Aabahran,The Forsaken Lands is a Fantasy-themed MUD (Multi-User Dungeon) founded in 2000.

Having played through this game for over 10 years, it has had its share of both ups and downs. I would say that it is definitely on an up swing, with a passionate and dedicated staff working tirelessly to both add new content and assisting new players in adapting to playing this game. There are organizations that you can join with specific goals and expectations. Many of them can lead to joining with the cabal it feeds to, which with additional responsibilities, comes additional powers you can use. The only thing I feel that would greatly improve this game is having more players playing it. I think you will find both the in-game and forum community both excited and willing to bend over backwards to help new players learn what makes our game better than the rest, and why we have stuck with it.

– MudConnector.Com Review (Archived) by Cephirus on Jan 26, 2013

I was going to try it, but then I got to the point where you become a Moderate or Ruthless character. Moderate characters seem to get the short end of the stick when it comes to freedom of play, so I decided to not try it out.

– MudConnector.Com Review (Archived) by Tykune on Feb 3, 2013

Greetings all prospective players, This review is mainly to highlight the changes and advancements the Forsaken Lands have made since the last post. Over the last two years, our players and staff have striven to improve upon the fantasy world we call home. New areas have been added, and stock areas replaced. Roleplay plots, both global and customized, have come and gone, and many more are in the works. With a dedicated and active coder, an active and respective Staff Implementer, and a host other dedicated players the MUD continues to improve. Admittedly, I am biased in regards to MUDs. I, myself, heavily focus on Roleplay, and Aabahran has delivered that better than any other RP mud I have played (and I have tried a few). The bulk of this engaging world, it's history and happenings, are many, if not most times, the brainchild of our players. This is not to say however, that the staff takes a back seat. On the contrary, at nearly any time a staff member is available for roleplay or to help in other regards. There is a motto of ours; 'With strong, consistent RP, anything is possible.' But perhaps RolePlay isn't your 'thing?' While RP is indeed enforced, Player-Killing and Player-vs-Environment aspects of the game are also a big part of the experience. Pit yourself against players the world over for pulse-pounding excitement or against horrifying creatures the lurk in dark corners for glory or equipment. Whatever your pleasure, I can tell you the Forsaken Lands will provide. Name your hero, or villain, and play your part in shaping Aabahran as you wish.

– MudConnector.Com Review (Archived) by Volgathras on May 24, 2010

Aabahran the Forsaken Lands is a higly intense MUD, both in aspects of player-killing and roleplay. The game is run by a highly competent immortal staff and played by a highly enthusiastic playerbase. Whether you are very pk-intensive, very rp-intensive, or a mix of the two, you cannot go wrong with Forsaken Lands. Every class and race is balanced, none better than the other. Roleplay is enforced, absolutely no out-of-character comments are allowed, and at the same time, PK is allowed in every imaginable circumstance, as long as it fits your RP. Want to be a follower of a higher power and go slay anyone who opposes your preachings? Go for it, FL will applaud you for it. Want to be a self-righteous gnome that is delusional and thinks he is stronger than any giant in the lands? Go for it, FL will again applaud you. Your imagination literally can run wild here. Anything you can dream of, you can play it. The immstaff is beyond superb. They are constantly involved in roleplay plots. Major, major roleplay plots. They will interact through roleplay with any character you ever make. You can darn well bet the immortals will take their time to individually roleplay with your character. But not only the immortals, as the playerbase itself is very much involved in the mud's roleplay. The immortal staff and playerbase surrounding the mud will definitely make you feel as though the time you invest on your character is well worth it. This isn't other muds, where you are just a number. You are not a number at Forsaken Lands, you are a character who has a unique rp background, and allowed to pk as much as you want within that rp background. At FL, you are an influence on anyone and everyone who plays here, because we all want to learn who your character his, what's his schtick, what he believes in. The mud is entirely in-character. There are no 'ty!', there are no 'brb!'. Rest assured, however, that people will help you along your journey. Even the most evil of villains will help a new person to the mud - FL has a 'newbie' channel dedicated just to that purpose. Can't find your way from one city to another? The newbie channel will help. The extensive coding and building updates are wonderful. By the time you figure out one cool little thing, you realize there are five more things just waiting for you to come explore them. This mud is by far superior than any other mud you will encounter. You can trust me, as I've played MUDs for over 12 years, and I've tried them all. I came to FL on a friend's urging. I saw it was complicated and unique, but what was most important to me was that I saw that this mud was truly balanced. There were no 'rigged' characters. I was fed up with muds like that. Nobody at FL is a cheat, and if you try to cheat, you should know that you will be caught. I was tired of playing muds with those type of players and immortals. Rest assured, you will never encounter a better immortal staff. You will never encounter such rp-driven plots as FL, both player and immortal-driven. It is hard, if not impossible, to think of anything that is truly wrong with this mud. In short, if you like roleplay, if you like player killing, and if you definitely like the balance of the two, then FL is the place for you. The immortal staff is superb, the playerbase is grateful and accepting. The game will take you to depths you never thought imaginable.

– MudConnector.Com Review (Archived) by Montahg on Jun 27, 2008

Its a great mud with incompetent IMMs who turn down help from experienced people. A coder who doesn't code. A builder who releases 1 area every 6 months while the mud has stock areas. And another host of IMMs so rarely seen no one even notices when one quits. If they really cared about the mud they'd hire some competent staff members.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Old-Time-Player on Aug 27, 2006

Aabahran: The forsaken Lands is a fantastic mud with some impressive code and a very embracing and friendly atmosphere. It has many classes and quest-classes which require special application, all of which seem very balanced and well thought out. I am, however, here today to discuss its downfalls in an objective manner, in hopes that not only the staff of the mud see it, but that the players become more enlightened. A couple years back FLs head coder and the most influential force behind FL got a GOOD job- the end of any Mudder, especially an administrator and even more so for a coder. He left the mud in the hands of his two other staff members who seem to have found the task to overwhelming...so they ditched the project. One of the lower level imms, at this point, took over the project. He recruited his own staff and took over. Admirable? Yes, but I have to question not only his ability to run a mud, but his choice of staff members. In the years since his taking the position of head coder there have been two major developments in the code- and I have used the term major very loosely. A cabal was added...to a system with a built in cabal editor...and a class was added. A class which has seen little to no play time because of its nature. Assuming the class is more complicated than any of the other ones...and the cabal has more skills than any other...we are talking probably around 60-70 new skills/spells...in over 2 years... The Head builder, Malchaeius, is probably the person I respect most as a staff member on the mud, but not as a builder. Building developmentation has hit almost a dead-stop...and the reason they give for not accepting applications from experienced builders like myself...is that they have not had time to impliment all of the areas they have had built for years. I wonder...what have they been doing? Log on if you'd like, try and tell me. IMMs seldom to never leave their hidey holes under Wizinvis. They never RP with their players. It takes hours to get a description approved. Players sit in clans for months waiting to get into their favorite cabal. Areas are being builty roughly one every 4-6 months. Code is sporadicly written at best. Bugs and typos remain unfixed when people with the skills to help them are turned down...and you know why I think it is? They don't want people to see their own incompetence. They have failed a great mud. As a mud developer myself I am saddened to see such a great mud fall. Roleplay is no longer enforced and the encouragement of it is feeble at best. The players that have put up with this failing regime are only those who exist because of the community of players or do not enjoy RP. Aabahran: The Forsaken Lands, is not an rp enforced mud. It is a mud in RP... Read More

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Brinson on Aug 25, 2006

Aabahran: The forsaken Lands is a fantastic mud with some impressive code and a very embracing and friendly atmosphere. It has many classes and quest-classes which require special application, all of which seem very balanced and well thought out. I am, however, here today to discuss its downfalls in an objective manner, in hopes that not only the staff of the mud see it, but that the players become more enlightened. A couple years back FLs head coder and the most influential force behind FL got a GOOD job- the end of any Mudder, especially an administrator and even more so for a coder. He left the mud in the hands of his two other staff members who seem to have found the task to overwhelming...so they ditched the project. One of the lower level imms, at this point, took over the project. He recruited his own staff and took over. Admirable? Yes, but I have to question not only his ability to run a mud, but his choice of staff members. In the years since his taking the position of head coder there have been two major developments in the code- and I have used the term major very loosely. A cabal was added...to a system with a built in cabal editor...and a class was added. A class which has seen little to no play time because of its nature. Assuming the class is more complicated than any of the other ones...and the cabal has more skills than any other...we are talking probably around 60-70 new skills/spells...in over 2 years... The Head builder, Malchaeius, is probably the person I respect most as a staff member on the mud, but not as a builder. Building developmentation has hit almost a dead-stop...and the reason they give for not accepting applications from experienced builders like myself...is that they have not had time to impliment all of the areas they have had built for years. I wonder...what have they been doing? Log on if you'd like, try and tell me. IMMs seldom to never leave their hidey holes under Wizinvis. They never RP with their players. It takes hours to get a description approved. Players sit in clans for months waiting to get into their favorite cabal. Areas are being builty roughly one every 4-6 months. Code is sporadicly written at best. Bugs and typos remain unfixed when people with the skills to help them are turned down...and you know why I think it is? They don't want people to see their own incompetence. They have failed a great mud. As a mud developer myself I am saddened to see such a great mud fall. Roleplay is no longer enforced and the encouragement of it is feeble at best. The players that have put up with this failing regime are only those who exist because of the community of players or do not enjoy RP. Aabahran: The Forsaken Lands, is not an rp enforced mud. It is a mud in RP... Read More

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Brinson on Aug 25, 2006

Will one of the IMPs at Forsaken Lands please e-mail me. I have no other way of getting in contact with you, so I must resort to this. I really do not appreciate the trash-talking of my name by the Immortals of this game. To this day, the worst thing I have ever done on this MUD is disagree with the Immortals and perhaps lose my temper and break RP, but they constently trash talked me, banned my forum accounts, banned my characters (note, I have not played this MUD in over a year and a half, other than for about 1 hour when I heard they had new IMMs) and tell their playerbase I am someone else. I even recieved e-mails from their former Head IMP claiming I was a little #### and a liar when I merely wondered why I was being banned, presumably because he thought I was someone I was not. I have spoken with former players and former Immortals, and I don't understand why they can see the truth but some of your current and former staff cannot. If you do not e-mail me, or attempt to slander my name again, it will merely make me very sad we could not talk about this like men. Behrens, I meant what I said on your forums. It's sad (not wrong....note I find it morally wrong, but hey, it's your MUD) when you ask to be paid a monthly salary to code. I honestly thought you were a better person than that, and I had a tremendous amount of respect for you. Whatever I feel about your MUD or playerbase has nothing to do with my thoughts on you. I would like to keep the rest of my thoughts on a more personal level, hence the e-mail request.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Sam on Aug 22, 2006

This MUD is basically Abandoned Realems/God Wars pure PK mud. It states in the search that it is an enforced roleplaying MUD but did not see it when I played. If you like pure PK muds then this MUD is for you, but if you are looking for even a little roleplaying then please look elsewhere. I do not like it when MUD use false search terms to drive up their playerbase.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Looking for a RP MUD on Jul 30, 2006

Okay alot of people say alot of crap about this game, but I'll be honest with everyone there is nothing wrong with this mud. A few things might be tweaked at the moment but that's just because there are alot of new things going on at this time. For the longest everyone bitched because of no imm interaction which there is always imm interaction just not for those who expect it at all times, but then we got mad rp plots and a new cabal for [JUSTICE] and yes, it allowed evils in, so? I've been told that back in the day evils were in it. They bothered me a bit at first and yeah Martinieus (leader vampire of [TRIBUNAL]) is a monster, but that's what we need, imms have already told us like 10 times that if you can't kill him, start a group of cronies who also want him dead. It's trashy, but it's cool if you have alot of rp behind it. Forsaken Lands is the best mud there ever was, and the way I see it, it will always be the best, or some mud coded off of it. And the code is no longer avaliable, I believe it stopped since Azrath was the owner. But now Behrens(Irumeru) is the head IMP and coder. And he is focusing alot of time and even giving up his job to try and make this a full lime comitment. Please everyone stop the bitching, Aabahran is perfect, just the way it is, and if not then it is going in a good direction. SO says a dedicated player.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Dale on Apr 20, 2006

This mud has by far the best code and best areas. It is led by a very skilled imp with only one huge flaw. He tends to appoint the most arrogant and bitchy staff. The mud is corrupted with nepotism and a shared understanding that new players need to have a REALLY rough time before they can share the same benefits as the older players. This is the reason why this mud has a continually declining playerbase over the past year.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Sneak on Apr 20, 2006

I have played this mud since September of 2000. It is easily the best fantasy based MUD of all of its competitors listed in the top 20. Why? Mainly the common-sense world layout, the equipment areas, enforced RP(except in some cases), and the ASCII color scheme. It sounds cheesy to name ASCII as a reason, but in reality it is the #1 reason. Carrion Fields, ranked far above, and its peers have horrible ASCII schemes and if they ever had the common sense to clean it up I would play there. The immortals and a large number of the high-volume forum posters who are also vets of the game are a travesty. The exception would be Behrens, who I think is IMP but not sure (if it is not him, it is Malch who is virtually forumwise an absentsee/silent partner). Behrens actually seems to geniunely give a darn and who also presents himself with a pretty good degree of class and calm. The rest of the group is little more than a zombified group of cheerleaders and glorybaskers in most grotesque form. Many of these people are the same people that clog qrace and cabal leadership slots. At the moment, RP in the MUD is broken. Due to an Undead/Vampire led cabal named TRIBUNAL that affects the RP of the MUD, from SAVANT all the way to HERALD. It's gotten so bad that a HERALD cannot even scribe a disparaging note without earning a WANTED or even OUTLAW status. HERALD is a cabal whose very job it is to scribe notes. The concept of TRIBUNAL (which is the city-law enforcing cabal)was actually great for allowing evil aligned characters to join. However, making an Undead(and Vampire qrace no less) the leader in a cabal that also employs a Vampire's antithesis (a Healer) royally screws RP. And add in the fact that freedom of speech is now punished by WANTED or OUTLAW status is really messing up the flow and is bottom line wrong. The immortals and vet lackeys are staunchly dismissive on this subject. FL code is public now, publicly availabe and usable. I encourage anyone with server equipment to load it and start a MUD without the FL name, even if just for permanent public testing purposes. You will see what a masterful code this MUD is. It is a true gem that far outshines anything else in the ranking list.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by bromonation on Apr 18, 2006

All I can say about this mud are two words: 1.The mud is great. 2.The imm's are awful.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by ForsakenMan on Mar 4, 2006

Well I guess I must be one of the "trained dogs" the "cheating Imms" sent over to write a review. Is any mud perfect? No. That question must be answered right away before you say anything about any mud. I started in FL probably two or three years ago. I didn't know how to RP, I didn't know how to PK, I mean, I didn't even put periods at the end of sentences. This is how much I knew about the game. This game has become a big part of my life. No matter how many times I die, get full-looted and rage-delete, (which has happened many times, to be sure) I still always come back and roll up a new character. The system of players and immortals, all the quests and the huge amount of race/class combinations is enough to keep anyone busy for quite some time. On a side note, one of our players made a chart about the number of race/class/alignment options in the game, turns out you can be 176 different combinations! This mud isn't a video game you can master in two weeks. This is a place where I've been playing for two years and I could still probably be considered a newbie standing next to some of the greats. This is an experience that can keep you riveted for years. As for these "cheating Imms?" This is just the ignorance and obstinance of rule-breakers in my opinion. I heard many times over the forums about complaints from Immortals because they have to wait 15-20 minutes (or longer, I'm not sure, I'm not an imm) between logging off their immortal character to log onto mortal characters. Even still, some wouldn't because that is considered an OOC connection. I have played quite a few other muds, and this one was the most newbie friendly, and best RP/PK enforced I've seen, maybe that's why I'm still here. But as many have said before me, you cannot judge this mud by the reviews written by me or any of the others, these are our thoughts, but your experience is the only one that matters to you. Some try it out, if you don't like it, don't play, but if you do, we'll welcome you.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by littlekid on Feb 15, 2006

Aabahran: The Forsaken Lands Let’s begin with my history with this MUD, so that people will be able to judge what I know. I have been here since mid 1.0 where the golden days of the mud were about. I was a total newbie and could not Player Kill worth a crap, though I could RP. Now in mid 3.0 and many years later, I am an average Player Killer and a great Role Player (If I may say so  ). Now there are always bad things about MUD’s, you will never find the “perfect” one. It’s all about what suits you, and this MUD suits me. I will stress the points of the MUD I find both Good and Bad. Aswell as rank certain aspects from 1-10, 1 Being Poor while 10 Being Superb. Immortal Staff - 8 While being great and all, nothing will replace the first staff where my fav Imm Bry tore it up. Brehrens, Eshaine and Malchaious are doing great though, as well as the other staff. Player Attitude – 6 Some are great, some are poor, so it averages out I suppose. Player Knowledge – 10 Man some of these players know this mud inside and out, nearly rivaling Virigoth himself, but no one is the Viri-Bot. Despiser and Warrior Cleric together might be the closest I have seen. Class Balance – 9 Awsome, some classes are weak at somethings, but stronger at others, that’s great! Areas – 7 A lot are repeats of other places, but some are very original. I wish they would come out with more original ones faster  Coding - 10 Original Coding! What more can you ask for? Virigoth was truly a GOD! I don’t like how some of the cabals are run, but that’s just me. I feel you have to suck up to much to the higher ups (not meaning Imms but (L) and (E). Boo to that, I’m not someones ***** sorry. Over all? I give the MUD a 9 (and by the way, no MUD gets a 10 :)

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Risu/Jambit/Healer/Ibdivine on Feb 13, 2006

plain and simple, just like a crapload of other diku style muds out there, i guess diku, all it is is quests, eq, pracices and trains, same as a shitload out there

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by thorazine on Feb 13, 2006

Well hmm, where to start this review? I have been at this mud from almost the start. I have gone from being a total newbie with absolutely no experience at all, and not even understanding the basic concept of commands, to becoming an IMM. From being unknown to hated, to envied to hated. This mud will truly run you through the widest range of emotions possible. I perhaps am too jaded to write this review even now after being gone for a couple of months. I am sure things have finally settled down since the last shake up of imms and ownership. But I will try to give an honest review of things about this mud. This has to be one of the greatest muds of all time. From the plots and areas brought into the mud that are truly original, to the same tired plots that are used over and over and over again in every single mud. Sometimes you will have IMMs with a chip on their shoulder, or with backstabbing motives that would make a fully trained thief proud. This was one of the best muds for RP, but sadly that seems to have been left to the wayside as PK and trash talk has become one of the most common place things here. Perhaps I just remember the mud in a golden light, but it seems to me this mud has past it's prime and needs to either have a very serious revamp of staff and direction they wish to head, or just close down. Ack this has not really came out how it should have, guess I am an bitter old man. Hopefully atleast one IMM will take notice and try to bring this mud back to the power an majesty it originally had.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Too Tired on Feb 13, 2006

I've been playing this MUD for a long time, since 2001. The MUD has had its ups and downs, and although I don't have any experience with other MUDs, I would guess that's the case with most. Most of these reviews seem to be based on the experiences of the player--if they have a bad experience, they conclude it's a bad MUD, and vice versa. That would make sense, but it doesn't necessarily reflect on the quality of the MUD itself if someone has a bad experience. Most of the negative reviews of this MUD have been a reaction to bad things happening to the player. These have to be interpreted critically, I think, according to what you know about MUDs and how a player might be punished or rewarded for varoius things. But there was a string of negative reviews from experienced players that concerned me. Most of these seemed to boil down to a decline in role-playing in relation to player-killing. Now again I haven't played other MUDs, but judging from what people said on the original forum for this game, in its early days, one of the things that distinguished this MUD from others was that senseless player-killing was discouraged, yet player-killing that fit into the role-play was encouraged. Not role-play that you could claim as a defense if an IMM asked you about a PK, but well thought-out role-play that determined who your enemies were. That gave the game an intensity and realism that was very cool. I think I would have to agree that for a while, role-play declined. I don't think the game was ever bad, but it didn't have the emphasis on role-play it once had. Some players preferred this because they considered role-play the province of people who couldn't PK. Others disagreed. It's a matter of personal choice. Much of the relationship between RP and PK is due to the players, but it's also a dynamic between the IMMs and the players. If the IMMs choose to emphasize one or the other, those players that share their preferences will put in more time/less time. That said, the game appears to be in renaissance right now. Many older players have returned, and the current IMMs seem to place a great emphasis on good gameplay (not being a twink, even if you're not breaking the rules) and role-play. I would encourage you all to check it out.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Ex-D&Der on Jan 27, 2006

