What if vet reward shard shields were given to younger...

[Ruppy2]

What if vet reward shard shields were given to younger accounts?

I did not want to hijack OldUO's well written post:
Why I (a returning player) will not be renewing my subscription

So I ask this question here. Almost wanted to do a poll, but I wouldn't want to be blasted for not phrasing it exactly right.

I would vote, yes, 5 year accounts and older. What would others say, as I think this could capture/retain more players? My main account is 223 months. I don't see a problem here, but what does this community think?

 

[Tanivar]

What if vet reward shard shields were given to younger accounts?

The 14 year plus players are going to foam at the mouth.

 

[Scribbles]

What if vet reward shard shields were given to younger accounts?

I did not want to hijack OldUO's well written post:
Why I (a returning player) will not be renewing my subscription

So I ask this question here. Almost wanted to do a poll, but I wouldn't want to be blasted for phrasing it exactly right.

I would vote, yes, 5 year accounts and older. What would others say, as I think this could capture/retain more players? My main account is 223 months. I don't see a problem here, but what does this community think?

As much as i appreciate your sentiment... I dont think most players with 14 yr accounts would agree. Me personally? meh it would mean 5 more of my accounts would have shields....

Overall I think there are far better ways to entice players to stay... like fixing all the broken stuff about the game instead of releasing horrible art work we didnt need or an expansion we didnt need.

 

[Uvtha]

What if vet reward shard shields were given to younger accounts?

I did not want to hijack OldUO's well written post:
Why I (a returning player) will not be renewing my subscription

So I ask this question here. Almost wanted to do a poll, but I wouldn't want to be blasted for phrasing it exactly right.

I would vote, yes, 5 year accounts and older. What would others say, as I think this could capture/retain more players? My main account is 223 months. I don't see a problem here, but what does this community think?

Get ready for the ****storm.

 

[MalagAste]

As a vet with tons of years I honestly wouldn't care. It's not like they would take mine away..... and I would just have more..... a LOT more.

 

[CovenantX]

I wouldn't care either, if everyone could xfer for free once a month, it might actually re-populate the rest of the shards? probably not. but maybe a little.

 

[Lady Storm]

How many time does this have to be addressed?

 

[Ruppy2]

How many time does this have to be addressed?

Storm, just wondering, are you of the opinion there are more people playing than last year, or less?

 

[Lady Storm]

Well I will say I have in my running around on all the shards that I do daily I have seen a lot more new and returning players..
And I also noticed Atlantic is thinning out.
More house plots are opening up and forsale...
In Atlantic's favor I have also helped new and returning players there as well...
I am a glass half full kind of lady.......
but I am also a realist.
At first glance the shards look less full... it is a downer for new players to see.
Atlantic is not a good place for them thou
But when you get on those "empty shards" at the right time..... boy are they busy.
Yes I think the shards are gaining more but its not where you can see it right of the bat

 

[Cyrah]

I have two accounts that already get shields. One more will in a few months (if I keep it open).

I think you have a good idea.

 

[Goodmann]

I would F-ING quit! My 100's of tokens sitting in chest are mine , "MY PRECIOUS"

 

[arkiu]

I think this is an excellent idea - I always hoped for a shard gate but it never seemed to go anywhere or catch steam. For a subscription based game, having to pay $20/character for a shard transfer is kind of absurd, especially when the few who have played this game for ages are able to do it with vet reward picks. I'm a 9 year vet who has played Catskills since day one, but unfortunately the shard is dying and there is still no event moderator (I for whatever reason really enjoy EM events). I recently started a new character on Atlantic because I'm not willing to dish out $140 for a mass transfer in addition to the sub fee and losing my house. Throughout the later part of the fall I thought about quitting UO because there really is just never anyone around to play with. Except maybe on weekends, it just wasn't easy to go about finding a group to go out hunting with.

