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December News:
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^ top-Happy New Year and some thoughts to go with it. . .
[FrozenFire] December 31 - 4:25 PM EST | Its that time again. A year has passed and another is about to begin. I hope this year has been good to you and that next year will be even better. Having said that I think its best not to ponder the grave events thats transpired (and probably will be for quite some time) and return to the focus of this site: UO.
UO has been around quite a while now. I am about to begin my 5th year year of UO and there are many who have player longer than I. Throughout these years, we have seen many patches, some good, some bad. There have been several development teams and many, many changes. Some have fixed bugs (but added yet others). Some have added or changed aspects of our game. But for all thats been added to the game, something has also been taken away from us, the players.
In the early days of UO, there were few restrictions. The idea Raph Koster and his team had, was that players would band together and make their own laws. A year later Raph and CO had to back away from that idea. Some of the difficulties with that idea, of course, was that there were no unique names, making it rather harder to find that bastard Caramon that looted your stuff. There are Caramons everywhere, so. . . Allowing 5 character slots per shard is a double egded sword indeed. Sometimes I love that, but it doesnt work well for player justice. Its too easy to hide behind other names on your account. If you think about it, Im pretty sure most of you, or someone you know of, have characters with, shall we say, different reputations in the player community. This is one of my experiences. Now add recall and gate and its easy to understand that choosing the time and place is an advantage no player community will be able to counter easily.
So instead of player justice, the solution was simply to reduce the ways players could interact with each other negatively. And thats where we are today.
We have 2 new worlds, many new monsters and items. But as I player I didnt come to play an online game, so that it could be updated with new monsters and items. The main attraction, of course, is being able to interract with other players.
Since I begun, Ive been tricked, had my house looted, been PKd and stolen from. Those are all things that probably pissed me off a bit when they happened. But they also gave me motivations in the game; they provided enemies to exact revenge from, and friends made while doing so.
I still believe in giving players the freedom of choice, so I wont go so far as to roll back Trammel. But wouldnt it be nice to give players a reason to decide to enter Felucca (aka fixing risk/reward)? What I want next year is more features to help players provide player justice and no more patches that restrict player behavior.
If its important enough, OSI can do it. Discuss here how you would go about it.
Before you all go back and enjoy New Years, please think about the advice Epyon brought us: Dont Drink and Drive. If not for yourself, for anyone you encounter while driving.
|
^ top-Message From Stratics.
[Nieves] December 31 - 2:08 PM EST | Hello there!
The old saying, "When it rains it pours." Is quite apt when describing our latest situation with our primary web server. It seems that early this morning, around 1:00am EST our server suffered a hardware failure and our host is going to have to replace this equipment. Unfortunately, when you add up everything - the timing being what it is, folks being on holiday, replacement parts not being in stock and New Years coming up we're in quite a bind.
We hope to have the server back online just as soon as we can. I do not have an ETA at this time, but we are doing everything in our power to get that server back online ASAP. Our other servers are online and functioning fine, you may still visit our forums and assorted other features housed on these servers.
I know that there has been a lot of speculation as of late since all of the hosting issues have popped up over the last six weeks or so. But please rest assured, Stratics is not going under, we're not closing our doors and we're doing just fine aside from a series of bad luck on the host/hardware front. Our services will be back in full swing as soon as we get this box back online and you can expect a very strong and aggressively active Stratics just as soon as these issues are behind us. In fact, we have a lot of great surprises in store for the coming months, so please do not allow any rumors
to confuse the situation. The Stratics Network is not going away.
From all of us here at Stratics, we apologize for any inconvenience this current downtime causes you and we hope you have a truly wonderful, and safe, New Years celebration. Feel free to contact me with any questions you may have.
Regards,
Jhariden
Community Development
Stratics
http://www.stratics.com
The Massively Multiplayer Network
Well, at least they are trying.
I had asked if they needed me to go and talk to some people about their problems. Alas, UOSS folks said no. Oh well. One can only try right?
Hasta. |
^ top-Have a safe and Happy New Years.
[Epyon] December 31 - 11:06 AM EST | I'll be going out this evening, just like most of you. Allow me to relate a story to you. Some of you know this and some do not.
It wasn't all that long ago that I was in a drunk driving accident. I was on the way home from the local club and my car was broadsided by a drunk driver. I was in the hospital for quite some time but I pulled through. Every year thousands are not as lucky as I was.
Use your head while out tonight, I look forward to hearing all the stories tomorrow after the headaches have worn off.
Ill have many pictures if anyone is interested to see just what a drunken Epyon looks like and does and all the cute honies i'll be with ;)
Take care and God bless.
-Joe |
^ top-Riddle me this, riddle me that
[Fixxxer] December 29 - 10:57 AM EST | Damn... I've been doing too much reading on Super Heroes.
Anyhoo...
This was posted on the MyUO.com boards and was first reported by Stratics. I thought it worthy of a mention here.
Hear ye, hear ye!
I present to the people of Britannia a challenge for the most worthy of scholars and explorers. Throughout the realm I have hidden away many riddles, your first task is to seek them out.
Should you succeed, your next task lies in answering those riddles. You last task, shall be to explore the lands once again and find the item that represents the answers to the riddles, and bring them all to me.
The first person that does this shall receive a prize that is valued around 500 thousand to over 1.5 million gold pieces (depending on shard). Good Luck to you all may the best lord or lady win.
This contest is being held on the following shards: Atlantic, Great Lakes, Lake Superior, Chesapeake, Catskills, Napa Valley, Baja, Sonoma, Pacific, Europa, Drachenfels, And Siege Perilous.
There are a total of 10 riddles per shard (except Siege which only has 5, albeit a harder to solve 5)
Every riddle is located inside a bookcase, within an NPC building inside a guard zone.
They are all in the Old lands on Felucca. Why Felucca? Because first you need to have a bit of risk to get the reward, but mostly because only the Felucca facet has bookcases that actually contain any books.
The answer to every riddle is also an item that is obtainable in game, which are all common, or at most semi-rares which are not too difficult to obtain.
I will be on each shard from time to time, in Serpent’s Hold Felucca, where I MIGHT give hints to people that ask them of me. I can be identified by my character name, Cuchulainn, and I will also have [Arch Primus, SRG] over my head.
I may be emailed at Cuchulainn@0100010.com where I will confirm whether or not a riddle you have found is a valid one that I have designated for that shard. I will NOT give hints via email so do not ask.
If you have found all the riddles and think you have solved all of them, then email me the ENTIRE list of valid riddles, with your guess as to the answers, be sure to specify your shard name, and your designated character. INCOMPLETE SUBMISSIONS WILL BE IGNORED. I will then respond as quickly as possible, confirming or denying the accuracy of your submission. If it is correct I will meet with you in game where you will give me the items you have found in game that equate to each answer. (If you don’t have them all, or don’t have the right ones, then you will have to try again) If all items are correct then you will be declared the winner and I will arrange for you to receive your prize. I must have an email submission as described above for you to be eligible to win the contest, I will not accept the items from unknown persons, even if all the items are correct.
Important! The Date and Time that I receive emails is the order that I will evaluate submissions, which consequently may end up deciding who wins a tie, should many people find and solve all of them.
If you are going to email me to validate a riddle, please try to do as many at once in a single email. I anticipate getting a lot of them, and I will try to answer them as quickly as possible.
Save All other questions for this thread, and NO I will not post hints on the board, all of you however, may speculate as much as you wish. Keep in mind, though that you may end up helping your competition, should you choose to post any of your findings or reports.
This contest will last until there is a winner for each shard, or until I post otherwise. First Place gets the loot and the glory, second place just gets the sha…, well they get to solve some riddles.
Good Luck!
Cuchulainn of Serpent’s Hold,
Atlantic Shard.
(And now it seems, of all those other shards too)
Sounds interesting enough. The message thread on MyUO.com can be found here. Be sure to read it if you intend on entering this contest.
NOTE: GL and Atlantic have already been won.
dabu |
^ top-“If you take out the killings, Washington actually has a very low crime rate.” – Marion Barry
[Fixxxer] December 29 - 12:19 AM EST | It’s a bird, it’s a plane, it’s…City of Heroes.
Ever wanted to know what it’s like to be Spiderman? How about Captain America, Aquaman, Wonderwoman or Flash… or even Fartman? Well in summer/fall of 2002, you will.
