What is Shattered World?
  About Shattered World
  About MUDs
  How do I play?
  Frequently Asked Questions

Dynamic Commands
  Who's On?
  Sanom City Times
  E-Mail Admin
  Play Now!

Game Features
  Races
  Guilds
  Quests
  Lords
  Cults
  Skills
  Legal System
  Economic System
  Maps

Shattered World
  Wizards
  Copyright Policy
  Feedback

SECTION 1: General Information

What's a MUD?
See About MUDs.

What, no graphics?
Shattered World, like most MUDs, does not have graphics, but instead presents the player with a rich text-driven environment where surroundings and objects are described. This text-driven environment gives players the power of easily controlling their actions, and being able to do many actions by typing them in.

What makes Shattered World different from other MUDs?
Shattered World is rich in features, from uniquely diverse guilds and races to a player-run legal and economy system. You can read more information about Shattered World here, and information on individual game features can be accessed by the sidebar to the left.

How do I start playing?
See How do I play?.

Is it really free?
Yes, Shattered World is a non-profit game, and there is no fee to connect and play.

How do I win the game?
Shattered World's rich world means there is no one set goal players strive for, but different players seek for different things. For some, it is the quest to become the Monarch, and for some others, it is to become the richest player in the land. Players set their own goals and work to accomplish them. There is no set "end" to the game, however, as the game continues indefinately.

SECTION 2: Technical Information

What's the best telnet client?
Telnet clients are like e-mail clients: everyone has their individual preference. However, some clients are definitely superior to others, and will let you get more out of the game.

Two essential features of any telnet client are colour (things look so much prettier) and backspace (so you can correct typos in your commands). The basic Windows telnet client (which you can run by typing "telnet" in the Run window) doesn't do either of these, and thus if you want to visit MUDs more than sporadically, you should get a better one. Some of our players use CRT (get a free trial at http://www.vandyke.com) or ZMUD (a sophisticated, MUD-specific client from http://www.zuggsoft.com).

Our own java-based client is fairly simplistic and thus isn't satisfactory for demanding gamers. It's fine if you just want a look, though.

The game has no colour - what's wrong?
Either you're using a crappy telnet client, or it's not configured properly.

Because what you do is dependent on which client you're using, it's hard to proscribe what to do. However, check your client's options to make sure that something resembling "ANSI Colour" is enabled. In the game, type "hilite on".

Why can't I connect?
Like a web site you can't reach, there can be many explanations. There could be a problem with the game, or with the network somewhere between it and you, or with your computer. If you can otherwise browse freely, and especially if you can telnet to other locations, it may be that the game is temporarily down. This happens occasionally and briefly; there's not much you can do except try again later.

Why am I getting so lagged?
Shattered Worlds is based in Melbourne, Australia, and North American-based players in particular can get "lagged" (meaning there's a delay between entering a command and seeing a response). Until we open a North American site, there's nothing that can be done about this. You may note that some times of the day tend to have much worse lag than others.

However, if the entire game is lagged (even for Australian-based players), the problem is on our end. It may be caused by an unexpectedly large number of simultaneous players, or a bug in the game that has caused a temporary slowdown: something that has loaded up our server with more work than it can handle. Any such problem is usually dealt with quickly.

SECTION 3: Game Information

What are the game rules?
Shattered World has rules and laws, which are separate things. Laws are proposed, voted on and enforced by players, and you may choose whether to follow or break them. These rules, on the other hand, are the condition on which you play the game. If you break the rules, your character may be permanently banned from the game.

MULTIPLE CHARACTERS: Permitted, including playing simultaneously. You may, however, be requested to quit some if you have too many multiple characters on at times of high demand.

KILLING PLAYERS: Player killing is permitted, but must be done within the confines of strict role playing reasons and be within the laws. At the moment, the law forbids killing players within the city.

KILLING NEWCOMERS: Deliberately and knowingly killing genuine newcomers (as opposed to new characters created by an experienced player) is against the rules and will get you deleted.

BUGS: Players are encouraged to report all bugs (with the 'bug' command), although it is not mandatory. Deliberately exploiting a bug is against the rules, and particularly bad abuses (e.g. exploiting a game-crashing bug) will get you deleted.