Hell make it a one year reward instead of five. If I had the account age to get a shard shield now, I honestly wouldn't care if they reduced it to 1 or 5 year. Its not exactly a collectors item nor are the shard shield that pretty looking, its just a convenience thing. To me, it would kind of be like picking a a soul stone. Its ugly, and I could pick rewards several years higher, but its far more useful than all of the 10 year vet reward picks. I guess what it comes down to is someone needs to make that money. Its just a shame it cost $20 for one transfer on a sub game.

If this doesn't pan out, maybe they can should consider giving all characters a one time shard transfer so they can keep charging underage players for transfers. Or maybe they can have a version of a shard transfer shield works only once and is a one year pick - not my favorite idea but its better than whats in place.

Lady Storm I'm pretty sure there are less people now than last year. I'm not necessarily saying Ruppy2's idea will change that but I think it would make the vast majority of current players happier.

 

[Tyrath]

As someone with a lot of geriatric accounts I have no problem at all with this. I would keep them account bound though. Of course I am the guy that thinks the years should be removed and number of picks doubled. Vet rewards kind of lost their vet status when they removed the age restriction on use of vet rewards.

 

[OREOGL]

How many time does this have to be addressed?

As many times as we see fit.

 

[Fridgster]

How many time does this have to be addressed?

Over/under is at least 20.

And will never happen. By limiting who gets them allows for them to still profit from the sales of transfer tokens. If they gave them to everyone they would lose too much money.

 

[Capt. Lucky]

I hope I get them before the game goes belly up lol I got a couple years yet.

 

[Spock's Beard]

I already live on Atlantic and don't care about bargain-hunting smaller shards. Couldn't care less personally. In terms of the overall game, I don't know. I'm still just surprised they even added the shard shields. Like I said before, if some random person had wandered onto this forum years ago and suggested free shard transfers as a vet reward, people would have called them an idiot.

 

[Merus]

Over/under is at least 20.

And will never happen. By limiting who gets them allows for them to still profit from the sales of transfer tokens. If they gave them to everyone they would lose too much money.

This can't be right! Didn't you read the other thread that clearly explained that shard shield transfers are weak, and people who have them are still spending big $$ on buying real ones!

 

[DJAd]

I hope I get them before the game goes belly up lol I got a couple years yet.

This is the same for me. I have about 8 years until I could claim a shard shield. Do I hold out and hope the game lasts that long or claim rewards now?

 

[Fridgster]

This can't be right! Didn't you read the other thread that clearly explained that shard shield transfers are weak, and people who have them are still spending big $$ on buying real ones!

Actually I was one of the ones that stated that they are not as game changing as many feel. I stand by that statement.

As far as your comment I can't imagine you are serious. Obviously if you take something that is 8-15% of the whole and increase it to 60-85% of the whole the impact is going to be greater. Four to ten times greater. I'd accuse you of trolling but it wasn't really a good troll

 

[OldUO]

I honestly think it would be a great idea to lower the account age needed to use these shard transfer shields. When i returned to my home shard, which was pretty much a ghost town, I could have used shard shields to move to a more active shard! I actually might have continued playing if that was the case.

I cam back and my account was 6 years, I played 1997-2004-5ish. Lots changed and having an option without having to front a pile of gold to move my toons one at a time over a few months to a new shard would have been great!

 

[Ruppy2]

Actually I was one of the ones that stated that they are not as game changing as many feel. I stand by that statement.

As far as your comment I can't imagine you are serious. Obviously if you take something that is 8-15% of the whole and increase it to 60-85% of the whole the impact is going to be greater. Four to ten times greater. I'd accuse you of trolling but it wasn't really a good troll

I have found that vet shard shields more easily enable me to train characters on my "home shard" and move them to where the action is.

That action, for me, includes:
EM events
Idocs
new tram hunting friends
pvp wherever it's busier at that hour

 

[Mervyn]

I campaigned against shard shields when the idea was originally proposed on the basis that it would devalue the powerscrolls and so ruin pvp as people would just mine dead shards or take advantage of the time difference on other shards. And I was correct, but it's too late now.

