Version 14.1.1

Sun Dragon Clan Scrolls | Clan List | The Map Page | Court Archives | The Puddleby Post

    The purpose of the guide is to help you get started in the evolving world of Clan Lord. The first thing you need to understand is that Clan Lord is constantly expanding and EVERYTHING is subject to change and/or improvement. As the world of Clan Lord expands and develops so will this guide. Should you require assistance while you are playing Clan Lord, seek out one of the many members of the Sun Dragon Clan as they are devoted to helping people get started in this strange new world.

NOTE :

• The author of this Guide is not paid by Delta Tao. 
• If you enjoyed this guide feel fee to send me, Braveheart, good karma, share experience and/or drop me a note.
• If you would like to make submission to this guide simply send it to me.

SECTION 1          Getting Started

SECTION 1.1          In The Beginning...
SECTION 1.2          The Basics of Movement
SECTION 1.3          Races
SECTION 1.4          Clans
SECTION 1.5          Guilds
SECTION 1.6          Orders

SECTION 2          Commands

SECTION 2.01         The HELP Command
SECTION 2.02         The INFO Command
SECTION 2.03         The KARMA, THANK, and CURSE Commands
SECTION 2.04         The SWEAR Command
SECTION 2.05         The WHISPER Command
SECTION 2.06         The WHO Command
SECTION 2.07         The NEWS Command
SECTION 2.08         The SHARE & UNSHARE Commands
SECTION 2.09         The TEMPLE Command
SECTION 2.10         The DEPART Command
SECTION 2.11         The ACTION Command
SECTION 2.12         The YELL Command
SECTION 2.13         The THINK & THINKTO Commands
SECTION 2.14         The GIVE Command
SECTION 2.15         The MONEY Command
SECTION 2.16         The PULL Command
SECTION 2.17         The REPORT Command
SECTION 2.18         The USE Command
SECTION 2.19         The PUSH Command
SECTION 2.20         The PONDER Command

SECTION 2.21         The PRAY Command

SECTION 2.22         The POSE Command


SECTION 3          Primary Skills
 

SECTION 3.1          Health & Health Regeneration
SECTION 3.2          Balance & Balance Recovery
SECTION 3.3          Spirit & Spirit Recovery
SECTION 3.4          Attack, Defense & Damage Skills
SECTION 3.5          Mind Skills


SECTION 4          The Art Of Combat

     SECTION 4.1          Things To Know About Attacking
     SECTION 4.2          Basic Strategies For Attacking
     SECTION 4.2          Advanced Strategies For Attacking

 

SECTION 5          The Town of Puddleby

SECTION 6          Healing, Saving, and Dying
 

SECTION 6.1          Healing: How to get healed
SECTION 6.2          Saving & Connecting/Disconnecting
SECTION 6.3          Falling & Dying: what to do


SECTION 7          Training
 

SECTION 7.1          Fighters
SECTION 7.2          Healers
SECTION 7.2          Mystics


SECTION 8         Monster Listing

SECTION 9         Clan List

SECTION 10         Hunting, Exploring, and Beyond

SECTION 11         Credits & Contact Info

    Once you have a CD with a valid Serial Number you can begin the process of creating a new character.  Select Character Manager under the File Menu.  At the window enter your ACCOUNT name and ACCOUNT password, you set these up a the Delta Tao Web Site. Your account name and Password do not need to be the same as your character's name(s) or password(s).  After entering a valid Account name & password you will arrive at the Character Manager Window:

Here you will have:

• A listing of all the characters attached to your account (in the above picture there are NONE)
• You can see the MAXIMUM number of characters you can attach to your account
• You can see the billing status of your account.
• CREATE button: creates a NEW character if you have an OPEN slot
• DELETE button: Deletes a SELECTED character and opens up a slot
• PLAY button: enters the game as the selected character
• PASSWORD button: allows you to assign a password to the selected character. (each character attached to your account can have a unique password)

    The first thing you will need to do is create a character:

There are several ways to go about picking a name.

• Some people have names they like to use and always use . . . if it is a good one there is no reason not to keep using it
• Some people like to pick character names from books, movies, or history.  This is my favorite but it does have a down side: people tend to think you will act like the person you named yourself after.
• Combine two otherwise normal words: Sharpclaw
• Just create a name that is pronounceable: Revgard

Read the name instructions above. A few things to AVOID:

• Don't put Sir, Lord, King, Duke, Lady . . . or any other title before your name.  Titles must be earned and the gods may just simply remove it.
• Vulgar or Unpronounceable names are seriously frowned upon.
• If you name choice is already taken then choose a totally different name.  Don't just put a II or repeat the last letter...  "Viper" is take so "Viper II" and "Viperr" are poor choices.

    Once you have picked a good name you will see it appear in the Character Manager Window:

    My options at this point are to:

• Create another character (filling my LAST empty slot)
• Play using the selected character
• Delete the selected character (leaving me with 2 open slots)
• Assign a password to the selected character.

    NOTE: In the future you don't need to come back to the Character Manager to play using your existing Characters. You can simply pull down the File Menu and choose:

• SELECT CHARACTER : This will give you the option to just type in your character's name and password and then join the game. (saves you from going though the character manager BUT you must have a character to play)
• JOIN : simply logs you into the game as the last character you played
  • since MOST people will only have one character this is the BEST option
  • If you don't have Clan Lord "remember" your password you will still need to enter it

    Finally your in the game . . . Whew! . . . You will find yourself in an area I call the "new player hallway". As you move through the hallway you will have to choose between various doors.  Depending on which doors you choose your character will begin to take shape.  Wooden signs and talkative Non-Player Characters (NPCs) have been placed to indicate how the doors will change you.

