Player's Guide

Igor MUD is a text based interactive fiction with a huge unique world of amazing variety. It is also one of the oldest MUDs on the Internet.

The purpose of this guide is to help introduce new players to the world of Igor. The guide will help players get started and understand the complexities of the game.

From the Arch Team: While this open community written document is intended to be verbose and helpful, please keep it in the spirit of the MUD. Directions should be in paragraph form (ie: "Go west to the big tree, then north until you spy the Inn."), and no quest solutions are to be published.

Those who wish to be a NewbieHelper can read the linked guide for services that can be provided to new players.

Character Basics

Commands

These are commands which you use while in Igor; some of them necessary, some of them less necessary.

Commands are typed, and then you press enter to execute them.

The commands below will be followed by their abbreviation in quotation marks (if any exists.)

look, or "l":allows you to examine the room you are standing in. For example, if you stand in the church and type "look" or "l", you will see the following:

You are in the local village church.
There is a huge pit in the centre and a door in the west
wall. Ghosts and people whose heartbeats have stopped can
come to the church and pray to be reincarnated or revived.
A black sundial stands by the wall, throwing blue sparks.
There is an exit south to the village green.
A newbie area is north of here.
A ladder leads up through the roof, to a newbie school.
   Obvious exits: south, up, west and north.

examine, or "exa": allows you to look at an object, monster, or person. for instance, if you type "exa pit" while in the church, you will see the following:

In the middle of the church is a deep pit.
It was used for sacrifice in the old times, but nowadays
it is only left for tourists to look at.

Movement

Igor uses cardinal directions for navigation (north, east, south, west), diagonals (northwest, southwest, northeast, southeast), and up and down.
These are often abbreviated n, w, e, s, nw, ne, se, sw, u, d.

Starting Map

On first logging in, you will be in the Church. Larstown is where the action is, this map illustrates how to get there.

Character Information

Character information is an integral part of the game, it is what shapes and defines each person in the game. It is also what seperates us from each other. Although we all start out the same, the choices you make as you adventure across Igor will define you and make you different from anyone else. To get started learning about your character type the "score" command. This gives you an overview of your experience, gold, level, stats and more. To see a greater explanation jump on over to the Character Information page.

Equipment

Equipment here on Igor comes in all shapes and sizes. However, your most common items of equipment will include your weapon and your armour. As a new player to this mud, you can pickup your very own set of beginner's gear North of the Church. If you do not know where the Church is located, please refer to Maps section.

• Weapons: Swords, maces, wands, rods, staffs, knives, whips, and the list goes on.
• Armour: Helmets, leggings, rings, cloaks/capes, backpacks, gauntlets/gloves, boots/shoes, amulets, etc. etc.

As time goes on you will start to see that certain equipment gives bonuses. However, these pieces generally do not come without some challenge. Beware! Generally speaking, the better the equipment, the harder it is to obtain it. Whether you're fighting for your life, or even paying another player in gold.

Other forms of 'equipment', often referred to as 'items', will be found as you explore Igor. Certain items will be used to help with quests or they can even help you reach other areas by climb up or down from a tree, into a hole, and the list goes on.

Other forms of equipment: Rope, vines, cord, keys, shovels, etc etc.

In addition, you will find many items and equipment that will have single or a limited number of uses. These items are generally beneficial to you in some way. They maybe used for healing, or increasing other stats, whether it be hit points, devotion points (Bath), spell points, or even helping to adjust your alignment, these items serve a purpose. You will learn to identify the usage of these items as you learn the game.

You will commonly find useful items such as: food, beverage, pills, crystals, etc etc.

Pretty much, if you can imagine it, it's probably within the realm of Igor. That about covers it for equipment. There is a LOT of equipment on Igor. Hopefully you'll be fortunate enough to find and use the majority of it within your time spent here on Igor.

Good luck!

Environment

Igor's environment could be described in one simple word, 'Friendly'. People here on Igor are out to help one another. Whether it be to help a player with a few gold, or even to help a player with directions, people are here to help.

Newbie's are given extra special attention, as we all know how hard it is to be a newbie. There are several chat lines for a player to join and use. They range from simple chat to talk of area's, guilds, etc etc. Even a newbie line in which more experienced players can join in and give some help if need be.

