CarrierRPI - a Survival Horror MUD
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Atonement Alpha and Early Beta- it was pretty easy to understand why it worked. Small world, forced characters into shitty circumstances. Atonement Alpha had what.. 80 rooms max? Atonement Beta had maybe you're head quarters, you're businesses.. and the Square as safe places- everything else was get shot dead/clawed to death by a legato.
As the game expanded things tended to go a bit off the rails and enjoyment with it- too many safe spaces.
But fuck man the Twinks.
On Topic: I'm interested. Watching as well. This and AthasRPI/Mud are on my watch lists.
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What does it mean when you say you want to go a sandbox direction?
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Specifically it means that players will drive the story, and build up the world. The world will get more and more dangerous as the game goes on, and players will need to adapt and build the world in order to deal with the dangers.
The engine supports a lot of different grid building skills and crafts. For example, with a shovel and the right skills, a character is able to dig a cave, shore it up, and provide supports and keep it safe. Alternatively, they might be able to make a tree fort in the forest that allows them to stay off of the dangerous ground.
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Another Teaser and some Documentation!
"The year is 2026, ten years after modern day, and it's been a rough couple of 'em. We've seen shit hit the fan in more ways than one, and persevered through all of it. 2017 was the first year the earthquakes hit. Still don't know what caused 'em, but something like fifteen different major cities in the US were shifted into rubble. California's basically uninhabitable now. But we made it through it, seemed like nothing could stop us.
Then the floods hit, a year later. Global warming predictions were off by about--shit, I don't know, a decade? You'd think the smart fucks would have done a better job, but, here we are. Coastal cities were flooded, Venice sank, the ocean rose. People drowned. But the rest of us made it. We're still here.
There was good shit, too, don't get me wrong. Biomedical engineer had been making huge progress in deleting birth defects from children in the womb. The UN'd brought in dozens of previous war-torn countries and had done a good job of keeping everyone from bombing the shit out of each other. Global starvation dropped to a manageable level with the help of modified foods. Shit was good.
And my family was happy. We lived in Denver. I was a young, up-and-coming stock trader with more than enough income to support my kids. I'd even gotten in on the ground level with some major companies. Some big money-making shit. Long-term. I had two kids. One twelve, the other eleven. Beautiful girls, and the smartest fucking kids I've ever met.
And they're still there. I'm nowhere. I'm stuck in the middle of this concrete building in the middle of this forest, with nothing but the sounds of my own voice and the howling from outside to keep me company. I thought it was wolves, at first, you know? That would make sense. But then I saw one of them. It was wearing clothes--ripped up, bloody-covered clothes, but clothes. But that shit wasn't human. It was running around at the edge of the clearing outside of the building, on hands and feet like a fucking dog. And it was screaming.
Those aren't howls, they're screams.
But there's enough food here to last me a while. I've got these coins I woke up with, and these vending machines are pretty well stocked. Stocked enough to last just me a year, I think. If I have to go out there, I can probably use one of these pool cues as a weapon. If I have to. If.
Downstairs there's a fiberglass chute where I woke up, I must have slid out of it. Last thing I remember was going to sleep in my bed, next to my wife, hoping that the next day I wouldn't have to go to work. Now all I got are these cold walls and this pain in my neck to remind me I'm still alive. Jokes on me.
I'm still here."
CarrierRPI takes place in the near future, one that's been ravaged by natural disaster. But the world has adapted through it. Positive shifts in global culture have made it a better place to live than ever (assuming you survived the earthquakes and floods), and life expectancy for people even in third world countries has shot up.
Now, people generally live long, comfortable lives. Wars are things of the past, famine and hunger are thought of as things that happened to other people, long ago. And now, the only thing that breaks the monotony is the tabloid and weekly celebrity gossip that runs throughout modern culture.
You play as one of these people. The normal, average man. The soldier, made lazy by the lack of threat. The chef, powering through his life by virtue of every dish he makes. The lawyer, representing the myriad of drunk driving cases that come through constantly, as drugs and alcohol are some of the only things that break up the monotony of daily life.
But that's in the past. Now, somewhere in the world, you fell asleep. Whether on the side of the road after a long night of partying, or in bed next to your sleeping husband. But when you woke up, things weren't right. Behind you sits a fiberglass chute that slams closed as your body hits the floor. Around you are nothing but concrete walls, the far side of the room holding the only exit--a pair of dark stairs that lead up to a set of double doors.
The life that you led before is gone, and the only thing left is a far-off thought, and an aching pain in your neck. All that's left is something distant, after years of the comfortable life you once held. Survival.
Combat
There are two different types of combat on CarrierRPI: Slow Combat and Fast Combat.
