Mudde Pathetique help files

PAGESIZE

This selects how large a page of information you want to see before you get the page break prompt. Default is 22 lines.

Example:

> pagesize 30

Selects how your prompt looks. The "point" options are "h" (for hit points), "m" (for mana), and "v" (for movement points). If you specify the capital letter of the option, it means to display the maximum amount of that attribute. The "fight" options are "c" (for your own condition, shown in parentheses) and "C" (for your opponent's condition). The "fight" options are only in effect when you are in a fight.

Each of the letters is a toggle; that is, to turn off the option, use the same letter again.

Examples:

> prompt hHvm
This will show something like: 100/123h 30m 70v >
If we then type:
prompt m
this will turn off the mana display, so you get something like: 100/123h 70v >

"prompt" with no arguments selects hit points, mana and movement, with no maximums, and no fight options.

TITLE

This command changes your title. If no argument is specified, it prints out your current title.

Examples:

> title
> title the Foul Bard of Blanchmire

RULES

I have some rules here. Anyone not obeying the rules will be removed. There is no appeal process.

Be courteous to your fellow players. I don't like rude muds.
Only bring one character on at a time.
- a. If you create more characters, fine; but they must RENT or QUIT while you adventure with another. Breaking link and leaving characters in the void/limbo is not allowed. The ONLY exceptions to this rule are the transfer of equipment or cash while in reception, or to request the assitance of an immortal with a jammed link. NO OTHER INTERACTIONS between your own characters are permitted.
- b. Don't use clients to create general-purpose robots for yourself (see 2a) or anyone else either. In general, your character should only be on the game when it's being controlled by you.
3) Read the help file on PLAYERKILLER. My rules here are pretty different from most other muds I've seen or heard about.

That's it. Common sense, really, but I want to be able to remove any players that *don't* have common sense with a totally clear conscience.

TECHNICAL

I would estimate that about 50% of the code in Mudde Pathetique was written by me [Benedict]. The rest is the same as the original shipped DikuMUD source. The game began running Febrary, 1991. It was taken down January 1992, and as of April 1992, it has found a new home at UC Berkeley.

To address some problems that kept the game down all of January, 1993, I modified the debugging-malloc routines (that used to just keep track of all the memory allocated, and make sure that you didn't free anything that hadn't been allocated), I added code to put an 8 byte block before and after each piece of allocated memory. These blocks are filled in with a fixed value, and can be checked to make sure that they haven't been overwritten. This code is #ifdef'd out of the production driver, since it makes malloc about 1000 times slower.

DEATH DYING

When you die, a number of things happen. A corpse of your body is created at the spot where you died, and you are returned to the main menu. You can re-enter the game at that point, and you'll be back at the Temple. You lose one-half of your experience points (up to a maximum of 500,000 points), but no levels, even if your new experience point count puts you into a lower level bracket.

All of your equipment, inventory, and non-banked gold is left "in" your corpse. Your corpse will eventually rot, and your stuff will be on the ground then. Of course, *anybody* (including scavenging monsters) can pick up your things, so it's best to return as soon as possible. On the other hand, you come back into the game with one hit point, so it's often prudent to wait until you get some strength back before going back into the fray.

HIT

A good way to start a fight. Synonymous with "KILL", which is not included in the help files due to conflict with the spell of the same name. See Also: PLAYERKILLER, ASSIST

ASSIST

If you see a buddy in trouble, and you're not fighting, you can help him out with this command. It starts you fighting whatever he's fighting.

LAG LAGGING NETLAG

I can't do anything about it, so don't bug me. I suggest you play outside of my local primetime (see RTIME), which is typically 7am until 7pm. Don't tell me if you hate lag; I'll take it as read. If you *like* lag, let me know. That would be interesting. Please do not shout 'lag'--if you are experiencing it probably the other players are too. If you need to inform your group that you are having particularly bad lag, please GTELL, TELL, or SAY it so that you don't bother everyone else.

GOD IMMORTAL

There are few players, who, through much arduous labour, have achieved the rank of immortal (level 21). Such players cannot be harmed by mortal beings. Any player who gets to this level can either become a game designer along with the rest of us chickens, or, if he prefers to play, can be demoted back to level 3 with perfect statistics (or have his killer flag removed).