Inspired by the past 40 years of comic books, Cryptic Studios is developing a superhero based MMORPG where you can suit up in your favorite cape and set out to fight evil… you and 2,000 other players (per shard). Paragon City will have more super heroes than a Ponderosa has rats, and more crime than 1980’s Detroit on Devil’s Night for those super heroes to fight.
CoH takes place on a timeline parallel to the one we’re living. Basically, the history of the world is the same in the game as it is in real life. However in the year 1823, CoH branches off and goes its own direction yet keeps some similarities. Paragon City pops up and becomes the NY of this timeline. It was the city of America, that is until the stock market crash of the early 1930’s. Crime of all types took over the city, and it became a shithole with tagless mattresses, massive sparrow painting factories and White Castle wrappers littered on the ground. That is, until a Navy ship pulled into port and unloaded a sailor nicknamed ‘The Statesman’ who mysteriously became a super hero while out at sea.
Long story short: chicks dig superpowers. He got laid. Had lots of baby super heroes.
CoH has 7 super hero ‘Origins’ (races); Mutant, Altered Human, Magical Powers, Cyberware, Superior Human, Gadgeteer, Mystic Artifacts. I’m assuming you can draw your own conclusions on what each can do. Cybernetic Implants are getting old to me.
Instead of skills, CoH has Super Powers. We didn’t see that coming. Things like Cold Control, Density Control, Fire Control, Leaping, Flying… you’ve read comic books, you get the idea. CoH relies on fame, not experience points. If you r0xxx0r Fluffy Bunny Feet Man, the public will appreciate it and your name will be in the newspapers and you’ll gain fame. Of course, if you die to a villain that throws a shoe, the public will shit on you.
There are NPC evil gangs and villains everywhere in Paragon City, going by such mean bad-ass names as Freakshow, Nemesis, Killing Crew and Powderpuff Bunnies. Ok so I made the last one up. They will eagerly provide you with tons of mindless monster bashing. Unfortunately, you can’t play a villain in this game, yet. Cryptic Studios has hinted they may add player villains in the future, but as of now you’re a goody-two-shoe.
Cryptic Studios is concentrating on a great combat system. They are aiming for the same visually stimulating and exciting action provided in comic books. PvP anyone? Not here. After all, everyone is a super hero. You ever see Silver Surfer bitchslap Superman, @$$rape him and then call him a newb? Didn’t think so. The only PvP you will find is in an Arena where you can duel 1vs1 or with a team in tournaments. That means absolutely no PKing. Of course, this information contradicts their plans for player villains. I suppose we’ll have to wait and see what they do.
Did you like AO’s missions? CoH has ‘em. Houses? Yup, that too. In fact, you can have a Team Base like most comic book groups… one as big as a skyscraper. If you’re killed, you’ve lost a very important part of your life and you’ll appear back at this base while losing points (that buy superpowers), fame and money.
In other words: if comic books are your passion, this game is for you. Though CoH has some interesting tidbits, it is not innovative in any way.
Beta Testing begins in early 2002. I'll try it out for the sake of trying it out. But it doesn't look like a keeper.
And before you get carried away and go out and buy a new Batman Cape, read the tag on the inside of it. Yes, it really says ‘Caution: Cape does not enable user to fly.'
I ph34r all the Super Heroes with invisible powers.
dabu |
^ top-What The Fuck?
[Nieves] December 28 - 10:04 PM EST | Is it me, or has the UO FanFest Session Schedule changed? Someone tell me I am just fucking blind and can't find the actual schedule.
Last I checked, they had concurrent sessions going...
and....
here is what's starting to seriousely irritate the fuck out of me...
Where the fuck are the FanSite Sessions?
Hasta. |
^ top-T Shirts
[Nieves] December 28 - 10:31 AM EST | Yep, I still have some for sale.
10.00 for each, plus shipping.
Email me your name, address, size, and country if not in the US.
Hasta. |
^ top-Today's Cut And Paste Special
[Nieves] December 27 - 11:09 AM EST | I found this neat little essay while browsing the BioWare forums. Pretty good read, so, ummm, read it!!! By the way, keep in mind this is from the Neverwinter Nights forum so think NWN/D&D when you read it, not UO. I will, however, beat anyone in PvP that has 18 str and 3 int.
p.s. Check out the Neverwinter Nights forum here (yes, uopg has one!!).
On to the essay...
--
Are roleplaying and powergaming opposites?
In order to determine the answer to this question it is first necessary to establish the scope of each term. Too often on these boards the two are simply presented as crude caricatures, poles apart and utterly irreconcilable. Caricatures, of course, are a useful means of arbitrarily dismissing the arguments of a perceived opponent or rival without the difficulties of engaging with their ideas and values. They should, however, be avoided by those who know better. Caricatures bear little resemblance to the real world, and for those of us whose object is truth, this ought be unacceptable.
We ought begin, therefore, by stating that the terms 'roleplayer' and 'powergamer' are, as is so often the case, highly subjective in nature, and that is is entirely possible and legitimate to have multiple definitions of each term. In the interests of communication, however, it is always best to be entirely clear about which particular definition is in play. We will see that this has an enormous bearing on the question at hand.
** Roleplaying **
'Roleplaying' means many things to many people. For some, 'roleplaying' is understood as referring to a broad genre whose features include the existence of a hypothetical setting and the establishment of character attributes through statistics, and character development through the improvement of these statistics. This is probably the most superficial understanding of 'roleplaying'. It refers to a collection of familiar features rather than to the 'playing' of some 'role' which, after all, is that which the term was intended to refer to. To others, roleplaying is understood broadly, simply referring the the adoption of a role or persona in a game based upon some hypothetical, fantastic world. While some players may prefer to play flawed characters, others prefer to play characters of truly heroic proportions. While some prefer to roleplay a character further removed from their own personality, others prefer to play a character they can more closely identify with, thus placing themselves, so so speak, at the centre of the imaginary world. Some find it a strength to infuse their character with traits of their own, enabling them to play the character with a greater degree of passion and interest. Others believe it is more challenging (and thus more enjoyable) to play a character radically removed from their own personality. For some, roleplaying is a means of pursuing power they might never achieve in the real world through a fantastic setting, perhaps even compensating for the real weaknessness that are felt so acutely in everyday life. For others roleplaying provides an outlet for adventurous or even moral impulses that find little opportunity for application in the real world. Some prefer the deepest possible level of immersion in their characters. Often these people prefer to develop their characters in great depth, making them as 'believable' as possible. Such people often feel roleplaying is properly understood almost as some kind of art form.
While such a playing style is admirable at many levels, there are those who attempt to restrict the entire field of 'roleplaying' to this particular playing style. This is the most common experience of elitism which so many players find offensive and irritating. For others, however, the fantasy setting is not to be taken seriously: charcters are often played in as 'over the top' manner as possible. Such characters, so far removed as they are from the everyday concerns of the real world, are far more enjoyable for certain players - especially those who enjoy roleplaying primarily as a means of escapism.
All of these can properly be understood as 'roleplaying'. No playing style (each from which a definition might be extrapolated) holds a monopoly on the term. None of the playing styles listed are 'correct'- although they might sometimes be incompatible depending on the nature of the campaign and the aspirations and temperaments of the players. Roleplaying means many things to many people, and we ought accept this diversity rather than applying some elitist, exlusive definition of the term. It is for players and DMs to find others to play with with whom they are compatible. Most importantly, it is for all of us to discover exactly which roleplaying style we find most enjoyable because, after all, enjoyment is supposed to be the object of the game. Because the term 'roleplaying' is often used in reference to a particular STYLE, however, as opposed to the broader sense of the word, it is always important to establish which definition is in play. As we will later conclude, this helps us avoid the unncessary polarisation between the two terms in question
** Powergaming **
'Powergaming' also means different things to different people. For those elitists who attempt to apply some exclusive definition of the term 'roleplaying', the term 'powergaming' is applied in a manner depending on convenience with the object of caricaturising and discrediting perceived opponents. An understanding of 'powergaming' is developed which is based on such attributes as:
* Disproportionate access to powerful magical items, and outrageously high attributes beyond what is reasonably expectable for any human being: even an exceptional 'hero'.
* Emphasis on the improvement of statistics and the development of effectitive combinations of Feats, classes etc, TO THE DETRIMENT OF or REGARDLESS OF the object of PLAYING A ROLE.