Here's the thing. Aabahran the Forsaken Lands is a text based RPG that has changed far more often over the years than not. Stock areas are taken out and replacement areas are put in to add more flavor to the game. Classes are constantly looked at and reevaluated to make them more up to date with the way this game is going. At first all classes were pretty basic. They couldn't choose special paths to go and be different than one another, they were all the same. Over time, the Implementors made certain classes have the ability to choose paths to follow. Warriors were too bland in the beginning, but with the ability to focus on a certain weapon type allowed them to take on special Warrior lores that allowed them to do special things. For instance the ability to use backcutter which allows for people fleeing away from the Warrior, the Warrior makes one last swipe at the person with their weapon and can possibly end up being the last blow for the character before they're killed. Other things allow weapon sieze, which basically disarms weapons with greater ease. There are a few others that a Warrior can specialize in. Some new ideas came up about the realization of possibly adding bows and arrows to the game. This added onto Rangers, eventually developing into an idea of allowing them to branch off into their seperate paths as well. All Rangers were allowed the use of Fired Weapons, but some Rangers can specialize in the use of Fired Weapons, making their own specialized arrows varying on your level and skill. Another sect of Rangers can choose to become Trackers and be able to track down people of certain races that they're 'tracking'. Or they can choose to become Beastmasters, those Rangers truly skilled at taming beasts as 'friends' and also gaining them more beasts than the usual Rangers. Justice was at one time a Cabal that protected the cities. Royals were once individual sects of every major city. Both needed some kind of boost so as to add some flare to them. Players came together and threw out a ton of ideas and eventually the Justice Cabal was taken out of the game and it was taken out with Roleplay. It was also reinstituted with roleplay. However this new 'Justice', now known as Tribunal, became the law, rather than obeying laws. Now they have the backbone of Justice, and the actual power of Royals as it rightfully should have been to begin with. These are merely a few of the changes that go on around here. A good portion of the changes come from the Players requests more so than the Immortals/Implementors requests. Bugs are constantly fixed when reported, and those that aren't reported and abused get punished accordingly. Classes are constantly being updated to make up for the 'underpowered' or 'overpowered' or just plain old needs a face lift because it's not going to hold up all... Read More

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Tantangel on Jan 27, 2006

I always laugh when I see how imediately there is a good review written after a bad one is posted here. If you don't belive this just check the past ten reveiws. Also, I find it funny that if you check their forum they are constantly posting on when to vote. The reason the other muds are above them is because they have a large player base that votes reguarly and not just fifthteen people on this mud voting over and over. I would recommend before playing this game that you check the forum that they have. You will see the automatic voting link, monthly "I'll donate money to the server if people can get us to a high rank", and some players making compliants about the game. Those who complain get the usual response of "tell an immortal". Of course players do this and nothing happens. I've also seen on the fourm the discussion of out of character connections through various instant messengers. Anything else can be seen in the forum. Lets see what trained dog the immortals will send to write another good review after this one.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Liopel on Jan 26, 2006

Let me break down the last post on bashing this MUD. "After many years playing on this mud. I must say, that I'm quite dissappointed to find quite a bit of admin abuse. There discinct cases of this abuse. (Like being able to login under a different account and have your four second lag be gone amazingly). As well as more obvious admin abuse. Like a vampire with a human class tag and human class title, everything you know about him says he is a LAWFUL vampire." If someone has been playing somewhere for years, it goes to show you how great a game this is. If there indeed was any admin abuse, then this game would've gone down the tubes YEARS ago. Yet I've known people who say they're going to leave and when they do I see them back at it a month or two later. Hell, some people show up years on down the road just to play again because it's just that damned good and keeps coming up with new stuff all the time. Liches was JUST released, something that was in the making for around 6 years. Lag happens to everyone. Sometimes it comes in spurts, sometimes all at once. That has nothing to do with Imm abuse, there are no such commands to really lag anyone in the game. Freeze someone, yes, but not lag. The only 'lag' you get is from classes that CAN lag you, and that's game lag, IE: bash, trip, etc... Lag as in your internet is sucking and you're not getting as many commands in as you usually do, there are no commands that Imms have that I know of, and I've seen the Imm commands. Vampires at the very beginning of their creation have a choice to hide whether or not they're a Vampire or not, similar to like the movies. People didn't know that some Vampires were actually Vampires, they just thought they were nocturnal normally. It just depends on the player themselves, and anyone who's been playing this game for years knows this about our Vampires. "And this isn't to mention the amazing ability of that individual to have the very best equiptment. There is more than one case of those that arn't what they are supposidly said to be that the game says they are as well as more than just having bad lag from playing on certain charecters. Most notibly watching a highest title, well equipt warrior getting beat to death by a shaman not using any magics or straight out being disconnected while playing." Equipment here doesn't make the character. It helps you in some cases, but I've seen a Warrior in basic armor take on a Vampire and knock his socks right off, and the entire time the Vampire was pretty well armored. Just depends on who the players are. Some people are good in PK, some aren't. And Vampires are usually played by the best PKers, but as are,... Read More

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Tantangel on Jan 25, 2006

After many years playing on this mud. I must say, that I'm quite dissappointed to find quite a bit of admin abuse. There discinct cases of this abuse. (Like being able to login under a different account and have your four second lag be gone amazingly). As well as more obvious admin abuse. Like a vampire with a human class tag and human class title, everything you know about him says he is a LAWFUL vampire. And this isn't to mention the amazing ability of that individual to have the very best equiptment. There is more than one case of those that arn't what they are supposidly said to be that the game says they are as well as more than just having bad lag from playing on certain charecters. Most notibly watching a highest title, well equipt warrior getting beat to death by a shaman not using any magics or straight out being disconnected while playing. Roleplaying is dead here, and some of admins abuse their power. (Even another admin posted about this.) I'd find another server, because this server isn't newbie friendly. There are some superb pkers on this server, and some very nice people, but it doesn't NEARLY make up for the fact that there is INCREADBLY obvious cheating going on as well as admin abuse.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Infro on Jan 25, 2006

The whole time I've been part of this mud, I've only read the reviews. Not once did I push myself to write a review myself. Personally, I've had some bad experiences, but, all in all, it was my fault. Occassionaly I see things that really do chap my ass, but it's taken care of eventually -- as long as you notify the staff of the problem. This is the second mud I've ever played, and possibly the last one I'll play. I played one about 5 years ago with an old buddy from town that he made, and it got me into mudding quite quickly. Then, I started looking for other muds, and found this one and it caught my eye. Ever since, even through my rough times and getting several of my characters denied, I continued to play. I've gotten far in the mud, from Elder in Savant, to Elder in Knight, to now, Leader in Herald. Many say the staff now, sucks. Well, I'll be honest: I used to agree, because I was ignorant, and self-righteous. But, after everything I've seen so far, they've enlightened me with incredible RP, interesting plots, and interraction with my characters, and their hard work trying to fix bugs, and making new things, such as new cabals, new skills, and other fun and exciting things. They're fairly new, and they're proving themselves. I appreciate them. They give me what I need; my daily dose of MUD ecstacy and excitement. At least try FL out and try for yourself; you won't be disappointed you did, if you are determined and willing to go to the limits, (if there are any) with RP.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Jisil on Jan 10, 2006

Where should I begin? I am a Swedish 20 years old guy who have played this mud for almost three years now. Having had characters in most cabals, and having played ten to level 50 (highest mortal rank, except for heroes at level 51), I would like to say that my experiences in the game are quite a few. This game can be very tough, and rough at times. BUT, it has given me so many great moments that no other game has even come close to giving me. And I am still experiencing these special moments. People get rewarded for good RP, good PK, fair play and persistence. You don’t need all of them though. You are also being closely watched by immortals who don’t hesitate to interact with you in any form, be it as a mob in the game, or as themselves. Not too long ago, an immortal gained control over my fire giant’s own black dragon for quite some time. He was very hungry, and gave my char fleas, which I had to get rid of. That was a very funny moment. The perhaps greatest thing about this mud, though, is the PK. It was mostly developed by Virigoth, the old head coder, and it is simply awesome, perhaps even genius. The game is balanced at level 50. No one will have an easy time against every race/class combination, there will always be someone you should watch out very closely for. Especially the very skilled PK:ers. It’s been said many times that Aabahran the Forsaken Lands has some of the best playerkillers out there, and I do not doubt that statement. I have tried other muds as well, and the one I have played the most (other than The Forsaken Lands) is Aetolia, which a friend of mine told me to try. He is playing this mud now. Aetolia can’t even compare to The Forsaken Lands when it comes to PK, but their role-play is excellent. In this mud, you are enforced to role-play. It is very rare that you see someone going out of their character, at higher ranks, you don’t see it at all. There are of course some people who use their RP when they interact with other chars less than others. Nevertheless, the great role-players definitely make up for them. RP plots are especially fun, and very often involves immortals. As I stated in the beginning, these forsaken lands that are called “Aabahran”, can be very dangerous to be in. Cabals are at war with each other. Chaos exists, as does order, which is now upheld by the Tribunals. Other new things are coming up, the fairly new staff is really dedicated and very good at what they do. This game is growing again. Now is the time to abandon hope and enter Aabahran the Forsaken Lands.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Hitandrun on Jan 4, 2006

Well the game was fun until I was dueling someone and another person came in and just killed me. His reason was that he was naked and wanted my things. Well being stunned and not able to do anything I couldn't stop him. The game itself is good but the playerbase picks on newbies to boost their egos. If you attempt to RP you will just get killed for no reason except for the classic "just because" I noticed that somoene had put a bounty on my head which is fine and legal. I also noticed bounties on other people's heads as well. I noticed all these bounty hunters sitting in the middle of town waiting for me to get out of my guild? So, it seems there is a little circle going around or they would be attempting to kill each other to collect the bounty. What made my bounty so diffrent from everyone elses? If you go to the forum you will notice there is an inner circle. If you are not part of the inner circle, you are dead in their eyes. You will also notice on the forum that there are compliants of OOC knowledge through AIM. Another way of knowing of an inner circle is by looking at some characters. They have "owner items" which are given to them by the "gods" for favors. They are so hard pressed for obtaining a high rank that on their forum someone is paying for votes. The more people see and attempt to enjoy the game the more the veterans can pick and choose from the stock. Another thing noticed on the forum is new players quiting because of unreasonable kills. The game itself is great but there are too many people playing it to ruin it for you. If you can find a way into the inner circle I'm sure you will have a great time playing the game. This is a heavy PK mud with no RP. Expect to be killed early and often. Their is a steep learning curve with a sink or swim attitude. If you want to learn more check out their forum and see for yourself.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Lipoel on Jan 3, 2006

This mud is both terrific and horrible, and I will explain why. 1g-5g = good points. 1h-5h = bad points. =============== THE GOOD 1g ---- It is terrific because of the time spent in perfecting it. The previous coders both had a knack for what they did. Crypticant was and is well known for his creative abilities as still seen with his current projects. He was the driving force behind most of the rp and fleshing out of the world of Aabahran ****(named effectively so the game is listed highly on the alphabetic game listings. Hah. Well done.)**** Virigoth was a true guru for the pk and fighting systems still evident. ----- 2g ----- Even the current IMP staff seems to have an almost infinite amount of time to spend there. That means there is always someone about doing something, or making something. ------ 3g ------ There are quite a few players who have been there for a long time that go out of their way to help out new folk. This is quite useful on many levels. ----- 4g ----- The place is huge. The layout is enormous, and the pbase is always trying to help make it larger. There are a few experienced builders, and all of the areas are very well done. ----- 5g ----- Finally, the game is balanced, save for one quest class rarely given out. There is ALWAYS someone who can take you out. This is a rare feature in a mud with so many class race combos. ----- ======== THE BAD ------ 1h ------ Well, as we all know... power shifts when old admins get tired of their place and pass it on. Unfortunately, not all admins are created equal. With the last admin shift finally settled, coding was left up to one person... which is always a mistake. The result with this mud is one less experienced coder taking the place of two (and well... even three with Arzaeth) coders. Obviously, the impact is rather apparent, with : (a) less hard coding, and more "theft" from previously written code. (b) bugs springing up left and right and left unfixed for a long time. (c) generally less creativity. (d) most importantly... "angry coder syndrome." What that means is that the coder is so muddled down with work that he loses focus on his pbase and basically lashes out at them in game and regardless of playing an important imm for rp... is rarely seen. ------ 2h ------ Good staff is hard to find, and that is becoming more noticeable in FL. There seems to be an immortal revolving door, where the imms are constantly changing. Call me old fashioned, but I like my imm's staying put. ------ 3h ------ Inexperienced imp's running the show leads to problems in a few categories. One, for example, is leaving unlinked areas present in the mud. This creates several bugs and major issues with skills allowing players in to them... and killing other places bring... Read More

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Bronel on Dec 1, 2005

Having been one of the most hated players to ever play here, and having done so for the past 4 1/2 years, I feel that my review holds more weight than most. I've played them all. From Faerie Invokers, to Demon Dark-Knights. From Undead Ninjas, to Vampires and Avatars. This game will keep you coming back for more. Even if you are bent on one class, some can be different every time, with the various "selection paths" that classes can take. Yes, like life, this MUD has had and does have some problems. People dislike it for whatever they feel is wrong and continue to trash this MUD, hoping to put it to rest in order to gain favor for their own MUD. Fact of the matter is, the Aabahran swallows all. We have remained and we will remain. We've had a shift in power, with a new head IMP that did not happen but too long ago. Of course things are a bit shaky right now, but as Savnt has mentioned, many of us remain to keep it alive. During peak hours there are about 20-30 people on. No, this isn't what we used to have, but nor is it a BAD loyal pbase. Many of our veteran players are now Immortals, so that also counts down a bit on our numbers. Fact of the matter is, Aabahran is the first and only MUD I've played. I started out of interest from a friend and I've grown into the healthy, obsessed addict I am today. The IMMS, regardless of what anyone might think, want the same as we all do. The betterment of this MUD. Everyone will have their own opinions and ideas, but the heart is still the same. Everyone's intentions are for the best here. No one is here to say that our IMP is the best coder in the lands. I've had my problems with staff in the past, but I can tell you now the current staff beats the old in professionalism, hands down. This MUD will continue to be newbie friendly, as it always has been. The bad and the ignorant are punished, as it should be. We will not tolerate fools coming here and doing nothing but trying to bring us down. So stfu n00bs, bef0r3 my und34d ninj4 4ss4nit4t3s j00!

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Zrothum on Nov 7, 2005

This mud is both terrific and horrible, and I will explain why. 1g-5g = good points. 1h-5h = bad points. =============== THE GOOD 1g ---- It is terrific because of the time spent in perfecting it. The previous coders both had a knack for what they did. Crypticant was and is well known for his creative abilities as still seen with his current projects. He was the driving force behind most of the rp and fleshing out of the world of Aabahran ****(named effectively so the game is listed highly on the alphabetic game listings. Hah. Well done.)**** Virigoth was a true guru for the pk and fighting systems still evident. ----- 2g ----- Even the current IMP staff seems to have an almost infinite amount of time to spend there. That means there is always someone about doing something, or making something. ------ 3g ------ There are quite a few players who have been there for a long time that go out of their way to help out new folk. This is quite useful on many levels. ----- 4g ----- The place is huge. The layout is enormous, and the pbase is always trying to help make it larger. There are a few experienced builders, and all of the areas are very well done. ----- 5g ----- Finally, the game is balanced, save for one quest class rarely given out. There is ALWAYS someone who can take you out. This is a rare feature in a mud with so many class race combos. ----- ======== THE BAD ------ 1h ------ Well, as we all know... power shifts when old admins get tired of their place and pass it on. Unfortunately, not all admins are created equal. With the last admin shift finally settled, coding was left up to one person... which is always a mistake. The result with this mud is one less experienced coder taking the place of two (and well... even three with Arzaeth) coders. Obviously, the impact is rather apparent, with : (a) less hard coding, and more "theft" from previously written code. (b) bugs springing up left and right and left unfixed for a long time. (c) generally less creativity. (d) most importantly... "angry coder syndrome." What that means is that the coder is so muddled down with work that he loses focus on his pbase and basically lashes out at them in game and regardless of playing an important imm for rp... is rarely seen. ------ 2h ------ Good staff is hard to find, and that is becoming more noticeable in FL. There seems to be an immortal revolving door, where the imms are constantly changing. Call me old fashioned, but I like my imm's staying put. ------ 3h ------ Inexperienced imp's running the show leads to problems in a few categories. One, for example, is leaving unlinked areas present in the mud. This creates several bugs and major issues with skills allowing players in to them... and killing other places bring... Read More

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Savnt on Nov 1, 2005

All the good reviews sound the same, all the negative reviews sound the same. If you are reading these reviews, stop, and just connect and play. Draw your own conclusions. And I am really sick of everyone writing about how I 'lied' in my reviews. To all those yes-men, kiss my @$$. If you believe I lied, send me your e-mail and I'll explain it to you people man to man. Behrens, sorry about all the negative publicity my reviews might have caused, but like I told you on the last day I played, I had to post them. You alone didn't give me crap for posting them, and that alone should be a reason new players should try this MUD. I apologize in advance if this causes anyone on the staff any problems. Oh, and Falen, you were right. A shame I was just f'in with you about my 'gang-squad' to see how worked up you'd get. Hit me up if you read this bro, you were the one person at least I could trust not to let OOC feelings dictate the way you played.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Sam on Sep 4, 2005

Do I have a review for this Mud..well actually no, not really right now...At some point I will write a review that does it Justice..As I have had more hours than I care to remember of fun there. This post is instead to point out _YET ANOTHER_ Inaccurate, and flame-based Review about this MUD. Anybody who is bored enough to run their eye down the list can see that one rather bitter person posted the same review (read FLAME) 4-5 times...Now we have a review posted in the last few days..that's only complaint about the mud is the IMM's. Well considering the fact that the only IMM name they mention is one who was fired from the MUD almost 6 months ago...and the fact that the entire Immortal staff was Over-hauled, and those who didn't make the grade were not invited to be IMM's any more shows that this person clearly isn't in touch with the game. After all why make a post that names an IMM deleted near to 6 months ago..and act like the situation happened yesterday...unless your only purpose was to flame, and cast Inaccurate..badly informed views into the MUD community as a whole. Anyway like I said..not a review so much as a rebutal to the previous review..however having seen how the negative types of the Internet community like to make themselves a rather loud, however minor, problem..I will endeavor to right a decent _BALANCED_ review soon of this MUD which, although has never been my first Internet home..has always had a place in my heart..

