|
↓ Main Menu ↓
» Home
» Forums
» Advertise
↓ UOPG Services ↓
» UO Sales & Service
» UO Gold
» UO Gametime
» Tokens and Gifts
» Character Gifts/Tokens/Codes
» Used Accounts
» Buy UO Houses
» UO Assist
↓ Navigation ↓
» News Archives
» NWNPowerGamers
» Stories
» UO Craft
» UOPG Email
↓ Community ↓
» Forum
» FAQ
» CPU Tech Help
» Essays
↓ Stats/Skills ↓
» Champion Spawn Guide
» Stats Guide
» Skill Guide
» Guaranteed Gain System
» 8x8 Essay
↓ Strategy ↓
» Character Guide
» Player vs Monster
» Player vs Player
» Special Moves
↓ Information ↓
» Armor Guide
» Bug Awareness
» Files
» Tricks
|
 |
September 2001 News:
|
^ top-Powerhour!
[Phazer] September 18 - 11:18 PM EDT | You can now say "powerhour" to find out when your next powerhour is starting. I like this much better than having to remeber when you last logged in.
-phazer |
^ top-Concerns/Complaints are addressed.
[Eric] September 18 - 8:21 PM EDT | Pulled this piece off the UO Dev. Board...
1) The system seems too focused on single players.
Response: That's intended for low skill blacksmiths that are exploring the game. Although, it should not be an issue for high skill blacksmiths.
2) The deeds can be completed by non-blacksmiths.
Response: Blacksmiths are required to collect the deeds. The rewards for high-end deeds are usable by blacksmiths only.
3) Some folks want the deeds to be non-transferrable/non-completable by original owner of the deed.
Response: This breaks the ability to swap deeds. The chances of getting all 7 deeds required for a large bulk deed for platemail of the same type is very low (would take a good while) and almost requires transferring of deeds between blacksmiths.
4) Ingot prices will soar.
Response: This is player regulated and not regulated by a game mechanic. Although, you can mine ingots without purchasing them. :)
5) People will camp vendors for ingots.
Response: We have a fix for this in testing. Also, iron ingot bulk deeds would yield significantly lower rewards than colored ore deeds.
6) People will camp shopkeepers for deeds and run the shopkeepers out of gold.
Response: The deeds will be available from both armourers and blacksmiths. Most towns have at least two shopkeepers of one or the other type (or more). This will alleviate camping. Also, deeds are not given out constantly. They are random and a delay occurs after receiving an order.
-Hanse
UO Live Designer
One thing I noted, is that miners will have their value increased. Dust off your miner and starting mining those ingots.
Ingot prices WILL be going up. :)
Cya later. |
^ top-The patch
[Phazer] September 18 - 5:42 PM EDT | "Other than that pain-in-the-ass crash bug when non-humans tried to sit, not much going on in this patch."
There's actually some more stuff in the patch than that, however nothing that will be active right away.
If you're interested in some -possible- crafting changes, take a look at this thread
-phazer |
^ top-Client Patch 3.04p
[Nissa] September 18 - 4:42 PM EDT | This was just posted to FYI:
We will be releasing a client patch on Tuesday, September 18th at approximately 3:00 pm CDT. This patch contains the following changes:
3D Client
Paperdoll no longer closes and reopens to refresh the paperdoll model.
Players will no longer be able to equip non-wearable objects by dropping them on the paperdoll background. This was causing drag slot problems preventing them from picking things up.
Various animation files added.
Both Clients
Fixed a crash bug that occurred whenever non-humans tried to sit.
Various localization files added.
The current versions should now be 3.0.4p (2D client) and 3.0.4p Build 77 (3D client).
NOTE: Windows 95 users that have not upgraded to Winsock 2 may receive the error “missing winsock32.dll”. To fix this problem, these users should download and install the new version of Winsock, which can be found here. If you have any difficulty receiving this patch, please check the following:
Check the “Patch” directory within your Ultima Online directory (the default location is C:\\Program Files\Ultima Online\Patch). This directory should be empty. Any files in this directory should be deleted.
If you are unable to connect to the patch server at all, and are using an original (Non-T2A) version of Ultima Online, you may need to update your verinfo file. For details on updating this file, please see the information posted at http://support.uo.com/tech_6.html.
Run a virus scan on your computer. Undetected viruses may cause conflicts with patching Ultima Online. For information on up-to-date virus detection software, please visit http://www.mcafee.com/myapps/vso/default.asp.
If after trying the above, you are still experiencing difficulty patching the Ultima Online client, please contact Technical Support at tech@uo.com.
Other than that pain-in-the-ass crash bug when non-humans tried to sit, not much going on in this patch.
Nissa |
^ top-New, bigger, badder, Virus runs amok.
[Nieves] September 18 - 3:44 PM EDT | Guninski said the only workaround is to "Disable Active Scripting" in the Tools/Options/Security menu, which can be accessed from within Outlook or Explorer.
You can read all about this bad motherfo over at Stratics. There is just too much information to post here. GO and read about it.
I recommend this. Unplug your network connection. If on dialup, don't logon to the Internet yet. Fire up your email app WITHOUT logging onto the internet. Disable Active Scripting so this mother doesn't kick your computer in the mouth. That's what I plan on doing tonight. That way you don't accidently bring it into your house.
If it's not one thing it's another.
Hasta. |
^ top-It's Hard to Get Back Into It
[Nieves] September 18 - 12:03 PM EDT | After watching thousands of people die on national television.
It's sobering. I look at my computer and the UO login icon and think: "gawd, I feel guilty". I look at the link for Newspro and think: "What the fuck is there to talk about that's more important than what's going on?"
Then I realize, we must go on.
Our world has changed. Forever. But has life stopped? Nope. Do not forget what happened. Do not dishonor those folks we have lost. But we have to live on.
With that, here is what I have to say today about UO:
The new Bulk Order Deeds sound very very cool. I actually like making things with my Blacksmith. Don't ask me why. I just do. Maybe it's the fact that I have my maker's mark on those items. Maybe it's because he's my first GM craft skill character. Regardless, it's a different way to make gold. And it's always about the gold piece right?
If you haven't noticed, Paladin is back with us here. He just can't stay away from all the love I have for him.
Anyway, I am going to go now.
Hasta. |
^ top-So fresh and so clean clean!
[Nieves] September 17 - 6:23 PM EDT | Even as we resume our lives after the tragic events of September 11th, we at Origin understand that many people are still unable to attend to things at home, due to travel issues, communication difficulties, or concern for missing loved ones. To help accommodate those players who have been in any way affected by these events, Origin Systems will be automatically refreshing all Ultima Online houses through the entire month of September.
---
Kerowyn
UO.com Content Editor/Writer
Origin Systems
kerowyn@uo.com
I am going to marry that girl!
::blinks::
What?
I mean, since Cynthe, Leilo and HeatherXRGCOB won't have me, so why not?
Hasta. |
^ top-T Shirts
[Nieves] September 17 - 4:27 PM EDT | I almost ordered them today, but there was an issue with using OSI/UO images and I have to get with Warlord about getting a new image for our T Shirts (thanks for bringing it up KH/Eric). Maybe Warlord will see this and gets on it.
I am planning on having them ordered by week's end and I will set up a preorder request form for people to reserve one by that time. I am pretty sure that we will sell out of the first batch fast and I would recommend to you folks that want one to get that preorder in quick. Don't email me about preordering at this time. Wait for the official announcement. (I bet you I get at least 30 emails by tomorrow about ordering).
I am not sure what the cost is as I am considering taking proceeds and donating it to the Red Cross. I will let you know in the future.
Also, I might be changing what's going to be on the T Shirt to honor the fallen in NYC and WTC. I am not sure yet. But I will let you know.
As far as posting your feelings about the attacks, there is a forum for it. Please refer to that forum for those series of topics.
I went and saw Rush Hour 2 yesterday. The movie opens up with an Embassy Bombing. I jumped out of my seat when it happened. Too freaky. I am feeling you Epyon. Some shit is just too freaky to participate in.
Hasta. |
^ top-Lum the Mad Closes Shop 9/30/2001
[Nieves] September 17 - 2:42 PM EDT | No bullshit.
Here is an excerpt:LtM would have, at the very least, gone through a name/domain change. What will happen now is that on 9/30 we will take down the site. I know some of the other writers and people who work here are talking about creating a new site. They'll be posting more about that here in the next couple of weeks. There's an EZ Board around here somewhere that we used to use while we were looking for hosting. I'll try to dig the URL for that up so that you folks have a way to stay in contact with each other.
The LtM crew didn't talk to me much, but I had MUCH respect for their writing style.
It sucks much ass that we are losing one of the premiere, unadulterated, tell it like it is, gaming review and editorial sites.
Good luck Myschyf in what you do. I wish LtM was going to stick around, but, "life goes on....long after the thrill of living is gone".
Hasta.
|
^ top-When great games suck..
[Epyon] September 17 - 1:21 PM EDT | Having finally beaten the Allied disc of Red Alert 2, I threw in the Soviet disc out of my pure love for the game.
Mission One..Destroy the Pentagon.
Ok I thought, its just a game..Though I had a hard time doing it I finished the level.
Mission Two..Destroy a Allied Navel Base off the coast of Florida.
Again, its just a game..I breezed through this level.
Mission Three..Capture a Tech building near the World Trade Center, and then destroy them.
I quit the game.
This was just hitting to close to home, I don't think ill ever play through it now. I love that game, but the missions are just hitting to soft of a part right now.. |
^ top-Bulk order deeds and other news..
[Phazer] September 14 - 7:47 PM EDT | For those looking for a little distraction from the recent tragedies, here are some UO news.
Bulk Order Deeds are now in General Testing.
It's basically another "ticket system", only limited to blacksmithes, and with different prices.
The Barkeeps have been published to at least some shards. You can buy barkeep deeds for about 6k in most taverns (note: not inns) from npc barkeeps.
Also, those who haven't been able to log on to UO, or just didn't feel like playing a video game - All houses have been refreshed on September 12th. |
^ top-Moment of Silence
[Nieves] September 14 - 8:52 AM EDT | We'd like to ask that a moment of silence be observed in-game on Friday, Sept. 14th at 8 PM CDT, 6 PM PDT. This is not a game-enforced thing, and players will not be warned or suspended for not participating... but we will be in game at that time, and will observe a moment of reflection. We invite all who are reading to do the same... and feel free to spread the word.
Thanks.
Thank you to Cynthe, Fear, Baeshin, Silk, and the other gaming sites for your support of the folks in the Pentagon and the World Trade Center.
I do not plan on making any further updates today. This is a National Day of Mourning and I intend on respecting my President's wishes. Besides, I don't think any Gaming News today is even remotely important at this time. I didn't even get excited when I chose my rewards last night. It was like: "big deal, people are dead".
Please fly your flags high today and for the next 30 days.
Please take the time to reflect during one of the scheduled Moments of Silence today. Also, there is a National Time of Rememberance scheduled at 7PM EST US Time. Stand outside of your houses and light some candles.
I want to make a point before I shut this down for the day.
I have a friend. His name is Mohammed. And he's afraid. Why? He's afraid that he will wind up in a concentration camp. He hasn't been out much. Why? He's afraid that he will be a victim of the violence and hate being directed at innocent Arabic-Americans. Think people. These are Americans. And they didn't have anything to do with what happened in New York or our nation's capital.
Let the US Government and it's Justice Agencies do their job. You can help by giving blood, raising money, and makeing donations to the Red Cross.
Hasta. |
^ top-Some Help
[Nieves] September 13 - 3:26 PM EDT | From Lum's:
Sony Online Entertainment needs your help in locating Gregory Trost. Gregory is a nephew of an SOE employee and his last known location was the 86th floor of Tower Two in the World Trade Center. With the tragic events that took place on September 11, the Trost family is anxious for any information regarding Gregory. If you have any information on Gregory's whereabouts, please contact Sony Online Entertainment at this special address greginfo@station.sony.com.
Here is a picture of him.
If you know, please help.
Hasta.
|
^ top-Moment of Silence
[Nieves] September 13 - 8:27 AM EDT | I want to thank everyone for understanding why we have moved the Terrorist Attack discussions to a different forum.
On Friday, Noon EST, I am asking everyone within the Gaming Community to take 60 seconds of their time to stop whatever they are doing, whether it's in game or what have you, and consider the ones we have lost in the horrid attacks.
I am in discussion with some of the major online gaming websites and would hope the major gaming companies join us in this time.
It's the least I can do.
Hasta. |
^ top-Always Remember.
[Paladin] September 12 - 8:11 PM EDT | Ramirez has created a special forum for CBT members to discuss the events of 11SEP01. If you can post on the UOPG forums, then you can post here. any comments that you have. I will see about having the existing posts moved and having them unlocked.
|
^ top-Cynthe Speaks....and I agree.
[Nieves] September 12 - 4:12 PM EDT | I want everyone here to know that it was extremely difficult to delete posts this morning that expressed the same sentiment I was feeling about today's attacks. But as I said in my main thread this morning, Ultima Online is here to entertain, and to give people a way to enter a different world - one without the same concerns as this one.
I feel that this community is one that flourishes because we have a common interest, and that's a game that we all can lose ourselves in, even if for only a little while. Thus it was important to see that the events of this morning not overshadow that purpose.
But as I said, we are a community, and a strong one - that relies on each other to talk to, and to vent to. And it's obvious that this will affect everyone in some way.
So now that today is almost over, I hope that the posts on this will slow... but I'll allow them to be posted on the boards. I do have a few requests, however.
Please try not to start more new threads than necessary. If you are wanting to post your thoughts on the event, I ask that you find another thread on the subject if possible, and add your thoughts there. And please keep it to Discussions. Development should remain solely for development-related Ultima Online topics.
Do not post racist or inflammatory remarks. We are a global community, with players from every walk of life. The details on today's events are still not known for sure, no matter what the theories at this time may be.
Do not advocate violence. It's understandable to be angry, and to want to vent. But the basic guidelines of these boards remain unchanged. The community here can use each other to talk, to get feelings off their chest, to share emotions and stories, to commiserate, and to help each other deal with a tragic event, but bringing violence here is not acceptable.
And most of all, we can discuss ways to help. Donate blood. Pray, if that's something you believe in. And hug your families.
__________________
Cynthe
Community Manager
ORIGIN Systems
I was going to wait till tomorrow to do this, but I think it's time.
As of this hour, no more posts related to the Terrorists Attacks.
I had allowed them to allow you to vent your frustrations and feelings about it.
It's now becoming a political hot bed and that is NOT UOPG's focus. The moderators have free reign to delete all but the following thread.
All subsequent threads are hereby KOS.
I am sorry but it's time for actions, not words.
Please, go out, give blood if you can, collect items for those that need it and get it to the Red Cross, and then pray if you do that, and support those that need it.
Hasta. |
^ top-Canadians Sending Some Love to the US.
[Nieves] September 12 - 8:55 AM EDT | I am a UO player and a big fan and supporter of your site. I have received an email from my mother that I feel really hits home. Read this, from a Canadian citizen and reporter. As someone who was planning to attend the UO Faire but now does not want to be anywhere near an airplane, I really felt it when I read it. Thank you and my best wishes to all of you and your loved ones (I too have loved ones there, some who I have not heard from yet). I have added my own comments to the beginning which I would prefer to see stay attached but you may edit anything you feel inappropriate for your readers.
