<pclass="last">You are reading an old version of the Evennia documentation. <ahref="https://www.evennia.com/docs/latest/index.html">The latest version is here</a></p>.
<h1><spanclass="section-number">1. </span>Using commands and building stuff<aclass="headerlink"href="#using-commands-and-building-stuff"title="Permalink to this headline">¶</a></h1>
<p>In this lesson, we will test out what we can do in-game out-of-the-box. Evennia ships with
<aclass="reference internal"href="../../../Components/Default-Commands.html"><spanclass="doc std std-doc">around 90 default commands</span></a>, and while you can override those as you please,
the defaults can be quite useful.</p>
<p>Connect and log into your new game and you will end up in the “Limbo” location. This
is the only room in the game at this point. Let’s explore the commands a little.</p>
<p>The default commands has syntax <aclass="reference internal"href="../../../Coding/Default-Command-Syntax.html"><spanclass="doc std std-doc">similar to MUX</span></a>:</p>
<p>A <em>/switch</em> is a special, optional flag to the command to make it behave differently. It is always put directly after the command name, and begins with a forward slash (<codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">/</span></code>). The <em>arguments</em> are one or more inputs to the commands. It’s common to use an equal sign (<codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">=</span></code>) when assigning something to an object.</p>
<blockquote>
<div><p>Are you used to commands starting with @, like @create? That will work too. Evennia simply ignores the preceeding @.</p>
</div></blockquote>
<sectionid="getting-help">
<h2><spanclass="section-number">1.1. </span>Getting help<aclass="headerlink"href="#getting-help"title="Permalink to this headline">¶</a></h2>
<p>This will show you the description of the current location. <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">l</span></code> is an alias.</p>
<p>When targeting objects in commands, you have two special labels you can use, <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">here</span></code> for the current room or <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">me</span></code>/<codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">self</span></code> to point back to yourself. So</p>
<divclass="highlight-none notranslate"><divclass="highlight"><pre><span></span>look me
</pre></div>
</div>
<p>will give you your own description. <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">look</span><spanclass="pre">here</span></code> is, in this case, the same as plain <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">look</span></code>.</p>
</section>
<sectionid="stepping-down-from-godhood">
<h2><spanclass="section-number">1.3. </span>Stepping Down From Godhood<aclass="headerlink"href="#stepping-down-from-godhood"title="Permalink to this headline">¶</a></h2>
<p>If you just installed Evennia, your very first player account is called user #1, also known as the <em>superuser</em> or <em>god user</em>. This user is very powerful, so powerful that it will override many game restrictions (such as locks). This can be useful, but it also hides some functionality that you might want to test.</p>
<p>To temporarily step down from your superuser position, you can use the <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">quell</span></code> command in-game:</p>
<p>This will make you start using the permission of your current character’s level instead of your superuser level. If you didn’t change any settings, your game Character should have an <em>Developer</em> level permission - high as can be without bypassing locks like the superuser does. This will work fine for the examples on this page. Use</p>
<p>to get superuser status again when you are done.</p>
</section>
<sectionid="creating-an-object">
<h2><spanclass="section-number">1.4. </span>Creating an Object<aclass="headerlink"href="#creating-an-object"title="Permalink to this headline">¶</a></h2>
<p>Basic objects can be anything – swords, flowers, and non-player characters. They are created using the <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">create</span></code> command:</p>
<p>This created a new ‘box’ (of the default object type) in your inventory. Use the command <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">inventory</span></code> (or <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">i</span></code>) to see it. Now, ‘box’ is a rather short name, let’s rename it and tack on a few aliases.</p>
<divclass="highlight-none notranslate"><divclass="highlight"><pre><span></span>name box = very large box;box;very;crate
</pre></div>
</div>
<divclass="admonition warning">
<pclass="admonition-title">Warning</p>
<p>MUD clients and semi-colon:
Some traditional MUD clients use the semi-colon <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">;</span></code> to separate client inputs. If so, the above line will give an error. You need to change your client to use another command-separator or to put it in ‘verbatim’ mode. If you still have trouble, use the Evennia web client instead.</p>
</div>
<p>We now renamed the box to <em>very large box</em> (and this is what we will see when looking at it), but we will also recognize it by any of the other names we give - like <em>crate</em> or simply <em>box</em> as before. We could have given these aliases directly after the name in the <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">create</span></code> command. This is true for all creation commands - you can always tag on a list of <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">;</span></code>-separated aliases to the name of your new object. If you had wanted to not change the name itself, but to only add aliases, you could have used the <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">alias</span></code> command.</p>
<p>We are currently carrying the box. Let’s drop it (there is also a shortcut to create and drop in
one go by using the <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">/drop</span></code> switch, for example <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">create/drop</span><spanclass="pre">box</span></code>).</p>
<p>The description you get is not very exciting. Let’s add some flavor.</p>
<divclass="highlight-none notranslate"><divclass="highlight"><pre><span></span>desc box = This is a large and very heavy box.
