AchaeaWiki

Newbie Guide

Revision as of 07:09, 11 January 2009 by Soludra (talk | contribs) (→‎What are MUDs?: Redid a bunch, took out some superfluous info and linked it back in, and rewrote in general)

Welcome to the newbie guide. In this document you will find a comprehensive introduction to Achaea. You will not find in depth information on each and every discussed item, but you will find pointers to other sources of information. If you are new to the lands and/or mudding in general we invite you to 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 have created 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 utilize.

In Achaea, there is no single goal to achieve, and not everyone seeks to achieve the same things. You could earn experience to ascend to the level of Greater Dragon, where you gain the ability to assume the form of a mighty dragon. Or you might choose instead to undertake the quests of the lands - many with intricate plots and detailed storylines - to earn honourable and permanent recognition for your efforts. You may also choose to climb the political ladder and become a feared or respected ruler of a city-state or House. There is any number of other paths you might take - master bard, Champion or Assassin, trend-setting tailor - 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 ways to connect to Achaea. There is, of course, the original Telnet application that comes with most operating systems by default, but that is a poor way to experience the vibrance of the realms. We supply an official client, dubbed Nexus, that can be reached via the Play Now button at [1], or directly here. When Nexus has loaded up, it offers you a choice between logging into an existing character or creating a new one. We'll cover character creation later in the guide, so for now let's say you've logged in. You can always re-read this section when you've made a character, after all!

Nexus opens in a small window of a fixed size. To make it resizeable, you must detach the client by clicking the blue button in the upper-right corner. Once detached, Nexus continues to rely on the now-empty window for its existence: should you close it, Nexus disappears along with it.

There are five gauges in the bottom-left corner of the client, each with information pertaining to your character's current status. In order:

  • Light blue arrow: Progress to your next level, in terms of experience.
  • Red heart: Percentage amount of health remaining.
  • Dark blue droplet: Percentage amount of mana remaining.
  • Orange stick-figure: Percentage amount of endurance remaining.
  • Purple starburst: Percentage amount of willpower remaining

In the upper-left corner of Nexus sits a special compass indicating visible exits from your current location. Icons to the right (indicated by a stairs symbol) denote Up and Down, while the icons below (indicated by a door symbol) denote In and Out. You can click on a directional symbol to move in that direction, rather than typing it in. Advanced users may find alias, trigger, and keybinding functions by clicking the appropriate button below the compass complex.

There are other methods of connecting to the realms, which many other adventurers prefer. It may be difficult to locate a client with all the features you want in a MUD client, but there are some that are a cut above the rest. zMUD and MUSHclient are arguably the best clients out there, though they are not without a learning curve. You can find plenty of other clients by browsing the list at The Mud Connector. In order to connect to Achaea using such third-party clients, you will need to connect to the hostname "www.achaea.com" or IP address 208.185.247.26, using either port 23 or 2003.

Character Creation

Character creation in Achaea is not a difficult process. If you are using Nexus to connect, click the button on the right (marked "Create New Character") to begin, and follow the instructions step-by-step.. If you are using a third-party client, however, you should select the appropriate option upon connecting. You will be prompted with lists in the output window instead of the graphical interface of Nexus, but they are the same in essentials. In either case, you will need to select your name, race, and sex, and you will be on your way to the Trial of Rebirth.

The Terms of Service, which everyone must agree to during character creation, can be found here.

Naming Policy

When choosing your name, you should keep a few things in mind. First and most importantly, if the Guides (Romeo or Juliet) or an Divine ask you to change your name, change it! We don't want to waste time explaining why "Awesomesauce" is an unacceptable name, especially when it's obviously detrimental to our roleplaying environment. No matter how hard you try to convince us, no Earthly or Achaean parents would name their child Awesomesauce. The best name is an original one that you created, and not a dictionary word. It should be reasonably pronounceable without seriously injuring one's vocal organs.

Dictionary words or names from real life are usually okay, though often they fall short of the "acceptable" mark. These names can be improved upon, but are not forbidden. Do use common sense, however: Winner is probably not acceptable, nor is Michelangelo. Unacceptable names require a change, normally requested by one of the Newbie Guides; should you not comply with the request your character may face administrative action. Unacceptable names may also include profanity, racial slurs, stuttering letters(bobbbbbb), keyboard jokes(asdf), and those most likely unpronounceable(klzgt).

One final note: You may observe other adventurers with names that are not considered acceptable, and while that is quite unfortunate, that cannot normally be rectified except in special cases. These adventurers have likely been around for a long time (perhaps since before namechanging began regularly), or they managed to slip through the cracks, but you cannot use them as an excuse for your own unacceptable name ("Dragonknight has a compound name, why can't I keep Pastasauce?"). It is interesting to note that, around the year 490 A.F., a servant to the Divine called the Namer announced to the realm that he changed the name of a non-newbie adventurer, proving that just because you're older doesn't mean your bad name won't be changed.

A full list of naming rules can be found at HELP NAMES, which is highly recommended reading.

Choosing a Race

Your racial selection will only be as important as you make it. Each race has its own base strength, intelligence, constitution, and dexterity, among other traits; if you seek to excel in combat, you should take these (along with your eventual Class) into consideration. You can also, of course, simply pick the race that appeals the most to you, and base some of your roleplaying path around it. There are ways to change your race after the fact, all of which involve reincarnation, but creation is not the time to discuss them!

The afore-mentioned statistics are considered to be "average" at a value of 12. They may be higher or lower, which may or may not be a problem depending on your Class and/or goals.

  • Strength is related to how much physical damage you can deal out.
  • Dexterity is related to how well you dodge physical attacks.
  • Constitution is related to how much maximum health and endurance you have.
  • Intelligence is related to how much maximum mana and willpower you have, as well as how much magical damage you can deal out.

