Newbie Guide

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Welcome to the Achaean newbie guide. Upon this page you will discover a comprehensive introduction to Achaea and its basics. While not every topic is explored in excruciating detail, we will frequently point you to other sources of information if you wish to learn more beyond the basics we explain here. If you are new to the lands and/or MUDs in general, read on!

What is a MUD?

The acronym MUD (or MUCK, MUSH, MMOG, etc) is most often expanded to the phrase "Multi-User Dungeon". In a MUD, a player interacts with other players alongside non-player characters - NPCs as they are called elsewhere, though we prefer the term denizen. That's nothing new on its own, but in a MUD, there are no graphics. Everything is represented by text (often coloured). But how can you play a computer game without graphics?

One oft-cited example is the comparison between reading a book versus watching a movie. Sure, there are no pretty pictures, but you might just find that the world woven with words is more vivid, more complex, and more immersive, and more compelling than any fancy CGI. It is much the same with MUDs. We don't need to worry about graphics or high-tech hardware, so we can focus on quality gameplay and a vast, immersive world.

First Impressions

Once you create a character and logged onto Achaea, you will find yourself in a world unlike any other. Achaea takes place in a fantasy environment that combines elements of classical Greece and Rome, medieval Europe, India, and ancient Persia with the elements of a wide variety of player imaginations.

It is important to note that as this world is primarily medieval/mythological, you won't find any modern technologies such as computers or television. You will, however, find a host of magical and supernatural tools and abilities to utilise, often in the form of the skills associated with your class or unique objects called artefacts.

Not all players seek to achieve the same things. Two popular ways of gaining experience are through hunting and questing. With enough experience, you can ascend to the level of Greater Dragon, where you gain the ability to assume the form of a powerful dragon.

Some quests of the lands - many which contain intricate plots and detailed storylines - will earn honourable and permanent recognition for your efforts. You may also choose to climb the political ladder and become a feared dictator or benevolent ruler of a city-state or House.

There is any number of other paths you might take - master bard, Champion or Assassin, trend-setting - and it is up to you to follow that path. Though the actions of others may influence your character, only your decisions will set your true path.

Connecting to Achaea

There are many clients that connect to Achaea. They include browser-based, downloadable, and mobile app versions. The best options to play Achaea include:

The Nexus Client
The official client of Achaea, Nexus runs in a web browser (like Google Chrome) and will work on all internet-ready devices operating systems, including Windows, Macs, and Linux. Mobile users, however, may find it operates with limited functionality. Please read HELP NEXUS for more information.
The Mudlet Client
This is a third-party downloadable client for PCs. You can find this client on the MUDLET HOME PAGE. Once you download it, have it connect to achaea.com and either port 23 or 2003. Both ports work.
The Mobile Client
This client works for Android devices. You can DOWNLOAD ANDROID or read HELP ANDROID to get started.
VIP Mud
If you're visually-impaired and use a screenreader, then this free MUD client is fully-accessible including scripting capabilities. You can visit the VIP Mud website for more information.
Other Clients
You can visit the Achaea website to learn about other third-party clients which could either be free or require purchase.

Character Creation via the Nexus Client

Character creation in Achaea is easy. Your first step is to click the PLAY NOW button on the Achaea home page. While you can login with an existing character, the steps for creating a new character are:

Selecting a Race

There are a dozen from which to choose starting out. Clicking on any name on the intro screen gives a brief overview and lists any racial bonuses.

The races available to newbies starting out include Atavian, Dwarf, Grook, Horkval, Human, Mhun, Rajamala, Satyr, Siren, Troll, Tsol'aa, and Xoran.

Selecting a Class

A distinguishes you from others, offering a set of three which allow you to take on any number of identities, including a brave knight, a magical elementalist, or a cunning thief.

The 17 classes are available to adventurers are Alchemist, Apostate, Bard, Blademaster, Druid, Infernal, Jester, Magi, Monk, Occultist, Paladin, Priest, Runewarden, Sentinel, Serpent, Shaman, and Sylvan.

Selecting a City

Click on the name for a one-sentence summary. NOTE: Your choices may be limited based on the class you picked in the previous step. Forest-based classes may only reside with other nature preservationists in Eleusis, and devotion-users can only join other zealous beacons of righteousness in Targossas

Character Information

This section is where you choose information specific to your character including:

Name
A good name feels fantasy, but isn't from a book or movie. If your name is overly silly, offensive, or sensitive for some other reason, then after your adventures begin you might receive a notice directing you to read HELP NAMES, which offers more information and instructions for changing your name.
Gender
You may choose to be male or female. The exceptions to this are that all satyrs are male and all sirens are female.
Password
Never share your password with anyone. Your password should be difficult for others to guess but something you will remember. You can read HELP PASSWORD for more information.
Email Address
Registering your character helps give Achaea an idea of the demographics of the player base, and gives players ways to keep their account safe. HELP REGISTRATION explains more about these benefits.

After you complete these sections, click Finish and your first adventure will automatically begin.

Achaea Policies

Before diving in and starting your first adventure, it's worth taking a moment to read the help file (or scroll, as they are often called) HELP POLICY SUMMARY. This is a short summary of our Achaean Policies. You can find a full list in the scroll titled HELP 15.

Adventurers who break the rules may be subject to loss of rolepoints or some other form of divine punishment up to and including permanent shrubbing. Ignorance of these rules is no excuse for breaking them.

The references are provided by the [administrators] for your own benefit. The vast majority of Achaean adventurers have no difficulty abiding by these policies.

Initial Quests and Registration

Escape from Miba

After choosing a name and race, you will begin your first adventure called Escape from Miba, an introductory tour of Achaea's basic mechanics. You find yourself in a dark, dank cell which you share with an old man. He explains you've been captured by pygmies and offers you a way to escape. You can use the SPEEDUP command up to nine times to increase the pace of your adventure.

