Why did you start playing? Why did you stay?

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  • CarmellCarmell Eastern Washington
    Facebook add.  I played for a long time got so annoyed it wasn't fun anymore left for about 5 years or so.  Just logged in back in January right after shallam was sunk.  Decided I wanted to stick around and see what happened.  Started getting involved again and am having a blast. 
  • This is cool. MOAR STORIES PLZ!
    "Under all that we think, lives all that we believe, like the ultimate veil of our spirits." --Antonio Machado
    "The belief that becomes truth for me is that which allows me the best use of my strength, the best means of putting my virtues into action." --Andre Gide
    "It is not enough to have a good mind; the main thing is to use it well."  --Rene Descartes
  • Azi said:
    @Cobra :)

    Woah. Lazarus.

    I am glad you came back, Cobra! Let's PLAY!! :)
    Dear @Azi,

      It's been a while for me and I suppose a few others.  I am finally getting adjusted to the new Achaea and things are looking up for me.  Be sure to say hello to me if you see me about.  Take it easy Azi!

    Sincerely,


    Cobra
  • So when I was like 13-14 I read the dune novel series and liked it, so I started to play this MUD based on Dune.

    It was great and stuff but then I got bad grades for grade 10 and my dad blocked off that MUD, so I went on Mudconnector and just went for the ones with the most players: which was Achaea.

    Then I stayed because I really wanted to pk people because I thought killing other players was totally badass.
  • Teg said:
    because I thought killing other players was totally badass.
    It is, @Teg. It totally is.
    Tvistor: If that was a troll, it was masterful.
    I take my hat off to you.
  • Started playing Ishar on Cyberverse way back in 93 or 94. Got started as a friend in my DND club - yes we had one at my high school - found it and told me about it. Started playing and was immediately hooked with not only the fantasy world that I loved, but also a great group of people. Went Immortal there, then Artisan (higher level immortal who can create areas). Ended up building a whole castle and grounds (100+ rooms) and waited forever for it to get reviewed. Left after I finished high school as I started working while continuing education so little time left and didn't have any more goals for the game, plus a lot of my other friends were also not around anymore.

    Found Achaea about a year ago. Don't remember what reminded me of Ishar, some word-association or something, but I decided to check if it was still up. It isn't. But I did find that a bunch of other MUDs were still up and healthy. Tried a couple but nothing seemed like home. Tried Achaea and I've been hooked since. I stick around because there's so much to do, explore and achieve, "life" is never dull and there's almost always people around to interact with.
    The Truths hurt. Always.
  • I was attracted to Achaea because it was the first game I ever saw where the objective was not to kill some threat to the world, or to beat a boss, where you were not a 'chosen one,' and the world did not revolve around you.

    I was attracted to the tagline they had at the time 'Be a master of men, or a master of coin.' The idea of a medieval, (sorta,) themed game where people became merchants, rulers of cities, and high priests to gods that actually answered prayers in unique ways blew me away. It was the experience I always wanted in such a video game, not to be the crazy adventurer type, but to be able to be the regular person, or the statesman, or cultist.

    I stayed for the character arc I had with Alynna. I enjoyed the development and maturation of her and her attitudes, the evolving storyline. Interacting with others is always a treat. I think I'll only truly stop playing once her story is finally over in my mind... not sure when that is, but we'll see. :)


  • Had a character in another city, wanted to try Magi because I loved fighting in retardation (go figure, huh), but didn't want to risk class change.

    So I rolled a Mhaldorian Mage to try out a new class and a new city all at once.

    Been playing on Hasar ever since, much more than my old character, and no regrets! Combat is incredible, and lots of cool people here.

  • My friend wanted me to play with him and it was the most confuuusing thing ever. I was about 14, never really started playing 4srs until I was 16-17. I absolutely adore Achaea now. :D
    I'll probably be shifting over to Starmourn, seeya there!
    discord: aciidwire#5240
    Please check out my new art page!

