Wheel of Time
No download fee, no monthly fee, no expansion pack fee, no fee for better equipment no annoying ads. Just free

The wheel of time mud
Wheel of Time > a free mud

A FREE MUD?

Yes, the Wheel of Time MUD is completely free, and at every point. You'll never have to compete against people who have bought perks, nor is payment ever needed for anything. We're not a commercial venture, we do it for fun and we do it because we love MUDs, especially good ones.

You'll never be asked to pay in credits for a zmud script here either by other users, it's just not like that. This is a place where we all want to have as much fun as possible. The guy who kills you on his Trolloc on the Monday will more than likely help re-equip you and help you write a script on the Tuesday. There's no cool stuff only useable if you pay money, no credits, no fee for better equipment, spells or skills, no special perks if you pay, no download fee, no monthly fee, no expansion pack fee, no popup ads, no in-game advertising, no nagware. You don't need to spend money here to max any skills. Personalised items and in-game homes are attainable by anyone, and not for money. We're cool like that. We're free. Completely free. Not just free when you start, but always free, regardless of your level, aspirations, whatever. It's free.

... that's pretty good value for money.

What costs does the MUD incur?

The MUD is hosted on a webserver like any website is; and therefore hosting and bandwidth costs money. In the past the MUD used to run on its own dedicated machine which the MUD owned and hosted somewhere, which was raised after a fundraising drive amongst the players and staff. But the thing blew up so we moved it to a hosted server. The Wheel of Time MUD is financed entirely through the voluntary generosity of players and immortals who choose to donate to the game, together with stuff like the MUD cafepress shop (which sells t-shirts and so on) and through an affiliate deal with amazon (players buy their books using this link and the MUD is given a small percentage). Everything is a volunteer effort.

Why is this good?

Well, we're not after your money which, let's face it, is always good =). Beyond that though, it's a feature of many online gaming worlds that players can buy enhancements that give them an advantage over their fellow players. Perks.

... neither pay to play nor pay for perk

For example, commercial MUDs such as Achaea and Lusternia give free access to their worlds but also sell various perks for money. These are known within mudding as "pay for perk". We are neither pay to play nor pay for perk! When you play those, to compete or even keep up with the guy with perks, you'll need to buy perks. For example, in some MUDs you have to spend money to even max your skills! At the Wheel of Time MUD, that culture doesn't exist. We won't charge you for unique, personalised items or homes or to max your skills, it's simply part of MUD service which we consider standard. It's a level playing field. We like it that way, and we'll keep it that way. In fact, we'll even ban your butt if you try and sell gear to other players - it isn't in the spirit of the game as far as we're concerned. Match that, Sony, Blizzard or Iron Realms!

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But arn't free MUDs lousy?

No. Definitely not. Free doesn't mean amateur. It's what commercial guys need you to believe, though :). Free MUDs obviously vary, but something that's been popular for 15 years has got to be doing something very right! What free means is that there are a bunch of guys running the show who actually enjoy their online gaming, who are gamers themselves, and who actually like to give something back to the community for free and who, between them, are in a position to do so. It means professional programmers, professional writers, game designers and talented web professionals, each contributing their loving best to to make the whole better - simply put, a communal venture held together by a bunch of guys who did this... because they felt like it. We were mudding nuts at college so we're giving back.

Big software companies spend millions of dollars and years creating high end graphics you need a new computer to use. Small software companies suck you in with free playtime but with good gear that's only obtainable with money. The Wheel of Time MUD just listens to what you personally have to say. We are not here to get your money, we just want you to have a good time and to get to share it with you.

Other than your own access to the Internet and obviously your own computer, you do not have to pay for anything to play. You can play the game for free using our web client or you can download perfectly acceptible free mud clients or free telnet software.

Are there any plans to make players pay?

Nope... although Zun did once suggest it back in the day, one of his less stellar ideas. Not only was it quickly shot down (most senior immortals here see what they do as a passion, something for the love of it rather than as any money-making exercise), but the terms of our permission to operate from the late Robert Jordan prevent that. Bottom line, we're never going to take your money for playing. It isn't going to happen. Ever. You're safe here.

Nass, 2008

 

PLEASE HELP THE MUD!

Vote WOT on TopMudSites
Vote WOT on MudConnector

WHAT THE CRITICS SAY

The Wheel of Time MUD is, in the words of the online reviews: "A very polished product" (MUD connector), "A Must See" (Wheel of Time.org), "The Internet at its Best" (free launch.com).

SUPPORT YOUR MUD

Please visit the wotmud store!

All profit made from this store, which sells wotmud t-shirts etc, goes to support the server, paying for bandwidth and using a better machine to host the MUD.



Page last updated: April 09 2008.