Slow combat takes place when two PCs are fighting one another. Over the course of a round one player will emote their actions, then use the ATTACK/HIT/MURDER commands (the only difference being that MURDER Will attempt to kill the target outright), with a location on the opponent's body to attack. For example, two people are fighting one another over food, Jon and Edgar. Jon goes first:
Emote pulls his fist back and sends it directly at Edgar's head.
(Will read as)
Jon pulls his fist back and sends it directly at Edgar's head.Then, Jon enters the command ATTACK EDGAR HEAD, and the code gives him a result based on how well he hits. Edgar will be able to retaliate with his own emote and attack, and combat continues.
Fast Combat takes place between a PC (or multiple PCs) and an enemy (or multiple enemies). In this instance, especially if the enemy immediately attacks the player, the player's job is to make sure they don't die. They can do this by changing defenses, aiming strategically for the correct body parts to make the enemy unstable, or overall overpower the creature and kill it.
When an NPC is killed, they drop as a corpse. Players, however, have the potential to be saved as they bleed out.
Policy
Sex: As an adult-themed game, sex is an inevitability. And, as a result, we request that all players be 18. Try and keep whatever sexual content there is to side-rooms, please, as no one like walking in on that. And remember, if anyone wants to fade to black and imply the scene happened, that has to happen. Staff will be very harsh about this.
Rape: No rape. Ever. No exceptions.
Graphic Violence: Due to the graphic nature of the game, violence, gore, and graphic depictions of death are likely going to be common, and are a central theme of CarrierRPI. Because of this, it's unlikely that these things are going to be able to be avoided.
Rules of Engagement: When dealing with PC-to-PC combat there are certain rules that should be followed:
- Don't just use the attack command. You MUST emote in between attacks, describing your actions. Situations where this doesn't happen should be reported to staff.
- Do not just disengage and spamwalk away. You MUST roleplay the process of running away, giving the other player the opportunity to react.
- Remember, Carrier is supposed to be fun, and there are real players on the other end. If you intend to kill a PC, make sure that's really what you want to/need to/should do. Consider other types of antagonism, instead. Try and kill them in creative ways. Make the situation memorable.
Staff PCs: Storytelling staff will not have characters on CarrierRPI. Builders and Coders are, however allowed their own characters at their discretion, but their actions will be closely monitored by storytelling staff to ensure that there aren't any abuses of staff power.
Special Applications: Should there ever be a need for special applications (I doubt this will be the case), staff will place them openly for all players' access.
IC/OOC Crossover: This is an RPI. Don't post pertinent IC information in public forums, don't tell people who you play publically, don't use OOC information that you learn ICly. I know that IC information gets spread around, but as this game relies heavily on the mystery of what's going on for plot, it'd be really lame to spoil that for players who haven't gotten the chance to learn it
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I'm happy to announce that CarrierRPI is going to be opening its doors for play on Saturday, the 2nd of July, at (tentatively) 12PM PST. This may be a bit earlier, or a bit later, depending on the needs of staff, but shouldn't veer too heavily off course. Updates will be provided!
As well, all week I'll be posting information, logs of roleplay and game mechanics, and official staff introduction to help clarify information for both new and old RPI players alike!
And, finally, applications will open up this Friday for players to get a head start on getting approved! This way when we open everyone will be able to jump right in and roleplay! This also includes our full chargen, so players will be able to get a solid grasp of some of the game mechanics early on! I should be on all day, as well, to answer questions and assist players with any issues they might have!
Disclaimer: CarrierRPI is opening up in an Alpha state. This means that there will be bugs, some helpfiles won't be entirely updated (and thus might be missing or contain outdated information), and some areas might still contain typos/information we missed during building. But, worry not, we'll still be running RPT's (recommended play times), story content, and the crafting/combat/character advancement should be entirely ready for play! I do ask that if players notice anything they think is incorrect, that they report it to staff!
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Ssssssooooooo, the premise is that you've been kidnapped and have to wander a maze and fight people?
@Sab said:
And, finally, applications will open up this Friday for players to get a head start on getting approved!
Tell us a little about this approval system. This means many things on many games to many people.
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Just to be clear, are you opening apps on Friday 6/24 or Friday 7/1?
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@Thenomain The area isn't particularly maze-like, and fighting other people is going to be entirely dependent on whether or not that kind of conflict happens between PCs. I actually don't expect a lot of PC-on-PC conflict early on, but people could surprise me.
With the approval system, you'll need to set your stats, your skills, and have a background written to support them. I'll have more information on the world by tonight!
And to clarify, I mean this friday, 6/24.
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@Sab
Is there a policy on group apps? -
We don't have an official policy on Group Apps at present. But I'm not against them at all. All that I ask is that you email your group idea to carrierrpi@gmail.com or PM me on our forums at carrierpi.mudhosting.net.
Either way we can have a chat about what you had in mind!
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That theme post has really been bugging me, since a friend poked me about this place and I was wanting to learn more about the game/setting.
