Venture into the realm of Aetolia using the Nexus Client, now accessible on Android and iOS. Spark your adventure from wherever you are.

What is Aetolia?

Aetolia is a multiplayer RPG (role-playing game) set in a dark fantasy world.

The difference between Aetolia and other games is that Aetolia is played entirely in text with minimal graphics. This genre of games is called MUDs or Multi-User Dungeons.

Characters in Aetolia talk, trade, fight, plot and even kill and eat each other. They roam the continents and explore dungeons, killing (or helping) foul creatures, gather gold and treasure while increasing in power and prestige.

Unlike other fantasy settings, Aetolia enables you to play characters of all alignments and creeds, and it's entirely in the hands of the player whether to become a hated villain, vaunted hero, or anything in between.

A New Version of the Nexus Client Is Here!

We’re thrilled to announce the release of an updated version of the Nexus client. This new version features a cleaner, more streamlined interface and enhanced functionality for character creation and management. You can access the new client at play.ironrealms.com or from your favorite Iron Realms game website. We invite all players to try out the…
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Open battlefields

Hi folks, There’s a new addition to the Battlefield (HELP BATTLEFIELD) system we’re trialling: open battlefields. Battlefields are normally closed participation (i.e. only the invited parties can participate), but an open battlefield allows you to create a battlefield somewhere and just allow anybody to show up and contest you. And I mean anyone! You can’t…
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2024 Retrospective and our 2025 Plans

Hello, everybody! It’s hard to believe that 2024 is over, especially considering all the wild hijinks we have all gotten up to! Before we talk about all the exciting things on the horizon for 2025, we felt it would be best to discuss all the fantastic achievements from this year: [0;1;33mStory Events, Player Agency, and…
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Happy New Year! January’s promotion

From everybody at the Pools, we’d like to wish you all a Happy New Year! It’s now January which means we’re saying goodbye to stockings (your platinums should now be full – enjoy!), and welcoming back the Wheel of Fates! Logging in for at least an hour each day earns a free spin and premium…
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Raffle reminder, NYE/NYD Q&A

Hi folks, Shortly after the howling on the 1st GMT Time (so NYE for Americans!), the Pools will be hosting an informal New Year’s Q & A in-game. Refreshment goblins will be in attendance so come have a drink and hang out! Also don’t forget with the end of December approaching to hang up any…
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Flintbeard and Ironbeard

Hey folks, It’s that time of year again when Flintbeard declares the season of Flintmas upon us, bringing with it the return of our three holiday dungeons! All three dungeons – Flintbeard’s Lair (normal), Flintbeard’s Lair (Flintmas version), and Flintbeard’s Backyard can be found in the rooms around v18093. Completing any of the dungeons will…
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The Grand Duel!

Glory seekers across the realm! The final stretch is here and along with it comes your chance to be crowned the champion of the biggest, most explosive duel of the year – the Grand Duel! In this extravagant double-elimination tournament, the stakes are increased with mighty prizes up for grabs, with the Grand Champion receiving…
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Siderealist Artifacts

We’re introducing two artifacts for Siderealist if you’re interested! Power: crystal_refine (a dominion crystal) 300cr —————————————————- Syntax: REFINE INTO Let’s you refine a stack of crystals that you possess into a different shape of your choosing. Cooldown: 5 hours Power: cosmic_hew () 100cr —————————————————- This artifact will increase the amount of crystals you can HEW…
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Siderealist

Just two important things of note: – You cannot attach artifact weapon runes (or crests) to Ostension regalia. – Astranomnia Ekpyrosis is on HELP RESTRICTED SKILLS for now. That’s all! Penned by my hand on Tisday, the 10th of Chakros, in the year 8 AC.
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The Siderealist Class

Cosmic forces have awakened across the realm, bringing brand new forms of magic to Aetolia that have never been seen or felt in its entire history. Even in the face of these unknown forces and their risks, a newly minted group of arcanists stands ready to bend these cosmic powers into weapons and tools… Introducing…
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How Can I Play?

Aetolia is a free-to-play game that can be played on several different platforms. To play directly in your browser, you can click this link, or the play button above.

If you're coming from another MUD and already have a MUD client of choice, you can connect to Aetolia at aetolia.com, port 23.

You can also play on mobile with the Iron Realms Entertainment Nexus app.

View the Nexus app in the App Store.

View the Nexus app in the Google Play Store.

Intricate

Player vs Player Combat

Aetolia has some of the most detailed and intense PvP ever created.