Many races have racial advantages and/or disadvantages on top of these statistics. Atavians, for example, can fly, and Grooks can regenerate their health while immersed in water. Rajamalans heal more slowly from elixirs, and Trolls have trouble recovering balance and equilibrium. Races may be more or less tolerant to certain kinds of damage, as well. For a full list of races, please see our page on Races or HELP RACES.

Achaea Policies

These are the Achaea Policies in summary. If you need more information on any of them, please read section 15 of the help files either on the website or while logged in(HELP 15).

  • HELP 15.1 (HELP POLICYSUMMARY) is a summary of many of the policies, but is not all inclusive.
  • HELP 15.2 (HELP UNDERAGE) details the policy that restricts those under the age of 13 from playing Achaea.
  • HELP 15.3 (HELP YOUR ADVENTURER) explains the policies on your character. No sharing your character. No transferring your character. No logging on to two or more characters at once. Plus many more things you need to know.
  • HELP 15.4 (HELP PLAYERKILLING) discusses killing other adventurers. It is allowed, within reason.
  • HELP 15.5 (HELP HONOUR) informs you of things that can get you in deep trouble with the administrators, even if they may seem like a good idea at the time. You should not, for example, force a disconnection from the game to avoid death.
  • HELP 15.6 (HELP ROLEPLAYING) lists the forms of communication on which you must practice good role play. While roleplaying is optional in Achaea, stepping out of character in front of others can be upsetting to those who come to role play and as such is against our policies.
  • HELP 15.7 (HELP SPAMMING) contains definitions of spam and just how much we dislike it here.
  • HELP 15.8 (HELP TRIGGERS) will tell you exactly how far you are allowed to go with triggers. Complete automation is not an option.
  • HELP 15.9 (HELP HARASSMENT) explains that harassment is strictly forbidden, and what can and will happen if you break this policy.
  • HELP 15.10 (HELP AFK) details our policy on being Away From Keyboard. It is, quite simply, not permissable, and anything that happens to you while you are AFK is your own responsibility, including administrative punishment.
  • HELP 15.11 (HELP LANGUAGERULES) discusses the policies on using obscene or derogatory language. It is not allowed.
  • HELP 15.12 (HELP ISSUES) explains what an issue is and how to use it. Issues have to do with customer service and, in some cases, the violation of our usually-adhered-to policies.
  • HELP 15.13 (HELP ILLUSIONS) lists the devious types of illusions that are forbidden, and how to avoid falling victim to them.

The Trial of Rebirth

After choosing a name and race for yourself, you will enter the Trial of Rebirth, an introductory tour of Achaea's basic mechanics. You will appear north of New Thera, where an old crone will arrive to guide you to the Tree of Life, Yggdrasil. Inside this tree is the Flame of Yggdrasil, within which you must be immolated to begin your rebirth.

Pasiphae will be waiting to greet you when you regain consciousness in the land of Ceylon. Pasiphae will be your guide as you gain your first levels of experience, eventually leading you to obtain a dragon orb. Along the way you will also meet and interact with Severian and Gruul.

Some of the things you will learn in the Trial are:

  • How to check your status and inventory.
  • Essential commands (LOOK, WHO, etc.) and basic movement.
  • Purchase, use and transfer of items.
  • Basic geography of Sapience.
  • How to use and learn your skills.
  • Basic combat (brawling).

To obtain the dragon orb, you must utilize your combat skills to defeat a fire guardian. After taking the dragon orb to Pasiphae you will be able to select a Class, be offered the chance to choose a City for your home, and be able to join a House. If you are quite new to Achaea, Houses and Cities can offer you a group of people to help you out. A House is a group of like-minded individuals who generally help each other to become stronger via friendship and structure. We highly recommend that you join one of your choice.

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

After the Trial

After the Trial, you will find yourself at the Ring of Portals. From here, you can reach many locations of interest across the realms. HELP WHATNOW has a large amount of very useful tips and pointers, which may be useful as you begin your adventures. Romeo and/or Juliet, our resident Newbie Guides, may be in the Ring of Portals, available to answer any newbie-related question you might have. You can TELL Romeo <message> or TELL Juliet <message> to speak with them privately, or use NEWBIE <message> to speak on the public Newbie channel.

If you chose not to select a Houe or Class during the Trial, or you are simply not happy with your choices, you may speak with Certimene, the Class and House Administrator. Certimene may be found by taking the northeastern exit from the Ring of Portals, or walking to his office on the Isle of Delos.

Registration

It is important to register your character soon after the Trial of Rebirth in order to avoid being purged from the system too quickly. While registered characters may still be purged, they are not purged nearly as quickly as otherwise.

Please provide correct information as you register your character. We will not sell or give this information away, but it is necessary to have it on file in case you ever need support for your character. When interacting with support - whether to request a lost password or another reason - you will be asked to provide your registration information in order to compare it the information on file, in order to prevent against impersonation.

Nothing particularly personal is requested for registration. You need simply provide your name, e-mail address, date of birth, and country of residence. In addition to that, we ask you how you heard about Achaea, so we know which advertising techniques are paying off.

Basic Commands

The following sections explain some basic information on the mechanics of Achaea. These commands are highly important, and you will likely use them many times over your time in the realms. As a general rule of thumb, commands follow similarly to written English (i.e. to tell Sarapis something, you would TELL SARAPIS SOMETHING).

Item Manipulation

Item manipulation is more than just simple pushing and pulling, though oftentimes you can and should do so. You can also turn, touch, tap, and do any number of emotes toward objects. (A list of emotes can be found within HELP EMOTELIST) Often, you may also DROP/PUT an item on the ground or another object, or TAKE/GET an item from the ground or another object. Containers can hold items within themselves, such as backpacks and satchels. For example, to put a journal within your pack - assuming you have both in your possession - simply PUT JOURNAL IN PACK. To remove it, you can GET JOURNAL FROM PACK. You cannot PUT an item on the ground, but you can DROP it there. Contrariwise, you cannot DROP an item into another item, but you can PUT it there.

