Newbie Tome

The Darkwind Newbie Tome

Last update: 15 April 2005

Table of Contents

Introduction

Chapter 1 - How do I Mud?

Chapter 2 - Getting Started

Chapter 3 - Combat

Chapter 4 - Domains

Chapter 5 - Newbie Areas

Chapter 6 - Food and Drink

Chapter 7 - Equipment

Chapter 8 - Invasions

Chapter 9 - Guilds

Chapter 10 - City Map

Chapter 11 - Rules

Chapter 12 - Partying

Darkwind's Guide to New Adventurers

For those players just starting out here at Darkwind, I, High Sage Segovia, Master of the great Library of Telthar have taken it upon myself to write a piece of parchment in the hopes of making life for the new adventurer an easier task. Many years have passed since I shared that little bit of knowledge I had gained from my years talking with other adventurers. During those years I continued to collect bits and pieces of information gleaned from their stories. Alas my intention of continuously updating the parchment got buried as the mounds of information grew. For a time I lost sight of the reason for the collection. Until one day an elder came to visit me. Over a cup of wine he reminisced about his youth. And then he thanked me for the start the scroll gave him. And he marveled at how the world had changed and grown since he first read it. It was then that I realized my folly. I had allowed the act of collecting the information take over the reason for for its need. I set out that night to compose a new scroll. Well into the darkness I found that the size of my collection was such that it reflected the growth of the world around me. And for that reason I now offer you this book. And my sincere apologies for the delay in its publication.

If you are new to Darkwind but have traveled through many similar worlds you need not read the first chapter of this book as it is directed only at those who have never ventured outside their own world. It is my hope that you will carry this book with you as you travel and read from it while you rest.

Segovia Loire

High Sage to the Library of Telthar

Chapter 1 - How do I MUD?

A MUD is a virtual world. Sometimes called Multi User Dungeon or Multi User Domain. The purpose of this chapter is to explain some very basic principles of the game. Often we assume that a new user already knows what a MUD is or how to MUD. The remainder of this book is written with this assumption. So, if you have mudded before, you might want to skip on to Chapter 2.

It is made up of both player characters (PCs) and non player characters (NPCs). Some of the NPCs will be interactive, in so much as they will respond to your says or they will speak to you and almost all will fight back if you try to kill them. You can determine if the character speaking in the room with you is a player or a NPC by checking the who list (type who) or by checking the finger information (finger name).

The environment you are in is generally referred to as a room. The room that you are in will have a description that tells you something about where you are. Often there will be nouns in the description that you can look at to get more information about your surroundings. Rooms can also contain objects that you can get or NPCs that you can interact with (or kill). The commands to pick up an object in a room are 'get' and 'take'. You must give an argument to the command (for example 'get all').

Getting around: First you will want to look where you are. Type 'look'. You will notice that there are exits listed in the room. You move through the mud using direction commands that match the exits in a room (e.g.. n s e w). You will note that you don't have to type 'north', just 'n'. You didn't have to type 'look' either 'l' would work. These are built in aliases. As you go through the game you will find yourself using some commands over and over. You can create your own aliases for these commands. (See help alias).

Communicating: Asking is the best way to receive help, but how do you ask? Darkwind has a number of channels for communication. You can use 'say' to speak to people in the same room. Or 'tell' to talk to a person from a distance. And you have a Newbie line which you can use by typing 'newbie <message>'. When you use say you may find that not everyone understands you. This is because Darkwind has a language system. Type 'set language common' to allow all to understand you. (See help say, tell, channels)

Help Files - Beyond this book there are files to assist you in game. Reading these while you heal will not only pass the time but is sure to make your time here more interesting. Type 'help' for a list of topics you can get help on.

NEWBIE SALES PITCH ALERT!!! Please take a moment to vote for Darkwind as an excellent mud when you're reminded periodically. Please read the help file on vote ("help vote").

Chapter 2 - Getting Started

Once you complete character creation you will find yourself in the Center of Town (CoT). All of the directions in this book begin from there. This is the 4-way intersection with the Map of Darkwind. When you log on again {and every time before you pick a guild} you will log into the adventurers' guild. The directions to CoT from here are (n,e).

To begin adventuring you will need equipment. Erga's Newbie Shop (4 west, 1 south) will give you free equipment. At level 2 you will have access to the donation room (5n,e). Here you can get equipment donated by higher level players. Please return it when you are done with it so that the next Newbie will have access to it. Remember to wear and wield all. You can do this with one command by typing 'equip'. For more on Equipment read Chapter 7.

