u/mudsmyth

Someone posted here this week about a 599-year-old character they're thinking of pulling out of mothballs. It got me thinking about returning players, which is a weird category for MUDs because the same character is still there. You haven't lost data. You've lost context.

The thing returning players ask about most is whether their old social network is still around. The honest answer is usually no, but their old House or guild is, and a returner who shows up with knowledge of the cathedral schism from 2009 has automatic cultural cachet with the new generation. Lore continuity is an asset modern MUDs can use. Iron Realms is pretty good at this, but I'm sure we could surface old-event timelines better.

So a question for anyone who's done a long term MUD return on whatever game: what surprised you about coming back? What was harder to relearn than you expected, and what slid back into place without effort?

I saw a debate on a writing subreddit about whether warriors can ever really stand toe-to-toe with mages. Several answers were some version of "give warriors magic too." Combat techniques that work like spells, martial arts that bend physics, warrior powers with a different skin.

That works. But it skips the more interesting question.

A warrior who spent years specifically learning how to counter mages, knows their tells, picks the terrain, carries exactly what they need before the fight starts, is a genuinely different kind of threat than one who just matches firepower. The fear cuts both ways. A mage who has never been seriously threatened by someone who prepared specifically for them doesn't have much of a character arc either.

Power parity is a balance problem. Preparation asymmetry is a character problem. The second one makes for better gameplay and better stories.

Which MUDs (or books) have you seen nail this? And which approach do you prefer to play?