June 2008

Posted to uoherald.com:

The Strangers Will Return
Jeremy Dalberg
30 Jun 2008 18:00:53

After certain... ah, world-shaking adventures over the weekend, the strangers have vanished. Mystic sources suggest that they will return tomorrow

Posted to uoherald.com:

Character Transfers Unavailable
Jeremy Dalberg
30 Jun 2008 17:07:36

Character transfers are currently unavailable for maintenance. There is no ETA at the moment, but we will make an announcement when they become available again.

Posted to uoherald.com:

Test Center Has Been Updated
Jeremy Dalberg
30 Jun 2008 15:29:08

TC1 has been updated with the following:

Non-factioners can now do beneficial actions to factioners in Trammel rulesets.

Monsters will no longer cast the wrong sort of curse on players

An issue was fixed with Ninja Shadow Jump not allowing you to perform any actions afterwards

Turn-in house addon rewards now give a deed that allows you to choose the direction of the addon.

Existing addons can be axed to create a deed with this functionality.

Scout Armor now has the Mage Armor property

For a complete list click Here

J.R. 'Eldorian' Cook, our WoW Stratics Managing Editor, delivered a few megs' worth of info from the Blizzard World Wide Invitational overnight and we've got some great stuff to share with you!

First, you'll want to catch the two Diablo III videos we've posted on this link. You'll want to watch these again...and again!

Eldorian has also sent some fantastic images ranging from scenes of Paris to some sneek-peek shots of WotLK gameplay. These images can be seen in our WWI 2008 Gallery.

You can find the rest of the newly posted information from the WWI by following the links from this page, and also be sure to keep up to date by reading the news posted on WoW Stratics!

Is it true ??? Are we up and running? It seems like forever and I have missed you all. Over the many weeks my letter box has been filled with Obit Screenshots. As a return my first article will be an Obit Column. They are not all from Lady M either, lol. As you can see I have only done the A's and B's so there will be many a column to come in the near future to play catch up.

Fondly, Lady Lava


witch


Aldrick


Ang


Animal


Apolla


Arch


Ariona Zoante


Lady Aurora




Baby


baby and Eala


Beastman


Black Jack


blanc De blanc


Boni Hama


Boom Boom

Posted to uoherald.com's Five on Friday:

FoF: This n That
Jeremy Dalberg
27 Jun 2008 19:32:31

"When is the issue with the Curse spell cast by monsters going to be fixed?"

(For those of you who don't remember, the fix for the Curse debuff icon not showing up when you were Cursed by monsters inadvertently caused the monsters' Curse spell to lower resists, just like the players' version.)

We've got a fix for this in testing now - we'll have one more round of additions to Publish 54 hitting TC early next week, and if this fix gets the QA OK, it'll be in that batch.

--

"The Scout Armor is kinda neat, but it's Studded Leather - I can't stealth in it!"

That's not precisely a question, but it is a good observation - we're currently working on tweaking the set so that it's more... scout-like.

--

"How is your chance to remove a curse with Chivalry's Remove Curse spell determined?"

(This is my first solo foray into reading the server code, so bear with me :) )

Your chance at success is entirely determined by your karma (referring to Stratics' Fame and Karma chart will give you an approximate idea of your numeric Karma, which will be important in a minute.) If you have negative Karma, your chance to succeed is the square root of 20000 - your (absolute) karma (so remove the negative sign there), and then subtract 122 from the result. This means at just barely negative (-1) you'll have about a 20% chance of success, but at about -5000 (Tier 4 - Evil, etc - and below) you'll have a 0% chance. Dread Lords need not apply!

If your Karma is dead neutral (0) or positive, the chance is determined by taking the square root of your karma and then adding 25. This works out to a 25% chance of success at 0 karma, and 100% chance of success at 5600 or so - a little ways in to Tier 4 (Illustrious, etc.)

--

Playguide Updates:

Just the one page this week, and it's still in progress - and I need your help!

Faction-Craftable Items: It's back! Please note that this info is not actually accurate for the live servers yet, but it is on Test Center - if you see something here that doesn't match up with what's on TC1, drop me a line - I'm particularly looking to verify the silver costs of the various items.

--

What's To Come:

Publish 54 is halfway there - as I mentioned above, we'll have one more set of changes pushed out to Test Center early next week, and then we'll go to Origin!

--

Town Hall News:

Look at our schedule to find out when we'll be near you. Remember to RSVP so we don't run out of chips and dip! Also, be aware that while the San Diego Town Hall is over Comic-Con weekend, you do not need a Comic-Con badge to get in - although if you want one, you better hurry, because they seem to be selling out!