At this point you may notice some words are in all caps or underlined. For example:

  • You can either click the answer, or type SAY YES / SAY NO to select one of the choices.

Words in caps are often an indication that this may be a command you can type. Romeo and Juliet often employ the same technique.

Before you know it, you will have learned how to check your inventory, unlock doors, and fight denizens, like the pygmy guard. Tips will help you learn about selecting a target and using newbie-friendly attacks known as brawling, an ability in the Survival skill which works for anyone regardless of class or race.

This initial adventure is short but packed with opportunities to use basic commands to help get you used to navigating the realm. Escaping the pygmies teaches you how to:

  • look at your surroundings and see items there,
  • find directions to exit a room,
  • drink health elixir from a vial to recover health,
  • follow another person to form a hunting group,
  • put things in your pack,
  • receive and activate a boar tattoo,
  • give things to another person,
  • spend lessons to increase your skills,
  • see your current skills and abilities,
  • and learn the basic fighting skills for your class.

As you can see, you will have a lot of things to learn, but you can progress through the adventure as quickly or as slowly as is comfortable for you.

The Cultists' Conspiracy

After you escape the dungeon, you will find yourself at "Lakeside highway", just outside the newbie land of Minia. The next thing you'll want to do is look at your tasks, which assist you in discovering the world around you. These tasks will lead you to confront Beku, a meeting which does not end well. You'll have better luck once you reach Level 10.

Hunting and questing in the newbie areas are the best way to gain levels of experience. While you can do the tasks and follow The Cultists' Conspiracy quest line at your own pace, it is best to get your tasks and quests done sooner than later. Once you reach Level 21, ogres will prevent you from entering the newbie lands.

If you get stuck, then you can always use the PORTALS command to return to the Ring of Portals. The scroll titled HELP WHATNOW and the Newbie Quickstart Guide both contain vast number of tips and pointers as well. You might also try and TELL ROMEO <message> or TELL JULIET <message> to speak with them privately, or use NEWBIE <message> to speak on the public Newbie channel.

After you defeat the cultists of Great Rock, one of your helpful companions will congratulate you over the city channel of your city. If you have completed the required tasks up to this point, defeating the cultists will unlock your city tasks.

Registration

It is highly recommended that you Register your character. This is in addition to the email address you gave when creating your character for the first time.

Registration helps you keep your account safe, manage multiple characters on the same account, or reset your password. While registered characters may still be purged, they are not purged nearly as quickly as otherwise.

Registration will ask for your:

  • real name
  • e-mail address
  • date of birth
  • country of residence

In addition to that, we ask you how you heard about Achaea. This tells us where to keep advertising so we can get more awesome players like you.

Basic Commands

The following sections explain basic information on the mechanics of Achaea. The commands are your key to accomplishing everything from killing a rat (KILL RAT) in a city to completing a complicated series of quest resulting in a special line being added to your honours.

The SHOW Command

The most basic of all commands is SHOW. Using this command, you can see things about your character that fall into one of three categories:

  • Things available elsewhere in the same form, like your bank accounts, honours, or rift
  • Changed or combined versions of some things available elsewhere, like a list of orgs, gold, or your stats
  • Information you won't find anywhere else, such as the amount of lessons left in a skill

Communication

Communicating with other adventurers is one of the most important aspects of Achaea. As such, you have many options for communicating and forming communities within the lands. Most of the commands are self-explanatory and include:

  • The SAY command allows you to say something to others in your current location. Verbs like SING, WHINE, MUTTER, SNARL, and SCREAM work in place of SAY, allowing you to enhance your words.
  • Use the TELL command to communicate with others who are not in the same room with you. Using the CONFIG NAMETELLS ON command allows you to send tells using someone's name without TELL at the start. The TELLS command shows the last 50 tells you received, regardless of when you received them.
  • You can YELL something to everyone in your immediate area.
  • When you SHOUT, your voice carries across the lands. Shouting requires use of a Ram's Horn Except for some powerful adventurers with the ability to hear you, only the Divine know who is shouting. Spamming, insulting, and gloating are frowned upon via this method of communication.
  • The NEWBIE channel exists for you to ask questions and request basic assistance during your time as a newbie. Due to its nature, some topics might be considered insane by other adventurers. It is important to note that the newbie channel is not available for idle chatting.
  • Messages are another form of communication between players. Use MSG as a standalone command to see all the available ways to use this feature.
  • The news allows adventures to communicate with each other in non-real-time by writing posts available to be read at your leisure. You can read the news from anywhere, even while sleeping, but must be awake and in the news system to write a new post.

The rules for using language in Achaea are simple. Do not inflict overly obscene language on people who you do not _know_ are willing to hear it, and do not use discriminatory language (racist, homophobic, sexist, etc) AT ALL, in any circumstance. HELP LANGUAGE RULES explains more.

Getting Around

Basic Movement

You have several options for moving around in Achaea. The most basic is to use the exits listed when you type LOOK or QL. The directions are at the end of the room description. You can GLANCE <direction> or GL <direction> to see what lies beyond an exit. The possible exits are N/NORTH, NE/NORTHEAST, E/EAST, SE/SOUTHEAST, S/SOUTH, SW/SOUTHWEST, W/WEST, NW/NORTHWEST, U/UP, D/DOWN, IN, and OUT.

Landmarks

If you are within 100 steps from a one of the places in your list of landmarks then you can WALK TO <landmark> directly. Landmarks are especially useful if you are lost and unsure of where to go next.

