"Lord" is a title with various meanings. It can denote a prince or a feudal superior (especially a feudal tenant who holds directly from the king, i.e., a baron). The title today is mostly used in connection with the peerage of the United Kingdom or its constituent countries, although some users of the title do not themselves hold peerages, and use it 'by courtesy'. The title may also be used in conjunction with others to denote a superior holder of an otherwise generic title, in such combinations as "Lord Mayor" or "Lord Chief Justice". The title is primarily taken by men, while women will usually take the title 'lady'. However, this is not universal, as the Lord of Mann and female Lord Mayors are examples of women who are styled 'lord'.

In religious contexts Lord can also refer to various different gods or deities. The earliest uses of Lord in the English language in a religious context were by English Bible translators such as Bede. This reflected the Jewish practice of substituting the spoken Hebrew word 'Adonai' (which means 'My Lord') for YHWH when read aloud.

According to the Oxford Dictionary of English, the etymology of the word can be traced back to the Old English word 'hlāford' which originated from 'hlāfweard' meaning 'bread keeper' or 'loaf-ward', reflecting the Germanic tribal custom of a superior providing food for his followers. Lady, the female equivalent, originates from a similar structure, believed to have originally meant 'loaf-kneader'.

Title

Peerage

For senior members of the peerage, the title lord also applies by courtesy to some or all of their children; for example the younger sons of dukes and marquesses can use the style 'Lord (first name) (surname)'. The titles are courtesy titles in that the holder does not hold a peerage, and is, according to British law, a commoner.

House of Lords

In the UK, the House of Lords (known commonly as 'the Lords') forms the upper house of Parliament. Here all peers are treated as lords but there are three different classifications:

• Most lords who hold peerages created before the passage of the Life Peerages Act 1958 (and a handful who hold peerages created after then) are hereditary peers, who until 1999 constituted the most numerous category of lords sitting in the House. There are in excess of 700 lords whose titles may be inherited, however since the House of Lords Act 1999, they are no longer guaranteed a seat in the Lords and instead must take part in an election for a total of ninety-two seats. All male peers of England, Great Britain and the United Kingdom were before 1999 entitled to sit in the House of Lords by virtue of their title. Peeresses were granted the right to sit in 1963. Peers of Scotland and Ireland, however, historically had limitations on their right to sit at Westminster. Between 1707 and 1963, Scottish peers participated in elections to determine which of them would take the sixteen seats allocated to them. Elections were abolished in 1963, and from that time until 1999 all Scottish peers and peeresses were entitled to sit. Irish peers participated in similar elections between 1801 and 1922, when the Irish Free State was established. Since 1922, Irish peers have not had a right to sit at Westminster by virtue of their Irish peerages. However, many Irish peers also hold peerages of Great Britain and the United Kingdom.
• The importance of hereditary lords has declined steadily following the increase in the appointment of life peers. These peers are entitled to sit in the House of Lords for the duration of their life, but cannot transfer their titles to their heirs. They are rarely above the rank of baron. The first life peers were appointed to assist the House of Lords in exercising its judicial functions under the Appellate Jurisdiction Act 1876. Widespread appointment of life peers was enabled by the passage of the Life Peerages Act 1958. Since that Act was passed, some 1,086 life peers have been created. The only hereditary privilege associated with life peerages is that children of life peers are entitled to style themselves 'The Honourable (firstname) (surname)'.
• These first two groups are collectively termed Lords Temporal as opposed to the third type of lord sitting in the House known as Spiritual Peers or Lords Spiritual. This group consists of twenty-six Church of England bishops who are appointed in order of superiority. Unlike Lords Temporal, who can be appointed from any of the four nations of the UK, only bishops with English Sees are eligible to sit in the Chamber. Bishops of the Church of Scotland traditionally sat in the Parliament of Scotland but were excluded in 1638 following the Scottish Reformation. There are no longer bishops in the Church of Scotland in the traditional sense of the word, and that Church has never sent members to sit in the Westminster House of Lords. The Church of Ireland ceased to send bishops to sit after disestablishment in 1871. The Church in Wales ceased to be a part of the Church of England in 1920 and was simultaneously disestablished in Wales. Accordingly, bishops of the Church in Wales were no longer eligible to be appointed to the House as bishops of the Church of England.

