Someone at EA please read! [Problem Solved - Read for Public Warning]

[Assia Penryn]

I've included the original thread below. This problem has still not been solved. I'm extremely frustrated to the point I'm ready to sell off everything I own and close my 16+ year account. I have paged numerous times with many different ways to phrase the problem with no response from any GM. I have spent hours upon hours in-game waiting. I have no ability to now cancel my previous help request and upon testing it, ALL my characters on the shard are in the same boat even though I've only paged on Assia.

I don't have the time to play UO as much as I'd like to so most of my entertainment revolves around my vendors and enriching my home and it's design with items I purchase with funds from those vendors. I am going on nearly a week of being unable to redesign my house and it sits broken. It may sound small potatoes to most, but when this is one of the few things that you do in the game, it is a big deal. I have tried to be patient and understanding, but I'm at my wit's end. This is my last attempt to get this fixed. I'm already upset that I can't apparently x-shard my character because it'll happen again. This is my main character that I've had for well over a decade... I want her on name on the house sign and if I want to travel to another shard to attend an event... I should be able to do that without it breaking a large chunk of my entertainment. If I could have it fixed in a timely fashion, I probably wouldn't even sweat it very much... however, that is not my experience.

EA... Please help me and keep another vet in the game.

Reference thread: http://stratics.com/community/threads/house-customization-issues.310453/

 

[The Zog historian]

You tried the suggestions like changing the foundation? What about removing everything that was placed by a deed (i.e. if you didn't drop it then redeed it)? Clear the co-owner, friends and access lists?

 

[Assia Penryn]

I did. I am talking to a GM finally. This post worked magic. YES YES YES! Hoping he can fix my issue.

 

[The Zog historian]

He should be able to, somehow. I've seen a GM take an L-house apart, not even by wall and floor tiles, but graphics piece by graphics piece. That was in 1999, so their abilities may have changed with the advent of customization, but they still ought to be able to do a lot.

 

[Assia Penryn]

Alright. So here's the result and some information to hopefully help someone else.


As it stands now... IF YOU X-SHARD THE OWNER OF YOUR HOUSE... YOU WILL HAVE THE SAME PROBLEM I DID! Meaning, if you x-shard your character and bring them back... the house customization system will no longer recognize them.
This was what caused the problem for me - according to the GM.

The solution is for the GM to trade you back your house. There might be an easier solution, but this is what worked for us.

I don't know if I can post the names of GMs in a positive light on this forum, but if I can... I will edit in the name. The GM that finally showed up was outstanding. He spent almost TWO hours helping me. Why should it take two hours to have your house transferred to you? Well anyone who knows me... knows... I use my house as my shop and run vendors out of it. In order to transfer the house, I had to remove the vendors. Not an easy feat when you are talking a thousands of items on said vendors, gold well above the half billion mark and an already stuffed house and bank. So I was optimistic that with packies and alternates I can manage until I remembered the gold on the vendors. The gold itself would be over 750 items. I told the GM that this was going to take awhile because I had to figure out where I could put not only thousands of items, but also the items from the checks as well. I suggested I get the vendors all removed so he did not have to wait around and then I would page again (and secretly hope for a response). He wouldn't hear of it and didn't wish me to have to live with the house issue another night longer. So we worked out a plan and he ended up holding it almost everything including 750 in checks and about 7 completely full bags. Because I couldn't pull the gold in bags... he removed the gold check by check from my bank... one at a time and bagged it while I worked on other stuff... all I had to do was withdraw the funds occasionally. I can only imagine how annoying that was. I pulled the vendors and the house was transferred. I tested customization and finally success! He then put the bagged checks back in my bank... bag by bag... and I placed a vendor and moved the gold to it. After that, he gave me the bags of items he was holding and after some reassurance me and the bags would be okay, he left me bidding adieu. All in all... it took almost 2 hours.

It took my 2 more hours to unpack the pack horses and safely put away all the items he had held in banks and alt characters. It'll take me probably another 6 hours to get the vendors back up and restocked, but I can do that as I have time. At least now all the items are safe and the house customization is fixed.

I'm a little bummed that I can no longer take Assia to visit other lands, but so happy to be able to enjoy working on my home again. I have no plans to subject myself to this nightmare again and until the Devs say it is safe... Assia will stay on Atlantic near her house.