So allowing anyone to use shard shields doesn't really bother me now, the 14 year old vets have made their millions for years now, economy has broken, I don't think allowing younger players to use them can break it any more.

I don't for the life of me understand why they did it anyway, i mean UO had a regular income of people purchasing shard transfer tokens from the uo store, why did they shoot themselves in the foot like that?

 

[PaithanTheElf]

Shard-Specific shields are lame. It should just be an x-fer token. What if I want to go to check out a shard I never would otherwise (like sakura)? I would never waste a vet reward on that, but maybe id have fun there for a month if I had the ability to go. I already have 4 shields and will probably end up using my other 5 vet rewards on these because I am not dropping any more money on this game than I already have in my life. $20 a transfer is a joke.

 

[Fridgster]

I honestly think it would be a great idea to lower the account age needed to use these shard transfer shields. When i returned to my home shard, which was pretty much a ghost town, I could have used shard shields to move to a more active shard! I actually might have continued playing if that was the case.

I cam back and my account was 6 years, I played 1997-2004-5ish. Lots changed and having an option without having to front a pile of gold to move my toons one at a time over a few months to a new shard would have been great!

Don't get me wrong. I would be more than happy for that to happen. I have literally dozens upon dozens of inactive accounts. Some developed some not, however they are well over 5 years old and all have picks. I would be able to do a transfer every day of the year!! Unfortunately it makes little business sense to change it.

 

[Fridgster]

Shard-Specific shields are lame. It should just be an x-fer token. What if I want to go to check out a shard I never would otherwise (like sakura)? I would never waste a vet reward on that, but maybe id have fun there for a month if I had the ability to go. I already have 4 shields and will probably end up using my other 5 vet rewards on these because I am not dropping any more money on this game than I already have in my life. $20 a transfer is a joke.

It comes down to money. You want to transfer to whatever shard you choose, well then you will have to buy the full featured token. They wanted to balance a meaningful gift to the veterans who have been with them since nearly the beginning without breaking potential income. Honestly, I believe they have succeeded quite well.

 

[GarthGrey]

Don't get me wrong. I would be more than happy for that to happen. I have literally dozens upon dozens of inactive accounts. Some developed some not, however they are well over 5 years old and all have picks. I would be able to do a transfer every day of the year!! Unfortunately it makes little business sense to change it.

Tell us your secret to getting inactive accounts to continue accruing rewards ?

 

[Longtooths]

meh, I have two accounts with all shields. Would mean my other 5 would have shields...cool.

 

[Fridgster]

Tell us your secret to getting inactive accounts to continue accruing rewards ?

they are all over 5 years and had picks before I deactivated them That would be one heck of a trick though.

 

[GarthGrey]

You have a level of patience I've never had. I couldn't in good conscience close an account, even temporarily , knowing it had rewards. But in a way I guess it's cool, like finding an old unwrapped christmas gift in the Griswald attic.

 

[HoneythornGump]

Are Popps & Nabin around?

I would love to get their input on this subject.

 

[Lord Taliesin]

I think it would be reasonable to give younger accounts a "lite" Shard Shield. Instead of a token each month perhaps one every 3-6 months, or make it scale with account age like the luck statue bonus.

 

[HoneythornGump]

Listen man....I'm a Veteran...I'm important, and I need to be made to feel special.

I'm not like other players you see. I'm different. I'm not like the rest. I'm special you see. I'm above them...erhm... new and younger players...

New players should be beneath me, and not be afford the same advantages and privileges that I have.

I don't think it's fair that all the players are on equal footing because I'm better. I deserve MORE.

I deserve exclusive access to content in a dying game.

I don't care if your unborn child will graduate with a Bachelors degree before you get your Shard Shields. I had to wait 15 years therefore so should you...I mean I've been here from the beginning. Did I mention how important I am?

I want new players to walk by my home, and see all my shards shields that they can't have, and say "hey that guy is so cool". I get my rocks off on it...

