Shadows of Isildur is a RPI (Roleplay Intensive) MUD based on the series of books by J. R. R. Tolkien and opened in the public early 2003. SoI, as it's commonly referred, differs from many other MUD's in that death is permanent and characters are approved by application only, requiring all actions in the game to be in-character with a minimal use of out-of-character communication.
Gameplay features the conflict between Gondor and Mordor, opening in the year 2460. Time has since lapsed to 2477, leaving a ruined Osgiliath after Boromir (the steward) and his army pushed Mordor back after its fall, which was a featured HRPT (Highly Recommended Playing Time) July of 2006. Now, Lord Eradan's Battalion are charged, along with several other Lords, to reclaim the territories of the Ithilien, a highly contested area spanning between Osgiliath and Minas Morgul. Non-combative characters can enjoy several other activities, most notably Shadow of Isildur's branch-based and Fellowships, allowing for multiple professions to take raw goods and produce finished pieces either as a member of a Fellowship or on their own, with each playing their own role in creating conflict within the game. Currently the game features over 2,000 crafts in 51 categories, with new ones added constantly.
The code is written in C and multiple MySQL databases, though progress has been underway to convert the codebase to ; its original code is from Harshlands, a derivative of DikuMUD, and has been in constant development since then. In late 2004, the games' engine was released back to the community, boasting both 6 years of development by Harshlands and 3 years of additional development. In March of 2007, it was announced that a new release would be distributed as well.
Playable Game Locations
Shadows of Isildur features several playable areas.
Gondor
While all of Gondor technically exists in the game, in order to keep the conflicts close and playerbase together, the playable areas of Gondor are the city of Minas Tirith, Osgiliath, Anórien, Pelennor, and North and South Ithilien. Characters have been known and it is not uncommon to travel to and from a large number of other places as part of their background or 'breaks' in their gameplay.
Anórien and Pelennor
Situated between Minas Tirith and Osgiliath, these areas constitute the majority of farmlands and open areas for most of the playerbase. Pelennor is situated south of the Anórien, which is guarded by the natural barriers of the sea. It is a feudal territory owned and operated by Lord Astirian and patrolled by his Wardens and Squires; an enforcer clan open to players. Since Osgiliath fell it has been more actively developed, and continues to do so as places such as Wardog's Tavern, Cherry Blossom Farm, Greenleaf Winery, Hawk and Dove, White Stag Hunting Company, and more continue to grow with active player support.
Minas Tirith
The White City, Minas Tirith, acts as the hub for the majority of the playerbase. True to its inspiration, it is built in a series of 'circles' on a mountainside, each a little more classy the higher you go. Featured here are many player owned or run shops and taverns, most notably the Battered Shield in the first circle, The Alehouse in the second circle, and the Wizard Inn in the third circle, offering a good chance for players to meet up. This capitol city of Gondor is also the center of the Fellowship system, complete with a council and Fellowship Halls. Notable clans here are the Minas Tirith Guard and Cityworkers, the latter being specially suited to take in new players and show them the ropes.
Osgiliath
Once a booming city, over the past years Osgiliath has slowly declined until it was finally ransacked by Mordor's armies, only to be recovered shortly after by the efforts of Boromir's army. Now it is a base of operations for Lord Eradan's Battalion, a group of soldiers tasked to reclaim Ithilien territories by force. Supported by a fort system, Both these Battalions and Mordor battle for control over minor outposts without staff involvement by use of special crafts and room programs, requiring regular visits of food and supplies for its upkeep.
Mordor
General info about mordor.
Minas Morgul
Minas Morgul was once known as Minas Ithil - a city originally founded by Elendil (alleged creator of Arnor and Gondor), and his sons Isildur and Anárion. Minas Ithil, or "The Tower of the Rising Moon", was built by Elendil and his fellow Gondorians during the Second Age in the year 3320, near the borders of Mordor, to keep watch over the dark lands. By the year 3429 of the Second Age, however, the dreaded Sauron had begun to take control of the city. Finally, in the year 2002 of the Third Age, the Nazgûl and their lord, the Witch-king of Angmar, had gained control of the city in a swift and vicious assault. It was renamed "Minas Morgul", meaning "Tower of Black Sorcery", and soon became home to orcs, goblins, Uruk-hai, and the dark races of Men - an important waypoint in the raging struggle between the forces of light and darkness.