• Notice under OPTIONS (up on the menu bar) there is a choice for LARGE WINDOW, if you have a big enough screen the world will look best with this option selected.  If you have a 13" monitor it might be best to leave it as it is (default is the small screen setting).
• If typing in the game seems slow some players have reported an improvement by setting their color depth to 256 colors.
• Clan Lord has four (4) windows which you can use
  • The Game Window: this is the one you see most often. It deals with general game play.
  • The Text Window: this window keeps a running log of everything that you hear. So If your new found friend gives you his Enchanted mail address (E-mail address) and you miss it you can get it off the Text Window.
    • NOTE: Be careful what kind of personal information you give out; your new found friend today may be your worst nightmare tomorrow. Giving out your E-mail address is fairly safe (plus it is easy to get a new one), but I suggest you be careful giving out your phone number or other personal information.
    • NEVER give out your password(s) to ANYONE. If the folks at Delta Tao need to edit your account they can do it with out asking for your password. Please COMPLAIN about anyone who pesters you about getting your password or other personal information
    • Delta Tao can not be held responsible for any information you give out.
  • The Inventory Window: Presents you with a group of icons which represent the items you are carrying. To use an item simply chick on it and you will notice one of your hands will vanish and be replaced by that item's picture.  Alternatively, you can click on one of you hands and it will cycle through all the items you have that can be used in that hand. NOTE that most items are either LEFT or RIGHT handed.  Your dagger for example can't be in your left hand and a shield can only be in your left hand.
    • In order for SOME items to be "in use" they must be held in your hand, for example a dagger is worthless if it is in your backpack.
    • So if you want to fight make sure you have your dagger in your right hand.
    • If you want to SEND a message via a sunstone you MUST have it in your left hand.
    • Note: if another person Thinks a message directly to you, using a sunstone, you may get it whether you have a sunstone or not, BUT you will need to have a sunstone in your LEFT hand to reply. Please also remember that sunstone are limited by distance, so if you are too far away you won't get the message No matter what you are doing.
  • The Players Window: Once opened provides you with a list of everyone presently in the game.
    • If a person's name is in Italic that means two things:
      • They are in the same clan as you
      • You have seen them today (if you have not seen them they will not appear in italic on your list even though they maybe in the same clan as you . . . more on clans a bit later)
    • If a person's name is in BOLD that means they are sharing with you. It would be wise to be very nice to such folks since 10% of all the experience they make is being directed your way.
    • If a person has a small "F" to the right of their name that indicates they have fallen (that is to say they are mortally wounded and in need of assistance)
      • If you click on the players name it will then tell you at the bottom of the who window WHERE they are and for roughly how long they have been there.
      • If you click on the "F" it will vanish. This tells the game that "I don't care about the fact that this person is dead." It has no other effects.
    • If they have a small "+" that means you have marked that person as a "Friend"
    • If they have a small "-" that means you are ignoring that person.
• A Few Notes Regarding The programmers in the game:
  • All The Programmers can be considered Game Masters, but there are many different "levels" of Game Masters so they are NOT all the same.
  • The programmers are NOT "Ancients" NOR are they members of "The Clan Of The Ancients"
  • I'll say it again: Game Master does NOT = "Ancient". In fact, if you look at the GM's when they are around you can see for yourself that they have a wide array of professions and very few belong to any clans.
  • Clan Lord is being designed to run WITHOUT the constant interventions of GMs. Many events are NOT usually controlled by GMs. For example, just because the town was invaded doesn't mean that a GM (or a group of GMs) triggered the invasion. Other things, such as the Colosseum, run on their own time schedules (the GMs don't open or close it).
• Two Common Terms:
  • OOC    =    Out of Character: your speech is not role played. If your talking about your new mac then your talking OOC. The opposite of OOC is In Character (IC).
  • NPC    =    Non-Player Character: this is a computer controlled character. For example the people who guide you through the New Player Hallway are NPCs.

   There is an old saying: "If you stay in one place long enough the whole world will come to you." However, as nice as standing in one place can be, eventually you'll want to move around and explore a bit. Fortunately movement is simple. Under controls (up on the menu bar) you have three options for movement. Experiment with all of them and Choose the one you like the best. I will explain the first one here and you can try the other two on your own . . . they are pretty self-explanatory. The control method I'm describing is the default one . . . and it is the one most people seem to use (as far as I can tell):

    Move your pointer so it is a couple inches away from your character icon and HOLD DOWN the mouse button . . . Yes indeed, your walking.
    Listen to what the NPC has to say then go bump into the doors to your right to move on to the next room.

• Your character will always walk toward your pointer when the mouse button is held down.
• The farther your pointer is from your character the FASTER you will move.
• If you let go of the mouse button your character will slow down and come to a stop (facing in the direction he was last walking)
• You DO NOT need the let go of the mouse button to change directions . . . Simply drag the mouse toward where you would like to end up and your character will correct his course accordingly.

    As you wander through the new player hallway be careful what doors you choose.  Look at ALL the signs then pick the door that best suits you.
    When you reach the end of the new player hallway you will have two door choices. Bump into the NPC so he can explain them to you. That is right just be rude and bump into him. The doors to the north lead to the new player "school". If this is your first time playing Clan Lord I'd suggest you head north and hear what all the NPCs have to say in the school. If you feel you know all you need to know and want to go just play choose the door in the east wall which will place you in front of the town hall.

You can choose a race inside the Town Hall.  Don't be concerned that your icon has been changed, when you pick a race the appearance characteristics you choose in the "New player Hallway" will be applied to your new race icon. Inside the town hall look for a Non-player Character (NPC) called: Town Hall Info. Walk straight into him to hear what he has to say.  That is right just be rude and bump into him.

