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10 Tips for New Players

by Xerakon

This guide was written with the purpose of granting a new player some insight into the small things that they need to know about LotJ.

A screenshot of a sample logging setup in cMUD.

Logging

Whether you are a ruthless and powerful Sith Lord or an industrious and productive engineer, you need to log your gameplay. This is not only to assist you in the IC world by referencing back to events and specifics – but OOCly by being able to provide solid proof of why your character killed someone, or why they should not have been killed. Setting your client up to log your LotJ sessions is one of the first things you should do. If you need any assistance, ask on OOC for someone that can teach you how to log on whatever MUD client you are using.

A screenshot of 'HELP CHARACTER_SHEET_EXAMPLE'.

Think Logs and Character Sheet

Think logs are important, as they provide character perspective that cannot be found anywhere else. Originally designed as a tool to assist players in remembering certain events, think logs have evolved into a method of, well, logging what you feel your character should be thinking. This is important if for no other reason than the RPC will take your think logs into account if you are called to justify permanently killing another character. Long-term players use their logs almost instinctually anytime anything important happens, or if they feel their character might feel strongly about something that has happened, but may want to keep it quiet. You can be sure that Emperor Palpatine did not speak of his plans to his enemies. However, because we have an impartial player council that determines whether a death was legal or not – you need to have some way to record your plans that are justifiable ICly.

Your character sheet is an extension – or, rather the beginning – of your think logs. This information lays down the foundations for your character: How they feel about certain things, what their ultimate goals are, how they may react in general situations, etc. We have found over the years that not only does this help provide a player with a general direction for their character, but referencing back to it helps to hold them accountable. That being said, characters can change their motives and goals – but it is difficult and requires think logs and roleplay if it completely flies in the face of what you originally set out to do. Again, just another reason to utilize your think logs. See ‘HELP THINK‘ and ‘HELP CHARACTER_SHEET_EXAMPLE‘ for more information.

A screenshot of a snippet from 'HELP BOT'.

Learn to Script. Learn to Bot. Grind the Boring.

Some things are best left to automation. While you can spend all day with your engineer working on a ship, that leaves very little room for interacting with your clan members or the galaxy. So why not have your character build it at night while you sleep? To help give players an opportunity to accomplish repetitive and time-consuming tasks, the Immortals created the bot command. Characters are able to bot certain actions legally with a small measure of protection. However, to effectively bot, you need to be able to learn a small amount of scripting in order to repeat your bottable task as required. If you require any assistance with figuring out how to create a script for a bottable task, ask about it on OOC. We want to be extremely clear, however, when we say that only certain skills are able to be legally botted. ‘HELP BOT‘ for what those skills are, and for more information on botting in general.

A screenshot of a character on CommNet 0 requesting clarification to help a newbie.

Catch a Fish or Teach a Fisherman?

Newbies constantly join LotJ. There will be times when you read “How do I… ?” so many times that your eyes bleed. This is fine. Newbies means growth and growth means story. We all want fresh perspectives on our story at LotJ. However, consider what you do when you are training newbies. There are multiple-year players who still ask the same questions and go through the same motions in getting others to do a task for them as they did years ago. Help newbies – but don’t do everything for them. Teach them to fish. In turn, they will teach others.

A screenshot of a hostile CommNet 0 conversation.

CommNet 0 (IC Public Channel)

Everyone on this game has been accused of being annoying, trolling, or frustrating to listen to on CommNet 0 at one time or another. As the premiere method of communicating with the galaxy, CommNet 0 is widely unregulated – and therefore can get annoying at times. Whether it is the character asking for combat training on a 5 minute loop or the Emperor that is gloating about how all of the Rebels are scum and cowards if they don’t come and fight him 1v1 right now – you’re going to be irritated by it at some point. Our advice is to simply ride it out and make notes of what you feel is acceptable versus what is not. Remember that what you say on CommNet 0 is heard by the entire galaxy, and characters have had kill rights on others simply for what they have heard said on the public channel.

A screenshot of Gathorn hating on Frump on the OOC channel.

The OOC Channel

Much of what I have said regarding the IC public channel can also be said of the OOC channel. Most of our players have a long history here and know a lot about each other. Some like each other, some hate each other. Some voted for Hillary. Some for Trump. Some endorse mechanical digits. Some do not. Whatever your viewpoint, OOC is a haven for a lot of shenanigans throughout most of the day. However, we do have a rule against insulting players personally, and if it gets too much for you, you can mute it by using ‘CHAN -OOC’ and/or ‘CHAN -NEWBIE’. Part of the RPC’s duty is to monitor this channel, and between them and the Immortal staff, it rarely gets too badly out of hand.

A screenshot of someone getting angry in OSAY.

IC/OOC Grudge Transference

LotJ has a very active, very diverse, and very long-term player base. Several of us have been playing for 10+ years. A few for even 15+. There also will be players that are new to the game this month. Due to the IC/OOC aspect of LotJ, you never know quite who your character is playing alongside or against at any given moment. Keeping this knowledge in mind, the impressions that you make on your character and through OOC-say tend to be remembered by the other players you interact with. There will be times that you feel very strongly about the way that the current roleplay is going. There also will be times that you will get angry at yourself, your clanmates, your enemies, or even just random characters. However, if you decide to remain with us here (and we hope you do!), understand that what your character is going through is temporary. In the next timeline, the next era, possibly even the next day, or with a new character, all of that could change. The worst thing we see over the years here are players that start a grudge with another player due to IC events – creating permanent problems for temporary issues. Do not allow your character’s grudge to transfer to the player. On the reverse side of the coin – do not transfer your grudge against a player to their character.

A screenshot of advice being given on the OOC channel.

Ask Questions. Be Open-Minded. Take Advice.

We have strict guidelines against trolling new players or players asking serious questions OOCly. Due to how the staff has handled these events in the past, even the most obnoxious LotJ players rarely rear up to mislead a newbie. If you ask a question, take the advice that is given. More than that, ask if there is a help file related to what you want to know. Our help file system is very robust and contains a ton of information for those willing to spend some time reading. However, when asking in the IC realm, be a little more cautious. If you are unsure whether or not you should be asking your question OOCly or ICly, ask on the OOC channel and we will let you know how to direct it.

A screenshot of an OOC channel conversation/debate about races with natural force.

Debate with Players about LotJ on OOC/Forums

Our players tend to speak their mind about what they think of LotJ and the current state of things. This is good, as it provides ideas for the staff to consider, and has – on rare occasions – achieved the distinct pleasure of allowing other players to understand that what they do as a matter of course is soul-crushing to the majority of the playerbase. The one thing that we all have in common is LotJ, and it is natural for us to want to have the best experiences possible here. Discuss LotJ with your fellow players. Tell us why you think X is good or why Y is poor. Our staff is active, and they do listen. You never know what you might get changed. This being said, be careful not to speak about exactly what is happening ICly, as this breaches the IC/OOC boundary.

A screenshot of the AIM login screen.

Outside-LotJ Communications

As you get to know your fellow players on LotJ, it may start to seem to be a good idea to want to talk to them outside of the game. While nothing here prohibits that, of course – indeed, we even have a special Discord server (ask on OOC for more information)! – it can lead to a dangerous situation where you and your new friend might want to begin talking about what has been happening ICly, which is against the rules. Many LotJ players have made lasting RL friendships – even relationships – but you will always want to be exceedingly careful about avoiding the IC line, as it will land you in a heap of trouble.

Please visit the other guides on LotJ’s website for more assistance in getting started.

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Author Xerakon
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Categories learn to play
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