Tur Edendor
Society and Classes
Unlike Minas Morgul, where one's ranking depended on a complex relationship of races, power, military service, and overall status, Tur Edendor's classes are simple. The lowest two classes are freemen (Naruir, in Adunaic), and bondsmen (Nadroth-za), the distinction being a bondsman is a freeman with a recognised owner, and a freeman a bondsman without a recognised owner. Neither a freeman or a bondsman are technically people under the law of Krayd in Tur Edendor, but instead considered to be property of other people, or property of no-one. Freemen and bondsmen are not allowed to own land outright, wear metal armours, wear anything made or decorated with gold or silver, or raise a hand to someone of higher rank. Most everyone who comes to Tur Edendor starts life in the city as a freeman.
Kadar-Lai (towns folk, or citizens) are members of Tur Edendor who have been recognised for their contribution to the city, and are thus afforded many rights, and considered actual people before the law. They are allowed to dress and arm themselves however they like, save for wearing gold, own land, own up to a dozen bondsmen, own one license of business, and have legal protections as well as taxation obligations.
Khors (lords) are the prominent members of Tur Edendor society entrusted by Duke Krayd to fulfill a specific task, usually supply the city with materials and resources, or raise a warband to protect Krayd's lands and harass those of his enemies. Khors have all the rights of a citizen, and can also wear gold, own any amount of bondsmen, own land in the Ithilien, and can have their bondsmen wear armours made of metal.
For a freeman to become a bondsman, they must make the choice to submit themselves to a Kadar-Lai or a Khor, on terms worked out between the two parties. One cannot be forced to become a bondsman. A bondsman is expected to wear insignia of their master at all times, and cannot leave their masters' service without their permission. To become Kadar-Lai, a freeman must have resided within Tur Edendor for no less than a year, have committed no major crime, be of appropriate mind and morality, and be prepared to donate a not insignificant amount of coin to Krayd and swear loyalty to him and his land above all other nations. Bondsmen face the same task, but must also obtain permission from their adar-Lai or Khor master to be released from their service first. To become a Khor, a Kadar-Lai must have held his or her rank for no less than two years within the city, have made continual contributions to the strength of the city, have no other obligations or undue allegiance with another Khor in the city, and show talent, loyalty and diligence to accept the responsibility of organising a warband or mercantile body for the city -- all in addition to paying a hefty tribute to Duke Krayd.
The Black Watch exist outside this status, and, if anything, would be ranked superior to even Khors. Every race has the opportunity to exist in any social ranking, save Black Númenóreans; all of that race are at least Kadar-Lai. However, seeing as nearly all of the Black Númenóreans in Tur Edendor are part of the Black Watch, or have very close ties to it, in effect the Black Númenóreans remain at the top of the social totem pole.
Fellowships
There are fifteen Fellowships in Minas Tirith. These are akin to medieval guilds and the Efreahir of the Northmen, but are far less restrictive and formal. Effectively they serve two purposes: to gather together workers producing similar sorts of goods so that the economies of having a communal workplace are achieved, and also to provide a fellowship, a sort of club that workers in that industry can join in order to gain political and social benefits. The social benefits include looking after widows and orphans of workers and, on a much lighter note, revelries and get-togethers of like-minded fellows (and ladies) after a hard day's work.