Now that you have equipment you will want to gain experience and gold so that you can gain levels. The Adventurers' Guild (w,s) will give you an idea of how much gold and experience is required for your next level. Keep in mind that levels are only the ability to further increase your stats. So in most cases it is generally best to spend experience on stats until you get the message that says you must increase your level before gaining more stats (See help stats). There are occasions where you might decide to skip stats in order to get to the next level more quickly. Keep in mind when you do this that you have not gained the power of the next level.

When you kill something you will want to get the gold and the loot from the corpse. You can get all from corpse. Or you can burn the corpse with a corpse burner (See Chapter 6) and get all. You can sell the loot in the shop (5w,2s,w). When you leave the game you will want to sell or donate all of your equipment. Coins that you have on hand will save with your character but equipment will not. Guilds have storage rooms to store equipment during the current uptime. Equipment cannot be saved through reboots. You can put your extra coins in the bank (4w,3s,e) for safe keeping and so that you have something to start with if you should die.

Death happens. It is part of the game. Luckily it isn't permanent. If you should happen to die, you can go to the church (5w,n) and pray. When you die you will lose one from each stat, all of the experience you have on hand and one level. Note that this penalty does not exist if you are level 5 or lower. Until then, praying at the church will restore all of your stats and your level. Some guilds have the ability to raise people from the dead. This saves them some of the stat loss, but not the level or the experience on hand. You can get someone to avenge your death. This is a way to get some experience back (help deathavengement). Don't do this if you are level 5 or below, because Dierdre works every time. :-)

Chapter 3 - Combat

Experience is gained by fighting and killing monsters. The command to initiate combat is 'kill'. Some monsters will be aggressive. That means that they will initiate combat as soon as you enter the room. When you are exploring new areas it is always a good idea to set your wimpy (See help wimpy) higher than normal, then reset it to the percentage that you deem appropriate once you determine the strength of your opponent. When you've found your victim and begin your attack, watch the damage done. The best ways of doing this are by typing '.' (period) or 'mon' (See help mon). '.' gives you a quick show of your health while 'mon' shows it to you as it changes.

Using wimpy will cause you to run from a battle when your hitpoints drop below the level to which you have wimpy set. You can set the direction in which you run by using 'wimpycmd'. The direction you set must be a valid room exit (for example 'wimpycmd south') and it may not be abbreviated. If your wimpycmd is not set to a valid exit you will still wimpy when your hitpoints reach the preset amount, but you risk wimpying Into aggressive monsters. Many areas are designed specifically for newbies. It is best to stick to the areas detailed in this book until you reach level six (see Chapter 5).

As a newbie, you have access to the 'scry' command. You can visit Erga's Newbie Emporium (See Chapter 7) and receive an orb of scrying to give you a rough idea of how you would fare against your chosen opponent.

After engaging in battle you will need to find a method of healing your hitpoints and spellpoints. Darkwind has several different ways to heal. The cheapest and slowest of which is sitting. While sitting you cannot engage in combat, but you will regen hp faster. Being intoxicated also speeds the rate at which you regen hp and sp. Food gives a one time boost to hp/sp. There are also potions and magical heals available. Some guilds have the powers which heal. As a newbie you will not be able to afford many of the meals and kegs in the player run pubs and inns (See chapter 6). There is a special Inn, provided for newbies only, where you can purchase food and ale (4w,n,e).

As a newbie, you have a few commands to assist you in combat. They are

· nheal, which restores a bit of hp.

· ncot, which will transfer you back to cot.

· npunch and nkick, which will help you fight against monsters.

Chapter 4 - Domains

Darkwind is divided up into a number of different areas called Domains or Continents. When you enter the game you begin in the Continent of Darkwind. There are five other domains: Souvrael, Hyperborea, Kerei, Talamh Darag, and Underworld.

Each domain has its own theme. Souvrael is a desert, and you must carry water with you as you explore, lest you die of thirst. Hyperborea is a frozen wasteland where the icy cold air can kill you if you are not properly attired. Kerei is a jungle, complete with malaria inflicting mosquitoes. All I could discover of Atlantis is that it is a wilderness area. Underworld can be as dangerous as it sounds. Here you will find thieves, drow, orcs and even the undead.