--

Fansite News:

MoA Monday Madness - a scavenger hunt on Great Lakes!

Monday June 30th, at 8pm CDT, the crew will be at the castle for fun and games. We will start the night with Trivia then do a scavenger hunt. During the scavenger hunt you will have to find the Monday night crew. They may be anywhere, will you be the first to find them? There will be prizes for all who participate. We hope to see you there.

And Whispering Rose Radio's weekly update:

Stay cool this weekend while combating the members of 'The Six' and join Whispering Rose Radio [WRR] in these events...

~~~~~~~~~

Friday - June 27th - It's Shard Chatter time with TorAnn, Dr. Lil and PantherBabe on WRR. At 7pm PST, 10pm EST tune in to hear our panel chat about this weeks interesting topics and voice your opinions about the goings on in UO! Also, they end their weekly show with "you know you have been playing UO to long when...". There have been some hilarious endings submitted by the listeners so feel free to send yours in. (ICQ numbers can be found on the www.wrrad.com website)

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Saturday - June 28th - Tune into the Brush LimpPaw show. 2pm PST, 5pm EST. Brush (Norman Bates/Groucho) brings you the NEWS as only he could see it.

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Saturday - June 28th - Time for Deal or No Deal 'UO Style' on Great Lakes starting at 3pm PST, 6pm EST. You will be playing for 10mil this week and of course there will be 5 - 250k door prize checks (must be there to win). For a map of the WRR DoND location on Great Lakes ... CLICK HERE.

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Sunday - June 29th - After 4 great years, the Pacific Auction House (located just East of the Luna Moongate) continues to bring you more fabulous deals. Get there early for best seating, auction starts at 12pm PST, 3pm EST and is broadcasted live on WRR.

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Sunday - June 29th - The "Tazz & Keg's Underground" radio show on WRR is a must listen. Their show is broadcasted at 7pm PST - 10pm EST and each week you never know where they will lead you though their cave.

Enjoy the game with WRR and stay out of the 'heat' ... see you all on the flip side.

~~~~~~~~~

Remember, folks, if you're doing something UO-related, in- or out-of-game, send an email to jdalberg AT ea DOT com and let me know about it! (Please put "FoF" somewhere in the subject so I put it in the right place!) Thanks!

--

Since next Friday is the Fourth of July, the FoF will show up on Thursday instead. Enjoy your weekend!

- Jeremy

The great beast was confused, and when it was confused, it got angry.

The large dragon of the dungeon Destard, as the Britannians called it, was focused on the small man that had suddenly appeared through a dark hole just a few feet away from him.

For his part, the stranger from the portal was surveying the dragon-infested dungeon with a growing smile. He felt like a young one again, the feeling of adrenaline coursing through his veins being something truly rare and wonderful.

He would have been shaking with excitement if not for his training.

"How kind of you all to be here; waiting for me," Valvakka spoke aloud to the nearby dragons that were now gathering to investigate his appearance. He knew their pathetic minds could barely understand him, perhaps considering him a mere morsel for their afternoon meal.

Valvakka whispered long forgotten words of power and focused his energy.

A yellowish red rain began to rush down from the ceiling of this cavern. The dragons, having never seen anything like it before, arched their heads upwards, watching as it descended to them in meteoric streaks. Scales and claws smoldered with each touch of the liquid fire from above. It burned hotter than the inferno of the depths – showering everything in sight.

The few dragons that managed to run free from the deluge of crimson death were met by Valvakka’s halberd.

He seemed to know their every move. Valvakka was slaying each escaping dragon with ease, taking great pleasure in their deaths as if satisfying some old vendetta.

Taking a moment to admire his work - he felt a new presence closing in...

"A human." Valvakka acknowledged his thought in words as he turned to face the intruder.

"How utterly despicable..." Valvakka thought as he saw the adventurer standing at the ready with his "dragon" companion, this new pair looking ready to engage Valvakka at any moment.

The Pirate Conspiracy

The Pirate Conspiracy is an ongoing event series organized by the Catskills roleplaying community. An incident on June 21st 2008 kicked off a new storyline, bringing a lot of fun and interaction for the involved guilds and players. These events will introduce the background of the conflict between unsavory folk (pirates) and the honorable society of Britannia. All Catskills roleplaying guilds are invited to join in!