The Fellowships are as follows:
* Apothecaries
* Armorsmiths
* Bakers and Confectioners
* Clothwrights
* Engineers
* Healers
* Horticulturists
* Hostelers
* Jewellers
* Leatherwrights
* Masons
* Metalsmiths
* Sages
* Weaponsmiths
* Woodwrights
Gameplay features the conflict between Gondor and Mordor, opening in the year 2460. Time has since lapsed to 2477, leaving a ruined Osgiliath after Boromir (the steward) and his army pushed Mordor back after its fall, which was a featured HRPT (Highly Recommended Playing Time) July of 2006. Now, Lord Eradan's Battalion are charged, along with several other Lords, to reclaim the territories of the Ithilien, a highly contested area spanning between Osgiliath and Minas Morgul. Non-combative characters can enjoy several other activities, most notably Shadow of Isildur's branch-based and Fellowships, allowing for multiple professions to take raw goods and produce finished pieces either as a member of a Fellowship or on their own, with each playing their own role in creating conflict within the game. Currently the game features over 2,000 crafts in 51 categories, with new ones added constantly.
The code is written in C and multiple MySQL databases, though progress has been underway to convert the codebase to ; its original code is from Harshlands, a derivative of DikuMUD, and has been in constant development since then. In late 2004, the games' engine was released back to the community, boasting both 6 years of development by Harshlands and 3 years of additional development. In March of 2007, it was announced that a new release would be distributed as well.
Playable Game Locations
Shadows of Isildur features several playable areas.
Gondor
While all of Gondor technically exists in the game, in order to keep the conflicts close and playerbase together, the playable areas of Gondor are the city of Minas Tirith, Osgiliath, Anórien, Pelennor, and North and South Ithilien. Characters have been known and it is not uncommon to travel to and from a large number of other places as part of their background or 'breaks' in their gameplay.
Anórien and Pelennor
Situated between Minas Tirith and Osgiliath, these areas constitute the majority of farmlands and open areas for most of the playerbase. Pelennor is situated south of the Anórien, which is guarded by the natural barriers of the sea. It is a feudal territory owned and operated by Lord Astirian and patrolled by his Wardens and Squires; an enforcer clan open to players. Since Osgiliath fell it has been more actively developed, and continues to do so as places such as Wardog's Tavern, Cherry Blossom Farm, Greenleaf Winery, Hawk and Dove, White Stag Hunting Company, and more continue to grow with active player support.
Minas Tirith
The White City, Minas Tirith, acts as the hub for the majority of the playerbase. True to its inspiration, it is built in a series of 'circles' on a mountainside, each a little more classy the higher you go. Featured here are many player owned or run shops and taverns, most notably the Battered Shield in the first circle, The Alehouse in the second circle, and the Wizard Inn in the third circle, offering a good chance for players to meet up. This capitol city of Gondor is also the center of the Fellowship system, complete with a council and Fellowship Halls. Notable clans here are the Minas Tirith Guard and Cityworkers, the latter being specially suited to take in new players and show them the ropes.
Osgiliath
Once a booming city, over the past years Osgiliath has slowly declined until it was finally ransacked by Mordor's armies, only to be recovered shortly after by the efforts of Boromir's army. Now it is a base of operations for Lord Eradan's Battalion, a group of soldiers tasked to reclaim Ithilien territories by force. Supported by a fort system, Both these Battalions and Mordor battle for control over minor outposts without staff involvement by use of special crafts and room programs, requiring regular visits of food and supplies for its upkeep.
Mordor
General info about mordor.
Minas Morgul
Minas Morgul was once known as Minas Ithil - a city originally founded by Elendil (alleged creator of Arnor and Gondor), and his sons Isildur and Anárion. Minas Ithil, or "The Tower of the Rising Moon", was built by Elendil and his fellow Gondorians during the Second Age in the year 3320, near the borders of Mordor, to keep watch over the dark lands. By the year 3429 of the Second Age, however, the dreaded Sauron had begun to take control of the city. Finally, in the year 2002 of the Third Age, the Nazgûl and their lord, the Witch-king of Angmar, had gained control of the city in a swift and vicious assault. It was renamed "Minas Morgul", meaning "Tower of Black Sorcery", and soon became home to orcs, goblins, Uruk-hai, and the dark races of Men - an important waypoint in the raging struggle between the forces of light and darkness.