Doors

Sometimes you may encounter doors which may be open, closed, or locked. The commands for doors include:

  • OPEN - To open an unlocked door. OPEN DOOR NORTH (etc).
  • CLOSE - CLOSE DOOR DOWN (etc). Doors may lock upon closing in some cases.
  • LOCK - Have the proper key, then LOCK DOOR <direction>.
  • UNLOCK - Have the proper key, then UNLOCK DOOR <direction>.

For example, to go through a locked door to the north for which you have a key you would UNLOCK DOOR NORTH and OPEN DOOR NORTH before you could go NORTH into the room to the north.

Flying

Flying is possible if you are a member of the atavian race, have some type of flying mount or pet, or have some other special item or ability which gives you that power. FLY takes you into the skies, and LAND puts you back on the ground. If you are flying over a garden or forest environment, then you can LAND TREES to land in the treetops. It is possible to DIVE to the ground, which causes plummet head first to the surface of the ground with a sickening crunch.

Maps

There are two types of maps in Achaea, layout and illustrated. You can use the MAP command in the game at any time to see what lies around you, and MAP RADIUS 5 to expand it to its largest portion. The scroll titled HELP MAPS explains more.

Item Manipulation

There are many commands for interacting with items in Achaea, some of which are required to make an escape from the pygmies in your very first adventure. These commands work for both items you can hold in your inventory or wield in your hands, like a vial or a sword, and permanent fixtures, such as a fountain or a locked chest, which are too heavy to pick up.

The item manipulation commands include:

  • GET - Gets something from the ground or a container.
  • DROP - Drops an item. DROP 50 ASH vs. DROP ASH.
  • GIVE - Give an item to another being, like GIVE 5 CHOCOLATE TO DAVID. For gold, always use the amount: GIVE 1000 GOLD TO JANE.
  • PUT - Put an item in something. PUT GOLD IN PACK or PUT 5 JOURNAL IN PACK.
  • EX, EXAMINE - See what a creature looks like, or how tough it is.
  • P, PROBE - Information about something and what's inside it.
  • BREAK - Destroys certain fragile items.
  • KNOCK - Indicates your presence on one side of a door.
  • LIGHT - Firecrackers, Pipes, and LOTS of other things!
  • SMELL, TASTE - Food, drinks, elixirs, and sometimes other things.
  • READ - Letters, books, signs, posters, plaques, inscriptions, etc.
  • WEAR - Wear an item that you hold.
  • REMOVE - Remove an item that you are wearing.
  • WIELD - Wield an item. WIELD LEFT or WIELD RIGHT for handedness.
  • UNWIELD - Cease wielding an item.
  • POINT - POINT <thing you are holding> AT <who or what>.

Six basic commands which could be useful almost anywhere depending on the object are: PULL, PUSH, RING, SHAKE, TURN, and TOUCH.

Adventurers who wear weapon holders or a backstrap to hold their shield, can use the following commands:

  • SHEATHE- Sheathe a weapon.
  • DRAW - Draw a weapon from its respective holder.
  • DRAW STRONG - Draw a weapon from its respective holder with a flashy slash.
  • DRAW SALUTE - Draw a weapon from its respective holder in a salute.
  • LASH - Lash a shield to a backstrap.

It is possible to THROW a wielded object. HELP THROWING explains more about this method for interacting with items.

Examining Yourself and Others

There are a few commands dedicated to learning more about yourself. These commands include:

  • SCORE/SC - This is the first way to get information about your character. Based on the status of your character, it will show you a plethora of facts. HELP SCORE explains them in greater detail.
  • QSC - This command shows a quick score which only displays information relative to the status of your well-being.
  • HONOURS <person> - This shows information about another adventure or a Divine. HELP HONOURS suggests other ways to use this command.
  • LOOK <person> - LOOK <person> to see their physical description.
  • DEFENCES or DEF - The defences command brings up a list of beneficial things currently affecting you. DEFENCES BRIEF shows a less verbose list.
  • DIAG ME - This ability allows you to diagnose your ailments.

The WHO Lists

There is a plethora of commands which allow you to see who is in the realm with you at any time. The WHO command shows everyone on the same plane and visible to you. Other ways to use the command include, but are not limited to:

  • WHO - Shows everyone on the same plane and visible to you. If you have ANSI on then:
Guides will show in yellow,
Celani names are light blue,
Admins show up as bold white, and
Gods' names show up in green.
  • BW/QW - An abbreviated version of the WHO list
  • QWC - An abbreviated version of the WHO list colour coded by city affiliation.
  • QW <match> - Shows only names that match, for example QW TEC would show Tecton and Telendrieth but not Titonus or Trey.
  • QW <city> - Shows members of a city. Using ROGUE will show cityless adventures.
  • WHO HERE - Lists those in your current location
  • NWHO - Shows all the newbies below level 30 in the realm right now
  • CWHO - A who list showing members of your city, or CW f
  • CLASSWHO - Shows members of your class
  • HWHO - A who list showing members of your house
  • RWHO - Shows members of your race
  • CRAFTERWHO - Shows those with cooking, jewellery, tailoring, and heraldry trade skills
  • PWHO - Lists names visible to you of those in your party channel
  • RPWHO - Names of other adventurers looking for roleplay opportunities

These lists only show adventurers who are online and visible. Some adventurers, although present in the realm, may be hidden from the lists for any number of reasons. HELP WHO explains more about the various who lists and commands for using them.

Shortcuts

Sometimes you want to get information or accomplish something in the shortest amount of time. These shortcuts might help.

