History

Many years ago there came to the land a great hero wielding a beautiful holy sword of pure crystal. With him came 6 holy knights clad in the finest white mail. No one knew the name of the hero, he was referred to by all simply as the Nameless or the Nameless One.

The group raised an army of hardy knights and roamed the lands combating evil wherever they happened upon it. Campaigns were waged against the Drow, Trolls, Orcs and many other evil foes who caused misery and terror throughout the land. The Knights were just, however, and after a foe was vanquished, the children left orphaned would be taken in as wards to learn and to follow the path of true righteousness.

For many years the Crusaders (as they had become known) continued their god given mission. Over a period of time, members of the Holy Six, the original captains who came with the Nameless, wearied and died; some of old age some, by the hand of an evil adversary.

After a time, none of the original six remained and had all been replaced by the now adult wards. Together they crushed every pocket of evil uncovered throughout the land and the place was indeed a prosperous and happy place to live.

After a further period of time, targets for the Crusaders to extinguish became fewer and fewer. The army, however, became larger and larger (Less war, less deaths, more and more children and wards coming of age and joining the ranks.) The army was restless and small. Then larger groups began to head out looking for action where none existed. Sadly the battle ready troops more and more frequently would attack caravans and villages on the slightest hint of evil-doing or, more and more frequently, no hint at all.

When news of these misdeeds reached the ears of the Nameless One, he was greatly distressed. The offending crusaders who could be identified were exiled from the order forever. He instantly decreed that the Crusaders would not rest until full atonement for the crimes of these few had been made.

It was decided that the considerable wealth that had been accumulated from countless successful campaigns over the years would be used to construct a mighty temple, where all the sick, injured, and those in need of shelter throughout the realm could come. The vast army turned itself to the construction of the temple rather than war. It was erected in a short space of time and was indeed magnificent.

For years to come, peace reigned and the lands were happy. The Nameless One began to show signs of age, bringing an end to the rumor that he was an immortal.

Meanwhile the new Six were restless.....

Year after year of inaction weighed heavily on them and they were eager for the adrenaline rush only battle could bring. Three of the six decided to set out to explore other parts of the world. During their travels they came upon a great and evil lord, more powerful than even the Nameless. The three betrayed their master, eager for battle, and joined the ranks of this vile hoard. A plot was hatched to attack the stronghold of the Crusaders and one day the traitors lead an army to battle against their former allies.

At dusk, the horde descended. The attack was too much for the Crusaders. Most of them were slain and the temple was razed to the ground. As the temple burned and crumbled the Nameless, old and seriously wounded, made a desperate bid to save the current generation of children. He loaded them on a wagon and slipped away into the night making with all haste for a nearby monastery. Even though the battle was lost the loyal three knights continued to fight to aide the retreat of the few survivors. Only after all were safe did they quietly slip into the night and out of the history books for many, many years.

Just as all seemed secure for the children, a huge rider on a giant black stallion emerged from the bushes next to the path and the horse pulling the wagon reared in terror. It was one of the traitors, the troll. The cowardly beast knew the Nameless one was now no match for him and sought the honor of his slaying. The two locked together in combat, and as mighty as he was, age and injury from the battle preceding meant the old man was soon overwhelmed. With his last ounce of strength, he appealed to the gods to aid him. Suddenly, from the inky skies, a series of bolts of holy fire descended to smite the Troll. He wailed in pain as blow after devastating blow ripped into him. In agony and fury, he lunged forward and cleaved the Nameless One's head from his body. The fiend's time to celebrate his feat was short. He was mortally wounded and collapsed in a gurgling heap in the soft grass beside the trail.

Many years passed and the Three entered into new lives with new names. They wandered from here to there, served different masters but never felt at home. One day, word is heard of a youthful knight performing great acts of heroism for one so young throughout the realm. The Three, reminded of times of old, head to the young man's home town, Aylor, to find out more about his extraordinary deeds. Arriving separately, all drawn by some force, they converge upon the arena where a great tournament is being held. They behold the young knight's prowess in subduing foe after foe but the thing that they cannot ignore is his weapon.

The Sword of the Nameless One!