There are a number of different ways to reach these domains. A ship called the Fairweather will take you from realm to realm for a small fee. Tickets can be purchased in the Harbour Master's office (3e,2s,e,s,w). You can catch the ship 3 east of the Ticket Office. Players can purchase ships of their own if they tire of waiting for Fairweather. Do not try to swim to these realms. The ocean currents are strong, and you will surely drown. You can, however, fly there. Magical potions, special guild powers and items can allow you to fly through the skies. Directions for flying and sailing ships can be purchased in the scroll shop (6n,e). You can even have a Mage teleport you to some of them.

It is also possible to walk to most of the continents...though my collection of maps are wanting in this respect. I do know for certain that it is possible to walk to Hyperborea, Underworld, and Souvrael.

The 'where' command will tell you which Domain you are in, and possibly the name of the wizard to whom the Realm belongs.

When you quit your session using the "quit" command, the game will remember which domain you were in when you quit and you'll start in that domain when you log in again. Since we recognize that newbies might want to explore yet restart back in Darkwind, newbies can use the "realm" command to set things up so that they'll always start back in Darkwind, regardless of where they were when they quit. To enable this feature, type “realm off" and to reenable it so that you start in the realm where you quit, type "realm on". For more information, type "help realm".

Chapter 5 - Newbie Areas

There are many areas with many themes for you to explore and gain experience and gold. I am sure I have not listed all of them, but I will continue to update this list as new ones are discovered and reported to me.

Areas in Darkwind

Directions are from COT

Abandoned Village - 6w, exit, 4w, 2n, w, s, w, enter, n, w

Farmers are about the most difficult thing in this area. Sentries will likely kill you if you attack them. Check for food in the vegetable patch.

Ashkenazy's hunting grounds - 5s, exit, s, 4w, s

Ashkenazy has made a hunting grounds for newbies of his experiments. Lots of interesting things to kill here.

Cemetery - 5w, 2n

The undead haunt the cemetery behind the church.

Farmland - 6w, exit, 4w, 3n, 2e, n

Typical farm animals. None of the creatures here are aggressive.

Glaverton Forest - 6w, exit, 4w, 2n, e, 3n, e, n, e, n, 5e, 2ne, nw, n

The forest south of Glaverton is apparently the abode of many tiny, but growing demons! They are ravaging the forest and killing forest creatures in an orgy of destruction as they grow. This area is suitable for levels 1-10 of all alignments. None of the creatures are aggressive.

Haunted Keep - 5s, exit, 11s, w

Recommended for adventurers level 3 and up, or low level clerics. Undead minions have overrun this place.

North Forest path - 6n, exit ,9n, 9nw , w

Large amounts of wildlife through the forest for young adventurers to kill.

Pegasi - 6n, exit, 8n, 2e, n

Baby pegasi are not too difficult, but the mother is a challenge. This area is good for low-level evil aligned players.

Pirate Ship - 5e, 4n, climb rope (Note: This will take you into the bay)

A pirate ship moored in the bay. Pirates have some food that will help you along the way. Do not be misled by the fact that you can swim safely in this bay. Most of the ocean is not so safe.

Areas in Hyperborea

Directions are from fly

Powder Plateau - 2s, e, s, e

This area has plenty of game to hunt and some nice scenery.

Ice Ruins - 4n, w, n, ne, se

This place is home to a number of strange, but very evil slightly beyond the novice adventure.

Areas in Kerei

Directions from the docks:

Hills - w, 2s, sw

The hills are infested with foxes and some other animals.

Areas in Talamh Darag

Directions from the town plaza:

Forest - nw, w, sw

Many forest animals such as deer, turkeys or rabbits roam the huge forests of Talamh Darag. They are perfect prey for an inexperienced hunter.

Chapter 6 - Food and Drink

Darkwind has a player owned pub and inn system. You can purchase food and alcohol at pubs and inns in any of the major cities. Food and Drink is created through a magical process which requires ash from corpses. It is all level based, so you need to check the level requirement listed in the menu at the pub or inn.

Food will heal you once by the amount listed in the menu. You can only eat a limited amount of food before becoming satiated. The amount that you can eat is determined by your level and the level for which the food is created.

Alcohol will heal you by the amount listed in the menu and also will make you intoxicated. When you are intoxicated you heal both hitpoints and spellpoints faster. As with food the amount you can drink before being too intoxicated is determined by your level and the level for which the alcohol was created.