  • ! - Repeats the last command you sent
  • ' or " - Alternative for SAY
  • COLOURS - See all possible colours for CONFIG COLOUR, when controlling how different things appear to you.
  • RM - Read the next message after the most recent one that you read
  • RN - Reads the next news post after the most recent one that you read
  • X - Shows obvious exits leading from your current location

Newbie Areas

New adventurers have exclusive access to three areas reserved for newbie access only: Minia, Lodi, and Mount Gheladan. After an adventurer reaches Level 21 these lands become off limits, so while in the newbie areas you are never crowded out by more experienced hunters or questing explorers.

One of the easiest way to reach the newbie lands is via PORTALS. Once there, you can READ SIGN to see where the portals lead or use Landmarks and WALK TO <area>. Additionally each of the three areas has its own special dragon that will transport you between the newbie lands.

IN MINIA: Find the dragon Auma (NE from the archway to Minia) and say, "Take me to Lodi please." or "Take me to Gheladan please."
IN LODI: Find the dragon Poraeus at the entrance to Lodi and say, "Take me to Minia please." or "Take me to Gheladan please."
IN GHELADAN: Find the dragon Lasuna at the entrance to Gheladan and say, "Take me to Minia please." or "Take me to Lodi please."

Minia

The land of Minia lies just off the Prelatorian Highway near the Aureliana forest. There are plenty of quests to keep you busy, like curing a sick kobold or returning textbooks to the Pixie Schoolteacher, and things to kill such as hellcats or Beku, the pygmy chieftain.

Vellis, the butterfly collector, resides at the Ivy-covered archway to Minia, where he hands out nets to anyone, regardless of age or level, who wishes to catch butterflies. If you linger too long, then you may incur the wrath of this otherwise kindly old man.

You can READ SIGN at the ivy-covered archway to Minia for directions to the four primary areas within Minia. These areas include:

  • The Pixie Village
Along the northern reaches of Minia, the inhabitants of the Pixie Village are ruled by the Pixie Queen, a diminutive yet imposing woman whose sworn enemy is the Imp Lord.
  • The Ember Tower
At the southeastern edge of Minia, the Ember Tower teems with mischievous imps who do the bidding of the Imp Lord, a gnarled who carries a jewelled spear and whose only goal is to make the Pixie Queen suffer. Ord, the hellcat trainer controls fierce felines who guard the tower.
  • Miba, the pygmy village
A group of pygmies led by the nefarious Beku, the pygmy chieftain, maintain a collection of kobold slaves, putting them at perpetual odds with the dog-faced creatures of the nearby dungeons.
  • The Libra dungeon
The Libra dungeon houses a race of dog-like beings called kobolds, who are fairly bitter about the enslavement (and consumption) of their loved ones by the pygmies. The Libra dungeon may be found beneath the trail southeast from Vellis.

Lodi

The valley of Lodi lies within the Putoran Hills, west off of the Raphaelan Highway. You can earn gold and experience by helping various denizens, such as killing wildcats for Constable Beck or exterminating bats from the mines.

  • The village of Gorshire
Gorshire is a quaint village situated in the southern portion of the Putoran Hills within Lodi. It is home to a community of gnomes, the sworn enemies of the evolved wildcats who prey on livestock to the north.
  • The lair of the wildcats
Deep within the northwestern area of Lodi, Scylina rules over her fellow wildcats. The Wildcat Queen and her kin hold such deep hatred for the gnomes that she will pay for their corpses.
  • The Lodi mines
The miner foreman, Dorven, oversees this undermanned mine and is always looking for adventures to help pick up the slack, whether it is eliminating pests from the mines or running shipments to his partner in Delos.

Mount Gheladan

The most recently discovered of the newbie lands, Mount Gheladan is nestled in the central Vashnar Mountains, west of the Dakhota Hills. Hostilities between the Nilari and the Murinae on the mountainside or between the bees and hornets living in caverns inside the cliffs both offer plenty of opportunity to collect a bit of gold or experience.

  • The Nilari village
The peaceful, ratlike Nilari could enjoy their thriving village if not for the constant threat of the nefarious Murinae living nearby. Ealeo, the village hunter will reward adventurers who agree to help rid him of the problem. This village is one of two in the newbie areas that offers a chance for shopping.
  • The Murinae caves
Located in the northwestern corner of the mountain, Raktai, the Murinae Chieftain pays a handsome reward for prey, especially if it is a member of the Nilari.
  • The beehive
Bixise, the Queen Bee is indifferent to most of the activity within her hive atop Mount Gheladan except two-she loves gemstones and hates hornets. Her personal guard, Intieme, is always in need of adventurers to help battle the nearby hornets.
  • The hornets' nest
Iesta, Queen of the Hornets, is a regal female with a healthy appreciation of shiny gems. She relies adventurers to assist her guardian, Niluint, with keeping the nest safe from their sworn enemies, the honeybees who live nearby.

Gaining Experience

Levels are a measure of experience. The more experience you gain, the higher your level. You can see your current level at any time on your SCORE, or by using SHOW LEVEL. Some of the benefits of gaining a level include:

Complimentary lessons - Every time you gain a level, you receive 5 lessons. If you die and fall below that level, then you lose 5 lessons. If you go below 0 lessons then, you won't be able to use or spend lessons on learning (or other things, such as adding another personal landmark to your list) until your lessons come above 0 again.
Bound credits - When you obtain certain levels for the first time, you also gain bound credits. The breakdown is:
  • Level 7 - 5 bound credits
  • Level 10 - 6 bound credits
  • Level 15 - 7 bound credits
  • Level 20 - 8 bound credits
And so forth, continuing on up every 5 levels to level 95 for 23 bound credits, then jumping by two at level 100 for 25 bound credits.
New Shouting Voice - Your shouting voice becomes stronger as you gain new levels.
Logosian - At Level 80, you no longer need to eat or sleep.
Dragon - Upon reaching level 99, you will gain the ability to change into a Dragon, granting you new powers and extra health.

