Okay, I was reading forum stuff at work, someone came and asked
what I was doing, So I started talking baout the mud.
Now they want to play. I can't bring myself to just cut them loose
in the most hostile environment I know with 'type telnet//carrionfields.com 999 into your browser'
Which is how I was originally introduced
The other person at least later when I was having trouble led me around by the hand for a bit.

So here is the deal, I'd like to lead this person around for a bit.
I do not intend to perma, or even pk with them. I'd like to see them get a vague idea on how to get around the major places though.
I've kept from introducing new players into the game for some time now, but this person is A) sincerely interested B)female which we don't have enough of imho, (they think differently and it adds something to the play even if they are playing a male and you never have a hint they are female, it just gives a different perspective. ) and C) I'm just tired of a choice between not introducing new players to one of my favorite past-times and wondering if I bring them in will I cause problems with other players/immortals because of knowing this person irl, or worse, will I screw up my character because of knowing who this person is irl. (i.e. feeling bad, hearing they are being jumped, running to aid, or doing (whatever) for ooc reasons) and D) because I haven't played in a long time (for me) and have been looking for 'inspiration' and this might just do it.

I figure I'll cut down on some problems by doing a char of a similar bent (So there is an IC reason to aid the other character)

I'm going to do it, I expect to be watched, warned for anything going 'too far', I'll do my best not to do anything to earn a smack-down.

So after all the babbling the question is:
How do the immortals and players feel about this kind of thing?

* No matter how bad it is I want to hear it. Lay it on me.
If the imms have a real problem with it, holler and I'll delete
my 'helper' character shortly.

What are these things you call..."fe-male"? *boggle*

From my studies, they are a group of assassins trained from birth to infiltrate the 'male' social structure, they give the impression of being soft, cuddly and nurturing, and then once insinuated with the target male they slowly tear him down until he seeks his own life.
oh wait that was just my last marriage.. er.. they sure are purdy though.

>So after all the babbling the question is:
>How do the immortals and players feel about this kind of
>thing?

I see it every once in a while, and under level 5 I'm really not
going to step in. Under level 10, I might, but that depends more
on if one person is just gearing another person or is showing
that person what to do and they're doing it (subjective).

Beyond that...

My advice to you is to have your friends read through the
Beginner Guide (click on Help in the left column of the
forum and choose which format to read it in) first. It needs
to be updated, but all the most basic stuff is there. Talk
about how to move around, get stuff out of sacks, put stuff
in sacks, what autoloot is, how to eat and drink, etc.
Heck, we might need to make an ultra-basic crib sheet.

Explain to them what happens when they die *before* they die.
I've always wanted to have a quest that has you hike across
the world only to (simulated) die and have to hike back to
your corpse as a "ghost" (for prizes I'm sure). The first
death is always so discombobulating.

When going through the Academy together, read the signs, get
the explorer notebook, get the maps, do the whole Academy
thing together like real people would. Teach them how to fish.

There's a good early exploration quest, you know which one,
that you can do. Another thing is to retrace the steps within
the explorer notebook and "discover" the various shops and
guilds together and use the maps to help them remember where
things are. Show them where they can almost always find a
thing they can just plain barter for a piece food!

As you're wandering around, you're going to have to rest. Tell
them IC stories about the places you're coming from, passing
through, going to. You may not see Centurions, and gates may
always be open as you pass through, etc.

Anyway, stuff like that.

Qaledus

ps: Don't roll up all orcs, or perfectly complementary PK classes.

I especially like the story idea. hehe I was going to do a warrior,
but maybe a bard would be better.. just for the 'feel' of things.
as for pk I'd be the best of them and I'm not all that hot, but yeah we'll steer away from orcs, though what you mean by 'perfectly complimentary' I'm not sure. she decided on a shapeshifter and the other girl is thinking assassin. I told the first shapeshifter is harder as is a mage and hard ranking, but then I thought once you get a form there is less to remember so I went ahead and said go for it.

Now I'm going to work up some stories to tell, past characters I've known/played maybe to give it that 'realistic' feel. hah never
played a bard. Guess I'd better get used to my corpse lying all over thera again.