So here's my advice.

DO NOT X-SHARD YOUR CHARACTER IF THEY OWN YOUR HOUSE!

 

[MalagAste]

Thanks for informing us about this issue! I will certainly warn any of my friends and spread the word of caution regarding transfecting house owners.

I have another issue I'm not too happy about but thankfully it won't cost me 6 hours plus and panic like yours...... though it's also an issue with Transferring and from now on I WON'T ever transfer my crafter again.... Transferred him to another shard and back and now his Owned by Talisman no longer will work for him so I'll have to search for another good Carpentry Talisman as he can't use his any longer...

 

[Mandrake of DF]

This has always been like this. When a character shard transfer, the friendships to the houses are released. With new changes where it let it be acc based, it will work perfectly nice unless you x-fer the one char that got friended or co on that shard. Then your other characters will loose accesabillity.

Now, with the problems they had with owners and customization - this was not a bummer that the hous owner got deleted as house owner...but you still got access - cuz it is the account that owns the house.

 

[Assia Penryn]

Thanks for informing us about this issue! I will certainly warn any of my friends and spread the word of caution regarding transfecting house owners.

I have another issue I'm not too happy about but thankfully it won't cost me 6 hours plus and panic like yours...... though it's also an issue with Transferring and from now on I WON'T ever transfer my crafter again.... Transferred him to another shard and back and now his Owned by Talisman no longer will work for him so I'll have to search for another good Carpentry Talisman as he can't use his any longer...

I'm so sorry to hear that!

This has always been like this. When a character shard transfer, the friendships to the houses are released. With new changes where it let it be acc based, it will work perfectly nice unless you x-fer the one char that got friended or co on that shard. Then your other characters will loose accesabillity.

Now, with the problems they had with owners and customization - this was not a bummer that the hous owner got deleted as house owner...but you still got access - cuz it is the account that owns the house.

Yes, I know x-sharding has affected friends and such for a long time. That has been a pain, but it is workable as you can refriend them and delete the old one access.

However, in this case... It treated me like the house owner in all regards... I could access the sign, move the moving crate, place vendors, unlock/secure, etc. However, it wouldn't let me customize on the house owner and NONE of my other characters on the account (even though only one had ever x-sharded) could do it either. It's like once the house owner was glitched in the area of customization, it bled down the line and glitched the others in the same manner.

 

[Armand de Romanus]

wow. amazing job for that gm! i dunno of another that would have taken the painstaking time 2 do that for a customer. bravo!

also why the hell can't we drop checks onto our vendors to pay them?!?! that should be fixed. carrying around 60k gets u overweight & is never enough money 2 give u a cushion for ur stuff 2 sell.

 

[Painted Elves]

This is a real shame, Most of my enjoyment is also vendors, running a shop and maintaining an interesting home and I would be so frustrated about this too. I'm glad you got it sorted!

 

[BrianFreud]

Glad to hear things worked out for you Assia. If the same happened to me, I can only imagine the similar nightmare involved in fixing it.

 

[MalagAste]

wow. amazing job for that gm! i dunno of another that would have taken the painstaking time 2 do that for a customer. bravo!

also why the hell can't we drop checks onto our vendors to pay them?!?! that should be fixed. carrying around 60k gets u overweight & is never enough money 2 give u a cushion for ur stuff 2 sell.

Just get a friend or another account to buy something off your vendor for the gold you want transferred there.

 

[Kojak]

put a bod in a bod book and price it - then put it on your vendor and buy it yourself - problem solved (and much easier)

 

[Assia Penryn]

wow. amazing job for that gm! i dunno of another that would have taken the painstaking time 2 do that for a customer. bravo!

also why the hell can't we drop checks onto our vendors to pay them?!?! that should be fixed. carrying around 60k gets u overweight & is never enough money 2 give u a cushion for ur stuff 2 sell.

Yes, sorry I didn't catch your post sooner, Armand. It doesn't make pulling gold and moving it from your bank elsewhere easy, but to get gold you have in your bank back on a vendor it's a cinch.

Just set the bod book to not for sale so the bods are individually priced like Kojak said above. This is what I do as well.

 

[Ox AO]

Only use a character that doesn't have his name tied to anything at all on the shard. From quests to house signs