Judiciary

Examples of judges who use the title include:

• The Law Lords or 'Lords of Appeal in Ordinary' who have the rank of life barons.
• Judges of the Court of Appeal of England and Wales, known as 'Lords Justices of Appeal'.
• Judges of the Scottish Court of Session, known as 'Lords of Council and Session'.
• Judges of the Supreme Court of India and the High Courts of India.

Lord of the Manor

Laird

The Scottish title Laird is cognate with the English word 'lord'. 'Laird' is a hereditary title for the owner of a landed estate in Scotland. The title of Laird may carry certain local or feudal rights, though unlike a Lordship, a Lairdship has never carried voting rights, either in the historic Parliament of Scotland or, after unification with the Kingdom of England, in the British House of Lords.

Other

Feudalism

In feudalism, a lord has aristocratic rank, has control over a portion of land and the produce and labour of the serfs living thereon. The serf would swear the oath of fealty to the lord, and would then become a vassal.

Bishops in the Middle Ages held the feudal rank of lord over their spiritual inferiors, hence today even bishops who do not sit as Spiritual Peers may be addressed as "Lord Bishop". As a reflection of its feudal (and thus territorial) nature, however, the title is generally reserved for diocesan bishops, not assistant or coadjutor bishops.

As part of the heritage of feudalism, lord can generally refer to superiors of many kinds, for example landlord. In many cultures in Europe the equivalent term serves as a general title of address equivalent to the English 'Mister' (French Monsieur, Spanish Señor, Portuguese Senhor, Italian Signore, Dutch Meneer/Mijnheer/De Heer (as in: to de heer Joren Jansen), German Herr, Hungarian Úr, Greek Kyrie or to the English formal "you" (Polish Pan). See also gentleman.

Religion

People have often used the term 'lord' in religious contexts, where, The Lord refers to God in Judaism or Islam, or to God, Jesus, or the Holy Spirit in Christianity. In many Christian Bibles (such as the King James Version), the Hebrew name YHWH (the Tetragrammaton) is rendered LORD (all caps) or (small caps). This usage follows the Jewish practice of substituting the spoken Hebrew word 'Adonai' (translated as 'Lord') for YHWH when read aloud.NASB "Preface to the New American Standard Bible". New American Standard Bible (Updated Edition). Anaheim, California: Foundation Publications (for the Lockman Foundation). .. The only exception to this translation of YHWH is when it occurs in immediate proximity to the word Lord, that is, Adonai. In that case it is regularly translated in order to avoid confusion. }}

Other religious uses of the word Lord include:

• Ba'al, or Baal, is a Northwest Semitic title meaning 'lord', used for various gods and local spirit-deities. In some texts, the term refers to Hadad, the lord of the divine assembly whose name only priests were allowed to speak. References to Baal in the Hebrew Bible, such as the prophet Elijah's confrontation with Baal's priests, usually correspond to local gods rather than to Hadad.
• Bel meaning 'Lord' is a common title of the Babylonian deity Marduk.
• En meaning 'Lord' as in Sumerian deities Enki and Enlil.
• In Buddhism it refers to the Buddha and in Jainism to the Mahavira.
• The name of the god Adonis may derive from the Hebrew word for 'lord'.
• In the Pagan religion Wicca, the male god is also referred to as 'The Lord' and the female as 'The Lady'.
• A Dark Lord is a title is usually used in religion and mythology to refer to the Devil and other demons, or evil gods. In Christian religion, "Dark Lord" refers to "Satan".

