-
Hail Guest! We're looking for Community Content Contribuitors to Stratics. If you would like to write articles, fan fiction, do guild or shard event recaps, it's simple. Find out how in this thread: Community Contributions
-
Greetings Guest, Having Login Issues? Check this thread!
-
Hail Guest!, Please take a moment to read this post reminding you all of the importance of Account Security.
-
Hail Guest! Please read the new announcement concerning the upcoming addition to Stratics. You can find the announcement Here!
Captn Norrington
Stratics Forum Moderator
Moderator
Professional
Stratics Veteran
Stratics Legend
UNLEASHED
Campaign Supporter
Catskills is actually more like the 3rd largest behind Atlantic and Great Lakes, you must have been there odd times.
Based on my shard transfers, I'd say Origin, Sonoma, Napa Valley. Lake Austin would be a close 4th, Baja is probably 5th.
Based on my shard transfers, I'd say Origin, Sonoma, Napa Valley. Lake Austin would be a close 4th, Baja is probably 5th.
Was probably on Cats a couple of mornings after server up and a couple of evenings around 5-6 central time. so yeah not exactly prime time.
Your be wrong on Origin and Cats but Napa is a more work shard not a bank sitter type...
But to be honest I have been on all the west and east shards taking care of business and found there are times of day where that list of shards is active.
To be honest I know most shards have a time of most activity and can be missed if your not a regular there. They may look empty.. but I have had a new guy show up and people pop out of the woodwork to help them.... we are long past the days of sitting at the bank to spend our time. An hour here and there is what many only have to play these days. We fit it into our busy lives.
But to be honest I have been on all the west and east shards taking care of business and found there are times of day where that list of shards is active.
To be honest I know most shards have a time of most activity and can be missed if your not a regular there. They may look empty.. but I have had a new guy show up and people pop out of the woodwork to help them.... we are long past the days of sitting at the bank to spend our time. An hour here and there is what many only have to play these days. We fit it into our busy lives.
Pretty strange that folks are maintaining castles without bein' seen for years and years.
Lady Kyo
Seasoned Veteran
I am on Catskills and in the UK. We are a quiet shard, but hit it at the "prime" times (USA) and you will see activity., Also, on Cats, we use the GENERAL CHAT not help chat.
Larisa
Publishing Manager, Stratics Leadership
Editor
Reporter
Moderator
Professional
Editor
Stratics Veteran
Stratics Legend
Wiki Moderator
UNLEASHED
The only reason you don't see anyone on those shards is because they are actually out PLAYING the game....oh what a concept huh? 
Like when people say PLAY SIEGE and the first response is ITS DEAD....that couldn't be farther from the truth....same with the smaller shards. We ARE around..just not wasting time standing around at the bank
Like when people say PLAY SIEGE and the first response is ITS DEAD....that couldn't be farther from the truth....same with the smaller shards. We ARE around..just not wasting time standing around at the bank
- Awards
- 3
It struck me funny to see Sonoma there, but I can understand we just not standing around looking pretty at the banks. As Larisa says above, they there. As for Siege they want you to think that they are not there to lure you into feeling secured before lower the boom on you (J/K) Siege has a lot of good people that play the game like it was meant to be played years ago, but they are slowly creeping forward toward the light of day as the changes are forced upon them during each published still they resist but I can understand what they feel.
(J/K) Siege has a lot of good people that play the game like it was meant to be played years ago, but they are slowly creeping forward toward the light of day as the changes are forced upon them during each published still they resist but I can understand what they feel.
On Legends Luna is full and castle spots are spotty but they do show up from time to time or are typically very reasonable. I think were firmly in the middle Legends is funny. You'd think no one is on at all then suddenly a bunch of people will start chatting. I've talked to people before about castle spots and they simply don't want to go through the hassle of moving lol. So ya never know.
Legends is funny. You'd think no one is on at all then suddenly a bunch of people will start chatting. I've talked to people before about castle spots and they simply don't want to go through the hassle of moving lol. So ya never know.
I've been spending some time lately on a long time UO bucket list item so I have a little perspective on this one. One of my very first characters was a smith and when I joined the UBB (United Blacksmiths of Britannia) way back when, I created a smith on every shard to hang out at guild meetings. I always meant to make them all GM but never did. I've been going back through them all and using only local resources (no shard transfer gear, scrolls) working them up to legendary smith.
On most shards I could find via vendor search, a full spell book, a fire beetle, a rune book, a BOD book and on some even a smithing scroll. Except on LA. Vendor searches there were pretty sparse. If I had to rank them it would be LA, Origin and then Sonoma. I will say, though, that without fail every time I asked on general chat where I could find one of those essentials someone would respond and usually just give me what I couldn't find. A very nice tamer on LA dropped what she was doing on the spot, ran out and tamed me a fire beetle and wouldn't take anything for it.
My impression, the small shards may be small but the players that are there are some of the best left in UO.
On most shards I could find via vendor search, a full spell book, a fire beetle, a rune book, a BOD book and on some even a smithing scroll. Except on LA. Vendor searches there were pretty sparse. If I had to rank them it would be LA, Origin and then Sonoma. I will say, though, that without fail every time I asked on general chat where I could find one of those essentials someone would respond and usually just give me what I couldn't find. A very nice tamer on LA dropped what she was doing on the spot, ran out and tamed me a fire beetle and wouldn't take anything for it.
My impression, the small shards may be small but the players that are there are some of the best left in UO.