From your post about theme, it says you're 10 years into the future.
In that span of ten years (10 years is not very long), there was massive earthquakes, floods, whatever else, and at least a couple of those events were a year apart or so.
Then you go on to state this "Now, people generally live long, comfortable lives. Wars are things of the past, famine and hunger are thought of as things that happened to other people, long ago. And now, the only thing that breaks the monotony is the tabloid and weekly celebrity gossip that runs throughout modern culture."
Factoring in those natural disasters which certainly would have delayed the onset of this perfect 'no famine/sadness/war/etc' world, I'm really having difficulty wrapping my head around this "golden age" randomly erupting in the span of roughly a decade, and "war becoming a thing of the past". Even if you strictly forced every single character to be like 18 years old, I can't seem to grasp the idea that the notion of war and "bad stuff" is going to be that foreign after what appears to be 8~ years (or less) of "good times". What if I want to make a 30 year old? What if my 18 year old's dad was killed while stationed in Iraq/wherever while a small child?
People live long, comfortable lives? ...Again, it's been a decade at most, and likely less than that. How has there been a noticeable shift in life spans? I mean, people in a lot of parts of the world /already/ live "long, comfortable" lives.
It seems like a pretty glaring bit of theme that just isn't sitting well with me (and quite possibly just me). A decade (or less, given the massive disasters wiping entire cities off the map over the first couple years) doesn't to me, feel like enough for that massive shift in the entire world's "world view". Even 25 year olds would have grown up hearing about war and conflict and terrorism and mass shootings and w/e else happening regularly on the news for the first 15 years of their life, and then the massive disasters killing millions of people for the next 2.
I say this because I've seen no mention of you doing an 'alternate timeline', and in fact everything seems to point towards the timeline being RL until the 10 year skip forward.
Edit : Or maybe you're more than 10 years into the future, and that "journal entry" is old?
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@acceleration said in CarrierRPI - a Survival Horror MUD:
@Sab
Is there a policy on group apps?Are group apps normally constrained on MUDs? How curious.
“If you wish to make an apple pie from scratch, you must first invent the universe.”
― Carl Sagan, Cosmos -
@Thenomain said in CarrierRPI - a Survival Horror MUD:
@acceleration said in CarrierRPI - a Survival Horror MUD:
@Sab
Is there a policy on group apps?Are group apps normally constrained on MUDs? How curious.
It's occasionally been restrained on RPIs due to power balance factors.
3 or 4 people app'ing in as a family can pretty easily take over a game and very quickly make it not fun for everybody else, due to what is largely OOC agreements between that group of players. It's easier for them secure resources, it's easier for them to cover all their own crafting needs, and they will always have each other's back when it comes to conflict, even if only for the flimsy reason of 'oh he's my bro' (which, yes, ICly is certainly a compelling reason, but OOCly not so much when that character in particular has barely been involved in any RP, and the brother has very little reason for the conflict in the first place).
Imagine if it was considered acceptable for families that app'd together into a MUSH to start gangbang PKing other players over insults in Bar RP or politics or because they want that nice rifle Joe has.
The flaw here, is people can pretty much do the same thing without blatantly app'ing in as a "family", assuming they talk to each other on Skype. And if they're going to make a family of PCs together, they're probably talking to each other outside the game.
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@Tempest said in CarrierRPI - a Survival Horror MUD:
@Thenomain said in CarrierRPI - a Survival Horror MUD:
@acceleration said in CarrierRPI - a Survival Horror MUD:
@Sab
Is there a policy on group apps?Are group apps normally constrained on MUDs? How curious.
It's occasionally been restrained on RPIs due to power balance factors.
3 or 4 people app'ing in as a family can pretty easily take over a game and very quickly make it not fun for everybody else, due to what is largely OOC agreements between that group of players. It's easier for them secure resources, it's easier for them to cover all their own crafting needs, and they will always have each other's back when it comes to conflict, even if only for the flimsy reason of 'oh he's my bro' (which, yes, ICly is certainly a compelling reason, but OOCly not so much when that character in particular has barely been involved in any RP, and the brother has very little reason for the conflict in the first place).
Imagine if it was considered acceptable for families that app'd together into a MUSH to start gangbang PKing other players over insults in Bar RP or politics or because they want that nice rifle Joe has.
The flaw here, is people can pretty much do the same thing without blatantly app'ing in as a "family", assuming they talk to each other on Skype. And if they're going to make a family of PCs together, they're probably talking to each other outside the game.
Man... imagine how much more fun a mush could be
Then when it's all over and the rest of you are ready for Dead Animal Pickup, I'm gonna go balls deep into Dahl. But only because she asked me to. Sweet-like. - Riddick (2013)
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@Tempest Maybe look at it as a feature, not a bug. That is basically how things ought to be - when there's a scarcity of resources banding together is extremely effective. It also means you have to split the gains though; only one finger can be on Joe's rifle's trigger.
