Volume Six Issue Thirty-Nine
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............./ / THE LEGENDARY TIMES
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.../________________/ running on mud.sig.net 9999
199.1.78.16 9999
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http://mud.sig.net/ ftp://mud.sig.net/pub
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VOLUME SIX, ISSUE THIRTY-NINE October 4th, 1999
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
NEWS & REPORTS
- The Immortal Report -
- A Call to Action: Editorial -
LEGENDITES
- Announcements -
- Letters.... -
- What have I done? -
- Who? - CLeo interviews Rufus -
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/__| UPCOMING CALENDAR OF EVENTS |__\
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[All times are system time unless otherwise specified]
>-/\*/\-/\*/\-/\*/\-/\ October /\-/\*/\-/\*/\-/\*/\-<
Wednesday, October 6, 3-5:00 pm Mort-Immort Cocktail Party
Thursday, October 7, 7:00 pm Q & A in OOC Auditorium
Thursday, October 14, 7:00 pm Q & A in OOC Auditorium
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/__| NEWS AND REPORTS |__\
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The Immortal Report
Admin:
Zandy is still on vacation.
- Chocorua deleted some characters by request, did some pkenabling, answered
some questions about descs, and went on vacation.
- Dominic did some archiving and helped some newbies get used to our system.
Builder:
Sandra talked with people about testing, and fixed some small things in
Pittsburgh.
- Charity continued testing Malta and updating the builder documentation.
- Cheyla did restrings/strings, organized some area notes, and talked with
some players about problems.
- Chimera did a lot of work on Cheyenne, rooms, objects and mobs. He also
tested Greece and Malta.
- Joule spent some time working on room descriptions for trans-Pecos, and did
some testing on Alaska and Tudor.
- Kae tracked down bugs, added a number of rooms, mobs and items to Denmark,
and began fixing objects in Malta as per Charity's testing response. She also
talked to players about various issues of concern to them.
- LadyAce fixed typos & bugs in the savanna & Malta, added some descs to
Klein, tested anasazi.
- Rufus made a lot of progress on rooms, mobs, and descriptions for his new
area, industrial Ceylon.
- Rusalka started looking at Anasazi, and did some work making notes for her
next area.
- Vannessa's computer is out of commission, so she's unable to do any work.
However, when her machine returns to working order, so will she.
Coder:
Ea! basically finished up the new mud machine, got back to working on some
other projects, including the xpscale and issues regarding pkill.
Rufus did some work adjusting the xpscale and did some testing of his
ideas. He also made an adjustment to the way study works.
- Chocorua: added a |U6 to help prevent color bleeding in illusions.
PR:
LadyAce: Strings/restrings/descriptions, found some lost characters, deleted
some unwanted ones, pkenabled some others. Talked to players, did a Q & A.
Ran 2 games of recalltag, put together an LT, and worked on adding new items
to the prize machine. She also ran a PK tourney.
- Chimera did a bunch of strings and restrings, talked to various mortals
about various things, and worked on getting a set of conundrums available.
- Dominic started researching into a new game, and is now gone on vacation to
try to restore himself a bit after multiple stresses in RL.
- Joule did a few strings and several archives, and did some work on her
current game project.
- Natalia read over Malta, did string & restrings, worked on her character
pages project, issued a few warnings, and talked with players.
- NorthStar is still working on getting her computer going, but was able to
spend some time online talking to players, strung, restrung and did zips, and
worked on getting a few RP scenarios going.
- Rusalka talked to players, proposed meet-your-imm parties and scheduled
one, did strings etc.
- Stile did some archiving and restringing, talked to some players. He was
sick this week so didn't get as much done as he wanted to.
oOo_oOo_oOo_oOo_oOo_oOo_oOo_oOo
A Call to Action
Anonymous Editorial
For the record, the two people this concerns shall remain nameless.
Today I sat down and had a four hour discussion, about the general welfare of
the game we all all love to play, LegendMUD. I had this discussion with what
I would call an "oldbie", someone like myself. In fact, between the two of
us, there was over ten years of Legend playing experience, so I was fairly
confident that the two of us had a pretty good idea about the happenings of
the Mud.
I'm writing this for the oldbies, because I honestly feel that we make this
great Mud what it is, and we play a part in making it's future.
Friends, enemies.. Lets sit back and observe what has happened to "our" Mud.