Journals, such as the one we just took back out of our pack, can be READ, as can many other objects in the realms, such as books, signs, and plaques. If the object has multiple pages, you can READ <object> PAGE <number> You may be able to WRITE within an object, using the same syntax as READ, if you are the author of the item. (See HELP JOURNALS for more information)

The most common action performed on an object is to PROBE it. Probing details more information on the item than you might notice at a glance, such as its weight, physical description, et cetera. You can also WIELD an object that is in your possession, and THROW it if you are so inclined.

Communication

There are many ways to communicate with other players in Achaea. Most, if not all, are used widely throughout the realms. A few of the most common are SAYs and TELLs, among others.

Using SAY, you can speak to everyone in your room. For example:

Say Boy, says sure are fun!

translates to

(to you) You say, "Boy, says sure are fun!"
(to everyone else) Superduperlovechildofdeath says, "Boy, says sure are fun!"

You can also use a single or double quotation mark - ' or " - preceeding any text to SAY it.

Using TELL, you can speak to one specific person in private, whether they are in the room with you or not. This person must be logged into Achaea and be on the same plane as you are, as well as within telepathic range on that plane (i.e. a tell from Shallam to the icy northern Tundra will probably not work). For example:

Tell Sarapis I like to send tells!

translates to

(to you) You tell Sarapis, "I like to send tells!"
(to Sarapis) Superduperlovechildofdeath tells you, "I like to send tells!"

In addition to tells and says, there are dozens of other ways to communicate, including HNT (housenewcomertell), CT (citytell), CLT (clantell), NEWBIE (the newbie channel), SHOUT (heard by nearly everyone in the realms), and YELL (a softer shout to everyone in the general area). There are also a variety of SAY-alikes such as CHANT and SING (see http://www.achaea.com/irex/helpview/help.php?q=SAY HELP SAY]), and many other unique ways of communicating with others. (See HELP CHANNELS for more information)

If the person you wish to speak with is not in the realms, you can leave them a message for them to read when they return. Simply use MESSAGE <name> <message> (or MSG instead) to send one, and the recipient will be notified of this message upon their next login. To read a message, you can MSG READ # for a specific message, or just use RM to read the next unread message. The message system is very complex, and you can see all the things you can do with them by using MSG on its own. (See HELP MESSAGES for more details)

Getting around

There are many ways to get around, such as using the Ring of Portals or using a class ability, but the most basic of movement is simply to walk. First, one must know where one is. To look around, simply LOOK. You will see the room's visual description, a list of any objects and denizens within the room, and a list of any other adventurers in the realm. Arguably the most important part of LOOK, however, are the exits listed at the bottom. To view these without the rest of the information, you can simply use EXITS (or just X). A variant of LOOK is QUICKLOOK or QL, which discards the room description for brevity.

To move in a particular direction, type that direction! To go north, type NORTH (or N). To go southeast, type SOUTHEAST (or SE, which is noticeably shorter). There may be other non-standard ways to leave a room, such as ENTERing something, but in such cases it is easiest to simply try it yourself. If you want to see what's coming up next without actually moving, you can GLANCE (or GL) in a direction. Lastly, SURVEY will tell you what general area you're in; the environment upon which you stand; and the plane you are on (often the Prime Material Plane).

As a newbie, if you get lost you can use the PORTALS command to return to the Ring of Portals. As explained earlier in this guide, it is a hub of portals leading to many useful locations across the lands. Whether you are a newbie or not, however, you can also use landmarks. Simply WALK TO <a nearby landmark>, and you will move one room in the direction of that landmark (assuming no other obstruction). HELP LANDMARKS lists all of the available landmarks. To discern how far away from a landmark you are, you can use DISTANCE TO <landmark>.

Lastly, there is a plethora of useful maps one can use. For one, the MAP command is a wonderful tool to view the lay of the land immediately around you, though not all locations may be covered. (See HELP MAP) As well, the HELP 12 index of scrolls lists many, many layout maps of various areas. Though these maps do not follow your every move quite like the MAP does, they can be useful for viewing an area you are not currently in, as well as viewing more of the lay of the land than the MAP permits. Finally, there are illustrated maps linked to from the Achaean maps index page, which are similar in style to the HELP 12 maps, and possibly more pleasing to the eye. Our Maps page explains more about maps in general.

Examining yourself

There are a handful of commands to let you view information about yourself, such as the SCORE command. SCORE allows you to view your current score information. Your score contains information such as what experience level you are and how much more experience you need for the next level; what your name, title, and race are (much like HONOURS); how much health, mana, endurance, and willpower you currently have (and their maximums); your clans; and many, many other useful details. For an example, see our page on Score.

Another self-examination command is the STATUS or STAT command. STAT lists information much like SCORE does, though of a different nature: Your Status tells you the current status or state of your character. Are you are dressed? Drunk perhaps? Tired or hungry, after a long day perhaps? and a few other useful bits. Along the same vein is the STAT STATS command, which lists your adventurer and denizen kill statistics. Examples of both STAT versions can be found at our page on Status.

You can view your personal description with the LOOK SELF command, or a number of variants such as LOOK ME, LOOK AT ME, LOOK AT SELF, LOOK MYSELF, and LOOK AT MYSELF. This returns the physical description you may have written, as well as your race, clothing, and any Divine favours you might have. You can set your description by using DESCRIBE SELF <description>, but remember that the first few words cannot be removed (i.e. "He is a frog-like Grook and is "). See HELP DESCRIPTION for more information.

In order to assess your defences, simply use the DEFENCES command. This returns a list of each defense currently upon you. These differs from afflictions, which are generally unwanted and detrimental. Defenses may be gained or lost depending on your actions and your particular defences. For example, the defence line for myrrh is "Your mind is racing with enhanced speed", and it is obtained by eating myrrh.