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by English Lad on Aug 11, 2005

After reaching L13, I have been asked to change my name twice. "Walker" apparently wasn't a good enough fantasy name. This despite the fact that I have read many a good book with a character named "Walker" (Shannara series). No mention of the IMM's name "Gael" which is actually an old English word. So I ask to change it to "Volkmordt", that was a no, then "Mxlipk" got shot down because he wanted a name that "made sense". After referring to my first two choices that DID make sense, I was asked to pick again. I went with "Singhk", which sounds like a good snake-like name. He concedes, I move on. Later another IMM pulls me out of my life and says "Bathroom Singhk" or "Kitchen Singhk"? I laugh at his good joke, and say that the first IMM didn't get that. He says it needs to be changed again, and rolls his eyes at me multiple times because apparently _I'M_ bugging _HIM_. As if my name was "TerminatorRobot" or something. I like this MUD, but I really don't like the way that IMMs can't seem to butt out of the non-gameplay aspects. The first IMM was polite enough, but the second seemed to think that he was obligated to be a total d!ck, and treat me like some kind of great burden. If an IMM approves of a name, shouldn't it be f#cking good enough for everybody else? He even calls in another God to act as though I'm being completely unreasonable. "Pick another name. What's so hard?" He then tells me to think of another name and pray when I've thought of one then leaves me in the Room of No Exits. I prayed alright, I prayed you'd jam a finger while typing your snotty little imperatives. Then comes the description. I made a pretty decent description for my snake character, submitted it for approval. An IMM shows up, looks at it, and tells me that it's no good because I don't describe my hands, legs, and tail. I'm serious. As if that's some sort of gross oversight that makes a description unacceptable. Despite that my description describes my characteristics as "ordinary", he states that even the ordinary merits description. Seriously. As if I need to describe my character's missing eyelashes and tooth shape. I even point out that they're covered by all kinds of armor and equipment, but to no avail. He uses his IMM MUD Shield of Impenetrable Illogic +5 to ward off my cries of reason. This MUD was fun, right up until I had to deal with IMMs, who acted like complete power-hungry dicks. I've got an idea! How about you back off and let people play the game, instead of turning it into your personal service for venting your frustrations. I don't know whose idea it was to turn names and descriptions into applications for approval by the Jerkoff Board, but he deserves a swift kick in the nuts.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Bronel the reusable name on Aug 11, 2005

What can i say about Aabahran, a great deal in fact i could probably write a book on it. I joined so long ago i actually cannot remember, i had tried a few other muds but nothing swallowed me up as much as Aabahran (FL) did. I personally found it the easiest to pick up, it took me a while as i was very new to muds in general, but any problems were solved by fellow players and the staff. Its also handy that they have a newbie channel for the first ten or so ranks so any questions are answered there and then. The rp enforcement is great without being overly dictated. You have to provide a description by the 15th rank, this encourages you to rp to a degree and enables you to get more out of your character. Any problems the imms are there to help you out with it, who knows a well written description and you could earn a reward. Every little detail is to be taken into account, weather,terrain,skills,weapons the list goes on, certain skills effect other skills, most of which you will pick up as you go along. A great addition is the adventurer class, you are safe from being attacked by other players, you can train skills, then if you like a well trained character but have bad luck with getting killed, you can upon reaching the 30th rank start over in whatever class you wish, carrying over your trained skills. You start at rank 1 and carry on as normal, as you obtain your skills they will be already mastered. A great way to learn the areas and get a feel for the game. What i think sets FL apart is not only great staff and players, but the way it really allows you to get into your character, to put effort in and get enjoyment out. Go the extra mile and you can obtain races and classes such as the Undead, Demons, Vampires, Avatars, Crusaders, Psi's, and Liches are in the stage of testing. The only limit in FL is the limit you put on your mind. You want to play a fire dragon, work it out, rp it out and the imms will have no worries about restringing a race to fit in with your plans. You will experience many emotions in FL, joy, pride, fear and at times anger. These feelings are natural when the character you have worked so well on is being chased around the lands by someone else. Will you win or lose, will you hold your nerve to win the day or will you crumble under the pressure. I invite you to try, you wont regret it. Aabahran 216.136.9.8 Port 1848

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Sirax on Jul 28, 2005

Where to begin? Aabahran: The Forsaken Lands is an excellently coded, built and staffed RPG. For five years, this MUD has provided me with laughter, tears, happiness, anger, and entertainment of all kinds. I have made friends through this MUD that I would likely be a different person without, and even shown my vast nerd-itude by inviting some of my real life friends to play this awesome game. So with that small introduction, let us begin the fun. Aabahran: The Forsaken Lands (hereafter known as FL) offers many possibilities. The "replay" value, if you can call it that, is incredible. In a game where your only set goals are the ones you choose for yourself, and only you can determine how to win, there is no possible way to lose. FL supports player killing (PK), within reason, and maintains strict regulations on how/when you can and cannot PK. The game has automatic warning systems that inform the staff if a player is PKing excessively, or out of his or her roleplay (RP). In addition to the automated system, the immortals also closely watch the players, to make sure that nothing unfair, such as multi-killing is going on. Speaking of RP, FL is an RP-enforced MUD. That means that from the moment you create your character until the moment you condeath/delete them, you must speak as your character would. The words "yo" "gangsta" and "sucka foo" will be very rarely seen. A welcome refresher from day to day life, if I do say so myself. The immortal staff of FL is constantly improving. The staff will frequently be seen on the "who list", and can be contacted through the "prayer" system, as well as notes/applications. It's not an infrequent occurance to see an immortal poof out of nowhere to speak with you, or even "switch" into a mob, or mobile, to have a little fun. The players of FL are a dynamic entity. As opposed to the "same old, same old" mentality of some MUDs, where the same players keep rolling new characters, FL has a wide variety of both new blood and veterans. They even have an adventurer class, which is safe from player-killing, to allow its newer players to learn the ropes of the game. Some players may be skilled in RP, some in PK, some in both, but you will rarely fail to find entertainment in FL. In conclusion, Aabahran: The Forsaken Lands makes every other MUD I've ever played, from As the Wheel Weaves to Runescape, seem sub-par. I sincerely, on behalf of the playerbase/staff, invite you to come play Aabahran: the Forsaken Lands, and see what this all around top-of-the-line MUD has to offer you. www.forsakenlands.org 216.136.9.8 port 1848

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Balinor on Jul 25, 2005

How do describe an entire world in one short review? To do it justice is impossible. So I will simply dwell upon the EXTRA things that make Aabrahan:Forsaken Lands so much more than your average mud. Let's start with the beginning. FL is a RP/PK Mud, some play it for the RP reason, some for the PK reason, and most for the exhilirating mixture of the two. There is an adventurer class to protect those absolute newcomers from the rigor of PK till their 30th rank. This allows you to get your bearings about a great deal of the world and how things work. You can decide at any time which of the multitude of classes you wish to play. A warrior is not a warrior as a ranger is not a ranger. Many classes have slectable skill sets which allow one warrior to be distinctly different than the next. The same goes for berserkers, ninjas, rangers and thieves. This gives even the most stoic of classes almost limitless replayability. As a Ranger, one can be a Master of Beasts, an Expert Archer, or a Masterful Tracker. This is just a small example of the intricacies that can be explored by players. A cabal system supported by clans to allow a character to become familiar with and interact with other cabal hopefuls. A cabal system that rewards exemplary gameplay whether it be in the realm of RP, PK, or both. Cabals with both a Capture the Flag, and a world conquering aspect to them. Lastly, but of course not the least, the Staff. A staff who care about the game, play the game, and honestly have a love for the game and the players who make it what it is. They go to great lengths to catch those who cannot abide by the rules because they know that for all players to enjoy this great game, it has to be a fair place to play. They apply standards to all players in a consistent and thoughtful way. Always eager to help those with geniune questions and an interest to learn to play this great MUD. Who am I? A person who has played this MUD for 5 years, and other muds before it for 10. A person who now is a part of the Staff, and quite honestly very proud to be. A person who enjoys the interaction and comraderie of a text based game because of the PEOPLE who make is so much more. Thank you for your time.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Krounoi on Jul 14, 2005

I have been an avid player at Aaabahraan: The forsaken Lands for a few years now and just recemtly decide to come here and read reviews only to find absolute and total lies being posted here. Forsaken Lands has one of the most Newbie Friendly Enviroments I have ever seen. The playerbase in general is always willing to help new players to suit, spar and give them advice or help you the internet forums. Forsaken Lands is an amazingly well coded game, more than likely the greatest coded game I have ever seen. Though,Virigoth, the head coder is no longer there and the game has undergone several regime changes there is no question that this is a great game. Let me run you through it, as many of the old run throughs are inappropariate/lies/out of date. You are born into the lands as one of aabahraan's many race/class combos. You start at rank 1 in the arena and with acess to what is called the newbie channel. There is almost always a veteran or experiences player on the newbie channel(god knows why they don't rank, eh?) that will be willing to help you. Until rank 10 you have access to this channel, afterwhich you enter into the Pk range of Fl. Upon rank 15 you write your desc(or before) and have an immortal approve it. Gifts are commonly awarded for good descs(but never ask for one...not very nice). Restrings are also available to virtually any race you want and are fairly easy to obtain if you want them enough. But for this you need good rp and a great desc. Now, while ranking up, it is true that certain classes find it easier to find a group, yes, but it is not as much so as a few reviewers claim. When I pick a group I pick what I think will rank the quickest and the furthest, which is almost 99% not based on class because I intend to rank before high and I realize that every class has its powerful point and the mages(which one reviewer claims to be gimped at ranking) become highly more powerful at pinnacle with more potential than any melee class, so to whoever said they were gimped I say this. No, you will not play a mage, who becomes more powerful at peak, without being weaker at some point in ranks. But I assure you, they do equal out around pinn and any class is able to defeat any other class. Now, there are cabals, which are: Knight- Good guys, armor, you know Nexus- Evil fiends of the "rift" Warmaster- Ogres, minotaurs, ugly guys with sword Herald- The guys with quills we all suspect of being well, I don't want to say it ;) Watcher- Fighter for Gaia and nature Justice- Kick Criminal ass Syndicate- Bounty Hunters Savant- Magic,mages...big tower Each of these has a clan, which I cannot name here in respect to the rules of the game. Find out You... Read More

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Warpnow on Jun 10, 2005

You guys need to stop saying "people who wrote the bad reviews are stupid." I never even saw the "bad reviews" but then with all the refferences to them in the good ones, I went back and looked them up and would never have seen them otherwise. And now I know all that icky stuff and don't want to give the mud a chance.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Heh on Jun 9, 2005

This game kicks ass, come give it a try. There's liches, so how can you resist? - a Playa

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Danny on Jun 9, 2005

Firstly, I'd just like to say.. I love this MUD. Secondly, I'd like to say I don't play any other MUD... probably because of the whole awkward "HOLY CRAP I DON'T KNOW WHERE I AM" feeling of playing a new MUD... whereas in FL i can get from Val Miran to... oh.. say... Winter in a matter of 3.14 seconds. okay.. maybe not that quick. anyhoo... I've been playing for years now.. since the days of Crypticant and them.. and I have to say I have enjoyed watching the MUD grow, change, and evolve. And I must say I have come a long way from the lost little Newb I once was... except for the whole PK thing... I swear my luck is horrible... AS for the recent change in leadership, I am fully supportive. The new list of IMM's has done a great job of continuing to keep the world of Aabahran as exciting and interesting as they have been... although.. methinks we could use another good world-shaking event.. like a war or something... anyway.. YAY FOR FL! - Steve the Incandescent Llama

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Steve the Llama on Jun 8, 2005

I think it's time some more real reviews actually came out for this game. In the past 4 years that I've been playing, I have witnessed many people come and go. The ones who go tend to find their way back here, and the ones who come tend to stay here. As for these bad reviews, these are given by people who are upset at past events. The one review that's been being posted over and over again is by someone who hasn't played in a good while, I'm sure. Since that review first came up, a LOT has changed. There has been a change in management, with new IMPs and IMMs meaning that most of the old reviews are null for their complaints of past staff members. There have been several new additions as well, including a new Lich class that has just entered Beta testing. This class has been in the works for about 5 years now, and so far seems to be kick ass. This MUD is a PG-13 rated MUD, so there are rules that are placed that enforce this. If people are heard or known to be breaking these rules, they're dealt with, and as such we have players who are grumpy or pissed at the fact they were caught and are now banned or have been diciplined. These people are the very ones coming about, posting up reviews about how they were wronged. These people cheated though, and after being caught and diciplined believe they were wronged in some way. This game is here for the reason any other game is out there for. To have fun. However, cheating isn't tolerated here. Read the rules (help rules, help multi, help ooc, help death, etc...) and you'll be well on your way to be enjoying a game. I didn't even read the rules until about a year into playing, and I still pulled out okay. As for the game, it has Cabals/Factions that are fully functional, each with their own unique powers and add to the gameplay. Savants are a group of elite Magi who believe in the arts of magic over combat and that true knowledge lies somewhere within this magic. Warmasters are basically the exact opposite of this, and beleive that these so called Savants are out of their mind. As such these two Cabals/Factions are often at war with one another. Then you have Knight, Nexus, Syndicate, Justice and Herald. Each with their unique background to the game, each having their own story added. We also have fully operations clans and a form of Nobility that's being worked on currently. Royals and Nobles are going to be worked on to add more functionality to the game in their aspects as they did a little over a year ago before they were removed to be worked on. Now they're a clan, but with a colorful, more noticeable flag attached to them. The game itself is great. If we can get who... Read More

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Tantangel on May 21, 2005

No first and foremost I would like to point out that several 'bad reviews' of this mud have been written, however if one bothers to look down the page a little, you notice that the same 2 or 3 reviews have been posted multiple times under different names. That alone should be enough to point out that this is simply a very small amount of disgruntled ex-players (mainly those banned for rule breaking) posting under different alias's. Even with that in mind I would still try to 'defend' the mud against the bad press they put up, if it were necessary. Most views of the mud - excellent coding (always changing, infact just had a major overhaul bringing in an EXTREMELY cool quest class.) - great player base, lots of community and banter between players etc.. -Excellent balance of RP and PK. the major complaints were: The administration, ooc groups of 'friends', elitism. Well, the mud shut down when the high level IMM's quit. It has recently be re-opened under one of the MOST respected players and IMM's the game has ever had, he promptly fired the old staff, and rebuilt his own..since then all complaints concerning staff have vanished. To say the new staff have been 'harsh' on ooc groups and knowledge would be a MASSIVE understatement, I'm not saying they got rid of all the bad apples, you never can, but they've certainly made it ten times harder, and (probably more important) made it 10 times worse for anybody involved if they get caught. Elitism, well this is a difficult one to address, this mud is HARD, no questions asked, and it will take a long time to master the intricacies of it, this can foster a certain barrier between vets and newbies..but it also breeds an incredible world to prove yourself in. Trust me nothing is more satisfying than you first trip to a quest area, or later your first re-string, right up to the joys of having a quest class or race. The thing about this MUD is there is always something new to achieve. Those who are at the top of the tree may seem a long way away to brand new newbies, but it is possible with good RP and a bit of work for anybody to make it there. If thats elitisim then yeah i guess we got it, but I wouldn't have it any other way. So I could write about FL all day, the main thing I wanted to do here was to refute the badly written, inaccurate and out of date press that the MUD has been getting, especially as all it took some one was a few seconds of Ctrl C, Ctrl v to spam the board with it. Thanks.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by english lad on May 17, 2005

Greetings one and all, I have been playing this mud some weveral years now and have never really commented on the hard work and dedication I know goes into making the whole thing work( I know all immortals on any mud do as much) they take time to get things right, The balance, as far as I can tell, is not far off between classes and races, weapons etc, errors are far and few between and it really is a nice place to play. Plenty of areas to expore and usually something new, like I say I have been around a while and still haven't been everywhere not to mention still have something like 30 quests to complete. There literally is lots going on. I have stuck with FL over the years for its variety and spice, and the helpful players and useful help files. I appreciate the website needs a little work nowdays and might put a few people off, still dive in and ask questions later. The pk element of the mud works very well I feel those that complain about it usually have an axe to grind or are just asking for it. I mean if I went out in the streets and starting abusing the nearest hard bloke then I would expect to be knocked down a peg or two, anyway by the by. The roleplaying on here is excellent and I have never had any problems interacting with other players in a thoughtful and appropriate manner. Descriptions of players are well thought out and each has a background story you can react to, and give good scope for some good roleplay. Ask any player for one of their favorite logs and you will be impressed. The basics of the game are easy to use and the extra bits and peices all fit in nicely, you shouldn't expect to know it all straight off the bat! The forum is helpful for asking questions and provides an alarming insight into some of the players minds.... I have looked at a few other reviews and well I think enough said. I access this game from the little old UK and don't have contact with any player through any medium other than in game and i feel i have made enemies or friends in game according to my characters feelings. I truely love the game and it keeps me from going mad. When you've just put another seven day, onee hour week in at work it's nice to feel welcome. And backstabing, murdering, robbing , hellstreaming, looting, plaguing, curing, singing, chatting, marrying, forgetting, succeding etc all make me feel better about life in general, in short play! Hope you feel insprired to try it out. p.s I just play the game, have no connections with any of teh staff, it's just their hard work and dedication, not to mention a fantastic player base that keeps me coming. THe email above is genuine and you can drop a... Read More

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by nathio on May 13, 2005

Once again I'll preface this by stating, I do not play this mud, I'm not connected with them in any way, I'm just a mudder that reads all the reviews of all the muds. Please, IGNORE the previous review that was posted by a troll, who probably was banned by this MUD & so is on a vendetta campaign wherein he/she/it/they copy & paste the same review approx once per month. At least you would think they would be smart enough to write a new review every time, but if they were smart, they would not have been caught doing whatever it was that got them banned. Always take any reviews posted on this website with a grain (or a pound, in this case) of salt, & check out the MUD for yourself. First hand experience always beats out 3rd person reviews. To the previous reviewer: Grow up!!! You're a major joke!!!

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Mad Mudder on May 5, 2005

This is Krul the Tinkle King, signing in. Bronel, nor Mudman is me, but obviously they liked my post. Seriously though, neither of them is me, and the owners of this site can probably confirm that. However, I myself stopped by FL the other day because I heard about what Kramerica said, that all the staff was fired and replaced. I must say that FL has redeemed itself by doing this. I have not rolled a character, and probably won't, but I must say that the game has a better chance of survival now than it ever did when I was playing. Try it out, faithful MUD addicts...you just might find it enjoyin. And Bronel and Mudman, stop bitting my sh!t. Write your own review.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by The real Slim Shady on Apr 22, 2005

Now let me preface this by stating that I don't play on this mud at this time, but I am an avid mudder, & read all the reviews posted on this site. The review posted earlier today by "Mudman", was also posted on 3/4/05 by "Bronel", & on 1/17/05 by "Krul the Tinkle King" This a**hole obviously has a grudge against this mud, and really needs to get a life!! He has obviously saved the review, & feels the need to post it every month or so, in an attempt to flame the mud. How pathetic!! Get a life!! Go on a date!! Do something, but let it gooooo! I don't think I need to advise the reader to ignore troll reviews like this idiot, who was "wronged" by the IMMS, & need to flame them, without the brains to write 3 different reviews instead of copying & pasting the same review. Try the mud for yourself, & see if you like it. Once again, I don't play on or are connected with this mud in any way, but I felt I had to respond to this idiot.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Mad mudder on Apr 15, 2005

Well, I was dropping by and thought I'd offer one man's humble opinion about the MUD Forsaken Lands. First, let me start off by saying that game-mechanics wise, this MUD compares favorably with its' competitors. It offers many variations of race/class combinations, and offers very few 'powerhouse combos' and many opportunites to show how 'overpowered' a usually underplayed combination can be. It has many large, well done areas, though one bit of complaint on that end is that most of these areas are geared towards the higher end of the PK scale, AKA for Heros (LVL 45+) and not nearly enough variation for lower ranked (re: Newbies) characters. The amount of weapons and armor is also well done, though sadly they have created a system in which a character can gather a few pieces of 'uber-gear' and greatly enhance their character (which isn't a bad thing, per say). However, if I am to be honest, there are too many things wrong with this MUD for me to recommend it to anyone who wishes to play recreationally. First and foremost to me, at least, is the lack of accountability the IMMortals of this MUD seem to have. I have played many of their competitors and can say that not all of them subscribe to the belief that 'it is a priviledge to play here' as stated by many of their IMMortals. While they deserve respect, the IMMortals of Forsaken Lands seem to believe that you must treat them more like real life Gods, and less like game adminastrators. A prime example of this is their Head Implementor and Head Coder, Arzaeth, a man who once said that he hated the entire playerbase. I have interacted many times with Arzaeth, and InGame, he has always been an somewhat normal person. It is only in real life that this man seems to feel the need to 'prove something', and usually, he just proves that he has no idea what it takes to create a healthy atmosphere to MUD. Because I expect a bit of backlash from the IMMortal staff of FL (of course, they must defend themselves), let me tell you readers of my past on this game. I was introduced to this game by my brother, who at one time was an IMMortal of the game. While his story is not important, he left the game under less than ideal circumstances. No bother, I created a character, a human dark knight, and proceded to die in laughable and mostly idiotic ways. I swore to myself to at least become an average player, and imposed a goal upon myself to take a character to level 50. Subsequent characters further enhanced my enjoyment of the game, as my characters had many IMMortal interactions (IMMortals taking control over nPC's, etc). And this is where the story begins to darken. Around this time, a senior IMMortal of the game, one who I had observed taking care of cheaters, and trying to foster a with... Read More