We have gotten away from the old days, and the old ways, which may or may not
be such a bad thing. We are now playing with a much younger generation, a
generation that was never taught "nettiquette". Why they weren't taught I'm
not sure, but as "oldbies" it is up to us to teach them. While pkok may be
one of the best ideas to hit legend in many years, it is being put in because
of the lack of common respect among pk'ers. Rather than trying to change the
people pkilling, we are attempting to change the entire system to suit the
needs of this younger generation.
The internet has become to big, so fast, that the entire internet has
forgotten the meaning of nettiquette. I know it may sound a bit silly, those
things we all learned when we started tinkering around on the internet. Such
things as respect for others, even though you can't see them visually, we all
know and understand that there is an actual person behind the names of
Legend.
Above I touched briefly on pkill, because I'm an avid pkiller, but it is only
one example, the list goes on with very similar things that apply.
So, I'd like to present all of the Legend oldbies with a task, and that task
being to bring back what we've all let slip away. If you feel the you
yourself are an oldbie, I hold you responsible, as well as myself. I plan to
do exactly what I say. While we may not be immortals or their alts, we have a
very big influence on things that happen. If we a worthless, we can expect no
more from the newer generation than just that, what we are. On the other
hand, if we do the little things that matter, we can nearly demand it from
them.
We all complain about how Legend "used to be". Well, we are the ones with the
power to make it what it used to be, A Mud that stands alone, above the rest.
This is LegendMUD people, we used to stand apart from stock muds because of
the people who played here, and it's up to us if we want that back. Immortals
can't snap their fingers and make it happen.
So please, help me and the immortals of this Mud get back to the basics and
make this Mud what it used to be, the very best around.
Thank you.
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o O | Wonder what folks are |
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/__| LEGENDITES: Information Regarding the People of Our World |__\
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Announcements
The Ministry of Darkness disbanded this week for low membership.
<-> <-> <->
The McDougans Clan formed this week.
<-> <-> <->
FOR SALE
Stylish 4 room villa in Lima's fashionable San Isidro district. A pickproof
wrought iron gate leads to a garden courtyard, complete with reflecting pool.
Fireplace in the kitchen, with an oven that can make a better cook out of
anyone! Elegant bedroom suite, spacious enough for you and all your friends
to go to sleep in. An upstairs balcony overlooking the street rounds out this
home's luxurious offerings. Plenty of storage space, including hidden
cabinets in two rooms. Cat may or may not come with the house (it's hard to
tell with cats). Former owner gained celebrity status for popularizing trips
to the Pirate's Den, but has since thrown over the life of luxury, and gone
camping instead. Assumable mortgage, available for the bargain price of 6754
gold per day. Contact Cyanide for a tour; serious inquiries only, please.
<-> <-> <->
Do You Wish to Serve our Lord Savior?
In recent times, the Saracen presence in the Holy Land has become more of a
threat to our good pilgrims and noble residents of the Latin Kingdom. 'Tis
time once again to sound the bugles to rally up all good men and women who
wish to dedicate their lives and souls to the service of Christ. Don thy
father's armor and stand forth now, all ye who art brave, and take the oaths
of servitude. Dost thou wish to walk the path of the angels with Sir Eadric?
Wouldst thou want to wander with the knowledgeable Sister Becket or brave
Lady Elaria? Wouldst thou explore the realms and help the needy with young
Lady Juliana? Wouldst thou fight the evil Grendels with Lady Diamond? Heed
the holy call and sharpen thy weapon to shed the Infidel blood and protect
those who are needy of our strong arms!
Please find more information upon the Knights Templar and the application
procedure at: www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/Realm/4119
Yours faithfully in Christ,
Tancred de Gisborne,
Master of the Temple.
oOo_oOo_oOo_oOo_oOo_oOo_oOo_oOo
Letters.....
Mitra Ajami
some horrid little inn in Klein
February 7, 1150 AD
Dearest Thalia,
I suppose that you have been dead for some three thousand years now, and
hence might not receive this, but I feel I must confide in someone. And
Fred, that splendid fellow that works for me, has proven himself to be
amazingly good at finding obscure addresses. Last week he even got a party
invitation delivered to Alexander the Great (who had to decline, of course,
as he had more Olympian commitments).
