The Shadow of Yserbius
Encyclopedia
The Shadow of Yserbius, originally published by Sierra On-Line, was the first of three graphical MUDs for the online community. Opening to rave reviews, The Shadow of Yserbius, according to industry critics, set the standard by which all future MUDs would be judged. The game was followed by two sequels entitled The Fates of Twinion (1993) and The Ruins of Cawdor
(1995). Until recently, only The Shadow of Yserbius and The Fates of Twinion were playable in offline mode.
The Shadow of Yserbius, along with its successors, remained online until 1996, when America Online purchased the rights from then-owner AT&T
for an undisclosed price (rumored to be $40 million). AOL soon pulled the plug on The Shadow of Yserbius, which was a competitor to its existing online RPG Neverwinter Nights
.
In late 2007, the ImagiNation Revival Project succeeded in resurrecting the long-dormant ImagiNation Network by using the original client software coupled with DOSBox
. The Shadow of Yserbius is now once again available for online play with all features, graphics, sounds, and such fully intact and functional. Macros are fully supported and compatibility with old character and map files is enabled for TSN/INN versions 2.4 and higher.
The goal of the game was to kill an evil elemental creature called En-li-Kil. There were a number of "rooms", where up to 30 (later 60) people could meet and adventure together in groups of up to four. Combat was turn-based.
The available professions were Barbarian
, Knight
, Ranger
, Thief, Cleric
, and Wizard
. Player races included Human
, Orc
, Elf
, Troll
, Dwarf, Gnome
, Halfling
, and Gremlin
.
Another popular pastime was player vs player sparring. This later became corrupted by cheating, as well as version compatibility issues, which later versions tried to address with little success. The most popular of these cheating programs was a macro called VitaminF.
Many players were members of guild
s, ranging from the SoF (Soldiers Of Fortune), KoY (Kingdom Of Yserbius), EMPIRE and DEADZ, to guilds such as TheMercs, KoC (Knight of Chivalry), ,KAAOS (Killing As An Organized Sport),and the FTT (Friendship,Truth, and Trust Guild). While some guilds were based on role playing at times, some of the guilds were dedicated to helping others with interest in the Quests and building strong characters. A handful of the guilds started in Yserbius during the early 1990s, such as SoF, TheCelts, KAAOS, DEADZ, TheMercs, New Outriders (http://www.newoutriders.com ), and the FTT, still exist to this day.
Source of information for gameplay.
Detailed walkthrough available at http://www.yserbius.org/forum
Source of information for Gameplay Original Manual in PDF form http://www.yserbius.org/download/Yserbius_Manual_Original.pdf
The Ruins of Cawdor
(second sequel to Yserbius) has been patched to be playable offline.
including Yserbius and SierraLand. With the emulation software - dosbox - it is possible to use the original INN client software and connect to the INN Revival server over a regular Internet connection, instead of requiring the use of a modem as the previous versions did. Once connected, many of the original features have been brought back on-line, including MedievaLand (the play area featuring The Shadow of Yserbius.) Once online and in MedievaLand, you can connect to Yserbius and join others in Sword Swamp (currently the only available Tavern). Preliminary testing indicates that almost all of the functionality of Yserbius Online has been retained under this setup. It is also backwards-compatible with popular macros such as VitaminF (a character modification program) and pre-existing player and map files from the original ImagiNation Network releases. Work on bringing back Fates of Twinion and Ruins of Cawdor is in progress and should achieve similar results to Yserbius in terms of playability, since the two other games are based on the same gameplay engine and similar file structures.
Note: Since the current client in use is based on the 2.4 INN client, two popular Yserbius bugs/features are no longer available: characters can no longer "force" equipment into use that excludes their Guild, such as a Ranger being able to force into use the War Hammer of Doom; and, players below a certain level cannot be teleported past the Labyrinth Gate, as was possible in earlier versions such as 2.0 and 2.1.
Another test version of The Shadow of Yserbius was created a year earlier in mid-2006 that allows users to enter the Tavern and chat with others. This version was built in Java and can be found at Yserbius.Org.
In mid 1999, Xenther and EtoneDarkKnight worked together on developing Project Asunder, a spiritual successor to Yserbius. Numerous screen shots were shown, with actual gameplay implied. However, EtoneDarkKnight fell out of communication with the public late that year, and Project Asunder was closed shortly thereafter.
In early 2000, Mithrandel announced development of Yet Another Yserbius (YAY). While Mithrandel claimed to have finished development of the Tavern and extended beta test invitations to a small group of testers, no public beta test was ever released. Mithrandel later went on to develop FauxINN, a recreation of The ImagiNation Network.