Doesn't matter to me if the game is dying...I like being able to control and manipulate the economy.

Doesn't matter that I've been playing this game from the beginning, and I'm filthy rich, and already have every possible advantage over younger players that don't have two nickels to rub together, and even if they did they couldn't buy anything because there shard it's empty, I'm a veteran.

Just because your new doesn't mean you shouldn't have to pay hundreds of millions to get access to a healthy game.
I'm a veteran man...I get access to a healthy game for free.

I don't care if it's more important you get access to a healthy game because your just starting out.I mean...I've paid my dues....the important thing is that I'm appreciated.

What matters is that I'm made to feel special.

I'm #$%&*@#$ veteran!

You gettin' this folks?

 

[Uvtha]

This is the same for me. I have about 8 years until I could claim a shard shield. Do I hold out and hope the game lasts that long or claim rewards now?

I'd claim um now. If this game is still here in 8 years I would be surprised.

 

[Barok]

Over/under is at least 20.

And will never happen. By limiting who gets them allows for them to still profit from the sales of transfer tokens. If they gave them to everyone they would lose too much money.

EA is the only one that profits, Broadsword doesn't see a penny from sales on the Origin site. I say screw EA.

 

[Evil Eve]

I like this game ! and I could care less when thy offer the transfers I get me a couple ....

 

[Barok]

And on a side note, it's time Broadsword put an in-game purchasing system in. EA wouldn't even notice, but it would help Broadsword/UO *Immensely*.

 

[Zuckuss]

Listen man....I'm a Veteran...I'm important, and I need to be made to feel special.

I'm not like other players you see. I'm different. I'm not like the rest. I'm special you see. I'm above them...erhm... new and younger players...

New players should be beneath me, and not be afford the same advantages and privileges that I have.

I don't think it's fair that all the players are on equal footing because I'm better. I deserve MORE.

I deserve exclusive access to content in a dying game.

I don't care if your unborn child will graduate with a Bachelors degree before you get your Shard Shields. I had to wait 15 years therefore so should you...I mean I've been here from the beginning. Did I mention how important I am?

I want new players to walk by my home, and see all my shards shields that they can't have, and say "hey that guy is so cool". I get my rocks off on it...

Doesn't matter to me if the game is dying...I like being able to control and manipulate the economy.

Doesn't matter that I've been playing this game from the beginning, and I'm filthy rich, and already have every possible advantage over younger players that don't have two nickels to rub together, and even if they did they couldn't buy anything because there shard it's empty, I'm a veteran.

Just because your new doesn't mean you shouldn't have to pay hundreds of millions to get access to a healthy game.
I'm a veteran man...I get access to a healthy game for free.

I don't care if it's more important you get access to a healthy game because your just starting out.I mean...I've paid my dues....the important thing is that I'm appreciated.

What matters is that I'm made to feel special.

I'm #$%&*@#$ veteran!

You gettin' this folks?

Hey man. Way to go attacking every shard shield owner in the game.

I like the tactic. Pure genius. Accuse everyone who has what you don't have of self entitlement when it is in fact you sitting here arguing as to why you should have something that you haven't spent half the time earning.

I am certain that after reading your post, the community is going to change it's mind and entire philosophy on the reward system. Thank you for presenting us with the logic that we have all failed to see and opening our eyes to this immense travesty of justice of not handing out vet rewards sooner to individuals who have spent less time earning than others.

 

[Acid Rain]

Hey man. Way to go attacking every shard shield owner in the game.

I like the tactic. Pure genius. Accuse everyone who has what you don't have of self entitlement when it is in fact you sitting here arguing as to why you should have something that you haven't spent half the time earning.

I am certain that after reading your post, the community is going to change it's mind and entire philosophy on the reward system. Thank you for presenting us with the logic that we have all failed to see and opening our eyes to this immense travesty of justice of not handing out vet rewards sooner to individuals who have spent less time earning than others.