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Mudman on Apr 15, 2005

Well, obviously Krul and Bronel are the same person, as their reviews are word for word. In response, as I know most of all the events that led up to his 'unfair' treatment I will simply say, your entire review explains exactally why you are banned. If you get denied on the majority of ALL your characters you are obviously not donating to the enviornment. At any rate, good luck with life. Now, FL. I've been playing since 1.0, the first real season of Forsaken Lands. Most people look back on this age of the mud with admiration, of the stories, the legend, and the heroes that were born. This is the perfect sign of a mud with a great foundation, knowing your heroes can make an impact that will be forever remembered in the mud. There are even areas built upon the rememberance of these great characters. Now since then most people feel the 'great' role play has dropped. The truth is however that the mud has grown, player wise, and in general the average RP and PK of the entire mud has branched out as well. In 1.0 everyone was talking OOC, so those who RP'ed well stood out 10 times more, but now, it is a very rare day when even a single person will use an out of character statement or question, thus, those who rp'ed greatly have blended into a more fantasy world where all players have an equal chance to prove themselves. Now the immortal issue has been terrible in FL during the 2.0 period. I know I'm going to get slapped for this, but you cannot deny the truth. I'm ashamed to admit this myself, but the fact is OOC buddies were being treated differently. People were being imm'ed that had NO sense of game mechanics. Sometimes this doesn't matter as the people being imm'ed could have GREAT RP as well. Yet, these people who know nothing of game mechanics should not be in a position to discipline or even teach the playerbase. Teaching false information is worse then teaching nothing at all. What happened to heighten this problem was the fact that these imm's would bring their friends in to imm as well, and mass OOC chat groups were being formed, imm's even DATING or trying to date the PLAYERS!!! There is NO WAY favoritism was not an issue. So, what happened now is many of the players got upset, started throwing TRUE words, but harassing words, onto the forum, and in game. The IMP's of course have to believe their staff over their players, as that is what makes a strong staff, but the fact is alot of those imms were in fault. Eventually the IMPS got so sick of it they didn't even want to run the mud. FL was headed straight to the bottom. Then it happened, the mud I had played for years shut down. It hit like a ton of bricks knowing that all time... Read More

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Kramerica on Mar 21, 2005

Great mud, would pay to play it, i donate. very involved mud, played it for 6 years now, excellent traits to the game, on the same level as pay to play, great work

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Guy Choquette on Mar 4, 2005

Forsaken Lands - One heck of an addiction. The world is huge and well developed, as are the items, and the class balance for player killing is perfect... If you exclude some of the harder-to-reach classes, such as 'vampire'. It’s easy to get immersed into the world. However, there’s just one tiny, bitsy little problem: The immortals, save a few, blow. Recently, the head coder (Virigoth), got lucky and found a job in Florida. God bless him. However, not long after he left, new immortals were "recruited" (note the quotations and the sarcasm involved), and things got shot to hell. I played a character there, gained a nigh unfathomable amount of reputation, and like a silly jackass, I turned around and decided to break a rule. I got caught, yes, and the 1,400 real life hours of work went down the drain within the period of about two hours. Who did I get caught by? A pair of people, who through out-of-character relationships, helped each other into immortal-hood in order to better run their communistic, clique orgy. If you like role play, don't bother with Forsaken Lands. Gael, and his girl-friend (Lysephani), with Malynne's (The butt kisser extraordinaire) and Lourath's (Endrios) help, aided one another into getting the big throne above lesser mortals after a long, secred display of dick-sucking, arse-kissing, and drunken chatting. It scared all the intelligible role players away (Like myself), and now only hardcore FL role player addicts remain (Which is about two people). I pray for them daily. Not only was it those previously mentioned immortals that scared me off, however, but you also have to deal with the semi-asshole attitude and personality of Warrior Cleric (Vhaekuziel) and Iconz (Breygn). The use the words "I hate egomaniacs" like they actually think they have the right to. They should try to clean the horse crap out of their eyes so they can see well enough to clean the horse crap out of someone elses. But enough about them... If you like mindless god-mod gang-bang player-killing, this is the place for you. Still have to work to learn the art of FL PK, but once you got it down pat in, there's no stopping you, and it's as trippy as cocaine. Hell, you'll gain so much forsaken lands message board (forum) fame, you won’t -have- to role play anyway! You'll be drowning in props when they see the vast amount of PK logs! Other than that tiny, itsy-bitsy little problem with role play not actually being enforced (like they say it is), the game is peachy, but certainly not keen. Find a different mud. Playing forsaken lands is like pushing your way through a Nun-run school, where if you don’t do what the big wigs do (And I already noted that the immortals [save a few] are total dick heads), you get your arse handed to you on not a silver platter, but a golden one. I broke a 'rule'. They broke their moral And... Read More

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by ChaoThing on Oct 18, 2004

Where to begin? Aabahran: The Forsaken Lands is one of the best Muds I have ever played and I have tested many over the years. Many player help files explaining commands, spells, skills, newbie information, and several bits of advice pertaining to death, obtaining equipment for starting ranks, and areas to hunt for the beginning of your adventuring. Offers newbie chat where Immortals and Expierenced players may aid you where needs be. This mud even offers the Non Pk Adventurer class to help you learn all the basics. To say the least it is very newbie friendly! The Forsaken Lands also contains many different race/class/cabal combos to help you find exactly what kind of persona you wish to expierence. The game has many quests to keep you occupied between ranking and Pking (including quest races and classes) A very RP enforced world so one might better enjoy all Forsaken Lands has to offer. (most of all when you want to escape your mundane day) Litterally thousands of different pieces of equipment with almost endless places to explore to better prepare and protect. Unigue RP Plots involving the Gods, rewards for exceptional RP and Pk, such as owner only equipment, titles, and the Mark of your Diety if you have proved to be among the most pious and worthy followers. The World is constantly changing and expanding so one does'nt tend to get bored very often. The list could go on and on! The only negative aspects to Aabahran are due to one of the positive traits of Aabahran. Change! Which tends to bring a player wipe! So you could spend a year working on your Char perfecting, learning, and obtaining all that you can and wake up one morning to get on to find that your Cabal Leader, Clan Elder with the Tattoo of her Deity, three items given to her by the gods, and has only died 10 times in the span of a year(along with other prodominate char's such as a Queen with her Gods Tattoo and three gifts only she can touch and Noble Cabal Elder with his two gifts) no longer exists!!!!!!!!!!!{Cries and Cries, I know what your thinking, Get over it!} *slaps herself silly* Yes, it did happen to me, though, I can not say the players were not given a bit of a warning. It does not happen too often but once is bad enough. Another negative aspect would be the Mud Crashing from time to time which can cause your char to die and even lose equipment you worked hard to get (such as owner only items and again this has happened to me) The only other thing I can think that affects the game for ill would be the constant Immortal rotation (no fault that can be helped) but the game runs through immortals to often and to quick. Which can alter RP, ruin Rp with that Immortal, and change the game on a more personal level (especially when new... Read More

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Herald_Marina on Oct 2, 2004

Do NOT waste your time with this mud.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Kozmos on Sep 8, 2004

After reaching L13, I have been asked to change my name twice. "Walker" apparently wasn't a good enough fantasy name. This despite the fact that I have read many a good book with a character named "Walker" (Shannara series). No mention of the IMM's name "Gael" which is actually an old English word. So I ask to change it to "Volkmordt", that was a no, then "Mxlipk" got shot down because he wanted a name that "made sense". After referring to my first two choices that DID make sense, I was asked to pick again. I went with "Singhk", which sounds like a good snake-like name. He concedes, I move on. Later another IMM pulls me out of my life and says "Bathroom Singhk" or "Kitchen Singhk"? I laugh at his good joke, and say that the first IMM didn't get that. He says it needs to be changed again, and rolls his eyes at me multiple times because apparently _I'M_ bugging _HIM_. As if my name was "TerminatorRobot" or something. I like this MUD, but I really don't like the way that IMMs can't seem to butt out of the non-gameplay aspects. The first IMM was polite enough, but the second seemed to think that he was obligated to be a total d!ck, and treat me like some kind of great burden. If an IMM approves of a name, shouldn't it be f#cking good enough for everybody else? He even calls in another God to act as though I'm being completely unreasonable. "Pick another name. What's so hard?" He then tells me to think of another name and pray when I've thought of one then leaves me in the Room of No Exits. I prayed alright, I prayed you'd jam a finger while typing your snotty little imperatives. Then comes the description. I made a pretty decent description for my snake character, submitted it for approval. An IMM shows up, looks at it, and tells me that it's no good because I don't describe my hands, legs, and tail. I'm serious. As if that's some sort of gross oversight that makes a description unacceptable. Despite that my description describes my characteristics as "ordinary", he states that even the ordinary merits description. Seriously. As if I need to describe my character's missing eyelashes and tooth shape. I even point out that they're covered by all kinds of armor and equipment, but to no avail. He uses his IMM MUD Shield of Impenetrable Illogic +5 to ward off my cries of reason. This MUD was fun, right up until I had to deal with IMMs, who acted like complete power-hungry dicks. I've got an idea! How about you back off and let people play the game, instead of turning it into your personal service for venting your frustrations. I don't know whose idea it was to turn names and descriptions into applications for approval by the Jerkoff Board, but he deserves a swift kick in the nuts.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Good Question on Sep 8, 2004

I was looking for a break in RP intensive muds and a return to good ol hack and slash, but I still wanted to be around people who attempted to stay in character, even if that character is a bloodthirsty person going around and attacking peaceful minions of evil. So anyhow, here's what I came away with: Aabahran is a good hack and slash mud where the players that I met attempted to stay in character. They really did and I was quite impressed with it. The character generation, practicing and training system were fun too. You can usually find someone fairly easily to interact with since races are considered to be telepathic, which is fun, since only hitting things over and over gets a bit boring, in my opinion. Of course, there are a couple areas for improvement, and I will include the ones I thought were most important. With the telepathic global tell system, some players stated that they can't give out information on how to get to a specific location. Sounds like an artificial restriction. You can describe the way your character looks and the rules state that there are no actions allowed in the descriptions, no forcing emotions or conclusions, no radiating power, no typos, properly formatted and so forth which is also quite good. It does allow you to put in description of your equipment which I thought was quite silly, since when you look at someone, you get a description of their equipment lower down, and can result in inconsistencies. When I wanted to do my description, I read the help files, and went around the mud looking at the mobiles. I found several of them had no long description whatsoever, or they were mostly in violation of the rules of descriptions for player characters, performing actions and so forth. The bulk of it was their equipment. In any case, I didn't see any minimum length criteria, so I chose a relatively short description. I submitted my description and was approached by an immortal (in an impressively short amount of time) for it being too short. Ok, sounds good, wasn't aware of that, I'll make a longer one. He even plopped down a 'valykre' in front of me with a very long description on it, which was quite nice of him. I looked at it several times to get my description sorted out, and happened to notice several typos in it, so seeing as how this was the example for people to go by, and wanting to be helpful, I started pointing them out. I didn't really get around to pointing out the other inconsistencies with the help file or 'desc' such as forcing conclusions on the reader and so forth, and got a stern: An Immortal says 'Just worry about your description.' Well, how interesting, actually I am concerned about that description, because I take responsability for other people. Right now, I am reporting feedback to the mud admin about to... Read More

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Mark on Sep 8, 2004

I am not going to turn this into a post-repost sort of thing, but I must respond. Archangel, you might have been on FL for some time, but I have been there for a long time and have seen the decline first hand. I quit "whining" a long time ago, but such a group like the one at FL does not forget anything, especially when it suits them to debase someone. I can think of many instances of my "whining" turning out to be a factual complaint that was eventually changed, despite constant argument by Immortals and players who said "Oh! Its just Tindal, he must be whining!" when in actuality, I have posted plenty of good posts with substance, but those are always lost when they are not needed to prove a point. What post on the forums? The one where I said plainly I felt stifled, needed a break and was starting a brand new job in real life and had to rethink how I spent my time? I do believe I clearly voiced a bit of discontent, but in, at worst, an irritated manor. Hardly a "whine", yet, it was met by multiple flames by the owner of the forums, who seems to think everyone should bow to him as though he was a true God or something. He even went to great lengths to remove my name as poster, as if he was not just angry for an instance, but vengeful for me calling out the wrongs I see on FL. "hmmm, where do you play now again and what FL character are you playing there?" - I do not MUD, when I do, I play on a few different ones. However, as I said when I took my break from FL, I needed some time to get used to my job. Also, those "FL characters" hardly matter at all, since they were all my work and no one elses should I choose to do anything further with them on FL or elsewhere. "In fact, it seems to me the only reason you whine about the IMMs exercising there authority is that you don't have any to exercise." - I do not "whine", but I do often call out abuses by Immortals, which they hardly take kindly to. Also, I point out problems, but if they are not favorable, I am promptly banned from the forums or insulted into submission by the likes of Arzaeth. Of course, it is easy to insult one you will never meet in person, isn't it? Archangel, I did respect you at one point, but you are just another FL lackey who thinks the IMMs seeing his name on here will get rewarded with praise of some sort, of course, on FL, I do not doubt that would occur. Also, I am not posting for lack of anything, such as a Quest Class or anything. I have done just about everything on FL that I wished to do many... Read More

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Tindal on Aug 24, 2004

Ahh, yes, our long lost "friend", Tindal. Tindal of the many ideas...Tindal of the many whining posts...Tindal the disillusioned. Tindal, unfortunately you did fail in your review as you do exactly like a "whining bitter review poster", which is not to different from post we all saw on the forums when you didn't get your way. Consequently, I cannot sit back and listen to your complete disregard for fact without responding. You miss the point when you state that "players make the MUD". I believe there is a symbiotic relationship between players and Immortals. There has to be. You attempt to make the point that without the playerbase, there would be no MUD. I would respond that without the Immortals who create and maintain the MUD, there would be no place for you to play. I also found your claims about the Imms here to not only be unfounded and ridiculous, but also tragically ironic. Stealing from other MUDs?....hmmm, where do you play now again and what FL character are you playing there? Exactly. Persons in glass houses should never throw stones, Tindal. In fact, it seems to me the only reason you whine about the IMMs exercising there authority is that you don't have any to exercise. Someday, you will realize that privileges are things you earn, not something to which you are entitled. As to the quality of Aabahran, I have played this MUD for several years. I have played all three versions of the code, now massively customized to keep it fresh and original. I have played several race and class combinations, all perfectly balanced at the highest levels. All players are not created equal, however, so the learning curve can be high, but also can certainly be overcome. Do not let this dissuade you! Learning is certainly the part of this game that is the most challenging and the most rewarding. This challenge, to become a better player, is what I think makes this MUD so addictive. So come and see one of the largest and most custom worlds in MUDdom and join us here in Aabahran. Embrace the challenge!!

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Archangel on Aug 24, 2004

This is one of the few muds, aside from my “home” mud, which I had taken the time to level up to decent rank and actually spend some time getting to know. It has some interesting races, classes, and skills. I played a werebeast which was able to transform into a tiger. *grin* There are also some very cute mprogs which help bring the game to life, and I enjoyed doing alot of the mini-quests provided by your guildmaster and other mobs which let you gain experience and/or gold. Overall, it does seem more hack-and-slash than rp oriented, though people do a good job of staying ic for the most part. I did meet some helpful players, and the implementor even took some time to answer a friend of mine’s questions over newbiechat. There is ‘help tour’ which let’s newbies know which areas would be best for them, though it seems to be geared more towards a group of people rather than just a lone adventurer. The one thing I really disliked was the pk system, or rather, the lack of any distinct rules for pking. My friend and I were both attacked on several occasions by people whom we had never even met. I realize that some may rp being thieves or having a thing against a certain race, etc. but I found it rather ridiculous. The first time I was pked, I was all of level 14. I’m sure I didn’t have any good equipment, and I am playing a neutral character, so really, what reason would they have? What is there to gain? I was later attacked just short of level 25 by a character who was rping a thief. That, I don’t mind. He was looking to steal a weapon. Though when he killed me, my corpse was looted by a player who was much higher level than myself. And what was the reasoning behind that? I’m sure the equipment I had was hardly worth the comparison to his own, and a veteren player really doesn’t need to be stealing from a newbie half his rank. And now I am left with hardly any equipment and no way to gain it back. It can be really disheartening, especially when one is just learning the game. All in all, it seems to be a rather fast-paced environment. I suppose that can be both good and bad. I personally prefer to take a bit more time to get accustomed to the game. It does have its interesting points, but I don’t really think that’s enough to get me to stay on the game. I may still level a bit more and explore some of my skills, though I don’t see this as a place where I would spend all of my time.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Dionae on Aug 24, 2004

Ahh Luorath, we all wonder why you enjoy it so much? Could it be the benefits of kissing ass to get ahead? Abusing bugs? Stealing from other MUDs? How about the sheer fact you admit to doing practically nothing noteworthy and getting IMMed? I find it laughable that you are where you are at and you do very little for the MUD as a whole, of course, that applies to most of the Immortal stuff (Mhalador, Malynne, etc etc.) Not to sound like a typical 'bitter review' writer, but this MUD is the epitome of all that is wrong with a MUD when power corrupts the IMMs. Hmm, as the new rule states: Your presence here is a privilege not a right. Obey any orders from Immortals and respect their authority. Appeals on any Immortal decisions may be sent to the Implementors. Oh!? Isn't it the players that make a MUD? Who would kiss your ass if you didn't please the Pbase? No one. I think you have the privilege of looking out for some good players and interacting with them, not downing on them and stiffling thier ideas. I am "Someone", I figured ambiquity was good, but why bother hiding the fact this MUD is corrupt and pathetic. If all you want is mindless PK, here you go! A prime MUD of constant cheating and bashing. Hell, there is even a handmade class by the Implementor Virigoth just so he can 'own' whenever (much as he has before - Gorath, Seium). This is the ideal place for cheaters and bug-abusers (which we see countless of the latter, but I won't name too many names here, since it is practically every "skilled" or "veteren" player). I shall sum it up by saying that the "Someone" posts by all of the rather disgruntled players do not just spew random crap, they speak volume of truth. If it wasn't at least somewhat true, why do you see recurring trends in our posts? Read the posts made prior, you will see the truth in them if you stick around FL long enough, but I just suggest finding a MUD that will be a bit more fair, stable, and caring about thier players, instead of abusive and often just cruel towards.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Tindal on Aug 23, 2004

Being that I have been a player of Aabahran: The Forsaken Lands for just about 3 years now, and a member of the Immortal Staff for over one year, I would like to share my experience of this MUD with you. I will not be drawn into any childish arguments with any of the recent negative reviewers, only to say that I hope that they all find MUDs that better suit their needs in one form or another. Aabahran: The Forsaken Lands (or FL) has been up and running for a good 4 years now. Currently averageing about 50 characters online at a time during peak hours, our playerbase is always increasing, and to me this is no surprise. FL has something for players of all types. There are 19 base races, and 18 base classes available just on startup, all with their own set of original skills and spells. After that, a large selection of built-in quest-races and quest-classes are available to all players, given the excellence of their PK and RP, all with their own perks and down-sides. These range from the terrible and sadistic demon, to the holy and righteous crusader. Even then, if these special q-races do not suit your needs, the sky's the limit, as players can submit an application to be known as any fantasy-based race within their imagination. PK and RP are both enforced here, and a high level of either or both are often, if not always, rewarded in-game. The PK on FL is extremely balanced, in the sense that a first class will often excel against a second, but have a more difficult time against a third. On FL, we are confident that we hold some of the more superior PK'ers and RP'ers on any MUD, and for that reason alone I urge that MUD players try us out. With the genius of our head-coder and MUD owner Virigoth, additions and improvements to the FL code are common, fresh, and original. Head-builder Bryntryst, and head of staff Arzaeth round up the list of implementors, ensuring that areas, objects, and mobs are in good order and added frequently, while also seeing that the IMMstaff (which I am part of) remain mature, dedicated, and interesting. I can assure you all the IMMs on FL are extremely capable and mature, and along with an excellent playerbase make the recipe for an outstanding and successful MUD. The MUD is free to play, this also meaning that there is no such thing as a credit system. We do take donations for the upkeep of FL, however, the fine-print states: "Donations are only given to help support the webspace of Aabahran: The Forsaken Lands, are are in no way mandatory, or rewarded in-game."...and we hold true to that statement. Try FL. If you hate it, then no biggie. If you love it like I do, and like so many other players do, then I promise that you will stay hooked for a long time come.... Read More

