Website: Brain Toys
Telnet address: 66.51.215.229
Sysop: Skull
Pvp
Free and Pay
A nicely tucked away BBS in the San Fernando Valley area of Los Angeles. This board has gone through a lot of changes in recent years, having been established way back in 1994. It is now exclusively telnet.
First stop is the website. Spare and lean, the one catch is to see the rules and settings for the game, you need to click on the link just under the main page logo. You can look to this site for your Megamud paths, which is a very thoughtful feature. They currently have 2 classes - one free, one pay. The free Basic class has 5 hours a day of access. Upgrade to Royalty, and you not only get Sys Map, you get full 24/7 System Access. Royalty class is $5/monthly with a Yearly class at $45. Demo period appears to be 20 days, though this information is not indicated anywhere. The board does accept Paypal along with snail-mailed payments, though the information is not on the website, but buried in the Information pages on the board. Pvp is set for 10 levels with a 20% Hitpoint hang penalty, no dupes allowed, sharing of accounts, or multiple connections from the same IP.
As with all my previous visits, the BBS was quiet, and made up of younger players (most under 25). Language was open judging by logon/logoff messages as well as character names and gang names. Top 10 ranged from 113 million down to just over 19 million in Mid-February 2002. The game reset in December 2001 after a prior reset in January 2001. Players are encouraged to keep items in circulation, and are directed to leave extras in town square for others. The BBS features a number of games, including Tradewars.
The connection is SDSL, and is very typical of DSL connections - a touch laggy, but absolutely very playable. The server configuration is also on the website, and is certainly more than adequate. Judging from the notes posted on the website, the sysop is also actively maintaining his board, upgrading it frequently.
I always leave this BBS with mixed feelings. The information on the website and board don't always agree. The frequency of the resets can also be a downside. On the plus side, the game is relatively fresh. This board is a clear alternative to the hot-and-heavy Pvp action on Realmud (and others), especially with 5 hours a day for free. This is still a sweet board, and does deserve a visit.
October 2001, Updated February 2002.