LOL. Classic.

 

[Ansel]

Listen man....I'm a Veteran...I'm important, and I need to be made to feel special.

I'm not like other players you see. I'm different. I'm not like the rest. I'm special you see. I'm above them...erhm... new and younger players...

New players should be beneath me, and not be afford the same advantages and privileges that I have.

I don't think it's fair that all the players are on equal footing because I'm better. I deserve MORE.

I deserve exclusive access to content in a dying game.

I don't care if your unborn child will graduate with a Bachelors degree before you get your Shard Shields. I had to wait 15 years therefore so should you...I mean I've been here from the beginning. Did I mention how important I am?

I want new players to walk by my home, and see all my shards shields that they can't have, and say "hey that guy is so cool". I get my rocks off on it...

Doesn't matter to me if the game is dying...I like being able to control and manipulate the economy.

Doesn't matter that I've been playing this game from the beginning, and I'm filthy rich, and already have every possible advantage over younger players that don't have two nickels to rub together, and even if they did they couldn't buy anything because there shard it's empty, I'm a veteran.

Just because your new doesn't mean you shouldn't have to pay hundreds of millions to get access to a healthy game.
I'm a veteran man...I get access to a healthy game for free.

I don't care if it's more important you get access to a healthy game because your just starting out.I mean...I've paid my dues....the important thing is that I'm appreciated.

What matters is that I'm made to feel special.

I'm #$%&*@#$ veteran!

You gettin' this folks?

Ah, such sarcasm, such a relentless attack on the abjectly absurd. Bravo!

It reminds me of so much of the development approach to Ultima Online: adjusting the picture frames of a house that's burning down.

 

[Acid Rain]

It reminds me of so much of the development approach to Ultima Online: adjusting the picture frames of a house that's burning down.

Welcome to the UO's Death Society, continuously running for +17 yrs. We welcome your membership. Please feel free to add to our member driven thread running on Stratics at least twice per month. Please support our mission statement that UO will be dead any day now if they do not give everything to everyone immediately.

 

[Ansel]

Welcome to the UO's Death Society, continuously running for +17 yrs. We welcome your membership. Please feel free to add to our member driven thread running on Stratics at least twice per month. Please support our mission statement that UO will be dead any day now if they do not give everything to everyone immediately.

I clearly conveyed the wrong impression, Acid. Easy to do in a thread like this.

Some veteran rewards made no sense after a point. The five skill points per year veteran reward for example. Having account age tied to use of dye tubs is another good example. I did not agree, however, with the decision to let any account ride any ethy. There should be visible signs of veteran status. Practical ones....or game changers like Shard Shields are another matter.

I have Shard Shields. Been playing UO a long time. I worked for Origin and was on the UO team during the development of Renaissance. I have no interest in the sport of hopelessness or doom.

I wake up each day asking a simple but useful question: how do we win from here? I feel that promotion of the game is lacking and that there is a pervasive myopia when it comes to making UO appeal to a new audience. I do not deserve your sarcasm, though I have a feeling that my post managed to earn it

 

[Acid Rain]

Been playing UO a long time. I worked for Origin and was on the UO team during the development of Renaissance. I have no interest in the sport of hopelessness or doom.

I wake up each day asking a simple but useful question: how do we win from here?

A sincere Bravo good Sir, excellent attitude and well appreciated. At 5:30 am before I've had my coffee, I can be a little sarcastic... oh hell who am I kidding... I'm almost always sarcastic. If you find something your relatively good at, stick with it right?

No offense meant. It just came off alil doom & gloom ta me at the time. Whats really been bugging me for months now is
what model plane ur sitting in cause I just cant tell from the cockpit. I have it narrowed down some but specifics have eluded me !!

