In-Game Mapping

I know this would be a pain to code, but in the interest of Newbie-friendliness, hear me out.

Could we implement a means of In-Game mapping? There are tons of ASCII maps floating around, so I know most, if not all areas can be represented. Some areas of course would be unmapable, like the Shadow Grove.

Essentially, each character would carry a map of the world with them, and as they moved through an area they would append to the map. AND/OR have a series of maps that the character carries around. These would be different than the purchasable maps because they would only be completed as the area is explored. typing "map Rheydin" would bring up an ASCII map of Rheydin, only revealing the rooms the character has visited.

A couple of optional variations:

• Make it an adventurer-only skill/ability (and probably Herald too)

• Make purchasable maps more expensive to encourage use of exploration

• Give a small experience bonus for completely exploring an area (up to a certain rank?).

• Show the percent of the area explored (visited VNUMs / total VNUMs)

Not only would it make exploring more fun for new players, but it would also help us retain players new to MUDs in general by helping them visualize their surroundings.

Nevermind.

you can get this with addons for almost any mud client.

But take note, it is quicker to play from memory than it ever will be to refer to a map. That and if the mapper doesnt cover overlapping paths very well it wont work worth a spit for FL, since many areas overlap themselves.

In addition, a player has spent a large portion of the last month or so mapping out a huge number of areas. Check the library, and print the tomes, and BAM, you'll have maps.