All in all, Igor is a VERY tight-knit community. And the friendly environment is a HUGE reason for us being here for 20 years now.

Useful Autoloaders

There's so many autoloaders it's impossible to name them all, so here they'll be divided into sub-categories, ranging from guildmarks to toys.

Toys - Self-descriptive, these are simply fun things to play with. Most autoloaders of this category simply add more emotes and social commands. Some even add a chatline. Here are a couple of examples:

• Killstick - One of the funner toys, is the Killstick, it keeps track of how many kills you done (based on notches... Deep and Very Deep are especially exciting to younger players). It also keeps track of deaths... Everyone should have one. (sos, e, all n, w, n)

Clubs - This category most often enables additional chatlines, as well as incorporating toy functions. Some may provide skills/spells, such as devouring corpses or ordering pizza. Examples include the Order of Lala and the Spice Club. These are mostly gained by completing a quest.

Guild-marks - These are special items that grant skills belonging to a guild, such as the Rangers' vest, the badge of the Knights of Bath, the Loremasters' toolbox. In other words, it's what sets you apart from members of other guilds. Some provide storage for guild-specific items. For instance, the Rangers' pouch stores herbs, Lore toolbox for components, and Mauve bandolier for knives to throw. Naturally each guildmark adds a chatline and a unique set of emotes, as well as a title to indicate your rank to outsiders.

Combat

Fighting

Fighting is divided into two parts: offense and defense. The simplest form of offense is simply bashing away at an opponent with a weapon. Sometimes that's not enough to get the job done. Additional firepower can be gained from skills or spells, which are taught by guilds or can be enchanted into items. Many a foe has been struck down by a Ranger's strike, a Blue Order lightning bolt, a spectral weapon from heavens summoned by a holy Knight, or even a slew of hurled knives.

Defense can be as simple as wearing enough armour to soften the blows and knowing how to get out of the way of attacks. Spells can also assist in providing a barrier, holding the enemy down, or even go as far as to drug the enemy to a stupor or sleep. Those who are technologically inclined can even deceive the enemy to attacking spots where they are not standing.

Healing

Healing is accomplished by various foods, herbs, potions, spells, and other devices. Each option has its limits and advantages. One player can only take so much food, drink or booze. Once you've had your fill, you can still use spells (mostly granted by guilds), potions, or magic items. Beware that some potions require a bit of intelligence to use properly, and magic items are not unlimited. You would do quite well to learn and find a variety of healing methods to avoid death. Pharmaceuticals are also available, but due to regulations, druggists are limited in how much they can sell to you.

Guilds

Knights of Bath: The paladin, advancing the cause of goodness. Skills include shield-bashing, rending of armour, group healing, and the summoning of spiritual weapons.

Blue Order: They wield powerful spells, and summon vile creatures in service of their Darkmaster.

Mauve Brigade: A horde of drunken, yet suave pirates who live only by the blade. All other weapons are forbidden, and they have no use for magic.

Rangers of Threforfar: A military regiment who lives by and serves the land of Threforfar, well trained in herbalism, first aid, and survival. It is said they can summon the spirit of a dragon to aid them in battles.

Loremasters: These fellows are focused on higher learning and technology, such as holograms and chemistry. Their skills are focused solely on defense but they are versed enough in magic to take advantage of magical artifacts, but not enough to learn spells on their own.

Spirits of Equality: Devoted to the balance of good and evil. The guild is quite difficult to find and join yet very powerful and quite worthwhile.

Vampires: Much doubt surrounds the very existence of these creatures of the night who hunger for blood.

Thieves: These scoundrels, pillaging whatever they want, constantly dodging law enforcement.

Freedom Fighters of Foyrexia: Fighting for the freedom of their homeland.

Recommended Areas

To the East lies Boys Island. Any level can enjoy Boys Island. From nasty trolls to the Devil, himself! It's not only good for experience hunting, but also for gold!

For those inclined to follow the forces of evil, Crescent City lies to the far west of Larstown. Surely to goodness you could not convince yourself to harm an innocent nun or a schoolgirl just for the plenteous gold that they carry... Why not pick on someone your own size, like some tasty holy knights in nearby Metaire?

