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Synergy is progressing very well, the core chargen system is complete, basic equipment system complete, Combat is nearing completion, and a whole list of other goodies are in the works!

But the conundrum is I am suffering from Theme-Dysphoria... The original theme I had intended to use for the Synergy system to be built in is loosing its luster in my eyes. I have every intention of creating a popular and fun MUSH that people will enjoy playing on, but I am torn when it comes to theme.

While my experience says I can write good code, and know how to run a team and work with people, I simply can't settle on something i really like for a theme to develop Synergy in. So here's the deal, I have the server, I have the code and everything is easily modifiable and dynamic so it can be adapted to almost any theme. So I am looking for a partner who has the other side of my equation, a strong dynamic theme (original or not) and the vision and determination to make it happen.

If you are one of those people that knows without a moment of hesitation that you could create/build a theme and be a part of developing an amazing MUSH, but have lacked the coding experience and resources to make it happen, this is your chance!

I will entertain all concepts and proposals, and I will gladly sit there and let you pitch your concept to me. If your pitch goes over well I will want to get a much more in depth proposal that defines things like player interaction, the use of TPs, how the game will advance and expand around the players, and of course a good summary of the over all theme/story arc.

You can @MAIL me on M*U*S*H* or send me a page if im online there. Names Mongo, I got the code, if you got the concept come and show me why your's is the next best thing!

Today I managed to finalize some ideas and get some work done on paper for my new character system that will become the backbone of Last Bastion MUSH. I took concepts from several systems I enjoy and think work well in this sort of environment and applied some new logic to them. I don't want to give away all of the concepts now, so I will hold off until things are more finalized, but I do intend to release the code eventually for wide distribution by anyone who likes the system. It will require SQL but I plan to build the table creation etc into the installer.

The basic logic of it though is it is a skill based systems that uses the laws of averages to prevent power gaming, but at the same time allows for competence levels where by at a certain point, tasks become trivial. As well how you allocate your skills has an effect that enhances other factors of the system hence the name Synergy.

It seems like over the years since I first discovered MUSHing I have time and time again gotten started on trying to develop my own creation. I think youth was honestly my biggest obstacle. Being about as ADD as you can get when I was young I would focus insane amounts of energy into creating something and once I had developed something really awesome I would feel satisfied and then become easily distracted.

So here I sit now having just finished a SQL driven +help system and the basic SQL backend for a character system and wonder if I will be able to keep it up this time. A lot has changed so I hope so.

I think that the addition of SQL to PennMUSH is one of the greatest advancements I have seen in a long time. It makes so much more sense to use a friendly database system to store data instead of attempting to store huge amounts of information in attributes. This creates a little more work on the front end having to create in game tools for others to interact with the SQL database not be able to damage it, but in the long run I think the benefits are well worth the work. And if I personally need to change something it is very easy to jump into the database sort through the info and make a quick adjustment.

Aside from all that blather I have a partner in crime this time who has a great head on him and is able to take my crazy ideas for the MUSH and form them into a cohesive concept. hes also not to shabby with the math and theory behind character systems and combat and works a long the same lines I do (but makes more sense than I do). So his talents combined with mine I think we might be able to get something good put together fairly quick. Of course the downside is we are attempting an original sci-fi, but i think it is different and unique enough that players will really enjoy it as we are developing an open ended world where everyone can help change the environment and create the story. All the hooks are there, the players just have to find them and things will progress based on their choices, and not some pre-defined plot arc.

Ahh, the good old days. In the early to mid 90s there was a MUSH made from the gods, Battle Tech 3056. I have fond memories of this MUSH and how amazing it was to drive a mech around and spar with other players in giant mechanical warfare -- not to mention the deep roleplay and tinyplots that revolved around the different factions.

This was a MUSH based off of a series of books and table-top games, but it wasn't so complicated that you /had/ to read the books to know what was going on. They had an academy to train you on the theme and on how to use a mech and with every successful training procedure you completed you gained an academy rank and eventually you had the choice of becoming an instructor or heading off into the real world.

Then one day...it died and was never resurrected. Sad day.

If anybody else remembers this MUSH and played on it, let me know! I have been toying around with the idea of resurrecting it from scratch, but it would be a tedious project that no one man could accomplish by himself.

-Aamirez
texasfisher23@gmail.com

*and yes, I know that BTECH3056 was a MUSE not a MUSH. ;)

In the process of porting Anomaly Jobs to work on PennMUSH, I've found myself with a PennMUSH 1.8.3 database that is:

* A minimal db, plus
* A wizard added names Tools, who owns
* Myrddin's bboard 4.06, Myrddin's cron 1.00, and Anomaly Jobs (pre 5.2), installed in the master room

I'd be happy to provide this on a web site to folks starting out new MUSHes who want a set of standard tools in their database from the outset.