If you notice an empty menu or your favorite food/alcohol is not in stock then the inn/pub is out of ash. There are three types of ash -- red, blue, and grey. The color of ash is generally related to the continent where it was obtained. Darkwind has grey ash, Kerei, and Hyperborea have blue ash, and Souvrael, Underworld and Talamh Darag have red. Grey ash is used as the base for all meals and drinks. Blue ash is for high sp food/drink and red is for high hp. Ash is obtained by burning corpses with a corpse burner. Inns and pubs pay for ash, so this is a good way to make gold. If you do not have a corpse burner you can get one by pushing a button in any inn or pub except for the newbie inn. Look at the processor to see the payout for ash at that inn or pub. Look at the burner for instructions on its use.

Chapter 7 - Equipment

To begin with you will not need a great deal of equipment. Some light body armour and a weapon should suffice. Weight is important to combat, and if you are overencumbered you will fight more slowly. To check your weight, type 'weight'. You can get equipment from the Newbie shop (4w,s) from the donation room (5n,e), from the Smithy (6n,w), from the shop (5w,2s,w) or from the NPCs that you kill.

There are 8 different types of armour: body, leg, hands, feet, head, about body, neck, and finger. Some armours will have magical qualities that offer extra special protection. As you adventure and grow in levels you will determine which armours suit you best.

There are many types of weapons. One of the strongest factors in determining which weapon to use is Guild restrictions. Different guilds have different preferences for weapon types. You can increase your effectiveness with a particular weapon by specializing in that type. The Weapons Training Hall is 2s,w.

Since combat here is done differently than anywhere else, how weapons work is done differently. A level 1 player with the most powerful non-magical weapon in the game will not do well here. Each weapon has a range that is most effective for certain levels. Low level players will do much better with lower power weapons than they will with a weapon that was not designed for them. Magical weapons, of course, can bend this rule, but even then a magic weapon designed for a high level player will not work well in the hands of a lower level player. This isn't to say that low level players only get wimpy weapons, it just means that players can get powerful weapons comparable to their level.

Once you have weapons and armour you will need 2 more things to complete your equipment - A torch and a bag. Never adventure without a light source. A bag to carry the loot will help to keep your encumbrance low. Darkwind features many other methods of carrying loot such as ponies, camels, mercenaries and more.

Chapter 8 - Invasions

Invasions can be quite nasty. You may never know what exactly triggered it, nor what the leaders of the invasion may have in mind for the innocent town of Darkwind. Be assured, it is nothing good. They may try to kill a prominent citizen, or burn buildings down to the ground. They may employ all sorts of strategies to prevent you from stopping their evil plans. They may block entrances. They may gang up on players. Some invaders may stop to try to kill players while others race ahead to fulfill the plans of the leaders. The only sure way to stop the invasion is to kill the invaders.

Most invasions are very dangerous to low level players. It is usually best to stay away from the main city until the signal that the invasion is over has sounded. When you do reach a level where you feel able to participate in an invasion there are a few things to keep in mind:

Attacking a creature will stop that particular creature from finishing his or her duties, but will not stop any others within the room. The best bet is to try to draw them all into combat...if you think that you can take the punishment. Shops, banks, inns, and pubs are often the targets of invaders. If these are destroyed during an invasion they will not be open for business for a period of time.

And finally, except for testing purposes, all invasions are triggered by player actions, and only one invasion may be going on at one time.

Chapter 9 - Guilds

Darkwind has an extensive and expanding guild system. Guilds represent occupations, and in this case they represent occupations useful in an adventuring career.

All guilds have their perks and drawbacks, and the administration tries very hard to ensure that no one guild has a distinct edge over any other. So when you are hunting for a guild, find one that is right for you, because you won't be able to find the one that is the "best." There isn't one. Each guild tries to be fun and unique, offering abilities you won't find elsewhere.

There are no set requirements for joining guilds, other than that you must be fifth level. Individual guilds all have their own requirements, however, which vary from guild to guild. It would be wise for you to find out from a guild member what those requirements are before trying to join. These requirements could relate to your alignment, your characteristics, or even having a current guild member sign you in.

If you find you have made the wrong choice, you can change guilds. Be warned that this has its price: If you really don't like your guild, Grimtila the witch (3e,2s,w) can remove those ties, but her fee is nearly akin to losing your life.

There are currently 12 open guilds on Darkwind: Bard, Charlatan, Cleric, Fighter, Garou, Mage, Necromancer, Ninja, Paladin, Psionicist, Swashbuckler, and Thief.

Type 'checkout <guildname>' for more information.