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Luorath on Aug 20, 2004

Aabahran is a decent MUD, with low-to-mid playability. There are a number of interesting class-types, RP, and the like, even featuring a tremendous player-driven storyline. One of the best features of the MUD is that everyone is demandedly literate. If you can't spell, type, or construct sentences, you're out. So if you like to type things like "u go over ther an get ur eq, k?" you should probably look elsewhere. Additionally, there are a number of large quest-type and strategic activities, player driven and NPC. However, don't expect to put in 10 hours and get somewhere in these. Try 100 hours of begging, pleading, and conniving to find out something of the quest type ideas. This game is generally NOT for casual play. Perhaps its largest drawback is that a disproportionate amount of these players are MUD addicts, and lack basic social skills. They are overly rude, belligerent, or downright childish, as is evidenced by some people's overpowering NEED to read a "review" section as a "forum" for their opinions on others' opinions. I cannot stress enough that by in large Aabahran's players seem to think that Aabahran has enough players to tolerate "hazing" behavior (harassment, verbal abuse, ignoring, snubbing). In this game you have the rare option of paying $20-$1000 for "credits", which are used as trade or training tools. The fact that this MUD is real-world money driven only fuels the player-problem, as those who have forked over thousands of US dollars tend to get irate when their bought-character isn't invincible. The harsh RP environment becomes slightly skewed when HUGE players begin ranting on public channels about how the game is rigged and unfair (ironic coming from someone who PAID to get their char to that point). Players who have made reputations as prolific PKers sell their aliases and triggers to others for money (this from a "strict" RP environs) under the lame guise of "combat system", "fighting style" or some other such farce. The fact that others have invested hundreds to thousands (!!!) of hours in the game and probably ten times as much money leaves a bitter taste in the mouth of those who want to "have fun" playing a MUD. Lastly, don't expect to PK with telnet or 10 hours of gaming experience. You'd best have some software with triggers, aliases, and fastwalk that you're VERY fluent with. There is little player-input directed at combat other than directing which series of aliases and triggers should be currently active. Typically in player fights, there are 50-1000 commands entered PER PLAYER to perform the various and sundry special attacks and their subsequent defenses. So don't think "It's OK, I type fast" is going to cut it. Seriously, Gandhi probably saw this combat system and thought, (Hindi accent) "Daaaamn...I'm just going to go with pacifism." In conclusion, Aabahran is easily a cut above your shallow, repetitive MUDs in some aspects. It's got a great variety and a lot of excellent player concepts that are from... Read More

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Volkmordt on Aug 20, 2004

In response to the guy who posted as "In Reponse". He mentioned something about why am I complaining, even after I had 2 avatars, a demon, a vampire, an undead, and cabal leaders. If would be as so kind as to re-read everything I said, you would find your answers. For one, I am not complaining. I am sharing my opinons after having left ForsakenLands. I got alot out of it and I have nothing to complain about. But, I feel there is alot that is wrong with the MUD while all you brainwashed addicts like to think that the more you sit here and praise the MUD, the more you will get in return. I've donated money to FL, I've contributed to the community. I did it all because I enjoyed playing. It is a great MUD. The MUD is great...the players and the staff are another story. I'm not going to restate everything I've said. It's just wasting space and adding another negative review for this MUD, which seems to have it's fair share already. So, before you dispute my arguments again, read them first.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by In response to the response on Aug 19, 2004

Hmmm... recently I tried this out while waiting for a MUDing companion of mine to return from a trip becuase of the 'Enforced RP'. I've been reading the back and forth of good and bad reviews over this MUD, and perhaps I've not played this long enough to really understand but this is my first impression. (If you don't want to read all of this, though I do think that is best, there is a small review/rating at the bottom.) First and foremost, this is a PK MUD. I can tell that right off now. One of the primary reasons of this MUD's success lies in that. The system is well balanced and the skills are fairly fresh, and there are a group of classes that one has to work towards, making things a tad more interesting for experienced/dedicated players. The army system does seem to be pretty interesting, though I didn't join a cabal and try it out. I'm a strategy freak, among other things, and I have no doubt I'd enjoy it. The races are almost all (I'm giving a little lee-way just in case I'm wrong about/forgetting one or two.) straight out of D&D, but I didnt like the fact that there is little explanation as to the background and even the COLORATION (There was no mention that Drow have black skin, [I do believe I saw a Drow with pale skin. -shudder- Mind you, there are albino Drow if I recall but they have black hair, not white.] white hair, and [normally] red eyes.) of the races. Maybe I'm a bit too into my fantasy, but if you're going to go with a race from a well-known game, at LEAST give a description. The classes mostly have a one-line explanation, or a paragraph or two at best depending on where you look. This prompts one to go read the strategy/'help' essays on the class, which gets one in the PK mindset of 'Which class will be better for me?' and not 'What class will allow for the most intriguing character?'. I didn't like this, personally. Maybe I like my RP too much, but I mean... why don't you just let the player develop their own playing style rather than give a page that pretty much dictates the strategy for a class? Sure, you could always argue that the players don't have to follow that, but how many newbies are going to risk experimenting when there's something that tells them what to do within a few clicks? I know I wouldn't waste my time when I could have a 'killer' character. Once again, I didn't like this. On another note, though, the classes are well balanced despite this. All right, I believe the next topic is going to be the RP. I saw, in my twenty level stay, NO Roleplaying. Zip, zilch, and nadda. I saw some well-written descriptions, yes, but everyone seemed to be so concentrated on killing each other and getting the loot... Read More

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by The Ebony Whisper on Aug 18, 2004

Coming from someone who has played ForsakenLands for 4 years. Someone who has had a Demon. A vampire. An undead. Two avatars. Someone who has had characters with PK records like 300-5. Someone who has had cabal leaders and elders. ForsakenLands is highly addictive. Yes. That is why you see this barrage of positive reviews coming from people who would like to think their MUD is superb. Is the MUD superb? Yes, it is an awesome MUD. What makes it suck so very, very much? The Immortal Staff and a large portion of the playerbase. From these so called "elites" and "veterans" are the lines drawn. Mainly these are people who have skill comparable to mine, but kiss alot of ass so they are titled with this veteran status. Then they get off by being dicks to people. This is coming from someone who got banned and wants to strike back. I'm playing FL atm right now, with my undead. The point I'm trying to make here is that all of you are trying to point the finger and say these people are writing bitter reviews because they have been banned or not given the things they want. Well, I have been very succesfull on ForsakenLands. However, that does not take away from what I see. Very trashy people becoming Immortals. People who conspire RP plots on AIM, then get Immortal and then put down people who try and make a little RP by themselves. The forum is a completely absurd place where you can be a dick as long as people refer to you as a veteran. But when someone else speaks out, they get banned. I use the forum as a comical reference. I find alot of the stuff at ForsakenLands funny. From the way these pbase and Imms act, from the way people like PKMagnent act up and boil some tempers. Bravo to the Immoortals for creating an awesome MUD. Bravo to the builders, coders, etc. etc. etc. Yes, they do great WORK. But, like I said, the majority of this playerbase and a few Immortals are very trashy. And unless you get in this inner ring of information...you will not be successful. Plain and simple. This game is based on OOC knowledge...yet to speak of it is forbidden. Even their own Immortals get on AIM with their favorite players and come up with RP plots. Anyhow, I'm not much of one for shit slinging. But, I felt I had to say my piece. Play ForsakenLands if you want...but don't be suprised when you see everything I've just said come true. Or, be like me, do what you need, get what you need....but always watch the people around you. Study them, spy them, learn them. You'll see how utterly pathetic alot of them are. Adios amigos.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by omgwtf? on Aug 6, 2004

While i'm not going to go slander the MUD, nor am I going to go over-the-top and say it rocks the shazbah, i'm going to describe what this MUD is, and (hopefully) attract the kind of players which will stick here and be happy with that kind of environment. It's a very unique MUD to say the least, and I hope to right some wrongs in previous reviews which have been said already. Aabahran: The Forsaken Lands is an RP-Enforced MUD, and if other Reviews dispute this, I have yet to see any evidence opposing this fact. However, don't come from a MUD like Armageddon and except the same level of RP. Emotes are not magnificently detailed, i'm sure there will be players that haven't created backgrounds for their characters and just sailed through the creation process. There are an abundance of PK's committed in the MUD which no doubt have little-to-no RP in their choice of who to murder, but of course the player would be able to come up with viable excuses if asked. Indeed, I would not advise you come here if you don't enjoy partaking in PK, as it is one of the greatest strengths Aabahran has; the system is almost flawlessly balanced at pinnacle (Rank 50), and great fun. Do not come expecting to sit in a tavern and talk all day every day, as most likely someone will find a reason (eventually) to come chop you up, or blast you apart, or somesuch. This is in effect the atmosphere I think there is supposed to be in Aabahran; a place where constant paranoia in its inhabitants is mandatory and the world lives in fear. If you'd read its history, it's been through some catastrophies, lemme tell ya. Almost nowhere in the world is safe. Don't let this put you roleplay addicts out there off, because those who do create a background and goals for their character, and can roleplay it out well, are noticed by the Immortals and often rewarded. Many previous reviews speak of 'elites' when i'm sure these people simply take more time fleshing out their character. Many don't seem to understand that just sending in a well-written application just doesn't cut it when you're asking for a vampire character or demon or avatar, or something along those lines. If an immortal is watching you to see if you deserve it, watching a character with little planning and watching one with a lot of planning is a very obvious difference. 'Elite' players always seem to get the rewards because they are generally better thought out and more skilled players, and as far as I see it, that probably grants them to be named 'elites' anyway. I'd also like to point out that someone getting restrung as a 'sith' from Star Wars is a ridiculous notion, unless the character at hand got restrung as something which just happenned to have the same name as a Star Wars race. I'm assuming a... Read More

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Mr.Scream on Aug 5, 2004

How sad. Seems someone read the review board and posted on the Forum (most likely) any bad reviews. The contest was on to see who would win the most points with the Immortal staff by posting the most ass-kissing review possible. I find that pathetic. None of the ones who posted were banned from the game, nor were they cheaters or anything of the sort. Most were disgruntled players obviously wronged by a one-sided and uncaring Immortal staff who use the game for thier pleasure, not for thier players pleasure. It is pathetic to see the flood of good comments now that anyone has a negative comment. I would have been the first in line I played a few years ago, because I was naive too. I saw it was a 'great game' where everything seemed so fair! Until I met Rathe (Arzeath) and others, like Luorath and the like, who did nothing and were Immortals for no other reason than they kissed the most ass and had the brownest noses. They use thier Immortal Channels to mock and joke about players they dislike (I was told this by Arzaeth), they let thier chosen few abuse bugs unchecked and give thier support to thier own pre-scripted, often lacking Plots which drove the MUD into a boring, non-stop PK fest without any real motivating RP. In fact, the whole 'RP-enforced MUD' is a joke here, when people can create a race restring of a "Sith" (as in Star Wars). They are quick to jump on and kiss ass to praise this corrupt MUD, but the fact is, unless you plan on asking "How High" when told to jump and bowing down to the owner of the forums (despite the fact he cheats and abuses all he can, including players verbally), then this is not the MUD for you.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Someone on Aug 4, 2004

I have really been fighting writing this post...because I didn't think it was nessicary until recently. All of you coming here, and bashing the MUD are making me sick. The MUD is COMPLETELY fair. You complain because others get cutsom titles and owner-only items? Get off your lazy ass and work for one yourself like I do. From what it looks like, YOU want the easy way out. YOU complain about not being treated fairly. So YOU bring it here and totally ruin someone elses HARD work building/coding a great MUD. You say you got a vamp/avatar/blah blah blah blah? Why on earth are you even complaining then? If had to work for that, but expect other things to just be handed to you? You make me sick.....and just for kicks, I imagine right after you trashed the MUD here you logged right back on Forsaken Lands.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by In Response on Aug 4, 2004

I've been playing FL off and on for something like three years now. I've been angry at it, I've yelled at it, I've considered punching my computer from it... but the only thing I've enjoyed more than certain times on it would be time alone with a beautiful girl. I've quit half a dozen times, come back half a dozen times. I've seen hundreds of changes, some of them due to suggestions I'd made in my first two months of playing that the IMM-staff thought made good sense. Not all the changes have been good in my opinion, but overall, FL has always remained a solid game. It is a lot of fun, the code is amazingly stable for how often things are added/changed, and it's huge. I die very rarely in PK for the simple reason that I have played enough and can run a hundred rooms in various directions from almost anywhere. You can be either alone in the farthest reaches of the lands, RPing just enjoying the view, or sit in the main city and chat with people who walk by. I've done both, and had both gain attention from IMMs who actually watch for and reward good Roleplay. I've been rewarded for and seen rewards for good PK as well. I've schooled, and I've been schooled. I've been amazed by other characters, amused by other characters, and been sad out of character when I hear that one is gone forever. FL's a great game. I'm sure I'll try to quit it another half dozen times, and I'll probably end up coming back every time. So far, only way to keep me away for any period of time is a girl.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Pali on Aug 3, 2004

This MUD has made a huge impact on me. I've never played an online RPG with a staff more dedicated to the betterment of the game. It's newbie friendly, encourages PK and enforces RP. That's why I've been here for years, and as long as free time is existant, I will be here.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by WILLIE, SUPREME BANGER OF HEADS on Aug 3, 2004

Reply to Posts from Someone and Co.. When you get banned.. you get angry.. When you get angry you do Stupid things EG come here and cry and try to get everyone to run around yelling "Hay lets Leave FL it sucks bla bla bla..." Its all bullshit if you ask me, I have been banned in FL about 3 times now... All times i have come back and I have been allowed.. And you say these IMM's are mean? no i see them as friendly always allowing people to come back. I was first banned due to the fact i was a little disgusting cheater, I went OOC and all because I was a Newbie.. I had no idea what a mud was, I went ooc to ask stuff and so on, I was always told what to do until My first PK and i died, I lost all wares and i told the guy to **** off and so forth, I was called up, and banned due to that. Second time was pretty much the same, I was still a newbie and even now I would call myself a newbie to the MUD, i have been playing for about 1 and a half years now but no longer will i cheat and so forth. Third time was a country ban, Of course I thought this was bull shit due to the fact, At the time i had a neato character, was doing good RP but i get punsihed? Sure i was pissed off but a few months later i found out i was allowed back in, Now if you cant all that nice.. I wouldent know of anything better to call it. Overall FL is a great mud, you do wrong stuff you will get banned, if it is bad enough you will get bannde right away, but ALWAYS will you be informed before you do, you will be given another chance unless you have run out of these chances, you call yourself a "ELITE" (the group of someones) How could you eb an elite when you obviously took the rules a little too far and got yourself banned, Its not the Immortals fault you are all stupid enough to do something you KNOW isent allowed, due to you guys being "ELITES". About the Forum.. MANY MANY MANY MANY AND MANY times has it been stated, you flame or post flamebait, you will be BANNED, read the rules, you guys are "ELITES" you guys should know this, Just because you consider yourself "ELITES" dosent mean you will not be banned if you break the rules, most of you expect more than others just because your "ELITES" but your not so get over it. btw WC is the Pwnter, only reason why they hate him is because he owns so much. And FL rukes, big shout out to Viri, Bryntryst the well.. Asshole :P But in a nice way!, I think its Mircea, btw who is :P,... Read More

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Goru on Aug 3, 2004

I've been playing Aabaharan: The Forsaken Lands off and on for a little over the past three years. I started out playing back in April of 2001, where a friend had told me to come play here, as it was "addictive" and "fun". I had never played a text based game in my life, hadn't ever played DnD but stuck to my games with graphics. My first time playing, it was a complete waste of my time. I didn't know what to do, where to go, and I was sitting there twiddling my thumbs. Eventually though, I decided to explore and find my way around a little better. About seven months in, I had to quit playing, as the game was so damned fun, I was playing for hours on end. Eventually a month later, I was back to my old games, and back to playing the Forsaken Lands. The reason for game bans and such would probably be because it was a veteran/elite player, who had gone off and broke a rule that they should have known better not to do. Other than these though, it could be many reasons, from rule breaking to flaming others. No ban from the forum or game happens just because you are who you are. Everything happens for a reason. As for the game itself, it is a great thing to play when you're feeling bored or practically anything else. PK happens, and it can happen at any time for any reason. RP happens at all times, no matter if it is in plain view or not. Sometimes the PK may appear to have no RP reasons, but that's the reason why you can always talk to your aggressor afterwards. By doing such, you can catch the backgrounds of well thought out plans, and maybe even possibly get a few laughs in at the same time. I don't see a problem with this game, other than it's really addictive. It's fun once you get used to it, and once you've established what to do and how to do it, you've been caught up already. I've "quit" a few times now, only to be caught back again. I quit about a year ago because I had to start going to school. Around six months later, I was back again. I didn't find OOC abuse or anything of those kinds of things. I came back to a place that I had left some six months previous to find that: New areas had been put in, new race had been implemented, new skills had been given to certain races/classes, some classes were given the capability to be more survivable with certain spells being able to be cast with another spell that they couldn't previously. The thing is, is that Aabahran is -always- changing. Some people may not exactly like where it's going, as I know that at times I have been "displeased" so to say, as has everyone else. The fact of the this... Read More

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Tantangel on Aug 3, 2004

I would like to take this time to tell all of you a bit about the great mud I play. Forsaken Lands, or FL as most of us refer to it, is a constantly changing, fast-paced PK and RP enforced mud. Virigoth, Bryntryst, Mhalador, Malynne, Bregyn, and many others have created an almost completely unique environment where you can rank, PK, and RP to your pleasure. So many new areas are added so constantly that even the "elite" players have a hard time keeping up with all the new equipment and hidey-holes. New immortals come on to the scene and create whole RP plots with any characters, you could be level 50, or level 1! Of course the immortals must be harsh sometimes when a player "forgets" the rules. Everyone is treated equally, and any person may be banned. PK is an integral part of the mud, around level 10 you can try to kill other players. You may choose a warrior, or a mage, then again, you may want something that's a combination! All the classes have some unique skills with Quest classes and Quest races to apply for. You could be and undead thief or a saintly paladin. Just this last month an entirely new class was created from scratch with unique skills and spells. Though it may seem at first that the mud is not entirely made for newbies, you can always find an immortal to ask questions. The staff is extremely friendly when it comes to players new to the game, we are always looking for new players to strengthen and diversify our playerbase. I'd like you to come try this mud out, I think you'll find FL to be a whole lot of fun.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by littlekid on Aug 2, 2004

So... The glory that is FL... where do I begin? Well, I guess I just did. ;) Fl was my first mud a good 3 or 4 years ago. I wasn't here in the beggining, but somewhat close to it. I started off, and to be honest, I was lost. I had never played a MUD before, and when you're thrown into a world so expansive without knowing just how big it is, you can't really appreciate it, or what others have done to make it that way, much at all. In the arrogance of the newbish, I instantly reacted with vulgarity and stubbornness when my first character didn't get his description approved. Yes, I did get deleted for backmouthing the IMMs. BUT: I sufered such a punishment because I blatantly denied the rules of the game which I agreed to follow before playing. I deserved and got what I had comming. Later, I came back only to be lost again. But after sampling the large variety of other MUDs out there, it slowly began to dawn upon me just how much love, thought, and work had gone into this game. Even now, after an accumulated total of two years playing, I am still learning new things and adjusting to the enviroment. I could use pages of space to express how much I love this game, and how dear to me the other players are. We are a family of sorts, and we are accepting new members every day. But I will say this: It will be a long, long time before I ever leave FL, and when I do, it won't be because I want to. But I'm not done. Now there have been some slanderous remarks made against this game, and without anybody else to explain them, it is rather unfair to let them float around. Now while any experienced MUDder knows that if one is kicked out/banned/denied ect., they are going to slander the game. But tho the unwise... thats why I'm giving you the rest. Now you must realize, that I am not an IMM. and even if I was, I would probably take most of these complaints with a grain of salt. Why? Because a good 80% of any complaints driven against our MUD revolve around one of two things: 1. Said complainer believes he has an unfair advantage/predicament and wishes it to be rectified without bothering to take another view at it and see why his ideas may or may not work.; or 2. Said complaints lack a helpful amount of reasoning or cause behind them save for "X is overpowered" or "X is unfair and should be Y". If you give good, logical reasoning behind your complaint, and you are fair to all views, I guarantee you, you will be listened to. However, if you parade about with enough arrogance to embarass a Nazi (no offense to you Nazis), then you will be promptly ignored. Humility leads to wisdom, and is... Read More

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Cycel on Aug 2, 2004

First off, I would like to address the issue the reviewer here called "Someone", "Someone else", "Another Someone", and "The guy with the frozen ninja" or something along those lines. The concerns marked by his posts are for the most part exaggerated. I personally have earned the hate of one particular immortal on the MUD who specifically told me things I should not repeat here. My life on the MUD is still happily content. In any case, FL is a MUD with dedicated players and a dedicated staff. They are exceedingly strict with people who step out of line or express their opinions in a way that is more detrimental than it is helpful. I do not believe there is another MUD where the IMMs comes down as hard or as fast upon people who go out of character (OOC) as this one. PKers are rewarded, but not without the requisite amount of substance and character behind them. The best part of FL is likely its PK and RP integration. While there are extremes in both PKers and RPers, the fact remains that there is a far better merge between the two that creates a realistic fantasy environment that is not an oxymoron. The people you are inteacting with- the people who hunt you and who fight alongside you in wars involving the massive Cabals, whose politics and actions change the very face and direction of the MUD, are human behind their screens. And you see them as elf, dwarf, undead... You have your brief respite from reality. While great amounts of fun and the rush of achievement can be gained by massive, earthshaking changes that you make on the large scale in this MUD, the most gratifying are often on the individual level. As said, each person seems like a person. More than a simple MOB program that automatically responds to your responses, and can actually interact with you. If you insult them, you have your consequences to deal with. If you befriend them, you have an ally upon your side. There is no shield here from your own actions and in turn, the environment is far more rich in immersion. I know none of the immortals on this MUD personally. I know few players on the MUD. But I still get my rewards for RPing, still get my chance at fame in the MUD... And most importantly of all: I still have my fun. This is a great MUD, and a salute to those who make so.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Allorion on Aug 2, 2004

