Horses
The horse system in DragonRealms is very detailed and has something for everyone. There is no circle minimum to either ride or own a horse. Even a novice can ride! However, the horse system includes many advanced riding techniques, like having your horse fight beside you if you are a Paladin, or loading a ranged weapon while riding if you're a Barbarian. These types of abilities do have circle and sometimes guild requirements.
First things first, you need to learn how to ride. Find any Stablemaster in the Realms, and ASK <STABLEMASTER> ABOUT HORSE. The Stablemaster will teach you, going into a lesson similar to the speech you get from a Guild Leader when you join. You must stay and simply "listen" to the lesson. When it is complete, you'll know how to ride! In addition, magic users should ASK <Stablemaster> ABOUT PREPARE, so that they can prepare spells while mounted.
Buying a Horse
Before buying your horse, there are two very important points to consider.
Halflings, Dwarves, and Gnomes can ride full size horses. However, the horse must be taught to KNEEL by a Ranger before these height-challenged races will be able to mount them. Ponies are only rideable by these three races.
Horses do not like Prydaen or Rakash when in moonskin. If you are one of these races, your horse must be trained to tolerate animalistic races by a Ranger, otherwise you will not be able to approach them!
Buying from a Stable
At the stable, you can either LOOK IN CORRAL or simply ORDER to see a menu of the of the horses currently available, along with their prices. To LOOK at a specific horse, you must use the number in this menu. For example, if you want to look at the second horse in the corral, you need to LOOK 2. Likewise, to purchase the second horse, you would ORDER 2. Be careful when buying, however - horse stock is always rotating. If a stableboy leads in a new horse, the numbering for the horses in the corral changes, so you might end up with the wrong horse!
Buying from an Adventurer
When buying a horse from another adventurer, you must use the services of a Trader that is circle 25 or above to make the sale. This transaction can only take place in a Brokerage Office. Traders that are level 25 and below cannot purchase a horse from another player. Their only option is to buy from the corral.
Horse Appearance
Horses in Elanthia come in all types of colors and sizes, with all sorts of features that make each one unique.
Gender
Horses are available as either mares (female horses) or geldings (neutered male horses). In the horse world, stallions (males who are not neutered) are generally harder to control and are not often used for riding.
Height
Horse height is measured in "hands", which are 4 inches each. Height is measured from the ground to the top of the horse's shoulder. Ponies can range from 8 to 13 hands, while horses generally range from 12 to 18 hands. Only horses that are 16 hands or higher are able to wear plate armor.
Color
The color of your horse is the first thing someone will see if your horse is standing in a room. They'll see a white horse, a grey horse, a gold-colored horse, etc. There are many colors available - white, grey, black, dark, red, cherry, dappled, gold-colored, roan, flea-bitten (a black spotted pattern), chestnut, dun, blue, rose, smoky, buckskin, and bay, among others.
Detailed Features
Horses can possess a number of different coat and color variations, and it's rare to find identical horses unless you're purchasing a white one. There are several different features you can look for, such as a glistening white coat, or a light reddish brown colored coat and mahogany highlights. Keep an eye open for all sorts of unique patterns!
Breeds
There are four known breeds of horses in Elanthia -- the Akhaal, Haramorlam, Kirmalia, and Zeharca. Each breed has its own characteristics which are discussed on the breed's page.
Horse Care
Horses are a responsibility. If you don't take good care of your horse, it can become sick, injured, and even die. To check on a horse's condition, use STUDY HORSE. Studying a horse will tell you if it has been fed recently and if it needs grooming. If the horse shies away from you, APPROACH a few times.
You can purchase everything you need from a tack shop for the care of your horse, including food and grooming tools.
Feeding
To buy food from a tack shop, simply ASK <shopkeeper> ABOUT FOOD. He will give you a list of items that you can purchase. You can buy things like grain, apples, carrots, salt, and other items. You can also forage for some of these things or even pick apples from a tree, like in the orchards at Baerholdt's, or south of Therenborough. (Free food is great!)
To feed your horse, just hold the food in your right hand and FEED <food> TO HORSE.