Thalia, I am so very perplexed. Only last week, you and I were temple girls
together (yes, I know that I still owe you 10 denaira!). And now so many
strange things have happened, and I am so very, very confused. Last week, I
was in the temple, planning to run away, and doing rather well at it I
think. And this week I find myself in some strange new place where the words
are unfamiliar and the people even more so (by the mysterious grace of
Asarte, may She be All Merciful!).
Except for my landlord, oddly enough. Who turns out not to have quite been my
landlord, only I do not recall exactly. Apparently I have been alive these
three thousand years, who could have guessed it? I found a pile of old
journals in the cabinet of my room, but they are woefully incomplete. Entire
centuries are casually skipped. Judging from the large pile of receipts and
unpaid bills, it seems that I was more interested in shopping than in
keeping records.
I write this because I need to ask your advice on a certain matter. This
landlord, this Marcel Alexander, who drinks vile coffee and smells like a
desert spirit, this man had apparently asked for my hand in marriage some
weeks ago in the new past that I do not know. Or at least all those nice
people who wrote references for him seemed to think so. Although they
disagreed on his character, they were quite clear on his intent.
You can imagine my surprise. Who in his right mind would want to marry a
temple girl? I mean, certainly, we were praised and given expensive perfumes,
but really, darling, we knew our place! And he seems to have known my past
life quite well, certainly better than I do now.
Being naturally curious as to who should want to marry a temple girl, I have
endeavored to spend time in his company. He is a paradox. Generous to all and
even handed on the one, yet oddly brooding on the other, as though some great
thing worried at him. I am fascinated by him. And I feel all sorts of
memories begin to stir when I look upon his shadowed face, tantalizing me
with their near presence.
And Thalia, he not an unattractive man. Rich. Flowery in tongue if not
intent. And strange as it may sound, I think that I care for him. But what
can a temple girl know of such things? Perhaps I delude myself.
And I wonder how the old me differs from the new, and what he must think of
that change. He claims that he will be "friend" to me, which would seem an
obligation. And yet when he says "friend," his eyes light up and glow like
the amethyst that I wear, and it seems such a lovely, lovely word, the most
beautiful word that I have ever heard.
Dearest Thalia, my dearest, oldest friend, I want to marry this man. I want
to know what it is to be married (especially as they don't seem to go for 40
wives here, a decided advantage I think). I want to be more than a concubine
to suffered at a man's pleasure or a temple girl to serve her master's
goddess. I doubt that he would ask again; such men are too proud to ask
twice, and it sounds as though I suffered doubts before, marvelous as that
seems to me now.
And so I think to ask him. And I do not know whether to do so would be wrong
in this world. It would be in ours, but this one is so strange, with so many
new things, that I really do not know. I have consulted all my guide books
for this era, and none mentions my question nor gives a satisfying answer.
Please advise me, dear friend, for I do not wish to offend either this
world's mores or this charming, but perplexing man. After all, he is my
landlord!
- Mitra
<-> <-> <->
A letter carrying the Alexander noble crest was 'accidentally' opened by
the mailman this week. The mailman's cousin who writes for The Sun is
pleased to share the contents:
Lady Nancy Alexander
Alexander Manor, Suffolk, UK
Dear Mother;
Yes, I know it has been a while since you heard from me. Things have been
busy, and I've had some things to see to in the family business. I write
you now to share the wonderful news that I intend to marry within the year.
I know you always have desired for me to make a good marriage to a girl of
wealth and name. It is with absolute delight I can impart that my Mitra is
poor as a church mouse and has no noble relations whatsoever.
You have always asked of me to spend my time only on women of good bearing
and good manners. I am pleased to tell you that my lady has the best of
manners you could ever expect in a Persian temple girl. I'm certainly smiling
at the thought of the look on your face when you realize what that means.
Regarding the money you have set aside to celebrate a huge church wedding and
banquet for your eldest son, spend them on Sydney instead - if you can find
out what London whorehouse he's currently enjoying himself in. I have no
intentions of bringing my Mitra home so that you may meet her; I see no
reason to expose her to your vicious tongue and pathetic attempts to run my
life. She hardly deserves to have to listen to sermons of morale and what
'decent people do', coming from a countryside noblewoman who was so bored she
began practicing black magic and sleeping with demons just to get some action
into her life.
Please share the news with your husband if you can find him. Last I heard he
was in Bali, enjoying his freedom immensely. Oh, and I heard little Fifi
died. I know how much she meant to you. Please teach your next lapdog to
avoid my rooms.