• Non-player Characters are indicated by having an aqua/green background behind their names.
• Lightly injured players and lightly injured monsters have a light green background to indicate they are not at full health
• Non-player Characters come in 2 main types Active and Passive
  • ACTIVE NPCs talk whether anyone is around or not and chances are they do more if you bump into them . . . but be careful hear what they have to say first, because sometimes what they do is NOT reversible.
  • PASSIVE NPCs only talk after they have been activated (bumped into).

    Chances are the Town Hall Info NPC will tell you that you are of no race and in no clan . . . so let us, at least, get you in a race for now.  We'll deal with clans later.

    When you start in the game you have a generic "no race" icon, to pick a race you MUST be in the Town Hall (pictured above). Inside the town hall you will notice a number of active NPCs chatting away along the north wall. Each of these NPCs represents a race choice and they will ACTIVELY tell you a little bit about their race.

NOTE: Which race you choose makes no major difference. There are successful Zo Healers and Thoom Fighters. All your race does is influence your initial abilities, but any racial Bonuses or Minuses can be "trained away" in a few ranks.

Icon	Race Name	Description	Balance	Health	Magic
	Sylvan	A fast light race of forest dwellers	Excellent	Fair	Good
	Halflings	Little round jolly folk who often prefer to go unnoticed	Good	Good	Excellent
	Thoom	A race known for mighty mystics and healers.	Fair	Excellent	Excellent
	Ghorak Zo	A fierce and powerful race of soldiers and warriors	Fair	Excellent	Fair
	Dwarves	A small wise race know for priests and engineers	Good	Good	Fair
	Human	An average race, well suited for most climates.	Good	Good	Good
	Fen'Neko (aka "The People")	A proud catlike race	Excellent	Fair	Good

    To join a race bump into the NPC that represents the race you wish to join. After you have chosen your race bump into the Town Hall Info NPC to verify that everything is right.

For your information, Your character is saved:

• Each time you disconnect
• Every 10 minutes or so

    Clans are VERY different from Guilds and Orders. Clans are groups of players who share some common bond or goal. You may belong to only one Clan at a time. Belonging or not belonging to a Clan has NO effect on Order or Guild Membership. NOTE: Some clans like to call themselves "Orders" BUT they are really just regular clans.

• Some clans are good
• Some clans are evil
• Some clans pretend to be good but are actually evil
• Some clans pretend to be evil but are actually good
• Some clans are chaotic and do what they want
• Some clans are focused on a specific goal and have little interest in good or evil
• Some clans just are
• Any player may start a clan (see info at the bottom of the Clan List Page )
• You are free to join or not join a clan
• Clans can include or exclude anyone they want
• Clans are 100% player run

But the major question is which clan is right for you. My suggestion are these:

• Meet people and find out which clans they are in and why they joined that clan
• Visit the Clan List Page and see what clans are around.
• Visit the clan's web site and see what they have to offer. (links provided on the Clan List Page)
• Some Clans spread false or misleading information about their clan or other clans. Be careful of people who seem hell bent on steering you away from one clan or another. It is always best to do your own research.
• Don't be in a hurry to join a clan. Take your time and consider your options.  If you rush to join one clan you may find another clan later that is better suited to your personality and playing style.

Joining a clan is as easy as 1-2-3

1. Find a member of the clan you wish to join and have them come with you to the Clan Registration Building
2. Have the clan member, of the clan you wish to join, bump into the Clan Registrar NPC
3. after the clan member bumps him, follow the directions and pay the registration fee

that is all their is to it.  Your choice is now saved and you a part of that clan.

• If you see someone with a name in ITALIC that means they are in the SAME clan as you.
• If you see someone with a name in BOLD that means they are sharing experience with you . . . this has very little to do with clans. (See Info on the /Share Command.)
• Thus, if they are both BOLD and ITALIC: they are in your clan AND they are sharing experience with you.

    Guilds are VERY different from Clans and Orders.  Guilds are a collection of EVERYONE who belongs to a certain profession. Since a person can only belong to one profession at a time, it makes sense that you can only belong to one guild at a time.  Belonging or not belonging to a Guild has NO effect on Clan or Order membership.

    Orders are Very different from Clans and Guilds. Right now Orders are by "Invitation Only". Don't feel left out if your not in an order most people are not. You may belong to as many orders as you are invited to join. Belonging or not belonging to an Order has NO effect on Clan or Guild Membership.

There is presently one Order:

• The Order Of The Glove
  • Goals are Mysterious but seem to be Pure and Good
  • Membership is by invitation only
  • As proof of membership
    • ALL members have a special glove to wear
    • At the present time "rusty" colored clothing is ONLY available to members of this order
  • Seek the Great Warrior Beacon for more info

   This section deals with the various types of available commands and will provide basic information on each command. NOTE: The "\" in front of any word means you want that word to be a command . . . And, if possible, it will.

   The Help command will show you a list of all the currently implemented commands. As more commands are added, they will, more than likely, be added to this list.

• Syntax: \help
• Syntax: \help [command name]
• Example: \help karma

   The INFO command tells you important information about your character: race, clan, profession, and gender.

