Welcome to the Realms of Simulacra!

ROS is a free, text-based multi-user dungeon: a hack-and-slash world of rooms, monsters, quests and loot, played entirely by typing. It runs on a codebase that has been passed hand to hand since 1990, from DikuMUD through Merc, ROM, RoT and Alturia, and has now been rebooted with a cyberpunk edge.

telnet ros.simlives.net 4000 Use a MUD client such as Mudlet, TinTin++ or MUSHclient. Set your client to UTF-8. Type a new name at the login prompt to create a character.

Server Stats

CodebaseROS 1.0 (released 2026-10-01)
LineageDikuMUD → Merc 2.1 → ROM 2.4 → RoT 2.0 → Alturia → ROS
Addressros.simlives.net port 4000
World95 areas, 7,623 rooms (7,178 open to players), about 2,500 monsters
Characters19 playable races, 18 classes across four tiers, levels 1–101 then remort
GameplayHack and slash; level-based equipment; restricted player killing
ProtocolsANSI colour, UTF-8, GMCP, MSSP, MCCP2 compression
CostFree. No pay-to-play, no pay-for-perks.

What's New in ROS 1.0 NEW!

  • The guide command. guide <area> gives turn-by-turn directions to any area from wherever you stand, accounting for doors, boats, flying and recall.
  • A new score sheet: the framed “SIMULACRA // NEURAL PROFILE”, with vitals bars and an active-quest section showing your target, where to look and the time left.
  • Forge upgrades. flame+ and frost+ put an element plus drain, shocking, sharp and vorpal on a weapon in one go.
  • Mud School reborn as the Merc Industries induction facility, complete with the Sim Arena and a maintenance sublevel.
  • Client support. GMCP vitals, room info and channels for Mudlet mappers; MCCP shrinks traffic to a third or half its size.
  • Hundreds of fixes: races now get their real abilities, quests no longer send you into sealed areas, recall in combat works the way help recall says, and the help files match the code.
  • A new wizlist: the SIMULACRA//OS sysop registry, built live from the player files.

New Here?

Never played a MUD? The ROS New Player's Guide walks MMO players through character creation, the Mud School, where to level from 1 to 101, gearing, quests and death. In game, type help newbie, or guide to see the areas for your level.

Original DikuMUD by Hans Staerfeldt, Katja Nyboe, Tom Madsen, Michael Seifert, and Sebastian Hammer

Based on MERC 2.1 code by Hatchet, Furey, and Kahn

ROM 2.4 copyright © 1993–1995 Russ Taylor

ROT 2.0 copyright © 1996–1999 Russ Walsh

Modifications by DAC 1999–2005

ROS: Realms of Simulacra, 2026