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RoninMUD Newsletter #6 This is the sixth edition of the Roninmud newsletter. Many of the articles were written months ago and contain dated information. However, in all fairness to the authors, they are still included here. Our last newsletter was released in October 1998 and much has changed in that time. I know many of you are expecting an informative update on subclasses, but you'll have to settle for something less informative. :P Ranger - Sept 18, 1999
Calling all Deputies, newbie help needed!
Hopefully most of you have seen the notes about the Advertisement Quest. As you know, it is intended to advertise the MUD and bring in more players. Hopefully giving the MUD a long-term player base boost. This is important, not only to the survival of the MUD, but to the spirit for which it stands, half of the fun of MUDs is meeting new people from different places, the more people are on, the more new friends you can make, right? Well then, try and do your part. This article is just an important reminder to all of you about something. Do you remember what it was like to be a newbie? Doubtless, there were those who helped you and those who were maybe less friendly. Which person do you have a better opinion of now? Do you remember what it felt like to get help for a bigger character? Keep these things in mind when you see a newbie log-on and ask for assistance, and remember that if you have a deputy flag it means you said you would help newbie, within reason. You don't have to pamper them for 3 weeks, but do show them around or answer questions they may have. If you want a deputy flag, talk to piggy if you ever see him, or bug a higher level god. So, there's the two cents, consider giving back by helping a newbie who logs-on, maybe they will be your next best MUD friend. (Editor's note: The advertisement quest is now over. Also, finding sheriff Piggy is a major task, so you can also ask a TEM+ to deputize you.)
Comments on our new level 50 system and class ranking boards
With our new leveling system in, and other new features, like the class ranking boards, the question is, was it all worth it? Some have not cared much for the new leveling system, other have embraced it. Admittedly there are problems with it. Some were caught in the middle of metaing and lost xp and/or could no longer meta what they wanted until after leveling. Poor Net has had to level before being able to reach 18/100 strength. I myself had some problems trying to level. And for some of us older players it seems very odd to see level 31 people on the MUD. However, the new implementation has also made it easier for some of the newbies. The loss of xp at death was changed for levels 1-29. Some problems also arose with the implementation involving spells and affects. However, Ranger did a great job of taking care of these problems. Being able to summon players has also become an issue of inconvenience for some. The summon spell has been changed so that a player can now summon players their level or one level higher. Paralyzing or mobs above level 30 is now also possible. The hope is, of course, that you, the MUDers, are happy with the new system. And that you now have more choices of what to do, whether to level or to meta at lower levels. One other change that has come in with the new level system, is the class ranking boards. Which uses a formula to calculate points for players of various classes, and a board in each classes respective guild has the ten highest ranked players in each class. Though I do not know the formula, I can tell you it seems to take into account nat stats as well as level, and eventually will include subclass level, when subclasses come in. Not only have the boards allowed players to know their standings among other active players, but it has also instilled rivalry among some individuals in vying for higher ranks on the board. So, hey, check out you Class Rank Score and see if you can't get on that board or move up it if you are already on one. (Editor's note: This article was written just after we moved into 50 levels. Since then, many other minor adjustments have been made and everyone seems content with the new system.)
Information about Quests and Gods
Hey everybody, there is an ongoing quest taking place as we speak! Maybe it just has not occured to you. There is a quest that Nosferatu is sponsoring. All you have to do is spread the word about RoninMUD. We are trying to raise the player base, so that more people can enjoy the wonderful family at RoninMUD (and some other reasons too :P). It's the easiest quest I have ever seen, and everyone has a chance of winning, and there are many ways to play. I have tried to do my part. I have spread the word to several of my friends that have not MUDed before. It does not have to be elaborate, just do what you can, then send a post to Nosferatu telling him what you did. There is not even any risk to this quest, so GO FOR IT!!! Other than this quest not much is definitely outlined for upcoming quests, which is yet another reason to participate. I have a quest that I will be running sometime, when you will have the opportunity to help out the hapless Humpty Dumpty by putting him back together again. So keep you eyes peeled for that. I have also heard some people complaining about not having a god, and wishing they had one to, but saying that it is hard to raise one to level 31 with the gear they need. DO NOT dispair just yet! There is ANOTHER way! Ronin is trying to give a make over to some of the more poorly done areas. If you think you could do a good job of revamping an area get in touch with Sumo or Ranger. When you finish revamping an area and get it installed on the play site you can get an Immortal on the play site! Then you to can run quests AND harass mortals while wizinvis. So if you think you might be able to help, give somebody a jingle. And of course, be on guard for spur of the moment quests. There are chances of winning good things. So I look foward to seeing all of you at my next quest. (Editor's note: The quest being referred to was the advertising quest that is now over. You must now bring you mortal to level 33 to immort, and we don't encourage anyone to harass players while wizinv. :P Also, there is a new quest series started, refer to a later article.)