- He who takes offense when not intended is a fool. He who takes offense when intended is a greater fool.
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@Arkandel Yes, it makes perfect sense IC.
Again, this is an RPI and not a MUSH though. That sort of thing has very harsh impact with the way these sorts of RPIs are played.
It conveys a rather /ooc/ advantage to the people app'ing in as a "group", since they will already be 'banded together' and think alike when it comes time for Shit To Happen, and they can also specifically make their group to cover any skill-related gaps (a weaponsmith, two soldiers, a healer, whatever). They often also only play at the same specific times. Not an issue as much on MUSHes, because it's more common for people to be able to do things via +request/absentee on a MU. On an RPI/MUD you have to 'be online and in the room' to participate in anything.
This is not really "fair" when compared against Joe and Jane and Jack, who all app'd in individually and then later through actual RP decided to band together while actually playing the game. Maybe they have the same set of skills that overlap (two healers and a tailor or something), don't all play together all the time (and thus can be singled out and gangbanged in an "ic" fashion if they dare to leave a safezone when their buddies aren't on), don't talk to each other on Skype, aren't going to 100% agree on everything like an 'app in as a group' group would, etc etc.
Also to specifically address your point of "only one person gets the gun", that is again, almost a non-issue in the pre-made app-together group, as they'll have sorted that out (probably OOCly before ICly) before ever enacting Operation : Fuck Joe.
The formed IC group though? Sure, they might actually fight over who got the rifle.
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On the topic of World Building and timeline:
I will be posting a timeline of events that lead to the change in 2026. I've actually already started on the documentation post on our website carrierrpi.mudhosting.net.
The important thing to note, however, is that what happened outside of the gameworld will never be as important as what happens inside it. While I know players want more information about the world their character's come from, my first inclination was to let players make shit up (as is done in quite a few tabletop systems) as they go along, and approve it as long as it fit the theme and narrative.
That didn't last long, however, as people kept asking for more info, so I've started doing a rough overview of what each continent has gone through over the course of the next 10 years. Which, might seem like a short time, but given the fact that we're on the cusp of dozens of scientific advancements this year, I don't think it's that unreasonable that - if everyone ended up banding together in the face of danger (the floods and earthquakes) - they could hit a dystopian golden age. I'd be happy to discuss it further, but I want it to be very clear that my focus is never going to be on the story outside of the play area.
As for group apps: It's massively less about power struggle and more about what fits the lore. Why are three people, who all know each other, disappearing at once? Is it an accident? Is it intentional? Do they compliment each other? How well, is it too well? Those are the kinds of questions I'm asking myself when looking at group apps.
Frankly, don't give a shit about there becoming a power imbalance because of group applications. That's going to happen regardless, what's important is making sure the group applications are thematic and fit within the lore of the world. It's also why - unless someone gives me a really, really good pitch - group apps will probably be limited to 2.
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@Sab Fair enough, and thanks for the response.
I know a lot of people are cool with 'here's some info and a blank slate, knock yourself out'.
I myself just hate not knowing/understanding the background/theme etc because it makes me stress over whether the character I want to make "fits" or not.
I also know worldbuilding isn't exactly easy, so it's appreciated!
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@ThatOneDude said in CarrierRPI - a Survival Horror MUD:
@Tempest said in CarrierRPI - a Survival Horror MUD:
@Thenomain said in CarrierRPI - a Survival Horror MUD:
@acceleration said in CarrierRPI - a Survival Horror MUD:
@Sab
Is there a policy on group apps?Are group apps normally constrained on MUDs? How curious.
It's occasionally been restrained on RPIs due to power balance factors.
3 or 4 people app'ing in as a family can pretty easily take over a game and very quickly make it not fun for everybody else, due to what is largely OOC agreements between that group of players. It's easier for them secure resources, it's easier for them to cover all their own crafting needs, and they will always have each other's back when it comes to conflict, even if only for the flimsy reason of 'oh he's my bro' (which, yes, ICly is certainly a compelling reason, but OOCly not so much when that character in particular has barely been involved in any RP, and the brother has very little reason for the conflict in the first place).
Imagine if it was considered acceptable for families that app'd together into a MUSH to start gangbang PKing other players over insults in Bar RP or politics or because they want that nice rifle Joe has.
The flaw here, is people can pretty much do the same thing without blatantly app'ing in as a "family", assuming they talk to each other on Skype. And if they're going to make a family of PCs together, they're probably talking to each other outside the game.
Man... imagine how much more fun a mush could be
It was called DarkMetal. I think it's still open if you want to try it.
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Removed as we're going to take an addition few days to balance a few things after first glance! Sorry about the inconvenience!