* MIN-MAXING: that is applying extremes to ones attributes with the aim of maximising one's prime attributes and minimising one's less central attributes - thus developing the most 'potent' character. Modest forms of Min-Maxing may reasonably be made within character, but '3 Int', '18 Strength' Fighters are, for instance, one example of the worst type of this tend - despite all arguments to the effect that such a character can be 'roleplayed'.
It is true that all these features might comprise part of that field we understand as 'powergaming'. Taken to the extremes indicated, it is indeed, quite an unpalatable phenomenon - for me at least.
In its extreme form, 'powergaming' reduces 'roleplaying' to the manipulation of statistics regardless of or even to the detriment of the enjoyment which can be gained through PLAYING a ROLE. The problem, however, is that many 'elite roleplayers' take this caricature and then apply it as a smear against those who enjoy a different style of roleplaying, or a style of 'powergaming' that is, in reality, far removed from the caricature and often quite reasonable. The term ends up being thrown around with abandon. Debates degenerate and become irrational. People become so fearful of THE LABEL they no longer have the confidence to state their position. In response to this situation it is a good idea to consider the less objectionable versions of 'powergaming' and whether or not these playing styles are really in direct opposition to 'roleplaying'.
A more moderate understanding of the term 'powergaming' refers to that player who attempts to empower his/her character through the use of magic items, the gaining of experience, the development of core attributes, and the use of effective combinations of Skills and Feats. This is not in the least objectionable unless it is exercised in the extreme form, where the combinations of feats, skills and classes, for instance, cannot be justified as part of the character's development. (eg: the Sorceror who takes 5 levels in his/her preferred class, only to take 1 level of Paladin, before returning to Sorceror, ought to have an extremely good excuse to justify such erratic behaviour.) If the selection of effective attributes and Feat/Skill/Class combinations is ONLY understandable from a 'power' perspective and not a 'character development' perspective problems arise - and the playing styles concerned are obviously incompatible. It is possible, however, for a player to seek to empower his character, and for this to be entirely compatible with that character's development. Indeed, as we will see, this was always a core aspect of Dungeons and Dragons, right from its very inception.
Characters, most of the time, seek power. Higher Strength and Constitution will make a more effective Fighter, therefore it is only reasonable and exepctable that a Fighter character would attempt to develop these attributes. Acquiring more spells and the honing of one's intelligence will make for a more effective Wizard, therefore it is only reasonable and expectable that a Wizard character will focus on enhancing these fields. And so we could go on ad infinitum. The same can be said in regard to Feats as well as skills. Some characters seek power because, frankly, they are megalomanical, and often this is a reflection of the player as much as anything else. Others, however, seek power because only through becoming more powerful can they effectively apply their ethical, moral, religious values and beliefs. Others seek enirichment, fame, domination over others - because it is part of their character. (much as is the case in the real world.) Character 'advancement' has always been central to D&D, the appearance of 'progress' adding to the enjoyment of the game for many players. To some, 'advancement' in the abstract sense ought not be the aim, but even here the pursuit of power is entirely consistent with the character's pursuit of his/her values/beliefs/priorities.
'Roleplaying' and 'Powergaming', in this sense, are not opposites, but are actually complementary of one another. Indeed, they are inextricably linked. Of course, some might prefer to try and make us feel 'guilty' or 'inferior' unless we play a Fighter with 9 Strength or a Wizard with 10 Intelligence, but we ought see through such ridiculous pretensions and be able to shrug them off. Sure, it might be interesing to play a low IQ Wizard or a poorly endowed Fighter now and then, but this is not in keeping with the vision most of us have for our characters - and this is understandably so. While many of us enjoy playing in character, we also often enjoy knowing our characters will be able to achieve their full potential at the highest levels. We enjoy playing in character, but we like our characters to have the potential to rise to a status of truly heroic proportions. This is a reasonable choice any one might decide to make, even although some might enjoy the challenge of playing a character who faces more personal obstacles and difficulties than most. It is a matter of personal choice.
In conclusion, then, 'roleplaying' and 'powergaming' are entirely compatible so long as the pursuit of power is made IN CHARACTER, and in an internally consistent fashion. Just as we as players seek effective combinations of Feats and Attributes, so too would our characters pursue these same ends for their own purposes. Only when taken to extremes - where the pursuit of power cannot be reasonably justified in a manner that is 'in character'- does the combination become untenable, and it is such extremes we ought be trying to avoid. In the meantime, it is about time that we recognised the multiplicity of definitions in play that refer to 'powergaming' and 'roleplaying'. It is time we posed our own arguments in an internally consistent fashion rather than swapping definitions where convenient, using extreme caricatures to discredit more reasonable playing styles. It is time, therfore, that we clarfied the meaning of the terms in question where they are applied. Finally, it is about time that we realised the difference between 'roleplaying' and 'powergaming' broadly conceived, and the PLAYING STYLES which, though different, are all legitimate choices for any player to make.
Hopefully this little contribution will clarify the issues at hand a little and help us understand each other's positions more clearly.
That, at least, was the intention.
Vaughann (the original poster, not me, i'm just the ctrl-x and ctrl-v guy)
Thanks Prophet for bringing that to our attention.
This essay would probably do better in the D20 Section here at UOPG, but I think the statement that powergaming and roleplaying go hand in hand is true. It helps to play a "Paladin" in UO if you have the necessary stats and skills to beat up those evil "red" mages as well as playing that evil murderer that has a hammer that talks to him and decides he will allow that hammer to "meet" the next person's head that comes by. Walking around saying: "I am a big bad ass" means nothing if you can't back it up. With deed, and with skills/stats.
Hasta. |
^ top-Happy Holidays to all
[Eric] December 24 - 6:56 PM EST | Well, before I leave to go to Florida, I just wanted to wish everyone a happy holiday season. Like others have said, take some time away from the computer and spend some time with family and friends. 'Tis the season to be jolly.
In case you happen to be wondering about that essay contest - I have the top 3 essays picked. They will be posted sometime during the first week of the new year. I really need to get some time away from this freezing Chicago weather, so I will be away in southern Florida for the next week.
Happy holidays and new year to all. Let us pray that next year will start and end better than this year has. |
^ top-Holiday Wishes
[Nieves] December 24 - 12:52 PM EST | With the events of September 11th, some of you might find it's hard to be too happy.
A lot of people lost their lives. And 10 times more people were directly affected by this. And, in the end, every single person on this planet has been, or will be, affected by that tragedy.
This season only comes once a year. It's the time for all of us to share the times with loved ones, or to remember them.
For those of you that feel guilty as to whether or not you should celebrate because others can't, or might find it hard because a loved one is gone. Don't feel guilty. Be happy. Those gone would want us to be happy. They would want us to enjoy the time and remember the good times. Don't forget. But honor them. Honor them by being happy.
I can't be with some of my loved ones. But I remember the good times with them. And I have them in my heart always.
Enjoy the holiday season. Turn off the computer, go out, watch a movie, eat a good holiday meal. Share the love and happiness with someone that can't.
To Melissa, Tiffany, Misty and their husbands, I thank you for what you have done for my children this holiday season. If it wasn't for you, I don't think it could've been as good a Christmas as my little guys deserve.
Merry Christmas and a safe, and happy New Year, to all of you.
Hasta. |
^ top-Merry Christmas to All!
[Catlyn] December 24 - 11:33 AM EST | Before I head out for a few days, I just wanted to say :
Merry Christmas
Remember to drop off some food for your local food bank. This is the time of year when doing something like that really means something to those less fortunate then us.
Vaya Con Dios |
^ top-Greebas!
[Fixxxer] December 23 - 10:34 AM EST | So, I’ve made a few posts. I figured I might as well introduce myself so you know who is writing the bullshit that you’re reading… All while throwing in a few shameless plugs at the same time.
*looks around*
*nervously stands up*
Hi, my name is Fixxxer and I’ve been a UO addict for 3.5 years. I’ve played previous Ultima drugs which is what attracted me to the crack. My main shard is GL, while occasionally snorting Catskills among others. My past interests and accomplishments include ‘unofficially’ running the infamous, now ghost town, of Tar Valon. I am also known as Grool, Elder of The Bloodrock Clan NOOOOGRAAAAH! (not Hoowah damnit). Yea, Bloodrock (URK) is the crazy chaos orc RP guild that’s about three years old and has been #1 on the UO war list since June of 2000. Ph34r us.