Background Information:

The United Pirates have been haunting the streets of New Haven, demanding a "security tax" from honest citizens. They claimed that New Haven now was under pirate law, and that their presence would ensure the safety for both inhabitants and visitors. Anyone who refused to pay the security tax to the amount of 500 gold coins, was asked to leave New Haven or was attacked and chased through the streets. Honorable and brave fighters have tried to resist, and sometimes even won battles against the pirate intruders. But still the evil folk were present in this once peaceful town, prowling its streets and threatening passers-by.

During a guild meeting in the Lion's Den in New Haven on June 21st 2008, the treasurer of a big guild, who is named Hefeustus, was lured under false pretenses to a room next door. There he was knocked out and kidnapped by an infiltrator, while Hawkeye Pike, Captain of the United Pirates guild, was seen blocking the door with chests, thus enabling the escape of the traitor. Nobody knows the real reason for this hostile action. The Torm's Fury and Purple Guardians of Honor guilds declared all pirate folk outlaws in New Haven, who would be punished and chased away from this town without warning. Ever since, heavy war has been raging in the streets of New Haven. Hefeustus has been missing ever since. Everyone is advised to be extra careful when entering the town of New Haven.

Upcoming Event:

June 27th, 9 pm EST: Due to the current situation in New Haven, the United Pirates will hold an emergency session on June 27th at 9 pm EST. At this meeting, they will discuss about the next steps to be taken against landlubbers, as well as the matters concerning a certain hostage. The location of the meeting place will be communicated to the crew members on the day of the meeting in a secret way.

The hiding place of a certain hostage has been written down in an encrypted document. This document has been distributed on a series of books. To find out the location, you have to possess all books. These books will be handed out to trustworthy pirates for safekeeping. The first book will be handed out in this meeting. (Note: The book always has to be carried in the backpack by that pirate, and it must not be insured.) It is up to the enemies of the pirates to find means to retrieve this first book.

Also, the concerning pirate will carry a valuable artifact weapon called "Pirate Slayer". This weapon may be looted from the pirate and belongs to the guild that defeats him.

Outlook:

The story will continue with more exciting events during the next weeks. These events will cover roleplaying, adventuring, riddles and fighting (PVP). There will be challenges for each type of player, be it roleplayers or fighters, good or evil, experienced or new players. Every roleplaying guild is invited to participate! The public Rules of Engagement (RoE) are applying to all involved guilds (they basically prohibit looting and player griefing).

Updates To The UO:KR Guide

The Syndicate released a UO:KR guide/overview back in March of this year. Since then, it has been updated several times. With this latest update we add a massive chunk to it covering Treasure Maps from start to finish. The Treasure Maps section is so large, it needed to be its own page linked off the main guide.

In this update you will see:

• A comparison of the 2D and KR systems
• How to use the KR Waypoint system to mark where Tmaps are located
• A complete list of waypoints to add to your client showing every TMap
• Every Tmap decoded with pictures matched to those waypoints
• A little extra help on editing and adding waypoints

The KR client is very powerful when it comes to Treasure Map hunting and when you use that client, in conjunction with the maps/waypoints in the KR guide linked below, it makes TMap hunting that much more simple and fun.

You can find a copy of the article HERE

Posted to uoherald.com:

BNN: A Short Time Ago
Jeremy Dalberg
25 Jun 2008 14:19:57

"A short time ago...

"My Lord!" came the voice of a woman both poised and beautiful as she addressed her superior, while bowing in the proper fashion.

"Please, My Lord, send me to look for the information we need."

As she spoke, she raised her head, and her long, deep red hair parted to reveal her beautiful face.

A massive dark figure - a Great Lord - nodded in approval."

To read the whole article, click Here.

Posted to uoherald.com:

The Six Are Coming!
Jeremy Dalberg
25 Jun 2008 15:30:46

A new member of the Six is scheduled to appear every day; the old one will go away for a little while Kealdia is in Luna. Stay away from Luna!

Posted to uoherald.com:

Test Center 1 Has Been Updated
Jeremy Dalberg
25 Jun 2008 14:12:26

TC1 has been updated with the first round of Publish 54 changes. (NOTE: Since we haven't updated the client yet, you will get some cliloc errors. Please do NOT send those in as bugs - they're expected!)

To read the full list of patch notes, check Here!

Posted to uoherald.com:

All Shards to be Published
Jeremy Dalberg
23 Jun 2008 12:19:00

All shards will be published with the following during their next regular maintenance

The chests the mysterious strangers leave behind will no longer be empty.