Grooming
There are three "sections" of a horse that you can clean - the mane and tail, the coat, and the hooves. Once you've finished cleaning one of those sections, you are not able to clean it again for a short time. To clean your horse, you need four tools - a soft/stiff brush (turnable item), a mane and tail brush, a curry comb, and a hoof pick. These items are all available in a tack shop if you ASK <shopkeeper> ABOUT GROOM.
To clean the mane and tail, CLEAN HORSE with empty hands until you are told you need a brush. Pull out your soft brush, and BRUSH HORSE until you are told to use another tool. Next, pull out your mane and tail brush, and BRUSH HORSE until you are done.
To clean the coat, hold the curry comb and CLEAN HORSE. When you're asked for a new tool, pull out your soft brush and TURN it to use the stiff side. Again, BRUSH HORSE. When that step is completed, turn the brush once more to the soft side and brush again until you are finished.
To clean the hooves, get your hoof pick and CLEAN HORSE four times, once for each hoof.
Stabling
When it's time to stop adventuring for the day, it's important to take your horse to a stable. Leaving it wandering around can allow it to get sick and injured - in addition, you can lose your tack. If you are booted from the game or there is a game crash, your horse will stay at your location for only a short time before it's returned to the nearest stable.
Stabling your horse is simple. First, you need to remove all of your gear from the horse except the bridle, and then STABLE HORSE. There is a small fee, so make sure you have coins. When your horse is safely stabled, you will be given your bridle back. If you're an Estate Holder you can use BUNDLE HORSE to get the stableboys to pack up your gear for you. There is a small fee for this service.
When you're ready to get your horse out again, go to any stable and RETURN HORSE. You will be charged a fee depending on how long your horse was in storage for its food and upkeep. All stables are connected, so you can get your horse out no matter where you happen to be. However, you will pay a slightly higher fee if you don't go back to where you originally stabled your horse. You cannot get your horse back out immediately after stabling, because it's being fed and groomed!
Interacting With Your Horse
Now that you have your horse, you'll want to know how to interact with it! This is why you got a horse in the first place, isn't it?
When you first get your horse out of the stable, you need to APPROACH it to make sure it's accustomed to you. As the horse spends time with you out in the world, sometimes you will need to APPROACH it again to make sure it remembers who you are! If you wish to interact with other people's horses, sometimes you will need to APPROACH them multiple times before they will allow you to do anything.
For roleplay value, you can PET, HUG, TOUCH, KISS, SCRATCH, and RUB your horse. You'll also need to APPRAISE your horse from time to time to make sure your horse is in good shape, well fed, and properly groomed.
Use LEAD HORSE when you want the horse to follow you. Horses act just like a Trader caravan. When you move, the horse will follow you a few seconds later. To lead the horse, you must have a lead rope, halter, or bridle on it. To stop leading the horse, simply LEAD HORSE again.
To ride your horse, simply MOUNT HORSE. If you don't know how to ride bareback, you must have a saddle or blanket on the horse. Remember, if there are multiple horses in the room, you can specify yours by its color. To stop riding, DISMOUNT HORSE. If you are horribly wounded, there is a good chance you will -fall- off your horse when mounted, so make sure to take care of yourself. You can only mount your horse when you are outside, and there are some places horses will refuse to go (such as indoors, and other obstacles out in the world).
Horses have four speeds: walk, trot, canter and gallop. Walk moves your horse at the same speed that your character moves, one room at a time. Trot, canter, and gallop move two, three and four rooms at a time, provided that there are enough rooms in a row in that specific direction. If you gallop north and there are only three rooms with a northern exit, the horse will travel three rooms north and then stop to see which way you want to go next. If you have the Advanced Riding skill, and there is only one other exit, the horse will automatically follow that "curve" for you.
To make your horse change speed:
SIGNAL HORSE to [walk|trot|canter|gallop]
To make your horse perform a trick:
SIGNAL HORSE to [beg|spin] or
SIGNAL HORSE to JUMP (thing)
Teaching Adventurers and Horses
There are several different skills and tricks that are available in the Elanthian horse world. In some cases, only the horse needs to be trained in how to use an ability. In others, both the horse and the rider need instruction before you can use an ability. Lessons generally take 20 to 180 minutes realtime.