In seconds, the Three are standing by the youth's side. Staring at the sword, then at each other, memory begins to take effect. Upon questioning on his past, the young man reveals he and a group of orphans were trained as knights by some kind monks at a nearby monastery. They had been told inspiring tales of their forefathers and each sought to follow in their footsteps. Suddenly, the Three realized they were not alone. The children were alive and now young adults. The Crusaders could rise again and the temple could and would be rebuilt! They wept tears of joy and embraced each other, renewing acquaintances after many years apart.

Their exile was over.

Overview

Thank you for your interest in joining the clan! While we hope to grow the clan, we do not accept everyone. It is important to us that all members are (or eventually will be) able and engaged in helping other players, especially new players, learn the game and achieve their goals. We also want to ensure that your personality is a good fit for us, and ours for you, as we'll be spending a lot of time together!

Below are our prerequisites and joining process. Please be sure to read the info carefully, and if you have any questions, feel free to ask a clan leader via in-game tells (use 'claninfo' to see the current list of clan leaders).

Application Requirements

All prospective applicants should be sure they meet these minimum requirements before applying to join.

• Complete the Aylorian Academy goal
• Reach at least level 15
• Complete at least five quests
• Explore at least 1,000 rooms
• Have no characters in any other clans (exception: active Boot members may apply)

Joining Process

Once you have done all of the above, you're ready to apply! Begin by writing a note addressed to Crusader (not Crusaders) on the personal board, telling us a little about yourself and why you chose to apply to Crusader. The note should have a subject like 'Clan Application' and include the following:

• A little bit about yourself and your experience on Aard.
• Why do you wish to join Crusader?
• Why do you wish to join a no-PK clan?
• Do you have any alt characters, and are they in another clan?
• What sorts of things are you willing to do to help the clan?

You will receive a reply from a clan leader as soon as possible. From there, voting on your application will begin, and you have one week to request interviews with as many clan members as possible. Note that it is your responsibility to request interviews, but don't stress over this! This is simply a chance for us to get to know you, and you us.

At the end of that week, voting on your application will end, and a clan leader will as soon as possible notify you of the results and, assuming all goes well, recruit you into the clan.

Thank you again for your interest in joining, and we look forward to getting to know you!

Voting

a. All elections and voting, including amendment of the Clan Charter and Bylaws, shall be decided by majority of votes cast, except as provided below for removal of Leaders.

b. Any Member may initiate voting by posting a proposal in a public note to the Clan on the Personal Board. The member shall specify voting by messages posted on the message board or by voting booth. The member shall also specify a deadline of between 7 and 10 calendar days from the time of the proposal for discussion and voting to take place.

c. All members shall be eligible to propose issues for voting and to cast votes.

d. Voting on outcasting of Members and removal of Leaders shall have a fixed period of 14 days. Elections for Leaders and voting on new Member Candidates shall have a fixed period of 7 days.

e. A vote may end when a majority of votes equal to 67% of members who have logged into the game within the 30 days prior to the start of the vote has been reached.

f. For votes by posted message, a Member may cast a vote publicly or privately to Leaders only, at his/her discretion by posting a note on the Personal Board.

g. Leaders shall report numerical results of any election within twenty-four hours after the election ends in a public note to the Clan on the Personal Board.

Membership

a. Members shall be admitted by majority of votes cast, with a minimum of 3 "yes" votes, during the one-week period following an application posted privately to the Clan on the Personal Board. To be admitted a Member Candidate must also have interviewed with at least 3 Clan Members, at least one of whom is a Clan Leader.

b. A Candidate will have completed the academy and has at least reached level 15.

c. A Candidate and/or his/her alts may not be Members of any other Clan (exception: active Boot members may apply).

d. Candidates will have completed at least 5 quests.

e. The Clan may outcast a Member only by majority of votes cast during the seven-day period following a publicly-posted complaint by another Member.

*Note: A Ward will be outcast after 2 months of unexplained inactivity.

