good resources specifically aimed at good MUD RPing? Something to help me translate pen&paper techniques to a written environment?

Despite all my years at the keyboard, I can't touch type. I can move at a fair pace, but I have to look at the keyboard. Is this going to cripple me as a MUDer?

Final question for now, I promise: as a straw poll among thse playing for a few years - are you active on more than one MUD? If so, how many? Or do you gravitate mainly to one? I'm deciding whether to do a bunch of chargen and tutorials, then weed out some, else just start with one game and give it a month or two before moving on... (I see new_worlds has tackled this in a sticky elsewhere. Is that still sound advice when I'm not sure of genre?)

Phew. Sorry to ask so much at once. Thanks for reading.
Marsh

KaVir · 11-21-2011, 08:36 AM

MUSHclient may be old, but it's still actively developed - there were 26 versions released last year alone, and it has added some very cool features over the last few years. I'd definitely recommend it.

zMUD is still quite popular, but is no longer maintained, and is starting to show its age (the new version is CMUD and that's a bit more modern, although it's $30 for the basic version, while the other clients I've mentioned here are free). Not sure how popular SimpleMu is, but it's very basic compared to the major modern clients.

If you prefer console clients, check out WinTin++. And if you own an Android phone, make sure you download BlowTorch. You may also want to check out the on Mudpedia to see how they compare.

Try . It's open source and cross-platform, highly customisable/scriptable, yet easy to get started. The documentation isn't as good as MUSHclient, but it's getting better.

In a PK mud? Probably, unless you're using scripts or aliases. In other types of mud it's unlikely to have a big impact.

My suggestion? Pick a few roleplaying muds that are very different in style (eg New Worlds Ateraan vs Atonement RPI), play each for an hour or two, and see which grabs you the most - and remember, there's no reason why you should stick with just one. Many mud owners will complain that a couple of hours isn't long enough to fairly judge their games, but I believe you can learn a lot about the general style of the game in that time, and the amount of effort spent on the introduction phase can also give a lot of insight into what you can expect later on. Even if you don't find anything you really like, at least you should have a much firmer idea of what you're looking for.

Probably better if somone else answers the question about roleplaying in muds, as that's not really my thing.

11-21-2011, 04:46 AM	#1
MarshP New Member Join Date: Nov 2011 Name: Marsh Location: UK Posts: 10	Various newb & RP Qs I know this isn't an intro thread, so I'll give just a potted history of relevant facts for the questions I have: - I'm not exactly new to MUDs, being of-a-certain-age and in and out of various MU* since 1989. Never with one for long though. - I've had a pretty constant presence on various BattleTech MU* for all that time. - Now I'd like to do more RP, since I don't get to pen&paper RP much any more, with parental and work commitments. So this is part LFM, part LFC, part 'What do you experienced players do about...' First I need a client for my windows machine, for those games without their own. I suspect the clients around a few years ago aren't the best today. Or is it still ZMud/SimpleMu/Mushclient? What do people recommend? I'm happy try something that's not free, and it can be very configurable and scriptable, so long as it has a gentle initial learning curve, and really good documentation. It should be flexible for use across lots of codebases. In an ideal world I could use it on my Linux box, too, but that's not a must. Edit: Having looked into the current --and same old, I might add-- batch, only CMUD and MUSHclient stand out as being in active development and ticking all my boxes. The question then becomes, can CMUD really be the better of the two by $20 worth of value? Even by $10, assuming I make a donation to MUSHclient? Next I need to find out more about good MUD RPing. I think I can find a good RP MUD from all the other helpful replies to LFM posts. But once I have, I want to RP well. Are there any good resources specifically aimed at good MUD RPing? Something to help me translate pen&paper techniques to a written environment? Despite all my years at the keyboard, I can't touch type. I can move at a fair pace, but I have to look at the keyboard. Is this going to cripple me as a MUDer? Final question for now, I promise: as a straw poll among thse playing for a few years - are you active on more than one MUD? If so, how many? Or do you gravitate mainly to one? I'm deciding whether to do a bunch of chargen and tutorials, then weed out some, else just start with one game and give it a month or two before moving on... (I see new_worlds has tackled this in a sticky elsewhere. Is that still sound advice when I'm not sure of genre?) Phew. Sorry to ask so much at once. Thanks for reading. Marsh Last edited by MarshP : 11-21-2011 at 07:51 AM.

11-21-2011, 08:36 AM	#2
KaVir Legend Join Date: Apr 2002 Name: Richard Home MUD: God Wars II Posts: 2,052	Re: Various newb & RP Qs MUSHclient may be old, but it's still actively developed - there were 26 versions released last year alone, and it has added some very cool features over the last few years. I'd definitely recommend it. zMUD is still quite popular, but is no longer maintained, and is starting to show its age (the new version is CMUD and that's a bit more modern, although it's $30 for the basic version, while the other clients I've mentioned here are free). Not sure how popular SimpleMu is, but it's very basic compared to the major modern clients. If you prefer console clients, check out WinTin++. And if you own an Android phone, make sure you download BlowTorch. You may also want to check out the on Mudpedia to see how they compare. Try . It's open source and cross-platform, highly customisable/scriptable, yet easy to get started. The documentation isn't as good as MUSHclient, but it's getting better. In a PK mud? Probably, unless you're using scripts or aliases. In other types of mud it's unlikely to have a big impact. My suggestion? Pick a few roleplaying muds that are very different in style (eg New Worlds Ateraan vs Atonement RPI), play each for an hour or two, and see which grabs you the most - and remember, there's no reason why you should stick with just one. Many mud owners will complain that a couple of hours isn't long enough to fairly judge their games, but I believe you can learn a lot about the general style of the game in that time, and the amount of effort spent on the introduction phase can also give a lot of insight into what you can expect later on. Even if you don't find anything you really like, at least you should have a much firmer idea of what you're looking for. Probably better if somone else answers the question about roleplaying in muds, as that's not really my thing.

Newbie Help

Various newb & RP Qs