Viking
MUD
XXXV · anno tricesimo quinto
A handcrafted, fantasy world built from words. Walk the roots of Yggdrasil, join a guild, fight monsters, and write yourself into a saga that has been running every day since 1991.
Take a turn,
see what happens.
Decorative terminal demo showing a simulated Viking MUD login session. Once started, it generates rapid scrolling text that is not screen-reader friendly. The content is purely visual — everything shown is also described in the guide.
A world told entirely in words.
A MUD — Multi-User Dungeon — is the ancestor of every online RPG you've ever played. Picture a chat window that is also a forest, a tavern, a dragon's hoard. You type look and the world describes itself back to you.
Viking MUD has been around since 1990, originally founded in Oslo, Norway. It opened in 1991, and has also been hosted in Trondheim, and now runs from a server in Oslo. The world is rooted in Norse mythology and built room-by-room over decades by volunteer wizards. There are no microtransactions, no battle pass. Created by 140+ wizards and administration that care.
You can play in any terminal or with a dedicated MUD client. The barrier to entry is low; the depth is not.
Dispatches from the realm.
Twenty-one guilds.
One world. Choose your saga.
Berserkers
Bloodthirsty barbarians from Branyle who channel unyielding rage into twohanded weapons. They headbutt, cleave, bearhug and sacrifice their victims to mother rock.
Blue Knights
Warriors of neutrality, fighting both good and evil. Founded by Lord Murky, rebuilt by Lord Ringer — they become what they wear and wield.
Drunks
Drunkards stumbling around the mud. Very party focused, gleefully non-traditional.
Explorers
A merry band, small in number, strong of heart. Combat, wealth and fear of death are not for them — only exploration and the solving of quests.
Frogs
One of the oldest guilds, and a good place to start. Few combat-spells but a wide spectrum that will aid you in almost any situation.
Frost
No mortal knows the number of the Ice Gods. Only the keepers of the Frost guild speak with them, atop the Frost Mountains in a fortress of ice no mortal dares enter.
Frost Druids
Mystics of Trymheim, schooled by the goddess Skathi in the Way of the Beast, the Way of the Hearth, and the Way of Winter — wielding the powers of Niflheim.
Golems
On the remote plains a stooped old man keeps the secret arts. With a bone and the right element, the path to mastering golem creation opens.
Healers
Sworn before the Goddess to harm no living being. In return she grants them the knowledge of divine healing — they roam the lands and sustain all life within.
Khartagian Army
Once the finest army in the world, led by fieldmarshall Mago. Karthago fell to Rome while its soldiers fought the Greeks abroad — the army marches still.
Krylitz School of Magic
A school of magic of long standing — its halls open to the dedicated student of the arcane.
Lemurians
Strangers from Thaaii brought their magic ages ago. The underground city of Lemuria lies beneath Sealand; find the book of histories there to be initiated.
Merchants Guild
A mysterious order settled in Larstown, gathering riches from trade deals and secretive contracts. Anyone who would grow rich by trade should seek them out.
The Monks of Mirg
High atop a cliff north along the Eastroad stands the Monastery of Mirg. Though Mirg has ascended, he keeps a close watch on his disciples of balance and serenity.
Necromancers
Those who draw upon the dead for magical power. Feared throughout the universe — only Necromancers and the gods can call the walking dead back from beyond.
Ring of Steel
"Unity Is Power." A defensive guild seated in Dayaleh, holding the line against the hordes of the six circles of Hell. Their offence leaves something to be desired.
Runewakers
Discovered by seven dwarves digging for treasure. Without runestones a Runewaker is nothing — combine some hundred and fifty runes to craft your own spells.
Paladins
Holy warriors, pure of heart. Those who survive the dreaded Paladin Tests gain the gifts of the good Gods — but a Paladin must never harm a creature of Good.
Samurai
A constituency of two: his Lord, and his Bushido code. Continual training for excellence is the constant of Samurai life.
The Shamans
Great warriors who inherit the long-lost knowledge of the powers of nature, divided into three classes: restoration, elemental, and enhancement.
Warmongers
"Be prepared. An axe and armour help a lot with that." A clan of bloodthirsty warriors who shun magic and forge body and blade into a single weapon of flesh.
✱ converted from IcewindMud · a few further guilds prefer to remain discreet
Three keystrokes from now,
you are inside.
Open a terminal.
On Windows? Use PuTTY or any modern MUD client. We recommend Mudlet — it's free, scriptable, and handles colour correctly.
- Connect using the command above, or download Mudlet for a richer experience
- Type any name at the prompt. If you see New player. enter a password to claim it
- Type help rules to orient yourself, then north to enter the world
A small village,
thirty-five years deep.
Wiki
Lore, maps, area guides, every spell ever balanced.
Patreon
Keep the lights on. Servers, domains, the occasional sticker run.
Boards
The in-game forum where combat balance is debated, eternally. Access in-game with the bn command.
Contact
Bug reports, applications to wiz, politely-worded grievances.
- Help help@vikingmud.org
- Admin admin@vikingmud.org
- Law law@vikingmud.org
RC5 Team
Our distributed-computing crew has been crunching since 1997.
Year in Review
The full administration's summary of 2025 — areas, code, drama.
Terms of Service
Short. Reasonable. Honour-system, mostly.
Privacy
We log what we need to keep the world running. Nothing more.
Who keeps
the realm running.
| Title | Name | Departments |
|---|
Viking MUD is run as a top-down volunteer organisation, not a democracy. The Administrators hold final authority across all departments. Below them, Arch Wizards each own a specific area of responsibility — Driver, Law, Mudlib, QC, Web, and so on — with Junior Arch Wizards assisting or covering smaller briefs. Beneath the arches sit the builders: Area and Guild creators who write and maintain the world, Proctors who can promote new wizards, and Wizards who are free to create areas and contribute code. Student Wizards are mortals who have earned the right to start that journey. At the base are the Mortals and Eternals — the players who keep the realm alive. If no arch holds responsibility in a given department, accountability falls back to the administrators.