24.10 Life in Avalon on 1st Leaflost 1110.
THE AVALON TIMES
Spring Edition
21st of March 2004
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UPCOMING EVENTS
* STOP PRESS ** There will be a divine gem quest on Saturday, April
17th at 8pm GMT (3pm EST, 12pm noon PST). The gem being quested is the
Opal of Compassion, which gives its holder the dual rewards of the
bonds and touch of compassion.
This peaceful quest will be open to all, testing knowledge of Avalon's
geography and landmarks. The winner will not only gain the powers of
the gem but contendership in the upcoming ordination. A bulletin board
message with more details will be posted in due course.
The ordination itself will be held over the course of a weekend in
early May. In time-honoured tradition, the divine emerald of life will
be quested first, in a 24-hour quest from midnight to midnight GMT on
Saturday the 9th. This bestows on its holder the gifts of knowledge and
life eternal. Following a short break, the final quest for the amethyst
of Genesis, god of time, will take place on the afternoon of Sunday the
10th. The winner will be given the right to hurl the amethyst into the
pool at the rock pinnacle and their soul will ascend to ranks of the
gods in Olympus.
To contend in the Ordination you must previously have won a divine gem.
There are now but two opportunities left to earn a gem - the opal, and
the emerald. The current list of contenders is as follows:
- Mohrion, a Thakrian Sorcerer and follower of Genesis, god of time.
- Threap, also a Sorcerer, a follower of Nostradamus, god of darkness,
and Prince of Thakria.
- Zenichiro, formerly Prince of Thakria, a Loremaster and follower of
Orthwein, god of fate, holding two gems.
- Plaman, guild master of the Bandits, First Mariner of Parrius, and
high-priest of Damocles, god of chaos, also with two gems.
- Keldor, a Parrian Brigand with no divine patron.
- Orinoko, a Warrior and a captain in Parrius, and a beloved follower
of Damocles, god of chaos, holding two divine gems.
- Edgtho, the guild master of the Knights, Baron of Mercinae and a
beloved follower of Apollo, god of light, also holding two gems.
- Jhor, a follower of Proteus, god of the sea and a Thakrian Warlock.
This is a very exciting time in Avalon and a chance to become a part of
history. We encourage everybody to give their best efforts towards
winning a gem and gaining the privilege of contending for divinity. Be
sure to keep up with the News BB for more information.
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AVALON UPDATES
Avalon is an ever-changing world, and skills evolve with more depth and
complexity as time goes by. Currently, every skill in Avalon is gaining
two new abilities. The basic, non-professional skills have already been
activated, and the specialist skills are being launched in balanced
stages. Following the introduction all the skills, there will be a
period in which the new abilities will be fine-tuned and balanced. This
is a good opportunity to have any concerns about other abilities
addressed as well, so speak to deities in Avalon about these issues. As
the guild skills are not all complete, those that are will be
deactivated during major quests.
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CURRENT AFFAIRS
Divine Diamond
--------------
Last weekend, the divine diamond of magic was quested in a
skill-testing challenge of large-scale egg warfare. Contestants were
tasked to throw as many eggs accurately at as many targets as possible
to earn points. The winner was Edgtho, who already held contendership
in the Ordination, but now has the gift of eternal mana to go with it.
Warfare
-------
Tensions are high as the cities plot their strategies and begin
campaigns of misdirection and misinformation with various peace
treaties expiring and the warfare ban expected to be lifted by summer.
After the period of extended conflict mentioned in the last Avalon
Times, the gods decreed that the land should go a period without
large-scale troop movement, enabling the losers to lick their wounds
and the victors to strengthen their armies.
The warfare system is also undergoing updates to create a more
flavourful and interesting aspect of Avalon. Avalon however remains as
vibrant and full of conflict as ever, with individuals striving to
prove their dominance over their enemies.
The influx of the followers of Night into Springdale
----------------------------------------------------
With Nostradamus, the god of darkness and Damocles, the god of chaos
asserting a closer role in the running of Thakria and Parrius,
respectively, it is clear that the gods have decided to take a more
active role in Avalonian politics once more. Mephisto, god of the night
has become involved as well, as many of his followers have recently
made their way to Springdale. Historically the weakest of the four
populated cities, Springdale has always sought recognition and equality
within their ranks. Perhaps the addition of Mephisto's order will give
them the power to claim their place.
The return of Aldaron, the god of life
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There was great rejoicing around the land throughout the year 1106 as
the ancient god of life Aldaron chose to return at the beginning of
that year. Aldaron was the first deity to enter the land after Genesis,
the god of time, and he holds sway over all living things. It is
rumoured that with his return, a Golden Age cannot be far behind.
Life in Avalon in the 1110th year since the Divine War
------------------------------------------------------
Thakria is the preeminent city at this time, having defeated each of
the other three cities militarily within recent memory. The return of
Nostradamus, the god of darkness, and his taking up the mantle of
patron of Thakria has helped guide the city to its heights. The
departure of Zenichiro has left a void in the city that must be filled,
with Threap of the Sorcerers stepping up to assume the mantle of
leadership and attempt to lead Thakria on a continuing path of glory.