Examining other people

Similarly to personal examination commands, there are some useful commands for learning more about those around you. The most prominent is HONOURS, which displays a page of publicly-available information on the target, such as their title, gender, and race, among other things. You can HONOURS SARAPIS, for example, to find out that he is the Logos, a male Immortal, and was born before time was counted. If you check the honours of a mortal adventurer, you will receive a much more detailed page, including which city they are in, what their title, sex, and race are, their birthday and age, most of their current rankings, their marital status, and more. This command can be used on one's self to view what other people see about them, so in that manner it is also a self-examination command. There are two variations on HONOURS - HONOURS F and HONOURS D - which give more details than the vanilla HONOURS page. See our page on Honours for more information.

Another highly useful command - or rather, command group - WHO and WHO-alike commands tell you who is visible in the realms. It will not tell you those who have used powerful abilities to conceal their identities and presence. For example, WHO gives a full list of every visible adventurer in the realms. Two similar commands are QW and WHO B, which list the information from WHO in different ways. CITYWHO, or CWHO, lists those adventurers in your city. There are also HOUSEWHO or HWHO, O(rder)WHO, N(ewbie)WHO, R(ace)WHO, CL(an)WHO, and others. Another useful WHO-like command is WHO HERE, which lists those adventurers visible in the same room as you.

The Newbie Channel

The Newbie channel is available to adventurers under level 21 - also known as "newbies" - to ask general newbie questions on, and (hopefully!) receive answers on as well. You can speak on the Newbie channel by using the NEWBIE command: NEWBIE <message>. For example, to ask "How do I make gold?" on the Newbie channel, you can type NEWBIE How do I make gold? Two very special beings often watch the Newbie channel: Romeo and Juliet, the Guides. The Guides exist only to help young adventurers get their start in the realms, so don't be shy about sending them a TELL, or asking publicly on the Newbie channel.

Newbie Areas

Among the vast lands of Achaea, there are three areas specially Created for newbies: Minia, Lodi, and Mount Gheladan. Older adventurers cannot enter these areas, so you will not be crowded out by more experienced hunters or knowledgeable questers. You can reach these lands most easily by using PORTALS to reach the Ring of Portals, then taking one of the three designated exits (READ the SIGN for directions). Another way to reach the newbie lands is to walk there (both normally and the Landmarks kind). Possibly most usefully, you can ask the guardian dragon of a land to take you to one of the other two free of charge. These guardian dragons are named Auma, Poraeus, and Lasuna, and they guard the respective lands listed above. Simply go up to one and say "Please take me to <newbie land>", and you will be whisked away. This is helpful if you wish to save your remaining uses of the PORTALS command for when you really need them.

Minia

The land of Minia is a fanciful place located off the Prelatorian Highway near the Aureliana forest. Within Minia, a young adventurer might find such beings as pixies, kobolds, imps, hellcats, and pygmies. There are plenty of quests for a newbie to complete, such as curing the sick kobold and claiming the Imp Lord's bounty on the heads of the pixies. Vellis, the butterfly collector, resides at the Ivy-covered archway to Minia, where he hands out nets to those who wish to catch butterflies. In fact, Vellis hands out nets to anyone, not just newbies, and as such his location is the only one in Minia to be open to all. However, one should not linger long, lest the ogre guards come and take you away.

Points of Interest

  • The pixie village
Within the pixie village reside a number of playful pixies, as well as their leader, the Pixie Queen. These pixies are engaged in a long-time war with the imps of the Ember Tower, ever since the Pixie Queen scorned the Imp Lord for some unknown reason. It seems he did not take it very well, and each leader has bounties on the other species' heads. You can find the pixie village by heading northeast from Vellis.
  • The Ember Tower
At the southeastern edge of Minia, the Ember Tower crawls with mischievous imps at war with the pixies of the pixie village. Under the command of the Imp Lord, an imp by the name of Ord trains dangerous hellcats for their defense of the tower. The Ember Tower may be found by following the road southeast from Vellis, and following the signs.
  • Miba, the pygmy village
In the northwestern corner of Minia lies the settlement of Miba, the pygmy village. The pygmy people of Miba love the taste of kobolds from the Libra dungeon, and they maintain a collection of kobold slaves. Asheara, the pygmy seamstress, utilizes hellcat pelts in her weavings, so she is in constant need of fresh corpses to harvest. Miba may be found northwards from the Ember Tower.
  • 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 is located within the Putoran Hills, west off of the Raphaelan Highway. The valley is home to a village of gnomes and a colony of sentient wildcats, a mining excavation, and others various beings. Like Minia, there are various quests one can complete, such as the bounty Constable Beck has placed on the wildcat menace, and the bat problem in the mines.

Points of Interest

  • The village of Gorshire
Gorshire, a village of gnomes, is situated in the southern portion of the Putoran Hills, though generally still considered part of the land of Lodi. It is home to a small community of gnomes, enemies of the evolved wildcats in the fields to the north.
  • The lair of the wildcats
Once upon a time, the inhabitants of this cave were simply wildcats. Due to evolution over the years, however, the wildcats have become sentient and sly, lead by their leader, Scylina. The Wildcat Queen and her kin are in a constant state of hostility with the rest of the valley Lodi, and Scylina herself will pay for the bodies of the gnomes. You may find wildcat lair in the northwestern part of Lodi.
  • The Lodi mines
Run by the miner foreman, Dorven, this mine is noticeably undermanned. Two absent-minded miners, Sleff and Kortine, work within the bat-infested caverns, seeking help with their problems. Dorven will pay kindly for bat corpses for proof of a dwindling infestation. You can find the mines in central Lodi, northeast off the main intersection.

