First, please note that we make no attempt to document all of the rules or provide a complete set of information on our game about the game of Shadowrun. That information remains the property of FASA or of Wizkids, and we have no desire to infringe upon their copyrights. Players of our game are encouraged to purchase at least the core rulebook (Shadowrun, 3rd edition, FASA Corporation, ISBN #1-55560-371-8). It should be available from most major bookstores, game stores, or web-based book vendors. We strongly encourage players to support this fine book and those who developed it by purchasing a copy. Information posted on the game is intended to be a 'quick reference' and is not intended in any manner to replace what is found in the core rulebooks.

All books in use on the game are the third edition versions, except for Rigger 2. A listing of these can be found within the game by typing (or clicking on) '+news houserules books'. Once again, we strongly recommend that you obtain a copy of the books before attempting to create a character. It will definitely reduce the level of frustration and confusion you may encounter on the game.

Step 2: Create A Character

Once you feel ready to log in to the game and create a character. You can do this by clicking on the Connect button on the right. Once connected to the game, type:

create <name> <password>

In place of <name> , put your desired character name. In place of <password>, put your desired password. In general, items surrounded by <>-signs represent items you should replace with some piece of information. Also in general, you should never type single-quotes ('') when they appear around a command.

The game is much better viewed with ANSI color. A large number of terminals support ANSI color. Once logged into the game, type

+ansi on

This will display a text screen to make sure your terminal is ANSI compliant. If everything looks okay, you can leave it alone. If things look garbled or weird, you may need to type

+ansi off

Step 3: Set Your Web Password

All characters, in order to be approved for IC play, must submit a background. This is usually 3-4 pages of text submitted that tells a bit about your character, how she got where she is today, what events shaped her life, and what kind of person she is, really. Details about this can be found on the game by typing '+news bg' and '+news policy applications'. Details on setting your web password can be found by typing or clicking '+help setwebpass'.

In order to set your password, you must have created your character, and this step must be done from within the game. It establishes the 'link' between your character object and the web site, making it possible for you and only you to securely edit your background.

Step 4: Read The News Files

Despite the name, the news files contain important information for new players, including game policies, house rules, background and theme of the game, and other information that you, as a player, need to know. You can view the news files by typing '+news ' and following the instructions from there.

Step 5: Character Generation

This step and the next one may be done in either order. Character Generation, or CharGen, is the process of using the code to set up the stats on your character, select your gear, and set up other aspects of your character. You can access it by, from the OOC Room, typing 'pn' to go to the Player Nexus, then 'cg' to enter Character Generation. You may go through chargen as many times as you wish, making changes each time.

Step 6: Write Your Background

This step and the previous one may be done in either order. Writing a background is a complex step. Please read through '+news policy applications ' and '+news bg' thoroughly. Try as best you can to use proper spelling, grammar, and punctuation as you write -- I know the occasional typo is inevitable, but please, make it as good as you can. We're looking for as much creativity as possible within the application.

The background may be written in any 'style', though going down the list of 'background questions' one by one won't work. You need to have some in-character theme that ties the whole background together. It can be written in third person, first person, as a dossier, a police rap sheet, whatever works for what you want to say.

Step 7: Submit Your Application

Once you're happy with your background and character sheet, you can type the following command to submit it for the admins to review:

+bg/submit <archetype>

<archetype> should be the type of character you want to play (the 'archetype'), such as "fixer", "decker", "samurai", "mage", etc. This is primarily so that we, as staff, can select the types of applications that match the parts of the game whose rules we know best. It won't hurt anything if you get it wrong.

We try to review all applications within 48 hours. Sometimes this doesn't happen. If 72 hours elapse and your application still has not been claimed from the queue, a polite inquiry to staff is in order. Please don't ask us incessantly about your application's status; we are reviewing them as fast as we can, given other duties that we have as staff members.

If your application shows up as, for example, "number 24" in the queue, this does not mean there are 23 people ahead of you. Queue listings are numbered in the order received, but are not instantly deleted when completed -- they're kept for up to 3 weeks afterward. Usually there are only a few apps in the queue at any given time.

Step 8: Wait For Approval

Generally, an admin will claim your application from the queue. This will show up in your notification messages when you log on -- you'll see a message indicating that you have one or more notification messages waiting. The admin will either approve you as is (which will send a notification message as well), or will reply to your application with a list of things they'd like to see corrected or improved. This will usually arrive by @mail.

As we said above, if more than 72 hours go by before your application is reviewed, feel free to ask staff members about it, politely. Sometimes, Real Life gets in the way of our online duties. Remember, we don't get paid for doing this, so sometimes we've got to go out and make money to cover the bills.

Step 9: If You Get Rejected...

First, don't panic. This doesn't mean that you can't play here. It means that what you submitted didn't meet some or all of the criteria we have for applications. Usually, the admin will submit back a detailed listing of what they find that needs improvement on your application. All you have to do is correct these issues and resubmit, or, in some cases, simply let the admin know that you have made the changes they requested.

The purpose of the application and approval process is to encourage people to think about their characters, and make sure they have a good, solid idea of who their character is before they hit the grid. It improves the quality of characters on the grid, and improves the quality of roleplaying. Yes, it's a lot of work, but we believe the rewards are worth it. The purpose of the process is not to 'keep some people out' of the game. If you have questions about your application, feel free to ask other players or staff members; unless we're super-busy, we'll be glad to help you out with any questions you may have.

Helpful Hints

Connecting

Information on connecting to the game can be found by clicking the Connect link on the left side of this page. There is a Java Applet there that should provide enough functionality to get you online easily. If you plan to play more, then you may wish to consider downloading a MUSH client. There are several good ones out there, and the page provides links to them.

