MajorMUD - Beginner's Guide

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The Basics

With all the information out there about MajorMUD, it's ok to be confused! Hopefully though, with a little playing experience and after reading the introduction you will have a better understanding of the game.

MajorMUD is a fantasy role-playing game. This means that you create a character who you will take adventuring through a medieval fantasy land. Your character will meet other characters, fight monsters, and hunt for treasure. Maybe you'll even use magic!

Let's start out with what MUD means. MUD stands for multi-user dungeon. In other words a place where you can adventure with other characters.

What's a character you ask? A character is, well, you! Or at least your alter ego in the game. When you first enter MajorMUD, you will be asked to create your character.

Character Creation

Race, Class & Alignment

The first thing you will need to do upon entering MajorMUD for the first time is to create your character. You will first be asked what race you would like your character to be, each of these have different abilities/characteristics and advantages/disadvantages. The table to the right details the main differences between the races (EXP is the experience modifier), for more information use either the help race or help <race> commands in-game.

Race	EXP	Strength	Agility	Health	Intellect	Willpower	Charm	Special Abilities
Human	+0%	40-100	40-100	40-100	40-100	40-100	40-100	None
Dwarf	+30%	50-110	30-90	50-120	30-90	50-120	30-85	Night Vision MagicRes+10 Encumbrance+20%
Gnome	+20%	35-90	45-110	40-100	45-110	40-100	35-90	Night Vision MagicRes+5 Picklocks(+10)
Halfling	+25%	20-60	60-150	40-100	30-90	40-100	40-100	Racial Stealth Dodge+10 HP/Level-1
Elf	+45%	35-90	50-120	30-80	50-120	40-100	50-120	Racial Stealth Night Vision Mana+10
Half-Elf	+15%	40-90	45-110	30-100	45-110	40-100	50-110	Mana+10
Dark-Elf	+45%	40-90	50-120	30-90	50-120	30-100	40-110	Racial Stealth Night Vision Critical Hits+1 Accuracy Bonus
Half-Orc	+0%	45-110	40-100	50-120	30-90	30-95	30-80	None
Goblin	+35%	30-70	55-125	40-100	45-115	40-100	40-100	Racial Stealth Night Vision
Half-Ogre	+30%	70-150	20-60	60-150	20-60	25-70	25-60	Toughness+2 HP/Level+1 MagicRes+15 No Kai Forms
Kang	+35%	55-120	30-90	50-110	30-90	45-110	30-85	Resist Poisons Natural Armour
Nekojin	+50%	40-100	60-130	30-80	40-100	30-90	50-110	Racial Stealth Night Vision Tracking(+10) FireRes(+10%) ColdRes(-10%)
Gaunt One	+50%	40-100	50-110	30-70	60-140	50-100	30-80	Dark Vision Perception+10 Hidden Bonus Ability

After you have chosen your race you will next have to choose the class you want to play. The class you choose depicts what you will do in-game. Do you want to be a Warrior and use combat abilities, or possibly a Mage and use magical abilities or maybe even a Warlock and use both combat and magical abilities. The choice is yours, keep in mind that some races are better suited to certain classes. Again for more information you can use the help class or help <class> commands once in-game. The table to the left is a list of all the classes and the differences between each of them.

Class	EXP	Weapon	Armour	Magic	Combat	HP/Level	Abilities
Warrior	100%	Any	Plate	None	4	6-10	Bash
Witchunter	130%	Any	Scale	None	5	6-10	Bash Anti-Magic No Magic Items
Paladin	220%	Any	Plate	Priest-1	4	5-9	Bash
Cleric	220%	Blunt	Plate	Priest-2	3	4-8	Bash
Priest	140%	Blunt	Silk	Priest-3	3	4-8	Bash
Missionary	220%	1H	Leather	Priest-2	2	4-7	Bash Stealth Picklocks Traps
Ninja	185%	Any	Ninja	None	3	4-8	Bash Stealth Traps Picklocks Tracking Dodge +25 Crits +10
Thief	80%	1H	Leather	None	2	4-7	Bash Stealth Traps Picklocks Thievery +10
Bard	210%	1H	Leather	Bard-2	3	4-7	Bash Stealth Traps Picklocks Thievery
Gypsy	220%	1H	Leather	Mage-2	2	4-7	Bash Stealth Traps Picklocks Thievery
Warlock	185%	1H	Chain	Mage-2	3	4-8	Bash
Mage	140%	Staff	Silk	Mage-3	1	3-6	Bash
Druid	190%	Blunt	Leather	Druid-3	2	4-7	Bash
Ranger	250%	Any	Leather	Druid-1	4	5-9	Bash Stealth Tracking
Mystic	250%	Staff	Silk	Kai-1	3	4-8	Bash Stealth Dodge +25 Crits +10 Punch +1 Kick +1 Jumpkick +1