Hello everyone, this is something sent to me by my mother. This really hits the bullseye and I hope this gets around worldwide. This shit cannot be tolerated. It is time for the governments of all free countries, and those of countries not yet free, but who believe in the promise of freedom, to unite and put an end to this evil in our world
once and for all!!! May the cowards who did this, and all those who harbor, support, or follow them, get what they deserve. I for one am irate over this and feel that we should not have to live in fear. We need to act as a global community to prevent this from EVER happening again either here in the U.S. or any other country. We have been diplomatic in the past over incidents such as the World Trade Center bombing in '93 and this is what that has gotten us. This MUST stop here and now. No more excuses!! We must roll up our sleeves as a nation and as a world and, diplomacy be damned, put an end to this barbaric behavior. From what I have read today we have the support of the entire free world, and for that I, and I am sure all of America, offer our most sincere thanks and appreciation. This was not just an attack against the U.S. but on the free nations of the world. Many countries worldwide lost people in those buildings today. This is not our fight alone. I offer my most heart-felt condolences to anyone reading this who has lost loved ones or has been otherwise affected by this. I truly hope that the world governments do not let this slide, that they go out and hunt down ANY and ALL of those who are known terrorists and put an end to them. This type of cowerdly action proves nothing and can not be justified by ANY political or religous means. These people are cowards and do not deserve to breathe the same air that so many people have lost their lives to protect. Please feel free to add any comments or feelings to this but please do not edit anything I have said. I am sure I could say a lot more but I am still too upset to continue. Please forward this to as many people as you can and let's get the message out that we will not bow down to ANYONE, we will not live in fear and we will not tolerate ANYONE who tries to deny us our safety and, above all else, our FREEDOM!!
God Bless Us All,
Charles Eidschun
Subject: Tribute to America
TRIBUTE TO THE UNITED STATES
This, from a Canadian newspaper, is worth sharing.
America: The Good Neighbor.
Widespread but only partial news coverage was given
recently to a remarkable editorial broadcast from
Toronto by Gordon Sinclair, a Canadian television
Commentator. What follows is the full text of his
trenchant remarks as printed in the Congressional
Record:
"This Canadian thinks it is time to speak up for the
Americans as the most generous and possibly the
least appreciated people on all the earth. Germany,
Japan and, to a lesser extent, Britain and Italy
were lifted out of the debris of war by the
Americans who poured in billions of dollars and
forgave other billions in debts.
None of these countries is today paying even the
interest on its remaining debts to the United
States. When France was in danger of collapsing in
1956, it was the Americans who propped it up, and
their reward was to be insulted and swindled on the
streets of Paris. I was there. I saw it.
When earthquakes hit distant cities, it is the
United States that hurries in to help. This spring,
59 American communities were flattened by tornadoes.
Nobody helped. The Marshall Plan and the Truman
Policy pumped billions of dollars into discouraged
countries. Now newspapers in those countries are
writing about the decadent, warmongering Americans.
I'd like to see just one of those countries that is
gloating over the erosion of the United States
dollar build its own airplane. Does any other
country in the world have a plane to equal the
Boeing Jumbo Jet, the Lockheed Tri-Star, or the
Douglas DC10?
If so, why don't they fly them? Why do all the
International lines except Russia fly American
Planes? Why does no other land on earth even
consider putting a man or woman on the moon? You
talk about Japanese technocracy, and you get radios.
You talk about German technocracy, and you get
automobiles. You talk about American technocracy,
and you find men on the moon - not once, but several
times - and safely home again.
You talk about scandals, and the Americans put
theirs right in the store window for everybody to
look at. Even their draft-dodgers are not pursued
and hounded. They are here on our streets, and most
of them, unless they are breaking Canadian laws, are
getting American dollars from ma and pa at home to
spend here.
When the railways of France, Germany and India were
breaking down through age, it was the Americans who
rebuilt them When the Pennsylvania Railroad and the
New York Central went broke, nobody loaned them an
old caboose. Both are still broke.
I can name you 5000 times when the Americans raced
to the help of other people in trouble. Can you name
me even one time when someone else raced to the
Americans in trouble? I don't think there was
outside help even during the San Francisco
earthquake.
Our neighbors have faced it alone, and I'm one
Canadian who is damned tired of hearing them get
kicked around. They will come out of this thing
with their flag high. And when they do, they are
entitled to thumb their nose at the lands that are
gloating over their present troubles. I hope Canada
is not one of those."
Stand proud, America! Wear it proudly!!
This is one of the best editorials that I have ever
read regarding the United States. It is nice that
one man realizes it. I only wish that the rest of
the world would realize it. We are always blamed for
everything, and never even get a thank you for the
things we do.
I would hope that each of you would send this to as
many people as you can and emphasize that they
should send it to as many of their friends until
this letter is sent to every person on the web. I am
just a single American that has read this, TRIBUTE TO
THE UNITED STATES
I hadn't thought about the points represented in the above.
What country has come to the aid of the United States in the last 20 years with our earthquakes, exploding volcanoes, hurricanes, and other misc. disasters? How many times has the US gone to different countries to help?
Mexico City and their major earthquake.
Kyoto's earthquake.
Turkey.
Do I really really have to go on?
I never gave it a 2nd thought because, you know, we can, usually, take care of our own. But, noone in the world has to ask if we can help. That may be due to America's overly curious and sometimes meddlesome nature, but we usually come with the best of intentions.
I call on EVERY country in the world to put up or shut up.
Do you side with Terror? Or do you stand against it?
Not in my back yard. Ever again.
A message to those people bombing Islamic websites or harrassing peoples of Arabic descent. Stop. You don't know who did it. Neither is the government 100% about who did it, regardless of what the fucking media is saying.
Shut up, stop being asshoes, and let the government do it's job. If you want to help, give blood, organize food and supply drives in your community. Support loved ones that have lost loved ones and remember any you may have lost.
Honor these people. Don't insult them with stupidity and ignorance.
Hasta |
^ top-Show Some Love
[Nieves] September 12 - 8:32 AM EDT | Nieves,
In the recent events I thought it would be fitting to
hold a Night of Honor, for those who wished to mourn,
share their tales, or just be in the company of others
who are also taken back by our current situation.
I'm working to organize an event on Saturday,
September 15th, 8pm CST. Place is Nujelm Cemetary,
Trammel (Lake Superior Shard)
I've already posted this topic on the UOPG forums. If
you could spread this event to other news sites you
know, or just show it some love on UOPG, that would
help out the cause greatly. Thank you so much for your
time.
Best wishes to you and those affected,
Hewn
Hasta. |
^ top-OSI Banning Those that Taunt the American Players
[Nieves] September 12 - 8:26 AM EDT | I hope whatever shard you play on, you don't have to deal with assholes that disrepect the dead and spirit of America. I play on Pacific shard and as a show of respect, we held our own candlelight vigil.. but was rudely disrepected by Chronos and Tyler Durden, both of whom starting Chanting, "We're not Americans, so who cares...." "It's just a few dead, let them fry." hmmm How considerate. I'm glad OSI has decided to ban/suspend anyone doing this. And yes, we did report these two idiots.
Outlaws eXchange [O/X]
Feel it.
Hasta. |
^ top-Hell To Pay
[Ian] September 11 - 7:13 PM EDT | At this moment my heart bleeds for those on the planes and in the towers. Innocent victims of a dilluded idealism from a people they have never met. What strikes me is how completely pointless this was. No intellectual being on the planet can twist this into any "America is the root of all evil" and justify this in any way, shape or form.
That being said, what people outside of the US don't know, or turn a blind eye to when dealing with the US, is just how tough we, as Americans are. We are the absolute toughest accumulation of people this planet has ever seen. If the powers that construed this monstrous event thought that America would buckle up and cry and whimper and say please don't do that again, they're obviously not history buffs. Indeed, if you so much as sneeze on America, we come after you with 3 branches of the military, and 1 sub branch of the Navy. You know, that fuzzy, soft hearted bunch known in some circles as, Marines.
To the people who did this. Although justice will be impossible to fully serve, retribution is fully neccessary. Pray that God shows you a little bit of mercy, because America will not.
Before we may heal, there is Hell to Pay.
|
^ top-That Freedom Shall Not Perish....
[Paladin] September 11 - 7:05 PM EDT | For the first time in 60 years the United States has suffered an act of war on her own soil. For the first time since 1865, there has been an act of war on the mainland of the United States. Make no mistake, this is an act of war.
This is not the planned killing of a few servicemen on foreign soil. Neither is it the act of a single madman. It was a carefully crafted, exceptionaly well executed tactical operation with one major strategic flaw.
To borrow from Admiral Yamamato, They have awakened a sleeping giant and filled him with a terrible resolve. This was a bad mistake you sorry bastards.
Start sweating bullets, boys, because America is coming for you. Find a hole. Find the deepest darkest hole you can find, but rest assured that it won't be deep enough. America is going to find you, and America doesn't take prisoners, assholes.
Just a final note for everyone. Don't look at Americans who are of Middle Eastern stock as our enemies. They are not our enemies. They are Americans too, and they are as angry as every other American. Don't let the terrorists win. Don't divide us further, rather, let us unite together in support of our country, and in the effort to bring all those involved before the bar of final justice.
Please, also, everyone who can go donate blood for the people in Washington, D.C. and New York. |
^ top-A story, and a picture.
[Nieves] September 11 - 6:43 PM EDT | From my friend in New York:
My friend, J, in New York got off the boat and looked across at a plane crossing the water. It then turned into the World Trade Center and ran into the middle of WTC Tower 2 and pretty much cut it in half. Her oldest daughter works in that building.
Her friend grabbed at J and told her we need to get back on the boat and go. J said no, my daughter works there. I got to get her. Her friend managed to get J on the boat. Later on, J's daughter called J on J's cell phone. She had been trampled in the rush to get out. J got to her daughter and got her to the hospital.
Last word her daughter was in stable condition, but in a state of shock and had been sedated.
My friend J has been trying all day to get in touch with another friend that worked on the 85th floor of the other Tower. J and this person had been friends for 20 years.
Can you be happy for J? I am not. Too many people died a senseless death.
That's but one story. I am sure there will be 10 million more (approx. population of NYC).
On Trinsic Great Lakes was a "candle light" vigil with the flag of the US.
Here is picture one:
And here is picture two:
Thank you Watts for Picture #2.
And thank you to all the folks at the Trinsic Bank, Great Lakes (Trammel) for the 1st one.
I heard God Bless America sung for the first time on TV today. I almost cried. Yah, it hit right there.
Oh, I forgot. Veteran Rewards was pulled because of some problems. But who fucking cares about that right now?
Hasta. |
^ top-Afghanistan
[Nieves] September 11 - 4:59 PM EDT | Something is going on right now as I speak.
Explosions and flaks going on in Kabul.
I wonder what's going on over there.
Hasta |
^ top-Today's date: 911
[Eric] September 11 - 4:52 PM EDT | I was in shock at 8:30 this morning when I found out about this tragic event. My most heartfelt condolences go out to those lost in this terrible tragedy and to those who have lost family members or friends. Everything else I have to say has basically been said by the other updaters.
One thing I want to stress is that if you can give blood or donate food, both would be helpful as New York currently has a shortage of blood. Also, take some time off away from the computer like Nieves has stated. Don't worry about your power hour, don't worry about reading our news. Be with your family and/or loved ones. If you've lost someone, you have my condolences. If you haven't, be glad that you haven't, and be with those that you do have. You may have someone to go home to, be it parents or your spouse. After today, many do not.
Pray for them.
|
^ top-New York
[KH] September 11 - 4:07 PM EDT | I'm sitting here in shock, watching the news.
It seems such a small thing to offer condolences to all those directly effected by the attacks, but it's all I seem to be able to do.
To all the updaters, posters, and readers I know are currently serving with the military and police: God willing, this will be resolved without you, but if not, stay safe. |
^ top-If you can, give.
[Nieves] September 11 - 1:30 PM EDT | Alot of you sit there thinking "what the fuck can I do to help?"
Two things: Give blood. And gather whatever non-perishable foods you can and get it to your local Red Cross office.
Also, be careful what you download these days.
Please refrain from making personal attacks at someone you suspect is responsible for the attack. Just because they are of a certain color or race or creed does not make them a progenitor of these series of crimes.
Be smart. Go ahead and rage. But focus that rage and do something good to help.
I have people in that area I am worried about. I am focusing my rage into finding them.
Then I will work on something else to maybe make an impact.
Give. And be smart.
Hasta. |
^ top-"Yet Another Day Of Infamy In Our Countries History"
[Gator] September 11 - 11:01 AM EDT | To the Congress of the United States:
Yesterday, December 7, 1941 -- a date which will live in infamy -- the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan.
The United States was at peace with that Nation and, at the solicitation of Japan, was still in conversation with its Government and its Emperor looking toward the maintenance of peace in the Pacific. Indeed, one hour after Japanese air squadrons had commenced bombing in Oahu, the Japanese Ambassador to the United States and his colleague delivered to the Secretary of State of form reply to a recent American message. While this reply stated that it seemed useless to continue the existing diplomatic negotiations, it contained no threat or hint of war or armed attack.
It will be recorded that the distance of Hawaii from Japan makes it obvious that the attack was deliberately planned many days or even weeks ago. During the intervening time the Japanese Government had deliberately sought to deceive the United States by false statements and expressions of hope for continued peace.
The attack yesterday on the Hawaiian Islands has caused severe damage to American naval and military forces. Very many American lives have been lost. In addition American ships have been reported torpedoed on the high seas between San Francisco and Honolulu.
Yesterday the Japanese Government also launched an attack against Malaya.
Last night Japanese forces attacked Hong Kong.
Last night Japanese forces attacked Guam.
Last night Japanese forces attacked the Philippine Islands.
Last night the Japanese attacked Midway Island.
Japan has, therefore, undertaken a surprise offensive extending throughout the Pacific area. The facts of yesterday speak for themselves. The people of the United States have already formed their opinions and well understand the implications to the very life and safety of our Nation.
As Commander-in-Chief of the Army and Navy I have directed that all measures be taken for our defense.
Always will we remember the character of the onslaught against us.
No matter how long it may take us to overcome this premeditated invasion, the American people in their righteous might will win through to absolute victory.
I believe I interpret the will of the Congress and of the people when I assert that we will not only defend ourselves to the uttermost but will make very certain that this form of treachery shall never endanger us again.
Hostilities exist. There is no blinking at the fact that our people, our territory, and our interests are in grave danger.
With confidence in our armed forces -- with the unbounded determination of our people -- we will gain the inevitable triumph -- so help us God.
I ask that the Congress declare that since the unprovoked and dastardly attack by Japan on Sunday, December seventh, a state of war has existed between the United States and the Japanese Empire.
Franklin D. Roosevelt
The White House, December 8, 1941
Not since that fatal day have we seen the likes of such a cowardly attack upon our nations soil. Remember this date my friends. Remember what our country stands for. And remember whoever in the hell pulled this shit, that you have awoken the "Sleeping Giant" once again. Remember this day my friends, remmeber the lives lost in your prayers. Remember the familes of the victims.
Christopher L Snuffer
SSGT USMC |
^ top-Terrorist Attacks.
[Epyon] September 11 - 10:24 AM EDT | This is the time I believe when your life is forced to come into a very clear perception on what you believe is right, and what you must do.
Thousands of people have died today, its sickening. Pray that Bush takes a stand and declare war on this or it will never stop.
And should that come, I will be the first to enlist in our Military and I urge all of the able people reading this to do so.
No longer can we sit back and rest on the laurles of our freedom. This is the time to stand up for the future. |
^ top-Forget UOPG for today.
[Nieves] September 11 - 10:09 AM EDT | With what's going on today, log off UO, forget about UOPG, Ultima Online and gaming in general. Tend to your families. See that they are ok.
Life is short and tomorrow isn't guaranteed.