Command Format

When commands are shown, either on the game or on the web-page, they will often be shown like this:

WHO [<player>]

An item in <>-signs represents some piece of information that you should supply in place of that item. Do not type the <>-signs. When an item is enclosed in square brackets ([]), then that indicates the item is optional. The command will work either with or without what's inside the brackets (though it might do something different). The rest of the command should be entered exactly as-is. In general, most MUSH commands are not case-sensitive. A few are, though, like 'WHO', 'QUIT', 'LOGOUT', and channel-related commands.

Also, MUSH commands often follow the following format:

<command> <target>=<information>

<command> is the name of the command you are executing, and is usually a verb indicating what you want to do. <target> is the object on which you are acting. To refer to yourself, use 'me'. To refer to the room you're in, use 'here'. Finally, <information> is a piece of information that usually indicates what you want to do to the target. For example:

page Alpha=Hey there!	Sends the text 'Hey there!' to the player Alpha.
@desc me=A tall, dark, and handsome stranger.	Sets the description 'A tall, dark, and handsome stranger' on you. A real description would be longer.
whisper John=So when's the big bust going down?	Does an in-character whisper of 'So when's the big bust going down?' to John.

Talking

Communicating with other players is a large part of MUSH. This is by no means a complete list of commands, but instead just a partial listing to help you get started. There are three basic types of communication:

Posing

Posing is communication with others in the same room. Except for the ooc command, it is all considered to be in-character.

Command	Alias	Description
say <text>	"<text>	This command your name, the word 'says', and then whatever you typed for <text> in quotation marks. Everyone in your room will see the message. Example (assuming your name is John Doe): say This is a test. John Doe says, "This is a test."
pose <text>	:<text>	This command displays your name, a space, and then whatever you typed for <text>. Everyone in your room will see the message. Example (assuming your name is John Doe): pose tests. John Doe tests.
pose/no <text>	;<text>	This command displays your name, no space, and then whatever you typed for <text>. Everyone in your room will see the message. Example (assuming your name is John Doe): pose/no 's nose itches. John Doe's itches.
@emit <text>	\\<text>	This command displays whatever you typed for <text>. Using this command to 'spoof' items so that they look like they were typed by other players is expressly forbidden by the MUSH rules. Everyone in your room will see the message. Example: @emit Following behind Keith, John Doe sighs. Following behind Keith, John Doe sighs.
ooc <msg/pose>	><text>	This command interprets <msg/pose> as either something you say or, if it begins with a colon or semicolon, as a pose. It displays the message like a normal pose, except that it places a message in front indicating it is out of character. Everyone in your room will see the message. Example: @emit Following behind Keith, John Doe sighs. Following behind Keith, John Doe sighs.

Paging

Paging is communication with someone who may or may not be in the same room as you. Unless it is declared to be or understood to be in-character, paging is always out-of-character.

Command	Alias	Description
page <person>= <msg/pose>	p <person>= <message>	This command interprets <msg/pose> as either something you say or, if it begins with a colon or semicolon, as a pose. It sends that message to <person>. Examples (assuming your name is John Doe): p Alpha=Hey there! p Alpha=:loves the game. John Doe pages: Hey there! From afar, John Doe loves the game.

Channel Chat

Channels are communication channels provided for players to communicate with others while on the game. You may participate in a channel no matter where you are on the game. The main Channel is named 'Public' and is automatically available to you with an alias of 'pub'.

Command	Description
<alias> <msg/pose>	This command interprets <msg/pose> as either something you say or, if it begins with a colon or semicolon, as a pose. It sends that message to the channel whose alias is <alias>. Examples (assuming your name is John Doe): pub Hello, all! pub :loves this place. [Public] John Doe says, "Hello, all!" [Public] John Doe loves this place.

Moving

Moving around on the game involves using "exits". An exit is simply a link that leads to another room on the MUSH. When you 'look' at a room, at the bottom you will see a list of 'Obvious exits:'. Beside each exit name is a word in <>-signs that indicates the command to type to go in that direction.

Some exits will be locked; moving in that direction will not be possible and you will be told why, or simply that, "You cannot go that way." In general, most rooms on the grid that are 'inside' something will have an exit called 'Out' or 'O'. This exit should take you out of where you are.

Information

Command	Description
look look <object>	The first form of this command shows you your room, along with a list of other players inside it and a list of exits you may take that will lead to other rooms. The second form will show an object (or player's) description, including what they're carrying. Just because something shows up in somebody's inventory doesn't mean you can see it ICly, though! You can get a description of yourself by typing 'look me'.
WHO	Shows a listing of all players currently connected to the game, how long they've been online, and how long they've been idle for.
+where	Shows a listing of where everyone on the game is, currently. Some players may show up as blank for their location; that indicates that they are not allowing others to see their location.
+staff +staff/all	The first form of this command shows a listing of all staff members who are currently online. The second form shows a listing of all staff members on the game, online or not. Use this command to locate those who can help answer questions you may have. Staff members who have large idle times, or who are set off-duty, may not be able to help you.
+help +news +info	These three commands show information that's been coded into the system to help you learn about the game. The first one, +help, contains information about commands on the game and how they work. The second one displays information about the game, including policies, theme, and house rules. The third one shows handy charts and tables we've coded up for you to refer to about the game rules. You can also view any of these sections through the Resources link on the left side of this page.

This page Copyright ©2001 by Joel E. Ricketts and Craig G. Rickel. All Rights Reserved. Some information and content Copyright ©1999 by FASA Corporation and/or Wizkids, LLC, and its use or reference here is not intended as any sort of challenge to those Copyrights. Shadowrun is a Registered Trademark of FASA Corporation.