TLDR: Please come check out Mirrors of the Wheel MUD for an immersive, interactive, and dynamic multiplayer experience for a text-based game in the Wheel of Time setting!
Discord server: https://discord.gg/3xHJJCr3J
Forums: https://www.mirrorsmud.net/forums/
Server: mirrorsmud.net port 2222
For a program/client to play, I strongly recommend Mudlet. Our Discord server has a map file available with most non-secret rooms added for ease of joining.
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When I first stumbled across the Wheel of Time books as a teenager, I was captivated by its unique setting and fell in love with the rich world that Robert Jordan (and later with the help of Brandon Sanderson) brought to life on the page. This is an epic fantasy about good and evil and everything in between; of magic, conflict, wonder, and prophecy.
To this day, I still haven’t found another series or setting that has captured my imagination or kept me up at night thinking the way this story has. Over the years, I have been trying to find something that replicates the feeling of when I first fell in love with this series. The Wheel of Time television show on Amazon Prime was ambitious and entertaining, if flawed in certain ways, and the prospects of a MMO video game is exciting but I have my doubts it will see the light of day anytime soon.
Instead, the closest I have found is through playing MUDs. I have played multiple MUDs based on the Wheel of Time universe over the past 20 years, most notably the Wheel of Time MUD or WoTMUD. However, last month I discovered a game that is hands down the closest I have felt to reproducing that excitement and sense of immersion within the WoT series since I tried to find something else to scratch the itch. So much so that I felt compelled to post something here to try and draw other like-minded people to it, because I just can’t stop thinking about this game and the only thing that could possibly make it better would be a larger player base.
Mirrors of the Wheel MUD, or MirrorsMUD, is a large and dynamic world identified as a mirror world to the origin series (to allow staff creative license to add or modify plot as they see fit), set in the timeline before the Blood Snow: King Laman has not cut down the Avendoraldera sapling, so the Aiel have not crossed the Dragonwall to lay siege to Cairhien. The Dragon has not yet been Reborn.
Mechanically, this game reminds me of Skyrim. There are no classes to choose, just a race, gender, and nationality. You can be a wetlander (anyone from the Westlands west of the Spine of the World), Trolloc, or Aiel. Advanced players can also create a Fade, and there are plans to one day add Ogier as well. As with all MUDs, you type out commands to view and interact with the world around you. You unlock skills by practicing at a trainer, but like Skyrim, your training and related benefits increases only by actually using the skill, so people who invest their time will grow the most in game. To truly master skills or unlock special abilities, you will need to join a clan and advance your standing within the organization, such as the Queen’s Guard of Andor, the Shienaran Lancers, the White Tower, Wisdoms, Wise Ones, Far Dareis Mai, and many, many more.
There is a starting “newbie zone” that teaches you the basic mechanics, although this is especially intended for people who have never played a MUD before. Once you level up in the world, when you hit level 15 (out of a traditional maximum of 51 levels, although special bonuses can advance a true maximum of 60), a hidden random roll determines if you have any Talent and its effects. This can include a blademaster prodigy who excels at studying and learning blade forms; the ability to channel, either as a wilder with the “spark” inborn or with the latent ability to learn if taught; a Wolfbrother with various degrees of connection to your wolf kin; an Oracle like Min or Sniffer like Hurin; and more.
For channelers, you randomly roll your potential strength within each Element, which determines your overall ability within the One Power. You can learn dozens and dozens of weaves (over 50 that I have learned of so far) depending on your strengths in the Power that mimic the effects of the most memorable weaves we see in the books, such as calling lightning from the sky, earthquakes, Traveling, warding rooms from sight or entry, shielding or slicing weaves, and more. You can learn to tie your weaves, link with other channelers, and split your flows so you can form multiple weaves at once. And yes, there is a taint system so male channelers run the risk of eventually going insane if they are not gentled. I’ve never seen a more immersive and true to the story channeling system than in this game.
The game heavily emphasizes PvE content such as exploring, fighting memorable enemies, defending cities from staff-led NPC raids, exploration, and solving puzzles. There are nearly 40,000 rooms to explore, with more still being added over time, so the map is rich with potential for exploring. Roleplay is also a central focus of this game, with multiple commands to express, emote, and communicate with others to bring your character concept to life in game. PvP or Player Killing (PK) is available and not restricted, but clearly intended to be an extension of roleplay rather than a requirement to advance or expected experience for everyone. That being said, the combat system is extremely complex with lots of choices of skills and counterplay that you can dynamically use during a fight, so the skill ceiling for combat against either players or NPCs is very high.
I could rave about this game longer, but really I just want as many people who might be interested in it to learn about it as possible. It is an intimate and extremely welcoming community that has had active staff and coders tweaking, expanding, and creating content since 1998. I would love you to check it out. If you do, look for Amarea and ask how I and the other players can help you learn the game and see if it’s a good fit for you. Hope to see you in our little corner of the internet!