Posted to uoherald.com:

BNN: The Six
Jeremy Dalberg
23 Jun 2008 15:48:57

Draconi and Kilandra

Jun 23 2008 1:47PM

He despised the cold.

Ice sliced through the air in silver streams, shrieking past the solitary figure atop the snowcapped peak. The Serpent's Spine coiled below him, its sinuous peaks and valleys dividing half the seeming world. He closed his eyes.

It seethed with malice, a chaotic surge of destruction that felt both familiar and new. The dungeon buried in its depths held things, he knew, that his kind sought. Perhaps it was there, perhaps it was not, this thing he had been sent to find, but it didn't matter. He would descend.

A woman appeared next to him, the only herald of her arrival being the sudden shift in the wind's pitch as it parted furiously in dark smoke around her. Scarlet hair whipped around in the bitter air, and her dark, metallic armor looked ill-equipped to shield her from the frost forming at her feet. Yet she stood there, regarding him easily.

"Myxkion." She waited.

"They're in my way," he replied, without turning towards her.

She looked down at the small, green glade nestled below. It was a tiny valley outside some sort of cave entrance. A small pond was surrounded by sporadic movement, and she looked back up to him, an eyebrow shifting in amusement.

"Humans..."

"Tell me, would it not be better if we just wiped them out?" He nodded to himself. "Look at them. They *scurry*."

She laughed – with a harmony that would make the finest instrument jealous. Myxkion's ears enjoyed the familiar song. Then the bitter reminder of where he was gnawed at him with frost laden fangs. The only thing that annoyed him more than the cold, was the small camp of ignorant people down below, going about what, he felt, were their meaningless lives.

"I could destroy them all with a snap of my fingers," he mused.

The fair maiden's laugh stopping slowing into a teeming smile. "Don’t forget who and what you are, Myxion. There's no need for that – simply kill those in your way and focus on our goals."

She paused for a moment to gauge his reaction.

"We don’t need the unnecessary attention. But if they’re distracting you, then by all means, do it. Our ally grows impatient."

The words rang true, increasing his annoyance.

The wind died and a ball of crimson flame appeared in front of the man. The ground steamed where snow been packed inches thick moments before, and tendrils of fire licked the air around them.

The burning missile grew smaller as it shot down towards the encampment. A flash of light marked its impact, followed by a giant plume of angry smoke and ash. The shockwave carried with it the sounds that had traveled last of all back to the ears of the two steadfast strangers, up and above the chaos.

"You didn’t snap your finger," the woman playfully mocked her companion.

Below them, a few tiny figures fled the unfolding disaster.

"How silly of me to forget..." He snapped his fingers, and several more spheres of violent flame came to life.

Posted to uoherald.com's Five on Friday:

FoF: Happy Solstice!
Jeremy Dalberg
20 Jun 2008 16:46:11

Spring Cleaning is the topic on everyone's tongue, it seems!

"What is the difference between the old Zoo point decay rate and the new one?"

Mesanna checked this one out for me:

"The decay rate used to be 3% every 24 hours. We have lowered it to 1% every 48 hours."

--

"Is there going to be a Spring Cleaning Phase 3?"

Yes! The next publish will have many more items that can be turned in for points - including many more seasonal gift items - and new sets of reward armor as well!

--

"Why do I have to spend twice the points to get house deco items in both directions?"

This was obviously not the ideal solution, and will be fixed in Publish 54 - players getting the house deco items will get a deed that allows you to choose which way the item faces, and existing items can be re-deeded and re-placed to get the same option.

--

"How long are the Spring Cleaning turn-ins going to be available?"

We don't have a firm date for the end of their availability, but Spring Cleaning will not last forever - at this point we're projecting the end of the event in approximately August. We'll give you plenty of notice, but I encourage everyone not to wait too long!

(Note: All dates are speculative and subject to change, polymorphing, and rising creeks. You have been warned.)

--

Bug Alert

This is an old bug that has cropped up again with all the new deedable items from Spring Cleaning - please do NOT place deedable items (curtains, rugs, Virtue tiles, etc) on the front steps to your house. Doing so will cause the item to drop to the ground and may compromise the security of the item.

--

Playguide Updates:

More clean-up than new info this week:

Repair Service Contracts: Corrected info about being able to place these on vendors, also added info about all the other skills besides Blacksmithy that can make them.
Animal Taming: Merged in updates from the Hirelings and Pets page under Misc.
Hirelings and Pets: Removed the duplicated info from the Taming page and added a link instead.
Vendors: Merged in the near- (but not quite) identical one under Miscellaneous, and removed the Misc one so future generations aren't driven mad.
A Guide to Weapons and Equipment: Added a link to the Repair Service Contract page and cleaned the page up slightly.