Hunting

Hunting, or bashing, refers to the slaying of and. Every denizen has an experience value, depending on its level and strength. You can estimate this level by using PROBE or CONSIDER (i.e. PROBE WILDCAT or CONSIDER IMP). A full list of denizen strengths may be found in HELP CONSIDER.

As a newbie, you will likely want to stay within Minia, Lodi, and Mount Gheladan. Once you reach Level 21 you can try areas like the Actar Valley, Great Rock, and rats of all types in the cities (except Eleusis which has no rats).

Questing

Questing in Achaea almost always involves some type of denizen. Quests can be as simple as locating an item and delivering it to the proper denizen, or so complex that it takes many real-time days or weeks to puzzle out. You can find quests in just about every area in Achaea.

The quests in Minia, Lodi, and Mount Gheladan are relatively easy to complete. This is to help get you acclimated to the realm while teaching valuable lessons on how things work.

In many cases, starting a quest is as simple as using GREET <denizen> or saying something about quests, like "Do you have any quests for me?" Sometimes you may need to ask denizens about specific things or people you have noticed. This often results in the denizen offering you a quest. When you answer in the affirmative (either spoken or with an emote), the quest will be added to your quest log. HELP QUEST LOG tells more about this handy feature.

Some Achaean quests are far more difficult and complex than others. They may involve many steps, travel across great distances, careful timing, very dangerous situations, and so forth. These are sometimes referred to as honours quests, because those who successfully complete them will receive lasting recognition in the form of an honours line.

Making Gold

Gold sovereigns are the global currency of Achaea and is almost universally accepted as payment for food, clothing, weapons, and other goods and services. The three easiest ways to make gold, regardless of age or experience level, are ratting, catching butterflies, fishing, although hunting and questing (as explained in detail above) can generate coin as well.

The cities of Achaea (excepting Eleusis) are infested with rats. Use RATS to toggle your vision to see the movement of these vermin, then kill them and sell their corpses to any of the ratmen who will reward you with gold. There are five different types of rats, each one worth a predetermined value based on its strength.
NOTE - Rat corpses in your inventory will fall to the ground when you die or leave the realm, making them fair game for anyone to pick up and sell to a rat buyer.
Butterflies are most commonly found in Minia, the [[Savannah[[, and the Pash Valley, although they could potentially flit into any location. Once you obtain a net from Vellis at the ivy-covered archway to Minia, WIELD NET and then attempt to CATCH BUTTERFLY. When you are finished return to the archway and GIVE NET TO VELLIS, who will review its contents and reward you with gold. Each of the six different species of butterflies able to be caught in a net is worth a different value.
NOTE - Once you give your net to Vellis, he won't give you a new one for at least one Achaean day, which is about an hour in real time. While there is no limit to the number of butterflies a net holds, leaving the realm, dying, and releasing the butterflies allows them to escape the net. Vellis pays nothing for empty nets.
Fishing, while potentially lucrative, requires a great deal of practice and even more patience. Your level of success is directly proportional to your rank in the Survival skill; the more survival you know, the better your chances of catching bigger and more valuable fish. Fishing requires you to have a fishing pole, bait, and a source of water that contains fish, like a river or lake. When you tire of fishing or run out of bait, take your catches to a bait shop and SELL BAIT TO <bait shop denizen>.
NOTE - Like most everything else in Achaea, fish will decay over time so it's better to sell them as soon as possible when you finish fishing rather than waiting to do it later.

Shopping

Shopping is a popular way to spend gold. You'll find a few different ways to shop for goods and services in Achaea.

Shops exist far and wide, from your home city to faraway islands. A shop may be owned by an adventurer or a denizen, like Rurin. If you LOOK and see a line suggesting you use WARES to see what is for sale, odds are that you are in a shop. You can PROBE <thing from the WARES> to see it more closely. With your gold in your inventory, BUY <item> to purchase it.
Denizens sometimes hawk private wares. You can see what they have to sell using ASK <denizen> WARES. With your gold in your inventory, BUY <item> FROM <denizen>.
The Market channel is where adventurers buy and sell goods and services. If an adventurer offers something for sale that you wish to buy, then use TELL <adventurer> to negotiate the purchase. HELP MARKET tells more about using this channel.

NOTE: You'll notice that items for sale have a name with a number, for example PACK1234. Use the full name with number, i.e. BUY PACK1234, to make sure you're buying the right thing.

Customising Your Character

As you begin your adventures, you may wish to add a extra details to how others see your character when they LOOK at you. You can add these details using a variety of ways.