Horses can only be taught by Rangers, although Rangers must first learn two abilities, JOUST and WAR from a Paladin before they can be taught to a horse. Other guilds can teach some abilities to you directly. Horses sold in a corral come with Lead Rope and Saddle already learned. A wild horse knows nothing when it is wrangled.
To teach an Adventurer: INSTRUCT <player> <skill>
To teach a horse: INSTRUCT <horse> <skill>
To review what skills you have available to teach either players or horses, simply use the INSTRUCT verb by itself.
Notes:
- Only one person or horse can be instructed at a time.
- No normal class can be taught at the same time as instructing.
Skills Taught to Adventurers
| Skill | Who Teaches It | What it Does | Who Can Learn | Class Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Basic Horsemanship | Stablemaster | General Horse Knowledge | Everyone | |
| Prepare | Stablemaster | Prepare spells on horseback | Spell Casters | |
| Load | 40th Circle Barbarian | Ability to load ranged weapon on horseback | 40th Circle and above (Barbarians at Circle 30) | ~20 minutes |
| Grab | 40th Circle Bard | Ability to grab things off the ground while on horseback | 40th Circle and above | |
| Bareback | 20th Circle Ranger | To ride a horse without a saddle or padding | Everyone | ~10 minutes |
| Combat | 30th Circle Paladin | Ability to stay on horse while fighting | 30th Circle and above | ~80 minutes |
| Joust | 50th Circle Paladin | Better skill at jousting with horses.
(Anyone can joust, this skill makes you better!) |
40th Circle and above (Paladins at Circle 30) | |
| Mount | 40th Circle Paladin | Ability to mount horse while in combat | Paladins only | |
| Advanced Riding | 45th Circle Trader | Ride faster, even along "curves" if there are no intersections | 40th Circle and above (Traders at Circle 35) | |
| Target | 30th Circle Warrior Mage | Ability to target creatures from horseback. | 40th Circle and above | ~30 minutes |
Taught to Horses
These classes take approximately 6 hours total to teach ALL skills.
| Skill | Ranger Level Required | What it Does |
|---|---|---|
| Lead Rope | 20th | Horse stays calm while having a rope or bridle on. |
| Saddle | 30th | Horse stays calm while having a saddle on. |
| Kneel | 30th or 40th | Teaches horse to kneel so smaller races can mount. |
| Beg | 40th | Trick - The horse can sit and beg |
| Jump | 40th | Trick |
| Spin | 40th | Trick |
| Sit | 40th | Trick |
| Prance | 40th | Trick |
| Rear | 40th | Trick |
| Magic | 50th | Teaches horse not to fear offensive magic being cast atop it. |
| Race | 50th | Teaches a horse not to be afraid of animalistic races (Prydaen, Rakash in moonskin)
Horse will BOLT when approached by one of these races, so it's important to teach it to all horses. |
| Joust | 50th | Teaches horse to perform a joust |
| Combat | 50th | Teaches horse to go to battle |
| War | 50th | Horse will fight with you (Paladins only!) when you are in combat. |
Horse Gear
There is plenty of gear available for your equine companion. You can find many different saddles, blankets, and headgear. You can also find different types of barding, which is a fancy word for horse armor.
Horse Tack
Lead rope - Used for leading the horse when not mounted
Halter - Used for leading the horse when not mounted
Bridle - Used for directing the horse when mounted and leading when not mounted (It's recommended to always use a bridle over a halter, because of it's dual use.)
Blankets, quilts, caparisons, and saddle pads - All used as padding atop a horse, and often are all you need for riding.
Saddle - seat for you to ride your horse. If you are using a saddle, you must have some padding beneath it (like a blanket), otherwise your horse can be injured by the saddle. It's recommended to use two pieces of padding if you're taking your horse into battle.
Saddles can be worn on your shoulder for easy transport. You don't HAVE to purchase a saddle. You can ride with a blanket or caparison.
