___The Official AVATAR___________________________________
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_________________________________________21 Nov, 1998____
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`~-._|
` ~ )Telnet to Avatar at: avatar.walrus.com 3000
- // Visit the Avatar web page at:
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1. Table of Contents
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Articles
1. Table of Contents
2. Editorial by Dizzy
3. A look at eras gone by....by Atreana
4. The Wonders of Grouping by Darian
5. IMMortal Biography (Amok) as told to Ukiah
6. The view from the Bell Tower (Avatar News) by Flute
________________________________
2. Editorial (by Dizzy)
________________________________
I have something to confess. Hmmm, if I were totally honest with you, I'd
have to admit that there is a great deal of material in my life that is
worthy of confession. But, rather than drag all of those dancing
skeletons out right now, I'll just test the waters with one teensy one to
see how you'll react.
I've been the IMM responsible for Avatar Help Files for roughly 7 dog
years. Accomplishments so far? Not a sterling record, I'm afraid. I had
good intentions...I *HAVE* good intentions, but the job just overwhelms
me. I can't make myself do it. I need help (yes, yes, we ALL know I need
all kinds of psych help, but I told you I wouldn't go into anything quite
so terrifying today).
History of helps kind of goes like this: We hire a new IMMortal, and
before he/she gets jaded or a ton of new responsibilities dumped on them,
we say, "Hey! Here's an idea!! YOU could take a look at our Help Files,
and fix 'em up, eh?!! What a Wonderful idea, eh?!!" The newbie IMM
usually sees this as a path to rapid advancement and leaps into the gaping
abyss with an enthusiastic whoop/warcry/whimper. And is usually never
heard from again. Occasionally, they come back, but you can always tell
from the vacant stare that they've lost their innocence or something else
thats vital...we do not give them sharp objects for a very long time.
I've hung onto the job in name only for as long as I have because we've
REALLY needed to work over our help files for the sake of accuracy, and
now its getting almost embarassing. But wait! Hey! Here's an idea!! YOU
could take a look at (some) of our Help Files, and fix 'em up, eh?? What
a Wonderful idea, eh?!! A PLAN begins to emerge from my ageing gray matter
(a synonym for oatmeal and/or brain).
THE PLAN: (well, its not really MY plan...give Darii a hug next time you
see her, and thank her for the levels this is going to earn you) I'll give
a level to any mortal (yes, Heros and Lords included) that emails me an
updated help. Woah! Really? Yes! Really!
THE RULES:
1. Mail your updated helps to dizzy@walrus.com
2. To get the level it must be substantively different than the
original (CORRECTIONS, and better discriptions, examples, etc. are what
I'm looking for).
- Dizzy is the sole judge of whether its better than the original,
you can petition to any exec if you disagree with my decision...and I
recommend that you repeatedly BEEP them online to get their attention
before you complain.
3. If I get two or more updates for the same help, I'll choose the best
one in my estimation, or combine them. If both are good (again, in my
opinion), then I'll give a level to BOTH players.
4. If you send me 5 updated helps that I use, you get 5 levels.
5. If you send me 500 updated helps that I use, you get 500 levels.
6. If I like your updated help, I'll advance you on the spot, which
works like this:
- If you are online, I'll greet you, BOOST you, Advance you to the
next level, and probably emote something silly.
- If you are not playing at the time, I'll bring your character into
the game, BOOST, Advance you to the next level and inform you via email
that you've won.
- If you DO NOT want to be instantly promoted, tell me in your
original email with the updated help, and I'll defer it for up to one
month. Be conspicuous. Three inch high flaming red letters will probably
get my attention.
Good luck! Thanks for helping! (dispicable pun intended) You can view this
anytime while playing by typing HELP DIZZY.
Diz
________________________________
3. A look at eras gone by....by Atreana
________________________________
As the Lords embark on a new era ushered in by the rebuild, I take you on
a nostalgic excursion into past eras of the Lord class as experienced by
this old Lord.
EARLY ERA Darksword was the very first Lord of Avatar. There were many who
morphed before me. When I was a new Lord, I enjoyed listening to their
exciting adventures of danger in an era before my time. For you see, it
was literally impossible to level until around Feb 97 but some of these
brave Lords still grouped occasionally and tried their best to explore and
kill mobs in the foreboding area known as Outland. I remember watching the
Lords planeshift on INFO channel as I led my hero groups. I anxiously
awaited the day it would be my turn to join them. Names I remember on INFO
channel, some of whom are no longer on help lordlist were Ganymede, Leah,
Vampyre, Darksword, Luigi, Wraithchilde, Rimbaud, McNamara, Delphy, Molly,
Gadzooks, Macros and Zenoran. Lord life was tough with not much to do but
shift and die. Snikt eventually bestowed on the old Lords 75 levels and
tweaked up their stats in return for their patience. I was honored to be
included in that list of old Lords.
PIONEER ERA
Atreana (Hum War) morphed on Dec. 17, l996 with 18K HP and 3900 M, the third
highest morph gain on Avatar at the time after Skurge and Leah. Synergy
(Hum Mar) morphed at the same moment I did. Tarzan (Trog War) and Mierin
(Dgn Cle) followed a few weeks later. We were thrilled with our new stats,
skills and rank and couldn't wait to embark on awaiting adventures.