I was on UO’s Interest Team for 1.5 years up until they were clomped. Don't know much about the good ole Interest Team? Follow this link and learn more about it than any other site can tell you. I spent most of my time as a Troubadour (you could count the Troubs in all of UO on one hand), but ended up Elder Fidelio. I ‘worked’ Atlantic under some of the best people I’ve ever met in UO, in particular: Nikademus, Grathus, Hobbes, Daven, Priam… great fun it was.
Yes, I PKed you with my 5000 HPs and 20x GM that took me 5 minutes to macro (attended of course). Ph34r me. And as my friend Daven says: “Interest was PKing without statloss.” I signed a contract saying I would volunteer my time for free just like everyone else so quit your damn bitching. Get that? YOU HAND SIGNED A MOTHER FOCKING CONTRACT SAYING YOU WOULD DO IT FOR FREE!
…
*takes a break to go work a powerhour*
I’m ok. Really I am.
I’ve tried some other drugs. I beta tested and played Anarchy Online, hoping it was going to be heroin but finding out it wasn’t even Sudafed. Hell, I even made ARK (Advisors of Rubi-ka) which is basically AO’s version of the Interest Team and Counselors. And to Funcoms defense, they treated their vols a hell of a lot better than OSI did. I also tested Motor City Online, which was fun but it’s not an RPG.
Now, I’m about to test Neocron, Mimesis and Project Entropia.
I’m heavily involved in the IRC community. I’m on the Stratics IRC Staff as the Channel Administrator for #Project-Entropia. I moderate #Adellion and #Anarchy-Online. You can usually find me in #TheAfter, #Starwars, #Shadowbane, #Atriarch, #Camelot, #Majestic, #Neocron, #WorldofWarcraft, #Horizons, #TheSims and/or #Neverwinter... among others. So yea, I get tidbits about many games. In fact, I deal with Dev Teams from time to time as well. PE and AD have some really cool Devs.
I’m the founder of #GLRPC (Great Lakes Role-Playing Community), the soap opera IRC channel of Stratics. You name it, it has happened in this channel.
Finally, the name ‘Fixxxer’ has nothing to do with pr0n. It is a song written by Metallica, read the lyrics here.
dabu |
^ top-Nieves' Lord Of The Rings Review
[Nieves] December 22 - 9:35 PM EST | Go. Don't ask if it's good. Don't ask if it's worth it. Go see it.
Quote from Watts of the Chosen: "Braveheart and Gladiator both suck LOTR's dick".
I believe him now.
If you don't have the money, sell 1 million UO gold. Sell your vanqs. Sell 100,000 ingots. Sell something. Go see this fucking movie.
I cried when I was leaving. Not because of the sadness. But because it was the best movie I have EVER seen in my life.
Hasta. |
^ top-New Mounts?
[Nieves] December 21 - 2:56 PM EST | How would you like to ride beetles? A dragon? A skeletal mount? Well, check these images out and get a look see of what might be in the LBR release.
And if you are interested in seeing some of the new characters in their 3D client rendering, here they are.
Also, here is an Elder Dragon in 2D. And this is his cuzin. I like the cuzin better. I have read that this is the Ancient Wyrm.
Gotta luv spoilers.
That sure seems like a lot more than we anticipated for the UO:LBR expansion. Right? Maybe...
Hasta. |
^ top-Phazer on Detect Hidden
[Nieves] December 21 - 10:31 AM EST | This is true for both new+old DetectHidden:
- Targeting the ground has a 1 second delay.
- Targeting an object has a 11 second delay.
Old:
- Targeting the ground attempts to detect all hidden players, trapped containers, floor traps, faction floor traps.
- The area in which you're detecting depends on your skill.
- If you target the floor next to 200 trapped boxes, your skill is checked 200 times (1second delay = 200 times per second)
New:
- Targeting the ground attempts to detect hidden players, floor traps and faction floor traps.
- Trapped chests MUST be targeted directly.
I had to train some lockpicking on a faction trap remover and here's how I trained:
0-50: try to reveal a hidden player (GM hiding). 1 sec delay. Has to be done in powerhour.
50-65: try to reveal a faction floor trap. At 65 i could succesfully reveal the trap. It didn't take all that long to gain 15 pts.
65-85: more faction traps. If factions are very active on your shard, this should work well. My faction had about 10 traps placed and I gained 10-15 points there before gains stopped.
You can still gain from player trapped chests but it is much slower than before:
Instead of detecting 100-200 chests at once, you can only detect 1 at a time, making this 100-200 times slower. Also, instead of a 1 second delay you now have to wait 11 seconds making this 1100-2200 times slower than before =].
I would set up a few UOAssist macros to
> Use skill detect hidden
> Target chest #1
> Pause 11500
.. repeat 66 times ..
and then make a few bags with 66 trapped boxes each.
It's going to be similar to armslore/itemId, only slower because of the 10 second delay.
Dammit he rocks.
Hasta. |
^ top-Problems with Logging in?
[Catlyn] December 20 - 8:21 PM EST | Lots of people are experiencing problems with logging in to UO. This was posted at the FYI of the UO website.
As we work to upgrade our login servers, it will be necessary to direct public traffic to the test login servers for brief periods of time over the next several weeks, beginning Wednesday, December 19th, 2001. It is possible that, once these test login servers are taken down, players might find themselves attempting to log in through a test login server that is no longer accessible. We do not anticipate this will happen often; however, we ask that these players simply try to login again. If this does not solve the issue, players might need to reboot their machine to clear their cache and log in to a working login server.
We apologize for any inconvenience, and appreciate your patience as we work to implement our new hardware.
They are upgrading hardware - GREAT.
They are gonna take several weeks to get it done - NOT GREAT.
The part i like is that they don't expect it to happen often. It is taking me 4-5 tries to log in a char. About all i have time for right now is log in and grab my bod's as 'Tis the Season' and RL is very busy. Guess i get to waste that much more time just trying to log in.
Have fun trying to get back in to loot yourself when you die.
Vaya Con Dios
|
^ top-Bulk order deeds fame results
[Sinister_Saint] December 20 - 11:15 AM EST | Okies, for all of you fame junkies out there I have been doing some experimenting to determine how many deeds are necessary to reach Lord/Lady title through the use of BODs. And the results are in:
94 Deeds completed of which 15 were exceptional weapons and armor deeds, 6 were color (3 dull copper, 2 shadow, 1 copper)and the rest were normal iron weapons and armor deeds.
Loot:
13 pairs of studded gloves for +1.0 mining
3 pairs of studded gloves for +3.0 mining
78 shovels/pickaxes
45,784 gold
fame:
from absolute neutral fame to Lady in 94 deeds, and still getting the same message: "you have gained a lot of fame."
In order to ensure that I got an accurate count I lured a bull to the healers hut in deluccia and had it kill me over and over until I was no longer losing fame. At that point I started turning in deeds again. Those 94 deeds also used close to 10K ingots. So those are my results. I am heading back to mining because I still have 90 more deeds sitting in my smiths chest at home. |
^ top-Once this game hits the US market..ill never leave home again...
[Epyon] December 19 - 2:29 PM EST | Not long ago, I dreamt of a game like this. For me this would be my Garden of Eden. Ive wanted to post on this for several days now, but with finals killing me it wasn't all that important. After all, *I* already knew about it.
Now that you are at least moderatly curious, allow me to introduce..
UniversalCentury.net
In other words, a online gamed based off the one year war from the Mobile Suit Gundam series.
I saw this, and my jaw hit the floor..
That is of course is the scene when the Red Comet, Char Aznable heads to Side 7 to recon the Federation's new *V Project* which brings out the orginal Gundam. I simply do not care what it takes to upgrade the computer if need be, I am play this game the day it comes out. Should I be the earthbound Federation or the Principality of Zeon, bent on independence no matter what the cost...thats really a no-brainer.
SIEG ZEON!
Check it out at UC 0079 |
^ top-Merry X-mas
[Phazer] December 19 - 5:00 AM EST | Not only do we get a client patch today, Holiday Gifts are also going to be enabled on all North American shards.
-phazer |
^ top-Brace for impact - patch ahead!