Alright lets see.. Firstly, from the time that I have been playing FL I have had a lot of fun, its a great mud. But, while the mud is great, the players.. (no not all just a select few, and a couple imms) give it a bad name/enviroment. I personally know a few people that "Cheat" over AIM and MSN, and I know that an imm literally helps them do it, I won't name names because not like names will make a difference here, since they didn't in game. So lets get on with this. The imms, will ignore most, if not all complaints if they know that person is doing what he is doing oocly. I have had this happen a few times, a char would attack me, die, attack me again within less than 30 seconds, i know this because they all logged off and logged on in the exact same spot. I logged it, noted, and complained... what happened? One char got title change, the other two chars (of the same person) got owner only items. Favortism? Yes. Cheating? Yes. Play this mud? only if you want to be juked in the ass by the imms and their little people. One of the recent reviewers had an idea..a good one at that, and it was shot down, then he makes a post, blah blah, then I try to back him up on his idea, because the imm at hand was being a complete nut rag. He said a few things that did not even have to be said. "I pay for the forum, I deserve respect, bow down before me, I own you all" type stuff. Just completely uneccesary. Then I get banned for saying "Calm down" anyway..i'll stop right now and continue to have a good day. Good day.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by The one with the frozen char ninja on Jul 30, 2004

A long time ago, I was introduced to MUD's. The first mud I played was a fun one, but I lost contact and stopped. Then a friend of mine says "Hey! Come play this one! It's the best!" So, I tried it out, and liked it. As a newb it started out good. I died alot, but it was all in good fun. As I started getting higher levels, the game got harder, the PK more harsh, and the RP less and less enforced...until pinnacle of course, when PK is insane, and RP is practically stopped by the pk. The topic of the immortals is a grand one to bring up. There are two that I respect there anymore; Virigoth(the head coder) and Bryntryst(the head builder). They worked their asses off, and they made that MUD what it could be, not what it is. The other immortals, showed a distinct lack of caring for the playerbase, often ignoring tells and notes from players giving legitamate complaints. I have been the subject of this abuse many times. They have even gone so far as to ban players who oppose their views. Then there is the playerbase. Oh the accredited and "skilled" playerbase. There are three categories. Elites, intermediates, and newbies. The elites are the ones who have been playing for ages, have "connections" and rock the PK cazbah. The intermediates are the ones that actually try to RP, PK a little and follow the rules. And the newbies are just that; the fresh younguns looking for a good time, just learning the game. Elites and newbies are the most likely to cheat, honestly. Both for their own gain. Only the elites get away with it. They gang, multi, get "special" help and any other unsavory things you can think of. I was an intermediate, and quit because of the lack of RP and PK enforcement, despite promises to change. And finally, there are the few individuals I personally would like to flame....well...one: WC, you suck.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Another someone on Jul 30, 2004

Ahhhhhh, where do we begin...FL.....wow. What it once was 4 years ago....what it is today.... There is a saying that goes something like what is not good at the top can only be worse at the bottom. Meaning if your boss sucks...his workers are going to suck even more. The Immortal staff of ForsakenLands sucks, to be rather blunt. I'm not going to sit here and use my best vocabulary and make this a pleasant read. They always hear how crappy they treat the playerbase. What do they do? They ignore the comments, ban the person who said the stuff, and continue on. When will they realize that they all suck very badly and need to change in order to have a healthy/happy playerbase. Their best RPers are the ones who sit on AIM and conjure up stupid ideas. It is those people who get the rewards. Hell, some of them even get IMM positions. Sure, they can twist this and say "Oh, well he's just upset he didn't get anything." Well, you know what? Blow me. I've gotten alot out of FL. Vamp, avatar, undead, demon, cabal leaders, you name it, I've had it. But, I know how they treat other people, I see it all the time. Virigoth does wonders with code. Bryntryst does wonders with building. But you guys are a bunch of pricks. You can have the best MUD around, but if you're a dick, no one wants to play. You've got people who make nothing but power house combos and rule the game, making it completely not fun for the other people. Sure, those other people need to buck up and realize they are not as good. But, there are lines that do not need to be crossed. You guys are so quick to critize everyone else, when what you really need to do is take a step back and look back 4 years ago on what this MUD was founded on. When eveyrone was cool with each other and their was a common friendship. Not some bullshit "Hey, I own this game, kiss my ass or you're not getting a dragon!" I'm sick to my stomach with how this game has degenerated. Say whatever you want, because all you'll do is try and shift the tables and put the fault on someone else or me. But, it's obvious I'm not the only one that feels this way. The people who don't say anything? Their the ones that keep their mouths shut in hopes that you'll approve their vampire application. I've done my fair share of ass kissing. What do you get for it in the end? Forum bans, perm game bans...absolutely no appreciated for game donations, hard work, etc. etc. You want to succeed? Get as many AIM addresses as you can, lie, cheat, and steal your way to success. Then, just THEN! You -MIGHT- be able to get a custom title. God Bless America. Good luck, see you all around.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Someone_else on Jul 30, 2004

Forsaken Lands was a once great MUD when it opened some years ago. It has since degenerated beyond all help as it tramples its dedicated players and allows the forums and out-of-character (OOC) factors change the game for the worse. At Forksane Lands, it is not the fault of Head Coder Virigoth, nor his wonderful code. However, the remainder of the Immortal Staff, all former players, make the game far from enjoyable as favoritism prevails. If you are not "buddy-buddy" with an Immortal, or on good terms with them (as in, kissing thier rears on the Forum), you will never advance. They enjoy thier forum and ban anyone who wishes to call out such ridiculous behavior. Also, the ideas board is a wonderful place for them to ravage ideas and call them thier own. In the past, they have used and abused hard working Immortals and players. The entire MUD is a playground for an IMM-staff that cares nothing for the players who make any MUD what it is. Sadly, I am a veteran of four years and I was chased off by an unfriendly and uncaring IMM-staff when I did nothing but propose ideas, help with bugs, typos, and balance, as well as made quality characters. They do not want anyone with any thought diverging from thier own and will give the world to thier friends (on a side note, most Immortals tend to be friends outside the game, such as two of the highest-level Immortals). In this environment, where people are quickly cast aside for not sucking up, who could enjoy the game? Many do, but many don't and those who do not go unheard because of the propaganda-esque voting doctrine of the Forsaken Lands. They insist on being voted up in TMS and other sites to boost the egos of the already egotistic IMM-staff. From all I have seen in my years at the Forsaken Lands, it has finally bottomed out and become a breeding group for cheaters and OOC-connected players. If you strive hard in this "RP-enforced" game, you tend to get little in the way of rewards, however! If you abuse bugged classes and skills and make nothing but power-PK combinations, you will do wonderfully here! In fact, various Immomrtals fit into that category. Now, not all the Immortals are guilty of being utterly useless and uncaring. The current owner, Virigoth, for instance has the best of intentions. However, most of the remainder are concerned with only thier advancement. I will also say, I expect comments from Immortals following this post to "correct" anything I have said that is "out of line", seeing as how most of the Immortals think themselves Gods in all respects. It is a sad day that I must leave and post a review like this, but they have asked for it by showing they care nothing for thier dedicated and hard-working players.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Someone on Jul 30, 2004

With much more improvement of late this mud has deserved its position in the ranks. From the new guilds, classes that allow new visitors to travel at a higher rank with no fear of being killed, and extensive detail this could be the best mud I've played. Fighting goes into detail and has limitless strategy involved due to your own fighting style, though strange at first I found it easy to pick up and very exciting afterwards. With so many classes, races, and special classes for the ones who have been found above the players around them you can live any way you want and do almost anything your heart desires. Classes were matched closely, with somehaving an advantage to one other class, but a weakness to another. Quests are given at will for those that have nothing to do, clans and guilds are available to join also. Large wars wage in the lands with the players being generals of the troops, and so into the game that they go into extensive rp when a battle is lost. A mud for those that are looking for something better, and able to satisfy anyone's need. I highly suggest trying it and becoming a member.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Chris on Jun 15, 2004

What is the difference between a game that is merely fun and enticing to a game that is completely captivating and addicting beyond the meaning of the words? As a new player to the online text based style of gaming I jumped from game to game in ZMuds server list, having a good time playing in the vast amount of worlds available. I played everything from futuristic muds that would focus on role playing only, to the medieval hack'n'slash games where people were discussing last nights TV-shows while poking each other with huge swords. By change I finally, one day, found the mud that I was looking for. After just a few hours I knew that this was the place I had been looking for and since then there has existed no other game for me. This game is called "Aabahran: The Forsaken Lands". Before I will move on to praise this game - let us have a look at some of the general themes and basic rules of this game. Aabahran is a land of medieval fantasy, with emphasis on the 'fantasy' part. Role playing is not encouraged, it is _strictly_ enforced. This means that you will have to act as your character while connected to the server, everything you say, think and do should be not be the actions of your self but that of your persona that you wish to create. This adds a whole new dimension to the game, a chance to really become your character - while interacting with others that do the same. This living organism of players that interact with each other ensures you a place in a fantasy tale that you are able to shape and affect in any way you see fit. You can become a knight of the good, protecting the innocent from the clutches of evil, or you could take on the role as a sinister thief that knows no moral values and would place a rusted dagger in the back of his own father. As long as you stay in character, and your character is a viable medieval fantasy person, you can do pretty much whatever you want. The other rule is that player killing is allowed _and_ encouraged. There are no rooms safe from danger, fights does not take place in some arena where both parties have to agree to the battle before proceeding to slice each others throats (although,this could be arranged as well in the city of Rheydin). Whether you are in the city talking to the citizens, in the forest hunting for food or in the desert desperately looking for a way out of it - you are fair game. Without warning, if you are not alert enough, someone could ride up to you, on one of the many creatures you can mount, and attack you. While some consider PK to be separate from RP, and vice-versa, I strongly feel that this kind of environment, an environment of uncertainty, only adds the... Read More

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by kryddz0e on Jun 15, 2004

Well, let me say this. FL is a dynamic environment if what you are looking for are thrills associated with PK. The classes are very balanced, and most classes have a foil of somesort, allowing for no 'God' characters that cannot die. The RP, while 'enforced' is lackadasical at times but truly superb WHEN the playerbase feels like it. Unfortunately, most of the times you will only experience consistant RP if you make friends with some other player(s) through AIM, MSN, etc. The playerbase, as a whole, is rather intelligent, yet does not distinguish themselves in any way from the playerbase of other, similar MUDs. Most truly notable characters are IMM played characters, and if not, they have a bad habit of making that statement true (IE they IMM all their best players). The other 10-15 hero range characters are all the same people, constantly switching classes and aligns to get a better 'edge'. Now, the IMM staff as a whole is rather informative and helpful, yet they have two major problems from what I can see. One, they have no sense of continuity. I have been told something by one IMM only to be told the opposite by another IMM. I will say this, they are completely dedicated to the game and each other, allowing no room for major gaffes (such as cheating by the IMMs). However, the second problem is that the IMMs have no sense of player relations. Sure, some players are blessed with Immteraction and other 'treats' but others are left with next to nothing, seemingly at a whim. I have seen titled, cabaled characters go blantantly OOC and out of roleplay yet seen fantastic RPers go largely unnoticed, and eventually deleted from mass PK. The IMMs need to be closer to the players, and the Head Coder, Virigoth, has come to realise that (in my opinion). He has done some absolutely fantastic things with the MUD, and most if not all by himself. I would have to say that this reviewer has not seen a more competant head coder on any MUD at any time then Head Coder Virigoth of Forsaken Lands. All in all, if you have the patience of Job, and don't mind sifting through the horsennnn of the Forum and the playerbase (which does contain a few gems...sadly, not enough) then you will experience a fantastically designed MUD that will offer hundreds of hours of enjoyment. PS DO NOT MAKE ENEMIES OF THE IMMS. AND I AM NOT TALKING ABOUT CHEATING.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by The Dark Man on Jun 15, 2004

Being semi-new to MUDing and loving RP, as well as PK, I thought this would be a good MUD to try my skills out on. While the coding is very nice and the staff do put a lot of work in... it should not be advertised as an RP/PK Mudd.. the only RP you ever have to do... is write a description by level 15. I can run up and kill someone just for their eq and say "I Killed them for their equipment" And that's RP enough for the IMM's. I'm sorry that's not RP, that's called just pure PK. Not like you would expect... I'd suggest avoiding this mudd unless you want a pure pk mudd.. then go for it. But the complete and utter lack of RP is appauling as they boast "rp enforced". Many of the Forum members will say "well you need to get to 50 THEN say that!" Well... when you get PK'd from level 15 up... it's hard try and rank when you're being PK'd for no valid reason other than they're bored and want to PK you. "The RP starts at 50" is a very untrue. Through some help and using good time frames to avoid the rampant pk activity... I made it to 50, tried to find some story lines... but it's more of the same.. random PK and fighting, no RP at all... Plus they're now practically forcing you to vote in order to play... that's why they're so high on the rankings.. if you don't vote you're penalized with a long login, if you do vote then you get rewarded with going in right away... They cheated their way to the top and hopefully TMS will soon visit the MUD as they've been reported already for their activities.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by NoX on Jun 14, 2004

I shall begin this with a little about myself. English is the third language I speak, and I have been mudding for about three years now. When I first came to FL my english was very bad, and it was the first MUD I had ever played where you had to RP. I had made my charactor as an Human/Thief of good alignment. I did my description first thing as it was one of the rules. As I have stated I am not good with english at that time (still not all that great) and so when I told the IMM's it was done and ready to be checked one of the IMM's who I call Bry now pulled me into a room where he could help me with my description. He did not yell at me but asked if I needed help, which I did. He sat there for four hours helping me with my description to be good. He did not have to, he could have made me do it alone, and kept tleling me it was wrong. Now after that I recived a Dragon, thesse are for exceptional Descriptions. I asked him why i got it and he said it may not be an exceptional description, but that I stuck with it and tried real hard to have it like it needed to be. This alone tells you that if you try hard enough, no matter how good you are you can be rewarded. I have played almost every race/class now and let me tell you. At first I thought that some classes were OVERPOWERED!!!! but they are not, because I would create of of thosse classes, and get killed by something else. Its very well balanced. The Immortals are quite friendly but less interactive then i may like. Though with all the work they do I can see why. Now about the code being stolen and what not. The code was given to the founder of FL whom started FL with said code. He is NO LONGER HERE. THosse here did not steal the code, and as of now the code is NO LONGER what it use to be. Ive been to said place of stolen code and its NOTHING like FL, the balance issues there are crazy, I am a very bad PK'er and had a 100-2 PK record by playing the most powerful class. The code is nearly fully changed and continues to grow closer to being totaly changed. They are working real hard to make it so. There is RP here no matter whom might say otherwise, so you have to work for it? SO WHAT? RP is not easy, it takes skill just like PK! Dont like to work for what you want? Then you will always be working at MCDONALDS! Anything is possable here, I have been restrung to a centaur, and became a druid with said centaur. Had my story posted in the FL Library where any can... Read More

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Jambit on Jun 14, 2004

Aabahran: The Forsaken Lands(FL from now on) is, what the creators of the game call, an RP/PK MUD. Player killing is enforced and so is Roleplaying. Also, I will say that this review is coming from a person who prefers roleplaying and seldom playes non-RP MUDs. FL is based on the Diku rom, so people who have played these type of MUDS should have no problem getting started. Additionally, I should mention FL's beginnings were a ripped version of Abandoned Realms(which itself was a Carrion Fields copy), though now it has changed vastly to being a completely different game. Any way here's the review: The Game: You have 5 statistics, Strength, Intelligence, Wisdom, Dexterity, and Constitution. Each races have differing abilities as well as stat. maximum differences. The races are Humans, Ferals, Storm giants, stone giants, fire giants, ogres, gnomes, half-elves, avians, werebeasts, dwarf, duergar, halfling, Slith, Minotaur, Illithid Elves, Drow, and Faeries. You can also be special "quest" races such as an Avatar, Demon, or Undead which require exeptional roleplay and PK skills. The classes are Warrior, thief, Battlemage, Invoker, Necromancer, Cleric, Healer, Shaman, Ranger, Berserker, Ninja, Monk, Dark Knight, Bard, Druid, and Paladin along with the "Quest" classes of Psionicist, Crusader, and Vampire. As you can tell, the above races/classes will be easily recognized by players of other Fantasy games like D&D. Each class/race has different skills/abilities that are geared towards PK. There are only two ways you can gain experience, killing mobs and completing quests(at least when your still low level) so the game will be hack and slash until you get to level 50, which is considered the "balanced" level for Pking. Of course getting to 50 will be a problem since people will be trying to kill you while you hunt and train skills. The game is also *very* equipment dependent. If you don't know where that potion, sword, or armor is and the other guy does, your dead. Many complain about this factor, but with a lot of exploring you might be able to find them. Information out of the game(i.e. on the forums) is impossible to find because everyone guards their secrets closely. This is, of course, quite understandable, but it makes the life of a newbie much harder. The areas in FL are mostly original. There are some Diku left overs here and there, but I hear that is going to change. The Roleplay: Let me start by saying that a PK environment in any game limits the roleplay severely. This is equally true to FL. The focus in the game is PK, so only devout roleplayers will perhaps roleplay before they try to make a kill. Even then if your opponent doesn't roleplay along, he'll just either run away or prepare himself for your attack. You'll be spending your time in -game either getting equipments, Pking, or killing mobs to level. Roleplay is usually based around these three. You will seldom enter a tavern and sit with a such... Read More

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by WagesofSin on Jun 6, 2004

Blah Blah, I've been on FL since beta in 2000. Before FL I was on a rotation of many other muds, this is the one I will end on. FL is an advanced mud, thats the truth. It's really not ment for weekend warrior types. If you want all the time you put into a mud to pay off, this is the mud for you. FL has a tough learning curve, but it sounds worse than it is. Right around level 30(the mid ranks) things get really tough and you will have to think on your toes. If you just want a hack and slash play, your going to be very upset. Tactics are involved for every class, though some may be fairly easy tactics, other classes, like monks and shamans, require advanced tactics to be successful. Also, FL is a PK/RP mud. This means two things. One, your going to have to fight other players. If you like it or not, it's going to happen, and there's no way to prevent it. The PK that happens is also very fast, and because of the curve, the players tend to be fairly skilled. This also means your character is going to die, and most likely die many times. It's part of the game, happens to me all the time. It is not unheard of for players to eventually condition death a character(64 or so deaths), con deaths mean the character is gone forever. Two, you are going to have to RP(roleplay). FL is not a chat room, it's not a place to come and complain about a call made in the game last night, you do that in the Lounge section of FL's forum. You are expected to make a persona for your character and play that persona out. Most complaints about RP happen because players tend to be over-zealous with PK. I am not going to sugar coat it, some people push the limits with RP, and it takes some time to find them and catch them, but everyone who pushes the limits eventually pushes them to far, and are taken care of. FL does not catter to idiots, and the Imms don't tolerate rule benders. If you are ethier, you will not have a fun time. Though FL is not an easy place to play, it's rewards are amazing. Owner only items(even if you die, the enemy can't take it, only you can touch it) ranging from swords to pet dragons, unique titles(Why settle for 'the Master of War'? Develop deep RP and make consitantly challenging PKs and you might just find yourself titled 'The Flury of Blades'), Positions of leadership in player armies, positions of Royalty running various cities, quest classes and quest races and many more very rare rewards. For example, I've had a house constructed for and a street named after one of my characters. Pretty cool, eh? Also, you will find that a great many people are disenchanted with FL. Reasons very,... Read More

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by WarriorCleric on Jun 5, 2004

The only down fall to this mud is that the majority of the playerbase tends to complain about one thing or another constantly until they see the problem is fixed to their liking. Every other two weeks it is something new with the game that is "bugged', "overpowered", and so on. But besides this it can sometimes be enjoyable.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Sernie on May 8, 2004

