22.1 MORTAL BUILDERS IN LUSTERNIA (HOW TO GET AN ORB)
Introduction
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From time to time, the administration of Lusternia will take Mortal Builders to help expand the world and develop new areas. These mortal builders work closely with the administration on the areas and are paid in credits for their work.
Being a builder in Lusternia is not like being a builder on many MUDs. One does not become an immortal. Instead, we have Orbs of Creation. Using an Orb is well-documented in other HELP files listed under HELP OLC.
Building is not something done on a lark. It is hard work, because we do not allow poor-quality material to go into Lusternia. Furthermore, it does take quite a bit of administrative time, as we have to approve every single thing that you do.
As a Mortal Builder, you will be expected to maintain complete and utter secrecy on any project you are assigned. If you 'leak' information on classified projects, be prepared to face DIRE CONSEQUENCES. As such, we require all Mortal Builders to sign a standard Non-Disclosure Agreement and send it back to us before work can commence.
You will need to work your way up from apprentice builder and prove yourself as trustworthy and reliable, and you will need to show you can turn out quality work before being allowed to create your own areas. At this time, there are two stages for Mortal Builders to go through:
* Apprentice
* Architect
Apprentice builders receive 4 credits per room designed, and they will move onto the Architect stage upon completing 100 rooms. Architect builders receive 6 credits per room designed.
Builders may also receive 2 extra credits per room if they complete them quickly (by default within 12 days from assignment).
The workload for builder projects works on a first-come, first-served basis, with opportunities appearing upon request of the administrative team. The most frequent project is basic room description, with a project requiring 10 to 20 rooms described within the span of a week (or a week and a half). Other types of projects may have larger room numbers or they may include designing custom items or mobiles. Additionally, there may be very time-sensitive projects that ask builders for a higher turn-over rate for their projects.
We wish to emphasise that we expect Mortal Builders to be active, steady and responsible workers, so consider very carefully whether you wish to take on such a commitment.
Applying
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At present, we have two methods of applying to the Mortal Builder program. The first is a general rolling admissions, to which interested players can simply submit an application with the following information listed below to builders@lusternia.com. The second is a formal call for applicants, initiated by the Camenae, where players will submit their application to builders@lusternia.com on prompting through an announce post. The application for both requires the following information:
* Your name and your character's name(s).
* Five sample room descriptions, preferably of varied locations. Please try to include at least 3 to 6 sentences (average in between) for room length. And please do not include any extra information that is not in room descriptions, such as ambients, exits, items or mobiles that sit in the room, etc.
* A brief (250 words max) description for a new Lusternian area, including its main story and how it fits into Lusternian mythos.
* A brief (250 words max) characterisation of yourself and why you think you may be a good builder for Lusternia.
We expect the five room descriptions to be entirely error free. If you cannot manage to get five rooms without errors, then 20, 50 or 100 will be out of your reach.
Please note that only those who are 18 years of age or older may apply to be a Mortal Builder, due to the legalities associated with the NDA.
Writing Tips
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When writing your room descriptions, keep in mind the following:
1.) Try not to describe actions in descriptions, especially actions
that have the person reading the description doing something. It
makes no sense to say "You cower in fear before the bloody
altar." in a description, as it is not reasonable that
someone is going to cower in fear every time they read the
description.
2.) Try not to even refer to the reader in your description. Instead
of saying, "You hear the refreshing sound of running water
nearby," allow the description itself to convey the sensations
to the reader without forcing them. For example, "There is
running water nearby, a refreshing sound to the ears."
3.) Do not include lines like: You see exits to the north, east and
south. These are dynamically generated by Lusternia. You can, of
course, describe what a player can see in those directions,
but the actual line listing the exits shouldn't be included.
Also, do not include descriptions for actual items that
will be in the room.
A useful thread from Lusternia's old forums may be helpful for you, found here:
http://forums.lusternia.com/discussion/3007/building-tips-and-guidelines
While these may feel like harsh demands compared to most MUDs, Lusternia succeeds because we aim for higher standards of quality in building. If you can meet these standards and do the work, you'll be rewarded.
Conclusion
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While building is a lot of work and responsibility, it is also very rewarding to see your ideas grow and take shape in the actual world of Lusternia. It is not for everyone, but for those who have a knack for creativity, it is something fun to do while also earning credits for your pocket.
We look forward to having many applicants interested in helping to make Lusternia all that it can be!