Personal Description
This is a description of your physical features. Use DESCRIBE SELF <description> to give yourself a description and DESCRIBE SELF OFF to use a generic one. Your race, gender, clothing, and anything you wield are automatically shown when someone looks at you. Otherwise it will be placed like this: (S)he is a <your race>. <Everything else.> More tips and guidelines are detailed in HELP DESCRIPTION.
For example, when you LOOK JULIET you will see: She is a mhun and is simultaneously ageless and youthful. Her face is marked with a careworn expression, and radiates warmth and welcome. Her eyes twinkle with the slightest hint of mirth, and a jovial smile comes easily to her lips.
Clothing
Your initial clothing is a bit utilitarian but you can outfit yourself in any number of fashions. You'll find clothing shops in every city, and perhaps some Villages as well. (For more information on shops for the informed newbie, please see our section on spending your gold above.)
Some adventurers take up tailoring or jewellery by profession. Use CRAFTERWHO T to find tailors and CRAFTERWHO J to find jewellers who can, in addition to their personal designs, make anything from a public list of designs found via the NEWDESIGN LIST T (or J) command. HELP CLOTHING gives more information about clothing, including how much you can wear and how it could protect you from the weather.
Motto and Warcry
A motto is a personal saying while a warcry is something you scream just before or in the heat of battle. You can use either a motto or a warcry, but you cannot have both set at the same time. Adventurers see your motto or warcry when they HONOURS <you> or when you use the appropriate command. SET MOTTO/WARCRY <your motto or warcry> to set a new one, or SET MOTTO/WARCRY CLEAR to clear it altogether. For more information on mottos and warcries, please see HELP MOTTO and HELP WARCRY.
Motto Example: If Aeyr types SET MOTTO Magic is fun! BE THE MAGIC then when he types MOTTO people will see Aeyr is filled with proud joy as he declaims, "Magic is fun! BE THE MAGIC!"
Warcry Example: If Aeyr types: SET WARCRY For the Power of Magic! then when he types WARCRY people will see Aeyr's eyes fill with battle rage as he screams out, "For the Power of Magic!"
Background
Every character in Achaea has the capability to write a publicly viewable background. This information should be written in character, as once you write your background it cannot be altered. For example, you could use your background to explain what your life was like as a child or what led you to becoming trapped in a pygmy dungeon. You do not have to write your background right away, so you have plenty of time to think about it. It is a good idea to have someone read over your background to make sure it is free of errors. You can do this by writing it on a letter or journal page first. For more information on the background system, including syntax and use, please see HELP BACKGROUND.

Your Class and Skills

Your class is a kind of profession that gives you three unique skills. These skills differentiate your class from the others. Upon starting out, using the SKILLS (or AB) command shows two types of skills: Class Skills and General Skills.

After you reach Level 10, you will also have access to miniskills, which are just what the name implies - skills with fewer abilities that take less lessons to transcend. You can read HELP SKILLS to learn more about skills, including ones that are not available until after you complete your newbie adventures.

Each skill has a range of abilities you gain access to by spending lessons at a tutor, which is either a denizen or an adventurer who knows more than you do in your target skill. Once you find someone to help, LEARN <#> <skill> FROM <teacher>. Eating myrrh or bisemutum help speed the learning process, and increase the maximum number of lessons you can spend at a time from 15 to 20.

SHOW LESSONS LEFT IN <skill> shows how many lessons you need to reach Transcendent, which is the highest of the skill ranks. As stated above, every time you gain a level, you receive 5 lessons. You might choose to convert bound credits as another way to get lessons. HELP LESSONS explains other ways.

Changing Class

If you decide to change class, visit Certimene, the Class and House Administrator in Delos. You can use landmarks to reach him directly. Once there, READ SIGN to learn how he can help.

Weapon Proficiencies

Weapon proficiencies allow you to specialise in certain classes of weapons, like longswords or flails, even if your class does not permit you to use them at the cost of 100 lessons. Find the appropriate proficiency teacher and LEARN PROFICIENCY IN <weapon name> FROM <teacher> to begin your training. Then practice with the weapon until you reach mastery.

Houses

Houses are adventurer-run organisations dedicated to a common purpose. They serve as cornerstones of conflict, discovery, and camaraderie for the realm of Achaea. They can be of immense help by explaining skills, helping complete tasks, and more, especially after you pass Level 30 and no longer have access to the Newbie channel.

Joining a House

After you complete the Cultists' Conspiracy and the necessary tasks, you'll find a new category of requirements. These city tasks will introduce you to various denizens in your city while learning more about it. Joining a house has many benefits including:

  • interacting within a community of like-minded adventurers with a wealth of knowledge and resources
  • using any house expansions, such as a Master Crystal or a private forge
  • sharing in the political clout of your house, such as voting in elections or referendums
  • holding or aiding a leadership position listed in HOUSE STRUCTURE

After you complete the city tasks, then you will need to find the denizen in your city who can induct you into a house. HOUSE LIST <city> show the houses stationed in your city while HOUSE LIST <class> shows all the houses that accept a certain class. Here's a quick example using the two houses based in Delos:

Short Name In Which City Long Name
Merchants (no city) The Grand Merchant Collective
Cij (no city) The Carnivalis Institute of Jestering

Once you join a house, you can speak on your new House's newcomer channel by using HNT <message> (the HNT stands for House Newcomer Tell). See who from your house is in the realm right now using HOUSEWHO (or HWHO for short).

If you wish to join one of the two houses in Delos, which are not affiliated with a city, then you must speak with Certimene in Delos and ASK CERTIMENE JOIN <short name>.

Changing Houses

You can change your house at any time. If you decide to change houses, then it pays to learn more by talking to someone from that house. Use HELP HOUSE <short name> to view their information. There should be a section entitled [CURRENTLY IN THE REALM]. Any names listed there, next to "Able to induct:" can induct you if you speak to them privately. It is worth noting that joining a house in a different city will require you to be a citizen of that city.

Cities

Adventurers choose their cities when creating a character for the first time. Cities, also called city-states, are large settlements with some degree of control over their surrounding lands. There are six city-states you may join: Ashtan, Targossas, Hashan, Cyrene, Mhaldor, and Eleusis. Every city has its own socio-political structure, including various ministers (which are the same primary positions across Cities) and aides.

Changing Cities

Sometimes after escaping the pygmy dungeon an adventurer learns the city they chose when creating their character is not what they expected. Before joining a new city consider that cities are free to restrict their citizens in many ways.

Citizens may also be required to perform city services, serve other citizens in various manners, or join only certain Houses, listed in HOUSE LIST <city>. Be absolutely certain that you discuss these things with leaders of your intended city listed in that city's help scroll before you make a commitment to citizenship.