God Bless America, it's people, and the people that have lost their lives in this tradegy. God Bless and keep the families that have lost their loved ones.
To the ones responsible, be afraid. Be very afraid. And be ready to be sent to hell to rot.
America is coming for you. And you are fucked.
Hasta. |
^ top-What is Roleplaying?
[Nieves] September 11 - 8:28 AM EDT | A thread was started by the denizens of UOPG's Dungeon (forum) and the debate for what is and what isn't a roleplayer hath begun.
Feel free to give your view of what a roleplayer is.
Do I have an opinion of what a roleplayer is? Sure do. Do I do a good job at it in my RP guild? Hardly. I need to work at it.
I do have a message to all the RP guilds out there that are "hard core RPers" (think Orc Guilds). Regardless of what happens ("I roxxor juus n3\/\/3][3!!~1"), stay in character. He calls you a bitch, call him a "slovenly son of a bar wench", he calls you and asshoe, return the comment by saying, "watch your tongue knave, or I shall cut it and your head from your shoulders". But, be ready to back the talk up. Nothing better than when a RPer takes it to a PvPer. That's why I love the RP guilds I have come to know and wuv on Great Lakes. Most of them are pretty good PvPers. And can hang with anyone.
Anyway, I am blabbering again.
I am going to watch the news and see who the fuck it was that decided to fly their fucking planes into the World Trade Center. I say the US declares war on those groups and ganks the fuck out of them. If anyone has read Executive Order by Tom Clancy, you know what I am talking about.
Hasta. |
^ top-Powergaming becomes one step more difficult.
[Eric] September 10 - 10:28 PM EDT | At first, I thought the only bad part about the new power hour system was that it begins 24 hours after your previous power hour. Obviously, if one evening you decide to play your power hour at 10 pm, you will have to wait until 10 pm the following day to play another hour of power skill gain. I was just made aware of the following aspect of the power hour system that I wasn't aware of:
The power hour lasts for an hour. So if you get disconnected, and you get right back in, your power hour is still in effect until an hour after it began. If you are disconnected, and cannot get back in during that hour, then I'm afraid that you will not get another power hour until the 24 hours is up.
What does this mean? If you want your power hour, you have to play it for the full hour straight or else you'll have to wait another 24 hours for your next hour. In the past, you could play your power hour for 10 minutes, log off, and then log in later that day for another 50 minutes that you have remaining from that day's power hour. Now, this has changed. If you play 5 minutes of your power hour and realize that you have to go walk the dog, go to the bathroom, etc., you lose that time out of your power hour. If your ISP goes down after 10 minutes of power hour play and doesn't come back up until 2 hours later, you missed the last 50 minutes of your power hour and now must wait another day for the next power hour. You get the idea. Does it suck? Of course. This is going to cause many players to not take advantage of power skill gain like they have in the past, thus allowing for less powergamers. Some may actually view that aspect as a good thing, but overall, no one wants this screwy power hour system.
Goodnight. |
^ top-Guess who likes the new power hour system?
[Eric] September 10 - 9:42 PM EDT | An OSI employee, of course.
Me, I'm happy that the gift of the "Power Hour" is in the game in any fashion, even if this new version is considered to be on a more rigid schedule.
It certainly helped me raise my skills (I'm not at all any type of "power gamer," and the burst hour definitely helped me raise skills that otherwise would barely have gone up even one-tenth of a point in a week).
I know the new system may not be as convenient for some players, particularly those who may have liked to run their Power Hours back to back, but, ultimately, it was decided that this new version is what's currently best for the game as a whole, and I support that thinking.
=========
Sannio
Online Community Coordinator, UO
Origin Systems
Did you read that? He doesn't consider himself a powergamer. Maybe that's why he likes the new power hour system. It seems as though the powergamers don't like it too much.
Cya later. |
^ top-Changes
[Nieves] September 10 - 8:06 PM EDT | You will be seeing little changes here at UOPG now and again.
We are working on an upgrade to the site so bear with us.
Yes, an upgrade is coming.
Good things are coming.
Hasta. |
^ top-Ethereal Horse anyone?
[Nieves] September 10 - 7:21 PM EDT | The connectivity fix for the Veteran Rewards system has been published to all shards, and we are ready to resume activation of the Veteran Rewards system! We are targeting to activate the system on each remaining shard at some point during the day designated below, which means that players should not expect the system to be active immediately following their scheduled morning maintenance. Please note that this schedule is subject to change, and may be extended should any unforeseen issues arise with the rewards system.
All dates listed are Central Daylight Time.
Tuesday, Sept. 11: Siege Perilous
Wednesday, Sept. 12: Europa and Baja
Thursday, Sept. 13: Arirang and Great Lakes
Friday, Sept. 14: Catskills and Hokuto
Monday, Sept. 17: Oceania, Izumo, and Wakoku
Tuesday, Sept. 18: Drachenfels, Mizuho, and Asuka
Wednesday, Sept. 19: AOL Legends, Balhae, and Formosa
Yah baby!
Hasta. |
^ top-What can I say...
[Nissa] September 10 - 1:15 PM EDT | For some strange reason Nieves thinks I can write and asked me to join as an updater. Damn, he must be desperate. :)
Well, hope I can offer some insight on this board. Since I have begun my PvP adventures on Catskills with B&A, I hope to bring you a been playing this game for 3+ years and never PvP'd plus I'm a girl point of view.
Thanks for chance Nieves.
Well, I don't have anything yet, so I found this in my stuff and though I would post it for your enjoyment. (You will need QuickTime.)
Enjoy -- http://download.theforce.net/troops/troops.mov |
^ top-Powerhour changes..
[Phazer] September 10 - 12:20 PM EDT | The way powerhour resets is going to change.
Players will experience a power hour during their first hour of play a character within a 24 hour period, which means that technically, the power hour will be refreshed 23 hours after the previous power hour has ended. If a player does not log in for over 24 hours, their power hour will begin as soon as they log in, and last for the full hour.
This change is scheduled to go in TODAY.
A fix for veteran rewards is also in the same publish:
Once the publish is active, we will monitor the shards that are currently running the Vet Rewards system, and, barring any unforeseen issues, will release a schedule later today for the activation of Vet Rewards on the remaining shards. Keep an eye on FYI for new information!
-phazer |
^ top-Da Winna!
[Nieves] September 9 - 10:30 PM EDT | Sorus is the winner of the Siege Writing Contest.
When the T Shirts come in, he gets one. :) And no, you can't see what they look like yet. But, I will say this, the logo kicks ass. Ask any of the updaters.
His essay, along with Frozenfire's Bard Essay are up in the Essays page.
UPDATE: I was tired Eric. Stop it :P Thanks for the heads up.
Also, welcome Nissa to UOPG. About time she joined us!
Hasta. |
^ top-World War II Online.
[Epyon] September 9 - 12:04 PM EDT | Probably my oldest friend that I met in UO that I talk to still icq'd me about a month ago on this game. I said I heard it was very buggy including the famous flying tank bug. He picked it up anyhow and said he loved it. I was skeptical at first, but he and I share a very same taste in games so I decided what the hell..why not.
Well I logged in as a grunt soldier...and it was like being a UO newbie all over. You know what I mean, that feeling of "wow...". I was running to a town several clicks away when a guy in a truck stopped and told me to get in. I was glad to accept. So here I am riding down a french road in a truck driven by a player, sitting next to other grunts with Sub-machine guns and satchel explosives. That was cool as hell, espically when we got dive bombed and blown to hell. I could do nothing but laugh...this was great!
So I found a guy to tow me and I logged in as a flak gun. He is pulling me to a town and I set up shop in the ruins of a building, I raise my barrel and start firing. No singular kill in UO was as gratifying as when I saw the plane get peppered and watched it crash into the horizon. My group erupted in cheers telling me great job. There is a definte feeling of being part of a group, even from the beginning. I played every side of the coin last night. I was in a tank attacking ground soldiers and tanks alike, I was in a cannon, a fighter plane, a bomber.
Im not going to say this game is without flaws, there are some bugs, but that also reminds me of UO in the beginning, being released to early for its own good.
But the very best thing of all.
There is no lag difference between 56k modem and a T1.
None.
It draws fully on your computer so I have a lag free playing atmosphere and I love it. I fully recommend you all check it out. |
^ top-Movie Review
[Nieves] September 9 - 12:27 AM EDT | Ghosts of Mars <-- Rent it. It's not worth 7 bucks.
The Musketeer <-- Go watch Spy Kids. The action was better.
Hasta. |
^ top-The More Things Change...
[KH] September 7 - 11:12 PM EDT | Is this thing on?
It seems I've missed a lot of things after taking a few months off from playing UO. The volunteer program is a thing of the past. I have to say I've got mixed emotions about that one. Orcs are slightly more interesting to hunt (found that out the hard way), and OSI introduced savage tribesmen, bolas, and other nifty new items. The derived hit point system finally made it to the production shards, although in a modified form from the original "In Concept" I read months ago. I'm much less excited about a few extra HP than I was about the original - and more ambitious - system.
The saga of the Vet Rewards program drags on, and on, and on... I thought I was being pessimistic last summer when I guessed it wouldn't be ready until Christmas 2000. Who knew it would be 9 months later and vet rewards STILL wouldn't be available on all shards? Ultima vet rewards... can you say "oxymoron"? I knew you could.
Anyways, this week I ended up with some free time on my hands, so I thought finally try out the Third Dawn client. I've been holding off on picking up a copy for about 6 months in the hopes that OSI would sort through a lot of the bugs I heard people complaining about when it first shipped. So $34.95 (+ tax) and around 12 megs of downloaded patches later, I finally logged in. And tried to walk. And couldn't.
I've always been philosophical when OSI announces changes or upgrades to UO. After the excruciatingly slow death of both necromancy and alchemy changes, the interminable delays in the Renaissance publish, new housing, the Faction system, vet rewards, you absolutely have to take anything they say with a grain of salt: If OSI gives you a proposed date for some new feature, you can be pretty sure it won't actually go live until the converted metric date (to convert from standard to metric, double it and add 30. Heh. How many other UO sites do YOU know of that can make lame-ass metric jokes?). What burns me is that this time is that I've paid cash to defray their development costs for the 3D client and the work that went into building Ilshenar and ended up with a piece of software that is basically unusable. My system is beyond both the "required" and "recommended" setup listed on the box, but the client lags so badly I can't outrun rats, let alone explore the new land mass.
While I'm disappointed that I've wasted money on something I can't enjoy until I've significantly upgraded my system, I also have to wonder what this ultimately means for UO. A while ago, OSI cancelled plans to develop UO2, after realizing the rather obvious fact that starting a completely new game would just mean being in competition with themselves. They already have a loyal clientele and a robust gaming system... why not simply upgrade the client and just continue to use the current customer base? When they announced the Third Dawn client, it was a step in the right direction to conceptualizing UO as something that can continue to evolve and compete with newer, sexier MMPOGs. As it stands now, the Third Dawn client is more a liability than a step forward. I don't know what the true minimum requirements are to run the pig, but it's certainly not what's recommended on the box. *Not exactly conducive to customer satisfaction* And don't even get me started on the new graphics, which are unfortunately primitive, disproportionate, and quite ugly.
As unhappy as I am with UO:TD, I was interested to see a thread in the forum that mentioned running Ilshenar in the 2D client. Currently it's a bug and a TOS violation, and therefore a banable offence (and anyone who thinks it's undetectable... do you really think it would be difficult for the Ilshenar subserver to distinguish between the 2D and 3D client signatures?). However, I don't think it's unreasonable to suggest that OSI try to rectify the situation by patching the 2D client to look for an installed version of Third Dawn and give everyone access to Ilshenar. It's obviously possible (although it would mean another round of different hued existing monster graphics. After reading Kaara's/Nieves' UOHOC posts on OSI's reluctance to add new artwork, I'd be worried if they tried. If something they DO consider feasible takes almost 2 years to go live, I'd hate to see how long they'd have to spend on something they admit to having "long standing technology problems"...).
|
^ top-UOHOC Chat Highlights
[Kaara] September 7 - 2:20 PM EDT | Some interesting things were said in the UO House of Commons chat last night, here are a few highlights:
You can read the entire log of the chat here.
Question: Kehleyr|Stratics - *Sub_Zero* QUESTION: Is there an ETA for the first week of the next scenario?
Answer: Kehleyr|Stratics - *Sub_Zero* QUESTION: Is there an ETA for the first week of the next scenario?
Calandryll_OSI - Sort of. We are planning on releasing the barkeeper next week. But, the next week of the scenario will not occur the following week.
Calandryll_OSI - The reason for this is so we can have some more time to sure up testing on the rest of the scenario
Calandryll_OSI - and to let players get a barkeep before the actual scenario starts.
A new scenario in two weeks (I give it 4) should be interesting! Im glad they're going to have the new barkeeps in before it starts! I know this doesn't affect you hardcore powergamers, but it sure is sweet for we roleplayers!
Question: Kehleyr|Stratics - *Zypheus* I'd like to ask Them a question...Why does OSI always back away from adding in new art, and when can we expect some? Or are you just testing out the new tech. to do it? I'd appreciate an answer, as I've posted twice about the topic, and BOTH were deleted...
Answer: Evocare - Well, I wouldn't say we always back away from it... the scenarios have already added new art for the 3rd dawn client. The 2d client has not yet recieved new art due to long standing technology problems, but we'll see if that changes someday in the not too distant future... ;]
Calandryll_OSI - Adding new art like new monsters to the 2d client has major issues, especially related to patch size
Calandryll_OSI - we have added some new art to the 2d client though, mostly gump (windows) art, like for the barkeeper
If they actually made a way to add new art to the 2D client I won't ever have to play Third Dawn!! Yay!
Question: Kehleyr|Stratics - *Farnite* Is there any "thing" to be announced as a new release (New expansion, new lands, etc) at the world faire?
Answer: Cynthe - We do have things up our sleeves that we think will make a lot of players really happy, but we can't really talk about it yet. You'll have to come to the Faire to hear the scoop!
Good thing Nieves is going to the Faire to keep us all informed!!
There were a couple other good questions, most of it concerned vet rewards and the usual tamer nerf whining. They did say that the Siege changes would be coming in the VERY near future for those of you who have been inquiring... I suppose we can take that to mean after the weekend if testing goes alright? |
^ top-Amazing what happens when you get to ask questions.
[Nieves] September 7 - 2:13 PM EDT | UOHoC had a chat and Stratics posted it.
Ok, cyas....
Funny how that works, huh? And you should know better. I never end an update without my Patented Hasta (US Patent Pending, 2001).
Anyway, here is snippets of the text and my commentary. Of course.
Kehleyr|Stratics - *Sub_Zero* QUESTION: Is there an ETA for the first week of the next scenario?
Calandryll_OSI - Sort of. We are planning on releasing the barkeeper next week. But, the next week of the scenario will not occur the following week. [...] and to let players get a barkeep before the actual scenario starts.
Er...I guess.
Kehleyr|Stratics - *KaZuL* Will the 2D client be cycled out in the future of Ultima Online? How will you compete with up and coming MMORPGs?
Prophet - We plan on supporting the 2d client for the indefinite future. That's not to say some point far in the future we will drop support for it but that time is easily years away.
Prophet - As for how we will compete we haven't had a problem yet with this and with our ongoing content and improvements to both our clients I don't really see this as a big issue.
Now, I could read into this. I really really could.
"We can't get the 3D Client to work right so we have to keep the 2D Client in so we don't lose customers".
Or
"We intend on making a brand new Client and crashing both the 2D and 3D Clients. It will be released around the time WoW comes out."