Leadership

a. There should be five Clan Leaders. Every year, there will be an election to select the leaders for the next year. Current Leaders are nominated automatically, and candidates for any open positions are selected by them from applications.

b. A Leader Candidate should have attained the Clan rank of Sergeant or higher, although a well-qualified Gallant could be considered.

c. The Clan will take votes for Leaders beginning at 1 a.m. mud time on June 1 and ending at 1 a.m. mudtime on June 8 of each year.

d. Each clan member eligible to vote will be allowed to cast five ballots, one for each position. The vote will not be anonymous, thus allowing for verification of the count.

e. The five Leader Candidates with the most ballots cast in their favor across all five votes shall become Leaders.

f. In the event that there are insufficient candidates to fill all open posts, then the vacant positions shall be filled by an election proposed by any Member when a candidate becomes available.

g. In the event of a tie, the Clan will hold a run-off election beginning at 1 a.m. mud time on June 9 and ending at 1 a.m. mudtime on June 16.

h. If a Leader steps down before his/her term expires, the Leaders shall call a special election to fill the vacant term, beginning not later than one week after the vacancy begins.

i. A Leader may be removed from office by 75% of votes cast in an election called by any Member for that purpose or by decision of any two other Leaders. The position shall be filled as for a voluntary vacancy.

Activity Points

a. All members will meet activity requirements of 15 points (1 point for wards) in a calendar month from any of the following categories: (each is worth 1 point unless otherwise noted.)

• Spell-up (SU)

• Newbie Pamphlet (NP)

• Corpse retrieval (CR)

• Newbie bag (NB)

• Donation of 1,000,000 gold (DO)

• Donation of 50 quest points (QP)

• Remort (MO)

• Tier (TIER)

• Power up at level 200 or 201 (per 200) (PUP)

• SuperHero drag (minimum of 5 levels) (SH)

• Goal solution posted to the website (5 points) (GOAL)

• Map posted to the website (5 points)(MAP)

• A special category allows for the full 15 points to be earned by a member who successfully recruits a new member to the clan. This activity can be shared with one other person. The candidate must be qualified, apply according to our procedures, and successfully pass the interview process. Points will be awarded at the time of actual joining.

• Other activities, such as hosting games, on behalf of the Clan (points to be determined).

b. A Member who does not meet activity requirements in a given month will be placed on inactive status until any calendar month in which he/she meets requirements.

c. An inactive/unexcused Member may not run for Leader.

d. To get credit for an activity point, you MUST post a note on the personal board to Crusader. The note subject must begin with the appropriate activity code as listed above followed by a space.

Ranks

Rank gained by activity points

1) Ward - Starting rank (minimum 1 month as Ward before promotion)

2) Gallant - A ward will be promoted to Gallant if they reach 15 activity pts and there's at least 1 activity pt for each month they are in the clan.

3) Sergeant: - 2 months w AP as Gallant

4) Lieutenant - 3 months w AP as Sergeant

5) Crusader - 3 Months w AP as Lieutenant

6) High Crusader - 4 Months w AP as Crusader

7) Holy Crusader - Current leaders.

Bylaws

a. Members must abide by Aardwolf game rules at all times.

b. Members may not engage in name-calling, swearing at members, or any other types of personal attacks.

c. Members may not engage in player killing. Members may engage in race/class wars, wars not involving the clan as a whole, and duels.

d. Members must maintain good or neutral alignment. If a Member's alignment becomes evil for any reason, he/she must become good-aligned within forty-eight hours.

Disclaimer

On an additional side note, the clan does not tolerate utter disrespect of other members involving name-calling, swearing, or any other types of personal attacks. Be aware of this. Sometimes it is necessary to make unpopular decisions and members may often have grievances with Leaders and/or other members. This is a part of clan life and is normal. If you have a problem then make your opinion known, just do it respectfully, no-one is going to listen to 'u r sux 4 that change!'.

Other Clans of Aardwolf on the Web

• Amazon
• Baal
• Bard
• Boot
• Crimson
• Crusader
• Druids
• Emerald
• Gaardian
• Hook
• Imperium
• Light
• Loqui
• Masaki
• Perdition
• Pyre
• Retribution
• Rhabdo
• Seekers
• Tao
• Twinlobe
• Watchmen

Miscellaneous Links

• Aardwolf MUD website
• Aardwolf wiki
• Aardwolf MUD subreddit
• Aardwolf MUD Facebook page
• l33t Aardwolf Portal