Mount Gheladan

The most recently discovered of the newbie lands, Mount Gheladan is nestled in the central Vashnar Mountains, to the west of the Dakhota Hills. Upon its slopes live the Nilari and Murinae, two warring tribes of humanoids who have place bounties on the other's heads. Beneath its surface also lurk the warring hornets and bees.

Points of Interest

  • The Nilari village
  • The Murinae caves
  • The beehive and hornets' nest

Gaining Experience

Your experience determines your experience level, which in turn determines your health, mana, and other characteristics of your character. With each level you gain, you earn five more lessons to spend, and at certain milestones, you gain bound credits that may be traded in for many different things (including more lessons). (See Level and HELP LEVELS) One of the easiest ways to gain experience is to hunt denizens (also called "bashing"). Successfully slaying a denizen will earn you experience relative to that denizen's strength and level. Another way to earn experience is to complete various quests.

Hunting

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

There is a very useful guide to hunting in Achaea located on the Achaean Forums, at this topic, which lists locations from newbiehood to level 60+. As a newbie, however, you will likely want to stay within Minia, Lodi, and Mount Gheladan.

Questing

There is a multitude of quests throughout the lands of Achaea. As a newbie, you may want to whet your teeth on the newbie quests in the newbie lands, many of which are listed in HELP NEWBIE QUESTS. Within this scroll, you will find tips and pointers on many (but not all!) of the available quests in the areas. There some quests not detailed that you will need to discover on your own: try greeting denizens around you, and examining the world around you more closely. Outside the newbie lands, quests may not be discussed by mandate of Divine law, and they become increasingly difficult to complete. Sometimes greeting the denizens is not enough; you may need to ask them about specific things or people you have noticed.

In addition to these localized quests, honours quests may stretch across large areas of the land. Honours quests are often extremely difficult to solve and are far beyond the scope of this guide. When you complete an honours quest, an appropriate line is added to your HONOURS page (thus the name honours quests) so others may view your impressive deeds.

Making gold

Gold sovereigns are the global currency of Achaea. With gold, you can buy most anything essential to life, such as food, clothing, weapons, and other trinkets. Making gold is never as easy as spending it is, however. Some easy methods of making gold are ratting, catching butterflies, fishing, and completing quests (as explained in detail above).

The cities of Achaea (excepting Eleusis) are infested with rats. Should you slay these rats you can sell their corpses to any of the ratmen. As a reward for keeping the city clean you will be rewarded with some gold for each rat you return.
Perhaps the most well-known method of making gold is that of butterfly catching. Simply obtain a net from Vellis in Minia, and start hunting for butterflies. Instead of killing them, however, you must WIELD your NET, and attempt to CATCH the BUTTERFLY. Two locations where butterflies are well known to reside are Minia and the Savannah. Once you are finished, bring your net back to Vellis and GIVE it to him. He will reward you with gold for each butterfly you have caught. Some butterflies are harder to catch than others, and are worth more gold.
Fishing, while potentially lucrative, requires practice and a great deal of patience. Your skill at fishing depends greatly on your experience in the Survival skill: the more Survival you know, the more successful you may be at the various fishing actions. It may not seem appealing at first, but as you progress it will become more interesting as you learn to fish properly and efficiently.

Shopping

Once you have some gold, you can start spending it! There are a few ways to buy things with your gold. First, you can seek out a shop and spend your gold there. Shops may be found all across the land, though they are mainly concentrated in the major cities and some villages. They may be owned by denizen (such as the ubiquitous Rurin), adventurer, or even organization. You can tell if you are in a store by LOOKing: if there is a line stating to use the WARES command, odds are that you are in a shop. Use the aforementioned WARES command to see what is on sale, and for how much. If you want to look more closely at an object, you can PROBE the item listed, though you should use the item's full name (plus number) to avoid conflicting with something you may be holding (or even another item in the shop). To purchase an item, make sure your gold is in your hands, then BUY <item>.

Denizens may hawk their private wares, too! In such cases, they may not be located in a dedicated shop; they carry their wares with them. In such a case, you will need to ASK <denizen> WARES to view their wares, if any. To look more closely at a ware, you can simply ASK <denizen> <item> and they will show off that particular item. Finally, once you've chosen something to purchase you can BUY <item> FROM <denizen>.

Finally, you can trade directly with a willing adventurer. Such trade is reliant on the simple GIVE [#} <item> TO <adventurer> (where the number is optional), and is based on trust between both parties for the goods to be properly transferred. You can make arrangements for such trade in person, in private, or over the dedicated MARKET channel (see HELP MARKET), and of course you can be either the buyer or the seller in such a scenario.

Customising Your Character

As you progress exploring the lands you might want to add more detail to your character. Detail helps you to roleplay with more consistency and shows others what you are like. Here we try to describe a few of the many ways you can detail your character.

Your Description

One of the first things you will want to do normally is to describe your character. Your description is what someone who looks at you sees. You can use DESCRIBE ME <description> to edit your personal description. It will always start with "<name> is a <sex> <race> and is ...". The easiest way is to try a simple example and look at yourself, so try DESCRIBE ME tall. and have a look. Of course a good description is usually somewhat longer than that. Description guidelines are detailed in HELP DESCRIPTION.

Clothing Yourself

After you have described yourself and are still only wearing the simple clothes you were given during the introductory tour you might want to find something more interesting to wear. Around the lands there are many shops with different clothing items and there are also tailors that can design custom clothing and jewellery. Shopping for clothing seems to be something that some male and female characters enjoy very much. Your clothing will be listed at the end of your description.

Your Warcry/Motto

Your warcry and motto are simply phrases that you may customize, and then use in a similar way as emotes. If you have a warcry/motto set, you can use WARCRY/MOTTO to say that particular phrase.

  • SET WARCRY <message> - sets your warcry to that message
  • SET WARCRY CLEAR - clears your warcry completely
  • SET MOTTO <message> - sets your motto to that message
  • SET MOTTO CLEAR - clears your motto completely

Note that your warcry/motto will be displayed in your honours. You may have only a motto, or only a warcry. Also, warcries and mottoes are to be kept strictly in-character.