THE NEW MIDGAARD ZOO
With the hustle and bustle of all these great things coming out for the big players (new levels, subclasses, the historic Dungeon Races Quest Series by Nosferatu), it's important that the newbies get their fair share of excitement. That's why recently, new commands, like home and easier-to-use commands like buy, have been a priority with many gods. The goal of this work, of course, is to make the MUD more newbie-friendly. The best way to make any system is to have great help files, so that's why the help files were recently revamped and help areas/help map updated. But, the icing on the cake has been the new areas. Over the years, the new areas for veteran players have been increasingly more challenging and exciting, but it's important to keep up the quality of the areas for the newer players too. That's why recently several newbie areas have been revamped including the training grounds and the popular newt area. The latest of these areas is the freshly revamped Midgaard Zoo. The zoo has always been known as a great place to level newbies, and as such, is incredibly popular with level one through fifteen characters, but it's lacked further dimension in the past. The newly unveiled zoo keeps all the great leveling mobs around and adds lots more stuff. There are some higher level experience mobs, as well as some gear mobs, some big baddies to get the newbies' hearts' pumping, and a few puzzles to get the newbies adept at Ronin's command structure. And of course, it's important to the note the increase of all the room descriptions from an average of seven words to seven lines. The newbies deserve to see all the excitement Ronin can offer to veteran players, and this is the latest in the trend of giving them an honest glimpse of what's to come. Whether killing the famous tigers, or braving the dangerous muck or the swamp exhibit, newbies are sure to find plenty to do in the newly revamped Zoo. The revamped zoo was constructed by myself, Feroz, but couldn't have been completed without the help of a number of people including Ranger, Liner, Sumo, and the now retired Cler.
Dungeon Races
Upcoming is possibly the biggest quest series event in the history of RoninMUD. Dungeon Races will be a 15 section, 30+ week quest in which I am making 15 complete, brand new, puzzle filled areas (minus specs and room descs or else it would take 300 weeks) for the competitors to try and get through as quickly as they can. Players will be going through one at a time, and which dungeon you are thrown into will be random. The key to success will be in the details, so the sharpest person will stand victorious at the close. The Dungeons will be open for a few days every two weeks over this period, and during each opening every competitor will get a chance to go through one dungeon one time. No one will get a second shot at any of them. I will keep a log of the times for each one and award points at the end of the series. Fastest time will recieve 4 points, second will get 3, third 2, and all who attempted the dungeon will get 1. A side note is that you should be aware that not all is safe and sound in the Dungeons. There will be plenty of wrong turns that lead to dead ends, literally, and it won't be particularly easy to figure out if you are a room from your death or not. Just a warning. Now, for the part that you have been anticipating, the prizes. The admin has decided to let loose with a few serious, old fashioned relics of power on this one. (Dont think for a moment that this is the start of a huge prize trend.) You will have to work hard for 6 months, but I think you will find your time spent worthwhile. The person who attains the most points will recieve a white gem. That's 10 dam -100 hp limited. No idea when the last was given out. The second place winner will recieve a crown of protection. Thats's 4 dam 4 hit and permanent sanctuary. The third place winner will recieve 2 winners necklaces. That's 50 hp 5 hitroll. Fourth and fifth place will recieve loading items. Now for a simple rule that should be common sense. Once you have run through a maze, there will be an impulse to spill your guts about its contents to all your friends and clannies. You'll want to give your comrades a little edge over the competition. If you give in to this temptation (I have ways of finding this stuff out) you will be disqualified from this, and every other quest that ever occurs in this MUD. If the person you told dosen't report it to me immediately they suffer the same fate. I am not close to joking on this one and I won't be wishy washy about beating you senseless if you so much as peep about any detail of any dungeon. This is definitely not a quest to be missed. Everyone in the MUD as of now has an equal chance a these prizes, and don't think that lack of stats or experience will hold you back. NO ONE has seen or knows any of what I have in store for these things. Who stands victorious at the end will just depend on who wants to the most. Do you? The scheduled date for the Dungeon Races to kick off will be August first. Stay tuned for details on the Quest board to the East of the Altar board, and in the newspaper." (Editor's note: The first part of this quest has been completed. See details on the quest board.)
50 Levels and Evolution
Here's the original post about our move to 50 levels.
Well as many players probably recall, we never did really quickly address how higher level players get experience. Instead, this process has become a long drawn out exercise to find the best solution. Well, the solution is just about ready. First of all we will allow solo players to kill mobs that are of a much lower level than them and still get full kill exp. We accomplish this by keeping track of how many characters are fighting with the mob. Second, we will be doing a massive readjustment of exp mobs and levels for the full range of 50 levels giving all players a fair chance to xp and a reasonably constant rate. (Editor's Note: The first one was added August 15, and the second is expected before the end of September.) Other things that have changed since April 3 with regard to 50 levels....
Nomads, Commandos, Warriors and Theived get natural ac every 5 levels.
Protection from Evil/Good
Ronin Upgrade
Thanks to the help of the admin at mux.net, Ronin is now running on a P166 with 64M of RAM. The mud actually seems to lag less and appears much more responsive to commands. The really great benifit, is the compile time is incredibly fast now, and we have the resources to implement many more wonderful things.
New Hp/Mana Loss
To balance the classes a little more, we decided to redo the hp/mana loss so that classes that needed a particular stat more than another, didn't lose as much of it as fast. For example, a Cleric should be able to have the skill to hold on to a little more mana at death than a commando. Here are the classes and the limits at which stat loss at death occurs.
Subclasses yet again
I remember just under a year ago I wrote an article promising something in the way of subclasses before the end of November. Now I guess I can joke that I meant November 1999, not November 1998. That article finally did something that no other had. Detailed which class was getting what skills and at what level. Well since that time, these skills and spells have undergone quite a change. The new set of skills/spells certainly contains much of the old list, but pointless spells have been thrown out, better balance has been acheived and overall, the new set is far superior to the old. Most every player will be scratching their head trying to decide the best subclass path for them, its no longer an obvious choice. That's about as informative as I'm going to get in this article. This newsletter has been delayed for months waiting on the most final version of subclasses but we are still working out some finer details of 2 or 3 classes, so we decided to release the newsletter without the final list. Expect a special edition newsletter release sometime soon. The End Well that's it for now. We are attempting to reorganize the newsletter to something a bit more regular (perhaps quarterly) and we will be looking for several people to take charge of it and be responsible for its timely release. Ranger |