Tigger - Good evening and welcome to Ultima Online Celebrity Chat. UOCC is a forum wherein we bring to you celebrity guests from the UO community, ranging from website administrators, OSI personnel, counselors, seers, and even roleplayers and PKs from your own shard! They drop by to answer your questions about UO, their experiences in it, and about their own contribution to the community.
Tigger - Our system is similar to the UOHOC chats. All you have to do is /msg a designated question taker with your question or comment. However, when it is your turn, rather then a moderator pasting your question in the chat, instead we set +voice to you and allow you to talk with the celebrity guest yourself!
Tigger - We ask that you please keep your questions on topic. Our guests are not on the DEV team and cannot answer when necromancy is going to be released. Also, this is not a forum for debates...if a particular thread goes on we may ask you to put it off until after the chat has ended.
Tigger - Please /msg or /query Destiny, Glamdring or Tybalt with your questions. Please do not /msg myself or our guests.
Tigger - Tonights guests are Brimstone, Founder of the Lost Order of Akalabeth and "guild specialist" also owner of Brimstones Guild Resources Site.
Tigger - And Fear of Battle Vortex
Tigger - While we are waiting for questions lets listen as our guests introduce themselves.
* Tigger nudges Brimstone *

Brimstone[LOA] - Hello everyone, it is great to be here with you. I entered Ultima Online in the early days... and founded the Lost Order of Akalabeth - a guild that you either 1.) like, 2.) hate or 3.) never heard of...
Brimstone[LOA] - Over the years... I have tried to give a lot to the UO community
Brimstone[LOA] - Including free guild oriented graphics, html design assistance, articles on community building and many other things as well...
Brimstone[LOA] - I have also given MANY pk's a kill or thousand...
Brimstone[LOA] - (My pvp skills have ALWAYS sucked pretty badly)
Brimstone[LOA] - Anyway, I look forward to your questions... Take it away, FEAR!

Fear_BV - Hi, This is Fear from Battle Vortex, I have played UO since Feb 1998. Started out as a Murderer in A guild called [SI] Spanish Inquisition of Napa Valley.
Fear_BV - I have played many different style of characters since the Reputation patch was installed to chill out the mass murdering. My website www.battlevortex.com is
Fear_BV - dedicated to helping people understand the game better.

DiosynGL - Hey Fear. I wanted to ask you your opinions on PVP and RPing, and why they can/can't work simultaenously.
DiosynGL - To add to immersiveness that is, I think it'd be great if they worked together.
Fear_BV - Well, I would like them to work simultaneously, but the trick is getting both sides of the fence to understand each other first.
Fear_BV - We didn't start out on the same page.
Fear_BV - So, I try to bring them together as best I can, but it has been a three year battle.
Fear_BV - I think it can work, I am not sure if It will ever be there. Ill keep trying though.

Ness - How do you two think the exploting of bugs, and thirdparty programs, and the wide spread of these sites have affected the Ultima Online community?
Brimstone[LOA] - I think that all exploit sites suck - however, they are something that we will never, ever see disappear. They suck the fun and adventure out of games...
Brimstone[LOA] - and they make the gameplay unbalanced for those players who wanted to ENJOY the game, the way it was meant to be played.
Brimstone[LOA] - As for bugs - it is cool to report them to the devteam, but it isn't very intelligent to post them to the community.

Mordrid - oh im on hehe
Mordrid - i was just wondering what both of you think
Mordrid - the new combat changes and land expansion
Mordrid - is going to do for uo?
Brimstone[LOA] - I think that the expansion is an intelligent move, actually.
Brimstone[LOA] - Finally, the long debated "RP vs PVP" war can be put to rest...
Brimstone[LOA] - I do think that it would be nice if established guilds/player organizations could have their 'housing' move to the new lands (not sure if this was an option).
Mordrid - but do you think that it divides the player base even further then it already is?
Brimstone[LOA] - Of course it will - but that is the trade off to having two flavors that will cater to two very different play styles.
Brimstone[LOA] - I think that the element of 'risk' was always nice... as much as I hated PKs, they did manage to rally our members and our allies into action.
Brimstone[LOA] - I know that once everyone is seperated - both sides will miss the 'way it was' a little. At least I think so.
Fear_BV - I think it will most definitely split thing up more, but I think we will be able to adapt to it over time..
Fear_BV - It will be an opportunity to relearn things in UO.

Tanaru - Question: What do you think of the attempt at an "anti-macro" patch? Good idea, or are they obcessing over macroers to the detriment of regular players?
Fear_BV - Actually I am all for the Designers making us actually "go outside" to play the game. Besides, what I have seen of the skills so far makes it very easy for new people not to Stress over each skill.
Brimstone[LOA] - I agree. I think that the abuse of macroing ruined the game from the get-go - but hey, I was also a macroer for a bit of time.
Brimstone[LOA] - It became a necessary evil.
Brimstone[LOA] - If they could wipe the slate clean, I would say that macroing should be abolished... hehe *dodges tomatoes*

Glamdring - Now I have a question for Fear
Glamdring - What made you decide to start a RA show after the others had given up?
Glamdring - RA is Real Audio for those playing along at home =)
Fear_BV - I actually started Audio in September 1998, Not long after some of the other popular shows like "The Cause", but I just outlived them, and I guess I had more to say. :)
Fear_BV - I don't know why I keep doing it. I guess I just love talking.