The Thakrian Barony consists of Threap, Astlebe, Tetsuo, Dartanian, and
Magdalene. Threap guides the Sorcerers guild and has led its return to
prominence, Dartanianl is attempting to build the Seers guild, and
Yairi is guildmaster of the Loremasters. The Cavaliers are led by
Strongbow, and the Warlocks by Aerian.
Mercinae has been going through hard times, with Thakria currently
dominant, but the city of light has not lost her spirit. Led by Edgtho
the indomitable knight, Mercinae continues to stand against the
darkness of Thakria. Mercinae is placing its faith in its younger
generation of citizens, hoping they will rise to the challenge of
combating Thakria as they gain in experience in ability. Edgtho is the
Prince of Mercinae, with the rest of the Barony made up of Allys,
Hanann, India, and Eilan. Edgtho leads the Knights, India the Mages,
and Aryanna is in charge of the Alchemists. The Mercinaen guilds are
rounded out with the Mystics led by Esprii, and the Bards currently
under the guidance of Mephisto, god of the night due to a lack of
active members.
Parrius has had a very rapid rise and decline, as many worshippers of
Damocles, the god of chaos populated the city. After enjoying a brief
period of strength, the departure of Ender, the city's leader, has
thrown Parrius into turmoil. Many of the city's prominent citizens
including Orinoko, Alarius, and Plaman have not been seen often in the
land recently, and Parrius is having a hard time finding a fitting
leader to continue its rise. Plaman is First Mariner of Parrius, backed
up by Orinoko, Alarius, Blotto, and Aradhyl as his captains. As for the
Parrian guilds, Cadmus heads the Astrologers, Alexandra is
guildmistress of the Artisans, Poog is in charge of the Enchanters and
Blotto leads the Warriors.
Springdale continues its struggle to be counted among the ranks of the
great cities of Avalon. While it has enjoyed economic success,
Springdale's fighters have never been numerous enough to claim
superiority on the field of combat. However, with the recent defections
of Dunccan and Gandalph from Mercinae, as well as the influx of
Mephisto's order, Springdale's prospects look brighter. The Prince of
Springdale is Fatalus, backed by the barons Graedes, Rikki, Rhapsody,
and Grymauch. The Paladins guild led by Grymauch represents
Springdale's greatest combative force, with assistance from the
Craftmasters under Rhapsody and the Wizards led by Gandalph. The
Prophets, under Zyltan, have been rather quiet lately, with apparent
difficulty in attracting members to their profession.
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GUILDS
Below is a list of the currently active public guilds, together with
the head of the guild and its patron deity.
| Guild Name | | Guildhead | | Patron Deity | |
|
| Knights Guild | | Edgtho | | Apollo, the god of light | |
| Mages Guild | | India | | Castigere, the god of justice | |
| Sorcerers Guild | | Threap | | Nostradamus, god of darkness | |
| Animists Guild | | Elbethamore | | Rhadamanthys, god of compassion | |
| Rangers Guild | | Pahn | | Mephisto, god of the night | |
| Astrologers Guild | | Cadmus | | Mephisto, god of the night | |
| Brigands Guild | | Magdalene | | Nostradamus, god of darkness | |
| Seers Guild | | Dartanian | | Nostradamus, god of darkness | |
| Alchemists Guild | | Aryanna | | Proteus, god of the sea | |
| Artisans Guild | | Alexandra | | No Patron | |
| Bards Guild | | Mephisto | | Mephisto, god of the night | |
| Loremasters Guild | | Yairi | | Xanthe, the goddess of vengeance | |
| Cavaliers Guild | | Strongbow | | Xanthe, the goddess of vengeance | |
| Enchanters Guild | | Poog | | Mephisto, god of the night | |
| Warlocks Guild | | Aerian | | Xanthe, the goddess of vengeance | |
| Wizards Guild | | Gandalph | | Mephisto, god of the night | |
| Paladins Guild | | Grymauch | | Apollo, the god of light | |
| Warriors Guild | | Blotto | | No Patron | |
| Mystics Guild | | Esprii | | Proteus, god of the sea | |
| Bandits Guild | | Plaman | | Damocles, the god of chaos | |
| Prophets Guild | | Zyltan | | Mephisto, god of the night | |
| Craftmasters Guild | | Rhapsody | | Wraith | |
|
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ACCESSING AVALON
Avalon is accessed most commonly via our web site using your web
browser and JAVA. Once players become more accustomed to the game they
tend to switch to an independent client which will offer more features
for the experienced player (typically zMUD or Avplay Windows are used).
We can offer advice on which client to use, especially for non-Windows
platforms. E-mail us at support@avalon-rpg.com with any questions you
might have.
If you continue to experience unacceptable lag you should get in
contact with us (support@avalon-rpg.com) and perhaps we can help. If
you know how to run a traceroute to investigate the state of your route
to us, send us the results, it'll help us suggest a solution.
Points of Presence (hubs):
New York (Main) avalon-rpg.com 23
Houston, TX (MidUSA) houston.avalon-rpg.com 23
London (European) london.avalon-rpg.com 23
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Thanks for reading and we look forward to seeing you again in the land.
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