--

What's To Come:

Publish 54 is coming along - it'll include Phase 3 of Spring Cleaning (which will include the mouse hole and the Sherry the Mouse statue improvements,) a ton of bug fixes, and the next set of event stuff!

--

Town Hall News:

Look at our schedule to find out when we'll be near you. Remember to RSVP so we don't run out of chips and dip! Also, be aware that while the San Diego Town Hall is over Comic-Con weekend, you do not need a Comic-Con badge to get in - although if you want one, you better hurry, because they seem to be selling out!

--

Fansite News:

A dramatic event for citizens of Chesapeake!

PaxOku City & The Blue Light Tavern Presents

Neos Day Out In 1997/1998

Location: PaxOku City Northern area. (Chesapeake, Tokuno Islands)

How to get there: Gates from Luna as well as guides from PaxOku will lead you to the play house.

Price: Free!!!

Date/Time: Saturday June 21, 2008 @ 9pm Eastern Time

Rated: PG-13
(For adult Language in one scene)
(Character undressing & Redressing after dieing)

Plot: Neo of Lothlore is just a simple man. He works hard for his gold but today has the worst run of luck. This play shows you some of the scams and other horrible things players did to each other back in 1997 & 1998. Neo starts out with a bad day at the West Brit bank Fel. Which leads into a run in with OSI and ends..... well we cannot tell you how it ends.

All are welcome to come and we hope you enjoy the show!!!

Click here for more details!

And Whispering Rose Radio's weekly update:

The first anniversary of Whispering Rose Radio was alot of fun last weekend with great events and staff/listener support! Thanks everyone for a wonderful first year! To top it off, we had a 50mil winner at DoND last week (Keebler of Lk Superior). AND 5mil went to each peanut gallery contestant. Not to mention the millions in gold and items given away at the Lk Superior loot house! Congrats to everyone!

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And now for this week's events:

Friday - June 20th - Shard chatter on WRR. 7pm PST, 10pm EST. Tune in to hear our panel chat about some interesting topics related to UO.

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Saturday June 21st - The Brush LimpPaw show. 2pm PST, 5pm EST. Brush will be bringing you the NEWS as he sees it.

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Saturday June 21st - Deal or No Deal UO Style will be held on Atlantic this Saturday (6-21-08) at 3pm PST, 6pm EST. You will be playing for 10mil this week and of course there will be 5 - 250k door prize checks (must be there to win) For a map of the location on Atlantic click here.

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Saturday June 21st - Casino Night on Pacific. 7pm PST, 10pm EST. Gates will be provided in Luna.

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Sunday - June 22nd - Pacific Auction House will be bringing you more of those great deals. 12pm PST, 3pm EST. In business for over 4 years now!

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Monday June 23rd - Going away party for the very much loved Luna Rossa of the SAGE guild. 7pm PST, 10pm EST to be held at the Whispering Rose Radio Ballroom (Pacific shard - The old Pacific Auction House). She is leaving our realm after several years of playing UO.

Remember, folks, if you're doing something UO-related, in- or out-of-game, send an email to jdalberg AT ea DOT com and let me know about it! (Please put "FoF" somewhere in the subject so I put it in the right place!) Thanks!

--

Have a good weekend, folks.

- Jeremy

Posted to uoherald.com's Five on Friday:

FoF: It's Hot!
Jeremy Dalberg
13 Jun 2008 18:37:29

Check out news about the Dark Fathers, mysterious strangers, and the effects of seawater on certain kinds of parchment.

"Why are the Doom bosses and Dark Fathers teleporting back to their rooms?"

There are two parts to this answer - a missed patch note and a bug. First of all, I apologize for the missed patch note - it was a misunderstanding on my part, and I didn't mean to cause panic and confusion. The note is as follows:

- Doom mobs can no longer be kited out of the spawning rooms

The second part is actually a bug - the change was not intended to affect the Dark Fathers, just the lesser bosses. We've got a fix for that sent to QA and hope to see it in the next publish.

--

"Where are the "mysterious strangers" in the Anti-Virtue dungeons?"

The time is not yet ripe for the veil to be lifted - they should start to reveal themselves next week.

--

"Why can I turn in some treasure maps but not others to the Spring Cleaning collector?"

