Weapons

In most MUD2 help guides the subject of weapons is seriously under-represented. Weapons can be invaluable whether you are a newbie exploring The Land, you are someone just content to kill mobiles, or whether you are a highlife always looking over your shoulder for your enemies. I wouldn't go so far as to say that weapons are the single most important item that you should carry, I don't believe that is the case, but they are certainly amongst the most important items. Sometimes a weapon can make the difference between survival and death.

Weapons are numerous and scattered throughout the entire land. Weapons generally fall into the following categories, for example:

Swords	the longsword, shortsword, broadsword, Valetant and the two-handed sword
Axes	the big axes, picks, hatchet, falchion and halberd
Knives	the goblin knives, dagger0 and the blade
Staffs	the bamboo staff and the sturdy staff
Tools	the rice flail, hammer, cleaver, adze, pitchfork, shovel, sickle, trowel, hoe and garden fork

There are other weapons that don't fall into these categories such as the arrow, javelin, stars, darts, sceptre, poker, femur, club and croquet mallet. Plus there are other items in The Land that can be used as weapons even though they aren't classified as weapons, such as the bats and brands (unlit, lit and sharpened).

There are various ways of actually using a weapon whilst in a fight. If you were only carrying one weapon you could type:

USE WP (short for weapon)

If you were carrying more than one weapon, for example a dagger0, staff0 and the longsword you could type this:

USE KNIFE if you wanted to use a weapon of the class knife but couldn't remember which weapons you had picked up, or:
USE LS (short for longsword) if it was the longsword you particularly wanted to use, or:
USE BEST WP if you weren't sure which was the best weapon to use.

Rather than wait until you are in a fight you can find out which is the best weapon from a selection of weapons by typing one of the following:

WAVE BEST WP - this will make you wave the best weapon out of the selection you are carrying or:
G (short for get) BEST WP - will ensure you pick up the best weapon if you are in a room with a selection of weapons.

What actually makes a weapon a "best weapon" then? This depends on a number of factors including your level, strength and the qualities of the weapon itself. Certain heavy weapons are no good to low-level players as their strength is still low so they cannot wield heavy weapons. This includes some of the axes. Type WEIGH WP to find out how heavy a weapon is. It may be useful to weigh several weapons so you have something to compare against, but weapons such as knives will be relatively light as they are only small, and weapons like axes will be much heavier and they tend to be bulkier weapons. The weight of a weapon will affect the strength of the player, making it harder for the player to carry other heavy items. So, if you intending to carry a lot of heavy objects around with you, having an axe won't be terribly useful, but something like a knife won't affect your other objects.

The following table gives a very rough guide to how good certain weapons are, and this table isn't all-inclusive, this is just a guide to some of the more commonly found or heard of weapons.

Very good	Longsword, Valetant, broadsword, shortsword, two-handed sword
Good	Dagger0, sickle, javelin
Fair	Staffs, picks, blade, rice flail, sceptre, club, knives, shovel, croquet mallet, sharpened brands
Average	Big axes, falchion, halberd, hatchet, pitchfork, garden fork, lit brands
Poor	Adze, hoe, trowel, tomahawk, unlit brand

These are all relative to each other, and just because the adze is a poor weapon compared to the longsword, it is better than nothing!

If you are not sure if a certain item is a weapon you can ask the game by typing:

IS THE ADZE A WEAPON?
And the reply will be "yes"

IS THE RIBBON A WEAPON?
And the reply will be "no"

If you are in a fight then typing USE WP will be enough to ensure that you safely wield whatever weapon you are carrying (as long as you are only carrying one weapon, try typing that when you are carrying more than one) as long as it is of the class weapon. If for whatever reason you want to use something other than a weapon as a weapon in a fight then you will need to type WIELD or RET (short for retaliate) RIBBON which will result in you wielding the ribbon. Whether this is actually a good idea is another matter though ... When it comes to fighting you need to take into account factors such as dexterity and strength. Every item you carry including weapons affects your dexterity and strength. As you get more experienced you will learn what are good weapons, and which are the better weapons depending on the circumstances, the above table is only a rough guide and will change depending on your level. Ultimately people will have their own personal favourite weapons that they will tend to acquire each time they play.

Weapons also have other uses, breaking down doors for example when the appropriate keys are not available, certain weapons can be used to chop down the yew tree behind the cottage, and there are other clever uses for other weapons waiting to be discovered.

Where can these weapons be found? Generally the better the weapon the harder it is to get hold of, with the exception of the dagger0 which is usually just east of the swamp, but then you have to race with all the other players and some of the mobiles to acquire that one first. Fairly good weapons such as some of the axes, the blade, shovel and croquet mallet are relatively easy to find, with one of the axes always starting in or close by to the Woodsman's Hut, and various weapons to be found in and around the formal gardens. Then there is always the brand, in plentiful supply, easy to find and make half decent weapons too! A bog-standard brand makes a pretty mediocre weapon but if you light it, it becomes a much better weapon (but be careful where you wander to!) and if you sharpen it, you instantly have an even better weapon! Although the weapon you use to sharpen it is probably better than the sharpened brand itself, you may be feeling kind and creating weapons for your friends or you may have a specific purpose in mind ...

Getting hold of the better weapons of the game usually requires going through some sort of adventure including solving puzzles and killing mobiles, which in itself needs a weapon. Generally the better the weapon the harder it is to acquire it with perhaps the exception of the longsword and the two-handed sword which are more tricky rather than dangerous to get.

The vast majority of weapons will become damaged with use; you will need to keep an eye on their state of repair to avoid loosing them all together. Typing L (short for look) WP will tell you in what condition they are. If it tells you that your weapon is "close to disintegration" now is the time to do something about it before your weapon falls apart in your hands! If you have magic doing a simple spell such as RP (short for repair) DAGGER0 (if that was the weapon you were carrying) will repair all damage to it. If you are a non-magic user you could either ask a friendly magic-user to repair your weapon for you, or use two means of repairing weapons available in the game. Both facilities can be found quite close to the Great Gate.

Weapons are one of the easiest forms of kit to acquire; they are abundant in the game. It may be hard to find majestic sounding weapons such as the broadsword, but don't over-look the humble croquet mallet, it is a better weapon than you think! If nothing else, it is always useful to carry around with you a weapon, even if it is only a brand, you can always pick up a more useful weapon later on in your travels.