• Syntax: \info
• Syntax: \info [player name]          (gets info on another player)

    The KARMA command allows you to see how much Karma you have and how much you have to share with others. Karma comes in three types:

• GOOD karma you have received from others
• BAD Karma you have received from others
• Karma you have to GIVE to others using the THANK or CURSE Commands

    You should give good karma to people whom you feel are having a positive affect on the game, OR who do something you like, such as good role playing. To give good Karma use the THANK command.  Bad karma should be given to people who annoy you: cheat, call you names, get in your way, or otherwise decrease the quality of your playing experience. To give bad karma use the CURSE command

Syntax:

• \Karma                                  (To see info on your karma])
• \Karma [player name]                      (To see another player's karma)
• \Thank [player name] <optional message>      (To give 1 GOOD karma to another person)
• \Curse [player name] <optional message>       (To give 1 BAD karma to another person)
• An alternative method:
  • Command-Click on the character OR click on their name on the player window then Hit:
  • Command-T to send them good karma
  • Command-K to find out what karma they have

NOTE:

• The person you are trying to give karma to MUST be in the game, but they need not be in the same place as you.
• A RULE OF THUMB: If they show up on the Player Window then you can send them karma and can receive karma from them.
• Karma dissipates at about 0.5% per 5 minutes. So if you have 1 bad karma it will, in time, fade away.
• The messages attached to karma (good or bad) have limited range. The other person will still get the karma you sent but, if they are too far away, they may not get the message.
• You must have a karma available to give before you can Curse or Thank.

   When you just want to scream, you can use this command to vent.

• Syntax: \Swear

   This command is for when you want to send a secret message to another player who is nearby.  The range of whisper is about 1 screen inch in radius around the whisperer)

• syntax: /whisper <message>

   This command lets you see a partial list of who is in the game . . . Hopefully you're not alone

• Syntax: \Who
• Note: The Player Window (Command-4) gives you a much better listing of who is in the game.

   This command allows the programmers of Clan Lord to give you useful information regarding updates and scheduled downtime. The news command is AUTOMATICALLY activated each time you enter the lands.

• Syntax: \news

• Syntax:
  • \Share
    • Returns a list of everyone YOU have chosen to share with
    • Returns a list of everyone sharing with you
  • \Share <name>        (shares experience with named player)
  • \Unshare <name>      (stops the sharing of experience from you to the named player)

NOTES:

• A few minutes after a player disconnects you stop sharing with them and they stop sharing with you. If this short "grace period" has expired then you MUST use the share command to resume sharing should the other person return. However, if the player is disconnected and reconnects with in the "grace period" all sharing links to and from that player are maintained.
• If you see someone's name is BOLD that means they ARE sharing with you
• You lose no experience for sharing, in fact you gain +1% for each HEALER you share with (up to +5%)
• People you share with each get 10% of what you earn, BUT that 10% is NOT subtracted from what you earn.

Answer: (as per Joe) two things happen when you share with another player:

• The amount of experience you get per kill goes UP slightly (+1%) for each HEALER you share with
• You do NOT gain the +1% for sharing with non-healers.
• The other player received a small amount of experience from each kill you make for as long as you continue to share with them.

Here is how it works:

• For each healer you share with your kill becomes worth +1%
• People you share with each get 10% of what you earn, BUT that 10% is NOT subtracted from what you earn.

Thus if you share with nobody:

• each kill is worth 100%
• you get 100% of the 100%
• no one else gets anything

If you share with 1 Healer:

• each kill is worth 101%
• You get 100% of the 101% (that's right you NOW get more experience)
• The person you shared with gets 10% of the 101%

If you share with 5 Healers (the most):

• each kill is worth 105%
• you get 100% of the 105%
• each of the five people you share with gets 10% of the 105%

    Answer: the goal is to allow healers to advance through having fighters share with them.  If the percentages were much lower it would not be worth while being a healer since HEALERS MAINLY ADVANCE BASED ON experience THAT IS SHARED TO THEM.

You will notice healers tend to heal people based on three factors:

• First: heal the most injured first (if in combat)
• Second: heal those who are sharing experience with them
• Third: heal those who are in their clan

You should share with healers first because this will have two effects:

• As healers advance their rate of healing increases . . . thus they will be able to heal you faster
• The more healers are able to advance them more healers you will see.
• You get a +1% bonus for sharing with them. So you get slightly more experience per kill.

    Whether or not a healer lists you is actually irrelevant.  Shared experience is NOT red-shared and since healers mostly have shared experience you won't get anything from them if they list you. If the healer is actively fighting monsters then the experience from fighting is shared.
    My advice for fighters hunting in groups:

• List all healers first
  • they help keep you from dying and allow you to hunt for longer periods of time
  • Thus if you have healers around you should be getting more experience per hunt in the long run with fewer trips to town.
• List the group leader next: especially if that leader is taking you to a special place
• List other fighters in the group who are listing you . . . thus you are now both helping each other.
• List lower level players in the group (this will help them to advance)

please send me any other questions you might have about Sharing and I'll try to get the answers for you.

    When the Ancients decide, for what ever reason, that the game is going to be closed down then will make some form of announcement and ask you to use the /temple command.

This command does 3 things:

• It saves your character instantly
• It moves you to the temple
• It Quits you out of the game

Syntax:

• /temple   (only works AFTER instructed to use it)

   This command takes you to purgatory should you die while exploring . . . but beware it has a price.

• Syntax:
  • /Depart
  • not this will only work if you are Fallen or Dead.