This one was mystifying us for a while, but we finally pinned it down. Old-school players might remember that a while back, you could occasionally fish up (regular, landlocked) treasure maps. Turns out that those particular maps are slightly different on the back end and the difference is preventing the NPC from recognizing them. We have a fix in the works, but QA hasn't gotten a look at it yet so I can't promise a publish date for sure - it's kind of a weird one.

(Incidentally, this issue is probably why certain maps aren't recognized when trying to make the Tattered Wall Map, too. Soaking in seawater does funny things to them, I guess...)

--

WARNING: House Resizing

There is a known issue with house resizing at the moment - if you have items in a moving crate and resize your house, the moving crate goes "poof!" with all the items in it. We will have a fix for this in the next publish, but in the meantime, make sure you've emptied your moving crate!

Also, something to keep in mind - your ability to place your house will be dependant on the *current* house placement rules. It's possible that some older houses were placed under a less-restrictive set of rules, and if the house is demolished, the original square footage (tileage?) will no longer be available according to the current rules. A buffer zone is required of five tiles north and south, and one tile east and west. Be careful!

--

Playguide Updates:

Just a couple of updates this week, as I continue backwards through time and publishes, bringing me to exactly three years ago:

Vendors: Added a note about all characters on an account being able to customize vendors.
Animal Taming: Added information about the auto-stable feature
Necromancy: Added the 15% PvP SDI cap on Wither
Spellweaving: Added the 20 skill point range required for Arcane Circle
Ships: Launching and Boarding Your Ship: Added the ability to rename a ship key

--

What's To Come:

We're hard at work on Publish 54, which is still a few weeks out from Test Center. In the meantime, you should see more of the rumored strangers in the Anti-Virtue dungeons sometime next week, and their appearance will lead to great and terrible events...

--

Town Hall News:

Look at our schedule to find out when we'll be near you. Remember to RSVP so we don't run out of chips and dip! Also, be aware that while the San Diego Town Hall is over Comic-Con weekend, you do not need a Comic-Con badge to get in - although if you want one, you better hurry, because they seem to be selling out!

--

Fansite News:

Whispering Rose is having a birthday!

The first anniversary of Whispering Rose Radio has arrived!

Thank You WRR fans, supporters and listeners!!
We at WRR have enjoyed bringing you great music, free xshard events and live chat for a whole year now! Not to mention many of us getting to meet the public at the EA/Mythic town hall meetings held across the states. Our DJ's are some of the best around and enjoy broadcasting for YOU..the community of Sosaria. We are looking forward to many more years of entertaining and great fun!

Here is a list of WRR events that will be happening around Sosaria this weekend:

Friday June 13th: Join TorAnn, Dr. Lil and PantherBabe for Shard Chatter (every Friday) at 7pm PST - 10pm EST. Come hear the latest UO news and voice your opinions about the goings on in UO! Also they end their show weekly with "you know you have been playing UO to long when...". There has been some funny ones so send those in. (ICQ numbers can be found on the www.wrrad.com website)

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Saturday June 14th: Tune in to hear the Brush LimpPaw show weekly at 2pm PST, 5pm EST. Alot of time and effort is put into this 1 hour show by our own Norman Bates/Groucho.

~~~~~~~~

Saturday June 14th: Due to it being "anniversary weekend", Deal or No Deal UO Style will be bumping the giveaway amount to 50 mil instead of the normal 10 mil! Not only that but there will be a total of 5 - 50 mil books in the playing field. That's 5 chances to win 50 mil with all gold awarded on the shard of choice by WRR. The game will be held at our Lake Superior studio at the North exit inside of Luna starting at 3pm PST - 6pm EST. If you don't have a char on Lake Superior, create one..hand in a book with name/shard and a bit about your UO life (in case Howie SandManDel reads it). The event will be broadcasted LIVE on the radio. To tune in, go to www.wrrad.com.