Tur Edendor
Society and Classes
Unlike Minas Morgul, where one's ranking depended on a complex relationship of races, power, military service, and overall status, Tur Edendor's classes are simple. The lowest two classes are freemen (Naruir, in Adunaic), and bondsmen (Nadroth-za), the distinction being a bondsman is a freeman with a recognised owner, and a freeman a bondsman without a recognised owner. Neither a freeman or a bondsman are technically people under the law of Krayd in Tur Edendor, but instead considered to be property of other people, or property of no-one. Freemen and bondsmen are not allowed to own land outright, wear metal armours, wear anything made or decorated with gold or silver, or raise a hand to someone of higher rank. Most everyone who comes to Tur Edendor starts life in the city as a freeman.
Kadar-Lai (towns folk, or citizens) are members of Tur Edendor who have been recognised for their contribution to the city, and are thus afforded many rights, and considered actual people before the law. They are allowed to dress and arm themselves however they like, save for wearing gold, own land, own up to a dozen bondsmen, own one license of business, and have legal protections as well as taxation obligations.
Khors (lords) are the prominent members of Tur Edendor society entrusted by Duke Krayd to fulfill a specific task, usually supply the city with materials and resources, or raise a warband to protect Krayd's lands and harass those of his enemies. Khors have all the rights of a citizen, and can also wear gold, own any amount of bondsmen, own land in the Ithilien, and can have their bondsmen wear armours made of metal.
For a freeman to become a bondsman, they must make the choice to submit themselves to a Kadar-Lai or a Khor, on terms worked out between the two parties. One cannot be forced to become a bondsman. A bondsman is expected to wear insignia of their master at all times, and cannot leave their masters' service without their permission. To become Kadar-Lai, a freeman must have resided within Tur Edendor for no less than a year, have committed no major crime, be of appropriate mind and morality, and be prepared to donate a not insignificant amount of coin to Krayd and swear loyalty to him and his land above all other nations. Bondsmen face the same task, but must also obtain permission from their adar-Lai or Khor master to be released from their service first. To become a Khor, a Kadar-Lai must have held his or her rank for no less than two years within the city, have made continual contributions to the strength of the city, have no other obligations or undue allegiance with another Khor in the city, and show talent, loyalty and diligence to accept the responsibility of organising a warband or mercantile body for the city -- all in addition to paying a hefty tribute to Duke Krayd.
The Black Watch exist outside this status, and, if anything, would be ranked superior to even Khors. Every race has the opportunity to exist in any social ranking, save Black Númenóreans; all of that race are at least Kadar-Lai. However, seeing as nearly all of the Black Númenóreans in Tur Edendor are part of the Black Watch, or have very close ties to it, in effect the Black Númenóreans remain at the top of the social totem pole.
Fellowships
There are fifteen Fellowships in Minas Tirith. These are akin to medieval guilds and the Efreahir of the Northmen, but are far less restrictive and formal. Effectively they serve two purposes: to gather together workers producing similar sorts of goods so that the economies of having a communal workplace are achieved, and also to provide a fellowship, a sort of club that workers in that industry can join in order to gain political and social benefits. The social benefits include looking after widows and orphans of workers and, on a much lighter note, revelries and get-togethers of like-minded fellows (and ladies) after a hard day's work.
The Fellowships are as follows:
* Apothecaries
* Armorsmiths
* Bakers and Confectioners
* Clothwrights
* Engineers
* Healers
* Horticulturists
* Hostelers
* Jewellers
* Leatherwrights
* Masons
* Metalsmiths
* Sages
* Weaponsmiths
* Woodwrights
The Ebony Cactus is a free, online magazine. It is dedicated to minority businesses in the Southwest United States. It comes in full color showcasing new and existing businesses in Arizona, Nevada, and Southern California. It is the “largest free non-governmental online source of information on African American business in the Southwestern United States.” It is a for profit business that is supported by magazine advertising revenues.