In addition to traditional RP initiated combat, Aetolia has numerous systems to encourage and reward its most skilled and bloodthirsty:

  • Open PK areas with world altering effects for those brave enough to enter
  • The Sect of Blades, a ranked system of organized combat
  • Twice monthly contests for the Orrery, a powerful location that boosts the faction of the team with the best showing
  • The power of Ylem regularly tears into Sapience, leading to clashes to control these Foci, for personal and organizational gain

Of course, PvP isn't just PK. We also have elected city positions to backstab your way into, rankings of everything from most powerful merchant to best minipet collector, and even racetracks for said pets to earn their owner winnings!

Unique

Character Classes and Skills

We take our skill system seriously, and want every class or talent to feel unique and different. Whether you are an assassin leaping from the shadows to abduct your foe, a powerful knight slashing enemies with your flaming blades, or a monk utilizing your self control to heal wounds and devastate foes, all classes have their own unique mechanisms and abilities.

  • 15+ Unique Classes
  • 12 Guilds
  • 2000+ Different Abilities
  • 80+ Skillsets of Crafting/PvE/PvP
  • 60+ Race skills

Our skillsets each include 30+ skills, varying between general skills, crafting, and class based. Every guild has its own class with unique abilities, modified by a core of abilities common to everyone. And of course, add to that our mercantile, tradeskills, and talents... you get hundreds of possible combinations!

What is a Mud?

They're the original massively multiplayer real-time online games. Before there was World of Warcraft, there were MUDs.

They aren't single-player text adventures like Zork or choose-your-own-adventure games. They're very much real-time and multiplayer.

Ultimately, you can think of MUDs vs. graphical games as books vs. movies in some respects. Just as many people feel books are more immersive than a movie, many people feel MUDs are more immersive than graphical games.

Are you one of those people? Only one way to find out. Try out our game world right now!

Storytelling

The World and Your Place In It

Aetolia is an entirely unique, ever growing world and storyline. For over 17 years our realm has worked through a player driven storyline, and it has seen some changes no other setting could imagine. Almost 20,000 rooms are explorable to players, and 13,000 more are just waiting for the story to catch up...

The drive for this? Roleplaying. Aetolia has a true player-driven storytelling with depths yet unseen. Regular events keep the story moving, while the Administration supports when our players unseat it all and take the reins! Our stories are crafted from the intricate RP of our players, with a vast overarching plot decades in scope... and all without a cutscene showing some NPC swooping in to steal the show.

Your World

Crafting, Building, Leading

Aetolia is built to let players create and lead. Our organizations are designed with player-led positions, and our crafting skills mean that the clothes you wear, the swords you stab with, even the healing potion you drink from are all player designed and created.

  • 20+ Crafting skillsets
  • Over 100,000 player made designs
  • Castles and Havens for your character's private home
  • 4 Completely player run City/Council/Empires
  • 12 Player led guilds
  • Player run packs of shapeshifters

Our crafting is complex and wide reaching. Cities expand their buildings when their leadership decides to. Characters earn their own Haven and design it themself. And again, everything is player designed and crafted. Start your mercantile empire, then run the Imperial Dominion, build a castle, and corner the market in fancy hats, everything is possible!

No Download Needed

Online Dark Fantasy MUD Game

Be ready for the dark fantasy horror world of Aetolia, which is an RPG text game of Iron Realms Entertainment.  Terror, dark forces and vampires are everywhere in the land of Aetolia. If you want to survive in the fantastic world, you will have two chances; fight back or join! Every decision that you will make affects your destiny in the world of Aetolia. When you make a decision in the land of Aetolia, you will have to deal with the consequences. You can discover more than 20,000 rooms in Aetolia, the world is massive!

Aetolia is a multiplayer online RPG with no download necessary. The MUD game Aetolia does not rely on graphics because it is an RPG text game and can be played with minimal or no graphics. Its story in the dark fantasy horror world is unique and player-driven. Characters have many different abilities and skills in Aetolia, giving you great control over the game itself.

Fantasy Vampire MUD

Horror RPG

Sapience is the continent of the everyday Aetolian world. For hundreds of years, Sapience has had its own problems until flying death machines filled the skies and led to the discovery of an antagonistic other continents. Now squabbles over resources, Dark and Light, land, and life vs death play besides an overarching worry of invasion from eldritch abomination Gods from the continent of Albedos.

There are many different abilities on Aetolia encapsulated by your skills in the game. Besides the basic skills everyone shares, hundreds of other skills vary by class, and how you play is your choice. In addition to class, there are mini skills to passively protect you, mercantile skills to generate life's necessities, hobby skills, agricultural skills, practical skills, and trade skills that you will be able to learn through varying methods in the game. You can have many different talents that you can increase, separate from level, all to help you survive and thrive.

In Aetolia, you might deal with, or even become, an undead. Vampires also walk the lands, seeking blood and domination. Light counters these unnatural beasts with Duamvi symbiotes brought from higher planes to empower the select worthy few. Help either side, or neither, your choice is free.