Once you have QUIT <city> to leave your old city and are ready to join a new one, read HELP <city> to find the denizen that can make you a citizen or the adventurers currently in the realm who are able to induct new citizens.

Healing

Regardless of your class or hobbies, every adventurer should know the basics of physical well-being and healing. There are several ways to see your basic statistics.

  • SCORE shows your stats at any time.
  • QUICKSCORE or QSC shows a more condensed version of your score.
  • CONFIG PROMPT displays these settings every time you enter a command.
  • The Nexus Client displays gauges above the command box. If you don't see them, right-click anywhere on the page and choose Gauges, making sure the green check mark appears to the left of the word.

Health

There are three common ways to lose health: hunting denizens and creatures, combat with other adventures, and misadventure, a kind of adventure gone wrong. Misadventure includes things like drowning while swimming or succumbing to injuries from catching on fire during a walk through a burning forest. Failing to restore your health will lead to certain, albeit temporary, death.

Two popular ways to restore your health include sipping an elixir of health and sleeping, the latter of which also rebuilds endurance.

Mana

Certain class skills use more mana than others. The easiest ways to regain mental strength is to sip an elixir of mana and meditate, the latter also being a way to regain willpower.

Afflictions

Sometimes your adventures might lead you to become afflicted with something, like blindness or stupidity. Helpful commands offering information about these afflictions include:

  • AFFLICTION LIST - See a list of known afflictions
  • AFFLICTION SHOW <affliction> - See information about a current affliction
  • WHATCURES <affliction> - See what cures a specific affliction, for example:
WHATCURES STUPIDITY shows: The affliction 'stupidity' is cured by: Eat Goldenseal / Eat Plumbum and Focus Mind.

Refilling Vials

When you sip the last of your curative elixir then it's time to refill that vial. The easiest way to get a refill is from Seasone, the Industrious just outside of North of New Thera. Her services are some of the most costly in the land, so it is highly suggested that you find another way, such as an adventurer who can refill your vial or a shop with a tun where you can REFILL <vial|fluid|empty> WITH <tun|fluid>.

Death and Resurrection

In the event of your death, you will find you can still walk around as a soul. This movement may be stopped by eye sigils lying upon the ground and the steps you take will not count in increasing your rank in the Fellowship of Explorers.

There are a few ways in which adventurers can be resurrected from death. They are:

  • EMBRACE DEATH to take a brisk walk through the Halls of Thoth.
  • Use the starburst tattoo which instantly restores your life at half the experience loss but leaves you without defences.
  • Immolation, which takes place when another adventurer immolates your corpse in the Flame of Yggdrasil.
  • Abilities related to classes such as druid and paladin allow adventurers to resurrect their fallen peers.

It should be noted that almost every method of resurrection incurs some amount of experience loss.

Geography & Movement

During your escape from the pygmy dungeon you learn the basics of moving from place to place. The world is so much bigger, however, than what you are exposed to during your first couple of adventures.

Basic Geography

The main continent of Achaea is called Sapience, which is home to six major cities, bountiful forests, pristine lakes, and roads and highways that cross back and forth across the map linking everything together. With so much to explore, it's easy to feel overwhelmed. Fortunately newbies have the PORTALS command, a kind of godly rescue which delivers you to the Ring of Portals.

The MAP Command

The MAP command shows your current location and some neighbouring rooms with hints of how they connect and what might lie in adjacent directions. MAP RADIUS 5 shows the largest portion of the map at any one time. Most of the symbols on the map are self-explanatory, such as "$" for the location of a Bank or "S" to designate Shop. HELP MAPS offers a full explanation of the key.

The Ring of Portals

The Ring of Portals is a special location on a remote location called Loom Island, which cannot be accessed by any normal means of travel. All newbies - those adventurers under level 21 - may access to the Ring with some stipulations.

  • PORTALS use is unlimited until reaching Level 11.
  • Starting at Level 11, you are allowed 20 more uses of the command.
NOTE: Going past Level 11 and dropping back below it does not restore unlimited portals.
  • Starting at Level 21, you lose access to the command, even if you did not use up your previous allotment.
NOTE: Going past Level 21 and dropping back below it does not restore use of portals.

Within the Ring of Portals are five separate rooms, each with exits to many of the most useful locations in the realms.

The Northern Portal Room
Northeast : General Cazin (Targossas)
East : Epicurus (Ashtan)
Southeast : Damaris, the Learned (Hashan)
Southwest : Liirup the Placid (Hashan)
West : Crazy Hakhim (Targossas)
Northwest : The Ratman (Ashtan)
The Western Portal Room
North : Certimene, the Class and House Administrator
South : Seasone, the Seller of Potions and Elixirs
Southwest : Tyrandiel, the Wise
Northwest : Vinci's Tattoo Emporium
The Ring of Portals
North : Portals to Ashtan, Hashan, and Targossas.
South : Portals to Cyrene, Eleusis, and Mhaldor.
East : Portals to newbie adventuring areas.
West : Portals to other useful services. 		The Eastern Portal Room
North : the Valley of Lodi
Northeast : the Land of Minia
Southeast : Mount Gheladan
The Southern Portal RoomNortheast : Maric, the ratman (Mhaldor)
East : Aine, the Sheriff (Eleusis)
Southeast : Elias, the Gatekeeper (Eleusis)
Southwest : Jorj, the city caretaker (Cyrene)
West : Indalecio, the Academician (Cyrene)
Northwest : Gack, the slaver (Mhaldor)

Landmarks

Another way of getting around is using the landmarks system to WALK TO any landmark in the list that's within 100 steps of your current location. It is also possible to WALK TO <someone> in your city or house. You can use the distance ability DISTANCE TO <landmark> command to see the distance to landmarks and adventurers, but not denizens. You'll find other useful details in HELP LANDMARKS.