  • Mm, mid July '13 I quit playing a MUD that I had been playing since 2001 (It's called Eternal-City... if you go look at the forums they are empty.. and if you saw the size of the playerbase now, it's 20-40 at peak hours I hear).
    It was a pretty heart-breaking situation as to why it happened.
    The staff was abusive X10 and since I left I have been able to casually observe more and more people pulling their cards to stop paying for accounts or altogether quitting, also crying out abuse - the game owners do nothing and the GMs continue their absolute destruction of a really freaking fun game.
    I have read about people pop back in, saying what a load of crap the staff has turned the game into, and leaving again.
    I was pretty deeply invested in that game on several characters. Ran and assisted in many orgs and events over the years.
    All for naught.
    So I was pretty distressed and depressed over the months while it was all happening. When the break was finally made, Cidusii's player kinda walked with me through my emotional disappointment and helped ween me off a game I had been so attached to for over a decade. We played a lot of games and watched a lot of british tele together.
    Then a friend (from the game above) IM'd me and recounted to me a tale of staff abuse against her and why she had quit several months prior. She told me "You would love Achaea, I just know it. Let's all make characters together and it'll be great. You won't feel the blow so hard if you have another MUD outlet."
    So ... we did! And... after a few days of pounding my head  against the wall, feeling so out of sorts and disoriented... it all started to click. And I fell in love with this game.


  • I also started playing when I was eleven, which would have been in 2002. I don't remember how I found out about Achaea, but it was the next step into internet game obsession after a whole lot of Neopets. I managed to get my older brother into Achaea, too. He was a Magi. I had a bunch of alts and never stuck with any particular one for a long amount of time. I mostly remember having a Priest, a Sentaari, and a Jester (right when the class was invented, if memory serves).

    I disappeared for a decade, because I was too cool as a teenager (I think Diablo II:LoD also had something to do with it) and too busy in college. Then I graduated last spring and didn't have a job for a long time, so I found my way back. I finally found a job, which is cool because I can pay for Iron Elite! But it also means I can't play Achaea all day every day, so... you win some, you lose some.
  • I started playing MUDs during my second year in high school, 2005, on Gemstone IV. I quit after three hours because I thought it was an MMO and couldn't figure out how to play. I came back to that same MUD some months later and played for a while then quit because I got bored. Fast forward to 2009 when I found Achaea by searching for similar games to Gemstone IV. I made a Shallamese priest named Argolius and played for a month, I think. Unlike G4, which had a map on their web client, I was totally lost in Achaea. I found a forest, saw a golem and thought 'look! an npc! DIE! DIE! DIE!' then wound up dead and scolded by my House. So I suicided that and thought I'd make another one. 

    June 2009 was when I made my next character, Jakiro, and have been playing him since (on and off, mostly). After two/three months I was close to quitting because I hated doing House requirements but I decided to stay for two reasons: 1) the people in the Druid House were great (and they didn't have a time limit on doing House reqs) and 2) I found a guy named @Apolinario. His name is of a filipino hero so I asked him if he was, and he said yes then inducted me into an OOC clan. That's where I met the other filipinos here and I've been friends with them ever since.

    I've since made numerous alts to try out other classes without quitting Druid, but only one stuck: Rayver. Played him for a long while too (long enough to get tri-trans + survival, yay Naga credit sales!) cause serpent and Mhaldor were extremely fun but college got in the way and I had to take a long time off of Achaea. Hadn't played him seriously since, but I'd love to once I get bored of Runies.
    image
  • AmanuAmanu Forge Tree
    Started playing because it was something my brother had suggested back in 2004. I played for a short while but gave up like so many did because of the first time 'what the foozles is all this text stuff?' Couldn't quite grasp it then tried again months later with Amanu and just pushed on. I was quickly addicted to all of the stories and mechanics.

  • I started playing achaea when my best friend would not stop nagging me and telling me about her characters and rp. So I gave up and tried it. Wasn't hooked instantly. But gradually I got addicted to the fun rp. Got totally sucked in as my character came to life and all the people around me did. Some under cover stuff was super fun. And after a little bit, I was hooked. Achaea is awesome because there are pretty much no limits. You and the people around you create a story as lives intertwine. Be a warrior. Be a merchant. Whatever. Be entirely neutral and don't give a crap. That is why achaea has hooked me.

