Legends (PBM)
Encyclopedia
Legends is an award-winning computer moderated play-by-mail
fantasy
strategy game
. Legends was created in 1986 by Jim Landes from his previous game, Epic. The original system had three paper manuals and operated by print-based turn-sheets via snail mail. In 1995, two years after Midnight Games had been acquired by a new owner, the game system underwent a major update with many major rule changes and new elements some of which were based on the suggestions of players. This new version was called Legends II and could be played via email, initially via a DOS
utility called the Legends Turn Editor, and currently via the deluxe Legends Position Editor. Legends is currently owned by Sam Roads of Harlequin Games
, who took over in 2002, and it is distributed in German
by SSV Graz.
Although many modules were produced for the system, the 2009 release of The One Ring marked a high point. An officially licensed version of Legends based on Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings
, it went on to win Best PBM at the 37th Game Manufacturers Association
Origins Awards.
The modules, or game worlds, which have been designed to run under the Legends game system include:
Up to 200 players can participate in a single game, which can last between 18 months and 5 years.
Play-by-mail game
Play-by-mail games, sometimes known as "Play-by-post", are games, of any type, played through postal mail or e-mail. One example, chess, has been played by mail for centuries . Another example, Diplomacy, has been played by mail since the 1960s, starting with a printed newsletter written by John...
fantasy
Fantasy
Fantasy is a genre of fiction that commonly uses magic and other supernatural phenomena as a primary element of plot, theme, or setting. Many works within the genre take place in imaginary worlds where magic is common...
strategy game
Strategy game
A strategy game or strategic game is a game in which the players' uncoerced, and often autonomous decision-making skills have a high significance in determining the outcome...
. Legends was created in 1986 by Jim Landes from his previous game, Epic. The original system had three paper manuals and operated by print-based turn-sheets via snail mail. In 1995, two years after Midnight Games had been acquired by a new owner, the game system underwent a major update with many major rule changes and new elements some of which were based on the suggestions of players. This new version was called Legends II and could be played via email, initially via a DOS
DOS
DOS, short for "Disk Operating System", is an acronym for several closely related operating systems that dominated the IBM PC compatible market between 1981 and 1995, or until about 2000 if one includes the partially DOS-based Microsoft Windows versions 95, 98, and Millennium Edition.Related...
utility called the Legends Turn Editor, and currently via the deluxe Legends Position Editor. Legends is currently owned by Sam Roads of Harlequin Games
Harlequin Games
Harlequin Games is a business which designs and moderates PBM games by email of which there Legends engine is the most recognized. From there "" page - "We fuse wild imagination with good game-play in everything we produce and do so with professionalism and love for the hobby...
, who took over in 2002, and it is distributed in German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
by SSV Graz.
Although many modules were produced for the system, the 2009 release of The One Ring marked a high point. An officially licensed version of Legends based on Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings
The Lord of the Rings
The Lord of the Rings is a high fantasy epic written by English philologist and University of Oxford professor J. R. R. Tolkien. The story began as a sequel to Tolkien's earlier, less complex children's fantasy novel The Hobbit , but eventually developed into a much larger work. It was written in...
, it went on to win Best PBM at the 37th Game Manufacturers Association
Game Manufacturers Association
The Game Manufacturers Association is a non-profit trade association based in Columbus, Ohio, dedicated to the advancement of the non-electronic social games industry - Board/Tabletop Games, Miniatures Games, Card Games, Collectable/Tradeable Card Games, Role-Playing Games, and Live-Action Role...
Origins Awards.
The modules, or game worlds, which have been designed to run under the Legends game system include:
- Crown of Avalon (1988).
- Realm of the Immortals (1990), later revamped as Immortals' Realm in 2002.
- North Island Campaign (1992), later revamped as North Island Campaign II in 2001, winner of a Game Manufacturers AssociationGame Manufacturers AssociationThe Game Manufacturers Association is a non-profit trade association based in Columbus, Ohio, dedicated to the advancement of the non-electronic social games industry - Board/Tabletop Games, Miniatures Games, Card Games, Collectable/Tradeable Card Games, Role-Playing Games, and Live-Action Role...
award for Best PBM. - Dark Domain (1994), later revamped as Dark Domain II in 2002 for a special international champions game.
- Swords of Pelarn (1995).
- Crown of Chaos (1997).
- Twilight Crusade (2003).
- Hannibal's War (2003).
- Adventures in Avalon (2004), later revamped as Avalon Revisited in 2007.
- The One Ring, (2009) a game based on The Lord of the RingsThe Lord of the RingsThe Lord of the Rings is a high fantasy epic written by English philologist and University of Oxford professor J. R. R. Tolkien. The story began as a sequel to Tolkien's earlier, less complex children's fantasy novel The Hobbit , but eventually developed into a much larger work. It was written in...
.
Up to 200 players can participate in a single game, which can last between 18 months and 5 years.