MUD Server Status Protocol (MSSP)

Test your MUD's MSSP implementation and learn how to integrate it

What is MSSP?

The MUD Server Status Protocol (MSSP) is a standardized way for MUDs to provide detailed information about themselves to crawlers and directories. It addresses the common issue of outdated MUD listings by providing a transparent protocol for gathering accurate, real-time information.

MSSP allows MUDs to report dynamic information like current player count and uptime, as well as static information about the game's features, making it easier for players to discover and learn about your MUD.

Benefits of MSSP
  • Automatic updates of your MUD's information in directories
  • Real-time player counts and uptime statistics
  • Simplified submission process - only need hostname and port
  • Better discoverability for your MUD
MSSP Variables Reference
Complete list of official MSSP variables your MUD can report

Required Variables

NAME
Required

Name of the MUD.

PLAYERS
Required

Current number of logged in players.

UPTIME
Required

Unix time value of the startup time of the MUD.

Generic Variables

CHARSET

ASCII, BIG5, CP437, CP949, CP1251, EUC-KR, GB18030, ISO-8859-1, ISO-8859-2, KOI8-R, UTF-8. Name of the charset in use. You can report multiple charsets using the array format, the preferred / default charset last.

CODEBASE

Name of the codebase, eg Merc 2.1. You can report multiple codebases using the array format, make sure to report the current codebase last.

CONTACT

Email address for contacting the MUD.

CRAWL DELAY

Preferred minimum number of hours between crawls. Send -1 to use the crawler's default. Recommended values are -1, 1, 5, 11, and 23.

CREATED

Year the MUD was created.

DISCORD

URL to a Discord server, this should include the https:// prefix.

HOSTNAME

Current or new hostname.

ICON

URL to a square image in bmp, png, jpg, or gif format. The icon should be equal or larger than 64x64 pixels, with a filesize no larger than 256KB.

IP

Current or new IP address.

IPV6

Current or new IPv6 address.

LANGUAGE

English name of the language used, eg German or English

LOCATION

English short name of the country where the server is located, using ISO 3166.

MINIMUM AGE

Current minimum age requirement, omit if not applicable.

PORT

Current or new port number. Can be used multiple times, most important port last.

REFERRAL

A list of other MSSP enabled MUDs for the crawler to check using the host port format and array notation. Make sure to separate the host and port with a space rather than : because IPv6 addresses contain colons.

SSL

The port number for a SSL (Secure Socket Layer) encrypted connection.

WEBSITE

URL to MUD website, this should include the http:// or https:// prefix.

Categorization

FAMILY

AberMUD, CoffeeMUD, DikuMUD, Evennia, LPMud, MajorMUD, MOO, Mordor, SocketMud, TinyMUD, TinyMUCK, TinyMUSH, Custom.

GENRE

Adult, Fantasy, Historical, Horror, Modern, Mystery, None, Romance, Science Fiction, Spiritual

GAMEPLAY

Adventure, Educational, Hack and Slash, None, Player versus Player, Player versus Environment, Questing, Roleplaying, Simulation, Social, Strategy

STATUS

Alpha, Closed Beta, Open Beta, Live

GAMESYSTEM

D&D, d20 System, World of Darkness, Etc. Use Real Time, Tick Based, Turn Based, or Custom if using a custom gamesystems. Use None if not available.

INTERMUD

AberChat, I3, IMC2, MudNet, Etc. Can be used multiple times if you support several protocols, most important protocol last.

SUBGENRE

Alternate History, Anime, Cyberpunk, Detective, Discworld, Dragonlance, Christian Fiction, Classical Fantasy, Crime, Dark Fantasy, Epic Fantasy, Erotic, Exploration, Forgotten Realms, Frankenstein, Gothic, High Fantasy, Magical Realism, Medieval Fantasy, Multiverse, Paranormal, Post-Apocalyptic, Military Science Fiction, Mythology, Pulp, Star Wars, Steampunk, Suspense, Time Travel, Weird Fiction, World War II, Urban Fantasy, Etc.

World Statistics

AREAS

Current number of areas.

HELPFILES

Current number of help files.

MOBILES

Current number of unique mobiles.

OBJECTS

Current number of unique objects.

ROOMS

Current number of unique rooms, use 0 if roomless.

CLASSES

Number of player classes, use 0 if classless.

LEVELS

Number of player levels, use 0 if level-less.

RACES

Number of player races, use 0 if raceless.

SKILLS

Number of player skills, use 0 if skill-less.

Protocol Support

ANSI

Supports ANSI colors ? 1 or 0

UTF-8

Supports UTF-8 ? 1 or 0

VT100

Supports VT100 interface ? 1 or 0

XTERM 256 COLORS

Supports xterm 256 colors ? 1 or 0

XTERM TRUE COLORS

Supports xterm 24 bit colors ? 1 or 0

Commercial & Hiring

PAY TO PLAY

Pay to play ? 1 or 0

PAY FOR PERKS

Pay for perks ? 1 or 0

HIRING BUILDERS

Game is hiring builders ? 1 or 0

HIRING CODERS

Game is hiring coders ? 1 or 0