1. Does that seem useful?

2. Are there any other widely used systems that ought to be considered for preinstallation like this?

M*U*S*H announced a new initiative today focused on reducing the carbon footprint of the game.

"Our goal is zero emissions - no CARBON to be found anywhere on M*U*S*H," reported Javelin. "In addition, we will be dimming the lights, as suggested by Walker (who used to be named Driver before he got the green bug)."

On Sunday, April 5 April 12, at 2 PM server time (CDT), in Omphalos Park on M*U*S*H (mush.pennmush.org 4201), Tyr will announce and discuss the game he's been working on, tentatively titled 'The Empire MUSH.' Set in 11th-century Thuringia, Germany, the game is an attempt at marrying history and fantasy in a work of interactive fiction.

Topics covered will include the reasoning behind the setting and theme, some information on the setting itself (a broad overview), and a postmortem on the course of development so far. The presentation is expected to last about 90 minutes; 30 minutes for the presentation itself, and 60 for discussion afterward. This may be longer or shorter depending on audience participation and interest.

This presentation is part of the M*U*S*H Architect-in-Residence program.

Just a little personal plug... I have a new blog at katharyne.com/blog

Do check it out, I'm using it to write about elements of hyper-reality, and anything else that screws with notions of reality. It's fun :)

Looking for coder(s) who are willing to build a Jusenkyo curse system in softcode for PennMUSH.

Alrighty, I've pretty much got things set up and ready...but herein lies the problem; I'm broke. I tried setting up the MUSH to run on my computer, and it works when I'm running Hamachi-- but is there a way to host it, without setting up a VPN? Telnetting straight to my IP from another computer doesn't seem to work...is there some sort of special setup I need to do?

As a sidenote, Hardrive, memory, bandwidth etc shouldn't be an issue; until I've got all the kinks worked out, it'll be a private game, available to a good half-dozen people only.

This's been bothering me to no end. I can go in and edit up index.nws and pennmush.nws, and typing 'news (news file)' works like a charm. But here's where I hit a little problem; typing 'news' alone doesn't seem to bring up the index. Infact, all it gives me is 'No entry for 'NEWS'.' So, anyone know what I'm doing wrong?

I'm putting this in the Community topic because I think this would be an excellent community effort.

In 2001, Walker and others decided to try to do something. Called the MDP, or MUSHCode Documentation Project, the idea was to start give advice, help, hosting, and other services to a new game. The catch? Everything you do, every system, every decision, is documented for others to learn from.

When I was giving my talk, I was thinking. This never really worked. But maybe it'll work now. Even if it doesn't, another failure won't hurt anyone.

So, here's what I'm going to do:

1. Announce a new MUSH Documentation Project.
2. Solicit support from consultants and advisers who will help me by donating time to the cause.
3. Put out a call for those who want to start a MUSH to apply for the MDP. (1)
4. Process the applications (1), and announce who's project is being green lighted for the MDP.

The (1) subscript is that we can only do this for one MUSH. This means that a selection committee will be created, and selection criteria established. I don't want this to be a lottery, or something like that, where the project fails because the admin team pulls out. But I also don't want this to be full of hoops for people to jump through.

We'll see where this goes, and I'll be writing more information as I come up with it.

I gave a talk about Player Relations, and what it means to me, at the picnic tonight. For those of you who attended, TINY TACOS. Its sorta like Chunky Bacon, but less gem like.

When the log is up, feel free to read, and leave comments on either Elvira's WP6 post or my own post on this.

I'm creating an IC coded assistant for my players. Each player will have their own assistant. The purpose of these assistants are to help new players with common tasks, and act as an intermediary between coded and the IC game space.

Almost of all of the commands on my mush follow a syntax like: +cgsk/pol, or +priority/pol 1=12

Cryptic and unintuitive.

So what does the community think of using natural language for game commands? I'm currently setting up the assistants as LISTENING, and I'm trying to come up with a bunch of questions that a player might ask (obviously, once I'm in beta, I'll have clear feedback from my players, and I'll be able to customize the commands).

So instead of: +priority/pol 1=12, a player might say "let's raise our infrastructure a little". I understand this is a complex affair, but I was curious what you all thought of using natural language for commands.

Thanks in advance!

Boris

This Sunday's working picnic at M*U*S*H (mush.pennmush.org 4201) will be presented by Ender. The subject is 'Player Relations: Being a Benevolent Dictator'

It should be interesting and thought-provoking so do come along.

There's a bit of an issue with daytime savings time. The US has changed and the UK hasn't, but I'm going to stick with GMT time until the end of the month so this picnic will be held at:

10:30pm GMT
5:30pm Chicago (MUSHtime)

Hope everyone can come along :)

Also - I'm on a big hunt for more speakers. If you or a friend has something to say about MUSHing and a free Sunday, please do talk to me. I've got lots of spaces!