Mastering

[Maerryji]

There is a frequent question "How can I master certain ability?". There is an obvious answer to all such questions: by using this ability repeatedly. It is up to a player how to organize the mastering process to apply this ability as often as possible. There are some well-known ways, and there are some less well-known, but there's absolutely no ability you cannot perfect without the knowledge of uncommon ways.
Do not ask such questions in this section. It is not allowed to answer them here. It is strongly recommended not to answer them in any other section as well (at least, publicly). Of course you can share your knowledge with your IC mate, or with your OOC friends by private messages and other non-public ways.

There is a number of reasons for this restriction.
1. Suppose we're talking about real newbie who hasn't yet decided if he likes this game. Well, what does he discover once he visits the forum? That there are standards of skill and spell mastery and that to match these standards he must waste hours for an unbelievably senseless and boring process. Even getting experience seems full of sense and challenge compared to it.
Let me state this clearly: for a newbie, having all skills and spells perfect is way too little to match the experienced players. And there are much more interesting things to do, that also improve his chances in PK much more. PK itself is the best one for sure.

2. Suppose we're talking about someone who is close to newbie, but can write the triggers to make his MUD client learn for him. There are stacks of near-unconscious bodies repeatedly uttering some spells, or prayers, or bashing into some immune creature. Not responding to anything but whining at the forum if someone is offended by their ignoring of himself and punishes them. No sense in such whines, they've broken the rules and the punishment wasn't too harsh (of course if someone was killed few times in row by the same person it was too harsh, and one who did so should be punished too).
How to avoid breaking the rules? Just do not master what you do not utterly need. And check your client window at least each 2-5 minutes when you are mastering. To save yourself from enemies, make sure you're in safe place, or do not switch to other businesses at all. This indeed costs much but the reasons for keeping mastering that long were not to produce the armies of zombie characters but to give some advances to the devoted players. The time they've spent converts into the power of their characters (but this power is not a huge benefit in most cases).

3. Suppose we're talking about someone who is ready to devote his time and really wants to have the advantages from perfect skills. Is it important to tell him where the best unaffected mob lives? No, it's not. He can make his skills perfect anywhere. Given the proper basic information on his skills, he may invent his own ways to perfect them, possibly overcoming the existing ones and in any case much more interesting for him.

4. Suppose we're talking about someone who already knows the ways to perfect everything. Sometimes a slight change like the sharpened claws of you-know-who that prevents him from mastering may result in his leaving. Because of the existing standards, and because his abilities to invent his own ways are still somewhere around 1%.

The existing de facto standards of skills' and spells' level are set too high. Following them is either too boring and time-consuming, or dangerous and against the rules. I do not suggest everyone to stop mastering abilities he or she needs. I suggest everyone to stop involving others in mastering abilities they do not need. And possibly reconsider your own needs.