I will let you guess which one I actually believe it to be.
Kehleyr|Stratics - *Bronco* With resource gathering people can cut hides instantly with a tool into leather and logs instantly to boards to make it a lot easier to gather them. With mining however people need to have packhorses to carry their ore and walk around with them to find a forge. Will miners ever going to get it easier to gather ore/ingots?
Evocare - Funny how that works eh? No plans to change that right now though. =]
Wah. What's more important? Your Ingot weight problem, or Factions and Rewards?
Get off the freaking board.
Kehleyr|Stratics - *Magellan_THB* Is a fix in the works for the vanq/invuln spawn on level 4 and 5 maps?
Evocare - yep, it'll get toned down soon.
Oh Blackheath...feel like getting burnt out this weekend? Hmm...maybe I should hire Elias.
Kehleyr|Stratics - *Virem|KoC* When can we expect 4th year rewards to be working?
Evocare - It's hard to say at this point... we need to wait until our current system and rewards are running smoothly before we add any more to the vet rewards plate right now. However, we do still plan on implementing the 4th year rewards.
Aight.
Kehleyr|Stratics - *Ave* has the PH been fixed?
Prophet - A fix is currently in testing. The system will change a bit from what you are used to though. It's going to be 1 hour every 24 hours with a minimum of 23 hours between power hours. We should have a schedule for its release next week.
Is it me, or was it on a 24 hour clock anyway? In a business frame of mind, the current time works. It gets more people to play more hours.
Kehleyr|Stratics - *Zypheus* I'd like to ask Them a question...Why does OSI always back away from adding in new art, and when can we expect some? Or are you just testing out the new tech. to do it? I'd appreciate an answer, as I've posted twice about the topic, and BOTH were deleted...
Evocare - Well, I wouldn't say we always back away from it... the scenarios have already added new art for the 3rd dawn client. The 2d client has not yet recieved new art due to long standing technology problems, but we'll see if that changes someday in the not too distant future... ;]
Calandryll_OSI - Adding new art like new monsters to the 2d client has major issues, especially related to patch size
Calandryll_OSI - we have added some new art to the 2d client though, mostly gump (windows) art, like for the barkeeper
koffBullshitkoff. It's possible. Just funnel some of those UO2.0 guys over to make it happen.
Kehleyr|Stratics - *Nadia* With the recent changes to PvP, has the Dev team given any consideration to removing house hiding? I don't see [SNIP]
Oh please....
Kehleyr|Stratics - *Draegon* When do you expect a majority of the siege changes to be implemented?
Evocare - We're expecting those changes to go live in the very near future.
There you go. I now posted when Siege will get the changes.
Now we start getting GOOD questions:
Kehleyr|Stratics - *ghyde* When will Veteran Rewards be released to the rest of the shards? What is the hold-up now?
Prophet - The problem that surfaced with vet rewards was not in our code at all but with the poor network connectivity last week between the shards and the veteran reward server. We came up with a solution to deal with the network problems and have completed coding for it.
Prophet - The changes are currently being tested (you can catch them on Test Center 2). We should be getting a release schedule for rewards next week.
Do I still gotta Watts? I mean, c'mon, it hasn't been turned off!
Kehleyr|Stratics - *Draegon* With the sucess of other MMORPGs that have had sucessful add-ons and new lands will you ever consider adding another world/land?
Evocare - You mean like the T2A lost lands or 3rd Dawn's Illshenar continent? New lands, that's crazy talk!
Oh, now I hope Evocare was kidding, because not adding new lands (expansions) is bullshit.
Kehleyr|Stratics - *BLD|Zuldan* ask them if siege will be getting rewards first when (if ever) they fix it?
Prophet - Siege will be getting rewards first yes
Prophet - It has some unique problems last time (again network related) that are now fixed.
It's good to be a Siege Player.
Kehleyr|Stratics - *CrazyIrishman|Gulthuk|* Why did you decide to include Hero/Evil in with factions? It seems factions is being forced upon us
Adrick-OSI - It seemed a natural fit in its first release alot of the special interactions caused many bugs and exploits since faction interactions are prety solid we added the powers of the good/evil system into that interaction system
You don't HAVE to join Factions pendejos. You sill have Order/Chaos and Guildwarring. Or good ol' blue vs. red stuff. Quit bitching and PLAY or quit.
Kehleyr|Stratics - *Bronco* Archery seems a ignored skill, a bow is a two handed weapon (can't use shield for protection) and it has no extra special attack which all other 2-handed weapons have. Also it uses a lot of ammunition and even with GM archery, GM anatomy, GM tactics and a tummy full of food (ok, it is not certain it helps but if it would I rather be save then sorry) I tend to miss 2 out of 3 times. When will archery be a competative fighting skill?
Evocare - We know it sucks. Leave us alone, we got better things to do. We will fix it when we are ready.
Ok, Evocare didn't say that, I did. But...and in his real words: "Unfortunately, this is a condition that has become more exaggerated as players' connections have improved over the years. "
Once we're comfortable with how the recent combat changes have panned out, we'll be looking for ways to continue to make improvements in the future (and archery will recieve its due consideration). "
Kehleyr|Stratics - *Shadowcat_East* What is the status on taming issues? Will we ever see fixes to the veterinary bugs (z-axis and healing bugs)? What is the status on the "in concept" lore changes?
Tamers suck. Next question. [Not looking at it right now, but Lore changes are coming soon.]
Kehleyr|Stratics - *Rascal-TB* Factions has been left in a broken state and ignored far to long. When will it recieve the attention it deserves?
Adrick-OSI - Alot of the faction system bugs and issues is addressed in publish 13
Adrick-OSI - I understand Ive been saying that for some time and that alot are frustrated - all I can say is Im sorry but it is a very important system and is not forgotten just delayed
Evocare - Unfortunately there have been several cases where the QA resources for publish 13 have been shuffled around to address immediate priorities, which is why that publish has been in limbo for some time.
Evocare - The fixes in that publish certainly are of very high importance, and we'll be working to get those tested and out to the public as soon as we feasibly can.
Yep, it's getting fixed. Soon.
Kehleyr|Stratics - *Beleth[OES]* Is OSI even considering a guild alliance system. It is wanted by MANY MANY people and will basicly help everyone in the game in one way or another...
Evocare - Unfortunately, the guild alliance systems that players have been asking for are generally pretty incompatible with all the player interaction issues related to our guild war, faction, and order/chaos systems.
Evocare - There are a number of very problematic interactions that need to be solved (looting, legal healing during battle, etc) before we can really implement an alliance system.
Evocare - Although it is do-able, it's something that will require very extensive re-working of current systems in addition to the creation of the alliance system, which makes it a very high-cost feature in terms of development time. Unfortunately, it's hard to find time for high-cost features.
Evocare - That being said, we do realize that lots of players would like to have an alliance system.
Build it, and they will come. I mentioned what OSI could do. Grab some UO2.0 guys and do an Alliance thing. It will be good for the game. Guild Warring players all over the world will love you.
Kehleyr|Stratics - *koala* Will stamina for mounts be returning to what it was before the march 13th patch?
Prophet - This is a known issue. We have looked into it though we don't have a full fix for it yet. It will be something that is addressed in due time.
I didn't know this was a problem.
Kehleyr|Stratics - *Shadowcat_East* Is there any possibility of adding new potions to the Alchemist menu to be made by using a heating stand or other method (such as combining multiple reagents)?
Evocare - The crafting revamp in development allows us to create new craftables much more easily. I expect the event team will probably make extensive use of that benefit. =]
AH! So that's how new craftables are going to get introduced. Through Scenarios. Um...I guess. Mana pots baby! (only 20 per use) And invisible pots! (10 seconds per use).
Kehleyr|Stratics - *mixilplix* Factioners using public gates as PVP arenas is very disturbing to those of us not infactins. They clog up and block gates. When will this issue be addressed?
Adrick-OSI - Publish 13 has code to prevent gate hopping while you are an agressor
Adrick-OSI - I think this will stop alot of what is going on now with regard to the public moongate system
If there is ever a "fix" I wish would get "snuck" in on the servers, this is it. To watch Lame motherf***ing Gatejumpers die when they can't just "escape". Oh, and the Thieves! WoOt! Say hello Ivy! :D
Kehleyr|Stratics - *Fear_BV* Are there are any plans to finish the patch that includes a Castle for Fear?
Evocare - That patch has been finished for years... it just can't seem to pass QA!
Now see, Fear gets to an answer to a silly question and my shit gets ignored? Please.
I am going away now.
UPDATE: ::grumbles:: Oh well...at least Kaara saw it too and gave her own commentary.
Hasta. |
^ top-Dark Age of Camelot Review.
[Nieves] September 7 - 8:57 AM EDT | Quick at Battle Vortex found a Review of DAoC. It's not a bad read and gives you some inside information from an game players review. What caught my eye is how Mythic will handle cheaters:
Twinks and Cheaters - Many don't like twinking, and no one likes a cheater.These issues have been addressed. For twinking, well it's not going to do you much good, you see, items are categorized and even have colored cons like monsters do. If you are using an item intended for someone of higher level, you won't get the all the properties of it. Armor won't protect you as much as it would if you were the appropriate level to wear it, and weapons will not hit as hard. Also since the item is so far above yourlevel, you will be using it incorrectly, causing it to wear out sooner then it really should. While one could still twink with money, that is not going to be putting people at a great advantage of other people at their level. As for cheating. Well it is my understanding that when the game goes live, you will only be able to choose one realm to play in. Once you are in that realm, all your characters will need to be. That should hopefully curb most forms of spy cheating, where people log in a character from another realm to determine where they are located.
You can go read the rest of the review here.
Yes, I am awake now. I think.
Hasta. |
^ top-Crafting Questions and Answers...Maybe.
[Nieves] September 7 - 8:32 AM EDT | Q: Will the NPCs that currently sell blank maps begin selling blank scrolls also/instead? And b) Will the current blank maps be going away, since no cartographer will want them anymore?
----------------------------------------------------------------------
A: Yes, NPC cartographers will begin selling blank scrolls as well as mapmaker's pens. They will also continue to sell blank maps, which will also remain usable to draw maps.
Maybe: After some brainstorming with Evocare and Calandryll, we have come up with some better ideas regarding weapon and armor repair.
I stated earlier that loot frequency was one of the main concerns regarding bow repair. That is still a concern, and we are not going to be able to re-evaluate this immediately. Repair of bows and other currently non-repairable weapons and armor will be re-evaluated -- just not right now. In the meantime, we will take steps to insure that anything currently repairable by a blacksmith continues to be repairable by blacksmiths, including heavy crossbows.
Another big issue with repairs is the issue of scams. If we were to enable additional types of item repair, we would just exacerbate the whole problem. With more items to repair, more people would be able to attempt repair scams. In order to enable repairs for more crafting skills, we first have to fix the repair system itself.
We aren't ready yet to begin discussing the specifics of the ideas for secure repairs, but we do have something in the works. Once we have really fixed repairing (now that's an interesting turn of phrase), we will be better prepared to add in repairing for other crafts.
I am not awake enough right now for proper commentary.
Hasta. |
^ top-Where have we heard this before?
[Kaara] September 6 - 4:49 PM EDT | This was added to the login screen....
** 09/06/01 ** 11:10 AM CDT *** VET REWARDS UPDATE ***
We have identified and solved a connectivity issue with the Vet Rewards
system, and we are working to complete testing on the solution now. Keep
an eye on FYI at http://uo.com for updates once the new release schedule
is determined.
I know we've heard this crap before but Im crossing my fingers that Catskills and the other remaining shards will get their rewards shortly after the weekend! |
^ top-Swords vs. Fencing vs. Macing Part 2
[Nieves] September 6 - 4:17 PM EDT | I got an email asking about what kind of equipment I would carry with those warrior types. It makes sense that I should've included that in my last article. I will do that here mainly listing my personal set of equipment I carry and the reasons for it. I will also list their main skills to show you how the equipment they carry supports their templates.
Roxanne - Drow Assassin.
My Fencer/Poisoner (with GM Magery).
Armor: She wears either a full studded suit with a Plate Helm or a full Ring Mail suit with Nose or Plate Helm, or a Female Plate top with Studded Pants and Plate Gorget, Plate Arms, and Ring Hands with a Nose Helm.
The studded suit helps against mages or opposing Assassin. Against a macer, it's bad. The full ring mail suit is the best over all set up. The Female Plate set up is when I plan on doing some warring or serious PvMing in Felucca with her.
Weapons: 2 Kryss (usually GM, or one silver or magic depending on where I am and who I am with), a Spear (ditto on magic with the kryss), a War Fork (for Parriers mainly).
Equipment: At least 50 bandages. You can run out fast. In large scale battles, I take 100. You may scoff at the amount, but I will go through them healing a fellow warrior or mage or just in general. If you have ever been witness to one of BDA's battles, you will know it's needed.
At least 15 of each: Greater Heal, Greater Cure, Total Refresh. Sometimes I have more, sometimes I have less. It really depends. I try not to depend on my Cure and Heal Potions with this character as she has the magery (GM) and high enough healing (93) to keep her alive. But don't get me wrong, I am not afraid to use them. I just try to manage them as best as I can.
About 10 Greater/Deadly Poisons (only character I have that carries poison).
An invisible item. It comes in handy.
A blessings item if I have one on hand. Now the enemy knows why this character beats on them so fast :p.
A single trapped pouch with a Macro set:
Use Item (pouch), Wait 1000MS, Cast Magic Trap, Target (pouch).
2-3 backup trapped pouches if she gets into a spat with multiple "Paralyze Mages".
30-50 of each reagent. This depends on the size of the battle or whether or not I find someone in the wilderness that died. Whether by my hands or other reasons (3 long term counts sucks ass).
Some neat outfit (I like dressing up my female characters. Ask Vas or Ian).
"Hammer" - Parry Macer/Fencer "hybrid".
Think Townie.
Note: I carry too much shit on this character. But, since this character is used mostly in "friendly" duels and "gentlemanly" wars, I don't worry about the loss of items as much.
Armor: Sometimes a Heavy Archer/Full Plate mix. No BS. This mother can take a beating and keep coming. Other times, when I want speed over AR, I use a ring/studded mix. Ring Mail chest and pants, studded arms, gorget, and hands. GM Parrying makes up for the lower AR with that Armor arrangement. And -3 Dex is nice. In bigger battles when I need longer lasting armor (damn macers) and higher AR, I will put on a Chain Chest, leggings, ring arms and hands with a plate gorget. Other than the Heavy Archer/Full Plate Mix (which consists of Plate Helm, Arms, Hands and Gorget, Chain Chest and Leggings), I will always use a Nose Helm.
I will carry a Buckler, a couple of wooden shields, a Dyable Kite, and (maybe) a Teardrop Kite. I told you this character carries too much shit.
Weapons: Doom. If you have fought against me in Trinsic, at the BDA Trials, Serpent's Hold, and in smaller skirmishes (Deceit, etc.) when I have Da War Axe of Doom, you already know who and what that is. And I ain't afraid to use it. Otherwise, a GM War Axe, a GM War Hammer (or Vanq; it depends really), a Spear, a DP War FOrk and a DP Kryss. I told you, too much shit. And I don't even use the DP Kryss but to finish and the War Fork for opposing Parry Macers to knock the shield out of their hands for a second.
It's almost better to break that shield so I had been using a War Axe more often than the War Fork. The Kryss comes into play against Mages and when I am in a long fight. It's a good surprise factor. Even so, I am starting to realize that I rely on the macing weapons more with this character. Also, with the obvious advantages of GM magery with the return of Precasting, this character will probably drop Fencing (didn't I say that awhile back?).
