Topic: Do you guys remember MUDding? (Read 6969 times)

glyphic · « **on:** 02 Jul 2008, 08:47 »

Holy crap. Seriously, I started this in high school. I used to play four to six hours a night. I quit in college, but I recently hit a really slow time at work and picked it back up. It's like crack mixed with heroin and I can't stop myself.

You pound the Caemlyn guard with the Staff of Decapitation.
Your set of quarite armour glows white-hot, and reflects back to the Caemlyn guard.
The Caemlyn guard nicks you with its burnished longsword.
The Caemlyn guard missed you.
The Caemlyn guard blocks your attack.
Hp: 613/662 Gp: 570/570

Yeah. Get those fancy graphics out of my text-box.

Ozymandias · « **Reply #1 on:** 02 Jul 2008, 09:00 »

Oh, hell yes! o/

I spent my high school days in the world of Lensmoor, crafting words and killing different words. Hell, MUDding was one of the first things I did when I got the INTERNET back when I was 8, started playing Gemstone 3 and then Dragonrealms.

Fuck you, MMOs. They stole the userbase from MUDs, which were so much more dynamic and interesting.

Orbert · « **Reply #2 on:** 02 Jul 2008, 09:23 »

I used to MUD all the time, even got to be a Creator on one. The MUD, and my creations, are still out there challenging the next generation of MUDders. Which is smaller than the last. Which is sad.

Yep, MMOs are basically MUDs with graphics, except that the Users can't become Creators and add to the base. That was what I thought made MUDs so cool. Each had its own flavor, because each one really was different.

Jackie Blue · « **Reply #3 on:** 02 Jul 2008, 10:04 »

Never found MUDs appealing when I tried them in '89-'93. I did dick around and program a bunch of stuff into LambdaMOO, though, which now that I think about it is incredibly embarrassing because MOOs were basically Second Life without graphics.

I did honestly meet some cool people there though.

glyphic · « **Reply #4 on:** 02 Jul 2008, 10:10 »

I've been screwing around in Tharsis Gate (www.tharsis-gate.org)

Its player base has all but disappeared. Strangely enough, nearly every person i remember from 8 years ago still plays.

It's amazing how something this simple can get its hooks into people that badly.

Dimmukane · « **Reply #5 on:** 02 Jul 2008, 10:24 »

I used to play the Discworld MUD a lot. Haven't been on in 7 years. A friend of mine still plays them and used to program areas and stuff.

MusicScribbles · « **Reply #6 on:** 02 Jul 2008, 10:36 »

Quite some time ago I used to be embroiled in the Wheel of Time MUD. I know that there are multiple now, so I can't remember which one.

Alex C · « **Reply #7 on:** 02 Jul 2008, 10:51 »

Yeah, I did the whole MUD thing, and was on quite a few MUSHs in my day as well. Overall, I'm just as happy with MMOs as I am with MUDs. MUXs tend to be smaller, more intimate communities, which is nice. On the other hand, that can lead to high drama when staff starts taking "intimate" very literally and starts handing out mod priveleges to whoever they're cybering that month.

imagist42 · « **Reply #8 on:** 02 Jul 2008, 10:55 »

I used to play on some VG-themed MUSHes, Mega Man and Videoland, a few years back. I even started to program an original MUSH of my own before it got way over my head. They were pretty awesome at the time. It's unfortunate that games like WoW are full of barely literate dung monkeys, or I think I would actually get a kick out of playing on an RP server there.

Alex C · « **Reply #9 on:** 02 Jul 2008, 11:20 »

Yeah, WoW is a pretty hostile enviroment for RPers. While I've never tried RPing there myself, I do play WoW and have seen many people harrassed for even trying. I'm sure it's possible to enjoy yourself and RP there, but you'd have to have a thick skin and start out with a likeminded group straight away.

MKH90 · « **Reply #10 on:** 02 Jul 2008, 11:48 »

Been there, tried that, didn't like it that much. If I want something with limitations on actions, items, actual roleplaying and other stuff, I'd rather have it with graphics. If I want something free-form, a 'no technical limits'-thing with real roleplaying, I play forum RPGs. In case there is some sort of hidden freedom in MUDs, please, enlighten me.