The Ruins of Cawdor
The Ruins of Cawdor was the last of three graphical MUDs for the online community The Sierra Network, which later became The ImagiNation Network...
(1995). Until recently, only The Shadow of Yserbius and The Fates of Twinion were playable in offline mode.
The Shadow of Yserbius, along with its successors, remained online until 1996, when America Online purchased the rights from then-owner AT&T
AT&T
AT&T Inc. is an American multinational telecommunications corporation headquartered in Whitacre Tower, Dallas, Texas, United States. It is the largest provider of mobile telephony and fixed telephony in the United States, and is also a provider of broadband and subscription television services...
for an undisclosed price (rumored to be $40 million). AOL soon pulled the plug on The Shadow of Yserbius, which was a competitor to its existing online RPG Neverwinter Nights
Neverwinter Nights (AOL game)
Neverwinter Nights was the first multiplayer online role-playing game to display graphics, and ran from 1991 to 1997 on AOL.-Gameplay:Neverwinter Nights was developed to be played similarly to the Gold Box series of games...
.
In late 2007, the ImagiNation Revival Project succeeded in resurrecting the long-dormant ImagiNation Network by using the original client software coupled with DOSBox
DOSBox
DOSBox is emulator software that emulates an IBM PC compatible computer running MS-DOS. It is intended especially for use with old PC games. DOSBox is free software....
. The Shadow of Yserbius is now once again available for online play with all features, graphics, sounds, and such fully intact and functional. Macros are fully supported and compatibility with old character and map files is enabled for TSN/INN versions 2.4 and higher.
Game play
The available professions were Barbarian
Barbarian
Barbarian and savage are terms used to refer to a person who is perceived to be uncivilized. The word is often used either in a general reference to a member of a nation or ethnos, typically a tribal society as seen by an urban civilization either viewed as inferior, or admired as a noble savage...
, Knight
Knight
A knight was a member of a class of lower nobility in the High Middle Ages.By the Late Middle Ages, the rank had become associated with the ideals of chivalry, a code of conduct for the perfect courtly Christian warrior....
, Ranger
Ranger (character class)
A Ranger is a type of warrior appearing in fantasy fiction and role-playing games....
, Thief, Cleric
Cleric (character class)
The Cleric, Priest, or Bishop is a character class in Dungeons & Dragons and other fantasy role-playing games. The cleric is a healer, usually a priest and a holy warrior, originally modeled on or inspired by the Military Orders...
, and Wizard
Wizard (character class)
The Wizard is a type of magical character class in certain role-playing games and computer role-playing games. Wizards are considered to be spellcasters who wield powerful spells, but are often physically weak as a trade-off. Wizards are commonly confused with similar offensive spellcasting...
. Player races included Human
Human
Humans are the only living species in the Homo genus...
, Orc
Orc
An orc is one of a race of mythical human-like creatures, generally described as fierce and combative, with grotesque features and often black, grey or greenish skin. This mythology has its origins in the writings of J. R. R. Tolkien....
, Elf
Elf
An elf is a being of Germanic mythology. The elves were originally thought of as a race of divine beings endowed with magical powers, which they use both for the benefit and the injury of mankind...
, Troll
Troll
A troll is a supernatural being in Norse mythology and Scandinavian folklore. In origin, the term troll was a generally negative synonym for a jötunn , a being in Norse mythology...
, Dwarf, Gnome
Gnome
A gnome is a diminutive spirit in Renaissance magic and alchemy, first introduced by Paracelsus and later adopted by more recent authors including those of modern fantasy literature...
, Halfling
Halfling
Halfling is another name for J. R. R. Tolkien's Hobbit which can be a fictional race sometimes found in fantasy novels and games. In many settings, they are similar to humans except about half the size. Dungeons & Dragons began using the name halfling as an alternative to hobbit for legal reasons...
, and Gremlin
Gremlin
A gremlin is an imaginary creature commonly depicted as mischievous and mechanically oriented, with a specific interest in aircraft. Gremlins' mischievous natures are similar to those of English folkloric imps, while their inclination to damage or dismantle machinery is more...
.
Another popular pastime was player vs player sparring. This later became corrupted by cheating, as well as version compatibility issues, which later versions tried to address with little success. The most popular of these cheating programs was a macro called VitaminF.