Chapter 10 - Darkwind City Map

WC $ - Bank

| | /\/\ AG - Adventurer Guild

| | SM| |SS BG - Bard Guild

WS| | | | C - Castle Area

| | |E |DD CC - Chambre of Commerce

MS_| |___|A | DD - Drink Donation Room

/ LANE S | FD - Food Donation Room

| T |FD GR - Guild Removal

| _______ | H - Statue of Honor

|J| | R| HM - Harbour Master

|E| PS| O| HT - Hotel

|W| | A| I - A player owned Inn

|E| [== D|PL JS - Jewel Store

|L|NI | | K - Keg Shop

C | | _ HT| |H MG - Mage Guild

| | | | T | | C MS - Magic Shop

_I___T_/ |___|_T_| |__|_P______ NI - Newbie Inn

< VILLAGE MAIN Jetty NR – Newsroom

< ROAD COT ROAD | NS - Newbie Shop

<___ ___________ ________ | P - A player owned Pub

MG|E|I S P G |K |CC SG| | PK - PK Room

|N| K |H | | \_ PL - Pillory

TS|O|P WT|A |K GR|__ | PO - Post Office

|R| |R | | | Public PS - Pet Shop

NR| |$ |NR|BG HM| === Docks R - Hall of Races

|R| | O| | | S - Ship Shop

|D|__________/ A| [== | SC - Ship Customizer

JS|____________ D|P | === Private SG - Swashbuckler's Guild

I P P \ |___ | | S Docks SM - Weapons/Armour Smith

O G | _ |_______| | SS - Scroll Shop

\/\/ |___________|SC T - Temple of Mitra

WH TS - Taylor's Shop

TT - Tattoo Parlour

WC - Wedding Chapel

WH - Warehouse

WS - Wedding Shop

WT - Weapons Training

Chapter 11 - Rules

No game can operate without rules. Darkwind is no exception. The rules are made to create an even playing field and to make the game more enjoyable for all. They are strictly enforced and there is no reason for not knowing them. If you are uncertain as to whether or not something is within the rules of the game, ask.

Clients - A client is program that is used to access a mud. The use of clients is fine in almost all respects, the exceptions being large client side scripts and using any sort of keep-alive timer. Darkwind provides for scripts using the "script" command (see "help script"). Use of a timer to keep your character logged in isn't allowed. If you need to go idle for an extended period, stow your gear in case you idle out. One note about triggers, please be careful. Having a trigger to burn a corpse or get everything from a corpse should be made specific enough that it acts only on your kills unless you want to make people upset.

Multi-characters - Each player is allowed one character. If you are found to have more than one character, one or both will be deleted.

Quests - Quests are personal challenges. Sharing information or asking for information regarding quests is not allowed (see "help quests").

Bugs - Sometimes things do not work the way they're intended tto. This is generally obvious. If you find something that you think is a bug you are obligated to report it. Sometimes you will get a message that says 'Your sensitive mind notices a wrongness in the fabric of space'. This is a bug. For more information see help bugs.

Profanity - If you do not wish to see profanity, you can type 'virginears'and swear words will be filtered.

PK - Darkwind has a fairly complicated PK system which allows for player-killers and those not wanting to participate in player-killing to coexist. However, if you've chosen not to become a player killer then it's your responsibility not to become involved in the affairs of player-killers. This includes things like locating, healing, or otherwise becoming involved in player-killing activities. Please be sure to read the help files on pk, regularpk, elitepk, and pkpenalties.

Chapter 12 - Partying

At levels 1-5 you can form parties with other newbies to make your newbie experience more enjoyable. After level 6 you will only be able to party with players level 6 and up.

Party experience is shared based on the level of the players, and whether or not all members are present in the room where the experience was awarded. More experience is granted to those of higher level. Gold is split equally between all members.

To form a party, go up to another unpartied person and use the 'poffer' command.

Party Commands:

pstatus - Lists members and other info.

psplit <amount> - Shares amount of gold with party.

pautosplit <on|off> - Turns on or off automatic gold split

pleave- Use this to leave the party.

pfollow <on|off>- Toggles following the party leader.

psay <message> - Sends a message to all members.

epsay <message> - Emotes a message to all members.

partyhist - Shows the history of the party channel

If you're the party leader, you can also do the following:

poffer <member> - Adds a member to your party. This can also be used by a person not in a party to form a new party.

pboot <member> - Removes a member from your party.

pname <party_name> - Sets a party name (displayed in who).

pleader <member>- Changes the leader of the party.

For more information on any of these commands, use 'help <command>'. General information on parties is listed in 'help party'.