Purpose
Ebony Cactus is meant to provide information, training, and strategic solutions in the areas of human resources, supplier diversity, business management, creating opportunity, and creativity and innovation. They provide knowledge to minority business and Fortune 1000 companies with Cactus radio, TEC magazine, and ProServices. They value creativity as the link between minorities and American business as well as access and exposure to leaders and professionals around the U.S. and the world. They use interviews with “C-level” individuals, CEO, CSO, COO, etc., to bring insight and experience to the readers.
Layout and Subscription
Subscribers receive the magazine twice a month in PDF format that can be viewed on a Macintosh or a PC. It can also be viewed directly from the website. Archived editions are accessible from the homepage. The magazine prints into hard copies just as it is viewed on the screen.
As of March 2006, there are 30,000 subscribers. Most are located in the Southwestern United States but their readership extends through 45 states and 49 countries.
On the Air
On the Air is an internet business radio show that is broadcast once a month to offer insight about connecting small businesses with larger corporations. It is an auditory supplement to the online magazine. The radio shows are available in podcast format on the home page.
NxT Horizon Magazine
This is a new branch of The Ebony Cactus magazine that emphasizes a “seize the day”
methodology. They acknowledge that there is a new American Renaissance that encourages the coming together of the American people. They believe that when the diversity of America can bring about an explosion of education, arts, and culture. The purpose is to share the how of achieving innovation in the business realm.
Purpose
Ebony Cactus is meant to provide information, training, and strategic solutions in the areas of human resources, supplier diversity, business management, creating opportunity, and creativity and innovation. They provide knowledge to minority business and Fortune 1000 companies with Cactus radio, TEC magazine, and ProServices. They value creativity as the link between minorities and American business as well as access and exposure to leaders and professionals around the U.S. and the world. They use interviews with “C-level” individuals, CEO, CSO, COO, etc., to bring insight and experience to the readers.
Layout and Subscription
Subscribers receive the magazine twice a month in PDF format that can be viewed on a Macintosh or a PC. It can also be viewed directly from the website. Archived editions are accessible from the homepage. The magazine prints into hard copies just as it is viewed on the screen.
As of March 2006, there are 30,000 subscribers. Most are located in the Southwestern United States but their readership extends through 45 states and 49 countries.
On the Air
On the Air is an internet business radio show that is broadcast once a month to offer insight about connecting small businesses with larger corporations. It is an auditory supplement to the online magazine. The radio shows are available in podcast format on the home page.
NxT Horizon Magazine
This is a new branch of The Ebony Cactus magazine that emphasizes a “seize the day”
methodology. They acknowledge that there is a new American Renaissance that encourages the coming together of the American people. They believe that when the diversity of America can bring about an explosion of education, arts, and culture. The purpose is to share the how of achieving innovation in the business realm.
Udo Prambs, CMC, is a Certified Master Chef born in Germany, who has worked in Five Star European hotels and restaurants including the Kulm Hotel (Switzerland), Maritim Group (Germany), Da Ivo (Italy), Four Seasons Group and Hunstrete House (England), and the Neptune Hotel (Israel). He has been Executive Chef of L'Auberge Restaurant in Dayton, Ohio, and is currently a Chef Instructor at the Professional Culinary Institute in Campbell, California.
Introduction
Zombie and Mummy is a significant piece of artwork by the well renowned graphic artist Olia Lialina, which has been funded by the Dia Art Foundation. Zombie and Mummy is an interactive web base that contains personalized simple black and white comic strip stories all revolving around the same two characters, Zombie and Mummy. Olia Lialina came up with the original concept of Zombie and Mummy and in designing the web base she allows for each individual story to be told without having any continual story plot connecting individual stories. Each episode has a detailed background setting, embedding each episode in a colorful environment. All the images are drawn on Olia Lialina's palm pilot, creating images that are simple, with no shades of gray, with only 160x146 pixels per frame. All the images are available to be downloaded onto personalized palm device.