See also

• Styles in the United Kingdom
• Lord Bishop
• Lord Chamberlain
• Lord Chancellor
• Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales
• Lord Commissioner of Justiciary
• Lord of Council and Session
• Lord High Admiral
• Lord High Constable
• Lord High Treasurer
• Lord Justice Clerk
• Lord of Parliament
• Lord President of the Council
• Lord President of the Court of Session
• Lord Privy Seal
• Lord Rector

• Lord Mayor
• Overlord
• Peerage
• Duke
• Marquess
• Earl
• Viscount
• Baron
• Lord of Parliament
• Laird
• Lord of the Manor

References

For the unrelated film of the same name, see Legend of the Red Dragon (film).

Legend of the Red Dragon (LORD) is a text-based role-playing game written in Pascal and run on Bulletin board systems as a third party door game. It was created by Seth Robinson of Robinson Technologies and is currently maintained by Michael Preslar. The player's goal is to improve his or her skills in order to defeat the Red Dragon which has been attacking the village. The software is compatible with DOS, Microsoft Windows, and OS/2.

LoRD was first released in 1989.

Storyline and Gameplay

The premise of LORD is that a Red Dragon is wreaking havoc in a town where the player has recently arrived. Multiple players compete over a period of weeks to advance their skills and to kill the dragon. In order to achieve this goal, players must face combat to gain experience. Once they have gained enough experience, they must face their master at Turgon's Warrior Training and advance in skill level. Advancement presents stronger enemies and masters; a player must reach level 12, the final level, before challenging Turgon himself and attacking the dragon.

Players also select a character class, choosing from among Death Knight Skills, Mystical Skills, and Thieving Skills. While a player is training in a particular skill, s/he is subject to random events in the woods for that particular skill, which provide opportunities for advancement. Eventually, players may master all three skills.

The game features many elements that later became mainstays in MMORPGs, although on a smaller scale. LORD allows many players (as long as the BBS supports it) to play simultaneously, even allowing real-time player-versus-player battles.

LORD features several in-game message boards, as well as a limited electronic mail system, which allow players to converse. Players may use the mail system to send flirtations to other players of the opposite sex, propose trysts, or marriage (only marriages lead to the conception of children).

The registration system let all players play right up until level six, then it wouldn't allow players to get past to level 7 until the program was registered. Users often sent in funds for that very purpose.

Locations

Action in LORD spans a variety of in-game locations:

• The Inn is the workplace of Seth Able the bard, Violet the barmaid, and the (unnamed) bartender. It is also the place where players may rent a room for the night to be more safe until the next day, flirt, converse with other players, or hear music. Players may bribe the bartender to let them attack other players staying there. Players can also trade gems for potions that boost strength, defense, or hitpoints.
• King Arthur's Weapons and Abdul's Armor are places where players may buy and sell weapons and armor.
• Turgon's Warrior Training is a training hall run by the master, Turgon. Players fight here to attain the next level. Players must accumulate experience in order to challenge the master to advance.
• The Forest is where players spend most of their time, earning experience to gain levels, as well as gold and gems. Random events also take place here as players search for opponents. There is also a Healer's Hut located in the forest, as well as the road to the Dark Cloak Tavern.
• The Dark Cloak Tavern is located "somewhere" in the forest. Players normally get to the tavern through a random event in the forest, or directly if they have a horse. Chance, the bartender, provides players with their only in-game opportunity to select a new skill class, as well as learning information on opponents. The Tavern also offers games of chance, in which players may wager their gold.
• Ye Old Bank is an establishment where players may store their gold to guard against attackers.
• The Healer's Hut may be visited either from town or the forest. The healers can restore hit points lost by players during fights.
• "The Fields" is where players go who quit the game without getting a room at the Inn, and where one may find other players with whom to engage in battle.