</pre></div>
</div>
<p>If you try the <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">get</span></code> command, we will pick up the box. So far so good, but if we really want this to be a large and heavy box, people should <em>not</em> be able to run off with it that easily. To prevent this we need to lock it down. This is done by assigning a <em>Lock</em> to it. Make sure the box was dropped in the room, then try this:</p>
<p>Locks represent a rather <aclass="reference internal"href="../../../Components/Locks.html"><spanclass="doc std std-doc">big topic</span></a>, but for now that will do what we want. This will lock the box so no one can lift it. The exception is superusers, they override all locks and will pick it
up anyway. Make sure you are quelling your superuser powers and try to get the box now:</p>
<divclass="highlight-none notranslate"><divclass="highlight"><pre><span></span>> get box
You can't get that.
</pre></div>
</div>
<p>Think this default error message looks dull? The <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">get</span></code> command looks for an <aclass="reference internal"href="../../../Components/Attributes.html"><spanclass="doc std std-doc">Attribute</span></a> named <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">get_err_msg</span></code> for returning a nicer error messageod (this can be seen from the default <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">get</span></code> command code). You set attributes using the <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">set</span></code> command:</p>
<divclass="highlight-none notranslate"><divclass="highlight"><pre><span></span>set box/get_err_msg = It's way too heavy for you to lift.
</pre></div>
</div>
<p>Try to get it now and you should see a nicer error message echoed back to you. To see what this message string is in the future, you can use ‘examine.’</p>
<p>Examine will return the value of attributes, including color codes. <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">examine</span><spanclass="pre">here/desc</span></code> would return the raw description of your current room (including color codes), so that you can copy-and-paste to set its description to something else.</p>
<p>You create new Commands (or modify existing ones) in Python outside the game. We will get to that later, in the <aclass="reference internal"href="Beginner-Tutorial-Adding-Commands.html"><spanclass="doc std std-doc">Commands tutorial</span></a>.</p>
</section>
<sectionid="get-a-personality">
<h2><spanclass="section-number">1.5. </span>Get a Personality<aclass="headerlink"href="#get-a-personality"title="Permalink to this headline">¶</a></h2>
<p><aclass="reference internal"href="../../../Components/Scripts.html"><spanclass="doc std std-doc">Scripts</span></a> are powerful out-of-character objects useful for many “under the hood” things. One of their optional abilities is to do things on a timer. To try out a first script, let’s put one on ourselves. There is an example script in <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">evennia/contrib/tutorials/bodyfunctions/bodyfunctions.py</span></code> that is called <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">BodyFunctions</span></code>. To add this to us we will use the <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">script</span></code> command:</p>
<p>This string will tell Evennia to dig up the Python code at the place we indicate. It already knows to look in the <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">contrib/</span></code> folder, so we don’t have to give the full path.</p>
<blockquote>
<div><p>Note also how we use <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">.</span></code> instead of <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">/</span></code> (or <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">\</span></code> on Windows). This is a so-called “Python path”. In a Python-path, > you separate the parts of the path with <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">.</span></code> and skip the <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">.py</span></code> file-ending. Importantly, it also allows you to point to Python code <em>inside</em> files, like the <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">BodyFunctions</span></code> class inside <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">bodyfunctions.py</span></code> (we’ll get to classes later). These “Python-paths” are used extensively throughout Evennia.</p>
</div></blockquote>
<p>Wait a while and you will notice yourself starting making random observations …</p>
