It all started one day back in 1995, when I happened upon a link on my ISP's home page... MUD2: The Quest for Immortality.
What the blazes was this? Curious beast that I was, I hooked up my telnet client and logged on to this weird, TEXT ONLY game for the very first time. Now, if memory serves me correctly, the first time I was on, so too were Salome, Bobo, and a chappie called Leadbelly... a name I'd come to love as much as Wideload but, more about him anon. By the way, Asterix was arch-wiz there.
So, I hopped into the Elizabethan Tearoom, got to grips with some of the basic commands, sipped tea (what!! – 1 miserable point!!??) and took my first teetering step – a bit like on a Friday night <wink> – into the Land...
A friendly player, Salome I think, bade me greetings... and asked me if I was new to the game. She and Bobo showed me around a few places of interest, cottage, inn, swamp, etc..and told me to take it from there...
Barf progressed quite rapidy, (made protector that reset) and soon was "ZW-ing" his way to the swamp with all sorts of goodies. In no time at all – 46 resets, I had my first encounter with the TOUCHSTONE... you are now Barf the sorcerer – CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!
This was all too easy... and why did they always ask me to be wary of Leadbelly?... He never bothered me, in fact he was very helpful... any time I needed help with the PC etc., he was always willing to oblige.
Game 47 started off nicely, had just killed 22 rats, and was resting in the small bedroom in the cottage... when suddenly... Leaddbelly decided it was time to formally introduce himself, with his broadsword... 2 quick 20-29 hits, and I was, well, I wasn't...
The expression "You haven't lived until you've died in MUD" flashed through my mind at the time... I was beginning to understand.
Time passed, experience was gained, certain items in the Land were more useful than I first thought... and I began to learn more rapidly. Barf achieved his first mage about 2 months after starting out... "someone powerful" tells you "Get Valetant, and be rewarded..." OK, piece of cake... get the necessary kit, and no problem...
(I had done the Keep twice at that stage - always with an experienced player)
Wyvern is a piece of cake... my buddy and I do the gargoyle trick... and up we go... "someone is about to attack you..." I watch my stam... hmm... getting dangerously close to zero here... wait... I have a regain all stamina vial!! – Phew!!!
*op vial,drink vialk
I don't know the word "vialk".
...ooops.....quick... retype... not updating... 150k gone down the tubes. (Killers, at this stage, should be feeling really sorry for me.)
Time goes by, my ISP has to shut down its site, I leave a mage behind... and off we wing it to the US of A... and IPlay...
Hey!!... a lot more players here!!... and more killers... will they ever get the message? Barf has now developed rings around his eyes, grey hair, nervous twitches, paranoia, a habit of waking up in the night in a cold sweat thinking of Pigchops, Phreak, Wideload.
IPlay goes... lag and all... so Barf retires from the scene...
Then one day, I get an email from some old and trusted friends, informing me of a new site in Canada. "NO!!!!!!!!!!!", I cry. "Not MUD2 again!!, I was only thinking last week that I don't miss it any more. Oh, what the hell... maybe I'll just play a reset a day... yes... ok, that's what I'll do..." Yes, and I'll be in bed before midnight as well.... no problem!
Barf