Events in the forest

Random events occur frequently in the forest, including:

• An encounter with an old hag who can increase a player's hit points in exchange for a gem
• A visit from an old man who needs to be guided to town in exchange for charm points and gold
• A blackjack challenge
• The opportunity to rescue a prince or princess in distress
• Meeting a severed head named Olivia
• Assorted dealings with fairies
• Running into a horse trader
• Meeting a group of merry men that will restore a player's hit points
• Finding a sack of gold
• Finding a gem

Seth Able, Violet, and the Bartender

There are three non-player characters located at the Inn, who provide services helpful to players. Their names are Seth Able the bard (named after the game's author), Violet the barmaid, and the otherwise unnamed Bartender.

Seth Able the bard will sing a song for a player, male or female. Once a day, players can listen to Seth's song and receive a bonus, such as the doubling of one's bank account, or additional forest/player vs player fight opportunities.

Male players can also flirt with Violet, and female players with Seth Able. There are several options ranging from a wink to a proposal of marriage, with success determined by a player's "charm" score. A marriage to Violet or Seth may last one day or two months or more; unlike player-player marriages, the software may terminate these bonds at any time. During marriage, offspring are possible, and these bring sometimes surprising benefits to warriors.

The Bartender provides services and information to any warrior who can pay him in gold or gems, but provides nothing for free.

Weapons and Armor

Throughout the history of LORD, the selection of weapons and armor has remained constant. The player begins with the Stick and Coat; upgraded equipment must be purchased with gold earned in forest fights. A player may carry only one weapon and one suit of armor at any time. It should be noted that in recent games, the following names can be changed by the SysOp.

IGMs

In-Game Modules (IGMs) are small software extensions written by third-party developers that add functionality to LORD. These are frequently intended to expand the scope of the game for players who have become bored with standard LORD gameplay.

Quite a few IGMs have been written to allow a "cheating" style of game play, and others have presented bugs or loopholes to be exploited by players. The current maintainer of the LORD software, has introduced a scripting language called Lady in order to allow smoother development of game extensions.

Notable IGMs include:

• Across the Tracks
• Adoption Market
• Aladdin's Bar
• Aladdin's Palace
• Axehandler's Arena
• The Arena of Lords
• The Apothecary
• Backally Bar
• Backally Church
• Backally Orphanage
• Barak's House
• The City of the Sun God
• Crossroads
• Felicity's Temple
• Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse
• Love Shack
• The Mystical Mountain
• Seth Able's Music Shop
• Socrates' Shop
• Violet's House
• Violet's Cottage II
• The LoRD Caverns
• The Purple Haze Bar
• The Wishing Well
• Wise Guy

Metropolis Gameport

Metropolis Gameport contracted Michael Preslar on January 8th, 2001, to continue the game's development. The most recent version of LORD (4.07) was released in 2006. According to Preslar, further updates to the LORD software are planned, including a web application and versions for ELF-compatible Linux and Unix systems.

Tournament LORD

Wildcat Tournament Legend of the Red Dragon (WT-LORD)

Legend of the Red Dragon II

An official sequel, Legend of the Red Dragon II: New World, was a major change from the first game, featuring full ANSI graphics. It employed a top-down view, similar to roguelike games and The Pit. LORD II was written by Robinson and its final release came in 1998, before its sale to Metropolis Gameport.

Clones

External links

• LORD's Official Website
• Robinson Technologies - Seth Robinson's game company
• Robinson Technologies' original LORD/TEOS FAQ
• Metroplis Gameport - Owners of L.O.R.D. and LORD II
• Legend of the Green Dragon - Official Server

Lord is a title for a male of authority, religious or political.

Lord or LORD may also refer to:

• Lord (surname), list of people with this surname
• Lord (band) (since 2003), an Australian heavy metal band
• Lord (horse) is also the name of a champion Australian racehorse.
• Lord (manga) (since 2004), a Japanese comic series by Buronson
• Lord Day & Lord (1845–1994), a defunct New York law firm
• Lord Corporation (since the 1920s), a technology company with headquarters in Cary, North Carolina, U.S.
• Legend of the Red Dragon (since 1989), LORD, a BBS role-playing game
• The Lord, a name of God in both Judaism and Christianity
• The , English Bible translation of the Hebrew name Yahweh