Character Sheet

.─────────────────────────────────────.──. / M A J O R M U D Character Creation / \ ┌─ Point Cost Chart ─┐ │ ├──. │ │ │ │ » Given Name Kyau « │___\_/ │ 1st 10 points: 1 CP each │ │ » Family Name « │ │ 2nd 10 points: 2 CP each │ │ » Race Dark-Elf « │ │ 3rd 10 points: 3 CP each │ │ » Class Bard « │ │ ... and so on ... │ │ │ │ │ │ » Strength ( 40 to 90) 40 « │ │ +10 to base stat: 10 CP │ │ » Intellect ( 50 to 120) 50 « │ ◄──────┤ +20 to base stat: 30 CP │ │ » Willpower ( 30 to 100) 30 « │ │ +30 to base stat: 60 CP │ │ » Agility ( 50 to 120) 50 « │ │ +40 to base stat: 100 CP │ │ » Health ( 30 to 90) 30 « │ │ +50 to base stat: 150 CP │ │ » Charm ( 40 to 110) 40 « │ └─ ... and so on ... ─┘ │ │ │ » Hair Length shoulder-length « │ ┌ Use the Space Bar to │ » Hair Colour blonde « │ ◄──────┤ toggle between choices for │ » Eye Colour crimson « │ └ your physical description │ │ │ » Exit: SAVE « » CP Left: 100 « │ ◄─────── SAVE your character or EXIT ┌┴───────────────────────────────. │ \_________________________________\___/

Finally before being shot into the character sheet screen you will be asked about your alignment. This is not actually choosing your alignment, that will come later (and can be changed), yet it is asking if you want to limit your ability to do evil? See MajorMUD - Alignment Quests for more information.

Upon selecting a choice you will enter the character sheet editor, or stat trainer.

• Given Name: This name is required and must be unique to all others on the BBS, all monsters in-game, and all in-game commands. Be sure to choose a name you like because once you have selected one *YOU CAN NEVER CHANGE YOUR FIRST NAME AGAIN* without a reroll (this will reset your character and all their lives, it will take you back to the main menu where you can create a new character).
• Family Name: There are no restrictions on your family name, nor do you actually need a last name (if the Sysop set this setting), except for the fact that it must be only one word and contain no punctuation. You can change your family name at any time by visiting the appropriate training hall for your class and using the TRAIN STATS command (which will spit you back into the full screen stat trainer).
• Stats: You will also be shown the base values for your stats given the race your chose. You will also be given a certain number of character points (CPs) to assign to these stats as you see fit. Once you make a change and then save it (by exitting the full screen stat trainer and choosing SAVE) it can *NOT BE LOWERED AGAIN*. You can, however, leave your CPs unspent until you know where you wish to place them.
  Note this will put your character at a disadvantage if you have not used all of your character points.
  For more information on stats see the Character Sheet.
• Appearance: You can also change your hair length, hair colour and eye colour at any time (just like your last name) using TRAIN STATS in the appropriate training room for your class.

Entering the Realm

After you save your character and exit the stat trainer, the game will verify that the first name you chose is appropriately unique. If it is not, you will be asked to enter a new name. This process will repeat until you enter an appropriate name.

Upon entrance to the realm you will be shown your stat sheet, you are also reminded to set a suicide password, SET SUICIDE <password>, this is useful so you do not accidentally take your own life or reroll your character. You might notice that you have started out in a small town called Newhaven. For all intents and purposes Newhaven is the tutorial town meant to teach you the ropes and get you started in MajorMUD.

Typing ? or help at any time will get you to the help menu if you are unsure how to proceed.

Getting Started

Map of New Haven =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= C │ E = Entrance | │ A = Armor Shop 3 T S W │ W = Weapon Shop + | | | │ S = Spell Shop U H-D-P-E │ G = General Store  :.....: | |\ │ T = Trainer G A P │ H = Healer | │ C = Cave Bear B │ B = Boatman │ BORROW SKIFF

You are now in the town of Newhaven. This village is a tutorial town setup in the world of MajorMUD to introduce new players to the world of MUD. It is meant to be a bridge and get you comfortable playing the game. To begin type LOOK (or just L for shorthand), this will make your character look around the room. You should notice this will bring up the name of the room, a description, a list of people in the room and finally a list of obvious exits (i.e. ones you can immediately see). If there are people in the same room as you, be it either player characters or non-player characters (NPCs), they will be shown to you below the room description in the "Also here:" list. Keep in mind that NPCs can be talked to by greeting them, using GREET <npc name>, this can be helpful as sometimes NPCs contain useful information and or quests. You will also notice there is a large sign and a newbie manual in the room you start in you can also read these, LOOK SIGN.

