MUSHy Musings

Here's a list of commandments for MUSH staff. Unlike the source material the format was stolen from, I'll be adding brief rationales and explanations under each one, and even propose some solutions here and there.

I. The Player Is Why Your MUSH Exists

Players are the point of your MUSH. Without players, your MUSH is just a piece of software that does nothing. This must be kept in mind with everything else you do in your MUSH.

II. Thou Shalt Not Make a GOMO

A “GOMO” is terminology from Pern MUSHes where gold dragons were rare commodities and people upset at not getting a “gold” would quit in a huff and make a game where they could have a Gold Of My Own.

GOMOs, in the broader sense of people making games to get something they couldn't have in another game, have (justifiably!) a very bad reputation in MUSHing because the game is set up by the founders for the founders (and their friends) and to Hell with anybody else.

Solution i: Make the game for everyone. Derive enjoyment from other people's enjoyment of your work.

Solution ii: Be honest and make your game a sandbox game for just you and your friends. Don't inflict your GOMO on the public.

III. Thou Shalt Not Misrepresent Thy Game

Your players will find out the truth of it quickly enough, so why do you lie? If you're a superhero MUSH, for example, that permits so-called “OCs”, but OCs are treated badly by your player base, lying about this will not make your players happier. It will make them angry.

Solution i: Tell the truth so people don't get angered to the point of dropping your game's good parts because of the bad.

Solution ii: Don't allow the things that don't work in your game. Your game doesn't have to be for everyone. In the example given, if OCs are second class citizens of your game, just don't allow OCs in the first place.

Solution iii: Fix the player culture that makes the facet you're misrepresenting a misrepresentation. (How? That's an article for the future.)

IV. Thou Shalt Not Permit Cliques

Cliques kill your MUSH by driving off players who get tired of being treated as annoyances or passive audiences. Soon all you'll have on your game is the clique.

This one is doubly bad if your staff is the clique (something that GOMOs are notorious for!).

Solution: Already written about in detail.

V. Seek Thee Out The Unengaged

Not everybody is a brash, bold, self-starter. Not everybody can socialize easily with random people. Sometimes people need to be pulled in to RP for any number of reasons, including being gunshy after a bad experience at another game.

So, as a staffer, especially if you have a system showing scenes, like Ares or Volund's code base, look for people who aren't showing up and just invite them. You might get a great new player out of it who's happy that someone just noticed them.

VI. Thou Shalt Not Shun The Disaffected

It's easy to write off someone who's upset at your game as a “crank” or a “whiner” or some other such pejorative. And yes, indeed, sometimes this is true. I'll even grant the possibility that this is the truth most of the time.

But here's the thing.

Your players know better than you what's happening OOC on the grid. And even the whiners often have valuable information. Take a page from customer service and talk to them. And while you do, swallow your pride and your distaste for the “whiner” in question. Don't fall into confirmation bias.

Solution: Keep your fingers on the pulse of the game by talking to its malcontents.

VII. Thou Shalt Not Script Thy Plots

Scripted plots (or “plots on rails” as it is sometimes termed) are anathema to role-playing of any kind. If you want to write a story, do so. Write a story. Get it out of your system. Then run your game.

Solution: Use tools like The Spark Method or Plotfield Diagrams. Learn to be flexible in placing your set pieces.

VIII. Support Thy Player's Plots

In an ideal world players will write their own stories. This can only happen, though, if staff makes running plots easy. This means keeping the barriers to running plots low, dealing with what few barriers there are left of necessity with alacrity, and providing assistance (in the form of NPCs, say, or organizational skills) to players attempting to run a plot.

IX. Thou Shalt Not Rely On Rules Alone

Even legal systems don't work solely by the letter of the law. That's why there's judges: to interpret the letter for the complexities and nuances of reality.

When you have a threat that's existential to your game, like a burgeoning clique, or some other kind of toxic player, don't rely on foolish things like “three strikes” rules or such. Use your judgment and kill problems before they drive off your players.

Abusers are expert at procedural judo, even against staff.

This isn't to say you shouldn't have rules. It's to say that you should make a Rule 0.

Solution: Rule 0: The staff reserves the right to bypass the following procedures at their discretion in emergencies.

X. Thou Shalt Not Assume These Commandments Are Aimed At Thee

Nor should you assume they aren't aimed at you. These commandments are the result of decades of observation plus a good dose of opinion. If you see yourself in a commandment or three, well, I'm sorry. But this wasn't written about you, nor inspired as a response to you. If you feel attacked, read the rule. Read the rationale. Improve your game.