I myself after playing for such a time consider myself an above average player, my PK ratio's were top notch and probley averaged a Pdeath for every 30 or so PKs I made. They have more decent immortals then power trippers, a pbase that is constantly growing and a game that seems to have no end in sight for its growth. Forsaken Lands "offers" unlimited races so that someone can broaden thier minds and roleplay something new all the time, since it it a PK/RP mud. Now with the unlimited races your based off a regular race thats already in the game, so you couldnt start out with a firegiant and get a restring into a fly, or a faerie getting a restring to become a troll, it has to be based on what you are compared to what you want to become. A strange catch that comes with this is they dont offer "restrung" races to everyone, they "say" everyone can send in a application, but they only approve a few. For something sooo small as just having your race name changed "it still shows your original race as well" its seems to be only given out to imm chosen people. These people are usually newbs or imms favored players, and you might ask why I would say that so ill tell you. I have played Forsaken Lands for a fair amount of time, I didnt get along with many players or many imms. In total I have sent in 6 applications for restrings since they first advertised it and been rejected 6 times. Ofcourse they will throw me some lame excuse but man O man, its a few letters being changed for the sake of overall roleplay enhancement. I know a few people fed up with writting applications to the immortals because its the same thing, a spelling error, something was missing, not long enough, always something and never anything really constructive given for the attempt at enhancing the roleplay of the game. Now ill dive onto the pbase that is ever growing. When creating a charactor your at your usual level of 1, starting out in the newbie arena. If your a malee class everybody wants to group with you, if your a mage then you get shunned. People would rather gain thier levels alone then help a mage gain his, this is majority and not everybody. Once you hit the 10th level your open for PK, if your a malee class you wont be here long because your always hounded to hunt, a mage on the otherhand will get attacked constantly by anybody. The playerbase is soo hardcore to stack thier PK records that they usually start on the youngsters just to make sure they get a few in. If you dont delete and keep playing you will get into another era, the 20's. Althrough the 20's you will have a great mix of RPers and idiots, the RPers usually get killed alot the... Read More

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Goodguy99 on Apr 26, 2004

Severe balance issues, immature imms and immature players have plagued this mud for some time. The head coder is a damn fine coder, and the mud is exceptional for playability but the environment needs work. For the past year shamans had a severe advantage over every other class that only now is getting looked after. Imms think its funny to joke about turnips and embody hell bunnies and poke and giggle to create a laugh rather than SERIOUSLY rp with any characters in the HIGH FANTASY environment it claims to be. Player run cabals is a GREAT ideal, but you'll have to impose an age limit to 18+ since some players can't wrap the concept around their head due to immaturity problems and lack of RP skills. For the most part the playerbase is greedy and power hungry looking for whatever PK advantage they can get. When an advantage is noticed, theres a handfull of players ready to exploit it. You are suppose to die, but if your new and dont grasp pk skills FAST expect to die 100 times (and I'm not kidding). This MUD has soooo much potential due to the head coder's work and ingenuity (the only reason why I stay). If you are an expereinced RPer PLEASE PLEASE come and add some flavour to this mud.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Killer on Apr 26, 2004

The evil classes overpower the good classes. The only classes that are able to handle all the others are Dark-Knights and Shamans. The monk class is one of the weaker classes but, it has the same penalty as the dark-knights. Unless you intend to be a dark-knight or shaman, expect to be killed for the majority of your stay. The paladin class has a higher penalty than the dark-knight but, weaker spells and skills. Until they truely start to balance out the classes I do not see how anyone could be anything else than the dark-knight and shaman.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Smith on Apr 26, 2004

Before i write anything abiut this mud let me give you some info about me so you can better see where i am comming from. I am 31 years old Been at the mud from week one Ranked at least five characters to 51 Played alomst every race/class combo Never joined a cabal Ok So now onto the good stuff.The classes here for the most part are balanced.Their is a good counter for every guild to defeat the skill/spells of any other.Granted its not perfect tho,but very close.The imms try to improve the mud on a monthly basis.When the mud was first listed it had something like this in the description.We have the best PK'ers around if you played on another pk mud you probbly died to us alot.Well now the mud is list as RP/PK mud.MY opinion on this is its really gone down to a twink mud.Their is no to VERY little RP.And BTW RP is not just staying IC its about doing things OTHER than leveling and PKing.95% of the time after level 10 you will spend either leveling or fleeing.This is a very stable mud very few crashes and most are soft boots of the system.As stated before by another in design this mud i VERY generic but VERY addictive.If you decide to play here go to the forum read the newbie help its all about PK not RP tips.Most people try to act like the mud is difficult on the forum but its really not.Many post great thoeries on how to beat this clas and that class,but i have done better doing every thing other than what they say.Also if you do join the forum do not prove the imms wrong or they will ban you i should know ;).Also IG i recommed that you lie low the imms a very childish and ban if ya dont suck up.Also they do things like when they play their morts and ya PK the hell out of them i have had them once get into god character and tell me you are not to do that because yer a cleric or your ethos is lawful.I have severl other complaints that bug me like 80% origional area.That is almost the funniest thing i evere read.JUst log on and do area command and you will see.Being nice i will give them 10% origonal areas.Their are a lot of other minor things and roumors about the code but just to wrap this up on a good note. I still play here and enjoy it.But this mud i really just a PK mud so if you want to have fun other than running all the time go some place else.Also you will die at least 100 times before you get a 70/30 record just see if ya dont believe me.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Shostag on Apr 9, 2004

What is it that causes people to stay at MUDs? Isn't that what these reviews are all about? Write about something that a MUDer wants in a game and that's about all there is to it. Doesn't matter if it's lies or a load of crap. Doesn't matter if the MUDer comes and is seriously let down when they get there. Well thats what is making me so happy to be writing this. As, for this MUD, you don't have to lie. It is a very, very addictive world, for one reason or another. It has its bad points, but in comparison it has good ones in excess. Yet there is very little point telling you about them here. Far better to just head to the website and have a look see, or actually create a character to look around a little. If you like what you see, we'll welcome you. Be warned: There is a steep learning curve. Don't expect to come in and become a god among mortals, because it wont happen. Be prepared to take the time, perhaps a -lot- of time, to get used to the ways things are done in the PK aspect. It's not for the faint of heart, but questions can be freely asked on the forum or IC IG. Anyway, that's all. Visit http://www.slavepit.org/forsakenlands/ today! :)

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Mr.Scream on Apr 3, 2004

After reading some of the recent reviews of this well-run and creative MUD, I must ask one thing...what MUD were they playing because it certainly wasn't Aabahran! I have been a player on this MUD for over 3 years and have seen it survive attack by hackers, former IMM's with grudges, and severe growing pains as its playerbase expanded significantly. All during these times, the IMM's acted with diplomacy and respect for the playerbase and always strove to maintain the balance of play and enforce the quality of RP. The world has been significantly expanded and re-written so little if any stock areas are left. New classes, races, and cabals have given a boost to a MUD that was already a leader in every category. I can only imagine the recent negative reviews have been posted by some disgruntled player or players who either think they have an axe to grind or just could hack it in the challenging PK and enforced RP environment of Aabahran. This MUD is a rare find of quality amongst many junk MUD's that one could play. Come and join us and prepare to be challenged!

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Archangel on Apr 3, 2004

Severe balance issues, immature imms and immature players have plagued this mud for some time. The head coder is a damn fine coder, and the mud is exceptional for playability but the environment needs work. For the past year shamans had a severe advantage over every other class that only now is getting looked after. Imms think its funny to joke about turnips and embody hell bunnies and poke and giggle to create a laugh rather than SERIOUSLY rp with any characters in the HIGH FANTASY environment it claims to be. Player run cabals is a GREAT ideal, but you'll have to impose an age limit to 18+ since some players can't wrap the concept around their head due to immaturity problems and lack of RP skills. For the most part the playerbase is greedy and power hungry looking for whatever PK advantage they can get. When an advantage is noticed, theres a handfull of players ready to exploit it. You are suppose to die, but if your new and dont grasp pk skills FAST expect to die 100 times (and I'm not kidding). This MUD has soooo much potential due to the head coder's work and ingenuity (the only reason why I stay). If you are an expereinced RPer PLEASE PLEASE come and add some flavour to this mud.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Anon on Mar 31, 2004

The evil classes overpower the good classes. The only classes that are able to handle all the others are Dark-Knights and Shamans. The monk class is one of the weaker classes but, it has the same penalty as the dark-knights. Unless you intend to be a dark-knight or shaman, expect to be killed for the majority of your stay. The paladin class has a higher penalty than the dark-knight but, weaker spells and skills. Until they truely start to balance out the classes I do not see how anyone could be anything else than the dark-knight and shaman.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Jack on Mar 24, 2004

Forsaken Lands targets a very specific audience: the one with a lot of time on its hands. Do not go to it expecting to quickly get engrossed, because it is a frustrating, unfriendly, and generic place; if you have time - and padded walls in your house - you may begin to have fun. Otherwise, find a different mud. There are many others out there that handle PKing in a better fashion, and many more still that have a higher-quality environment.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Michael on Mar 16, 2004

Worst Mud ever

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by dddddddd on Mar 16, 2004

A good learning mud till your 20th rank then after that it has a huge learning curve because, you will be killed multiple times. Certain classes are overpowered. Shamans, dark-knights, and necromancers.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Bluebomber1997 on Mar 11, 2004

To start things off ill say this is one hell of a mud, the code is something that every coder strives to create, Virigoth is a master of his art and second to none. I got cought up in this world a few years back, it went through constant changes, bug fixes and 2 huge overhauls that completly redifined the mudding world. I myself after playing for such a time consider myself an above average player, my PK ratio's were top notch and probley averaged a Pdeath for every 30 or so PKs I made. They have more decent immortals then power trippers, a pbase that is constantly growing and a game that seems to have no end in sight for its growth. Forsaken Lands "offers" unlimited races so that someone can broaden thier minds and roleplay something new all the time, since it it a PK/RP mud. Now with the unlimited races your based off a regular race thats already in the game, so you couldnt start out with a firegiant and get a restring into a fly, or a faerie getting a restring to become a troll, it has to be based on what you are compared to what you want to become. A strange catch that comes with this is they dont offer "restrung" races to everyone, they "say" everyone can send in a application, but they only approve a few. For something sooo small as just having your race name changed "it still shows your original race as well" its seems to be only given out to imm chosen people. These people are usually newbs or imms favored players, and you might ask why I would say that so ill tell you. I have played Forsaken Lands for a fair amount of time, I didnt get along with many players or many imms. In total I have sent in 6 applications for restrings since they first advertised it and been rejected 6 times. Ofcourse they will throw me some lame excuse but man O man, its a few letters being changed for the sake of overall roleplay enhancement. I know a few people fed up with writting applications to the immortals because its the same thing, a spelling error, something was missing, not long enough, always something and never anything really constructive given for the attempt at enhancing the roleplay of the game. Now ill dive onto the pbase that is ever growing. When creating a charactor your at your usual level of 1, starting out in the newbie arena. If your a malee class everybody wants to group with you, if your a mage then you get shunned. People would rather gain thier levels alone then help a mage gain his, this is majority and not everybody. Once you hit the 10th level your open for PK, if your a malee class you wont be here long because your always hounded to hunt, a mage on the otherhand will get attacked constantly anybody.... Read More

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Wandering Veteran on Mar 11, 2004

Aabahran: The Forsaken Lands - it was my first MUD, it will be my last MUD. With over two years experience, I can say that if you are seeking GOOD MUD, this is your choise. Although, I'd like to warn, that if you thought you wont be addicted to any sort of MUD, 'Aabahran: The Forsaken Lands' will force you to change your mind.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by F-3000 on Feb 22, 2004

This was the best mud ever!! Aabahran was my first mud, i have played over 3 month+ for now and i think it was the greatest one, I've played other and IMHO this was the greatest of all! If you want an Rp mud or PK mud this was a great MUD to play. Not only the players (Mortal) who RP but the Staff (Immortal) are also RP-ing with players too.. And it has many clan and cabals to join, or even you can create your own clan if you wanted, you can RP as you want being a bad ass thief, or an innocent healer that help people around, The choice is yours!!!

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Valimir on Feb 9, 2004

Contrary to the previous reviewers withdrawl of his review, this code WAS infact, stolen from said MUD which was created in early 1996 (which I will not name). The CREATOR of Aabahran: The Forsaken Lands has admitted such publicly and asked for forgiveness. Yes the following link is to a review the Implimentor and Creator of Aabahran: The Forsaken Lands posted, but it is completely relevant to the review, and I think the previous reviewer would appreciate reading it. http://mudconnector.com/mud-bin/new_prev/review.cgi?rid=18292 Sincerely, Mike

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Mike on Jan 23, 2004

I would just like to say I was mistaken, and this MUD code was given to the implementors to work with. Disregard the previous review. I would also like to take this time to say sorry.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Previous guy on Jan 20, 2004

Ok. this MUD really pisses me off. Seeing the sign "Mostly Original" on it makes me want to shoot the implementors. why? Because they copied, except for a few tweaks here and there, straight from the MUD I play. Now tell me, how the hell can someone be that lazy and dishonest at the same time? My MUD was made in 1996. this was made 2000. But, I have to give credit to the imps. Those Ctrl+c buttons must've been really hard to press.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by MAD AS HELL! on Jan 19, 2004

I just wanted to submit an update to my review of about 1 1/2 years ago because the MUD has almost completely changed since then. There are a couple of key things that I think make this MUD great: 1) It's dynamic. Nothing's perfect, but if something isn't working out right, the IMMs change it in some very cool way. 2) The ethos. There is a very intelligent, tolerant of different ways of thinking, playing, and being, attitude among those who ascend to the immortal level that creates an atmosphere of otherworldliness. 3) The talent of veteran players and immortals. There is a very broad range of truly gifted people involved on both sides, who create stunningly realistic characters and can really outwit you at PK. Some are a little disturbed even, but that just adds to the dreamlike texture of the place, and for some strange reason makes you want to be better. 4) The stability of the membership. Everyone comes back, even if they try to quit. 5) The steady accumulation of new talent. Since I wrote my last review, several new players of talent comparable to the original group have appeared, adding their creativity to the game. 6) The intolerance of cheating. I have been astonished when I heard about what goes on at other MUDs. Multiing, character trading, etc. will not be tolerated here. Whatever anyone has, you can be sure they earned it themselves, starting at level one. This is critical for creating that sense of wanting to emulate the best players. If you like MUDding, I strongly suggest that you try FL.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Ex-D&Der on Dec 11, 2003

Four years it took me to become hooked, and hooked I became. This Mud offers EVERYTHING you want out of a mud, extensive rp plots, some of the best PK I have seen on ANY mud, a vast and easy to traverse area, quests to aid in RP and help you find your way around, but best of all are the IMM's. Every immortal is newbie friendly as is almost the ENTIRE player base. No question is too stupid for our best, who will even give you a hot towel after a cool anwser. If RP is not your style cabals offer any number of ethos and alignments that let you kill to your hearts desire, with a challenge every time.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Dobson on Nov 13, 2003

Open your mudclient, hold ctrl and click on all the other muds, then press shift delete. Then connect to forsakenlands and be ready to embrace the supreme addiction. I've been with FL for over a year now, and I still see myself as a newbie with much to learn and try out because of the ever growing and changing aspects of the game. The imms do an excellent job in making sure everything runs smoothly, and the playerbase consists of the best PKers around. Stop your search now and join us. We welcome you to FL. :) -Kahlos

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Kahlos on Nov 13, 2003

I came to Forsaken Lands about two years ago, but due to time limitations was unable to devote my full attention until recently. I was not new to mudding, but, nevertheless, lacked the understanding and the ability of many players there. But I learned. And learned quite fast with the help of devoted immortals and an incredibly pleasant and diverse playerbase. A few things to point out: Immortals are friendly and helpful. The newbie channel answers a lot of questions and has tremendous patience. The website forum contains quite a few guides on how to play a certain class, and if questions arise, players immediately answer them. The playerbase is large and there are always people with whom one can interact. The game is very diverse and offers many classes and races that have unique ability. A lot of class abilities are unique to this MUD. There is a class for everyone's playing style. Want to be sneaky and steal things - play a thief. Want to be a brute and bash things - play a berserker. Want to cast firestorms and freeze people to death - play an invoker. Want to make people die of 1000 diseases - play a shaman. PK is allowed and encouraged but is A LOT less rampant as it is on other muds. Multi-killing (killing the same player over and over again is STRONGLY discouraged). RP quality of players is good, and is superb when one joins a Cabal. Cabal (clan) system is quite rich and offers options for people of all guilds and aligns. There are too many things to discuss in this review, but the above should provide only a small sample of what Forsaken Lands offers. I would highly recommend this place. At least give it a shot, you may not want to play anything other than Forsaken Lands after that.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by shadow1ce on Nov 10, 2003

I must say, after playing this Mud for 3 months, I feel as if it's a mud that's pretty worthwhile to play. I am writing this review even after being banned, and I still feel that Forsaken Lands is a worthwhile mud to play. The reason behind this is that the Immortal staff is generally fairly good with players... The Cabal System is exceptional, and I mean exceptional! It's complicated, yet so easy and simple to understand. As for the playerbase, it just keeps on growing! One thing that isn't up to Par about the mud is the Immortals starting up Roleplaying quests, or anything for the players. They Immortals are very active in building up the mud, and such, but giving out quests that everyone, even non-caballers can do is something they lack. I feel that if you're at 50, and not in a cabal, then really there is not much for you to do except hoarde equipment, PK, and TRY (And I stress TRY) to create some RP between yourself and other characters. Honestly, I say this from my experiences on this mud. Another thing that could use a bit of work is some of the Immortal leaders of Cabals. A few (and I am talking about one or two), are not exactly putting in much effort at all to keep their cabals running. Although it is September now and many people have many things to do, they are seldom around. I have seen Azraeth (Immortal rank 57) giving a hand to a few cabals, which kind of ruins the fun a bit. And to the last post, where it was said that cheaters are slaughtered senselessly by all players, that doesn't happen. Immortals are pretty good with cheaters in the sense that they will deal with Cheaters, and do as they see fit. This mud have a strong back bone, a strong set of races and classes, a great immortal staff, and a large potent player base. It's pretty newbie friendly, from what I've seen of it, although the newbie channel seems to be pretty bare most of the time. It's definitely worth trying, for all whom are reading this.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Fizen on Sep 11, 2003

Aabahran: The Forsaken Lands. Evil and goodness and magic, oh my. As a player of this MUD for a little over a year, I can honestly say how incredibly fantastic it is. I figured it was about time I made a review, to spread the word of the working man about it. So here goes. Variety and originality are something this MUD is never short on. There are an infinite number of races to choose from, dependant on how well you roleplay and how good your imagination is. Classes vary from the usual (Warriors, clerics, necromancers etc etc...) to the less so (Shamans, monks, crusaders, vampires, psionicists, avatars) and more are in progress as I write. Ive lost count of the sheer number of updates there has been, and the playerbase who speak their mind on the forum about balance issues (Of which im unsure there are any) are listened to and, if seen fit, dealt with to make the MUD a better place. The playerbase is, on the whole, mature. Occasionally less mature players happen to play, but they are dealt with fast and relatively painlessly. Yes... relatively. Ahem. If the playerbase somehow finds out that someone has been cheating, via the forum or instant messangers, it is expected they will be mass murderered, and damn right. Cheaters are dealt with harshly, and so they should be. Chances are ALWAYS given though, if the situation deems it so. The Immortal staff are fantastic. I cant compare this MUD to any other, because i've never felt the need to play anything else. Now, if your reading this and thinking of giving us a try, know that the this is both an RP/PK MUD. And the PK system is excellent. At rank fifty, every class is balanced equally. The skill/spell system is incredible, varying from spells which cause the earth to open up and spew forth a 'hellstream', communing plagues, hexes, curses, insomnia, intervention by the gods, using axes with such force that you shatter your oponents weapon, calling phoenixes, summoning hundreds of spiders to attack your victim, drawing power from the druidic circles, using ethereal passages to go to and forth places... the list is nigh on endless. This MUD is addictive. The playerbase isn't as large as some of the others up there, and yet dedicated enough to keep the MUD up in the top ten. I find personally that with the amount of players there is, it gives the game a much more personal feel. If your searching for a MUD, try us. Join the academy. Visit the regular classes which go on (All in character of course) and learn. I consider myself privileged to have discovered this game, and stuck it out to become somewhat vaguely skilled in its aspects. Anyways, ive rambled long enough. If you do decide to take a look, I assure you that you wont be disappointed, so long as you maintain common courtesy to other players and obey the Thanks... Read More

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Mistah-Scream on Sep 6, 2003

Aabahran: The Forsakenlands is my home away from home. Here's your warning, DO NOT PLAY THIS GAME UNLESS YOU WISH TO BECOME SEVERELY ADDICTED! It's newbie friendly to start but when you get your character(s) pinnacled, watch out! Its a dog eat dog world and you must keep prepared, keep your eyes open or you'll be lunch. If PK is not your thing, your in luck because RP is not only encouraged, it is ENFORCED. You can become a merry bard spreading cheer and join the Heralds and become a great scholar. Or a master of the arts of Healing and become the King/Queen of a great city! You can be the LAW and roam the lands in search of infamous outlaws and common criminals, become a bounty hunter and roll in filty riches as you capture the heads of the most wanted. Join the Knights and restore Order to the lands... or join the Nexus and spread death and disease as an instument of chaos. So many choices and so much RP oppritunity you'ld wonder whys theres any other MUD out there. With a great staff and tight playerbase, FL is certainly a MUD you can call home.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Eclypse on Jun 29, 2003

Aabahran: The Forsakenlands is my home away from home. Here's your warning, DO NOT PLAY THIS GAME UNLESS YOU WISH TO BECOME SEVERELY ADDICTED! It's newbie friendly to start but when you get your character(s) pinnacled, watch out! Its a dog eat dog world and you must keep prepared, keep your eyes open or you'll be lunch. If PK is not your thing, your in luck because RP is not only encouraged, it is ENFORCED. You can become a merry bard spreading cheer and join the Heralds and become a great scholar. Or a master of the arts of Healing and become the King/Queen of a great city!