  • TharvisTharvis The Land of Beer and Chocolate!
    Caoimhaen said:
    I started playing achaea when my best friend would not stop nagging me and telling me about her characters and rp. So I gave up and tried it. Wasn't hooked instantly. But gradually I got addicted to the fun rp. Got totally sucked in as my character came to life and all the people around me did. Some under cover stuff was super fun. And after a little bit, I was hooked. Achaea is awesome because there are pretty much no limits. You and the people around you create a story as lives intertwine. Be a warrior. Be a merchant. Whatever. Be entirely neutral and don't give a crap. That is why achaea has hooked me.
    ftfy
    Aurora says, "Tharvis, why are you always breaking things?!"
    Artemis says, "You are so high maintenance, Tharvis, gosh."
    Tecton says, "It's still your fault, Tharvis."

  • I came for the freak, stayed for the food.

  • Personally, I started playing IRE games about a decade ago after starting MUDs with Cardea, which was made off of the codebase that IRE used to license out(if I'm not mistaken?) then they shut down, I got heavily into Aetolia, then I really liked the idea of ships, and now I'm here. Even though I'm not sure if I can talk myself into buying enough credits just to have a War Galley, I still don't regret the switch. 
  • edited February 2014
    I searched for games to play online during my high school computer class other than Unreal Tournament. Stumbled onto MUDs and Achaea.  It was very confusing but I really liked reading the lore. I hopped back off and on until... some year where I finally buckled down and started talking to other players and engaging in roleplay (this was during the Shallam Occupation by Mhaldor, also known as the Truffle Era). It was highly addicting after I learned to make a character appearance that wouldn't be mercilessly cut down and laughed at by the playerbase... until I couldn't even log in without being killed seconds later.

    I stay because I keep wanting to make and play out a great character. Maybe I'll even do it someday. Probably not.
  • edited February 2014
    started because its the only game my first comp could play decently, stayed because I wanted to be influential, left and came back a few time in the process due to job restraints or life frustration events, came back most recently because people kept asking me to and I love coding, which I learned through the years entirely because I played this game
    image
  • edited February 2014
    I found an ad on 8-bit theatre in 2001, and made a character immediately. But the Guild days were hard, and I couldn't get the sponsorships necessary to progress, so I quit. I was 13 back then, so motivation to do "homework" really turned me off.

    I came back as Siduri in 2005-ish, starting College. I had a blast, Saria was great and we chatted a lot IC and OOC. I did all I couldn't do before, and I was hooked by the in-depth experience of Achaea.

    Then I had my accident, and the trial some of you might remember (the post was deleted by the admins during my absence), and I vanished.

    I had a urge to come back when I received the IRE email about Shallam sinking, but didn't act on it. I sure did when I got the other promo email about Targossas being founded, and here I am, having a blast again!

    Edit: For those who wonder. I won the trial, the culprit pleaded guilty after my testimony.

    image
  • I guess I'll reveal my alt... since I've made my identity apparent and I won't be going back to my first character after the investment in Xith.

    2009, just after college ended. I failed all my classes largely due to my addiction to tribalwars.net, a browser-based game that can be more time-consuming than anything I've ever seen. Life was kind of sucky in general. My side finally lost the war and so I had the opportunity to look away from that game.

    So I was chilling and playing kdice... chatting in the text box between moves with two other people in the room. They must've thought I was pretty cool because they mentioned that I'd probably like Achaea. (Let's face it, you only invite cool people to Achaea. It is precioussss.) So they explained the cities briefly and asked if I preferred magic or weapons or assassination, etc. to help me pick the right class. I actually settled on Tsol'aa Magi and joined Black Lotus.

    After I went through the Trial and met a house mentor, the two of them bloodlined me. So I had two experienced Achaeans to guide me (a roleplay-oriented mother and a combat-oriented father). That definitely helped.
    After about a week I stopped playing, being somewhat unable to wrap my head around it. But Elora (mom) messaged me on Facebook to come back a couple weeks later. I gradually got more into it (I'll be honest, the sirens helped) and met more and more cool people in a socially mature environment, an improvement from the dregs you find in other games...

    Why did I stay?
    I might not have stayed much longer, if not for meeting a pretty awesome girl, who would eventually become my best friend. She's part of the reason Achaea is important to me. It's an awesome game to both keep guys around with the intense combat and keep girls around with the depth and customisation. And visa versa... sorta.