Your Background

Backgrounds are a chance for players to write their history before the age of 18 and continue it with chapters as new things happen.

Here are some important things you need to know about backgrounds, in case you ever plan to use them.

COMPOSE BACKGROUND takes you into the Achaean editor, where you can write your background down. Please be VERY careful, as you can never alter this once it is saved. We strongly recommend writing it offline, running it through a spell-checker, proofreading it, proofreading it again, then submitting it when you are completely satisfied.

COMPOSE HISTORY takes you into the editor to compose a new chapter of your background. Like backgrounds, they can never be altered once saved.

COMPOSE HISTORY TITLE <CHAPTER #> <DESIRED TITLE> (perhaps this would read, COMPOSE HISTORY TITLE 7 Chopping the Redwood Tree) assigns a title to a chapter number.

VIEW BACKGROUND <CHARACTER> (perhaps this would read VIEW BACKGROUND SARAPIS) shows you the background of the person you choose, assuming they have allowed you to read it. You can also simply VIEW BACKGROUND, without supplying a name, to read your own.

VIEW HISTORY SUMMARY <CHARACTER> shows you the chapter summary of the person in question. Omit the character to view your own.

VIEW HISTORY <CHAPTER> <CHARACTER> (perhaps this would read, VIEW HISTORY 7 SARAPIS) will show you a specific chapter in detail. Omit the character to view your own.

SET HISTORY PUBLIC/ALLIES/PRIVATE to control who can view your character background.

Class and Skills Learning

Myrrh

Myrrh was once used to give an additional bonus to the lessons that you learn, and was normally required by Guilds and Houses to be used when learning to reduce the number of lessons needed to reach vital skills.

Now it has been proven that myrrh no longer increases your lessons' effectiveness, although it will reduce the amount of time necessary to complete a learning session.

Weapon Proficiencies

Weapon proficiencies allow you to become a master of a weapon, increasing your potential accuracy and damage when using that particular weapon. Some classes are given a free proficiency if you take them. These classes are:

  • Bards - rapiers
  • Druids - quarterstaves
  • Infernals - longswords
  • Jesters - blackjacks
  • Paladins - longswords
  • Priests - maces
  • Runewardens - broadswords
  • Sentinels - handaxes plus either spears or tridents
  • Serpents - whips
  • Sylvans - quarterstaves

For everyone else, you must spend 100 lessons on gaining the proficiency and then practise with the weapon until you've mastered it. Simply LEARN PROFICIENCY IN <weapon name> FROM <teacher> when you have 100 lessons available. To aid adventurers in gaining these proficiencies, there are several proficiency teachers in the lands.

  • Straight, edged swords - Swordmaster Colbey, of Delos
  • Rapier and scimitar - King Tu'eras, of the Tsol'aa
  • Polearms - Captain Korlosh, of Delos
  • Maces, flails, etc - Lieutenant Serentesh, of Delos
  • Battleaxes, handaxes - Shale Ironrock, of Delos
  • Spear, javelin - Etarni the Hunter, of Tomacula
  • Warhammer - Geld, of Hashan
  • Dagger, dirk - A shady-looking man in Hashan
  • Quarterstaff - Seasone
  • Lance - Lady Lhadia, of Matsuhama's temple
  • Trident, Whip - Clynalia, of Delos

Gaining a Class via Certimene

Certimene, who can be found in Delos, acts as Administrator for all Classes. In order for Certimene to induct you into any class, you must be at least level 5. All you need to do to gain a class through Certimene is ASK CERTIMENE JOIN <classname>. This is the only way you may become a member of any class.

Learning Skills

A skill is a group of abilities. Examples would be Survival and Subterfuge (a serpent class skill).

To train in a skill, you need to either learn from another player who has more training in the skill than you, or from a denizen tutor.

You can learn anywhere for 1 to 15 lessons at a time in this manner, and the more you learn, the more the skill will progress, giving you access to new abilities. Learning one lesson at a time can be very tedious, and it is suggested that you stick with groups of 15.

The syntax to train a skill is LEARN # <skill> FROM <tutor>.

It is suggested that you use myrrh when you learn, as it will speed up the process to some extent.

When you learn from other players, they will gain a small lesson bonus. While this bonus isn't much, training others regularly over time can help a tutor rise in skill rank.

As you train a skill, one way to judge the process is by the skill rank you are currently at. The skill ranks are as follow:

  1. Inept
  2. Novice
  3. Apprentice
  4. Capable
  5. Adept
  6. Skilled
  7. Gifted
  8. Expert
  9. Virtuoso
  10. Fabled
  11. Mythical
  12. Transcendent

As you advance in levels, you will gain bonus credits that can be converted to lessons. The process can be seen in HELP 19.4 (HELP CREDITS)

Public Teachers

There are numerous denizens that can help you advance in your skills via training.

The first tutors you will most likely come across are city tutors. City tutors will teach any newbie that wishes to train from them, but will only teach citizens of their city once the person is above newbie status.

City tutors are limited in how much they can teach you. Their knowledge only extends to Skilled in any skill.

The different city tutors are as follows:

If you are confused as to where they are, many can be reached from the Ring of Portals. Otherwise, citizens of any given city will know where their city tutor is. It can't hurt to ask!

Once you have advanced to Skilled in any skill, you will be limited, for the most part, to House or order tutors. Usually, you must belong to a specific organisation to use their tutor.

There are two major exceptions to this rule: Tyrandiel in the library of Thera and Onorol in Shastaan. They can teach anyone any skill up to Transcendent.

Houses

What are Houses?