[FrozenFire] December 19 - 2:06 AM EST | Yes, OSI is releasing a client patch, dealing mainly with client improvements. You can read the details here.
The main points of interest are:
The 2D client will get a menu bar like the one used in the 3D client. Good - or bad? I have all the needed commands tied to hot keys anyways.
The 3D client will get various improvements to speed and display, including the much hyped "mipmapping". I can hear the cheers from those who still dont have a stable client now. . . For those who are using 3D, enjoy.
The dead health bar bug in the party system will be fixed. This is good news, it was getting to the point Id avoid being in a party to be sure health bars are working. Lets hope its not just a fix for the stuck gumps, but also so that they update correctly, otherwise the "fix" is kinda moot.
And in other news, people dressed up like the EQ elf chick to watch the Fellowship of the Ring. Coming out most people looked happy, so Im hoping Peter Jackson learned from the Phantom Menace suckage. Now, to get tickets. . .
|
^ top-Testing 1- 2 - 3
[Nieves] December 19 - 1:02 AM EST | I am changing how we present our external links here at UOPG. If you scroll down a bit and look to the right hand menu, you will find images of different websites. That is the direction I am going in with our external links.
If you are interested in having your website linked by UOPG, please email me the URL of a 120x60 image hosted on YOUR web server. This will allow you to update your image without me having to download and reload it. Also, include your website's URL. Having the URL is important. That's if you want hits.
Note: Jinx and Silk will need to send me new URLS to new images because the ones being displayed don't conform to my size requirement. I await your email. Also, I need an image URL from Adam Ant.
Hasta. |
^ top-Shameless Plug For UOPG
[LadyGrania] December 18 - 11:11 PM EST | Greetings!
BUY A UOPG T-SHIRT FOR YOUR FAVORITE UO PLAYER!
OK... So buy one for yourself! I did and they're awesome!
Don't believe me? See for yourself!.
These are totally cool shirts and Nieves is selling them for $10!
(cheaper than mine!)
Email him with your size and quantity and method of payment.. He accepts paypal!
OK.. I could make this a really bad shameless ad..
But wait! That's not all! By clicking the link above you get to see the Lady Grania herself!
:P
Ok I'm done.. I'm serious! Place your order now so we can get the bills paid! |
^ top-The Essay Contest.
[Eric] December 18 - 7:26 PM EST | No, I do not have the winners decided yet. However, I have some good news, followed by some bad news. The good news is, I received around 25 essays. It seems to me that most people put forth a strong effort on these essays. The bad news is, it's taking me a fucking long time to judge these. As I am reading, I am fixing (or trying to fix) spelling, punctuation, and grammatical errors, which tend to make reading these essays a bit time consuming. Not to mention trying to decide which essays are better than others - pain in the ass. Fear not, I should have all of the winners announced before December 25th.
Thank you everyone who took the time to write and submit an essay to UOPG. Of the 25 essays, I can really only reward 3 winners. However, if your essay is good but just not good enough to win, you may find it added to the essay section. And yes, we will give credit to the authors of any essays we post.
On another note, I've been playing DAoC for just about one month now. Look for an update from me later, where I will give my views on where I see DAoC in comparison to UO. You've heard many others' views - now you will have to read about mine.
Until then, cya. |
^ top-The World As We Know It Has Been Shattered
[Nieves] December 18 - 4:43 PM EST | Redrum is now rejoicing over this. Lord British is now a freaking "clean cut", purty-boy. Just like Redrum likes 'em.
Watts is publically complaining, but secretly, I think this is why he dumped Redrum. I don't think it had anything to do with the sheep Redrum had secreted in his closet. I see a mansechs war happening at the Redrum_Watts household.
Tell Watts you can see past his ruse.
Hasta. |
^ top-Powergamers'R'Us
[FrozenFire] December 18 - 2:50 PM EST | Powergaming: Skill and knowledge applied to achieve goals within a game as quickly, efficiently or powerfully as the game itself allows.
Most powergaming topics have been thoroughly covered on UOPG already. There are guides for building skills quickly and efficiently. For those who want advice on what skills go well together, there is a section for templates too. Finally, there are some very good essays to provide insight into specific tactics and methods that can be used to achieve your goals. While none of this ever cover everything, nor is 100% up to date all the time, it does give us, as Powergamers, a very good start. Anything not yet covered by these guides, can quickly be answered by the experienced folks hanging out over at the UOPG forum.
As updaters, its not often we have the pleasure of actually write articles about a new Powergaming method. However, we would love to, so if you have some knowledge youd like to share, just e-mail any of updaters in the UOPG team. And of course, we will continue to add comments from a Powergaming perspective to the news that is posted by all the usual suspects.
And before you all sit down feeling good about your Powergaming skills, I ask you this:
How many of the 64 spells, do you actually use?
Sometimes, when talking to people, I get the impression that magery is nothing but transport, healing and damage. But magery is much more useful than that. There are some really underused and underappreciated spells and spell combinations around that can be used to enhance your gaming performance. Of course, if you are a long time reader of UOPG, there is a good chance you already know most of the tips and tricks Ill post here in the next few days. Keep your eyes open, there is more to come. |
^ top-Raped.
[Nieves] December 18 - 12:13 PM EST | Ever gotten "spanked" in a guild war? Have you "owned" players in PvP? In a game like UO, where players from all over the world come together in a society of their own creation, it's common for terminology to evolve into new meanings. Sometimes those words are innocent, like the words above, and sometimes, as in the case of the word "rape," they're not. The word "rape" is not an acceptable term to use in UO, regardless of whether it's being used to mean the act of sexual assault, or simply having "raped" someone in PvP (meaning to have won, or dominated, the fight).
Why is there no distinction made? Well, our GMs have no way to discern what someone actually means when they use certain terms, and we will not get into debates as to the intended meaning of terms that are considered offensive by others. So if the word "rape" is used, and called in as harassment, the player will have their account penalized up to and including termination, regardless of the context.
When talking to other players you don't know, don't assume that they understand your meaning in cases like this. They could be new to the game, or maybe not a native English speaker. In short, please consider your audience when speaking!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Kerowyn
UO.com Content Editor/Writer
Origin Systems
kerowyn@uo.com
Ouch. I can't say "you got fucked" anymore?
I wonder if I can still say: "YOU GOT KNOCKED THE FUCK OUT!" when I kill a PK, notoer or a thief?
Hasta. |
^ top-Faction Thief and Training Detect Hidden
[Nieves] December 18 - 10:41 AM EST | My template is as follows:
Hiding 100
Stealth 100
Detect Hidden 100 (curr 98.5)
Remove Traps 100 (curr 75.5)
Magery 100
Stealing 80.1 (to get sigils)
Lockpick 50.1
Meditation 69.8
Now, here's what I'm doing. Ok, so 125 is not quite optimal. What I'd recommend is 115 boxes in a pouch/backpack with another pouch to keep used ones in and the rest of the space for key rings. You need the key rings for three reasons. First, if your lockpick is locked low so you can work the trap w/o bothering with the lock. Second, when your best buddy the GM Tinker retraps them, you'll want the keys to speed things up. Finally, you can keep your number of items in the pouch higher.
Now, I've locked down 100 in my keep 5 high in 20 rows along one of the upper halls. I'm leaving them there till I GM Detect. They nerfed Detect a while back to prevent you from checking a whole stack at once. However, the best way to get from 50 to 95ish in Factions to to go work on known Factions Traps that some newbs put all in one place for you. This works like mad.
After I GM Detect, I'll be Removing on the boxes while in the pouch, and dumping used ones into the other pouch. They can then be retrapped later.
NOTE: ONLY USE DART TRAPS. Anything else will result in stat loss, and then your PH is screwed.
Thanks for your help.
Sincerely,
Sean
GoldenSpear/a ghost (AOL Legends SL Master Thief)
Thanks GS.
Hasta. |
^ top-All Your Loot Belongs To Us.
[Nieves] December 18 - 12:07 AM EST | Looters, Inc. strikes AGAIN!. And they are on MY SHARD! DA BASTARDS!
Check them out.
If you have not noticed, they have their own section on the right menu now. As they get more stories in, I will post them to that section.
Hasta. |
^ top-Party!
[Nieves] December 17 - 1:36 PM EST | Want to get out from behind your monitor and meet other UO players and the UO dev team in person? You'll get your chance on Thursday, December 20th!