Benedict, at level 24, is the head god (implementor). He is the person who runs the game, and makes all the alterations to the game program. Most of the other players of immortal level, however, have considerable knowledge of the mechanics of the game. When we are here and visible, it's to assist you. Do not, however, abuse this. Refer to the help tables and ask other players before you trouble an immortal with your question. DO NOT ask immortals to teleport you out of a sticky spot, or to heal you, or what your stats or the stats on your latest acquisition are. DO NOT "tell" immortals about bugs or typos; that's what the " BUG" and " TYPO" commands are for.*

SAVING_THROW SAVES

Saving throws are used to determine whether a character or mobile is able to resist the brunt of some noxious effect, such as poisoning, paralysis, a spell, or a breath weapon. The saving throw is a number that the character must roll on a 20-side die. A 20 always passes the saving throw (thus withstanding the effect), while a 1 always fails. A character or mobile's saving throw is determined by its class and level.

There are some items that modify a character's saving throw. For example, an item that applies save_spell -2 lowers the number that must be rolled in order to pass the saving throw, and therefore *increases* the chance of withstanding the attack.

PLAYERFILE

All characters and their possessions are stored in the playerfiles, which are updated periodically by the game, and by the save command. These files are purged on a regular basis (usually every month or two), to reduce the amount of disk space devoted to inactive characters, and to make rare items available to active characters.

The following characters are deleted during purges:

Characters with under 60 minutes of time.
Characters who have not logged in for 4 months, INCLUDING characters who are stored in long term rent.
Characters requesting deletion on the reading room board.

When the semi-monthly playerfile purge occurs, other files are usually updated or changed. These include the data files for the game, the help files, the news files and the save files for the gamesave.

DAMAGE_DICE DAMAGE

Damage caused by a weapon is expressed in the form XdY. This translates to the sum of the numbers rolled on X Y-sided dice. Thus, a weapon that does 1d8 does 1-8 points of damage with an average damage of 4.5, while a 3d5 weapon does 3-15 points of damage with an average of 9. The amount of damage may be modified by items that affect damage. A weapon that does 1d8 +2 damage does 3-10 points of damage with an average of 6.5

POLICY

We have a number of policies on the game which are meant to make everyone's time here easier and more enjoyable. The following are a list of help files describing various policies and what they pertain to.

RULES: These are the basic ground rules for the game. If you follow these simple rules, you should have an enjoyable time here. Most of the policies expand upon rule 1.
.
PLAYERKILLER: There are some caveats in the PLAYERKILLER help file which some players should be aware of.
REIMBURSE: It is our hope never to have players lose items through the fault of the game, but occasionally it happens. This file explains when you can and cannot ask for a reimbursal, and what you have a chance of getting back.
IMMORTALITY: This file explains the rules for gaining the various levels of Immortality, as well as the ground rules for the actions of Immortals. If you believe that an Immortal is acting improperly, consult this help file.

IMMORTALITY

There are several levels of Immortality. Once you have accumulated the required ammount of experience to go Immortal, you will be unable to do so unless a Senior Wizard or Benedict sets the TRUSTED flag on your character. Once this happens, any change in your experience will advance you to IMM, level 21. Due to problems we have had in the past, we now require that players contribute sections to the game *before* their character becomes trusted. Contact Janix or Benedict for more complete information on writing a section. Once we have received your section, you will be allowed to become Immortal. If you wish to become a WIZ, level 22, you will have to work with one of the Senior Wizards to incorporate your section into the game and make it playable for mortals.

Immortals have responsibilities to the game, each other and mortals, and one of the most important of these is that they do not interfere with the affairs of mortals. Thus, Immortals are not allowed to cast any spells on mortals, nor are they allowed to cast spells on monsters or to attack monsters for the assistance of mortals. In addition, Immortals are privy to information which is not available to mortals. There is a saying among the immortals, 'Leave your brain at home.' Any information gained by an a player's immortal character should be kept separate from the information that that player's mortal characters posess. Finally, there are usually a number of sections which are under development. Immortals are usually expected to explore and critique these sections, however the items and monsters found within them must stay where they belong.

Immortals also retain the ability to render personality and wierdness to a game which can be quite mechanical at times. Immortals are encouraged to do this at all times as long as it is not harmful or annoying to characters.