Houses are a collective of like-minded individuals who work towards the same goals, as well as aiding each other in said goals. They can provide useful support to newbies in the form of explaining skills and what to learn, giving directions to different areas to hunt, and providing goals to work towards. They also often provide training in antitheft. They are also a great way to meet friends and learn more about Achaea.

These are only a few of the things houses can provide, but they are the most useful for newbies.

Joining a House

When considering what house to join, you should take the time to decide what your character's interests are and what you want him or her to work towards as a goal. There are many houses, so it can take a bit of time to research them all, but it can pay off in the end.

To view a list of houses, check HOUSE LIST.

Each house will be listed similar to the following: 

Short Name      A  In Which City  Long Name                         Patron
--------------  -  -------------  --------------------------------- ------------
Sentaari        Y  Shallam        The Sentaari                      Mithraea


The Short Name is used for commands involving the house. The A signifies whether or not they allow auto-induction via Certimene. In Which City describes which city the house is based in. (Some houses require you be a part of the city they are in.) The Long Name is the official name of the house. The patron is the Divine that has lent His or Her support to the house.

To view the information on a particular house, check HELP HOUSE <house short name>.

If you have already chosen your class, you may notice that some houses do not accept certain classes. There is a quick way to check what houses accept your class. Use HOUSE LIST <class name> to do so.

Assuming the house allows auto-induction, from here you can simply go to Certimene and ASK CERTIMENE JOIN <house short name>. You are now part of a house! Make sure to say hi on HNT.

If the house does not allow auto-induction, you will need to contact someone from the house that can induct you.

If you check HELP HOUSE <house short name> you will notice this 


 [CURRENTLY IN THE REALM]
Newcomer aides:
Able to induct:


You may contact anyone listed under able to induct and ask to be inducted. They will help you from there.

Cities

What are Cities?

Cities are organized groups of players that are given a chunk of land, plus a political and economical system. Each city has its own cultures, laws and policies, and residents that are unique.

Joining a City

Healing

Healing Health

There are two methods of healing your health that everyone, regardless of class, has available to them. There are abilities that allow you to heal yourself, but that is something you should try to learn on your own.

Firstly, you can SLEEP off your wounds. This will restore your endurance, exhaustion level, and damage all at the same time. It may take a few minutes, so be patient! You can WAKE up at any time, though it may take you a while to break free of your dreams.

Secondly, you can buy health elixirs in most every city. Vials filled by a non-Transcendent concoctionist, or Seasone, will last for 50 sips. Vials filled by Transcendent concoctionists will last for 60 sips. When you have a health elixir, you need only to DRINK HEALTH to be restored a good deal of your health. There is a short time before you may take another drink, and sipping from a vial when off of this balance will result in a wasted sip.

Healing Mana

There are two methods of regaining your mana reserves that are available to everyone, regardless of class.

Firstly, you can MEDITATE to regain willpower and mana. This may take a few minutes, and doing anything in the middle of meditation will break your concentration.

Secondly, you can buy mana elixirs in most every city. Vials filled by a non-Transcendent concoctionist, or Seasone, will last for 50 sips. Vials filled by Transcendent concoctionists will last for 60 sips. When you have a mana elixir, you need only to DRINK MANA to be restored a good deal of your mana reserves. There is a short time before you may take another drink, and sipping from a vial when off of this balance will result in a wasted sip.

Healing Endurance

There are several abilities that players can learn that will aid in the regeneration of endurance, but the only method available to all players is SLEEPing. To leave your slumber before your endurance and exhaustion level have been fully restored, simply WAKE up.

Healing Willpower

There are many ways to regain your willpower, but only one method is available to everyone, regardless of their class. You can MEDITATE to begin regaining mana and willpower. Doing anything before your meditation is complete will stop the process.

Afflictions

Plants

Smoking/Pipes

Elixirs and Salves

Combat Basics

Player-Killing Rules

Geography & Movement

Newbie Portals

The Gods have given all players under level 21 special access to the Ring of Portals, where you may enter some of the more important landmarks around Sapience. Before you reach level 11, you will have unlimited uses of the portals. When you reach level 11, you only have 20 more uses of the portals, and at level 21 you may no longer access them at all.

The Ring of Portals

  • Northeast: Certimene, the Class and House Administrator
  • East: Vinci's Tattoo Emporium
  • Southeast: The Land of Minia (and Vellis, butterfly man)
  • Southwest: The Isle of Delos
  • West: Seasone, the Seller of Potions and Elixirs
  • Northwest: The Valley of Lodi
  • Down: Tyrandiel, the wise

The Northern Portal Room

  • North: Central Market of Ashtan
  • East: The Garden of Epicurus in Ashtan
  • Southeast: Hall of Learning in the Academy of Hashan
  • Southwest: Liirup of Hashan
  • West: The Bazaar of Hashan
  • Northwest: The Ratman of Ashtan

The Southern Portal Room

  • East: The House of Averroes in Shallam
  • South: Indalecio, the Academician of Cyrene
  • Southeast: The base of the Eleusian Gatehouse
  • Southwest: Jorj, the city caretaker in Cyrene
  • West: The Artisan Plaza in Cyrene
  • Northwest: Crazy Hakhim in Shallam
  • Northeast: Zanzibaar Street in Shallam
  • In: Maric, the Ratman of Mhaldor

Basic Geography

Landmarks and the WALK TO command

There are a number of landmarks over sapience that are known to all by the age of 18, and so if you are within 50 rooms of the landmark and not in a subdivision or the wilderness you can move towards it by the use of a simple command.

WALK TO <landmark> - This will move you one room closer to the landmark providing that you are able to walk normally. It takes roughly one second of balance, and so it is impractical to use in combat, although if you are lost it is a great help.

DISTANCE TO <landmark> - This will tell you how far away the landmark is from your current location or if it is further than 50 steps away.