On some days I will carry a decent Quarterstaff. I have plenty of magic ones in stock so losing a vanq is no biggie to me.
Sometimes I will pull out Harry in a Large Battle. Harry is my Hammer Pick of Power. People like Harry. And Harry likes people.
Equipment: The Same as Roxanne except I will run about 1/2 the regs. I only need regs for night sight and teleport. But, I hope that will change soon. 10 Recalls and full recalls in my Runebooks. I use em up. Believe me.
Drizzt - My Supa Jacker.
GM Parry in place of Magery (bad somedays)
Armor - Full Ring Mail set with Nose Helm. 2 Kite Shields (Dyable kind).
Weapons - Double Axe (my personal favorite), DP Broadsword, DP Katana, Halberd. In PvM situations I use the best Weapons I have depending on the creatures (i.e.-Silver Vanqs for Liche Lords, Vanq Broadswords and Invul Kite Shield for Rat Magi, etc.)
Equipment: Same as my Macer all the way through plus about 10 Night Sights and 10 Recalls and Full Runebooks (I use them alot when I am running around with this guy).
Loren - Supa PvMa.
Archer-Sword Fighter with high magery (75). 25 Hiding for those days I am in Felucca and I want to bank in peace.
Note: I hardly ever PvP with her unless I am really really pissed. Ask Ssirial/Elyssa about that. You don't want to piss Loren off.
Armor: Invul Set (46 AR). If in Felucca she wears a Golden Female Plater/Chain Mix. She's got to look good. Besides, it enchances her Red hair and blessed red sandles (worship me ::sticks tongue out at Jane-GL::).
Weapons: Silver or Regular Vanq Broadswords and Heavy Xbows. If in Felucca, I take a GM Katana and a DP GM Katana, and a DP Broadsword. Also I will take a Bow of Force with about 100 arrows if in dungeons with monsters that can inflict poison. Especially now that a single Bladespirit won't kill a Silver Serpent. It doesn't matter what Facet this is in (the bow). I got to start carrying a Halley in Khaldun with her. Yes, I have been there many times.
Equipment: I carry all the standard equipment Roxanne carries with some Night Sights. I have this tendency of staying in a dungeon for a couple of hours with her and will always be in a fight with a monster and it freaking gets dark. No time to cast night sight when a Lich Lord and 4 liches are chasing you. In the case of Loren, I carry the "macro pouch" and 5 others. I tend to have people that try to get her killed by attacking the liches that are chasing her.
What they will do is wait till the liches are on me and then go into battle mode and double click on the liches. The liches will then start casting spells on her. The extra trapped pouches avoids the triple paralyzes that liches like to cast.
The funny part is I clear the room, loot, and later (usually) find the "notoer" dead. If anyone doubts my powers of clearing a lich infested room, ask Gator. He's been there.
I also carry an extra color coded bag that I throw my loot in. If I ever get cursed and then can't move due to being heavy, I will drop the bag. Better to lose the loot than to die with it on me. Oh, the maps I keep in my reg bag. Maps are more valuable to me than the gold.
And for giggles, I will list what I carry on my Treasure Hunter Mage and my "Galad".
Clyde - Level 3 T Hunter (almost to 4)
Weapons: About 100 of each reg. I will go through them :)
Armor: Nothing. Running and the invisible spell is my friend :)
Equipment: Just some lockpicks (about 10-20) and an extra loot bag as with loren. I never use Potions as the magery is enough to keep him alive. I never let a monster get too close even with his GM Wrestling. An Invisible Hat or Cape.
"Galad" - Super Loota
"I SEE YOU!"
Weapons: Same as Clyde
Armor: GM Leather.
Equipment: A few Greater Cures and about 10 bottles. He's a GM Alchemist and I can cook up whatever he needs at a moment's notice. An Invisible hat or cloak. An extra Loot bag and an ID wand.
I hope this has helped you all some.
I want to make a note while I got your attention.
Some folks have this notion of putting someone else down just because they choose a character name or they decide they want to dress a character a certain way. I for one hate Capes and think they suck (not too mention the lag they can cause), but I will not diss a person for that. It's not right. Respect your fellow players and how they decide to play.
If you notice, I have characters that can play as different "types" of players. I can be a looter one day, a Treasure Hunter the day before, a Merchant the next morning, a PvPer another, and a Straight PvMer two-three days later. It's how I choose top play this damn game. And you know what? It's ok. It's allowed.
I am no better nor less than you because I choose to dress a character a certain way, roleplay, PvP, Loot, PK, Noto-Kill, or sell my wares. As long as I show a measure of respect (yes, this sounds like a contradiction with the Noto-Kill, Loot and Pk aspects of my gaming experience) for my fellow player, I can live with myself.
Can you?
Hasta. |
^ top-New Korean Shard..?
[Kaara] September 6 - 1:21 PM EDT | A poster on the UO Boards read on the Korean UO website that a new shard will be opening September 8th. You can read his post here.
I don't know if this is the same as the Siege servers reported on here at UOPowergamers in August, but I am sure it's related. Any of our readers read Korean? *grin* The fact that this has not been reported on the "English" Uo.com site leads me to believe that it will not be a public shard.
I think it's time North America and Europe got a new shard each. I can only speak for Catskills but everyone seems to be complaining of overpopulation. Hell, Europeans only have 2 shards for an entire continent. |
^ top-FYI...client patch info.
[Eric] September 5 - 9:52 PM EDT | Posted to FYI at www.uo.com:
We will be releasing a client patch on Wednesday, September 5th at approximately 5:30 pm CST. This patch contains the following changes:
Disappearing macro bug fixed
Invisible house/boat bug fixed
Asian characters will no longer appear at the end of macros
Some localization files
The current versions should now be 3.0.4n (2D client) and 3.0.4n Build 75 (3D client).
NOTE: Windows 95 users that have not upgraded to Winsock 2 may receive the error “missing winsock32.dll”. To fix this problem, these users should download and install the new version of Winsock, which can be found here. If you have any difficulty receiving this patch, please check the following:
Check the “Patch” directory within your Ultima Online directory (the default location is C:\\Program Files\Ultima Online\Patch). This directory should be empty. Any files in this directory should be deleted.
If you are unable to connect to the patch server at all, and are using an original (Non-T2A) version of Ultima Online, you may need to update your verinfo file. For details on updating this file, please see the information posted at http://support.uo.com/tech_6.html.
Run a virus scan on your computer. Undetected viruses may cause conflicts with patching Ultima Online. For information on up-to-date virus detection software, please visit http://www.mcafee.com/myapps/vso/default.asp.
If after trying the above, you are still experiencing difficulty patching the Ultima Online client, please contact Technical Support at tech@uo.com.
I haven't logged on UO yet, but according to what it says at the top of this FYI message, this patch should have been in this evening.
Cya later. |
^ top-UOBuy.com joins up with SC.
[Eric] September 5 - 2:32 PM EDT | The following was posted today by Markee Dragon:
We are proud to announce the addition of www.uobuy.com to the Shattered Crystal Network. We have been searching long and hard to find a place that we can recommend for buying and selling all of our items within UO. We have found it. The following is a statement from Devalin of UOBuy.
---
I'm proud to announce we are now part of the Shattered Crystal Network, a portal to a wealth of great player run gaming sites, founded by Markee Dragon
This union is great news that will allow us to accelerate our impact on the UO community, by sharing banners across the network we will be able to reach many more users than before.
We also have access to the knowledge base of many major player run sites, who will be able to make suggestions and help us handle the situations that may arise as the site grows in popularity.
Also we will be able to provide our users with a view of Markee Dragon's great Rares Database and new Items Database which will allow both buyers and sellers to judge/ adjust prices.
The site will continue to be run by me and the moderators team.
There you have it. I took a brief look at UOBuy.com, and it looks like this site has a lot of potential as far as dealing with the buying and selling of UO items. Right now it's a bit empty, since they are a new website. Gotta start somewhere, right?
Cya later. |
^ top-A Tale of No Stories
[Eric] September 5 - 1:28 PM EDT | As you'll notice, I posted a story to the stories section that was submitted to me. A few people have submitted stories within the past month or two probably noticed that they didn't get a response (and ultimately, their story was never posted). I'll take the blame for this one, mainly because I *accidentally* neglected my stories e-mail box. I wasn't being lazy or putting it off. I simply forgot it was even there, until today. ;p Anyways, the bottom line is that I'll be checking it now, and posting a new story every few days (until I run out of stories - hey, you guys supply these).
If you send in a story, please try to run a spell check on it, and look over it a few times before submitting it. I don't mind minor corrections, but it's a pain for me to rewrite the whole story. :) (I'm sure Nieves knows how I feel in this situation). Will your story be posted if you submit it? Most likely. I won't turn down any stories based on my opinion of the story. We all have different tastes, and it wouldn't be fair for me to make a decision on whether to post a story or not, based on my opinion. There are however, circumstances in which a story may be turned down. Vulgarity is tolerated, but any comments pertaining to race, religion, or any other aspect of a person in a negative manner will cause me to throw away your story. Personal attacks aren't good either, so try and leave out people's names. If you think your story might be too short or too long, it probably is. I don't want a three line story, but I also don't want you to send me a copy of "War and Peace" either. It would also help if your stories were related to or about Ultima Online, as this is what this website is about. (Although Redrum seems to think Blizzard owns us all).
Please note: No story is "too lame" for this website. If you want to submit me a story about your newbie life in Trammel, feel free. Everyone else may think differently, but we all have a creative side to us that has a right to be expressed, so if you think others will think your story is lame or boring, fuck 'em all, I'll still post your story. Don't be a smart ass with me and give me a story that is intentionally boring, because I still reserve the right to turn down any story that I feel doesn't comply with the rules I've set.
Anyways, that's all I have to say. Again, stories can be submitted to stories@uopowergamers.com. Not all will be posted, but I will try to get around to as many as I can. If you've submitted one in the past, be patient, I may post it eventually. If you think I didn't receive it for some reason, resend it, I'll take a look at it.
Cya later. |
^ top-Bards R Us
[Nieves] September 5 - 12:39 PM EDT | Introduction:
Bards are the cream of PvM in UO. You can earn as much loot as a Tamer, sometimes more, but not just anyone can do it
well. While (in most cases) PvM for Tamers translates into a simple "Pluto Kill" and the odd An Lor Xen, Barding can require
great skill. A good analogy between a Bard and a Tamer would be the Mage and Dexxer in PvP. Both are very good
templates to kill with, but not just anyone can play a Mage - and do it well. This essay will teach you everything you need to
know about using a Bard to its full potential. After reading this, you have no excuse for being a Tamer anymore. Be all you can
be: Be a Bard.
You can read the rest of a very fine essay by Frozenfire here. It is an EXTREMELY long read, but well worth it.
Look for it as an essay here at UOPG this weekend.
I just went over some of the Crafting Changes as posted by Phazer (scroll down ya lazy ass).
I want to add to his post:
We will carefully evaluate the repair feature for staves and wooden shields (by carpenters), leather armor (by tailors) and bows (bowyers). The largest concern (but not the sole one) is that the inability to repair items affects the design of the magic weapon loot tables. Magic bows are much more common than other magic weapon types, due to the fact that players can't repair bows.
There you have it. From what I highlighted up there, and the way it reads to me, previousely unrepairable items are will be repairable by their makers. If this happens, this means all magic items will go up in value and, thereby, go up in price. You want to see a large Quarterstaff Collection? Come to GL sometime, I will show it to you. I plan on buying up as many Vanq and Power Qstaves as I can find. Oh, and Wooden shields, too!? Hell yeah. Those shields kick ass as far as absorbing a decent amount of damage. And I have a bunch of Fortication and Invulnerable ones. Of course, OSI could get sneaky, and for "balance sake" only allow the repair of GM made items.
IF OSI does that, the usefullness of vanq weapons as "one shots" would have a severe impact on the game and smith's would see a boon in business.
Would I like to see that happen? Of course not. I love being able to repair my silver vanq weapons. But is it good for balance sake? Maybe. Sorry if you disagree. Send all hate mail about making magic weapons and armor unrepairable to this address. I will ensure you get a proper reply.
The section of the original "In Concept" post that indicated the inclusion of "Make 1", "Make 10", "Make 100", and "Make All" options will be altered. There will be no option to specify any quantities. Instead, for any "multi-make" item, the Information Window will indicate that the item is multi-make, and an attempt to make the item will attempt to make as many as possible using the materials available in the player's backpack.
Think Bandages. For coding simplicity, I can see why they are doing this. Personally, I would rather have it where you can make as many as you want.
"I need 100 Potions please. Thank you very much." ::starts dragging them to the keg::
Hasta. |
^ top-Crafting update!
[Phazer] September 5 - 11:55 AM EDT | Vex posted some updates to the crafting changes in development.
The most interesting one:
3> Material Handling:
If all the materials required to make an item are located in the same subcontainer in the player's backpack, the resulting item will be placed in that subcontainer.
Finally tinkers don't have to commit suicide after tinkering 125 heating stands to clean out their backpack.
Also:
5> Cartographers will be able to use blank scrolls as materials for mapmaking.
Finally stackable "maps"!
6> The repair feature will not at this time be added to any new craft skills. With this overhaul, craft skills are limited to repairing only item types that they can create. This means that blacksmiths will lose the ability to repair heavy crossbows.
Does this mean we can finally repair leather armor? wow.
|
^ top-Refreshing
[Nieves] September 5 - 11:25 AM EDT | Due to an issue with the latest patch, some players have experienced disappearing walls in their houses. This issue is client-side only, meaning that in most cases, other players are seeing the house intact, and the walls will still block other players from entering. However, this has made it difficult for some players to see their house doors and signs and, as a result, some players have been unable to refresh their houses. To see that players do not lose their homes because of this, all houses were given an automatic housing refresh this morning.
Thanks for the information Kero.
It's pretty messed up when you go to log out and there is a 1/2 a tower there waiting for you. At first I thought it was decaying when I got there. It was a freaky site seeing all my things just hanging there. You can't walk through the walls or anything though.
When I logged out and back in, the Tower was there at it's full glory.
Talk about a screwy patch. Our UO macros are all gone (or have to be replaced), then we have to add MORE macros (vendor buy bank was one of mine), UOAssist wasn't working right, and now houses can't be refreshed. Hello QA!? WHERE ARE YOU!?
Whatever happened to loading a copy of a production shard on a Test Server and seeing if something works?
Hasta. |
^ top-NWN Chat Session with the Lead Art Director.
[Vasilias] September 5 - 9:55 AM EDT | Generated from the last Chat Log. A Question and answer session for NWN hosted by Marc Holmes. NWN Lead Art Director. Some of awaiting the arrival of this game may find this a lil intersting. The game is looking good.
Q:[Tod] Alrighty helmets....how do they work, will they be component based like the weapons or are they just objects already set in stone.
A:[Marc Holmes] Helmets - they are constructed in the toolset out of components, of which there are three, helmet shape and two decorative bits. Once created as an item they are on piece that replaced the players head when equipped.
Q: [Lindamus] Modeling: Importing custom models? skeleton structure, and type as well..
A:[Marc Holmes] Custom models - anything I tell you now is suspect until we have final info on what the programmers can support. Creatures share animation skeletons, so you can make a new creature that takes advantage of existing animations so it's best to make humanoids or common monsters...you can be fairly imaginative, but you have to create a new creature that overlaps an existing one's pivot points, or you will see odd behavior in the animation. If you are an animator, go for it, but you have to replace the entire list of animations on a creature..or adopt an old list and override specific ones...