To the far south, you will find two robust trading areas, Agave and Thane's Bay. Agave plays host to a magic shop selling weird and wonderful things and a skilled blacksmith at your service. Thane's Bay is said to be full of shops where you may learn valuable trade skills, such as the finding of herbs or the skinning of animals. It is also home to the Mage's Guild. Even though they are not recruiting, they will sell you quite powerful healing items to share with your friends. Hurry while supplies last!

Newbieland

The church. For some reason our travels always begin there. I headed out the back door hoping I wouldn't be noticed slipping out of the services. There was a trail to the north. I saw a park to the west. People tend to leave goodies there sometimes. My Yogi Bear instincts kicked in to check it out. After that, I proceeded northwards along the trail. A castle! Looks kind of imposing. Perhaps I'll check that out later as I have not gathered up enough bravery to enter yet. Eastwards I stumbled upon a trail that led me past a TV studio. There was a grove further east that piqued my interest. It seems peaceful enough. Within, there was a cave.... Westwards from the area south of the castle there were some of the looniest sights I ever seen. A dog speaking in a German accent with huge muscles! Some little girl that's crazy obsessed with animals. Those skulls in her hair bow looked suspicious. I got back on the westward trail and found huge fun in the comedy club, then after that hit the theater to catch the Rocky Horror Picture Show. It's always a hoot!

The Liana

Headed east, I happened upon a vine hanging from a tree between the Larstown church and the shop. Out of curiosity I climbed it to see what was up there. The branch to the east led to a hive full of bees. I sure hope there's some tasty honey to be found. The north branch caught me by surprise, inhabited by robots and a spaceship. What is that doing here? I shudder to think where that is headed. The pilot seemed like he knew what he was doing. I swallowed my fear, hopped on board and fastened my seat belt...

Tir Na Nog

Just a few paces east from Larstown I encountered a thick mist. It seemed imposing, yet inviting. As I entered the mist, there was a trail headed east towards your average suburban house. A young child was longing for his little brother. Sure, I'll help him out. What could it hurt? Further south, I found myself surrounded by fairies. They seemed very nice. Too nice. I had to get rid of them. I'm sure the Dark Lord would be pleased.

Terror Island

For kicks I wondered how far the Larstown Road headed to the East. It went quite a ways. Like an idiot I jumped off the jetty and landed in the ocean. The sunset over the sea was so grand and majestic. I headed further east until I encountered a sign with a picture huge tiger looking creature that appeared to be standing on its tail. What manner of creature is this? I proceeded to climb up onto the island to find this creature. It seemed rather well protected. No sort of magic could touch it! I thought it best to leave this anomaly alone, but did find plenty of prey to train myself for further adventures.

Threforfar

Just outside the church I headed east and saw a road headed south. Along the way, I encountered a punk talking smack about midnight golf! How outrageous! After smacking him down, I headed west around the square. There was this total babe there. I couldn't help but sit and gawk, but alas, such beauty could only hold my eye for so long. Northwards was Temple Avenue. It seemed interesting enough. There was one abandoned temple that caught my eye. It was full of dust and nothing else. There was a triangle etched in the back wall that caught my eye. It called upon me to touch it. I couldn't resist. I reached out to touch it and heard choirs of angels singing about a man, a dragon and a god. What sort of wonders have I stumbled upon? This place seems massive! There is plenty of hunting to be had, for sure.

The Gallery de Zoot

On my way to Threforfar I came across a really nice guy. His name was Joe. Too bad he lived next door to such a punk! He told me about this wondrous museum slightly down the southern road towards the golf course, taking the first turn west. There was this crazy dude called Refu who for some reason was obsessed with pooper, whatever that is. Anyway, just north from him there was the museum. The paintings looked so realistic, as if you could enter them. One painting had a landscape that looked like it came from the 19th century. The view was just sobering! Another looked like a French bar where you might want to stop for a drink. My favorite was the painting of the narcissistic Venus and her lover, Vulcan, the mighty blacksmith god! And of course, what is a fine art museum without "American Gothic"? There seems to be an empty space on one of the walls. It might very well be reserved for my own creation!

Many more lands await your discovery!