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Eclypse on Jun 29, 2003

I'm an experienced player of FL, and my favorite thing to do is Roleplay. In the past, i've visited six other muds, the two top muds included and played for maybe a month or two on each. Forsaken Lands is outstanding. The players of FL always have their brain turned on to RPing, and it is common that an Immortal will come to smite you with lightning, or give you a dragon. In the beginning, FLs instructional AI is easy to follow when you begin as a first level character, and any questions you may have are answered without irritation, from either the friendly players or the fun and intresting staff. It's easy to start, and I recommend this to any RP/PK lover.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Eous on Jun 17, 2003

Wow. It's amazing, I cant tell anyone enough about this place. The goods, The bads, The Uglys. I first came to Forsaken lands about Two Weeks ago. Yes you may so, is that enough time to form an oppinion? Usualy NOT. But this MUD, when i came as any other mud is new to me, i knew nothing. I entered the NEWBIE world all over again witha Newbie channel for all the new guys questions floating about helped me a ton. I asked so many questions I thought I would be titled, "Rusqu, The Mortal Pest". But no, they were ALWAYS nice, the players, the Immortals. I grew fast form the GREAT help, and soon was to big for the newbie channel. Then i was giving the option of joining the academy, whic was IC, yet it still helps alot. one problem I have found is once you mid-ranked about 30. You seem to be boumbarded with PK. I think some people make chars, deck them out at 30 and wait for newbies to come around. I guess thats one way to learn eh? I now near my Pinnicle, as an El-Healer and it is Amazing. The RP, the PK. The pure skill of this player base. I have been an Immortal at multiple MUDs, had the eagle eye over whole words, and the RP here far surpases that of any MUD i have seen. (not to say there isnt better). I have payed to play MUD's that are not as good as this one. And its FREE!!! God help us. Addictions are Evil.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Risqu on Jun 16, 2003

The realms as all the locals call it are superb, you can litrally do what you wish to do. There are quest races, different cabals and what not but you really get a sense of apeal. With FL there is nothing that can be done, Virigoth will grant you a hell of a lot as long as you back it up with good RP. The only bad thing i would add is that the choice of some of the IMMS is rather rash, i know one from playing as level characters that has become an IMM, and as disheartining as it is for me, mainly because he was caught cheating. Perhaps it is a tad sour grapes, but still the crew FL had was very good, the new kids on the block so to speak have much to live upto. Other than that THIS MUD IS THE DOGS BOLLOX

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Evil on Jun 14, 2003

Greetings to whoever reads this. Allow me to first state that I have had quite a few years in experiencing muds, and there are many great ones out there, however I would have to say FL, aka Forsaken Lands, is by far the best one I have ever laid eyes on. Very shortly after opening to the public, I found my way to FL due to the code base and style at the time. Little did I know that it would evolve into quite the amazing base it is today. As I begun my life on FL, I slowly found many interesting things, ranging from the always action packed nights and mornings of battle, to the sheer amount of thought, work, and time put into it to make RP such an equally important factor. needless to say, I was impressed. That was years ago. Can't remember how many, but being here throughout the numerous changes, the tear shedding loss of friends to the many new ones that came later, the unbelievable amount of upgrades and evolutions to the code base, and the amount of time I have spent on here which I do not regret one ounce, I have learned one thing. I plan on spending many, many, many more years to come here, and hopefully many of you reading this will immerse yourself into the Forsaken Lands as well. And as one of the immortals now, let me be the first to welcome you to: Aabahran, The Forsaken Lands

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Luqin on Jun 13, 2003

This has got to be the best MUD out there. I started playing this MUD in fall 2001 and I've been addicted to it since. I tried many other MUDs during this period but Forsaken Lands I've found to be the only one worth playing. There are friendly players on always but there are also non-friendly which gives this MUD great roleplaying oppurtunities not to mention Qclasses and you can also play as any race you can think of. The pk in this is great because it keeps you on the edge of your seat because you never know who to trust unless your a good which can only harm evils or nuetrals. And there is an always active staff of Immortals that regulate things to make it more enjoyable. I recommend this MUD to anyone... no everyone that wants a nice environment to escape from reality.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Relinquant on Jun 13, 2003

I was once told by a friend to come here and try this game, because he considered it to be completely "cool" once you got used to it. When I got here, I had no clue as to what to do, but with the help of the NEWBIE friendly environment, it got me to where I am over Two years later. According to "Death", he says the player base is an average of four, when in reality it is actually a minimum of about ten to 15 characters on at a time, mostly due to the fact that people do have a life, and we also have tons of players ranging around the world. The maximum amount of set players on average during 5o'clock (Mountain Standard Time) is roughly 40+ people. When I first started it used to only be 30 or so characters on a rare occassion, so this shows that Forsaken Lands is growing. From the characters themselves, you may choose from countless races, and if none of them suit you then try to request a re-string to any countless race of your choosing. Choose from one of the 13 classes you can start out with and branch off from there. There are a total of 18 classes currently that you can become either at your 30th level or 50th level and become the quest class of your choice. You can range from being a Brutal Warrior to an Invoker whom controls the elements to as far as being a Shaman that is hell bent on plaguing the world to a Healer who wishes to save life. As far as the class selection goes, Crusaders were implemented around a year ago, you may send in an application to request becoming a Vampire with your Dark Knight and with the soon to be Psionicists and a little later to be here Liches, the possibilities for you to be the best at something is practically Infinite. If you have questions about something, then come to the forum and sign up and ask away. You can go there by typing the URL www.forsakenlands.org and following the easy to use buttons. You can either view the little clips or go straight to the site itself where you may maneuver throughout its boundries reading essays by players and other such things. After the little clips, you might have to go back a few pages when they're done because they direct you to the old URL where the sit used to be. Once your ready to log on, just put in 204.209.44.11 in your host name box for one of your favorite clients and put in 6666 for the Port and log in and select your character.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Tantangel on Jun 13, 2003

Alright, I started mudding a while back, and I the first and only mud I have stuck with ever, has been Forsaken Lands! At first you learn how to just level and learn the layout of the land, then, get to a high enough level and you can PK. Wow, PKing is great, I can kill people, but...oh, people can kill me too. But with all the skills in the 18 regular races, as well as many quest-races who wouldn't want to? In addition, you can get a race restring, limited only by your imagination! Then there are 16 classes to choose from, want to be a sword-wielding warrior? Shield and flail toting cleric, go ahead! Want to be a big, bad, flute swinging bard, do it! Then RPing, this is an RP as well as PK enforced mud, talk to the local shoppies on prices, and maybe they'll talk back. Start up a conversation with your group mates as you hunt to increase level and skills! You must keep in character, but your character can be whoever you want him/her to be! A drow necromancer bent on ruling all the underworld? Go for it! An elf healer destined to lead a band of Knights into battle? Try him out! Want to rule that city? Apply to one of our many cabals, and watch over a whole city. Become one of the elite martial fighting classes, or the most powerful mage to live. A head-hunter, honorable knight? You can do it all here at the Forsaken Lands.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by littlekid on Jun 13, 2003

I will not spin tales of how perfect and utopian Aabahran is. There is no such thing as a perfect MUD. But in my experience as both a player and a member of the Staff, FL (The Forsaken Lands) comes pretty darn close. I first came to FL a short time after it had opened for Beta Testing, so I was able to view this world in it's infancy. Bugs, typos, and the like made it a frustrating time, but enjoyable nonetheless, due to staff's patience, professionalism, and at times, creativity that resembles genius, we find ourselves in the world we are today, a world so indepth and so vivid, that everything else I have witnessed falls quite short. But along with any successful MUD there is the random person who would love to see it collapse into itself. For one things, FL is set above the others for the enforced RP and other enforced rules, such as Multi-Play. Sure, that doesn't mean that there aren't people going out of character or cheat by handing out equipment to their other characters, but in the event that someone does, they are kindly reminded to remain in character, and usually everyone moves on with a smile on their face. But there are some who don't seem to have any interest in following the rules, and it is those people who cast a dark shadow on our accomplishments and efforts. Unfortunately, when people such as 'Death' are punished for repeated violations of the games rules, they feel cheated and abused, and find themselves with the need to vent publically, but be assured that his view is one, while there are literally hundreds of others who would steadfastedly disagree with him.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Bryntryst - Player and Senior Staff Member on Jun 11, 2003

In reading Death's review on the forsaken lands I feel complied to reply for I was the Immortal he seems to have been mistreated by. This character, Norminous was called up to the heavens for not having his description after it was approved and somehow erased. He was defiant, arrogant, and plain out disrespectful but finally rewrote his required description after THREE times of asking nicely. Later he was killed while he was away from his computer and then went to blame it on the other player and the staff for his death. He became even ruder and called me violent names and was outright disrespectful. He was not banned but I did slay him once to try and get him to calm down and be more disrespectful. He is not a legitimate source for reviews for posts falsehoods, slander, and libel about the Forsaken Lands. I have been with the Forsaken Lands since Beta testing and I have never had thoughts of leaving. After the original opening the mud I played countless character to pinnacle and joined cabals, enjoying every moment. I was then allowed to become an Immortal and get into the business side of the MUD. Since the introduction of the MUD it has had countless world re-arrangements and is near completely stock with new areas added regularly for player enjoyment. There are many IMM run quests to enjoy and also IMM interaction. The rest of the staff is kind, courteous, and loves what it does. This fellow was disrespectful and rude and therefore angered me which is while I was upset and tried to straigtenhim out. People that immature are not worth trying to help because all they do is cry about what happened to them. Overall the Forsaken Lands is an enjoyable and flexible enviroment with many aspects any true MUDder would enjoy.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by The Stoned Priest on Jun 11, 2003

Well, I have been playing FL since it's beta testing two+ years ago. In no short way is it the best mud I have ever, or will ever, play. From the Immortals who proactivly aid the progress of the mud(through code, roleplay, quest, forums, and who can forget dedicating time itself?), to the familiar, yet unique realm in which we play. My personal characters have ranged from an Elder Vampire in a Cabal of Mages, to a Storm Giant Berserker who lead Knights into battles against the forces of Chaos. New additions are always being added, like the Crusader class or the Risk style land conquest system, to the soon to be admitted Psionics and Liche classes. What more could you want from a mud? How about enforced RP that give the game a story like quality, a story you are a part of. Maybe you would like agressive PK? Look out! FL sports the most skilled player vs players I have witnessed in action. Maybe you want areas to explore, areas you have never seen before, if you do, many are here. If you wish a more personal feel, the FL community is a busy forum one link off the main page. It's a place where you can joke with the IMMs, who actually get to know you, or trade PK/RP logs and have other players judge you on performance and drop a few hints for your next battle, and all strickly moderated so that OOC and IC are the Great Chasm apart. In all, the staff of FL decided that they wanted to make a mud that was the kind they would want to play, and in doing so have created the best mud I have ever played. WC

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by WarriorCleric on Jun 11, 2003

At first time I liked the mud very much but after some weeks playing I understood that it sucks.Immortals aways get explanation to ban you thats why I have seen four players online.They have been maximum 60 but it was a year ago.Now the players are maximum 30 because of the immortal shits.Average people playing this stupid mud=four.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Death on Jun 11, 2003

The Forsaken lands is a newbie friendly, rp enforced mud with a vast amout of options to personalize your character. You may choose from 19 classes, four of which are quest classes. You may choose from 21 races, 3 of which are quest races, and if none of those are to your liking you can apply for any race you can think of, making your options limited only to your imagination. Add to this the option of starting your own clan with its own clan chat, and 6 current cabals, each with two subcabals with more cabals coming soon. Roleplay is enforced, and those who do well are often rewarded with special items that only they can touch, or with special quests, or perhaps a special title. There are many unique and complicated quests that can be done, and many "Newbie" quests to help beginners become more familiar with the game, as well as an academy dedicated to educating newbies in the way of the game. As for the other players at forsaken lands, I cannot comment but to say that I have alot of respect for many if not most of them, as with anywhere there are always a few weeds that must be dealt with, but that seems to be taken care of rather quickly. Also, tattoo's are being worked on and should be available soon as well. I have played on several muds in my time, but have stuck with fl since i started here during beta testing, and cannot say that I have seen anything that I have enjoyed nearly as much. I have started several of my friends here, and would reccommend it to anyone who asked me about a quality roleplaying mud.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by TyeDye on Sep 5, 2002

I found the Forsaken lands through topmudsites.com and have been playing non stop for little under a year. I found it the easiest MUD to get used to, the players and IMMS are some of the most helpful i have ever seen in a MUD. Altough i have as yet to create a Character of any worth i find i do not get bored, or disheartend, the player base and IMMS make that impossible. There are some very good players in both role-play sense and player kill. The forsaken lands have it all, great story lines, great areas to travel in, some great quest races, and more that i have yet to experience. There is no limit to this game, if you feel you can add something or have a point the IMMS encourage you to forward it to them, nothing is impossible. Anyone who spends the time reading this i ask you to spend but a few moments in the lands you wont regret it. Thanks and good luck

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Britman on Sep 3, 2002

I tried many different MUD's, but when I found Forsaken Lands (FL) I stopped looking. Why? The imms are on all the time. There are constant updates and changes. Thier forum is active. There are lots and lots of class/race/ethos combinations. RP is enforced. PK is allowed. Trash is banned. A new cabal system looks promising. Many of the "stock" areas are gone. The race/class combos are structured to be balanced. (At least at 50 they are.) It's without a doubt the best MUD in existence. Newbie friendly. Academy and MUD school. Quest race and classes... I could go on.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Ghrialton on Apr 27, 2002

I have been playing this for about a year, and I just have to say that the immortals and players put in an astonishing amount of effort and creativity, especially for something that is a purely non-commercial effort. There is a real sense of a shared project here, in making something truly great. I would wholeheartedly recommend it to anyone who wants some fun.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Ex-D&Der on Apr 22, 2002

Take one part massive role playing mud, add fast paced, strategic PKing, and mix with a group of IMPS and IMMS dedicated to making it far greater then any other Mud out there, and you will get Forsaken Lands. I have been plying Forsaken Lands, or "FL" for somewhere around two years now, and I have been mudding far longer. And until that fateful day two years ago, I was getting very bored with it. But then I found FL, a place where unlimited RP potential and heart racing PK action are combined to create a near perfect MUD. No matter where you stand in muds, I guarantee you will find something worth while here. Starting with over 15 races and 15 more classes, already you have a worthwhile mudding experience on your hands. But it doesn't stop there. With numerous quest races and classes, ranging from avatars and crusaders, to demons and vampires, you will find a very unique diversity in the sense of classes and races. But even then, the imps of FL didn't stop. With a race restring system available, the races you can choose is only limited by your imagination. That's right, an uncountable amount of races. Slaad, gremlin, treant.. And that's only the beginning. Well, once you get your character started, then what? Not only can you strive for the quest classes, but there are also many different cabals at your fingertips. The honorable Knights of the Crown? Or the arch-mages of the Savants? The elite scribes of Herald, or the lawless dischord of Chaos? Add to this mix the ability to enter a noble or even royal house of your home town, and all the allegiances, betrayal, and politics that come with this. Still not convinced? Well how about player run clans, supplied by the immortals, included with your own clan chat, and ranking process. Create your own underground clan, hidden and known by few, or create a massive network mirrored to that of the Cabals. So many different choices, you'll want to try them all. Need something more then mindless pking muds? While you are rarely safe on FL, you will find that all the fighting and combat will follow some line of roleplay. Enemy Cabals, the never ending struggle of light and dark, law and chaos. The imms have also done a spectacular job in keeping things balanced. You have plenty of time to learn the basics and the land before you begin you travel into the fray, so that everyone will have an equal chance to survive. More of a hardcore Rper? Then you will be glad to know there are several rp plots, around the clock, either run by players or immortals. however I am not talking about some simple 1 hour plot. The stories that unfold may take days, even weeks, perhaps even months to unwind completly. And you will find the immortals, who work so feverishly to enhance the game, will even come down and with... Read More

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Gryph on Apr 22, 2002

I have been with Forsaken Lands for about two years now, and I have found that there is no other mud that compares to FL. It has entranced me with the great (enforced) rp and the lightning fast pk. Forsaken Lands has been continually changing and adding things such as clans, royality, and new areas and spells. There is almost always an rp plot happening and if you are involved you will be amazed at the level of rp that you are involved with. It is a classed, rank based mud, with very few stock areas. I don't think that there is any other mud out there and I strongly suggest that you come by and give us a try.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by elfdude on Feb 3, 2002

About 2 years ago I was introduced to something called mud, what I found was a little bit of fantasy that I needed to survive. I jumped from one to another experimenting classes and races without sticking to one. Then I happened apon the forsaken lands and it pretty much blew my mind. The realm is huge with superb detail to every room, advanced AI within the creatures. The immortals are GREAT and they are the best roleplayers you could ever hope to interact with. Since roleplay is inforced they do NOT tolerate and childsplay, if you were to spam or use foul language you will be warned, if you continue then you get site banned. The immortals work very hard to help newbies and answer questions promptly. The majority of players on FL have been here since the beginning and are very helpful if asked the right way, I.E in charactor. The threat of losing your life at any moment keeps you on your toes. The Pk system is balanced by different races and classes having an exp cost. Then there is a level max to Pk someone, worst case senario is an 8 level difference. The cabals are a work of art and this is where you find the best Pkers. There is nothing like a war between users of magic and raw strength. The playerbase is growing and so is the game, there is something new implemented almost every month. Just remember forsakenlands is still new and by the time its been here a few years everyone will be hooked.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Allan Spears on Jul 30, 2001

I've been playing on FL since beta testing and it's quite simply the best. Used to playing AR, another great mud, I found out that most of the things I didn't like on AR was different or non-existent on Fl. Great Imms, good players and an immensly cool world. My best mudding experience on any mud was when doing Virigoth's quest. I would tell you all about it but I wouldn't want to ruin the fun. :-) For a great rp/pk mud come to FL... Nisse

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Nisse on Aug 29, 2000

I have been playing Forsaken Lands for the last week or so, and I can only agree with the above review. I joined FL about 2 days after it unofficially opened and it has been growing steadily ever since. From my experience with the mud and the assistance of very informative and helpful immortals, it is more than obvious that the races are very unique, offering wide variety of strategies and experiences with the game. The classes are also very interesting, offering the standard stock warrior/thief, but also going into more exotic type such as monk and battlemage. From my little experience (I have gained only 20 levels out of 50) the skills are extremely interesting and well crafted. The land is large and well crafted, and attention to the roleplaying theme is ever present. Rich background for history and religion is avaliable and immortals strive to enhance the experience with interesting interaction. The mud seems to be still experienceing quite a bit of rapid development, but the changes seem to be implemented smoothly with little pain to the playerbase. With their attention to roleplay and extremely interesting race/class setup, as well as hints at 'quest' races and classes offered as reward this mud seems to be made by experienced mudders for experienced mudders. With huge potential as mentioned above I can only agree that this mud may develop into an excellent place for both roleplay and pk.

– TopMUDSites.Com Review by Zenguram on Aug 20, 2000