Q:[Nuke] Can you tell us the extent of how customizable the monster models/skins will be in NWN in regards to changing colors and things of that nature. Let me give you an example what am talking about. Suppose their is a Frost Giant in NWN but no Fire Giant. Could we in the monster editor/wizard take that Frost Giant and make his skin black, his hair orange, and give him a big two handed sword instead of a battle axe? Or would we just be forced to create our own separate skin in a external art program.
A:[Marc Holmes] ok - creature variants in toolset in the giant example, no problem - we have both kinds of giants...he he
But in general, you cannot change the creatures texture color, they are not done like players we have dedicated the texture memory to have a unique texture per player, but monsters share textures this is on the assumption that there will the a boat load of some creatures, like goblins so you have to make custom textures in photoshop or whatever. However, you can change what weapon the creature holds, and customize the colors and shape of the weapon.
Q:[SpaceLord] Maybe it's been asked before...Will lighting be static once a module is running, or will we be able to change it as a module plays out?
A:[Marc Holmes] Static lighting - we are working on a way to overcome the frame rate hit of calculating lights and shadow volumes. I cannot promise anything, but we want to able able to allow dynamic lights and we're working on it - no promises though. Did i say no promises? I am not a graphics programmer and they will kill me if you misquote.
Q:[Dave Lister] Are special effects like flames etc going to be addable to monster/Character models (This would allow creation of creatues like Flame Cats and also Burning NPCs in ravaged towns etc.)
A:[Marc Holmes] um..flaming creatures....well we are not allowing you to put flames on your creatures in the toolset - effects are costly so we don't want too many flaming things on the screen at one time - plus and more importantly, the particle system for the game is quite complex. I will take the fifth on that for now, ask us again in six months how we will do this....
Q:[Vulcano Of Mystra] Can we have a rough idea of the download size for a tileset with approximately 100 tiles, placeable objects, and textures (high quality, of course)?
A:[Marc Holmes] Sorry, but actually I have no idea right now. We are working on compression...
Q:[Keegan] how many types of hair designs are there. as in long hair short hair, black hair blue hair?
A:[Marc Holmes] Hair color - for every player there are 32 hair colors to choose from. Number of hairstyles depends on race. we've been biased to humans, elves, dwarves in that order for now, but will make it up if we get to do a mission pack. You can make your own heads of course...that is quite easy, just take ours and pull points....
Q:[daz_uk] Hi, I am creating some of my own tiles at the moment (rough) , can you tell me what scale I should be working at please so they are not too HUGE or tiny when I port them into the game please? Thanks a lot.
A:[Marc Holmes] Tile size - one cm = 1 max unit and they are 10m square. Building stories are 3 m high. Can you post on the boards on this and mail me later, I will get final confirmation on building story height.
Q:[Petyus] Will there be a description page/drawing for each item like in Baldur's Gate?
A:[Marc Holmes] Yes. you can inspect any item and see the description, but you see the game icon not a drawing. We have larger icons than BG so it works better.
Q:[Storm King] How will DarkVision be represented? Black and White? Shades of Green? Red?
A:[Marc Holmes] Hmm...darkvision. Actually we have not started that yet. That's pretty easy to do later, so no answer right now. Good question..
Q:[Kalis] Marc, I'm interested in seeing more of your work. Any chance of starting a web site with a gallery of the work you've done for BioWare with artwork that isn't cropped for games?
A:[Marc Holmes] Re-my art - flattery will get you a long ways...but actually I can't post work for hire that is not used yet....that's how the illustration industry works - they get first crack at giving an exclusive...and actually I don't do much work outside of BioWare...next game less spreadsheets more painting, I promise. I do have a homepage, perhaps the mod's can give it out later, but it's mostly not game art..
Q:[Gunz-a-Blazin] what's the coolest-looking spell effect/monster yet?
A:[Marc Holmes] Well I do like the demon...and the d- oops, you bastard you almost made me give it away! You have to wait...;)
Q:[Tjreed] How will the camera position change around the character?
A:[Marc Holmes] Camera position - follow camera looking down, or manual, your choice. Perhaps zooming in for conversation or using machinery, but we are still testing that...
Q:[No-One] That Other Game Dungeon Siege (DS) claims they'll give designers access to the particle system - any chance we'll get NWN's?
A:[Marc Holmes] um - why don't we wait to see DS and we'll do what they did?
Q:[ChanQui] How easy will it be to bring models into 3d studios to edit skins and create "new looking creatures"?
A:[Marc Holmes] Ease of modeling - that's a tough one, it does depend on your skills so that's hard to answer. It's no more difficult than any other game art....except if you want to make a texture that allows players to change the colors.
Q:[Largo[mt]] Will there be a placeable item that is a NPC? - or will NPC fall under a different class of objects entirely?
A:[Marc Holmes] Um, apples and oranges there largo. Objects is objects, creatures is creatures, they use the same painting system, but you pull them from different lists.
Q:[Daz-uk] Hi, I was wondering if volumetric fog was 'placeable' on a specific area of the map? What I mean is could i have a Tavern's Tap-room with a slight smoke effect in the air, or just a section of fog in a swampy area? If so, would this be 'are-wide' or placeable on a 'per-tile' basis? Thanks a lot!
A:[Marc Holmes] Fog - fog pretty much has to be area wide. It's kind of more up to open gl that to the artists. You can change fog density and color as well as lighting so you can make a smoky room easily....
Q:[Vulcano_of_Mystara] I've heard height transitions are either 4.5m or 9m. If it were kept low poly, could a higher transition be acheived? 20m for example?
A:[Marc Holmes] Height - this is not so much a function of polys. The buildings are not too tall, so they don't fill the view. If there's an object that's too tall, you cant really se it anyway, you just see the first few stories...so we are keeping low.
Q:[Pitta] Well having saw only combat related objects in past screenshot (swords, armors, and the like) I wonder how many NON-combat related objects (interactive objects) will be designed (chairs, furniture, forks, dishes....all those little things that add to world realism)
A:[Marc Holmes] Non-combat - you wont have control over small tiny objects like forks but you can place chairs and tables, plants, statues that kind of thing...we are planning quite a few. Probably chests and barrels I think.
Q:[Neomaul] Regarding the falling leaves effect in the forest, will we be able to turn them off, and what other effects like this are there?
A:[Marc Holmes] Default effects - yes, you can turn them off. they are similar to weather and fog.....
Q:[Yack] How many brands of beer the player will have access in the taverns?
A:[Marc Holmes] Well, all good Canadian Brands of course, and no American pisswater...Had to say it, sorry, no kill I.
Q:[Mr] Lighting- how dark and how light can you make your module?
A:[Marc Holmes] Light levels - pitch black if you want. that forces the need for torches or light spells. Very useful in dungeons and caves where you want to slow exploration down. Also good if you have a scripted time limit to torches. Brightness is maxed out at bright daylight, - this is for complex reasons to do with lighting models in open gl.
Q:[Daz-uk] Hi, Will the objects such as chairs, tables and other 'breakables' be dynamic in their animations or will 'piece-of-wood-X' ALWAYS land at 'point-Z' ? In other words, will there be randomness to the animations of breakable options...there - said it!...Cheers mate...
A:[Marc Holmes] Broken stuff - well, sorry, we are not spending clock cycles on physics for bouncing stuff. That looks great in other games, but we have lots of demands on the old cpu in NWN so we are using animated death on objects...it's one of those tradeoffs that allows pathfinding for may creatures, and players to hold many items.
Q:[Largo[mt]] Is there any chance BioWare could take some digitalcam pics of your 'artist wall' and get webslave brad grier to post them on your site to show what your art folks have been sketching for work and or for fun?
A:[Marc Holmes] Um..I suppose...right now I have a great painting done by our receptionist on my wall...Mail brad. Lots. He has nothing to do...lol
Q:[Ryoku] How many character portraits will be available at initial release?
A:[Marc Holmes] 200...is that enough? Ok add in all the BG ports too is that enough? Ok, I'll beg Fergus to add all the IWD ones too.
Q:[Pitta] Are MOVABLE objects in? I've read conflicting quotes (in the boards and in previous chats). IE, can players actually move objects like tables and chairs in game? How about pathfinding?
A:[Marc Holmes] Moveable objects - better ask Mark B that one - I'm not sure.
Q:[Petyus] Will all character models have that "weird" underwear-like clothing under the armor like we've seen in the E3 demonstration?
A:[Marc Holmes] Um, don't you have weird underwear-like clothing on right now? We can't have naked players running round man! That would be madness...That's up to you guys.
Q:[Dice-Chucker] Can we expect any transformations to take place in the character models? I.E. Characters stricken with Lycanthropy or Polymorphing Wizards transforming into their respective shapes, perhaps even shapeshifting dopplegangers?
A:[Marc Holmes] Well....I don't want to promise anything about the story...all that is possible of course...
Q:[Dazeal] Besides 3D studio max, what other software can we use to make tile sets and what software can we use so we can implement animation?
A:[Marc Holmes] Software - nothing right now. We have export tools for Max, because that's what we use. That will be 20 bucks from the discreet rep, thanks. As far as extending the tools, that's possible, but we might not have time for the first ship. Fan programmers might help out with this....We are getting our tester copies of gmax soon, so more on that later.
Q:[Largo[mt]] How many different types of tree's are there?
A:[Marc Holmes] Ok, now on trees. Um, I honestly haven't counted....They are all deciduous though. But you can change the leaf color. I have to admit, DS has great trees...
Q:[Locke] What resolution will the portraits be, same as in bg/bg2, or bigger?
A:[Marc Holmes] Portraits - check the very detailed thread on the IP board. Does anyone have the URL for IP's feedback board?
Q:[Perigon] Does the engine support vertex deformations. Are there any characters or monsters with a single mesh?
A:[Marc Holmes] Single mesh - we use a hybrid system mixing parts and mesh. Armor is always parts pretty much....But there are some mesh bits for effects like wings and tails...
Q:[Vulcano_of_Mystara] In regards to "wading" through water. can you make an entire tile that one could wade through, so as to simulate a swamp tile?
A:[Marc Holmes] Wading - sure, no reason why not....
Q:[Dice-Chucker] We all know that monks don't fight with just their fists these days. Will we be seeing any fancy foot work and interesting "kung-fu" type animations?
A:[Marc Holmes] Kung fu - well, we have some hand to hand animation. Frankly there is more weapon work, but that's kind of the way D&D is...We will see what we can do in the future about better martial arts in games...
Q:[Pitta] How many NPCs on screen is the Engine capable of? (Or do you think it will be)...Are crowded towns possible?
A:[Marc Holmes] Crowds - we think we can do pretty good crowds. You should see populated towns, and hordes of skeletons...
Q:[Daz-uk] Hi, as a rough estimate (taking into account what stage in development you are at), How many building designs would you say are in the city tileset? By 'designs' i mean different building types. Also how many different 'themes' of buildings are there? i.e. Slum buildings, Grandoise Buildings etc...Thx a lot....
A:[Marc Holmes] Hm...Tobyn could answer that better than I. We have slum, rich, merchants, castle, shopping lots of types..I cant really list them off my head...
Q:[Perigon] How will animation be handled? Will it be possible to export the data from max and incorporate it to the skeleton?
A:[Marc Holmes] Animation - I'm not an animator, but here's the overview. Actions are done as a looping motion from the ready and back. so sword swings go from combat ready left, to swing to combat ready right...so if you add an animation it has to work with the appropriate ready. Even if that ready is simply the walk...but there is a limit to the max size of animations on a character which is RAM. So adding to the base human set might not be possible right now. When min specs go up you will see more and more animation....
Q:[Nuke] Can you tell us how the directory structure is going to work in regards to models and skins/textures. From my understanding a lot of the models will be using more than one skin. Another words in the monster wizard when we create a new monster will we be able to 1.) Select the base model the creature uses and then 2.) Select which skin it uses from various skins that are in that model's directory and then 3.) Do the res
A:[Marc Holmes] Re - skins and models - this kind of a misconception we have made a separate model for each creature with the skin pre-applied you can make you own variation and add your own skin, but it's a separate model again. This just keeps it simple.
Q:[Neomaul] What are the chances of having hybrid tiles that meld two tilesets together? example: a tile with half ground forest and half ground urban?
A:[Marc Holmes] Tile set - nope, you cant do that. Tile sets are limited by texture memory on your card you only have so much memory to fill with texture and each set uses it all. In a shooter they load and unload textures as you go but you don't go through loading tunnels in NWN like you did in MDK2 for instance. You can make a NEW set if you want, but you have to stick to the same limits...So if you take the rural set and make all new textures you can create an arid town or snowy town, just with changing textures, but you cannot mix these sets. Keep in mind I am not going official here on what we will support for user content. Scott and Trent are going to kill me tomorrow. This is all somewhat theoretical until the time comes for an official announcement...
Q:[Nefrit] Are there emotes to allow a character to actually sit in a chair and such? Thanks
A:[Marc Holmes] Emotes - there are emotes, the usual wave, swear, dis, pray kind of things....
Q:[Mr] I know they have tileset groupings, will they have placeable object groups that go well with a specific tileset?
A:[Marc Holmes] Organizing placables - we are trying to make placables work in any environment...who knows if you want to have an evil shrine in the forest or in the basement of an inn...they will probably be organized by type, like =- furniture, decorations, organics...stuff like that.
Q:[Ryoku] Any plans on the boxes cover art yet?
A:[Marc Holmes] Box art - nope. We have a PR art department full of talented guys...they will be taking care of the rest of the high end artwork...I'm kind of sticking to the game for the rest of the project.
Q:[WanGai] I am putting together a menagerie, which will include a casino. What gambling related artwork can I expect? cards, dice, roulette wheels, slot machines...?
A:[Marc Holmes] Hm...not much I'm afraid. Honest answer, sorry. You will have to repurpose regular levers and machinery and then use dialog and scripts....Actually I would suggest you make custom portraits of poker players for best role playing effect...
Q:[Dave-Lister] Will monsters be able to be given an alpha transparency value (ghost goblins etc)?
A:[Marc Holmes] Transparency - not in tools, but in max. This is an art thing not a toolset thing. The tools are really the D&D game, not a graphics suite. We will also have a lot of ghosts and spirits ready made...
Q:[Perigon] Is the animation data importable (So I can get the ready and modify accordingly)
A:[Marc Holmes] Importing - you cannot import from the game data you need the original artwork we can't tell you what we can ship on this yet. This is an Interplay related question. I have to give you more later on that.
Q:[ScurvyRickets] Will we have the choice of three body types - thin, muscular, hefty? If so will there be body types for all the races? Thanks.
A:[Marc Holmes] Phenotypes - we are planning to do different body types, exactly how we do this is not final. This is a technological trickery thing...But however we do it, yes it will be for all PLAYER races....no fat goblins sorry...Well, they are kind of pot bellyed...
Q:[NeoMaul] What's the status on 2d maps within the game?
A:[Marc Holmes] Um..maps. Yes. Not done yet - we are working on an auto map generated from the tile info in the module. Art work maps is not mission critical, so that comes later.
Q:[Dazeal] I was upset that they used the same model in BG for the halfling and Gnome. Please tell me these two will have there own model?:) Thanks.
A:[Marc Holmes] Sure! Gnomes don't look anything like haflings....not in 3E anyway...
Q:[Perigon] Is there a limit to adding custom models, textures, tilesets or tiles in a tileset? (Not taking into account one's computer memory... just theoretical engine limitations)
A:[Marc Holmes] Limits - hardware are performance is the major limit. You cant have more than 256 types of monsters in the world right now, but I'm sure you don't want that in one module anyway...