Stark - What causes you at battle vortex to pronounce ultima online abbreviations in your audio chat? :) d00d, I'll be a PK, I'll go Pk'ing... :)
Fear_BV - I am not sure if I understand exactly, but if you mean our little "audio clips" with kids saying "I Rox, U Sux" those are just little inside jokes to the PvP community.

ham - Hail! :)
ham - How difficult, in your opinion, is it to sustain a community in UO, and what types of issues/problems do you feel impede progress or are necessary to overcome?
Brimstone[LOA] - Hey there, Ham.
Brimstone[LOA] - Great question. In smaller numbers, guilds are easy to sustain so long as the leader is an active and fair person.
Brimstone[LOA] - When the guilds get larger in size, it becomes VERY difficult to manage the various personalities.
Brimstone[LOA] - It sometimes takes on a feeling of 'high school' all over again. At times, it is almost necessary for a virtual 'slap in the face - reality check'.
Brimstone[LOA] - You have to say to your members, "This is a game, we are a community and we MUST be trying to have fun doing what we do.".
Brimstone[LOA] - If you cannot have fun doing this stuff, then why exist at all?
Brimstone[LOA] - I feel that if you can overcome the personality clashes (which is your HARDEST endeavor), you will succeed.

* Tigger nudges Victen *
Victen-OES - How did you develop the Lost Order of Akalabeth (shameless plug You owe me) on the Atlantic shard?
Victen-OES - For Brimstone that is.
* Victen-OES smiles *
Brimstone[LOA] - hahaha
Brimstone[LOA] - Thanks evil one...
Brimstone[LOA] - Actually, a team of people who met on a mailing list (the games-L mailing list) decided to follow my idea to form a gaming guild.
Brimstone[LOA] - We talked about UO for months while we created a site, forums, mailing list (of our own), etc.
Brimstone[LOA] - The games-l list had 600+ members on it - so advertising our fledgeling guild wasn't hard. We got about 15 members from that community.
Brimstone[LOA] - Once we got into UO, we decided that creativity and professionalism at ALL TIMES was our 'key to success'.
Brimstone[LOA] - We did things... differently. Captured screenshots - fancied them up - and PLASTERED them everywhere. We told stories of our adventures, and you guessed it...
Brimstone[LOA] - PLASTERED them everywhere.
Brimstone[LOA] - Eventually, there weren't many people who DIDN'T know our name or abbreviation - for good and for bad.
Brimstone[LOA] - And today, here we are... doing well.
Brimstone[LOA] - Thank you for the question.
Brimstone[LOA] - Fear: Would you consider teaching guilds and other player organizations how to host their own RA sites for UO?
Tigger - Your next Brim :)
Tigger - It is Ness's turn
Brimstone[LOA] - hehe... oops.

Ness - How do you think the Elder/Seer intrest program has effected Ultima Online?
Fear_BV - Actually I do. Come to http://www.battlevortex.com/shows/ and I have an extensive document there on the left called "Create Your Own Show".
Brimstone[LOA] - I think that the Elder/Seer program has ENHANCED UO tenfold. It is too bad that they aren't paid staff members (sorry, Origin). hehe... You see, the Elders and Seers "ARE ULTIMA ONLINE".
Fear_BV - It will answer almost any question, and if you have additional questions I can be reached at [email protected]
Brimstone[LOA] - They are the best of the best. They are creative, they are intelligent, they are driven and they are the reason we have been enjoying UO more lately.
Fear_BV - I love the Elders and Seers. They are a BIG help with organizing events and other player run activities.

Stark - To Brim: How do you think [LOA] compares to other groups with more specific goals, such as strict role playing groups (good, evil, etc.), compared to [LOA], which is more community based?
Brimstone[LOA] - I think that no matter what your "EDGE" is, or your "Guild Theme", you must focus on the "Community" of your guild. If your members don't feel like a part of something special, if they don't feel 'at home', then they will inevitably leave your guild for someone elses. You can be evil - and still have a friendly community (behind the scenes).
Brimstone[LOA] - All in all - you must push the envelope and do more for YOUR community (or guild). It will keep you alive and in business for years to come.
Brimstone[LOA] - Great question, thanks.

Tigger - Thank you to our guests Brimstone and Fear for coming :)
Tigger - Thank you for attending tonight's UOCC. Remember, UOCC occurs every other Monday night at 7pm CST. The log of tonight's chat will be posted tomorrow on http://uohoc.stratics.com.
Brimstone[LOA] - My pleasure. Good night, everyone!
Tigger - Please feel free to join us here in #ultima-online at any time of the week for help in game, the latest UO news, or just to chat. Have a nice evening.
Fear_BV - Thanks! G'nite
Tigger - Thanks guys :)