~~~~~~~~

Sunday June 15th: Tune in to hear the "Tazz & Keg's Underground" radio show on WRR. This is also a weekly broadcast at 7pm PST - 10pm EST. Due to it being "anniversary weekend", this Sunday there will be a HUGE event on the Baja shard with close to 100 mil in prizes and gold given away. All gold and prizes will be transferred to the shard of choice. You can find out more about the event at www.undergroundknight.com.

~~~~~~~~

Just a side note: As some of you may already know, Lady Luna Rossa of SAGE (Pacific) is leaving our realm after several great years of playing UO. She has surely been an asset to the Lands of Sosaria and will be terribly missed by many. There will be a "Going Away Party" scheduled in her honor on June 23rd @ 7pm PST - 10pm EST to be held at the Whispering Rose Radio Ballroom (Pacific shard - The old Pacific Auction House). More on this next week.

Remember, folks, if you're doing something UO-related, in- or out-of-game, send an email to jdalberg AT ea DOT com and let me know about it! (Please put "FoF" somewhere in the subject so I put it in the right place!) Thanks!

--

Have a good weekend, folks.

- Jeremy

Posted to UO Herald

Publish 53 Notes and Known Issues

Jeremy Dalberg
10 Jun 2008 12:01:49

Just a few notes, corrections, and known issues on Publish 53:

• Grobu Furs MUST be separated to get the correct items when turning them in - turning in a stack will only count as one turn-in. We're working on a fix for this, but for the moment, just break up the stack and turn them in one at a time.
• The Vanguard Chaos Shield and Obsidian Blade need to be turned in to Onoe the Soldier, not Yonns the Collector.
• On Siege Perilous, Yonns the Collector is hanging out with the other turn-in NPCs in Luna

All Shards to be Published

Jeremy Dalberg
09 Jun 2008 17:51:11

All shards will be published with Pub 53 at their next regular maintenance. For the full publish notes, check here here

Posted to uoherald.com's Five on Friday:

FoF: Details, Details
Jeremy Dalberg
06 Jun 2008 18:05:04

More Publish 53 info, another request for screenshots, and more!

"Where do I turn in the Phase 2 items?"

This got left out of the patch notes accidentally - the NPC is Yonns the Collector, and he hangs out in the Artist's Guild in (Trammel) Britain, right behind the bank. We're aware of the issue that creates for Siege, and we'll let you know where he'll be on Siege once the publish goes worldwide.

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"How exactly does the house resizing work?"

House Resizing was on Test Center briefly for Publish 52, and it behaves the same way now. Here's the rundown:

• Saying "I wish to resize my house" while standing under the house sign demolishes your house as though you'd used that option from the house sign
  • NOTE: This is an actual "demolish" - if you have grandfathered houses, resizing your house will condemn them just like placing a new one would. Also, items will behave just as though you demolished the house - they will drop to the ground.
• Places a one hour account-bound placement zone where your house used to be
  • Any character on the account is guaranteed replacement on the same plot for an hour
  • Circumvents the normal 7 day delay between demolishes/rebuilds
  • The new house can be smaller or larger than the original area, as long as the surrounding area can accommodate the change

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"Do the artifacts that drop in the Anti-Virtue dungeons count as 10,000 point artifacts in Spring Cleaning?"

Yes - they're labeled as Level 11 artifacts, after all. (Note: The Virtue Armor and other special items that drop via the same system but are NOT labeled "Artifact Level 11" can NOT be turned in for points at all.)

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Beware of Bug!

We haven't seen a ton of reports on this, but as it may cause you to lose an item, be aware - if you try to redeed a flour mill while it still has flour in it, you'll lose the mill altogether. We've tried to fix this a few times, but what it really needs is a revamp of how the item works on the back end, so it may take a while to work its way up the list. In the meantime, just make sure to remove the flour before axing!

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Playguide Updates:

Have a couple of updates to present this week - Publish 52 notes, some new item info, and finally the player-submitted Artifact screenshots:

Cartography: Added a chart of craftable items, materials needed, and skill needed.
Spellweaving: Added (new, correct) details on the SSI and FC penalties.
Factions: Joining A Faction: Updated with Publish 52 changes (removed load balancing, one-character-per-shard requirement, 30-day age requirement.)
Factions: Quitting A Faction: Changed all references to "seven days" to "three days."
Factions: Credits: Emphasized the incomplete nature of the system.
Factions: Crafting: Took down this egregiously out-of-date page and replaced it with an "Under Construction" note at QA's request - it was confusing the heck out of people. I'll be bringing it back later in a much more accurate state.
Factions: Faction Office: Added one-character-per-account restrictions.
Housing: Purchasing and Owning a House: Added 15-day character age requirement.
Housing: Building Your House: Added 15-day character age requirement, demolish timer, and placement tool cooldown info.