Horse Barding
If you're taking your horse into battle, it's important to put some armor on it so it won't be harmed. There is no way to heal an injured horse other than to drop it off at a stable. Each piece of horse armor is available in leather, chain or plate. Only horses that are 16 hands or taller can wear plate armor.
Chanfron - covers the head of the animal
Crinnet - covers the neck of the animal
Peytrel - covers the chest area and legs of the animal
Crupper - covers the hindquarters and legs of the animal
Flanchard - covers the legs and abdomen of the animal
Jousting
Jousting requires that you have a lance in hand, be mounted on your horse, and issue a challenge to another mounted character.
To initiate the challenge, you must SIGNAL HORSE TO JOUST <player> and the other player will automatically be told how to respond. If they agree, the joust will automatically begin in ten seconds.
Holding a shield and wearing armor (particularly heavy plate) is recommended while jousting!
You may purchase a blunted lance, but regular lances will work as well. Be wary, however. There's a strong chance that lances will be broken and lost during a successful joust.
Some training fields and jousting areas include quintains to facilitate jousting practice. To use them, just GO QUINTAIN while mounted on your horse and holding your lance.
Horse Wrangling
One of the most interesting features of the horse system is to be able to trap horses out in the wild! To be able to wrangle a horse, you must be a Ranger, at least 60th circle, and you must not have any "active" horses, meaning that you cannot have one waiting for you in a stable or out in the world. No, you do not need to release or sell your current horse to wrangle a new one! You can simply STORE HORSE at a stable, which will give you a voucher for the horse. You can keep as many vouchers around as you like.
Before you head out, make sure to pick up a leadrope. TIE the leadrope to turn it into a lasso. Note - it will still show up as a leadrope, but it is a lasso now!
The wild horse herd roams in Ilithi in the steppes around Horse Clan, so head south. On the road between Shard and Horse Clan, the trail branches north and makes a little loop. The herd roams around that area. You usually have to search around before you find it. Be careful, there are critters in this area. In the process of breaking the herd, the horse may attack the ranger. For information about horses as creatures, click here: Horse (creature)
Finding and hunting horses can be a chore. A member of any guild may separate one from the herd, but only Rangers can catch horses.
Once cut from the herd, a Ranger of at least 60th circle may attempt to catch the horse, but anyone can kill it. If left to their own devices, lone horses are usually promptly devoured by golden pards. Once you find the herd, HIDE! Your next step is to STALK HERD. As you stalk the herd, they wander to other rooms. You will likely need to follow them and start again. You will repeat the STALK HERD command until you are DANGEROUSLY CLOSE to them. Now, CUT HERD. You will separate one horse from the rest of the herd, you don't get a choice which one. You can repeat the steps above to get a horse that you like. Sometimes, with extreme luck, more than one horse gets cut from the herd.
Once you get the horse you want, THROW ROPE AT HORSE. If you happen to have more than one horse cut from the herd, specify the one you want by color - THROW ROPE AT <COLOR> HORSE. The individual horses can wander around, so it's good to specify so that you don't accidentally end up with the wrong horse.
Horse Shopping
Elanthia has plenty of gear from simple to elegant, available for your horse. Shop around to get that perfect look for your horse!
Horse History
Horses were first introduced into DragonRealms by GameMaster Jeremael around 2000 or 2001.
Announcement regarding horses by Jeremael
Greetings! I've updated the Horse System with a number of new things.
1) Moved the spin trick to SIGNAL and gave you the bonus rear trick along with it. SIGNAL HORSE REAR & SIGNAL HORSE SPIN.
2) A new Ranger to horse instructable technique that allows the horse a new movement style. Prancing!
3) A new Bard to player instructable technique that allows a mounted player to get things from the ground while mounted.
4)A new Trader to player instructable technique that deals with advanced riding. This will allow you to ride more efficiently on long stretches of road.
Thanks to all the player support and suggestions in the last few months since the debut of the system! Keep it up and I hope to see you at Simucon 2002!
GM Jeremael
Killing Player Horses
Player-owned horses are killable through a bug and skinnable once slain. Since killing a player-owned horse is a bug it is currently against policy.