User:Thoric/Realms of Despair

Realms of Despair (RoD) is an active MUD community hosted in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada using the SMAUG MUD codebase. hosted in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada using the SMAUG MUD codebase. It is operated by Derek "Thoric" Snider. f8-5627 | url = http://www.qualitative-research.net/index.php/fqs/article/view/280/615&sa=U&ei=1GcVU | accessdate=2020-12-08|quote = Realms of Despair (RoD) uses SMAUG, implemented in MERC 2.1}} It is operated by Derek "Thoric" Snider.

History
Realms of Despair was opened to the public in July 1994. It was developed from DikuMUD and allowed modification of operating parameters through the MUD itself rather than having to manually edit configuration files, or even the source code itself. The developed code was released for the MUD community to develop further as SMAUG.

Organizations
Realms of Despair has several in-game organizations which players may join. Organisation are groups coded into the game, with benefits such as a having a joint place within the game, sharing an additional channel, and a formal system for adding or removing players from the organisation. The main groups of organisations are the following:


 * Councils - in these groups, players (also known as "mortals") work alongside game administrators to better the game. The Symposium council works to develop new ideas and projects. The Newbie Council strives to assist new players to the game, offering friendly advice and practical help to players who die in-game. Other councils, composed of representatives from orders and guilds, help to develop and run mortal-designed quests. The Pkill Conclave, composed of clan representatives, works to improve the pkill system.
 * Orders - these player groups have thematic restrictions, such as limitations of which character classes that may join. There are currently eight orders: Arcanes, Arete, Ascendere, Baali, Dragonslayer, Inconnu, Ringbearers, and Sanctus Irae.
 * Guilds - these are restricted to specific character classes. There are three guilds in the game: Guild of Nature which is made up of Augurers, Druids, Fathomers, and Rangers. The Guild of Origin, consisting of Mages, Thieves, and Warriors. And also the Guild of Spirit for Clerics, Nephandi, Paladins, and Vampires.
 * Clans - these are organisations within the game for players who choose to engage in player vs. player combat. Such players are known as "deadlies". They may only attack and kill other players who have chosen this option. Other than councils, clans are the only organizations which deadlies may join. The clans of the game are Maleficae, Catarrh, and Feralis.

An additional character class, "Barbarian", exists within the game. Barbarians cannot join guilds, but instead may group together in their own organisations, called Bands. There are currently three bands: Band of the Bear, Band of the Wolf, and Band of the Boar.

In 2008 an additional in-game grouping, "Sects", was added. Each of these groups is led by a player that has obtained a virtual house or apartment within the game. Players who join a sect have access to a shared communication channel (called secttalk) as well as the ability to travel from any recallable location within the game to the virtual home of the Sect (the Sect's "recall" point).

World
The fictional world of the Realms is divided into fourteen nations. Each nation consists of an individual race: Humans, Elves, Dwarves, Halflings, Pixies, Half-Ogres, Half-Orcs, Half-Trolls, Half-Elves, Gith, Drow, Sea-Elves, Lizardmen, and Gnomes. When creating a character, a player must choose one of these races, and through their choice become eligible to participate in the corresponding nation. Each nation has its own government, hometown, and in-game communication channel.

Popularity
Realms of Despair has enjoyed considerable popularity, at its peak having more than 400 players simultaneously logged in.