Ozymandias · « **Reply #11 on:** 02 Jul 2008, 11:54 »

A good MUD sits comfortably between complete freedom and a good solid base of rules.

I loved RPing in Lensmoor. Hell, you got rewards for the better your RP is. I can't do it in WoW. It's just awkward. It feels wrong to say "Ozymandias sits on the floor and starts playing with his enormous rooster." when my dude is clearly just standing around looking like a confused idiot.

Plus, the item crafting system was pretty nice. I wish I could play an MMO with a crafting system as solid as you can make in a MUD. I want to be able to make my swords, dammit. I want to make the hilt myself, out of different materials and colors, and the blade myself, to the length and dimensions as I specify it, and then enchant it as I see fit, the success of all of this according to my ability. WHY CAN'T I DO THAT, BLIZZARD? WHY DO I HAVE TO ONLY CRAFT YOUR CRAPPY LITTLE THINGS?

glyphic · « **Reply #12 on:** 02 Jul 2008, 14:20 »

I was always a fan of the ever-expanding nature of MUDs. After a while, if you get bored with the current areas, you can suggest a new one. Or if you're feeling moderately frisky, you can learn how to code and build your own area from scratch.

Orbert · « **Reply #13 on:** 02 Jul 2008, 14:51 »

Exactly. That's what I loved about MUDs. By time I'd reached the level of Creator, the MUD had matured to the point where there were a lot of higher-level guys, so I coded up some areas full of higher-level creatures. I used a lot of copy-and-paste for templates, but also made use of the random-number generator; the result was huge areas that were somewhat different each time, populated by high-end creatures with varying stats and descriptions. Even the rooms changed descriptions and locations, as well as what creatures would spawn where. Had a couple of Quests whose details could vary. It was a riot. I program for a living anyway, but this was fun time. It's always more fun when you're doing it for yourself, not your clients or your boss.

Ozymandias · « **Reply #14 on:** 02 Jul 2008, 15:04 »

Oh heck yes.

When I was younger, I would troll the MUDConnector's lists of MUDs for places that were looking for Creators, make an area, then bugger off. It was ridiculous fun, just leaving my print on a place before disappearing.

pilsner · « **Reply #15 on:** 02 Jul 2008, 20:34 »

that is exactly how God must feel

Orbert · « **Reply #16 on:** 03 Jul 2008, 10:10 »

Pretty close. I admit it was a serious rush watching my "creations" interact with each other and with player-characters. Especially when the player-character lost.

october1983 · « **Reply #17 on:** 03 Jul 2008, 16:19 »

I am still an admin/creator/divine type on one of the bigger remaining MUDs. Not that I have much time to contribute much these days but good god, why am I still wasting my life?

glyphic · « **Reply #18 on:** 04 Jul 2008, 07:34 »

I believe in a thing called nostalgia. That must be the reason I still subject myself to this stuff.

That and the fact that I can play the game while working. It's the only game I can think of that can practically play itself for twenty minutes or so.

Boro_Bandito · « **Reply #19 on:** 04 Jul 2008, 15:54 »

Quote from: Ozymandias on 02 Jul 2008, 15:04

Oh heck yes.

When I was younger, I would troll the MUDConnector's lists of MUDs for places that were looking for Creators, make an area, then bugger off. It was ridiculous fun, just leaving my print on a place before disappearing.

Oh God, the MUDconnector, hells yes i remember those days, when I used to play on my parents powermac back in the late 90s. Of course, I'm a bit ashamed, I was part of a few too many Dragonball MUDs, and I was for a long time part of the group on one of the stock MUDs (I completely forget what it was called).

Caleb · « **Reply #20 on:** 05 Jul 2008, 12:39 »

I played Dark and Shattered Lands (DSL) in high school.

It was really really fun for awhile.

When you PvP though there is always that same problem of never being able to really get ahead since there is always going to be someone who plays EVERY day for hours and who will kill you for little to no reason. Then if you happen to kill them every member of their clan will go after you. Plus people used different "tricks" to automate text commands and automatically enter in certain words if the program they used detected they got disarmed or something.

Lame.

But in the end it was really fun and I never felt like I had to bother buying into monthly game services like UO or WoW. I got to play with other people without paying EVERY month. Which is just so stupid.

I got all the online gaming I could have ever wanted for free.