Q:[Ryoku] Will we be able to see blood either on the ground and/or on the players during and after a fight?
A:[Marc Holmes] Blood - not if you're from Germany. But if you're from good old USA then turn up the violence settings!
Q:[No-One] Fog again - so there won't be ground-hugging fog, or floating whisps of fog, etc?
A:[Marc Holmes] Ground fog - not right at this moment, why don't you mail Scott or Peter W. Our engine guy and mention it - I'd love to see it...
Q:[Vulcano_Mystara] For scripted cutscenes, is there any way to export that as some type of movie file (mpeg, avi, etc) to be used as a sort of "trailer" for a website.
A:[Marc Holmes] Exported movies - you guys don't want much do ya ;) We were thinking of shipping with email support too but Scott had an cardiac...seriously, I don't know on that, we might...depends on licensing codec's I suppose...
Q:[Yack] Textures are 16bit or 24bit? and the color change is handle tru hue or how?
A:[Marc Holmes] Textures are all 24 bit right now. Texture compression is not standard on all cards we support. Oh for the simple console days...Your average Nvidia card doesn't care what bit depth you use....
Q:[Perigon] Is there a chance that BioWare will release together with the plugin, an exporter that works directly from the .max file extensions. That way ppl can find file converters and export to the game directly from windows (Shouldn't be hard)
A:[Marc Holmes] Yes, there is a chance. We want to do this, and we are trying to make it happen. There are, as always reasons why we cannot support your work directly...mostly due to the chance of getting sued by a maniac. But we are sorting out how we will do support. This is a future issue we hope to have an answer for soon.
Q:[Petyus] Will the infamous BOO appear in NWN by any chance? Please, we want a positive answer - Worldwide Organization Of Boo Fanatics.
A:[Marc Holmes] Boo will be sad if you don't buy NWN and play for a long, long, time....
Thanks for coming everyone, hope you love the game, and all get work in the industry with your awesome modules...
|
^ top-What I Plan On Doing at The Faire.
[Nieves] September 5 - 9:26 AM EDT | Session Selections:
Friday, 1:30-2:30pm Live By the Spell, Die by the Sword
This session talks about the "underpowered warrior" (yah right).
I plan on pushing for the special moves being macroable in this session. Also, I am going to gather the Archery suggestions you guys have made, make it into a written proposal, and then give it to Adrick.
Friday, 3:00-4:00pm New Kid in Town
This session is about teaching new players the game. You know I want to be there.
Friday, 4:30-5:30pm The Voices of the Many
All about the Fansites. This is the main reason I was going to the Faire in the first place.
Saturday, 10:30-11:30am The Voices of the Many
Yes, there are two sessions for this.
Saturday, 1:30-2:30pm Cruel to be Kind
How harrassment is handled in UO. I want to know what is and isn't harrassment. And since I am all about playing nice, I am going to sit in on this.
Saturday, 3:00-4:00pm One Mans Trout is Another Mans Treasure
I am all about Treasure Hunting. It's too much fun. Besides, I get to sit with my homey Blackheath of THB. Why wouldn't I go?
There are some other really good sessions going on. I believe the other updaters and I can team up or parcel out the different sessions. And if we double up on a session, we can always pick another to cover as much as we can.
Although, I do hope all of us at UOPG that go to the Faire can sit in on at least the first Fansite session. It's important, I think, to make a good showing.
We are working on the questions for the interview OSI is going to provide us with.
I think we should choose Adrick as the person to be interviewed and Combat, Factions, and Guild Warfare as our topics. Please submit your questions to me so the updaters and I can get our 20 questions together.
Hasta. |
^ top-Fix Your Macros
[Nieves] September 4 - 7:14 PM EDT | Anways, I just saw Nieves comment about his allnames macro crashing the client and I have a tidbit of info everyone should know.
Recently OSI changed the format of the macros.txt file for localization. This caused MANY macros to become broken and sometimes even crash the client instantlly.
You'll need to TOTALLY redo your macros from scratch to make sure they will all work correctly. Delete the macros.txt from the UO directory, and all the character folders under the Desktop folder... Then sit back and re-enter all your macros in macro section in the UO options panel (you can no longer manually edit the macros.txt file.)
One other thing. Make sure on any NPC speech trigger macros (ie BANK, GUARDS, etc) that you only enter ONE command per macro. Recent NPC localization changes made multi-command macros no longer work (not that this is a completely bad thing... at least we won't have to see all the mindless idiots spamming VENDOR GUARDS BANK BUY anymore) and any triggers like "vendor buy" MUST have the two trigger words right next to each other... something like vendor I would like to buy will no longer work.
Thanks to The Unknown Poster for this information.
And thank you OSI for telling us this in the first place.
Hasta. |
^ top-Swords vs. Macing vs. Fencing
[Nieves] September 4 - 4:22 PM EDT | Everyone has their favorite weapon type. And everyone will swear by what works and what doesn't. I have to tell you, two things factor into your success as a warrior in PvP (and even more so now PvMing since you can use Special hits on Monsters).
Those two are: Skill and Tactics.
If you don't practice, you will never build experience (not the EQ Type) or hone your skill. If you don't practice, you won't be able to get a list of tactics that work well for you consistantly against different opponents.
Sword Fighters-
What should be the most versatile of all the fighter types. Why? Because they have so many weapons to choose from. But, unfortunately, only a few are good weapons.
They have the fast and capable Katana, the underused Broadsword, and the ever powerful halberd.
I did witness a fighter with a Viking Sword kick the crap out of Titans and Cyclopean Warriors. Granted he had on Full Plate, a shit load of shields and great healing and resist, but he did it. But who uses a slow weapon in a fast fight?
Katana-Fast and hits hard. Coupled with a shield and some deadly poison (or, even worse for you, the Poisoning Skill), they can deal alot of damage fast. If you are fighting an Assassin with a Katana, hope you have enough Greater Cures to keep the poison away and time your healing. If you are at 10 seconds in your UOAssist healing timer and you have alot of life and then get poisoned, why waste a Greater Cure potion?
Note: Realize that a good Scimitar is a decent weapon. Many a time I have fought off potential PKs with my +20 Scimitar of Force. I still miss that weapon to this day. (Damn Tamer got it; too bad he banked it before I got his ass)
Broadsword-With Deadly Poison on it's tip, it's a Parrier's nightmare. This damn thing packs a punch and will do decent damage through a shield on it's own.
Halberd-Parrier killa. Will bust through a shield. And will make Ginzu Meat out of Mages.
Add Lumberjacking and you get a 30% bonus to the damage.
Do you have to have Lumberjacking to be a good Swordfighter? NO. You can have parrying, poisoning, or archery. But, without the skill and tactics, you suck anyway.
Recommended Template: Healing/Anatomy/Swords/Tactics/Parrying or Poisoning or Lumberjacking/Magery/Resist
Fencing-
Kryss, War Fork, and Short and Long Spears. That's all a Fencer has (ok, the dagger, but follow me on this, ok?). And pound for pound, those are some good weapons.
The Kryss is argueably the fastest weapon in the game. And most warriors with a Kryss will have poisoning as one of their base skills. Watch it when he comes and keep the Greater Cures ready.
Only thing is, they whiff too damn much and sometimes their damage is negligible.
War Fork-CLANK! That's the sound it makes as it breaks through a parriers shield. And if poison is dripping from it's two fangs, you might just have some problems. Parriers be wary when this weapon is armed. You WILL take some damage.
Short and Long Spear-The little guy is faster than the big guy (big guy causes more damage), but they both can root an opponent in it's spot and keep them there. Currently, the flavor of the PvP world for Ultima Online includes this big gun. Coupled with a smart Assassin or a Hybrid Warrior, the spear gives it's user 4 seconds on a successful paralyze hit to do what he/she wants.
Arguably, Paralyze hits are better than Concussion blows against mages in most cases. You can take a 50 point loss in mana, but you still got mana to heal or poison a jacker. If you are paralyze, what are you going to do? Unless you are a Healer/Mage, it could be lights out.
You CANNOT break the paralysis of this with Trapped Pouches. Quit WASTING THEM when I paralyze you. kthx.
Recommended Template-Tactics/Anatomy/Healing/Fencing/Parrying or Poisoning or Archery/Magery/Resist.
Macing-Everyone hates them. In the long fight, a fencer or sword fighter can't beat a good parrier.
War Hammers and War Axes are the favored types used by most Macers. But, do not neglect the Quarterstafff, Hammer Pick nor the heavy War Mace.
We all know what the War Hammer and War Axe can do, but have you seen the speed of the Quarterstaff? With a GM Resist and GM healing/anatomy character (and decent skills/tactics) you can say good night to a Mage. And, people, listen when I say this: I know it doesn't eat stamina as it did Pre UO:R, BUT, when you take so much damage in a short amount of time, you WILL lose stamina.
The Hammer Pick eats armor. Don't believe me? Try it out one day with some friends. Just be ready to replace what you break.
Scoff at the War Mace. You will realize it's use later in this article.
Recommended Template: Macing/Tactics/Anatomy/Healing/Parrying/Magery/Resist. Forget Archery. You don't need it. Your goal is to beat your opponent senseless and leave him/her where she isn't running anymore. Or rather, can't run.
Tactics
Sword Fighter-
Vs. Macing-Halberd and/or DP Broadsword. Use the Halberd to eat away at their life and the DP Broad to give decent damage and keep the Macer from keeping his/her own shield up. Standing toe to toe with a Macer is suicide. Kill this guy fast.
If you are a Jacker and the Macer is a Parrier, don't rely entirely on your Jacking and Double Axe of Vanq. You will wind up seeing grey against a good Parry Macer. Use the broadsword and it's speed to cause more damage than he is doing to you.
If you are a Jacker against any non-parrier warrior, beat em down with your axe.
Good axes include GM Doubles, Large Battle Axes, Small Battle Axes (speed), and GM Executioners.
Vs. Fencers-If a parrier, and not an assassin, you will do more damage over time. But a good halley hit here and there will keep them on the defensive. Beware of the fencer's spear. Being stuck in place is never good. Especially if it's a MedWarrior-Fencer. Potions and Greater Heal are your friend in this case.
Vs. A mage-If not a Jacker, Halberd for the Mana hit and Katana for disruption. Do not use your shield. Everyday I see some idiot wearing a shield when fighting a mage and that mage just poisons the warrior to death (with an ebolt here and there for good measure). Without the shield on you have the use of your potions. If it's a 1 v 1, go naked. NO bs. You will see what I mean.
ALWAYS carry a Halberd. The one day you run into a Disarm Thief is the day that halley could help you get your items back from that thief. A thief can't steal the Halberd. It's too heavy. The Disarm thief will have to keep you disarmed to stay alive, but hopefully you are quick enough with your rearm macros that you will beat him senseless. And he will run out of TRefreshes eventually.
Dammit I hate thieves.
Vs. Opposing Swords man-Aggression. Do not relent. Halley that ass first and don't give him/her a chance to heal.
Fencer-
Vs. Swordsman-He's got the advantage in damage dealing with a katana and halberd, but you got the speed of your kryss and the "staying" power of your Spear. Bring it to him and show him how you can dance holes into him. If he's a parrier, poison that ass and make him lose the shield. A good war fork works best in this case. If he likes to run, bring the spear and keep him in place while you bring your kryss back out to poison his ass again.
If he's a jacker, be wary of that Big Bad Axe. Have a Greater Heal ready to go in case he gets his lucky 60 point hit in. Keep his punk ass poisoned. Jackers hate poison. And if you got parrying, better for you than him. If he's stupid enough to keep using an axe in this case, just let him keep the axe as a gesture of good will. Really. ::winks::
Vs. Macer-Don't play the long fight. Finish him/her quick. Spear paralyze hits will save your if he's beating your armor to bits and killing your stamina. Manage your Trefreshes and try not to use them up too fast. Speed kills and you need your speed, but don't waste them. If he has a shield, use the Fork to deal damage and keep the macer on the defensive. If he backs off, throw a poison (spell) his way and stay on him.
Vs. Mages-Kryss and Spear. Don't run, stay on him/her. Keep them on their heels. And, again, go naked.
Disarm thief is "sort of" your bane. You have to be fast with your rearm macros as all your weapons are stealable by a thief. Paralyze the thief if you can and keep em in sight so you can get your items back. If it's even worth it.
UPDATE: Ok, I am stupid. Keep a newbie DP dagger on you. Thieves hate that stuff. They can disarm, but they can't steal it. Plus it's fast enough to do decent damage in a short amount of time.
Vs. Opposing Fencers-Use your war fork for hard (amount of) damage and a DP kryss to keep him from bringing his own spear into play. Cast a well timed energy bolt, poison spell, or explosion (let the spell go, arm spear). This fight favors the Poison using fencer more than the non poison using one. In most cases anyway.
Time your own heal spells. You will wind up paralyzed yourself versus a fencer and a well timed heal will nullify any mass damage he could be bringing. If you are poisoned and have a GHeal waiting, use a potion or time your bandage timer. Wasting a Greater Heal spell to cast cure is stupid.
Macer-
Vs. Sword Fighters-You have the advantage. If he's a parrier, you can either beat it out of his hand with a war hammer or slowly beat it to nothing, while causing decent damage, with your War Axe. I prefer using a War Axe and Shield against any sword fighter. If he's not a poisoner, I will just wait him out and watch the pieces of metal fall off his body and watch for when he can't run anymore.
If he comes at you with that Halley, be ready for a quick greater heal. You can get it off before his 2nd swing hits and nullify his damage. If a jacker branding an axe, and you have parrying, laugh at him. When he's dead of course.
Watch for the smart sword fighter with the broadsword and shield. Or the one that bangs you with a Halley, then backs off for a quick spell (poison being a favorite). This guy could give you trouble.
Vs. Fencers-Watch the spear and watch for the poison. Time your heals and you should be ok. Long fight you win. If this guy is a medwarrior, get a greater heal spell primed.
Do NOT panic if you are paralyzed. In fact, never panic.
Vs. Mages-Quarterstaff and staying on him. He will try to Poison you to make you disarm, but if you disrupt him enough, he ain't going to be casting much. Some folks swear by the War Hammer, 50 Point crushing blow hit. Me? I like to see the mage stick around. Eventually (and usually), they wind up on the ground as I swing my Staff or War Axe in a victory dance. If you don't have one, pull out the war axe and beat him/her senseless. No shield or armor required.
ALWAYS CARRY A WAR MACE. A Disarm Thief Can't Steal a War Mace (too heavy). And it's JUST fast enough to deal enough damage to make it stick in a thief's ass.
Vs. Opposing Macers-First guy to make a mistake and to not manage his stamina well dies. Also, the one with the most shields can usually pull it out. If you run out of shields, start banging away with your War Hammer until you have broken all of his shields too.
Note: Alot of folks will swear by the War Hammer tactic of beaing down parrier's shields first then arming their own War Axe and Shield. I have my style, they have theirs. I have yet to lose to a fighter fighting this way in a 1 v 1 battle. Having extra shields was key.
Tip: Don't be afraid to throw a quick poison spell at the mage if he's backing off to cast those protective spells. He will be curing those as you rearm. And if timed right, you might've disrupted him. Also, Harm works well, too.
All Warriors should have some, if not, GM Magery.
Yes, I have a "hybrid" with Parrying, Macing AND Fencing, but I am starting to realize that one weapon skill is enough (I rely on Macing on 'Hammer' more anyway) and the Magery will be much more beneficial in the long run. Especially in today's age of "Semi-Precasting BIYOTCH!"