To kick in the holiday season, Origin Systems and Guinness will be sponsoring a Holiday Happy Hour on Thursday, Dec. 20th, from 7:00-9:00 pm at Tangerines, located next to the Renaissance Hotel in Northwest Austin. We're inviting all our players in the Austin area to come share appetizers and drinks with the UO dev team and Origin staff. And you never know... you just might get a
glimpse of what's coming up at the UO FanFest 2002! No RSVP is needed - just show up at Tangerines at 7:00 pm on Thursday, December 20th.
Do I need to bring anything?
Nope! Just bring yourself, and your ID if you're over 21 and want to drink.
Can I get in if I'm not 21?
Sure! You'll be stamped as a minor, and won't be allowed to drink alcohol. But if you're under 21, you're probably used to that by now. ;)
Will there be non-alcoholic drinks?
Absolutely! Someone's got to drive, right?
Will there be a Question and Answer session?
Sorry, there won't be a formal Q&A at this event. After all, it's a party for us too!
Do I have to pay to get in?
No charge for you. This is our treat!
Do I need to register for anything ahead of time?
No, just show up on Thursday.
Is there parking nearby?
Yes! Since the club is right next to the Austin Renaissance Hotel, there's plenty of parking in the large lot in front.
How do I get there?
Tangerines is located next to the Renaissance Austin Hotel at 9721 Arboretum Blvd, Austin, TX. You can find a map and driving directions
here.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Kerowyn
UO.com Content Editor/Writer
Origin Systems
kerowyn@uo.com
Someone drink one for me.
UPDATE:
When we first posted the news item, we wrote that those under 21 would be allowed in, but would not be able to drink. We discovered that this is not the case due to the happy hour arrangements, and we have changed this notice to reflect the fact that only 21 and up will be allowed to attend. The web post has been updated to reflect this.
I'm really sorry about the mixup. :/
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Kerowyn
UO.com Content Editor/Writer
Origin Systems
kerowyn@uo.com
Hasta. |
^ top-Someone Has To Pay For It
[Nieves] December 17 - 1:18 AM EST | UOPG T-Shirts are now marked down to $10.00/each plus shipping.
The bill is due and it's got to get paid.
Anyone interested, email me your name, mailing address, your country (if out of the US), and size along with quantity ordered. Any orders made after this date will get the $10.00 price. Those before this date, sorry.
Thanks in advance for your support.
Hasta. |
^ top-Jinx breaks the news - someone at EA screwed up
[FrozenFire] December 16 - 6:19 PM EST | Someone at EA/OSI uploaded a pre relase(?) LBR client to a public ftp site. They took it down quickly enough, but not until several copies were downloaded. The Chosen has the skinny on this one. Main interest beyond a few laughs is to see three real 3D pictures of Ilsh/LBR monsters. That swamp dragon thing actually looks decent to me. Much better than the current 3D models, where most monsters/avatars looks like something I would call a dogs dinner, were I a less polite man.
I wonder what the 3D Mongbats looks like? |
^ top-This was sent to by a friend...though I would share. You military people should catch a tear with this. Having been there I did.
[Vasilias] December 16 - 9:28 AM EST | TWAS THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS,
HE LIVED ALL ALONE,
IN A ONE BEDROOM HOUSE MADE OF
PLASTER AND STONE.
I HAD COME DOWN THE CHIMNEY
WITH PRESENTS TO GIVE,
AND TO SEE JUST WHO
IN THIS HOME DID LIVE.
I LOOKED ALL ABOUT,
A STRANGE SIGHT I DID SEE,
NO TINSEL, NO PRESENTS,
NOT EVEN A TREE.
NO STOCKING BY MANTLE,
JUST BOOTS FILLED WITH SAND,
ON THE WALL HUNG PICTURES
OF FAR DISTANT LANDS.
WITH MEDALS AND BADGES,
AWARDS OF ALL KINDS,
A SOBER THOUGHT
CAME THROUGH MY MIND.
FOR THIS HOUSE WAS DIFFERENT,
IT WAS DARK AND DREARY,
I FOUND THE HOME OF A SOLDIER,
ONCE I COULD SEE CLEARLY.
THE SOLDIER LAY SLEEPING,
SILENT, ALONE,
CURLED UP ON THE FLOOR
IN THIS ONE BEDROOM HOME.
THE FACE WAS SO GENTLE,
THE ROOM IN SUCH DISORDER,
NOT HOW I PICTURED
A UNITED STATES SOLDIER.
WAS THIS THE HERO
OF WHOM I'D JUST READ?
CURLED UP ON A PONCHO, THE FLOOR FOR A BED?
I REALIZED THE FAMILIES
THAT I SAW THIS NIGHT,
OWED THEIR LIVES TO THESE SOLDIERS
WHO WERE WILLING TO FIGHT.
SOON ROUND THE WORLD,
THE CHILDREN WOULD PLAY,
AND GROWNUPS WOULD CELEBRATE
A BRIGHT CHRISTMAS DAY.
THEY ALL ENJOYED FREEDOM
EACH MONTH OF THE YEAR,
BECAUSE OF THE SOLDIERS,
LIKE THE ONE LYING HERE.
I COULDN'T HELP WONDER
HOW MANY LAY ALONE,
ON A COLD CHRISTMAS EVE
IN A LAND FAR FROM HOME.
THE VERY THOUGHT
BROUGHT A TEAR TO MY EYE,
I DROPPED TO MY KNEES
AND STARTED TO CRY.
THE SOLDIER AWAKENED
AND I HEARD A ROUGH VOICE,
"SANTA DON'T CRY,
THIS LIFE IS MY CHOICE;
I FIGHT FOR FREEDOM,
I DON'T ASK FOR MORE,
MY LIFE IS MY GOD,
MY COUNTRY, MY CORPS."
THE SOLDIER ROLLED OVER
AND DRIFTED TO SLEEP,
I COULDN'T CONTROL IT,
I CONTINUED TO WEEP.
I KEPT WATCH FOR HOURS,
SO SILENT AND STILL
AND WE BOTH SHIVERED
FROM THE COLD NIGHT'S CHILL.
I DIDN'T WANT TO LEAVE
ON THAT COLD, DARK, NIGHT,
THIS GUARDIAN OF HONOR
SO WILLING TO FIGHT.
THEN THE SOLDIER ROLLED OVER,
WITH A VOICE SOFT AND PURE,
WHISPERED, "CARRY ON SANTA,
IT'S CHRISTMAS DAY, ALL IS SECURE."
ONE LOOK AT MY WATCH, AND I KNEW HE WAS RIGHT.
"MERRY CHRISTMAS MY FRIEND, AND TO ALL A GOOD NIGHT."
This poem was written by a Marine stationed in
Okinawa Japan. The following is his request.....
PLEASE. Would you do me the kind favor of sending
this to as many people as you can? Christmas will be coming soon and some credit is due to our U.S. service men and women for our being able to celebrate these festivities.
Let's try in this small way to pay a tiny bit of what we owe. Make people stop and think of our heroes, living and dead, who
sacrificed themselves for us. Please, do your small part to plant this small seed.
AND SAY A PRAYER FOR EACH AND EVERY ONE. |
^ top-Rumors about DOS attack
[FrozenFire] December 15 - 5:07 PM EST | I just received this rumor:
You have received a message!
XXXXXX (ICQ#XXXXXXXXX) Wrote:
ICQ#XXXXXXXXX Wrote:
i am responsible for the problems on europa shard .I can no longer sit by and watch this shard get left behind time after time.All the american shards get upgraded and the european shrds get left behind .This is just a example of what i can do this was the first experiamnt if uo does not upgrade this system i have plans that will cause more dire results .The UO Terrorist
It is almost certainly just a hoax, but a DOS attack is a possibility and sometime has to be the first in MMORPG history. If its a hoax, its in extremely poor taste, as there are much more urgent problems out there. If its not, I hope EuroPol/FBI kicks down his door soon. |
^ top-Yay! Its snow globes. . .again!
[FrozenFire] December 15 - 7:32 AM EST | Come monday the holiday gifts will be patched in. Atlantic seems to be first in line, so everyone else can expect the gifts by tuesday.
So, we get snow, holiday trees, snow globes and instead of bells we get some statuettes. Sound familiar? Its a bit like getting the same pair of socks from your aunt every year. For those who want a sneak peek into their gifts, they are in testing now.