Dimsey · « **Reply #21 on:** 07 Jul 2008, 18:06 »

I've been playing on and off for the past few years and I enjoy it. The only thing that really gets me about most muds is the lack of in game maps.
I'm fine with the game being all text and whatnot, but being all text doesnt exactly make the world the most user friendly to navigate and I can often be found wandering in circles cause I have no idea where I'm going.
Still - before I start getting lost I enjoy the game.

Ozymandias · « **Reply #22 on:** 07 Jul 2008, 18:36 »

I think a lot of MUDs have a problem with internal consistency of universe, IMO. I mean, it's only natural, there's lot of people who come and go working on them at a creator level and the basic construct of most MUDs in that crappy Circle/Diku MUD thing with Sesame Street and stuff.

I really appreciate it when a MUD manages to have its own unique universe and tries hard to keep it consistent and RPable. I loved Lensmoor for this very reason. It was(is still, even) 100% unique in mythology and landscape.

Orbert · « **Reply #23 on:** 07 Jul 2008, 19:29 »

Admins are ultimately responsible for keeping the "feel" of the MUD. I've only ever coded on one MUD, but coders had to submit new areas for approval. New areas had to fit the theme of the MUD, or at least have something reasonably plausible explaining why things as so different. I thought that made a lot of sense, and presumed it was how most MUDs are run, but I can imagine that that's not always the case. I've played on MUDs where different areas had totally different themes, obviously because their respective creators preferred different things. It's probably hard for Admins to balance keeping coders happy and allowing them some degree of freedom. When you're doing it for fun in the first place, you can't really lay down the law too hard.

I eventually stopped coding the MUD I was on when it became too much like work. One of the Admins was a total bitch, and the other two gradually just let her take over and do things her way because it was easier than fighting with her. I coded up huge areas which, from what I understand, were pretty damned popular, and the stats bore that out. I coded up some beginning and intermediate areas as well, each with the same variety and random generation tricks I'd worked out, and people loved it, but she never stopped treating me like shit, like I should be profoundly grateful for the opportunity to code for her. I just lost interest. It wasn't fun anymore.

I Am Not Amused · « **Reply #24 on:** 09 Jul 2008, 18:55 »

I've mudded as recently as in the past year, and have done it in a very off and on fashion for the past five or so years.

I started on Aarchon, which is both serious and very funny. It's got a pretty nice lore, but it's also intentionally hilarious, and its gimmick is that almost all of its areas are stolen from pop culture. The newbie zone is Disney Land, and you slaughter various Disney characters, for example. There's also worlds of Final Fantasy, Starcraft, Warhammer, Simpsons, etc.

The other MUD I played I don't know if it could be strictly called a MUD, as I'm not sure of the specifics of what makes something a MUD, but it was a text-based MMO. One of the four "Iron Realms" MMOs, if anyone knows what those are. It REQUIRED roleplaying, which was actually a lot of fun, but it was super in-depth and VERY PvP. And, as I'm absolutely awful at PvP, and got a bit sick of the note-taking and macro-creating required to do well, I didn't last long.

Anywho, I'm a fan of both MUDs and MMOs. I am a fairly visual person, so I do prefer the latter, but MUDding was a great time, too. Though I don't know if I'll be back anytime soon.

glyphic · « **Reply #25 on:** 10 Jul 2008, 11:15 »

We should totally all pick a MUD with hardly any players and take it over.

Tharsis Gate (tharsis-gate.org) is pretty much empty at this point. I play there Tuesday-Saturday 9-6 (while I'm at work). It's got very few active builders, but there are a lot of active areas.

blaineT · « **Reply #26 on:** 10 Jul 2008, 15:11 »

I remember jumping into Stanford MUD only to be obliterated, and loved spending time on MUME - the whole "lightie / darkie" made for some very entertaining opposing faction raids. Though being spawn killed by some angry trolls hiding from the daylight in the Prancing Pony Inn was probably one of the few times I've enjoyed being PK'd (imagine playing one of those trolls who lost their character to daylight exposure!). I have to say that I got fairly comfortable with SMAUGs and tended to favor them, even though the ones I played were very simple compared to monsters like MUME.

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Author Topic: Do you guys remember MUDding? (Read 6969 times)

MKH90

Dimsey

blaineT