Many players were members of guild
Clan (computer gaming)
In computer and video gaming, a clan or guild is an organised group of players that regularly play together in a particular multiplayer games. These games range from groups of a few friends to 1000-person organizations, with a broad range of structures, goals and members. The lifespan of a clan...
s, ranging from the SoF (Soldiers Of Fortune), KoY (Kingdom Of Yserbius), EMPIRE and DEADZ, to guilds such as TheMercs, KoC (Knight of Chivalry), ,KAAOS (Killing As An Organized Sport),and the FTT (Friendship,Truth, and Trust Guild). While some guilds were based on role playing at times, some of the guilds were dedicated to helping others with interest in the Quests and building strong characters. A handful of the guilds started in Yserbius during the early 1990s, such as SoF, TheCelts, KAAOS, DEADZ, TheMercs, New Outriders (http://www.newoutriders.com ), and the FTT, still exist to this day.
Source of information for gameplay.
Detailed walkthrough available at http://www.yserbius.org/forum
Source of information for Gameplay Original Manual in PDF form http://www.yserbius.org/download/Yserbius_Manual_Original.pdf
The Tavern
The tavern was the social hub for the game. Players who spent a lot of time in the tavern were known as "tavern rats". Many games and challenges took place there, as well as a significant amount of roleplaying.Remakes
Doubtless due to the popularity of The Shadow of Yserbius, the perceived simplicity of its engine, and the fact that most of the graphics are easily reproduced, there have been several attempts to remake the game.The Ruins of Cawdor
The Ruins of Cawdor
The Ruins of Cawdor was the last of three graphical MUDs for the online community The Sierra Network, which later became The ImagiNation Network...
(second sequel to Yserbius) has been patched to be playable offline.
Current Projects
In May 2007 the INN Revival was able to get their server emulator to the point where a playable version of Yserbius is online that is open to the public during certain time windows. Unlike the early remake versions, this successful attempt uses limited reverse engineering of the client software to build a working server for all of ImagiNation NetworkImagiNation Network
The ImagiNation Network , aka The Sierra Network , was an early online multiplayer gaming system. Developed by Sierra On-Line in 1989, and first available to the public in 1991, the ImagiNation Network was a unique online gaming network that gave subscribers from all over the United States of...
including Yserbius and SierraLand. With the emulation software - dosbox - it is possible to use the original INN client software and connect to the INN Revival server over a regular Internet connection, instead of requiring the use of a modem as the previous versions did. Once connected, many of the original features have been brought back on-line, including MedievaLand (the play area featuring The Shadow of Yserbius.) Once online and in MedievaLand, you can connect to Yserbius and join others in Sword Swamp (currently the only available Tavern). Preliminary testing indicates that almost all of the functionality of Yserbius Online has been retained under this setup. It is also backwards-compatible with popular macros such as VitaminF (a character modification program) and pre-existing player and map files from the original ImagiNation Network releases. Work on bringing back Fates of Twinion and Ruins of Cawdor is in progress and should achieve similar results to Yserbius in terms of playability, since the two other games are based on the same gameplay engine and similar file structures.
Note: Since the current client in use is based on the 2.4 INN client, two popular Yserbius bugs/features are no longer available: characters can no longer "force" equipment into use that excludes their Guild, such as a Ranger being able to force into use the War Hammer of Doom; and, players below a certain level cannot be teleported past the Labyrinth Gate, as was possible in earlier versions such as 2.0 and 2.1.
Another test version of The Shadow of Yserbius was created a year earlier in mid-2006 that allows users to enter the Tavern and chat with others. This version was built in Java and can be found at Yserbius.Org.
Abandoned Projects
The first remake attempt was Gandalf's 'Yserbius project', which was in development in 1998. Gandalf, a major force in the Yserbius community, disappeared in early 1999. With his going, all information regarding his project was lost.In mid 1999, Xenther and EtoneDarkKnight worked together on developing Project Asunder, a spiritual successor to Yserbius. Numerous screen shots were shown, with actual gameplay implied. However, EtoneDarkKnight fell out of communication with the public late that year, and Project Asunder was closed shortly thereafter.
In early 2000, Mithrandel announced development of Yet Another Yserbius (YAY). While Mithrandel claimed to have finished development of the Tavern and extended beta test invitations to a small group of testers, no public beta test was ever released. Mithrandel later went on to develop FauxINN, a recreation of The ImagiNation Network.
Sources
- Source http://www.yserbius.org Archives
- Source http://www.sierragamers.com/ owned by Creator Ken Williams
- Source http://www.vintage-sierra.com/index.php
External links
- Yserbius.org - This site is intended for the purpose of Archival of all things Yserbius, TSN, INN.
- XenSoft.Com - Home of the Yserbius Project
- MedievaLand - page dedicated to recreating online Yserbius / Twinion / Cawdor
- INN Revival - This is the current home of the INN Revival project, currently in beta test stages.