Yours,
Marcel Alexander, Esquire.
oOo_oOo_oOo_oOo_oOo_oOo_oOo_oOo
What have I done?
I ask myself that question day and night, night and day, hour after hour,
minute after minute...I have got to calm myself, there's no sense in me
losing the sanity that I just regained.
I am no longer a vampire. The Demon Xianadu, which had a stronghold on my
soul, has released his grip on me...but at what cost have I saved myself and
regained my sanity? What monster have I unleashed on this world?
I grip my head in pain and agony as I sit reeling from fright and worry. I
cannot, will not once again have the blood of countless souls on my
hands...worse the blood of the one to whom I owe my very existence, the one
who is closer to me than a brother...my Master Xerox.
It was Sunday afternoon. I had just awoken from a restless sleep that was
plagued by nightmares...nightmares that the demon inside of me had me almost
believing.. I was sitting in the Tara Reception in a quiet, deep,
meditation. As I sat around the table my meditation turned my thought to my
wife WhiteRose whom I sent away for a few months, while I tried to regain my
sanity, not knowing if the demon inside of me would drive me to kill again.
then my thoughts turned to my precious twin children. Brianna, who is a
spitting image of her mother, and my son, my poor son Xianadu, who at birth
was claimed by the demon and given his name. Then my thoughts turned to my
Master Xerox, to whom I owe everything.
Xerox was the one who had taken me in after I was bitten by that forsaken
creature of the night. He helped me to stave my craving for blood, taught me
how to be strong against the demon inside of me. I owe him my life.
It had come to my attention that, after saving her from a life threatening
disease, my master had fallen deeply in love with one named Gallowglass. I,
in my travels, had heard many things about Gallowglass. Some have said that
she was nothing but a confused, deranged, husband-leaving lunatic. Some said
that she was only out to satisfy herself. After hearing these things I told
Xerox as such. But, and I guess this is what makes him who he is, despite all
of the rantings going on about Gallowglass he still refused to stop loving
and cherishing her. It, as he put it, was her whom brought an inner peace to
his troubled soul.
I had, until that fateful Sunday, only casually spoken with Gallowglass. I
too, as my Master had done, tried to keep my opinion about her neutral. That
was no easy task seeing that I despised what I had become and what she had
been since birth.
Well into my period of meditation, I felt a slight tap on my shoulder.
Natural instinct caused me to jerk up and out of my meditation and be on my
guard, but it was only Gallowglass.
'I need to talk to you.' she said in almost a whisper.
'About what?' I said.
'I cannot marry your master.'
'Why?'
'Um, can we find a better place to talk? It is kind of noisy in here...' she
replied.
She was right, it was kind of noisy -- children and patrons running in and
out, and people who came from all over the world to use the services of the
resident Create Mage Marauder. So I suggested we move further in to the
Reception, and into the Wild Boar Tavern. I opened the door into the library
and sat down on the couch and she followed suit.
'Now can you please tell me why you cannot marry Xerox?'
She seemed distant for a while then she screams and grabs her head in pain.
'Don't you see,' she says angrily. 'This is why I cannot marry Xerox. I will
destroy him.'
All of a sudden I felt it happening again...
My light blue eyes turned flaming red, I drew my fangs and felt completely
evil.
'You have nothing on me wench! I have this soul and will not be stopped. You
are not as powerful as you think. In fact your power will be mine as well.'
She fainted dramatically.
'No you mustn't bite, I will not allow myself to bite her.' The demon inside
of me forced my hands to her throat and bent her head slightly to the side.
'No, I will not let you get the best of me!'
The next thing I know, I am on the ground coming to.
"What happened..." I was surprised. I no longer felt the burning in my body,
I no longer craved blood.
The cries I heard constantly in my ears were gone.
Then I looked up and there was Gallowglass towering
over me...
'Do you like what you created?' she asked with a sneer.
'What do you mean I created...oh my god. No! I didn't bite you!'
'That is what you say.' She then showed me two small pinpricks on her neck.
'Oh no.' I moaned and fell to my knees. 'What have I done?'
She then grabbed me by my neck and forced me to my feet and above her head.
'I have the power to kill you right now and finish what Xianadu started, but
for the sake of Xerox I will not.'
I fell to my knees. I looked up and she had vanished.
So now you know my story. I feel now the need to apologize to you all who may
read this. I know not what I unleashed onto this land. No longer will I be a
man who has the blood of many flowing through him, no I will now be seen as a
wise, aged man with a snowy white beard and to those of you who are
near-sighted, a wise, aged old man...