<p>This will show details about scripts on yourself (also <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">examine</span></code> works). You will see how long it is until it “fires” next. Don’t be alarmed if nothing happens when the countdown reaches zero - this particular script has a randomizer to determine if it will say something or not. So you will not see output every time it fires.</p>
<p>When you are tired of your character’s “insights”, kill the script with</p>
<p>You create your own scripts in Python, outside the game; the path you give to <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">script</span></code> is literally the Python path to your script file. The <aclass="reference internal"href="../../../Components/Scripts.html"><spanclass="doc std std-doc">Scripts</span></a> page explains more details.</p>
</section>
<sectionid="pushing-your-buttons">
<h2><spanclass="section-number">1.6. </span>Pushing Your Buttons<aclass="headerlink"href="#pushing-your-buttons"title="Permalink to this headline">¶</a></h2>
<p>If we get back to the box we made, there is only so much fun you can have with it at this point. It’s just a dumb generic object. If you renamed it to <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">stone</span></code> and changed its description, no one would be the wiser. However, with the combined use of custom <aclass="reference internal"href="../../../Components/Typeclasses.html"><spanclass="doc std std-doc">Typeclasses</span></a>, <aclass="reference internal"href="../../../Components/Scripts.html"><spanclass="doc std std-doc">Scripts</span></a>
and object-based <aclass="reference internal"href="../../../Components/Commands.html"><spanclass="doc std std-doc">Commands</span></a>, you could expand it and other items to be as unique, complex
and interactive as you want.</p>
<p>Let’s take an example. So far we have only created objects that use the default object typeclass named simply <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">Object</span></code>. Let’s create an object that is a little more interesting. Under
<codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">evennia/contrib/tutorials</span></code> there is a module <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">red_button.py</span></code>. It contains the enigmatic <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">RedButton</span></code> class.</p>
<p>The same way we did with the Script earlier, we specify a “Python-path” to the Python code we want Evennia to use for creating the object. There you go - one red button.</p>
<p>The RedButton is an example object intended to show off a few of Evennia’s features. You will find that the <aclass="reference internal"href="../../../Components/Typeclasses.html"><spanclass="doc std std-doc">Typeclass</span></a> and <aclass="reference internal"href="../../../Components/Commands.html"><spanclass="doc std std-doc">Commands</span></a> controlling it are inside <aclass="reference internal"href="../../../api/evennia.contrib.tutorials.red_button.html"><spanclass="doc std std-doc">evennia/contrib/tutorials/red_button</span></a></p>
<p>If you wait for a while (make sure you dropped it!) the button will blink invitingly.</p>
<p>Why don’t you try to push it …?</p>
<p>Surely a big red button is meant to be pushed.</p>
<p>You know you want to.</p>
<divclass="admonition warning">
<pclass="admonition-title">Warning</p>
<p>Don’t press the invitingly blinking red button.</p>
</div>
</section>
<sectionid="making-yourself-a-house">
<h2><spanclass="section-number">1.7. </span>Making Yourself a House<aclass="headerlink"href="#making-yourself-a-house"title="Permalink to this headline">¶</a></h2>
<p>The main command for shaping the game world is <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">dig</span></code>. For example, if you are standing in Limbo, you can dig a route to your new house location like this:</p>
<divclass="highlight-none notranslate"><divclass="highlight"><pre><span></span>dig house = large red door;door;in,to the outside;out
</pre></div>
</div>
<p>This will create a new room named ‘house’. Spaces at the start/end of names and aliases are ignored so you could put more air if you wanted. This call will directly create an exit from your current location named ‘large red door’ and a corresponding exit named ‘to the outside’ in the house room leading back to Limbo. We also define a few aliases to those exits, so people don’t have to write the full thing all the time.</p>
<p>If you wanted to use normal compass directions (north, west, southwest etc), you could do that with <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">dig</span></code> too. But Evennia also has a limited version of <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">dig</span></code> that helps for compass directions (and also up/down and in/out). It’s called <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">tunnel</span></code>:</p>