We had no idea what to expect or how to prepare for these first Lord groups.
Back then, there weren't that many of us and even fewer who actually
grouped. We were the pioneers and it was an exciting time! So we shifted
from Sanctum 1E 1D clad in hero hit/dam gear. There was no Lord gear to
speak of except the daggers and the rumors of ungettable silver gear we had
only heard about from the older Lords.
Vampyre was the leader of my earliest groups. I remember going to Outland
loaded down with bags full of vosh in groups of 10-12 Lords and getting
pummeled at shift point. If someone called for help, we would create
incredible spam by typing get all.vosh body and dropping it all on the
ground for whomever needed it in a desperate attempt to save their life.
It was crazy fun. If we were lucky enough to survive, we would try a second
mage and maybe a third, although we were usually out of HP, mana and vosh
by then, so we would recall back to Midgaardia to regen for 45 minutes.
I was in awe of whom I consider the greats: Synergy, Tarzan, Drakken and
Mierin. These Lords were highly skilled players with an incredible spirit
of adventure. They taught me how to lead groups, how fun it is to take
risks and how to "be a Lord". When their innovative strategies proved to
work too well and we started leveling too quickly, the Immortals would
change things on us and we would be back talking new strategy during our
long regens. I loved the changes and the challenges and I never had so
much fun!
It was Tarzan who came up with this crazy idea that the whole group should
wear AC gear. Leary of his plan, I begrudgingly enchanted a set of hero AC
gear at his ethusiastic insistance. Well it turns out his "crazy idea"
revolutionized Lord play. Heh, I remember Tarzan leading seven of us into a
room in Tarterus with 14 mobs just to see how his AC would hold up. I give
Tarzan credit also for being the first to discover the advantages of throw,
another revolutionary strategy that brought a higher level of teamwork into
the game.
Heh, I remember Synergy dragging me kicking and screaming into a breath
mob's room in, the then unplayable area, Tarterus in a group of six at
10tnl. I died right after I got breathed, losing 6 items worn and a body
bag, but at least we got a look at Anthraxus to see what equipment he was
wearing. I was pouting over my loss at my recall when Synergy and the group
showed up, giving me the gear off their backs to help me out. It was the
lust for risk and adventure, the selflessness, and the comeraderie that
made Lord play so gratifying .
LORD ARMY ERA
Getting enough Lords to group has always plagued the Lord class. Many Lords
who played with us regularly stopped completely after call lightning damage
was reduced, so it was hard once again mustering up a group. Begging was
raised to an art form by those of us who craved the game. Some of us
stayed logged on all day waiting. Then we got the idea of playing our hero
alts while we waited for a Lord group and before you know it we had created
several Lords each. Hence the Era of the Lord Armies began.
Drakken & Co., as we fondly called him, had the first, the oldest, and the
biggest Lord army, consisting of 7 and later 8 lords. The lord channel
always brightened when he arrived for we knew it meant an instant group and
a big adventure was in store. Tarzan, Synergy and Alomar followed with their
armies and Mierin with her three alts and we were back in business being
able to play again. My team became Atreana/Darkhorse or Atreana/Atlanta,
since I preferred multiplaying with only one other alt. Now always assured
of a group, we were able to play as often and as long as we wanted, only
requiring one or two friends to log on.
I remember my obssession with being the first to explore Hell and searching
for Tiamat in order to learn what treasures lay hidden there. We couldn't
convince anyone else to follow us into the clutches of multiple breathing
dragons, so three of us shifted with two alts, five total, and explored Hell
all day, exploring and dying over and over again until we completed our
quest. Eleven of our Lords alts took on Tiamat that evening and we were able
to defeat one before a few of us died and the rest fled. We still considered
this a successful event.
Because with multiplay you needed only to convince one or two people to do
something wild and crazy, this era was one of risk and adventure. The "no
multiplay rule" in Feb 98 put an abrupt end to the Lord army era but not the
fond memories.
LORD FAMILY ERA
Unable to rely on our alts any longer, we entered a whole new era, that of
the Lord family. Lord grouping came to a standstill for quite awhile as
we waited for enough heroes to morph to increase our chances of a group.
The Lord class became very conservative during this time as we struggled
to mold the many different comfort levels and playing styles into a
workable group. Leading 6-20 individuals with different playing styles
became the new major challenge for group leaders.
Some of us actively worked to develop a close-knit community and for a
number of glorious months, I dare say it was the most rewarding time I've
ever had on Avatar. This era was characterized by the ideals of a very
chivalrous class of fighters who possessed qualities akin to the medieval
knights. I could not get enough of the game or the roleplay. I led any
group I could scrape together, large or small-- two of my most exciting and
memorable runs were leading the very first exploration adventures against
King Adrial and the Astral Dragon who dwelt in the recently new Lord areas.
This era was short-lived but again will always bring fond memories. The
Lord class was growing by leaps and bounds now and becoming far too diverse
in attitude and game philosophy to hold on to a family and a close-knit
community concept, something that was hard for this Lord to let go of.
