Helping Your Fellow Man
Or in this case, your fellow mudder.
As with many other multiplayer RPG-type games, there are certain guidelines that must be followed when you are part of a group to keep the group functioning as a well-oiled machine.
First, determine the goal of the group.
On a MUD, there is usually two possible goals of a group--XP grind or questing. There is actually a third type of group that you will rarely encounter known as the explorers. These unique few are eventual quest leaders, spending their time working through the riddles and puzzles of a quest utilizing the painful trial and error method.
XP groups sole purpose is to maximize the amount of xp per hour attained. The leader is usually the tank and will expect a certain level of healing from other group members, unless the person behind the screen is a multiplay fanatic with triggers up the wazoo.
In this type of group, it is essential for you to maximize your class abilities.
If you're a healer, your main priority is healing. If you're a melee class, your main priority is damage dealing. If you're a support class, your main priority is leeching. Know your role. Don't spam your attacks. And throw in a joke here and there to show that you care.
I can not stress enough the importance of not spamming your attacks. Even I fall prey to this from time to time. It's just so easy to start a fight and hit the enter key 10 times to repeat the same action. Rinse and repeat. But spamming is a folly not to be taken lightly. If the tank dies and the mob switches, you are at the mercy of your group's healing abilities. Fleeing also becomes difficult since your commands are already in the buffer queue and will need to finish before your flee command activates. You may also miss out on a rare auction item or a generous mudder may be conducting a trivia contest. There is just too many benefits to miss out from attack spam.
The second group type is questing. A group usually numbers in the double digits for the difficult game-ending quests. Quest grouping is not for the faint of heart. Text will be scrolling up the window at a fast rate. Not only will you need to do everything from the xp grind group; but, you will also need to decipher the group chat as it past. Past the wise-cracking and casual insults, there may be important instructions given out by the quest leader. These instructions are vital and can determine if a quest succeeds or fails.
Also, determine who gets what in a quest group. Just like other MMORPGs, there are ninjas on MUD. Because there is no loot system, it is best to decide who gets to loot what gear before the quest even begins. Saves the hassle of dealing with the drama fallout.