 

[Smoot]

The 14 year plus players are going to foam at the mouth.

i have lots of shields. i think at this point in the game, shields are needed just to play in some respects (mainly because of all the dead servers)
not sure about a vet reward, if so id do first year with maybe very low item limit. lets say 20 items.
i think a better option would be to sell them at the UO store for about $75 per shield. as it is now if someone wants a shield account they have to buy it from a player. so people are buying them (and paying much more than $75 per shield) broadsword just isnt making that $$.

on a side note, i would also provide re-activated accounts that had been inactive for more than a year with 5 character bound transfer tokens. so they could easily transfer to a more populated shard if the shard they came back to their old shard being dead.

 

[Ansel]

A sincere Bravo good Sir, excellent attitude and well appreciated. At 5:30 am before I've had my coffee, I can be a little sarcastic... oh hell who am I kidding... I'm almost always sarcastic. If you find something your relatively good at, stick with it right?

No offense meant. It just came off alil doom & gloom ta me at the time. Whats really been bugging me for months now is
what model plane ur sitting in cause I just cant tell from the cockpit. I have it narrowed down some but specifics have eluded me !!

It's a Yakovlev 52, Acid. I'd flown to West Texas Airport near El Paso in my little Luscombe and a friend there let me fly his Yak...so to speak. After the fall of the Soviet Union lots of these old trainers became available for cheap.

My favorite aircraft was a 1950 Bellanca 14-19 Cruismaster with an old Navy surplus WWII engine. A bit cumbersome with it's manually adjustable Hartzell Hydromatic prop - basically it used a large oil bladder to push a massive piston that changed the prop pitch, hence the HUGE spinner. But when I was making Air Warrior - an early WWII air combat MMO - and customers would say they wanted a manually controlled prop, I could tell them with some experience that, no, they didn't Here's the plane at the now closed Kittie Hill (77T) airport in Leander, Texas where I kept it during my time at Origin.

Great airport - 3 grass airstrips! Sadly, it's a housing development now

Pardon the digression. We now return to our various dueling doom prophecies

 

[Ruppy2]

First person to have a thread jacked by a single engine prop plane! Next vet reward choice should be between a Yakovlev 52 or a Hot Air Baloon with Rainbow Colors.

Thank you all for the discussion as I think it showed a fair amount of community thoughts on the subject.

More and more I learn that 'timing' is so unpredictable, yet can dictate everything. Maybe the civility of this discussion reflects a more constructive balance and awareness of this topic at this time.

 

[Lord Frodo]

And on a side note, it's time Broadsword put an in-game purchasing system in. EA wouldn't even notice, but it would help Broadsword/UO *Immensely*.

In-Game or not it would still go through EA's store and EA would still collect all the money.

 

[Barok]

In-Game or not it would still go through EA's store and EA would still collect all the money.

How would an in game store built and managed by Broadsword go through EA?

 

[Uriah Heep]

I wish instead of planters that are as tall as the house, and turtle fountains that lean way to far forward, and other art that doesnt match, they would incorporate the good usable gifts again. A soulstone fragment token once a year shouldn't break them. Tossing in a random chance for a transfer token when you redeem your gift certificate shouldnt break the bank. An occasional heritage token, perhaps a new token that grants you an extra vet pick...

And yeah, in the game's declining years, why not relax ALL the age requirements and give everyone one more pick per year...The glory days are over people, time to just make whats left as enjoyable as we can.

 

[wanderer1origin]

I honestly think it would be a great idea to lower the account age needed to use these shard transfer shields. When i returned to my home shard, which was pretty much a ghost town, I could have used shard shields to move to a more active shard! I actually might have continued playing if that was the case.

I cam back and my account was 6 years, I played 1997-2004-5ish. Lots changed and having an option without having to front a pile of gold to move my toons one at a time over a few months to a new shard would have been great!

lol you whinning like a vet player and a crying noob player, life and games change you dindt follow changes with this game and now complain you cant compete, game is soo incrediable easier for getting gold, items, a playable suit and keeping it than 10 years ago
they made in long term game easier for all and still complaints that new players dont have chance to compete time togather gold to buy or make a runnable suit is in hours these days or free in general chat