Movement

Getting around in MajorMUD is essential. These commands allow your character to traverse the realm. In order to use them type a cardinal direction you want to go in and then press <ENTER>. The following is a list of all cardinal directions: N NE E SE S SW W U D. When you wish to exit via a special/secret exit you should use the command, GO <location>. Also of note are three other movement commands. If you are playing a sneaking class you will also have access to HIDE and SNEAK. Hide will allow you to hide in the shadows of a room, there-in making it so you are not detectable. Sneaking, while similar, allows you to effectively walk from room to room without being seen moving.

Finally if another player character goes unconscious (someone with zero or negative hit points), you may drag them from room to room with the DRAG command. In order to drag someone type, DRAG <user> or DRAG <user> <direction>, the former will activate drag mode where-in you can then merely issue movement commands to drag your comrade and the latter will drag someone a specific direction and then activate drag mode.

• TIP: If you have a fallen friend, use the AID <user> command, which will aid an unconscious character and slowly heal them of their wounds. It is recommended however that you drag them to safety before using this command

Gearing Up

Now that you have the basics of movement down, lets visit some shops and get your character geared up!

Armour

Your first stop should be the armour shop. You can get to this by going SOUTH from the town entrance.

You can pull up a list of everything the shopkeeper has for sale with the command LIST. This will show you a list of all the items for sale, how many are currently in stock and the price you will need to pay. Before beginning your adventures it would be a wise idea to purchase some armour.

Armour effects your armour class and damage reduction (AC/DR) which determines how often and how hard monsters can hit you. The better your armour, the harder you are to hit.

To purchase items in the shop, issue the command BUY <item> (i.e. BUY PADDED VEST). Once you have purchased a full set of armour you will want to equip it in order to receive its actual benefits. To equip the armour on your character you can use either the WEAR <item> or EQUIP <item> commands.

You may also at any time issue the command INVENTORY or INV, or I for short, to display a list of everything in your characters inventory, the keys you are carrying, your current wealth and your encumbrance. You should now notice in this list that you are wearing your armour.

Weapons

Next stop is the weapon shop! If you travel NORTH twice from the armour shop you should be at the weapon shop. Purchase and equip what you can use, or visit your class page to see a better list of what weapons you should be using. Remember to also equip the weapon, EQ <item>, so that you can actually start using it. You can now exit the weapon shop by heading SOUTH once.

Spells

If you have the ability to use spells you may want to head to the spell store next. Check your Mana by typing STATS (ST) or HEALTH (HEA). Mana is required to cast spells and is depleted as you cast spells. If you would like to purchase spells head to the spell store by going WEST and then NORTH. Purchasing items here is no different than any other shop. Once you have purchased the spells you can use, you will need to read the spells in order to learn them and add them to your arsenal. To learn the spell, issue READ <spell name>.

Utility

If you visit the general store, which is two rooms SOUTH of the magic store (or WEST and then SOUTH of the town entrance), you can purchase general supplies. If your class does not have Night Vision, for example, it would be a good idea to purchase some torches. To use a torch you would issue the command USE TORCH.

When finished at the general store head NORTH one room and then WEST one room.

Combat & Healing

You are currently standing above the Newhaven Arena. If you look down, LOOK DOWN, you will see the actual arena. Before you go down and begin your adventures it would be wise to get to know the basics of combat, spellcasting and healing. If any one of these is unclear to you it is likely that you will not last long in the Arena.

Combat

In order to engage in combat with a monster or player you need to issue an attack command. Any attack command issued will put your character in auto-combat mode with your target. There are seven major combat commands, they are as follows:

• A — Attack : Basic attack command. Will attack with whatever weapon is readied. If you are unarmed, you will punch.
• AA — Bash : More powerful attack. Does more damage, but harder to land. Also good for knocking down doors.
• BS — Backstab : Only allowed if you are successfully hiding or sneaking. Easier to land, and does very high damage at higher levels.
• PU — Punch : Basic Mystic attack command.
• KICK — Kick : Slower and less accurate than a punch, but will cause more damage. (Good for martial artists)
• JU — Jumpkick : The most devastating martial arts attack. Can be used from the backrank very effectively. Mystics only.
• BREAK — Break : Will break off auto-combat.

Get to know these commands well as they are the bread and butter of combat in MajorMUD.

Spellcasting

You have the following spells: Level Mana Short Spell Name 1 1 harm harm 1 2 mihe minor healing

If you are playing a class capable of spellcasting you will also need to get yourself familiar with how to cast spells. There are two methods for casting spells; one is very straight forward yet slower, while the other is a bit cryptic but a lot quicker in the long run. If you pull up a list of your spells with the command SPELLS or SP (note that if you are playing a mystic you would use POWERS or POW), it should look similar to the one on the right. You should also notice that each spell has a level requirement, mana cost, name and a short-hand.

