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Getting Started in Castle Marrach



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OOC NOTE:

This page is no longer maintained and some information may be out-of-date. Check the Skotos website for more recent information.

Advice for New Players

Your first day in the castle, your character awakes in a comfortable guest room, dressed in linen bandages, with few memories. Where are you? How did you get here, and why? And how in the world are you going to get involved in this game? Well, I am only a player and not Skotos staff, but I have helped quite a few Newly Awakened characters, and here are my bits of advice (in nearly-but-not-quite random order):

  • Take your time: First of all, log on for the first time when you have at least an hour to spend in the game. This isn't a game you can play for 10 minutes, and then log off and feel like you've accomplished anything. Give yourself a chance to immerse yourself in the game a bit, to get a feel for it.

  • Read the forums: The forums on Skotos's website can be a great way to get a feel for what Castle Marrach is all about. Have a look at the In-Character Forum, and read any threads that sound interesting to you. This will help you to know who else is involved in things that might interest you, and help you have some idea of what is currently going on in the castle.

  • Be flexible: If you come into this game insisting that your character is the greatest wizard ever seen, or a reincarnated paladin, or anything else completely rigid, you will not have as much fun as if you role-play it more flexibly. Your character awakens with few memories ... maybe he or she feels drawn toward magic, but wait until your character has gotten a foot-hold in the castle before making any firm decisions. You may find that the magic path in the castle is not to your liking, and that the sword path sounds like fun, if you give it a chance.

  • Take advantage of the 'help' and 'tip' files: These commands will help you to better master the other commands in the castle. Type 'tip' repeatedly to see various tips about getting around in the castle, and type 'help' to see a list of help files that are available to you. Even experienced players often make use of the help files. I also highly recommend the Castle Marrach tutorial on the Skotos website.

  • Listen: This is the best advice I can give about the game. It's crucial, and has a couple of levels.

    • Be patient: This is a text game, and players have a wide variety of typing speeds, so if you ask a question and do not get an immediate response, be patient. Someone may be madly typing, and get very frustrated if your character impatiently runs out of the room before they've had a chance to even finish their kind response to you.

    • Be polite: If you walk into a room, and ten people are involved in a complicated conversation, just sit down and listen, rather than trying to ask questions about guilds or make new friends. It's best to try to make new friends when you meet people in twos or threes, or in a group where no active conversation is happening. In a large and active conversation, you might be surprised how much you can learn about the castle -- and therefore about how you might fit in -- by listening quietly. Chances are that a few people will notice you, and welcome you, and you will be on your way. This is especially important if you attend lectures, guild meetings, or sword practices, where insistent questions can be very disruptive. Listen and learn.

  • Explore the castle: The first thing your character should do in the game is find the Tailor or Seamstress to get rid of those linen wrappings and change into some more appropriate clothing. You should also walk around some, examine the rooms, check out the nifty descriptions and learn your way around. This will allow you to get used to the commands for moving around, and maybe give you a chance to meet some people in the corridors. If you do happen upon someone, stop to introduce yourself, rather than running past them. But don't be offended if they run past you without stopping ... they are probably involved in something, or on their way to log off. When you are ready to deal with a group of people, to listen in on conversations, visit the Refectory on the Ground Floor of the castle, where there is almost always a crowd gathered.

  • Talk to an Awakener: There are quite a few folk running around in the game who are especially willing to help new arrivals ... they're called 'Awakeners', members of a guild called 'The Awakened'. The Sunset Room (to the south of the guest room corridor where your character first awakens) contains a noticeboard with a list of all Awakeners. Check out this list, and then type 'who', to see if any of them are logged on. Each Awakener also wears a gold or silver necklace with a castle emblazoned on it, which you can use to recognize them in the game. Feel free to approach these folks to ask them both in-character questions (about the castle, guilds, events, etc.) and out-of-character questions (about the game, the commands, etc.).

  • Talk to a Chronicler: Ask a Chronicler about what exciting events have been happening recently in the castle. This can help you to get your bearings, and probably to better understand the conversations you hear going on around you. (Don't know any Chroniclers? Ask the new people you meet if they know the names of any!)

  • Talk to a Poet: Some of the poets in Castle Marrach write poems about the castle and recent events. If you meet a poet, you might consider respectfully asking him or her to recite a poem about the castle, and listen carefully for what you might learn.

  • Talk to a Rememberer: The members of this guild help players to role-play memory recovery. Building on the computer-generated memory you have (type 'recall' to see your memories) can be a good way to develop your character.

  • Talk to people in general: When you meet people who seem interested in talking to you, whether they are Awakeners or just nice folks who want to help, ask them questions about the things that interest you. For example:
    • What have they learned about the Queen and the castle?
    • What guilds do they belong to? Why? What can they tell you about those guilds?
    • What recent castle events have they been involved in?
    You might even ask if folks want to play Punzel's question game, which is an excellent way to get to know other characters and develop your own character at the same time.

  • Attend lectures, guild meetings, and other events: Most (but not all) guilds have meetings which are open to non-members who are interested in learning more, and there are frequently lectures offered, as well. To learn about upcoming lectures, meetings, classes, and other events, check out the calendar of upcoming events, which is updated frequently. If you do attend a meeting or class, however, be sure to behave respectfully. Be quiet, and only ask questions when you are invited to do so. This goes back to that advice about listening.

  • Attend a sword practice to observe: Dueling practices are held regularly, several times each week, by three different guilds (again, see the calendar of upcoming events for the schedule of sword practices). Most instructors who lead sword practices are willing to let new characters spar as well, but be polite and wait to be invited to participate, rather than immediately demanding that they give you a sword (see also Martel's rules for sword practices). And feel welcome to attend even if you aren't interested in using a sword, just to observe, because a lot of socializing happens at sword practices, as well as dueling. And respectful observers are almost always welcome.


Other cool resources for learning more about Castle Marrach:





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