<p>This will create a new room “cliff” with an exit “southwest” leading there and a path “northeast” leading back from the cliff to your current location.</p>
<p>You can create new exits from where you are, using the <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">open</span></code> command:</p>
<divclass="highlight-none notranslate"><divclass="highlight"><pre><span></span>open north;n = house
</pre></div>
</div>
<p>This opens an exit <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">north</span></code> (with an alias <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">n</span></code>) to the previously created room <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">house</span></code>.</p>
<p>If you have many rooms named <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">house</span></code> you will get a list of matches and have to select which one you want to link to.</p>
<p>Follow the north exit to your ‘house’ or <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">teleport</span></code> to it:</p>
<divclass="highlight-none notranslate"><divclass="highlight"><pre><span></span>teleport house
</pre></div>
</div>
<p>To manually open an exit back to Limbo (if you didn’t do so with the <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">dig</span></code> command):</p>
<divclass="highlight-none notranslate"><divclass="highlight"><pre><span></span>open door = limbo
</pre></div>
</div>
<p>(You can also us the #dbref of limbo, which you can find by using <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">examine</span><spanclass="pre">here</span></code> when in limbo).</p>
</section>
<sectionid="reshuffling-the-world">
<h2><spanclass="section-number">1.8. </span>Reshuffling the World<aclass="headerlink"href="#reshuffling-the-world"title="Permalink to this headline">¶</a></h2>
<p>You can find things using the <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">find</span></code> command. Assuming you are back at <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">Limbo</span></code>, let’s teleport the <em>large box</em> to our house.</p>
<divclass="highlight-none notranslate"><divclass="highlight"><pre><span></span>teleport box = house
very large box is leaving Limbo, heading for house.
<p>Knowing the <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">#dbref</span></code> of the box (#8 in this example), you can grab the box and get it back here without actually yourself going to <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">house</span></code> first:</p>
<divclass="highlight-none notranslate"><divclass="highlight"><pre><span></span>teleport #8 = here
</pre></div>
</div>
<p>As mentioned, <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">here</span></code> is an alias for ‘your current location’. The box should now be back in Limbo with you. We are getting tired of the box. Let’s destroy it.</p>
<p>It will ask you for confirmation. Once you give it, the box will be gone.</p>
<p>You can destroy many objects in one go by giving a comma-separated list of objects (or a range of #dbrefs, if they are not in the same location) to the command.</p>
</section>
<sectionid="adding-a-help-entry">
<h2><spanclass="section-number">1.9. </span>Adding a Help Entry<aclass="headerlink"href="#adding-a-help-entry"title="Permalink to this headline">¶</a></h2>
<p>The Command-help is something you modify in Python code. We’ll get to that when we get to how to add Commands. But you can also add regular help entries, for example to explain something about the history of your game world:</p>
<divclass="highlight-none notranslate"><divclass="highlight"><pre><span></span>sethelp History = At the dawn of time ...
</pre></div>
</div>
<p>You will now find your new <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">History</span></code> entry in the <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">help</span></code> list and read your help-text with <codeclass="docutils literal notranslate"><spanclass="pre">help</span><spanclass="pre">History</span></code>.</p>
</section>
<sectionid="adding-a-world">
<h2><spanclass="section-number">1.10. </span>Adding a World<aclass="headerlink"href="#adding-a-world"title="Permalink to this headline">¶</a></h2>
<p>After this brief introduction to building and using in-game commands you may be ready to see a more fleshed-out example. Evennia comes with a tutorial world for you to explore. We will try that out in the next lesson.</p>
<pclass="last">You are reading an old version of the Evennia documentation. <ahref="https://www.evennia.com/docs/latest/index.html">The latest version is here</a></p>.