MACROS, CLIENTS & BOTS: None of these are prohibited outright, but using them in certain ways is. Specifically, long and/or continuous macros, particularly those used to artificially practice your skills, are banned. The game will automatically detect such attempts and reduce your skills as punishment; additionally, Immortals may also dole out punishment or banish your character.

IMMORTALS: The Immortals (game administrators) will help you if you experience a bug that requires immediate resolution: just shout for attention. You should not pester Immortals unnecessarily.

How do I skip these newcomer tutorials?
You can't. Although there's no limit to the number of characters you can control, it is deliberately not a 30-second process to generate a new one. Thus, to create a permanent new character, you must complete at least three tutorials. You can, however, choose which three you complete (some are shorter than others).

We know it's a pain, but there are gameplay issues if generating additional characters is easy. If, for example, you could create ten characters in a minute, you could take their equipment and sell it for quick money.

How do I get money?
Take the "Money" tutorial in the Newcomers Hall. It contains the latest tips about the many paths to wealth.

How do I get help?
Most basically, you type "help". This produces a list of some major help areas, which you can read about by typing, for example, "help combat".

More general help is available in the Newcomers Hall, in the form of tutorials. And, of course, you can always ask other players. Most are very friendly and happy to help you, so long as you're polite.

How many different characters can I play?
See the game rules. Basically, as many as you like, so long as the game isn't being overcrowded.

Another player killed me!
There is a rule against killing genuine newcomers, so if you think you've been unfairly picked on, complain to an Immortal. We don't like real newcomers to be attacked by powerful players because it obviously discourages new people from playing.

Generally, however, playerkilling is part of the game. This doesn't mean there's nothing you can do: you should talk to or mail the Constable about it, and he will often extract justice on your behalf. Murder within the city walls is a crime, and offenders will be bountied.

Murder outside the city walls is not a crime, and, especially if you're not a newcomer, you'll be more or less expected to deal with it yourself. At times like these, it helps to have made powerful friends.

Which is the best guild (class)?
There are eleven different guilds, and you can join more than one at a time. You can also leave guilds without much of a penalty, so it you can try out several guilds before deciding which is the best for you.

Obviously, each guild has different strengths and weaknesses. You can find out current information, such as number of current members, by inspecting the big board in the upstairs section of the Adventurer's Hall; also, talking to friends you have made about guilds is a good way to get information.

For newcomers, it's probably a good idea to join a guild that has its headquarters within Sanom City - otherwise, you have to brave the wilderness every time you want to visit. There are three guilds in the city: the Mages (Xarus), the Thieves (Ke'Ting), and the Soulstealers (Javen).

Which is the best race?
While some races are better at certain tasks than others, there are definitely some that are not newcomer-friendly. These are the races that offer great powers, but at considerable disadvantage: Tritons must stay continually wet, which is difficult to do until you're familiar with all the water locations. If you're not, running around trying to find water while your skin dessicates can be very frustrating. Archons have deadly attack powers, but cannot go outside during the daytime. This is very limiting until you have discovered some of the darker ways to move about. Water is anethma to Grmkels, who must seek shelter at the first sign of rain. Two ideal races for newcomers are Human, which are a flexible, no-great-advantages, no-great-disadvantages race, and Draconian, which are well-armoured and come equipped with good breath-weapon powers.

How can I choose the race I want?
You be careful about which decisions you make in the mini-adventure (below).

How do I make an intelligent/strong/dexterous/etc character?
Unlike many other MUDs, you don't create a character by "rolling" or distributing points to various attributes. Instead, you undergo a mini-adventure, and the decisions you make influence what sort of person you'll end up as. If you favour acts of brutish bravery, your character will be strong; if you're more tactical, your character will be smart.

Your race and gender are decided the same way.

How do I register for a quest?
You don't need to register. To complete a quest, you just need to work out what to do, then do it! The quest descriptions, available in the Adventurers Hall or your own guild, are packed with clues as to how to get started. You can also ask other players for help or hints.

How come I walk off somewhere when I quit?
When you quit the game, you automatically walk back to the endoplasmatorium, which is where Shattered Worlds meets reality. Just vanishing would be weird, wouldn't it?