Added an error_check_python_modules function to evennia.py. This basically imports a host of critical modules and quits with tracebacks if there are problems. This catches pure python-syntax errors (i.e. cases where the source-file itself is malformed), something which is hard to properly handle in the running server (where there's also an issue as to how to best report it). Best they fail out already at an early stage.

game/evennia.py

@@ -355,6 +355,10 @@ def handle_args(options, mode, service):
     errmsg = _("The %s does not seem to be running.")
 
     if mode == 'start':
+        
+        # launch the error checker. Best to catch the errors already here. 
+        error_check_python_modules()
+
         # starting one or many services
         if service == 'server':
             if inter:
@@ -397,6 +401,42 @@ def handle_args(options, mode, service):
             kill(SERVER_PIDFILE, SIG, _("Server stopped."), errmsg % 'Server', restart=False)
     return None
 
+def error_check_python_modules():
+    """
+    Import settings modules in settings. This will raise exceptions on
+    pure python-syntax issues which are hard to catch gracefully
+    with exceptions in the engine (since they are formatting errors in
+    the python source files themselves). Best they fail already here
+    before we get any further.
+    """    
+    def imp(path, split=True):
+        mod, fromlist = path, "None"
+        if split:
+            mod, fromlist = path.rsplit('.', 1)
+        __import__(mod, fromlist=[fromlist])
+
+    # core modules
+    imp(settings.COMMAND_PARSER)
+    imp(settings.SEARCH_AT_RESULT)
+    imp(settings.SEARCH_AT_MULTIMATCH_INPUT)
+    imp(settings.CONNECTION_SCREEN_MODULE, split=False)
+    imp(settings.AT_INITIAL_SETUP_HOOK_MODULE, split=False)
+    for path in settings.LOCK_FUNC_MODULES:
+        imp(path, split=False)
+    # cmdsets
+    from src.commands import cmdsethandler
+    cmdsethandler.import_cmdset(settings.CMDSET_UNLOGGEDIN, None)
+    cmdsethandler.import_cmdset(settings.CMDSET_DEFAULT, None)
+    cmdsethandler.import_cmdset(settings.CMDSET_OOC, None)
+    # typeclasses
+    imp(settings.BASE_PLAYER_TYPECLASS)
+    imp(settings.BASE_OBJECT_TYPECLASS)
+    imp(settings.BASE_CHARACTER_TYPECLASS)
+    imp(settings.BASE_ROOM_TYPECLASS)
+    imp(settings.BASE_EXIT_TYPECLASS)
+    imp(settings.BASE_SCRIPT_TYPECLASS)
+
+
 def main():
     """
     This handles command line input.
@@ -438,6 +478,7 @@ def main():
         Popen(cmdstr)
 
 if __name__ == '__main__':
+
     from src.utils.utils import check_evennia_dependencies
     if check_evennia_dependencies():
         main()

game/gamesrc/commands/basecmdset.py

@@ -24,6 +24,7 @@ from game.gamesrc.commands.basecommand import Command
 
 from contrib import menusystem, lineeditor
 #from contrib import misc_commands
+#from contrib import character_creation
 
 class DefaultCmdSet(cmdset_default.DefaultCmdSet):
     """