When you fall or die you have 2 options:

• Lay their and await the arrival of a healer
  • PROS: you suffer no penalties
  • CONS:
    • you may WASTE a lot of time waiting.
    • In the time you spent waiting for help you might have been able to use /Depart and then adventure enough to recover the experience you lost using the /Depart command.
• Use the /depart Command
  • PROS:
    • Less time lost & you don't need to wait for a rescue
    • Once you find your way out of purgatory you are taken back to the Crystal Temple and away from danger (Note: if you are lost this may be something to take in to consideration)
    • NOTE: if you touched the Thieves' Island altar you may appear there or in an area where
      there may be monsters.
  • CONS:
    • You lose experience for departing: Joe has recently stated that the amount of experience you lose when you depart is not exactly one rank.  Rather it is the fixed amount of experience that corresponds to one rank for an untrained exile. According to Joe, this works out to about half a rank for the current top characters, but will generally be less than a rank for anyone who has begun training.
    • If you depart a lot you may actually lose enough ranks to drop a level
    • Purgatory may be hard to get out of . . . especially if you have a lot of bad karma.

My Advice:

• Seriously consider each option each time you die. Yes I know losing a whole rank stinks, but in the hour you lay their yelling for help you probably could have gained back the rank lost plus more.
• If there are healers around wait for them to heal you. No sense giving up a rank when there is a healer nearby.
• If everyone in a group of people are dead it might make sense for one person to \depart and bring back help.

    The action command allows you to perform social commands not yet programmed into the game, such as hug, wave, kick, sneeze, giggle, etc...

• Syntax:
  • \action <message>
  • when you hit return what you typed will be put in a box after you name showing the action and who performed it.
  • For Example: I type "/action waves" and hit <return> Everyone who can see me will see a box with the words Braveheart waves.
  • You can type anything you want as the message. Just remember your name will be put in front of it.

    This handy, but often abused, command allows players to communicate over longer distances than can be done with simple talking.  Everyone in the same area as you can hear what you yell, even if they can't see where you are.

• Syntax: \yell <message>

    Should you be the proud owner of a SUNSTONE, you can use these commands to send messages to other players. To use a sunstone hold it in your Left hand and use the command.  NOTE: There are now range limits on \thinking

• Syntax:
  • \Think <message>
    • Broadcasts the message to everyone who is HOLDING their sunstone.
  • \Thinkto <player> <Message>
    • Only sends the message to the named person
    • The named person does NOT need a sunstone to get the message. But they will need one to reply.
  • NOTE: If you abuse the stone you may find it crumbles into dust.
  • If you are holding a sunstone and you hit Command-Return the information in the text field is treated as if it has \Think in front of it.
  • If you have selected another player (either by command-clicking on then OR by clicking on their name in the Player Window) you can \Thinkto then by hitting Command-Return after typing your text.

• Syntax:
  • \Give <person> <number of coins>
  • you can NOT give items by this method yet...maybe some day
  • Beware people who offer to sell you stuff. If they don't belong to "The Clan Of The Ancients" or are NPCs chances are they are trying to rob you.
  • You can't \give if you are dead
  • The person you are trying to give to MUST BE close at hand.

• Syntax:
  • \money
  • Beware people who offer to sell you stuff. If they don't belong to "The Clan Of The Ancients" or are NPCs chances are they are trying to rob you.

   This command allows you to swap places with someone who is standing right next to you.

• Syntax:
  • \pull <person>
  • If your trapped in the middle of a group you can use this command to move to the outside.
  • You can also use this command to move dead players away from monsters. Though remember you end up next to the monster after you swap places

   This command allows you to leave a message regarding game bugs for the programmers.

• Syntax:
  • \report <message>
  • ONLY the programmers can see REPORTS.  Other players can't see that info.
  • Don't use it to ask for favors it won't work. Reporting that your dead won't win you any friends in high places and certainly will not get you rescued.
  • Don't use it to report bad people that is not what its for.
  • If you find a bug report it.

This command allows you to USE and item you are holding. Such as a Moonstone. Some items can not be used or are simply in use by the very nature of their being in your hand. For example a Dagger will do nothing with \use BUT is very handy in a fight.

• Syntax
  • \use    (The item to be used must be in hand)

This command allows you to push a nearby named character and cause them to actually take a few steps.

• Syntax
  • \Push <name>
  • You Must be Facing the player to be pushed.
  • You will BOTH take a few steps in the direction you pushed

This command allows you to think a message to those on the same screen as you. It does NOT require a sunstone.

• Syntax
  • \ponder <message>

   This command allows you to give a message to the Game Masters.

• Syntax:
  • \pray <message>
  • ONLY the Game Masters can see PRAYs.  Other players can't see that info.
  • You can pray about anything you like.
  • Game Masters tend to give you want you NEED not what you want or ask for.

This command is for when you want your character to strike a pose.

• syntax: /pose <desired pose>
• The currently available poses are: akimbo, angry, bless, kneel, leanleft, leanright, sit, and lie

     Primary skills are those skills everyone NEEDS to have. Secondary skills are skills you may be able to train in due to your profession.  Some of your primary skills are displayed by bars, near the picture of your hands, at the top of the screen. It looks pretty much like this:

• The Top Bar gives you an idea of your Present HEALTH
  • If the bar is all green with NO white you are at 100%
  • If the bar is 90% white and 10% green your only have 10% of your HEALTH left
  • The background of your name also shows your HEALTH to others
    • White = barely injured or fully healed =  90% to 100% of Total Hp
    • Green = Light Injuries = 60% to 89% of Total HEALTH
    • Yellow  = Moderate Injuries = 21% to 59% of Total HEALTH
    • Red = Serious Injuries = 1% to 20% of Total HEALTH
    • Black = Your fallen. Wait for a healer or /Depart
    • NOTE: you can be so hurt that it requires more then one healer to raise you.
• Master Bodrus: improves your physical well-being., including HEALTH.
• Master Spirtus: Mostly improves spirit but does add some HEALTH.
• Troilus: increases your HEALTH REGENERATION (Natural Healing)
• Eva: teaches a WELL ROUNDED healing style which includes HEALTH.
• Higgrus: increases your HEALTH.
• Evus: teaches a WELL ROUNDED fighting style which includes HEALTH.
• Histia: increases your HEALTH.
• See the section on training for more information on the trainers.
• When your HEALTH is low GET OUT OF DODGE and head for safety.
• Don't attack while your HEALTH is low (unless you have no other choice).
• Remember when your balance is at its max. You have the LEAST chance of being hit by your attackers . . . This doesn't mean they can't hit you, just that it is less likely that they will. (See balance below)
• NOTE: When you /DEPART you lose a set amount of experience.