Class Abilities Allowing Travel

In addition to these methods of travel, there are plenty of miscellaneous tools and abilities to help you get around the realm. For example, members of the Magi class can learn the ability to create sonic portals between locations, and Serpent class members can splice wormholes to travel between two otherwise non-adjacent locations.

Artefacts for Travelling

Artefacts such as the Eagle's wings and Atavian wings allow adventurers to travel high above the clouds to a location similar to the Ring of Portals, while the wand of portals creates portals between its wielder and another adventurer.

History and Mythology

Much of the history of Achaea, from Creation to the Modern Age, may be found here. A shorter period of history, from Creation to the aftermath of the War of Humanity, is written within HELP MYTHOS - though by no means is the scroll a short read! Apart from the Mythos, there is a vast amount of history contained within the news boards of Achaea. All adventurers have access to the Public and Announce boards, as well as the veritable Events board, but you may discover lesser known history within the private boards of the Houses, Cities, and other organizations. HELP NEWS explains precisely how to take advantage of these newsboards.

Advanced Communication

There are a few ways to communicate which are slightly different from your typical channels. These each have their own time and place, though they are used less often for various reasons. One of the most well known alternative means of communication is the news. There are a few newsboards that all adventurers have access to, including the Public and Poetry boards, and others which may not be written to by normal mortals, such as the Announce and Events board. Every organization has its own newsboard, as well. News posts are most often used to speak to a large group of people at once, no matter what date and time they may come across the post. In this way, they are similar to messages sent to a large group of people.

To view the newsboards you have access to, which post you last read on each, and how many posts each has, you may use the NSTAT command. To read the news, you can use READNEWS <section> <#>, or RN (to read the next unread newspost). You can also go to a newsroom and peruse the news in silence, using the newsroom tools listed by using HELP in a newsroom. To write to a newsboard, you must be in a newsroom. (For more useful information on the news, please see HELP NEWS)

Another way to get a message out to nearly everyone in shouting distance is to, yes, shout. To shout, one must first find one of the giant ram's horns located all over Sapience, usually in high altitudes such as the Vashnars. The horns require a payment of exactly 100 gold: simply PUT 100 GOLD INto the HORN, then SHOUT <what you want>. However, some may not hear shouts due to being deaf to shouts, or indeed afflicted with deafness. Shouting is generally anonymous unless the shouter identifies themselves, is a Dragon, or a recipient has the ability of Recognition in Vision. Depending on the shouter's level, their shouting voice will be different. You may look at your STATUS to view what your own shouting voice would sound like. It should be noted that shouts may only be of a certain length: too long, and you will pass out. Worse, the entire world will know you passed out, instead of hearing your wonderfully worded masterpiece.

A third unique method of communication is by Achaea's postal system. Letters may be sent to anyone, no matter where they stand on the continent. They may be bought from a post office for a fee of 100 gold; simply REQUEST a LETTER to buy one. You may then WRITE in the LETTER to enter Achaea's editor, and PUT an <item> IN the <letter> to deliver an item if you like! When you are finished, MAIL LETTER TO <person>. Remember, you must sign your name in the letter's contents if you wish the recipient to know who sent them that lovely ring. On the other hand, perhaps you didn't want them to know after all!

Letters decay ten months after their purchase, so if the recipient does not enter the realms before that time is up, the letter will decay in transit, along with any items you may have shipped along with it. As such, you may not wish to send expensive or important items through the post, unless you know for sure that the recipient will be around to receive it.

Finally, as an insane method of communication, one may utilize the official Achaean Forums to chat and discuss Achaea. The forums are completely OOC (read:Out Of Character), so posting sensitive information on the forums, or using information gleaned from the forums to your benefit in-realms is highly frowned upon, and may get you in trouble with the administration. There are also rules that must be followed when writing to the forums, located here.

Credits

Credits are a special form of currency, used to buy many things that are not priced in gold sovereigns. One might buy artefacts or room credits (used to create rooms in your private home), or convert them into lessons. They may even be sold on the credit market for gold, which fluctuates in price based on adventurer supply and demand. How do you gain these wonderous tokens? One of the easiest methods, at least at first, is to reach certain level milestones, listed in HELP LEVELS, such as levels 10 and 15. At each milestone, a certain number of bonus credits are obtained (though these are bound credits which you may not transfer to other adventurers), which you can use towards nearly whatever end you desire. Another method is to buy credit packs at this page, using real-world money. There are many differently-sized packages, from the basic fifteen credits to the whopping two thousand credits, to suit both casual and hardcore Achaeans.

For more information, please see HELP CREDITS, HELP CREDIT MARKET, and HELP ARTEFACTS.

Issues and Customer Service

Issues are, first and foremost, insane, so they should never be discussed on public channels. Before you file an issue, be sure it's really an issue. Read HELP ISSUES to be sure, so you don't end up wasting the admins' time.

Sometimes, you may need to contact customer support for some reason, though, such as clarification on what exactly this artefact does - "Is it chewing tabac or smoking tabac that the tabac pouch generates?" - or arranging a special wedding with the aid of an administrator. Such requests should be handled via the ISSUE ME <message> command - yes, that's a literal 'ME.

At other times, however, you may have a genuine issue with another person, for possible griefing, or perhaps the breaking of the rules of player killing or theft. In such cases, you should thoroughly read HELP IC RESOLUTION before filing an issue. If you are sure you want to file an issue against this person, you can use ISSUE <adventurer> <message>. The other adventurer will be notified of this and will be able to respond, aiding the administrators in making a ruling.

Please see HELP CUSTOMER SERVICE for additional important information regarding issues.

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