    Eventually Cetaiyo's story had to end and after a short intermission, Xith's began. Haven't played tribalwars for a long time, because as you know, the best way to kick a bad addiction is to replace it. And on that note, I want to thank everyone behind and in Achaea for making it irreplaceable...
    I like my steak like I like my Magic cards: mythic rare.
  • AodfionnAodfionn Seattle, WA
    I started playing in 2004 or 2005, when a friend of mine from Jazz band told me to check it out. My buddy only made it to level ten, but as soon as I got into it I was hooked. The storylines, the history, the RP, all of it was super appealing to me. 

    I remember my first every online purchase was buying credits in Ireland at age 16. I remember pretty much growing up with the people I played with, and feeling more proud of each successive character in my long line of fails. Despite engagements, drug issues, sobriety, high school, college, and the professional world, Achaea was always a constant that I always enjoyed. 
    Even though it's been over a year since I played as often as I'd like, I definitely still miss it.


    Aurora says, "Are you drunk, Aodfionn?"
  • I think I started on IRE because I saw an ad somewhere. Played Achaea for a little bit; didn't like it (or the playerbase at the time), so pinged between a couple others with a couple novices, landed on another IRE game. Played that one for years. I had some really good times in that game, but it just got old. I was tired of dealing with ridiculous changes and obvious bias. Nerfs happened that overall made the game un-fun. Anyway. Someone recommended Achaea, I hesitated. Made a few novices, stalked the forums a bit. Decided it wasn't the same as before and jumped ship. So far so good!

    BONUS CONTENT: I wanted to keep playing a MUD after I stopped playing the previous game, I tried a couple others (I actually made a really good friend playing a MUD called Inquisition), but I just like the colorfulness and superpowers you get with IRE games. Some of the MUDs out there are too 'real'. Like. It's going home from work and playing at more work. Re-donk. No thank you.
    But gosh darn it, if there do exist some people who just can't handle the uniqueness of your snowflake...
    - Mathonwy

  • It was somewhere around 1999 when I made my first character.  My roommate in the Navy was interested in Achaea, and kept trying to get me to play.  I never did even find my way off of Loom Island that go around.  I got into playing Diablo 2, and doing all those Baal runs eventually got old.  I think it was a Ladder reset that pissed me off.. all that work just to have my elite Hammerdin become ordinary.  Being a Paladin on Diablo was my only reason for making a Paladin in Achaea when I was ready to come back a few years later and try again.  That Paladin who has since changed class is still active, though barely.  He made real friendships in Achaea, and I did as well.  I suppose that is what kept me playing.  I have put Achaea away for lengths of time.. 6 months, a year.. but I have always seemed to find my way back.  
  • I was invited by...I think it was Lacy, so long ago. It was late 1999 or early 2000, and I think I found Cardea first and was cross invited over here. Then, because I was like 13, I got all in a huff about the whole Rapture engine thing and went to okay Cardea with righteous indignation... For like a weekend before I was back at both. I started Kei, first character and only real character, tried some others over the years (Priest, Paladin, Occultist with Necromancy, Serpentlord, Sentaari... All back in the guild days), but quests returned to Kei. There's some personal details here I'd rather not get into in public, but she really grew on me. Not ashamed of anything, just I'd prefer to say it in private if at all.

    Anyway. I played for some four years or so, then Gaia (old old Gaia) left, and she sort of fell apart (100+ IC years of service and then poof will do that). Went and learned Occultism and then...I don't know anymore, I got into other things, fell horribly addicted to WoW, etc. Then when I was talking to my boyfriend recently about the tabletop games we run, I mentioned two of my old, prized characters, one being Kei, and... It was sort of inevitable that I peeked back in.

    Now Kei is still adjusting mentally and spiritually to the new landscape, actually has a girlfriend for real, and I/she am/is becoming far more involved than ever before, which is just a thing of awesome. And more interesting things are on the horizon! As I mentioned in another thread, it was Maefeng and Dirgmal, in the end, regardless of anything else, that took note, said hi, and welcomed me back... And that helped so much to keep me in when I came back. Now it's just everything else that I love about the game.

    I miss the old crew, but the new crew is pretty cool, the only thing that bothers me sometimes is the huge number attached to Kei. Too old for Marina, indeed. :P

    (Also I'm still trying to get my other friends interested, they're being all busy and meh. Bah!)

    Bydar, a garish-looking trader says, "I'm not a man, I'm an experience."
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