• The Middle Bar shows your current BALANCE
• Balance influences mainly defending . . . The more you have the better off you are.
• As you swing to attack you knock yourself off balance a bit and the middle bar drops some.
• The lower your balance the easier you are to hit.
• If you're wounded, you might want to keep your balance up to avoid more damage.
• It is best to swing at monsters just after they have swung at you, since the monster is then off balance at the time of your counterattack.
• You have a skill called BALANCE RECOVERY that influences how fast you recover your balance after an attack.
• When your balance is low move out of attack range and wait for it to build back up. Then you can move back in and attack again.
• DON'T just stand there swinging! You'll knock yourself so far off balance you'll be an easy target for you opponents attack
• Master Bodrus: improves your physical well-being., including balance and balance recovery.
• Evus: Will teach you a WELL ROUNDED fighting style which includes BALANCE and BALANCE RECOVERY.
• Balthus: will increase your TOTAL BALANCE.
• Regia: Will increase your BALANCE RECOVERY.
• See the section on training for more information on the trainers.

• The bottom bar shows your SPIRIT ENERGY CAPACITY
• You have a skill called SPIRIT ENERGY RECOVERY, which slowly restores your magic force.
• Master Spirtus: Improves your SPIRIT CAPACITY, SPIRIT RECOVERY and the rate at which others heal you.
• Sespus: Will Improve your SPIRIT CAPACITY
• Respia: Will Improve your SPIRIT RECOVERY
• Faustus: Improves your HEALING RATE
• Eva: teaches a WELL ROUNDED healing style including, SPIRIT CAPACITY, SPIRIT RECOVERY, HEALTH, and HEALING RATE
• See the section on training for more information on the trainers.

• Search the town for villagers (NPCs) who will give you: a Bell, a Book and a Candle
• These villagers are ALL located IN puddleby:
  • If you bump into ALL the villagers (NPCs) you will find them with no problem.
  • Hint: some villagers (NPCs) are inside buildings
  • Seek out Master Hekus once you have these 3 items: (He is located in the Outer Hallway of the Healer's Guild)

• The ATTACK Skill
  • The Attack Equation: (Attack skill) - (Target's defense + Target's balance) = your chance of hitting your target.
    • I'm sure there is a random element in there somewhere as well, but you have no control over it so I wouldn't worry about it.
    • Balance does not affect your attack, unless it limits your attack (by being so low that you can't attack at full strength without putting your balance less than zero).
    • To maximize your chance of landing a deadly blow, attack just after your opponent has taken his swing. Since the monster is then off balance at the time of your counterattack your chances of hitting are much better.
  • Master Bodrus: improves your physical well-being including some improvement in ATTACK skill.
  • Evus: teaches a WELL ROUNDED fighting style, which includes attack skill.
  • Atkus: Improves your attack skill and also seems to help your balance a tad.
• The DEFENSE Skill
  • The Defense equation: (defense skill + Current Balance) - (attacker's attack skill) = your chance of avoiding an attack.
    • Again, I'm sure there is a random element in there somewhere . . . But I wouldn't worry about it.
    • To maximize your chance of avoiding an attack, make sure your balance is at full and stay out of harms way!
  • Master Bodrus: improves your physical well-being including some improvement in DEFENSE skill.
  • Evus: teaches a WELL ROUNDED fighting style which includes training in DEFENSE.
  • Detha: will increase your DEFENSE SKILL
• The DAMAGE Skill
  • This skill will help you DO MORE DAMAGE when you land a swing.
  • Master Bodrus: improves your physical well-being including some improvement in DAMAGE.
  • Evus: teaches a WELL ROUNDED fighting style which includes training in doing damage.
  • Darkus: will teach you how to do MORE DAMAGE when you hit

Master Mentus

• The Mind Master increases your "General Mental Well-Being" (whatever that means)
• The Mind Master is Located in the temple
• Anyone can train at Mind Master (Fighters, Healers, Mystics and Exiles)
• The Mind Master is pretty much for mystics and probably won't do much for you unless you are a mystic.
• My guess is you will need a certain amount of Mind training BEFORE you can become a mystic and then you will need to train in it every so often as you advance up through the mystic circles.

It is now time to explore a strange and wondrous new world, to discover strange and wondrous creatures, and pound the living snot out of them.

To attack, simply bump into the monster you wish to kill. It is really somewhat like bumper cars, but no annoying theme park employees telling you to stop making a mess.

• You CAN NOT attack other players except:
  • In The Badlands: does not exist yet
  • In The Arena
• You CAN NOT attack NPCs: (NPCs have dark blue/green backgrounds behind their names)
  • Helpers
  • Peasants
  • Town elders
• Everything else that moves is fair game
• Experience is now shared based on the amount of damage you do . . . Make sure the people your hunting with are giving you a fair chance to land a blow or two.
• You can also share experience via the /share command.  You gain +1% experience from sharing with HEALERS and you LOSE NOTHING
• Pay attention to the bars, up by the pictures of your hands, because they tell you about your condition.