Housing: Housing States and Home Maintenance: Added placement timer on IDOC plots.
Equipment: Weapons: Updated with all of the SE weapons and the base ML weapons (the special ones - artifacts and items that require rare materials - will live in a different chart. Somewhere. One of these days.)
Equipment: Artifacts: Remember the Get Your Name In Links contest back in February? I finally sorted through all the submissions and updated the pictures on this page. Thanks to everyone who sent in submissions, both those I used and those I didn't. (There were a ton of duplicates for certain items, so I tried to make sure as many people as possible got at least one picture up.)

However, I don't have them all yet! So we're going to do round two - same rules as the link above. Below are the artifacts I need screenshots of:

• Bone Crusher
• Titan's Hammer
• Blade of the Righteous
• Tunic of Fire
• Spirit of the Totem
• Midnight Bracers
• Leggings of Bane
• Jackal's Collar
• Holy Knight's Breastplate
• Helm of Insight
• Divine Countenance
• The Inquisitor's Resolution

This will be your last chance to show off a Doom artifact - any I'm still missing after a week or so I'll be forced to model myself :P I will no doubt do more of these with the different types of artifacts further down the road, because it's tons more fun for everybody :) Thanks again, and I look forward to the next batch of screenshots!

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What's To Come:

Origin will get to keep Publish 53 to itself for the weekend. There are a few bugs that we've identified that need fixing before it goes live - the main one being that Obsidian Blades and Chaos Shields are not actually being accepted by the Spring Cleaning NPCs.

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Town Hall News:

Look at our schedule to find out when we'll be near you. Remember to RSVP so we don't run out of chips and dip! Also, be aware that while the San Diego Town Hall is over Comic-Con weekend, you do not need a Comic-Con badge to get in - although if you want one, you better hurry, because they seem to be selling out!

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Fansite News:

A couple of interesting things coming up! First, a non-UO-specific and yet very interesting announcement from Stratics:

We've opened our new voice-chat program being developed in partnership with Vivox, and we need some Alpha testers!
In order to apply, send an email to [email protected] with the following:

Stratics forum username:
Desired Connector username:
Email address:

A sticky thread can be found in UHall.

And then Whispering Rose Radio's usual lively schedule of events:

The following are events broadcasted by Whispering Rose Radio:

AV Auction rocks the Origin shard with more great deals this Friday, June 6th - pm Pacific, 8pm Eastern
Check here for more information. (Broadcasted LIVE by DJ Landon on the 128 stream)

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Sonoma to Send Smiles across Sosaria Friday, June 6th - 6pm Pacific, 9pm Eastern
Check here for more information. (Broadcasted LIVE by DJ Sandman on the 24 stream)

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Deal or No Deal UO Style held on Legends this Saturday, June 7th - 3pm Pacific, 6pm Eastern
Check here for more information. (Broadcasted LIVE by Howie SandManDel on the 24/128 stream)

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WRR Announcement:

It's a-comin'!! Getting closer to the FIRST Anniversary of Whispering Rose Radio on the weekend of June 14th! The celebration will take place on LAKE SUPERIOR and anyone from any shard can come join us! Following Saturday's Deal or No Deal UO Style there will be a Grand Parade and yet another Xanadu Loot House (brought to you by our General Manager DJ Landon)! Check next week's FoF and tune into WRR during the week for more information.

Remember, folks, if you're doing something UO-related, in- or out-of-game, send an email to jdalberg AT ea DOT com and let me know about it! (Please put "FoF" somewhere in the subject so I put it in the right place!) Thanks!

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Have a good weekend, folks.

- Jeremy

Thanks very much to Chimera of Catskills for sending us definitive proof U_FO's and little green men do exist!

Posted to uoherald.com:

Test Center 1 Has Been Updated
Jeremy Dalberg
03 Jun 2008 17:49:50

TC1 has been updated - check out the revised turn-in chat Here!

Publish 53 on TC1 has been updated with the following:

• Players can get honey from beehives even if the hive is locked down
• Untamed Dread Warsteeds will use their signature attack more often
• The "Holiday Gift" turn-ins include the following items:
  • Snowglobes
  • Snowflakes
  • Holiday Cards
  • Holiday Trees
  • Poinsettia
  • Holiday Tree Deeds
  • Candy Cane
  • Pile of Snow / Glacial Snow
  • Holiday Bells
  • Holiday Candles
  • Holiday Statue
  • Mistletoe
  • Reindeers
  • Snowman
  • Holiday Wreath
  • Holiday Time piece
  • Sleigh
  • Valentine Cards
  • Rose in a Vase
  • Red Velvet Box
• Updated the turn-in list with various items (see here)
• The "nest with eggs" gained from Spring Cleaning is now a different hue than the regular rare "nest with eggs"
• Bank Checks will update properly when their value changes
• Mysterious strangers have been sighted in various of the Virtue Dungeons.