Current landmarks

  • Ashtan Entering the Main Gate of Ashtan
  • Cyrene The Cyrene Gates
  • Eleusis Base of the Eleusian Gatehouse
  • Hashan Porta Aquila
  • Mhaldor The gates of Mhaldor
  • Shallam Outside the great gates
  • Actar Narrow entrance to a hidden valley
  • Azdun In the courtyard of a ruined castle
  • CaerWitrin Dejourdie Street at the town entrance
  • Delos On the Delosian Bridge
  • El'Jazira Inside the falconer's tent (a hatchery)
  • Enverren A boggy place
  • Gheladan Hills near the southern old road
  • GreatRock Cavern within the Great Rock
  • Jaru The Jaru Crossroads
  • Lodi Narrow entrance to the Valley of Lodi
  • Manara Beneath the Granite hills
  • Minia Ivy-covered archway to Minia
  • NoT North of New Thera
  • Petra Village intersection
  • Shastaan At the Shastaan well
  • Tasur'ke The Tasur road nearing the gates

Note: Explorer ranking IS affected by using the landmarks command exactly as though you were walking normally.

Special and Magical Movement

Death

Praying for Salvation

If you find yourself no longer among the long of the living, you may PRAY FOR SALVATION. Upon doing so, you will be instantly transported to the halls of Maya, where she will determine if you are to be granted another chance at life or not.

Other Methods of Resurrection

Should you find that you do not wish to pray to the Great Mother for salvation, you still have a few options available to you. If someone has your corpse and happens to like you, they may take it to and immolate it in the Flame of Yggdrasil. Also, if a devotion user comes across your corpse, they may use their devotion to invoke the power of goodness and resurrect you that way. Finally, if you find that your corpse has been lost, or worse, decapitated, you may still be brought back to life if you find your way to a grove and have a friendly forestal resurrect you via the powers of the forest.

Experience Loss

When you die, it is inevitable that you will lose a part of your soul, and thus, some of your gained experience. How much you lose is dictated by how you are brought back to life. Levels of experience loss, in descending order, are as follows:

  • Being immolated in the Flame of Yggdrasil.
  • Praying for salvation.
  • Being resurrected by devotion or grove.

Basic History and Mythology

Much of the history of Achaea, from Creation to the Modern Age, may be found here. A shorter span of time, from Creation to the aftermath of the War of Humanity, is recounted in the in-game help scroll HELP MYTHOS.

Credits

Issues and Customer Service

Advanced Communication

Sometimes, you may find the need to convey something to Sapience in general or to someone who is currently not in the realms.

Shouts

Shouts are the cheapest form of mass communication available. To shout, one must first find a Ram's Horn. They're located all over Sapience, usually in places of high altitude such as the Vashnars. Placing exactly 100 gold in the Horn (PUT 100 gold IN HORN) allows you to SHOUT <message> across Sapience for everyone who is not deaf to hear.

Shouting is generally anonymous unless the shouter identifies themselves, or is a Dragon, or the listener has the ability of Recognition in Vision. Depending on your level or the level of others, the shouting voice will be different, you may use STAT to see what your own voice will be like.

It is also noted that your shout is only of a finite length and attempting too lengthy a shout may cause you to momentarily pass out.

Messages

Messages are favoured by many adventurers as a free long distance form of one to one communication. Certain places in Sapience are considered 'off plane' or just too far away for people to communicate via tells, hence the use of messages. Achaea's administration or system also sends messages on occasion for a variety of reasons, including items decaying, or bestowing and loss of Divine Favours while you are not in game.

When you receive a message, you will be alerted either with the in game alert:

'You just received message # from Playername.' if you are in game at the time receiving or '*** You have new messages ***' if you received the messages while not in the game.

In order to read the message you may use RM or READMSG to read the first unread message, or MSG READ # to read a specific message.

Should you wish to send someone a message simply MSG <person> <your message>.

There is a whole slew of things you can do with the MSG function. Simply entering MSG without a target will reveal all the possible actions to be done with this syntax.

Postal System & Letters

One way for adventurers to communicate with each other is through Achaea's postal system. Letters may be sent to anyone, no matter where they stand on the continent. To begin correspondence, find a postal office and, with 100 gold in your hands, REQUEST LETTER. You may then WRITE LETTER to enter Achaea's editor, or PUT <item> IN <letter> to deliver a fun gift! When you are finished, MAIL LETTER TO <person>.

Letters will decay in ten months, so if your recipient does not log in to the game during that time period, the letter will never be delivered. As a result, you may not wish to send heaps of gold or expensive armour through the mail unless you know for sure that your recipient will be around to receive it.

Newsboards

There are several ways to communicate with other characters in game, including tells and other organisation channels. In addition, these organisations have newsboards that members may post to and read from.

Every House has a newsboard for both its novices and its full members. Each city has its own newsboard. If you are a member of a clan, you can probably access that clan's newsboard. There are also public news boards, an area for the administration to make announcements, and a poetry section.

To view what newsboards you have access to, use NSTAT. This will also display the total number of articles on that board, and the highest post number that you have read.

To read an article, simply use READNEWS <section> <post number>. To view a group of posts on a newsboard, use NSUMMARY <section> <starting post number>. For instance, NSUMMARY PUBLIC 8000 will display posts 8000-8019, and then you may READNEWS PUBLIC 8014 to view that particular post.

Writing news posts requires a bit more work. You must find one of Sapience's many newsrooms, and when inside one, use NEWS. From there, you must type SECTION <section> to enter the board that you wish to post to, and then WRITE. You'll be prompted as to what to do, and then you will enter Achaea's editor. For more help within the editor, use *HELP.

Forums

The official Achaean Forums are a place for the players of this game to chat and discuss the world of Achaea. The forums are completely OOC (Out of Character) and so taking sensitive information from the forums and bringing it into the game is frowned upon, and may get you in trouble with the administration.

There are also rules that must be followed when posting on the forums: Achaea's Forum Rules

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