• Kamikaze
  • This is the most simple, and often LEAST effective, strategy.
  • Works best on:
    • Critters you can kill in one swing
    • Critters who have just attacked someone else and who ALSO have a low balance recovery (that is to say: once it swings it takes awhile before it swings again)
  • Method: Charge and attack! Just keep swinging until either you or the critter dies
  • PROS: fast way to kill wimpy critters
  • CONS: If the critter doesn't die you are in attack range with no balance left to use in defense
• Tag
  • A slightly more successful strategy then Kamikaze
  • Works best on:
    • Critters who require multiple swings to kill BUT don't do much damage if they hit you.
    • Critters who have just attacked someone else and who ALSO have a low balance recovery (that is to say: once it swings it takes awhile before it swings again)
  • Method:
    • With your balance at maximum Charge the critter
    • Swing once or twice
    • Then get back out of harms way
    • Let your balance build back up
    • Attack again
  • PROS:
    • Much safer than the Kamikaze Strategy
    • On if you are fast enough you maybe able to get out of range before the critter can counter attack.
  • CONS: More then likely the critter will get a swing at you as well:
    • If the critter swings BEFORE your first swing then AWESOME!  Why? Because your balance is at its max., thus your chance of avoiding the blow is as good as it can be.
    • If the critter swings after your FIRST swing (most common) your balance is down a bit and your chance of being hit is higher.
    • If the critter swings after your SECOND swing your balance is really down and your chance of being hit is MUCH higher.
    • With each additional swing your balance gets lower and your chance of getting nailed increases
• Parry and Counterattack:
  • A Good Strategy
  • Works Best On:
    • Any critter that doesn't kill you outright
    • Any critter that can't hit you if you balance is at 50% of maximum or better
  • Method:
    • Get your balance to maximum
    • Move close to the target critter
    • Let the critter come to you and make the first attack
    • Now that its balance is low counterattack with one or two swings
    • Be careful not to let your balance get too low.
    • Just stand there letting your balance build back up.
    • Once your balance is at maximum wait for the critter to swing at you again
    • Then attack again
    • Repeat as required
  • PROS:
    • A Good Attack Strategy
    • When the critter attacks you your balance is at maximum, thus its chance of hitting you is the least
  • CONS:
    • If the critter is tough you may have to do this several times before you kill it
    • If the critter has a good attack skill it maybe able to hit you even even though you didn't think it could
    • If you swing too many times your balance maybe low when the critter swings again
• Parry & Tag
  • The Best Strategy
  • Works Best On:
    • Any critter that doesn't kill outright
    • Any critter that can't hit you if you balance is at maximum
  • Method:
    • Get your balance to maximum
    • Move close to the target critter
    • Let the critter come to you and make the first attack
    • Now that it's balance is low counterattack with one or two swings
    • get back out of the way
    • Repeat once your balance is at maximum.
  • PROS:
    • The Safest "hunting alone" Attack Strategy
    • When the critter attacks you your balance is at maximum, thus its chance of hitting you is the least
  • CONS:
    • If the critter is tough you may have to do this several times before you kill it
    • If the critter has a higher attack skill then you expect, it maybe able to hit you even with your balance at maximum.

• Groups
  • All of the above strategies can be used in groups
  • Often groups mix strategies depending on the critter being hunted and the training of the group
  • have the most experienced member do Parry and Counterattack while the others either Tag or Kamikaze
• Parrana
  • (my name for it) is an advanced form of group fighting and if you see it occurring you had best be willing to follow the rules or leave.
  • This form of fighting needs a good sized group
  • Once a critter is located:
    • The first person to see it yells so that others know where to go to
    • Each attacker then runs in and takes 1 (2 at the most) swings WITH A CLUB OR DAGGER.
    • After swinging the attacker moves back out of the way letting others have a turn.
    • Like a school of Parrana they beat down the prey and all get a Share in the kill.
  • The Key point are that EVERYONE gets a chance to attack and NO ONE takes more then 1-2 swings.
  • Move in swing and get out of the way.
• Swarm
  • (my name for it) is another from of advanced fighting tactic. Though it is simpler then Parrana
  • When a bad guy is identified all the attacks surround it and wait for IT to attack.
  • Once it has lowered its' balance by attacking everyone left alive just pounds on the critter until it dies
  • Sort of like a group Kamikaze

When you walk south out of the Town Hall you will move out into the village of Puddleby, to get back in the town hall simply walk towards its front door.
 
 

Buildings of Interest in Puddleby

NAME	DRAWING	PURPOSE
The Crystal Temple (Located Near The Center Of Town)		INSIDE: The Altar Master Bodrus Master Spirtus Master Mentus
The Library		INSIDE: When you have finished your travels it would be wise to rest and learn in the Library. When you enter you quit the game and are saved. Your character earns experience even while your not playing.
The Town Hall (Located Near The Center Of Town)		INSIDE: You can Pick a race You can place an OFFICIAL complaint against another player.
The Fighter Guild Hall		INSIDE: Trainers for the Fighter's Guild Only Fighters May Enter
The Healer Guild Hall		INSIDE:  Trainers for the Healers Guild Where you restart after you leave purgatory Only Healers may enter The Training Area
The Weapon Shop		INSIDE: Wickus The Weapons Merchant Fighters Can Buy Weapons and Shields
The Jail		INSIDE: Cells to Hold Prisoners
Many Pubs		INSIDE: Chairs Tables Kegs
A Guard Tower		INSIDE: The ones near the west town gates can be entered. They have be overrun by rats Good place to practice fighting
Puck's Tavern (Located near The Main Town Gates)		INSIDE: Access Restricted.
The Sun Dragon Clan House (Located near South Gates)		INSIDE: Chairs Tables Kegs
The Black Smith's Shop		INSIDE: The Blacksmith and his apprentices If you provide them with the metal, they can make you a variety of nice things.
Gaia's Temple		INSIDE: You figure it out :)
The Purple Tor Inn		INSIDE: You can rent private rooms This is a good place for private meetings.