You will notice I didn't talk about Archery much. Archery is good in groups of 2+ and for PvMing. If you have Archery and run into a Mage, use it for a quick or finishing strike. Ditto on any non-parrier warriors. Or if the warrior isn't using his shield for some stupid reason. Just be sure to time your shots. 6 steps = a shot. Learn it and use it.
Types of Shields to use: Forget the Heater. JUST DON'T USE IT. It used to be good, but now it falls apart so damn fast it's not even worth having. High AR means shit if your shield falls apart. You want the ability to absorb damage.
Bucklers vs. Kryss/Katanas.
Round Metal Shield (takes 10 hits, on average, from a GM War Hammer before breaking), Wooden (really)/Teardrop and Dyable Kites versus versus Macers, Broadswords, and War Forks.
Remember, Halberds can bust through shields, but if you don't use a shield against a Halley Bearer, you might as well tab out and let him finish you. Absorbing some damage is better than none.
Also, the spear is the spear. It can paralyze with little damage. Just be smart. Ditto on the use of a shield here.
Overall Wooden and Teardrop are the best shields.
I favor the Magical Wooden, and GM Buckler, Round Metal, and Dyable Kites. But that's me.
Anyway, I am sure I missed some points. And I am sure alot of you will have alot to talk about regarding this topic in the forum.
Feel free to tell me my tactics suck and yours are better.
But, if you don't practice, it's all hot air anyway.
Hasta. |
^ top-HELP!
[Eric] September 4 - 1:43 PM EDT | Posted to FYI:
Due to some network issues we are currently experiencing, in-game support will be limited on all shards. For general game play questions players can either search our game wizard located at support.uo.com or repage and select the "General Questions about Ultima Online" option.
Or...come to UOPG. We're smarter than OSI.
UPDATE:
Ultima Online support is once again available on all shards. We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused
Cya later. |
^ top-Again!?
[Nieves] September 4 - 11:44 AM EDT | We will be releasing a client patch on Tuesday, September 4th at
approximately 10:00 AM.
In the middle of the day? C'mon now.
This patch is the same patch that was previously released and reverted on August 30th
Erhm. Think they got it right?
, and contains the following changes:
* 2D gameplay window can now be resized without restarting the client
WOOHOO! Aren't you excited?
* When in a party in 3D, the player's status bar will have heal/cure buttons
I thought this was already like that. But what do I know? I can't play UO3D ANYWAY!
* Improvements to the "Last Shard Used" button functionality in the 3D client
* The character creation templates have been revamped
Hmm...I wonder how.
* Book crash fixed
What about the all names crash? ::hits all names macro:: [CLIENT CRASH] Great. I wonder what that red is going to do now...
* Players will not always be put in Britain when not using Advanced creation mode. They are put in a random starting city.
Hmm...a way to avoid people from lagging up Lagtopolis? Maybe. I would just put them in a random starting point anywhere. Like, say, the Yew Crypts?
* Since criminal acts cannot be committed in Trammel, players will no longer be asked if they wish to proceed with those acts while in Trammel.
There goes the PK in Trammel bug solution.
* New characters will now start with 80 stat points.
SWEET! More newbie items for me! Oh wait...that means, I can be near GM in something. OH shit! (If you fall for this...)
* Many crashes and other bugs have been addressed in this patch. The current versions should now be 3.0.4m (2D client) and 3.0.4m Build 74 (3D client).
NOTE: Windows 95 users that have not upgraded to Winsock 2 may receive the error "missing winsock32.dll". To fix this problem, these users should download and install the new version of Winsock, which can be found here .
Dammit. Time to upgrade the old OS. You should update periodically anyway.
Also important to note: Users attempting to log in while using UO Assist may receive the error "The IGR time limit has been met." Until UO Assist is patched by Tugsoft (its parent company), players will need to log in without UO Assist.
Welp, there goes the ol' crutch!
Hasta. |
^ top-It feels like Monday Dammit.
[Nieves] September 4 - 8:32 AM EDT | Welp, Good Ol' Redrum is back.
Ever hear about how a founder (Redrum) of a good company (UOPG) that sells off all his interest to a guy that he thinks is really cool (Me) and can make things happen for that company and watch it grow (350k hits last month and growing)? Just so that guy (Redrum) can go take a vacation (play Diablo II 12 hours a day) and enjoy the riches (smoking illegal substances and making love with inanimate objects) of the good work he once did? Do you notice how that old guy (Redrum) will keep sending stuff to the new guy (Me) about the business (Gaming) but says it isn't worth moving on (posting on UOPG)? That old guy (Redrum) calls (ICQs) the new guy (Me) everyday and tells him how good life is ("I love you Nieves. Let's make out") and starts talking about about some new and interesting tidbit about some new part of the business ("Blizzard OWNS YOU NIEVES!")
You know what happens right? The new guy (Me) winds up hiring the old guy (Redrum) so he can shut up and start moving on the ideas and information he's providing (bringing it to you).
Now if we can just convince Reddy to hang out with us in Austin ("I WOULD RATHER GET MY HONEY COVERED PENIS EATEN BY FIRE ANTS"), everything would be all good.
Give Redrum his props. And welcome him back.
For all of you that haven't been reading UOPG for more than a year, you are in for a wild ride. You have just gotten off the SR-71 and hopped aboard the NCC 1701-D. And we aren't stopping at Warp 9.99.
On to other things.
Er...well, I was. The freaking clipboard didn't have what I copied.
Oh well. You can read it later.
I know you will be back.
Hasta. |
^ top-Hello, I'm a new updater here.
[Redrum] September 3 - 4:49 AM EDT | I thoroughly enjoy eating cabbage and playing Ultima Online. I simply cannot find anything more addicting and satisfying than this here product. Oh my days as a newbie. I was a wee lad, venturing the forests of Vesper. I made my first successful kill one dark, whispery night. Oh, if only you knew the joy that shined upon me that fine 'eve. It was an exhilarating experience. One I shall soon never forget.
Wow, I think I did fairly well on my first post! Toss me a mail! Thanks! Hope to hear from you soon! Great! Take care!
... Nieves has decided that, due to the fact that I wouldn't stop spamming him with Blizzard links on ICQ, I should come here and spam the links instead. Reasonable enough. It should be noted that you will not care about anything I have to say, and all should be dismissed as illogicial fanboyage. For the (n)one of you that do care, what I'm about to tell you you already knew 20 hours ago (I mean, anyone who didn't stay up for 50 hours for the announcement is not right, and should be handled properly and violently). Also, I stole all the information from multiple sites and made some stuff up as I go along, etc.
Blizzard, the company you all love (don't lie), has decided that since all MMOG's are not even remotely close to being good in any which possible way, they would make one and kill them all, HAHAHA! The game is World of Warcraft, or WoW, I feel good! Many people seem to not know this, but the game isn't a massively multiplayer Warcraft online in MMORTS form. It's an MMORPG based in the Warcraft universe. And it is going to come out. It's been in development for a year (or even 2, as some are saying now) and has a working engine. The only game they ever canned was one that nobody knew what it even looked like (Warcraft Adventures). They announced it and canned it with nothing inbetween. No harm done. I hardly even knew it existed. Even though speculation about Blizzard making an MMOG in general is pretty common, you should at least know some things about it before passing judgement.
The graphics in this game own. Gives you the typical Warcraft-cartoonish style, but looks very nice. The Orc's who's face you can actually see is the coolest thing ever. If you want to see some gameplay footage, you can click and get lucky or wait in line for 5 hours here, here, here (don't go for the streaming download - it looks like crap) or here. If you want to see the cinematics, you can also click and get lucky or wait in line for 5 hours here, here, here or here (again, don't go with the streaming download). I was never able to get in any (except for the one time that it didn't work on a different site), so I can't comment.
Not a whole lot was revealed, but there were some big points brought up. There's three races that we know of, with more to be announced in about 20 years. There's Humans and Orcs of course, and Tauren's. Obviously by the picture, Tauren means pimp in some language or another. Much like UO, you can select your character's gender (male/female for all classes), skin color, hair/facial color and style. But you can also select how your face looks, so not everyone has the same look. Also like UO (and D2), pretty much every item will have a different appearance, so if you have a Crown, it will actually look a Crown instead of leather armor plastered on your head. They want to take character customization to a whole new level (IE: everything looks completely different based on what class, gender, anything you have), but this is just a hope they have so we'll leave it at that. One piece of clothing is... a hat! But this isn't your ordinary hat. It's your western style, G Funk Era hat. Pimpin' all the way to New Orleans.
The view is 3rd person - not over-head or 1st person. 3rd person is behind you, for those that don't know. Better than 1st, at least. You can also Zoom in/out and move the view around ONLY when standing still (kind of like Zelda 64, at least it sounds like it).
For the most part, level changing is like D2 (unnoticable - loading/lag wise). They did say that some areas have zones that need to be loaded. They suggest that it takes "minimal time", but we'll have to see.
The interface and systems are simplistic and easy to get the use of, like D2. Or as they like to put it, "you won't need to read the entire manual to figure out how to play". Like D2, there will be a health and mana bar visible to you. Like UO (looks exactly like UO's but with better graphics, actually), there will be a mini-map in the top-hand corner. The names appear above your head, like in UO. The chat system is like EQ. However, they're going to do everything they can to make the chat window be for chatting only instead of "A monster hits you for 40 points! You miss!" flooding the whole screen when someone is trying to ask 4 a G8!!!@#$!$@! The biggest thing you'll notice about the interface is that you can see a LOT of what's going on. The health/mana bars are on the way top left and take up very little space. The map is on the top right and also take up little space. The chat box is in the middle bottom and isn't too big (but can't be too small either), nor does it have to be opened. The tab list for inventory, profile, etc is at the very bottom on one thin line that stretches acrossed the screen with just the words. That's it. No huge graphical interface that gets in the way of the view. You can even see more than in D2, and you can see quite a bit in that game.
Gameplay doesn't sound that bad at all either. It's relatively face-paced, like D2 and as quick to jump in. However, it's not completely action-based like D2. Getting mixed comparisons. D2, FPS, RTS, MMORPG is what comes out of all the previews. But as Blizzard puts it, "a faster style of play, with less downtime and an emphasis on combat and tactics against multiple opponents". Whatever that means. Basically, they are all on crack and can't make up their minds. But anyway, you don't have to kill rats to level up from the start. You can kill some of the decent-powered monsters immediately and in less than 5 lifetimes. Healing and regenerating mana doesn't require you to, as they put it, "go AFK and read a book". Haha, they're bashing EQ hardcore (properly so, since they all played it back when it came out). I love them. When you attack something, cast a spell or any other action, you become virtually invisible (on your screen only). This is so your head doesn't get in the way of your view. Also, when you move your cursor (and click/hold?), players/monsters/NPC's become transparent as well. The reason for this is so you can loot a monster that just died if another is in your face and you need to get out quickly, among other things.
The skill system is a mixture of both UO's leveling style and D2's skilled-based style. They didn't say much other than that, but they did say questing can get you extra skills that you otherwise can't get - even those not for your class. The very small amount of skills that were revealed were mostly those from Warcraft, although there was a recall spell in there. Kal Ort Por, the return?
In Warcraft, you meet NPC's along the way that help you and play a key role in questing and the story. They didn't say too much, but they hinted that this will be true in WoW as well. Those that have done some questing say that is deep yet simplistic. Think D2's quest system, but with more complex elements (going to this place, getting clues, finding this guy, sucking him off, killing a main boss thing stuff, going back, getting l33t armor, showing it off to all the newbz in town, etc). The quests are apparently straight-forward, like D2. You will know what to do and they will be in order for you. No knowledge on how it will work with multiple people doing the same quest, but they did say there is no line and you won't camp the main boss (I'm thinking that quest bosses only drop the good items once for you). Also, as taken from their FAQ: "Players will be able to complete quests and experience the world at their own pace-whether it be a few hours here and there, or week-long adventuring marathons."
As far as PvP goes, they didn't say how combat works in that respect. However, they did say that there's going to be PvP restrictions. Rumor has it that it might be a guild-based system rather than a PvP switch or eliminating it off all but one server. Nobody knows for sure as nothing was said about it other than you won't have to worry if you don't want to be killed by other players. The Orcs and Humans not slaughtering eachother at will? Hrmmmmmmm... Don't know about that one.
And of course, who could forget the role-players.
What hasn't been disclosed, and is starting to piss me off is whether or not you can be a Demolition Man and blow people up. This is a MUST. Just think about it. You explode on impact. Chase people all around the entire world. Fucking cool shit there.
Even though the game isn't going to be out for at least until long after I'm dead, it doesn't sound like a complete piece of shit as was assumed by a handful of people. It sounds fairly good at this point, although nobody knows how it's going to turn out. Nothing to just laugh at, unless your name is Ian and are gay by nature. It definitely took over the whole show, as every general gaming site in the universe clearly shows.
Even though WoW was the center of attention... everywhere, there were some Warcraft III announcements as well. There were 80000 some odd screenshots. This one looks pretty badass, but then again, it's the only one of the two that I seen. Also, just incase the (n)one of you that care knew, lumber is a resource again. The game is scheduled for an early 2002 release, which is good but probably still not accurate. I say fuck the heroes. Throw in some exploding Sheep, have the Orcs make cool noises and she's good to go.
SEE YOU IN SHADOWBANE!!!!@@@$$@$@@$!! |
^ top-Why would you want to go there anyway?
[Eric] September 2 - 11:59 PM EDT | Just because I don't think this was mentioned here:
Going to Ilshenar without the Third Dawn client is an exploit. It is illegal. Also, please remember that any alterations you make to your client to do so are in violation of the ToS.
So DON'T post in the forum asking how to get there with the 2D client. As a reminder, we do not allow discussion of bugs/exploits in our forum.
It's not worth getting banned for.
Cya later. |
^ top-I hate eBay too.
[Eric] September 1 - 11:11 PM EDT | Today, Microsoft's X-BOX was released to be pre-ordered on various online gaming stores. Why am I posting about a video game system? For your personal benefit. Were you planning on purchasing this for yourself, family member, or significant other for the holiday season? PRE-ORDER IT DAMMIT.
Remember Playstation 2? With a retail value of $300, it was selling on eBay, the largest online auction website, for over $1,000. If I know the general public correctly, this game will be sold out upon its release, and the only place you're going to find it for sale during the holiday season is via eBay for an outrageous price. Your best bet? PRE-ORDER IT.
You'll thank me later.
|
^ top-Good Information on Stratics and a Thank you
[Nieves] September 1 - 10:30 AM EDT | Stratics has information about the Crafting Changes and, even more interesting to me, the starting equipment page for new characters listing has been updated. Now you can make a newbie with the type of equipment you want to start with.
Or even better, get a kick arse Grey Robe. WOOHOO!
Small Pleasures, eh?
UOPowergamers broke 349,000 hits this past month. Thanks to all of you, the readers, for helping us achieve that milestone. That tells me you believe in what we do and consider us an important source of your gaming information. We will continue to bring as much high quality information we can to you. And we hope to bring even more information to you in the future.
Thank you to you, from all of us here at UOPowergamers.
::holds up a cold one::
Hasta. |
|
|
 |
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
©2000 - 2006
UOPowergamer Enterprises.
The names, UOPG, UOPowergamers.com, Powergamers.net, NWN.powergamers.net, and all information contained within this site is Copyright UO, Powergamer Enterprises, and other respective Copyright owners. Mad propz go out to Warlord for UOPG's graphics. Without his help, what you see wouldnt have been possible. UOPG encourages and appreciates links in your own Web pages to uopowergamers.com. Permission is expressly granted to any person who wishes to place a link in his or her own Web page. As a courtesy, if you link to, or include uopowergamers.com in an index, please let us know.
|
|
|
