Elendor
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Elendor is a MUSH (Multi-User Shared Hallucination) server based on J. R. R. Tolkien's writings, especially The Lord of the Rings. Users create characters according to the theme of the books, depending on the culture and species of choice. The purpose is to create a role-playing environment as close as possible to Tolkien's Middle-earth, as expressed in The Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit and The Silmarillion, as well as numerous other letters and short stories.
Within Elendor there are 21 different cultures, each covering a different culture written about by Tolkien in his writings about Middle-earth. For example, a player can play an Orc from Moria, an Elf from Mirkwood, a mortal human from Dunland, or a Hobbit from the Shire, to name but a few choices. However, not all cultures can be played by new players, who may lack experience. These cultures include the Ents, Trolls, and Dúnedain, as well as many other special or powerful species.
Even harder to attain are "Feature" Characters (FC), and "Book Feature" Characters (BFC), both of which are rewards given for dedicated work for a culture, good roleplaying ability and seniority. Getting a feature is a high honour, and a BFC even more so, as playing a character mentioned in the books is considered a challenging role, as well as a responsible position, as new players are apt to look up to them for examples.
Elendor is renowned for being friendly and open to new players, although the learning curve is often very steep, as players must get used to a purely text-based world, and commands that are not often found outside of the MUSHing world. Atop of this, players often need to get used to roleplaying, new maps and areas to explore, and the slang and abbreviations that are often used in the MUSH. However, most people find no problems, and after couple of weeks, or so, know all that is necessary to play the game.
The cultures are each run by a "Ruler" (an out of character rank) and a council of local administrators (Local Admins or LAs). These players are responsible for the theme and daily running of their respective cultures. Above the Rulers is a council of "Wizards", or MUSH-wide administrators, who have wide ranging responsibilities that involve the daily running of the MUSH.
Established in October 1991, Elendor is the oldest and most popular Tolkien-based MUSH on the internet. As of May 2005, the number of registered users in the game was over 2,000.