The 'Level' column lists the level you were capable of acquiring the spell. The 'Mana' column is how much Mana it will cost your character to attempt to cast the spell once.

In order to cast a spell you would issue the command CAST <spell name> ON <character/monster>. For example if you wanted to cast minor healing on your friend Joe, you could issue the command CAST MINOR HEALING ON JOE, which would in turn attempt to cast minor healing on Joe. This as you may have guess by now is the slower method of spell casting as it requires you to do quite a bit of typing.

To use the quicker method of spellcasting you need to use the spell short-hand. In the previous example we cast the spell minor healing on our friend Joe, if we wanted to do this same thing with the short-hand we would issue the command, MIHE JOE. See how much quicker that was? This can make all the difference in the middle of battle as sometimes seconds can mean life and death!

Healing

Just like in real life if all you do is activity and never stop to rest it is likely that you will not make it far. With that said let me introduce to you the REST command. This will increase you rate of HP (Hit Points) regeneration. You must however remain resting for at least 20 seconds for the increase to take effect. Furthermore you may not rest in combat, you must BREAK off combat first. You may also notice that it is considerably difficult to rest with monsters around, you will want to move to safety first before resting.

Note that there are numerous things that can terminate resting, it is up to you to determine what these are and learn to avoid them while resting.

If you are impatient or in a rush, or possibly just want to get back into the battle, you may also purchase healing for a small fee. First however you must locate a healing willing to sell you healing. Luckily in Newhaven one has been provided for your, if you visit the room the the WEST of where you currently are located you should come to the healer. You should also notice a small sign here, if you read the sign LOOK SIGN you will see everything the healer offers. You can purchase healing much like you would purchase something from a store, BUY <healing item>.

Party

Caption text

Position	Accuracy	Defense (Hidden AC Bonus)
Frontrank	-10	+15
Midrank	0	0
Backrank	+15	-10

Jumpkicking is immune to the acc bonus and penalty.

The long answer.

Is that the bonus "ac" is actually secondary defense. Like shadow, prev...etc

filename: loc_0_42B64D

mov eax, [ebx+attackvalues.accuracy] add eax, [ebp+accuracymod] mov edx, [ebx+attackvalues.accuracy] add edx, [ebp+accuracymod] imul edx mov ecx, 14 cdq idiv ecx mov ecx, 10 cdq idiv ecx mov ecx, eax test ecx, ecx jz short loc_0_42B689 mov eax, [esi+attackvalues.ac] add eax, [esi+attackvalues.secondarydefense] mov edx, [esi+attackvalues.ac] add edx, [esi+attackvalues.secondarydefense] imul edx cdq idiv ecx mov ecx, 100 sub ecx, eax jmp short loc_0_42B68E

This code snippet leads one to believe that secondary ac only works in some cases. Backstabbing, for example.. would ignore secondary ac.

Training

Finally, the last thing you need to understand before you head out is training your character. If you type EXPERIENCE, or EXP for short, you will see that as a brand new character you have no experience. You will gain in experience by fighting and killing monsters and/or completing quests (this does not come into play until later in the game Lv10+). If you are still standing above the arena in Newhaven you can go NORTH once to visit the trainer.

When you have enough experience (100%) you can move up a level by coming here to the trainer and typing TRAIN. Every time that you move up a level you obtain additional lives if you need any (you start with nine), as well as more HP (Hit Points) which help you to stay alive longer in combat. The only reason a new character needs to visit the trainer is if you have yet to allocate all of your Character Points (CP) which you obtained when creating your character. If this was the case you can issue the command TRAIN STATS at the trainer to re-enter the stat trainer (Character Sheet Editor). It would be a good idea to do this every time you level as well as you gain CP each level as well.

When your finished go ahead and head back SOUTH to the room above the arena.

Heading to Silvermere

This concludes the beginner's tutorial, you can begin your adventuring by head DOWN to the arena!

Keep in mind that Newhaven is only a town for people who are under level 4. Once you reach level 4 you will have to leave Newhaven behind as you will no longer be permitted to enter the arena.

One last thing of note, if you want to play it say most MajorMUD setups allow you to stack levels. How many levels is dependent on the Sysop, but usually you are allowed to stack at least a couple. What this means is you do not *have* to train at 100% experience, you could actually in fact wait until 200% or 300% if you wanted to. If you keep this in mind you could stay in the arena all the way until level 5, combating monsters as Lv3 until 200% experience. Then train to level 5 and finally leave for Silvermere.

Either way once you are ready to leave Newhaven head to the boatman and BORROW SKIFF to get across the river into Silvermere.

Once in Silvermere you can get started by issuing the MAP command to get some bearings.

Thanks for reading this best of luck to you in your adventures!

References

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