Right now Id settle for some real snow and a stable shard. |
^ top-Quality of service. . .
[FrozenFire] December 15 - 6:16 AM EST | Normally I never complain about servers going down. Mostly, its because it doesnt happens too often. And for the last few months Europa has been stable. So what is this??? Europa has been bouncing up and down for the last 14 hours. Its getting annoying to say the least.
Working for a company using the web to service customers I know that servers do go down from time to time. But this is ridiculous! And if you check shard issues on uo.com all they have to say is that Europa went down, then up again. My company require less than 0,5% downtime, I wish OSI would do the same.
I know Europa isnt the only shard out there, but bad service and lack of information tends to piss me off, so now I know how you felt about LS a while back.
UO players are paranoid to the extreme. After Europa went down a second time, I got an icq saying that the login server might have been hacked and that I should change passwords. I dunno about you, but I figure that if the login server is hacked, OSI will restore everything through back ups - both shards and account information. However, being a UO player and therefore paranoid, my creeping suspicion would be that someone had spread a trojan which listens in on key board activity. Then that someone spreads a rumor about a hacked login server. And when that rumors reaches someone that is infected. . .
Oh well, I dont need to remind you people, dont accept files from sources you dont trust. And remember that virii sometimes multiply using adressbooks in mail clients. And, of course, icq identities can me stolen. This is the place to start when securing your machine. No sense in powergaming and then invite others to cash in on your efforts.
As for me, the Mongbats will have to wait until Europa decides to stay up. Pity me for loosing out on tons of vitual gold.
Uodate:OSI has finally caughtup and are now "looking into it". Worse, GL; LS and SP also seems to be affected. Sorry guys. |
^ top-Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of IDOC's.
[Catlyn] December 14 - 11:57 PM EST | For some of the people who play UO with me, they know that I am Canadian. Damm Proud of it.
Sept 11 changed that. Since then, I am still proud to be Canadian, but even more so, I am Proud to be North American. The tragedy that shook the world affected us all. I was amazed by the out pouring of support (3 days wait to get into the local blood bank). Lately, I have been very dissapointed in my Federal Goverment with the lack of anything but total support for the US and the ongoing war.
I am sure some of you are now wondering why I am rambling on about politics. This is a game site right? Right? Politics, especially on the scale of what/is happening, even enters into the world of entertainment. Stay with me. This does have a point, and I will get there.
The US has sent many men & women overseas. They are there and deserve our full support. In whatever way we can give it. Period. End of story. Now, on to my point and how this affects the game.
Over at the MyUO Forums, a thread started a few days ago about ingame housing and decay. It seems, some people say that decay should be turned back on and that is that.
Personally, as long as the war is going on, I feel that OSI should refresh houses that are legally placed on an active account. If you are paying the upkeep for the account, you get to keep your house.
If your house is condemmed, your account not active, or you are banned, then by all means, turn on the decay for those. If you are paying your $10/month and happen to be away for whatever reason (fighting a war for example) then your house should be fine.
The people arguing for Decay back on for all houses are just looking to make a quick buck on ebay. That is my opinion anyways. Yes, some people are playing and don't have a house. Yes, decay would open more spots and get the housing market going again. Those people will be able to get a house anyways. Accounts are going inactive all the time. People are still getting banned. Speedhack is still out there. There is some bugs with the BOD system. People still use exploits. If you don't have a house, you will get your chance.
I say leave auto-refresh for active accounts. While I admit it is trival thing, it still would be one less thing for the folks overseas to worry about. After all, this is just a game and what they are doing is way more important on any scale. In my mind, if you don't see that, I feel sorry for you.
Share your thoughts.
Vaya Con Dios |
^ top-A Little d20 Tidbit
[Blachawk] December 14 - 6:56 AM EST | Once more, for one of our major products, Sword & Sorcery Studios is turning to one of its richest sources of ideas -- our readers, players, game masters and fans. Relics and Rituals 2: Lost Lore is the follow-up to the highly-successful original Relics and Rituals, considered to be the best and most extensive third-party book of spells and magic items for the d20 system.
Basically, Sword and Sorcery is searching for player submissions to help fill their new book with lots of little goodies. For their full press release and submission guidelines, go to this page. Sword and Sorcery has already put out a number of D20 products, quickly slipping into second place behind WOTC in the list of the biggest D20 publishers.
Good luck to anyone who decides to enter. |
^ top-VDP revisited
[FrozenFire] December 13 - 6:32 PM EST | As you may have read recently, Nieves cajoled a straight answer out of Evocare. VDP is now offically a feature of UO (if VDP is news to you, look here for a good explanation).
With publish 14 we got the BOD system and at the same time the maximum VPD values have been been reported reduced. Its not a coincidence and heres why. Devs have on many occasions stated they dont want one-hit-kills. So, with the new BOD rewards, smiths will be able to craft weapons with added bonuses to accuracy, durability and damage. The top end rewards will add a substantial bonus; Valorite Hammers will make power weapons.
Now add that to a top ranked VDP and you have a kick ass weapon right there. Forget magic weapons. The first smith to get the high ranking BOD hammers will be run over with people wanting to buy heavy hitters equal to exceedingly accurate power weapons. Not too bad for a player to be able to make at will.
I have a hunch that more player crafted goods are subject to VDP; if anyone knows or finds out; email me.
In other news, some funny guys over at UO boards realized that Felucca was, like, empty. Gosh! So they took upon themselves to come up with a solution that will bring over more Trammelites to Felucca. While most want to reduce the rewards for the risk reduced playing in Trammel, these guys came up with a way to help the Lord and Ladies of Trammel to keep their fame should they die while in Fel. Because, you know, gold and equipment are like easy to replace dude. But that fame. . .damn thats hard. I have to agree, if making a 70/70 bard or tamer is hard, then yes, fame is hard. A couple of weeks ago I ran into some Lady, Expert Stoic. Yup, if you have no clue about UO, then Mongbats are like the coolest money earners too!
If you all excuse me, I have to get back to killing Mongbats Lords for fame and money for a castle deed. . .
[EDIT] Being dazed and confused yesterday, I initially posted here that the BOD reward hammers will be able to make weapons better than vanq. This is not so. Thanks to a few vigilant readers, I am now updated with correct information. There are two types of hammers. One type will add bonuses to weapons made with that hammer, the other kind will add points to a players blacksmith skill. Hanses comment that some high end rewards adding more than +10 applies, not to weapon damage modifiers, but to the %-age bonus to the blacksmith skill. [EDIT] |
^ top-Greetings and Salivations....errr Salutations....
[LadyGrania] December 12 - 8:51 PM EST | Hi there!
It's seems that Nieves has decided that he's desperate enough for reporter, he decided to let me take a shot at it. *smiles sweetly*
Actually, I'm rather honored to have been asked/nudged to do this.
I shall do my best on this most marvelous endeavor. :P
Lemme tell you a lil about myself
I've played UO for 3 years now. I enjoy the game still. I have bitches and complaints the same as everyone else, but the fact is, I'm still here so they must be doing something right. I've done the PVM... and I'm learning the PVP now. I've done the play for no particular reason, and I've done the rp. I've done just about a little bit of everything in UO.
With my rather diverse UO background, I hope I can find the stuff you're interested in reading and make the stuff interesting to read all at the same time.
Well enough of my babbling!
Thanks Nieves for the opportunity to make a fool of myself....errr for the opportunity to learn and teach and report all the neat and fun stuff that is UO.
Love Ya! |
^ top-No one called Jones
[Fixxxer] December 12 - 8:44 PM EST | You have chosen your stats. Next your skills and/or class. Then you decide whether you’re a man, woman or thing. Now, your name. Ahhh…. A name. Hmmm… Lets see. You find yourself staring at your screen for 15 minutes having no idea what to name your new alter ego.
So, you open your Star Wars Dictionary and thumb through it looking for a cool name. Nothing there floats your boat. Then you search through your closet for your Dragonlance books to get some ideas. Nothing. Next the LotR books, Star Trek shows, whatever shit you’re into.
The problem with this is that the world ends up with 86 Gandalfs, 75 Darth Mauls and 309 Raistlins. And you want to kill every damn one of them.
I’ll go over some useful websites that can help you in choosing a name for your new character.