Formatting
The website utilizes an animated GIF image for each link to each individual cartoon. This gives each link a different look that is more tailored for fit each cartoon's theme. This is convenient and essential for this site to be easily viewed, because nearly any standard browser supports GIF images. This eliminates the need for an additional plug-in or flash player. Once each link is accessed each cartoon has an individual background. Each cartoon is then set up to be in a text box. While the animations make the site seem intricate it is actually quite simple. This could be partly because the site was initially built via palm pilot.
Comics
Zombie and Mummy is a comic strip in which the two main characters experience everyday life, doing various activities, and are always presented with some type of obstacle they must overcome. The episodes range from Zombie and Mummy forming a hip hop band to falling in love, with 18 individual episodes. Zombie and Mummy constantly have to deal with the complications that they experience being a Zombie and a Mummy trying to live in a human world. The comics themselves are drawn on a Palm Pilot resulting in a very low-tech look. Each episode consists of 6 different scenes, including a title page and a THE END page. Each storyline is very basic and the ending can be very random. The original objective Zombie and Mummy set out for is never fully accomplished and the story usually has some type of twist that catches the reader completely by surprise. The comic strip is directed towards young adults that would find humor in the hilarity of a zombie and mummy living everyday life, with frequent spoofs on popular culture throughout the episodes. The basic comic strip is imbedded into a webpage that is specifically chosen or designed to enhance the storyline. Some of the webpages simply give elaborate color and animation to the comic strip background, while other webpages are actually independent sites themselves and are meant to compliment the specific episode’s plot.
--L.graham21 (talk) 18:41, 28 February 2008 (UTC)
Zombie and Mummy is a significant piece of artwork by the well renowned graphic artist Olia Lialina, which has been funded by the Dia Art Foundation. Zombie and Mummy is an interactive web base that contains personalized simple black and white comic strip stories all revolving around the same two characters, Zombie and Mummy. Olia Lialina came up with the original concept of Zombie and Mummy and in designing the web base she allows for each individual story to be told without having any continual story plot connecting individual stories. Each episode has a detailed background setting, embedding each episode in a colorful environment. All the images are drawn on Olia Lialina's palm pilot, creating images that are simple, with no shades of gray, with only 160x146 pixels per frame. All the images are available to be downloaded onto personalized palm device.
Formatting
The website utilizes an animated GIF image for each link to each individual cartoon. This gives each link a different look that is more tailored for fit each cartoon's theme. This is convenient and essential for this site to be easily viewed, because nearly any standard browser supports GIF images. This eliminates the need for an additional plug-in or flash player. Once each link is accessed each cartoon has an individual background. Each cartoon is then set up to be in a text box. While the animations make the site seem intricate it is actually quite simple. This could be partly because the site was initially built via palm pilot.
Comics
Zombie and Mummy is a comic strip in which the two main characters experience everyday life, doing various activities, and are always presented with some type of obstacle they must overcome. The episodes range from Zombie and Mummy forming a hip hop band to falling in love, with 18 individual episodes. Zombie and Mummy constantly have to deal with the complications that they experience being a Zombie and a Mummy trying to live in a human world. The comics themselves are drawn on a Palm Pilot resulting in a very low-tech look. Each episode consists of 6 different scenes, including a title page and a THE END page. Each storyline is very basic and the ending can be very random. The original objective Zombie and Mummy set out for is never fully accomplished and the story usually has some type of twist that catches the reader completely by surprise. The comic strip is directed towards young adults that would find humor in the hilarity of a zombie and mummy living everyday life, with frequent spoofs on popular culture throughout the episodes. The basic comic strip is imbedded into a webpage that is specifically chosen or designed to enhance the storyline. Some of the webpages simply give elaborate color and animation to the comic strip background, while other webpages are actually independent sites themselves and are meant to compliment the specific episode’s plot.
--L.graham21 (talk) 18:41, 28 February 2008 (UTC)