Once out in the town I suggest you head west for a bit,  Go inside the Guard Towers OR see if you can find the beach area with all the Scavenger Birds. Practice fighting so you can learn how things work.  Once you feel comfortable you can set off in hunt of bigger game.

 
Healing can occur via two basic methods:
 
Natural Healing:

• Every race has the ability to slowly heal itself.
• Some races are fast and some are slow
• Troilus can improve your natural rate of healing

Magical Healing:

• Requires the service of a Healer.
  • The healer holds a moonstone in his/her right hand and simply touches you
  • The moonstone allows the Healer to use SPIRIT ENERGY and their HEALTH to repair your injuries
• Master Spirtus can train you in such a way as to increase the rate at which healers can heal you
• Please remember:
  • You help healers to heal you FASTER when you share with them.
  • Healers are not very good at fighting so their advancement is pretty dependent on experience that is shared to them.
    • to share experience with someone type:    /Share <name>
    • To stop sharing with someone type:   /Unshare <name>
    • You Lose NOTHING when you share with others IN FACT YOU GAIN A +1% BONUS FOR SHARING WITH HEALERS
    • The person you share too earns experience that is equal to 10% of what you earn BUT this 10% is NOT subtracted from what you earn.
  • Healers tend to heal people in some sort of an order.  these are the most common things healers look at when deciding who to heal: (keep in mind: each healer is different)
    • Healers tend to heal those who are sharing with them sooner then those who are not (they can tell because they will see your name in BOLD)
    • Healers tend to help the most seriously injured or dead sooner than others
    • In a group hunt situation, Healers tend to heal the most powerful fighters and other healers, since this tends to be for the most benefit to the group.
    • Healers tend to Heal those in their clan sooner then those who are not in their clan.
    • Healers tend to Heal other healers sooner than non-healers
    • So if it is a group hunt and your a dead healer who is in my clan, and who is sharing with me, you can pretty much expect to be the first person I try to heal.
  • The best way, if your a fighter, to get healers to run to your aid is:
    • Share with them
    • Be polite . . . Nobody ever died from saying thank you
    • If you see a healer healing someone don't be a pest just wait your turn
    • Don't try to move between a healer and the person he or she is healing. This is considered very rude
    • When in group Hunts actively protect healers from danger. If the Healer knows you'll keep the monsters away he be in a real hurry to get you back on your feet.

Connecting:

• You will return to the game in roughly the same place you left.
• You will also be in roughly the same condition as when you left UNLESS you saved in the library.
• REMEMBER your character hangs out in the game for a few minutes after you disconnect, so only do it in a safe place or you may come back to find yourself dead... LIKE the Library.
• In Other Words, if you were dead in the swamp when you disconnect, you'll still be dead in the swamp when you reconnect
• Your character is saved each time you disconnect
• If you save in the library you heal and gain a small amount of experience while off line.

Disconnecting:

• Your character is saved each time you disconnect.
• All SHARE links you have established are broken and will need to be reestablished (UNLESS you reconnect with in the few minute grace period)
• REMEMBER your character hangs out in the game for a few minutes after you disconnect, so only do it in a safe place or you may come back to find yourself dead.

Saving:

• You are saved each time you disconnect
• You are saved automatically every few minutes (so if the whole game were to crash you would only lose the last few minutes of play or so.)

Death is never a pleasant experience and is best avoided when possible.
 
When you die you have 2 options:

• Lay their and await the arrival of a healer
  • PROS: you suffer no penalties
  • CONS:
    • you may WASTE a lot of time waiting.
    • In the time you spent waiting for help you might have been able to use /Depart and then adventure enough to recover the rank you lost using the /Depart command.
• Use the /depart Command
  • PROS:
    • Less time lost & you don't need to wait for a rescue
    • After finding your way out of purgatory, you are taken back to the entry hall of The Healer's Guild and away from danger (Note: if you are lost this may be something to take in to consideration)
    • NOTE: if you touched the Thieves' Island altar you may appear there or in an area where there may be monsters.
  • CONS:
    • You lose experience for departing: Joe has recently stated that the amount of experience you lose when you depart is not exactly one rank.  Rather it is the fixed amount of experience that corresponds to one rank for an untrained exile. According to Joe, this works out to about half a rank for the current top characters, but will generally be less than a rank for anyone who has begun training.
    • (Note if you depart a lot you may actually lose enough ranks to drop a level)
    • If you don't have much good karma it might take take you a while to get out of purgatory.

My Advice:

• Seriously consider each option each time you die. Yeah, I know losing a whole rank stinks, but in the hour you lay their yelling for help you probably could have gained back the rank you lost plus more.
• If there are healers around wait for them to heal you. No sense giving up a rank when there is a healer nearby.
• If everyone in a group of people are dead it might make sense for one person to \depart and bring back help
• Don't wander to far into unknown areas or pick fights with huge groups of monsters.
• Discretion is the better part of Valor.
• There is safety in numbers, travel in groups or at least buddy up. If one of person dies the other can either go for help or, if a healer, can heal.
• Take a look at the Monster List and get an idea of what kinds of critters you should avoid.

To Train in ANY skill:

• Seek out the Teacher you wish to Learn From
• Bump into them and wait for the noise and for them to tell you to go practice
• Go out and have fun!
• As you play (and gain experience) you will get messages telling you when your skill adva