Lets begin with Chris Pound’s Name Generation Page. This is the page I use most, it has many different language databases of names (and words). Fan of H.P. Lovecraft? Try his Cthulhoid Name Gen. Is Tolkien your thing? How about some Ancient Greek, Gothic, Latvian or Basque? And he has just the simple Fantasy Name Gen. He has 73 name and word gens on his site and since it's the best I have come across, I give it 5 out of 5 orc helms.
Next is Samuel Stoddard’s Fantasy Name Generator. For starters, it has your every day Basic Fantasy Names. His ‘flexible interface’ allows for some customization; you can choose to make a list of nothing but short names, medium names, long names, very long names, consonant heavy names, vowel heavy names, alternating names, names with apostrophes, names with dashes, bad names and insult names (I’m not posting a link for each one, go look for yourself).
He also has an ‘advanced interface’ where you can design name templates. He explains how to use his advanced features here. Once you master making these templates, you can make some cool names. I give this page 3 out of 5 orc helms because it lets you make name templates, though it can be complexxx and confusing.
The Society of Kabalarians of Canada have a website where it lists thousands of names, and gives a detailed analysis on each and every one of them. Hell, even my nick is listed. To search for your name, scroll down to the bottom of the site where it lists ‘Male names starting with…’ and ‘Female names starting with…’ It is in alphabetical order. It’s a neat site to goof around on. I give it 2 out of 5 orc helms based solely on the time I spent looking up all my friends names and nicknames.
The Seventh Sanctum has a really neat Evil Name Gen. You have 30 different traits to choose from that best describe your character. Everything from ‘Clever’ to ‘Demonic’ and ‘Undead’ to ‘Water Affinity.’ You select your traits and click ‘generate’ and it spits out 20 names that fit your character. Truly neat stuff.
They also have Evil Deity, Heroic, Fantasy, and Planet name gens. My main bitch is that they only produce one name at a time. I give this site 2.5 out of 5 orc helms.
The Cave focuses more on fantasy names. It has three different Elven name gens: Deverry-style, male and female Tolkien-style. It has two different Orc name gens: Tolkien-style and Warhammer. Also a Dwarven, Halfling and Babylon 5 name gens… and a Felana (Feline) name gen.
The Cave also has a Village Generator where it gens……. A village, and an NPC Generator. Check this website out if you’re into D&D. If you’re looking for nothing but Fantasy, then this is a good one. I give it 4 out of 5 orc helms.
Other neat generators: Hobbit Name Generator, Persona Generator, Fantasy Name Generator and Warhammer Daemon Name Generator.
Lastly, there is a program called Langmaker. Technically, this program creates an entire language using your specifications and templates. However, you can also set it up to be used as a name generator. I set it up to generate Ultima-like Orc names. Soon, I’ll follow up with a detailed ‘how to’ on the Langmaker. I give this program 4 out of 5 orc helms due to major customization abilities.
There you have it.
This means I wont be seeing any more Samwises, Elronds, Caramons, Flints or Boba Fetts, right?
dabu |
^ top-3 days, and counting...
[Eric] December 12 - 7:06 PM EST | You heard right. The essay contest ends in THREE days. If you'd like 500k on Great Lakes or a 1st or 2nd year vet. reward on any shard, be sure to submit an essay. You can read in detail about this contest if you haven't yet, here.
I look forward to reading your essay. As a side note, although the contest ends on the 15th, the winners will not be picked on that day. Since I'm giving everyone until 11:59 pm on the night of Saturday, the 15th, I won't be reading them to judge until Sunday. After they are judged, I will begin with announcing the third place winner. The following day, the second place winner will be announced. Finally, the day after that, the first place winner will be announced. Yes, I like to build suspense. (Winners will also be notified by e-mail.)
Until then...cya later. |
^ top-VDP
[Nieves] December 12 - 8:53 AM EST | I will just give you the Raw Unadulterated Email exchange:
-----Original Message-----
From: Nieves [mailto:nieves@uopowergamers.com]
Sent: Tuesday, December 11, 2001 4:22 PM
To: 'cynthe@uo.com'
Subject: OK, help me out here.
Do you know what VDP is? If not, go here:
http://home.neo.rr.com/durince/OriginalStudy/Contact.htm and here:
http://home.neo.rr.com/durince/GMWeapons.htm
Does high VDP affect the quality, power, and durability of a GM weapon?
All I need is an official "yes".
Thank you for your time.
Hasta.
-----Original Message-----
From: Cynthe [SMTP:cynthe@uo.com]
Sent: Tuesday, December 11, 2001 5:00 PM
To: 'nieves@uopowergamers.com'
Subject: RE: OK, help me out here.
I asked Evocare, and got a "yes". :)
KH and I spent an hour last night talking about doing a proper test of VDP.
We will keep you posted on the results of that series of tests.
Hasta. |
^ top-More Comcast News
[Nieves] December 11 - 9:23 PM EST | Dear Comcast Customer:
Comcast's first priority is to provide you with the fastest, most reliable Internet experience. In an effort to keep you informed of the latest developments, we are writing to let you know that Comcast and Excite@Home have court approval to continue providing you with uninterrupted high-speed Internet service.
This agreement marks the beginning of a very exciting customer transition to Comcast High-Speed Internet. In the coming weeks, we will send you specific information on moving your account to our new network. All customers will be transitioned to Comcast High-Speed Internet by February 28, 2002.
This new network is 100% managed by Comcast, so you can rest assured that you will never again worry about the strength or stability of your Internet provider. In addition, Comcast's agreement with Excite@Home will allow you to continue accessing your @Home e-mail through February 2002, even after you transition to our new product, giving you plenty of time to notify friends, family and associates of the change to your address.
Faster than dial-up, faster than DSL*, Comcast High-Speed Internet is easier to use and will offer new and improved features, such as access from anywhere to web-based e-mail, an innovative Web-storage solution for MP3s, files and photos, as well as improved customer self-help. The new network also will provide the platform to deliver new products like video chat, video conferencing and second line IP telephony - faster, more efficiently and with greater reliability.
We will provide you with e-mail notification and easy instructions on how to convert your account to Comcast High-Speed Internet before we introduce service in your area. In addition, Comcast will continue to provide you with regular updates on our toll-free hotline at 1-888-433-6963 and on our website at http://www.comcastonline.com/info.htm.
We appreciate your loyalty as a customer and apologize for any inconvenience you have been caused through the Excite@Home bankruptcy proceedings. We look forward to introducing you to Comcast High-Speed Internet. Thank you for choosing Comcast.
Sincerely,
David Juliano
Sr. Vice President, Comcast Online |
^ top-Funcom sacrifices 30 employees to the MMORPG Gods in hopes it'll save AO.
[Fixxxer] December 11 - 8:35 PM EST | Anyone speak Danish? If you do, go knock your socks off at VG Nett and read this article. Or, I can decipher it for you:
"Friday 30 persons were granted a leave of absence in the Norwegian gaming-company Funcom. The reason is the extremely poor reception Anarchy Online got.
Friday we gave about 30 employees in Funcom notice that their jobs have been temporarily suspended. It’s a hard decision to take, says Marit Lund, the PR-director in Funcom.
All of the company’s mobile division together with 20 persons in other side-projects in Funcom is on the list. Earlier this year the branch in Ireland that worked on games for Microsoft’s Xbox was also closed.
We cut down on all side-functions to concentrate fully on AO. All the persons that have been very involved with AO are of course still safe in their jobs, says Lund.
AO was launched in June and immediately got a ton of technical difficulties. Many had big problems playing the game and the criticism was mainly that the game was released too soon. The players followed up the criticism by not subscribing to the game.
Midgard is so far halfway put on ice. Its AO that counts now, says Lund.
The Funcom employees affected by the lay-offs retain their employee status and are paid 80 percent of their salary by the Norwegian government. Funcom plans to bring the employees back in the next few months. All the remaining developers that were working on Midgard have been reassigned to work full-time on Anarchy Online in order to ensure the game's success."
Some people were looking forward to Midgard, looks like they will be looking forward for a long time. Then again, some people were avoiding Midgard like the plague. Call it guilty by association.
Recently, Funcom made it known that it wanted the old subscribers of AO to give the game another shot by offering a free 're-evaluation' during December. They feel their product has greatly improved since late summer.
This is their next step in trying to convince the public that they are in this for the long run.
Are you convinced?
dabu |
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