A NEW ERA UNFOLDING
The Lord class continues to grow. The reduction of damage after throw, the
introduction of hero style play, the rebuild, and sheer number of Lords
now has launched the class into yet another era and another chapter of Lord
history. It's too soon to fairly judge this era and give it a title, so I
will refrain. Lots of its history remains still to be made. It will be
interesting to see how the story of the Lords will unfold from here.
________________________________
4. The Wonders of Grouping by Darian
________________________________
I think grouping is the best thing since sliced bread, except for, of
course, Pez. (shameless Semmie plug) Grouping not only adds to the reality
of a bunch of people going out to rid the world of evil/goodness, but also
brings the fantasy alive with individual thought and emotion, things that
could never be simulated by any kind of programming.
I can solo only about a 700 exp run after the enhanced damage change. (1k
if I sleep mid-run and go out again) Then again, I'm a cleric. But even if
I was a warrior or big bad rogue/thief, I would still prefer grouping to
soloing (Thought terminating mobs would be cool, but who would I brag to?)
There are many people that spend most of their mud career soloing. They
have their reasons, of course. There are definate benifits to soloing,
such as running at your own pace, none of those annoying group members,
and, of course, more exp per kill.
Personally, I feel the benifits of grouping far outweigh the benifits of
soloing. First of all, I *love* meeting people online, and Avatar presents
an easy and friendly way to make that happen. Another reason is hidden
grouping benifits (yes, they or there, or at least I am pretty sure, not
being on the Imm staff myself), not to mention the knowledge gained by
your group members about the ways of Avatar. The helps don't always cover
everything, though they do cover a lot. There are just some things that
are too specific, such as assisting mobs, the leading mobs of the area,
ones that see hidden/invis, ect. I, myself, hope to one day be as
knowledgable as the great Grayswandir! (For those of you that forgot or
weren't here, Grayswandir was the old AnswerImm. He often wandered between
the major recalls, always willing to answer even the most simple-minded of
questions with a smile.)
The many of you I know and love, I've met either through grouping or
chatting. I've gained many many friends here, whether they be Lowmort,
hero, Imm, Lord, or angel. Most of which were through grouping (Even
though a lot of the Imms have been through chatting, I did group some of
them, and I know I have grouped a lot of their alts, cause they tell me,
though they keep the alts name a secret)
Anyway... like I said... I LOVE grouping! It's the first thing I show
to every lowmort passed level 15, especially the wonderful 'who group' and
'group me' system. I think they should echo it often like they used to when
it was first put in.. though that was a while back. :p
Anyway.. enough yapping from me.. the next time you see me online, ask
to group. :) I know I'd like to hear from ya.
________________________________
5. IMMortal Biography (Amok) as told to Ukiah
________________________________
Name: Amok Age: (Game) 72 *newbie* (RL) 28
Race: Human Class: Warrior Current Level: 860
Real life interests:
Chess, Pool, Football (that may be known to some atheists as 'soccer')
Advice for players:
Try not to die. Read the help files! And learn how to set your recall.
(Help recall)
Recall set can save yourself needing a CR or losing gear a lot!
Origin of MUD name:
>From The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant (Stephen Donaldson). Amok is
actually a really helpful person... 'The guide to ultimate wisdom.'
So why I chose that name I have no idea.
Most people however, just see me as in 'running amok' or a character from
'Hocus Pocus', so I am forced into a psychotic role of helper/gremlin. Its
fun! ;)
Additional Comments:
Eq registrar, Quest Imm.
________________________________
6. The view from the Bell Tower (Avatar News) by Flute
________________________________
Lucipher gained a pair of wings this week! *hug* He's the newest addition
to the angel team.
Eladamari morphed and entered the land of lords.. welcome :)
Also, we have 2 new heroes this week. Jason and Rose. Congratulations to
both of you!
There are no birthdays to report this week... but I'm SURE there are some
out there!!
If you have any news you think is worth sharing such as weddings and
birthdays and would like it mentioned in the Gazette you can leave Flute a
personal note on avatar or e-mail her on elahna@hotkey.net.au
-----------------------------------------------------------------
The Avatar Gazette is what you've just been reading, and it is the
official newsletter of Avatar, it is published weekly by Dizzy, in
conjunction with The Avatar Staff.(Original concept by Asamaro).
The Gazette is written in plain vanilla ASCII text to ensure that
everyone can enjoy it regardless of computer type.
To subscribe to the Gazette, send internet e-mail to
gazette-request@avatar.walrus.com. In the body of your
email put:
subscribe username@hostname (MudName - RealName)
eg subscribe snikt@walrus.com (Snikt - Kevin Jagh)
Your real name is optional for the Gazette list.
eg subscribe snikt@walrus.com (Snikt)
You can FTP back issues of the gazette from ftp.walrus.com in
/pub/avatar/gazette.
If you have any questions, comments, suggestions, criticisms,
compliments, or (best of all) articles that you've written for the
gazette, please send them to Dizzy via my e-mail address:
dizzy@walrus.com.
You can also view the latest issue of the Gazette while playing
Avatar by typing 'help newgaz' anywhere in the game, or by surfing
our web site!
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