Genocide
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/ / / / / / / / / / / / __ / WHEN? /
/ / / / / / / / /_/ / / / / / WHAT? WITH? /
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/ / \/ \/ / / / / / / /_/ / We've got the answers! /
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/ - By the angel CLeo - /
\____________________________________________________________/
Hello readers!
Yesterday, I was walking by the immortal office building and I heard a
repetitive noise coming from the coding hall... I walked and walked... and
found myself in front of Rufus' office door.
There was already a crack in the door, so I opened it to find Rufus,
staring at the computer screen and repeating (in a slow mumble) "Skilltrees
code... Skilltrees code..." I guess he just needed a break :) So I
interviewed him. Although... He did repeat it a few times more during the
interview...
Enjoy the reading!
Full name: Rufus Littlebottom, Arabian Poolshark from Hell
Occupation: Architect. Currently I'm in charge of doing the final
implementation of skilltrees code along with whatever else needs to be done
coding or buildingwise.
Q - 'When you first started to play on muds, did you ever think you'd end up
being an immortal on LegendMUD (or any muds)?'
A - 'LegendMUD was the first mud I played, and I had an pretty good idea
that I'd like to be part of the immortal staff after about three or four
months. Out of the dozen or so muds I've played regularly over the years,
I've been an immortal on three. But Legend's the only one left.
Q - 'What is one of the biggest challenge you ever had on LegendMUD?'
A - 'As a player, I think one of the biggest challenges getting used to the
player behind the keyboard idea. I used to take many things personally...
too personally, and that would show in my playing. Kiera kindly cured me of
that. As an immortal, the biggest challenge I had was finding a balance
between being familiar with the playerbase and keeping a professional
distance. In the past two years or so, I've been slowly pulling away from
being personally involved with the day to day operations of the mud. It's
given me time to focus more on large scale building and coding issues, but
it does mean I've lost touch with a great deal of the playerbase. It's
something that's challenging me to this day.
Q - 'If there would be one piece of code you could create to simplify
something that can't be done under the current coding system, what would it
be?'
A - 'I would rewrite all the skills, spells and most other game systems in a
scripting language, either proprietary or using an established language such
as TCL or Python -- likely Python. That way balance adjustments and skills
could be changed while the mud was running, without having to recompile or
restart the mud.'
Q - 'What is your favorite animal?'
A - 'A cat. My fiance and I have three of them.'
Q - 'If you were a kitchen utensil, what would you be?'
A - 'A pasta ladle. Why? because, by law of averages, that's what I would
be. Over the last few years, people have apparently thought that I was
somehow pasta-ladle deficient, so as stocking stuffers, birthday presents,
just about any holiday where you give something away, I received pasta
ladles. Then I moved in with my fiance, and she already had three. I swear,
they breed. I think that if I were somehow magically transformed into a
utensil, the pasta ladles would have their own vote, and I would be subject
to their whims.'
Q - 'If you could build the house of your dream what would it be?'
A - 'Large, very large. Each room would have a different theme, though the
only room which I have detailed in my mind would be the piano room. White
walls, black, modern style furniture, white and black tiled floor with a 9'
Bosendorfer grand piano centered in the room.'
Q - 'Where in the world would you like to go, if you'd have a free travel
pass?'
A - 'India, Tibet, China, Japan, Taiwan, Sri Lanka, any place where Buddhism
and Hinduism has great influence. My personal beliefs being a blend of
Western logic and Eastern metaphysics, I think it would be something very
spiritual to me.'
Q - 'If you could go in the future and you could bring only 1 thing back,
what would it be?'
A - 'Skilltrees code, finished.'
Q - 'If you could create a new word what would it be and mean?'
A - 'Tandemtanunbaumentoten. German for two people carrying a Christmas
tree.'
Q - 'If I could grant you a wish, what would it be?'
A - 'Skilltrees code, finished.'
Q - 'A few last words of advice for our readers?'
A - 'Think. Always think. I know I don't take my advice sometimes, we all
need to blow up occasionally, but think about the consequences of your
actions and weigh your decision based on all involved.
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Legendary Times is published by the immortals of LegendMUD. Please send
all replies, additions, or corrections to our address at [email protected]
for inclusion in the next edition. We, however, reserve the right to
moderate this discussion, and may object to some submissions.
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