Here are answers to some frequently asked questions. Hopefully you will see something of use here to help get the most of your participation with Nirvana. Remember that there is an excellent in-game Newbie School which will teach you a good many things about the basics of gameplay.
Q: Wait. What part of this exactly is a game? It’s just TEXT!
A: Think of the entertaining factor of the game being akin to reading an multi-player, interactive book. There are times when action is furiously fast-paced, with text zipping across the screen… and there are times of quiet introspection especially when trying to solve riddles and quests.
Q: This game is free, right?
A: Yes. This game is completely free to pay. At no point will the administration solicit donations or any payments to continue access whatsoever. Nirvana has always been free to participate and play in.
Q: What is the object of this game? Is there is a big bad boss at the end?
A: The traditional objective of the game is to accumulate enough experience to reach the top player level. Additionally, if one solves the quests within the game, a player has earned the right to join the wizard ranks and create new realms of their own. Other players participate for the social element, which is no less rewarding or engaging to be a part of.
Q: What effect does the “race” of my character have prior to creation?
Nirvana’s mudlib was created before the time of player races, so it is not as tightly coupled as one of the newer libraries. Race does affect what character attributes you start off with, but does not limit upward stat advancement. It is more ornamental than purposeful, which serves both a plus and minus for the technical aspects of the game.
Q: I’ve created a character… Now what do I do?
A: 42.
Q: I’m logged in but I can’t use the gossip channel?
A: Your character must be at least one hour old before you can use gossip. This is to prevent the possibility of spamming and abuse. You can see your character’s age with the “score” command. Please note that the “newbie” channel is usable immediately.
Q: How do I see who is logged in?
A: You can use the command ‘who’ to see a listing of visible people on the game. The command ‘who2′ shows what room they are in. Please note that higher level players gain the ability to go ‘invisible’ with limited effect. Some wizards and administrators stay invisible because they might be working on something.
Q: Is there a time limit on how long I can idle?
A: There is no time limit before disconnection, but some internet service providers will drop your connection after a certain time- usually 15 minutes of inactivity.
Q: How to I talk with other people on the game?
To send a message to all players, use the “newbie” channel system. It’s very simple to use- type in “newbie <message>” at the command prompt. To send a message to all people in the same room, use the “say <message>” command. To send only a message to a specific player alone, use the “tell <message>” command.
Q: How come nobody is talking back to me?
A: Other players might be idle, or you might actually be trying to talk with a non player character (which won’t respond other than with pre-programmed routines). Additionally if you are trying to address a specific player, they may not be listening on the channel. Use the command “channel list” (i.e. “gossip list”, “newbie list”) to see who is listening in on the channel.
Q: Can I play more than one character?
A: You are welcome to create more than one character account but they may not be logged in (or even disconnected) at the same time. Equipment and gold cannot be transferred between characters, but plenty more specific information about this topic can be seen with the “help multiple” command in the game.
Q: What exactly is a “wizard” and what do they do?
A: A wizard is basically an administrator or creator within the game. The term “wizard” is a throwback to the days when MUDs were predominantly based on fantasy themed worlds.
Q: Someone just sent me something which I found offensive. What do I do?
A: Racism, sexism, and general bigotry are things we don’t tolerate in Nirvana. Keep a log of what happened and mud mail (1N, 1W, 2S from the adventurer’s guild) one of the general administrator wizards (or cc them both).
Q: How do I kill things?
A: You can give the “kill <monstername>” command to initiate combat.
Q: What happens if I disconnect in combat?
A: Combat will stop, but not immediately. Combat may continue for a short period, dependent on how your internet connection provider interprets a disconnection, and actually processes it. Once the game driver recognizes that you are disconnected, then all combat will pause. Be aware that if you were fighting a monster, said monster might regenerately heal itself over time.
Q: What happens to my equipment if I disconnect for too long of a period?
A: After more than 15 minutes of disconnection, your equipment will transfer to a magical storage box that only you will be able to open. If you login to the game at this point, you must find your magical box (which will be in the same location where you disconnected from), and then open it to fetch its contents. If you remain disconnected for more than an hour, the contents of this magical box will be destructed and disappear forever.
Q: Where can I store my equipment between reboots?
A: There are several options to do this, but they will all cost gold coins to some degree. Two hotels exist on Nirvana, and some players talk about a mysterious Thieves’ Den locker room.
Q: How many gold coins can I carry as a maximum?
A: The maximum is 80,000 coins. Nirvana has a bank were more coins can be stored.
Q: Does my gold disappear if I disconnect or quit the game?
A: Your gold coins will not disappear if they appear in your “score” command. If they are in your inventory they will be processed as any other object as discussed in the question above.
Q: Are there traps in the game?
A: There are traps in the game in the vein of quicksand or explosives, and they can cause great loss of hitpoints or even death. It should be noted however that the general philosophy about the design of these traps is that they simply don’t come out of nowhere. For example, a vial of nitroglycerin is a clear and present danger and should be handled as such. The administration cannot be held responsible for jumping up and down while carrying such a container.
Q: What’s a guild?
A: Guilds are a sort of specialized profession or community which your character can join that typically offer increased combat benefits and room for advancement. A dedicated page exists here which explains more about guilds and has a list of the guilds active on Nirvana.
Q: Why did someone just lick me?
A: Being licked is a sign of platonic affection. It is an informal greeting, somewhere on the scale of a friendly “yo!” or on the line of “hey… what’s up?”. To be licked is a good thing. Licking someone back is with the command “lick <playername>” is a common response. Wizards should be licked without fear of retribution, except towards Boltar. He really doesn’t want his dry cleaning bills to get any higher than they currently are.