>as for pk I'd be the best of them and I'm not all that hot,
>but yeah we'll steer away from orcs, though what you mean by
>'perfectly complimentary

A necromancer and a thief would be a good example of "perfectly complementary" PK classes.

nt

First up, the following disclaimer pre-empts anything I am about to say: If an Immortal pulls you aside and asks you to not do something, do it. Don't try to tell them I said something was okay. I'll trust their judgement at the time based on what they see, and so should you.

That said, I don't personally have a problem with you holding someone's hand through the academy and other very basics of the game. I'm fairly sure we have never site banned someone for helping a level 1 newbie understand the game, even when that breaks character as long as it's in a fashion that's as non-invasive to other players RP experience as possible.

We have a lot of great resources for new players: the newbie channel, our extensive help files, the academy, and more. I suggest you teach any new player about these resources and encourage their use. Nonetheless, despite our best efforts, I can understand that there are gaps between what a newbie really needs to know to get rolling and what we manage to teach them. (You're encouraged to point out those gaps, and we'll redress them as we can.) I think you understand the types of playing that the rules are intended to prevent, and getting a genuine newbie the very basic experiences and information to start playing CF isn't one of them.

I was not intending to blow off or be an ass to immortals, and I wouldn't, if we got called aside, I'd explain what was going on to the other person, and just roll with it.

I have to say the help-files are truly extensive, but though recently it has become much better the newbie channel was rarely any help for the first year or two I played.
Yep the 'gaps' are near insurmountable without either loads of frustration or someone there to guide a person.

(on top of which this person has only even heard of 'mudding' before as a bored country boy sport which involved drunk guys after a recent rain in pickup trucks tearing through corn fields)

I'll take the last sentence as a compliment for not being a dork for once.
(When I first started posting here you tore me a new one more often than anyone else hehe, but I deserved it, just didn't know it then)

Now for my terrible rambling, because well I just can't let a chance
go by.

The person who is going to play (We rolled her a character, but have not played yet, just quit at the gnome because of time) spoke to a
friend of hers and convinced her to play. THAT person played once before, but things were.... not so great for newbies then.
less help, harsh people all over newbie channel. Her hubby and I played and got called aside for our orcs spending too much time together (we didn't after) and since that had just happened we steered
clear of helping her other than trying to encourage and a few icq
back and forths, she got frustrated over not being able to eat bread
*rofl* we had talked her through buying bread in the academy, so when she said she was hungry we told her 'eat bread' she never told us she
had bought a sack and put all the bread in it! So she got mad that eat bread did not work and ended up quitting in frustration.
this was a long time ago and things were less... 'lowbie friendly'.
In any case I don't want to do a large party thing, so I wonder if I can entice her hubby to play and lead his wife through while I lead the other girl through hehe.
Well hopefully we will add two new female players, and maybe bring back a lost soul. muhuhahaha.
Anyone remember the lil assassin Screias? I think that was how it was
spelled, and some demented elven ranger Qwuelliken or something like that.
Well now I just HAVE to play got myself all worked up.

1. Have her go through Academy with thought. It took me three hours to go through the Academy when I started to play CF as Fungor, as I wanted to know how to play, what the races are like, etc.

2. Be the guy behind the back and instruct her. Have her complete the tasks in Academy to get the fine leather gear. After this, you could group her with your char, with good IC interaction.

3. Answer to her questions about game mechanics. It helps a lot when you have someone to ask how to do something. An OOC route, such as ICQ, is good for these matters, so you needn't sacrifice your characters roleplay.

4. I found Dikuclan worldmap for useful for CF. Actually, I wouldn't have started CF without it, knowing that my first char attempt ages ago, human assassin Agantas (a name that I recycled later on), got lost in Academy cavern (the actual reason of quitting CF that time was that my char autoed before I had another chance to log him in, as I did not have an internet connection that time).

I just walked her through races and classes. I should have thought
to just have her do it, and sit behind her. (doh!) never occoured to me. and yes I had already thought to spend alot of time in the academy. and push the idea of 'help-file first' at her.

We are on a network so ooc communication is no sweat.

(at least we will be on a network to begin with, if I
can get her hooked on it.. er I mean if she likes the
game she'll be at home playing hehe.)

My general take on mechanics is forget it and play, but
likely she would ask alot of that anyway.

At least I'm going to start her out with zmud instead of telnet.
When I finally got zmud I was like 'how did I ever play this before?'
hehe

Thanks for the response and the advice!