# Icesus MUD

> Icesus is a free multiplayer text-based RPG (a MUD, multi-user dungeon) set on a frozen planet, online continuously since 1995. It is run by the Finnish non-profit association Jää ry and volunteers: no subscription, no purchases, no pay-to-win. You can play instantly in a web browser (Play in Browser, at https://play.icesus.org/) with no download, or with the official Mudlet package. The browser client has built-in screen-reader support.

Key facts: 65,000 rooms across a living outworld with line-of-sight vision, seasons, day/night, and rivers that freeze and thaw; 27 playable races; 17 main guilds; an extensive reincarnation system that lets players rebuild their character (race, guilds, stats) as they learn, planned with the character builder's reincarnation view at https://icesus.org/character-builder/?view=reinc; tactical party-based combat where solo play is also fully viable; deep crafting chains and a player economy; player-built provinces with council governance, cooperative PvE settlement building live since May 2026; mainly PvE; roleplay supported but not enforced; dozens of players online regularly, an active Discord community, and an annual in-person MudCon meetup.

## Play

- [Play in Browser](https://play.icesus.org/): the web client; new players are offered character creation, returning players log in on the same screen; no download and nothing to buy; includes a screen-reader mode
- [Create your character](https://icesus.org/character-builder/): pick race, profession and background visually, then enter the world
- [How reincarnation works](https://play.icesus.org/builder/reincarnation.html): change race, guild and backgrounds while keeping your experience; what you keep, where to get a reincarnation in game, and how to use a saved build
- [What you do in Icesus](https://icesus.org/game/): characters, combat, exploration, crafting and player-built provinces, with guides and tools for each
- [Play an online RPG in your browser](https://icesus.org/guides/browser-rpg/): what the browser client gives you (GMCP vitals, exits, party grid, phone controls, screen reader mode), your first five minutes, and when to move to a desktop client
- [How to Play a MUD](https://icesus.org/guides/how-to-play-a-mud/): first-hour guide covering commands, movement, combat, chat, and where to get help
- [Quickstart (wiki)](https://icesus.org/wiki/Quickstart): the in-game quickstart reference
- [Newbie tome (wiki)](https://icesus.org/wiki/Category:Newbie_tome): the full new-player handbook, maintained by players
- [Player guides](https://icesus.org/guides/): every guide in one place
- [Rules](https://icesus.org/helps/help-rules.html): the game rules; read before playing

## Clients

- [MUD clients for Icesus](https://icesus.org/guides/clients/): browser first, with setup guides for Mudlet, Blightmud, TinTin++, and TinyFugue
- [Best MUD clients in 2026](https://icesus.org/guides/clients/best-mud-clients/): honest comparison of Mudlet, Blightmud, TinTin++, TinyFugue, MUSHclient, and browser clients — all free
- [Official Icesus Mudlet package](https://icesus.org/guides/clients/mudlet-package/): drop-in HUD with vitals, casting, cooldowns, channels, and an automapper; also available from Mudlet's in-client package listing

## About the game

- [Crafting and economy](https://icesus.org/crafting/): gathering, refining, alchemy, leatherwork, carpentry and smithing; tools, training, material choices, useful goods and player trade alongside province work.
- [Quests and exploration](https://icesus.org/exploration/): a spoiler-light Guest Table adventure, a first outing with Vizra in Vaerlon, travel preparation and newcomer destinations.
- [Guilds of Icesus](https://icesus.org/guilds/): illustrated guide to all 17 main guilds, their lore, combat roles, signature abilities and progression.
- [Combat and parties](https://icesus.org/combat/): tactical party formations, guild roles, coordinated skills and spells, and minions.
- [Homepage](https://icesus.org/): overview, what to expect, and the latest game news
- [Provinces](https://icesus.org/provinces/): player-run villages with councils of up to five players total, paid Worker missions, crafting and watch supplies, seasonal food storage and sealed-crate trade, winter goals and shared feasts. Public buildings currently reach Advanced.
- [Player housing](https://icesus.org/housing/): buy a province lot and build a cottage, house, tower or great tower; describe rooms, fit vaults and stables, share access, pay rent and travel home by latchkey. Former city apartments and wand towers now stand in the rent-free Outfields.
- [Cooking](https://icesus.org/cooking/): recipe cards, timed cooking stages and Cooking mastery, meals and drinks with effects, settlement shelves that pay cooks when servings sell, and seasonal feasts.
- [Online text-based RPG games](https://icesus.org/guides/text-based-rpg/): how a persistent multiplayer text RPG differs from choice-based story games and idle RPGs, a comparison of text RPGs you can play today, and what a text-based MMORPG is
- [Text-based games: the six kinds](https://icesus.org/guides/text-based-games/): text adventures, choice-based stories, browser stat games, AI text adventures, MUDs and texting games, what each is and where to play it, and the case for multiplayer text worlds
- [What is a multi-user dungeon?](https://icesus.org/guides/multi-user-dungeon/): the genre explained
- [Best browser MUDs](https://icesus.org/guides/best-browser-muds/): honest comparison of MUDs you can play in a browser, including Icesus and its competitors
- [Best free MUDs](https://icesus.org/guides/best-free-muds/): six free MUDs compared on world depth, active development and community, with a note on how each is funded
- [World map](https://icesus.org/maps/): interactive atlas of Aegic with terrain, cities, provinces, kingdoms and lore; an [ASCII version](https://icesus.org/maps/ascii.html) draws it in plain text, and the [province map](https://icesus.org/maps/provinces.html) shows each settlement's development and needs
- [Saga Legends](https://icesus.org/legends/): the top players of the current game year, by deed and devotion
- [Reincarnation simulator (classic)](https://icesus.org/reinc-simulator/reinc.html): the older guild and stat planner, kept for players who know it
- [Accessibility](https://icesus.org/accessibility/): screen reader and keyboard support details
- [Game wiki](https://icesus.org/wiki/Main_Page): player-maintained reference for races, guilds, skills, equipment, and the world
- [About Jää ry](https://icesus.org/about/): the registered Finnish non-profit that operates Icesus; contact mud-admins@icesus.org
- [Support Icesus](https://icesus.org/support/): become a member of Jää ry or volunteer as a wizard, builder or contributor

## Worldbuilding

- [Worldbuilding guides](https://icesus.org/build/): designing areas, NPCs, items and quests, making a MUD, choosing an engine, and contributing areas to Icesus
- [Fantasy worldbuilding with real players in it](https://icesus.org/build/worldbuilding/): landing page for Icesus Creator: what you build (areas, rooms, NPCs, items, quests), how it compares to wikis, map makers and forum RP, and the path from player level 25 to an approved area
- [Icesus Creator](https://icesus.org/create/): the browser building tool itself; sign in with your game character, and building access follows approval of your area plan in the tool
- [How to make a MUD](https://icesus.org/build/how-to-make-a-mud/): what building or extending a MUD actually involves
- [How to build a game world](https://icesus.org/build/game-world/): designing a first Icesus area in Creator: the plan, rooms, inhabitants, objects, quests, playtesting and wizard review
- [Collaborative worldbuilding](https://icesus.org/build/collaborative-worldbuilding/): writing into a shared canon, which tabletop skills carry over, and how area plans and review work in Icesus
- [FluffOS vs Evennia](https://icesus.org/build/fluffos-vs-evennia/): code-level comparison of the two MUD engines, and why Icesus runs on FluffOS

## Community

- [Discord](https://discord.gg/j9cSPyAzQb): active community chat for players and builders