Legends I know well and would actually put it somewhere in the lower middle population. I have given quite a few castles away or taken folks to castle spots I have dropped over the years on legends. Castles just are not my thing but I get a wild hair now and then and place a few and then get bored with them and drop them or find someone that wants one.On Legends Luna is full and castle spots are spotty but they do show up from time to time or are typically very reasonable. I think were firmly in the middle
Origin is one of the shards I play and yep it is pretty empty feeling most of the time but it does have a active population a couple of hours per day. I much prefer the lower population shards but maintain a couple of houses on GL, Pac, and LS which I would call mid population shards. Origin and Legends the two lower pop shards I play on more than anywhere else atm. In my hopping around visiting shards the last few weeks some like LA felt totally lifeless.
Siege is not dead just everyone is stealthing around
Another chat to check is the RP Community. Generally a fair few of us skulking around in there come primetime
Basara
UO Forum Moderator
Moderator
Professional
Governor
Stratics Veteran
Stratics Legend
Wiki Moderator
UNLEASHED
Campaign Supporter
I wish Lake Austin could see some of the results of the supposed mass scripting and resource farming on the shard itself. I've not seen any of that personally, and I'm one of those odd people who likes running around to places instead of recalling. The closest I've seen is a guy recalling to a tree outside my Ter Mur house (which is so close to the Royal City moongate that part of the house is in the GZ), and all the trees in that area are lucky to produce 100 logs per visit.
The locals are fairly close-knit. Often, very quiet when doing something they don't want others toraid interrupt.
On the other hand, most of the champ spawners are people from other shards, that attack the locals when they try to get PS for local use, and our events are clogged with cross-sharding multi-boxers to where locals have started getting telestormed to other cities during events for the first time in 13-14 years.
The locals are fairly close-knit. Often, very quiet when doing something they don't want others to
On the other hand, most of the champ spawners are people from other shards, that attack the locals when they try to get PS for local use, and our events are clogged with cross-sharding multi-boxers to where locals have started getting telestormed to other cities during events for the first time in 13-14 years.
You can look at a shard with vendor search. (Catskills has a vibrant vendor economy so It does not belong with these)
This is the first page of the High to Low search for everything.
None had rares.
Napa has a tamer that kills Navrey a lot.
Origin has a tamer that does Shadowguard a lot.
Lake Austin is very affordable. This search wins the prize for best outfitted Imbuing ingredient shard.
Had all the essences and all the others that are commonly used.
This is the first page of the High to Low search for everything.
None had rares.
Napa has a tamer that kills Navrey a lot.
Origin has a tamer that does Shadowguard a lot.
Lake Austin is very affordable. This search wins the prize for best outfitted Imbuing ingredient shard.
Had all the essences and all the others that are commonly used.
Basara
UO Forum Moderator
Moderator
Professional
Governor
Stratics Veteran
Stratics Legend
Wiki Moderator
UNLEASHED
Campaign Supporter
LA also has a player center that routinely has free stuff on vendors that would be being sold on other shards. I'm one of the regular contributors to it, and over the last couple months I've donated about 7-10 legendary artifacts that ended up being out on the PC vendors for free (and over 100 lesser, greater and major artifacts).
We also tend to help each other with other stuff like low-end PS, crafting supplies, even pets.
We also tend to help each other with other stuff like low-end PS, crafting supplies, even pets.
Napa has a guy who will use the pillars/rocks regardless of who has a pet on Navrey. I will catch this dude in fel one day.
If somebody is looking for something I suggest they check Luna houses and leave a message with the owner or ask in chat.
JE Tamer
Sugar those castles your so hyped on seeing the owners of ... Ill tell you one thing most owners will tell you... "Keep your feet off my Grass!
or Snow if that's the case."
I own 25 castles give or take ... on a handful of shards .. though I have gotten rid of a few of late to cut back on property taxes...(joke on the taxes but not the giving of the castle away)
Now I say this cause I can only be in one house at a time.... well sorta ... I have been known to run a 2nd or 3rd account to make changes.
But I hope you get the drift. those castles your so fond of pointing out belong to people.
You may not see them but they do have owners who pay, or we would be in a huge castle fall season... hehe
Kinda reminds me of this player who kept standing outside a castle every few days.. I asked him what he was doing... he was quite for a bit then said
"I was trying to catch the owner ... or the house sign to change to decay... for years I have never seen anyone in it... it don't look decorated.."
"Did you try the door I said" "Its Private" "Hmmm no its public, at least the sign says so" He walked up and opened the door...oooing and oogleing at the deco the house had.... He was gone in thought as I walked in and put away the hunting stuff I got on me... Yes is was my house.
Moral: That which you see may not be all that is there...and ownership is not based on if you see me but if I have paid for my accounts.
I helped him years later get his own castle.. he became an old dear friend.
Sugar those castles your so hyped on seeing the owners of ... Ill tell you one thing most owners will tell you... "Keep your feet off my Grass!
or Snow if that's the case."
I own 25 castles give or take ... on a handful of shards .. though I have gotten rid of a few of late to cut back on property taxes...(joke on the taxes but not the giving of the castle away)
Now I say this cause I can only be in one house at a time.... well sorta ... I have been known to run a 2nd or 3rd account to make changes.
But I hope you get the drift. those castles your so fond of pointing out belong to people.
You may not see them but they do have owners who pay, or we would be in a huge castle fall season... hehe
Kinda reminds me of this player who kept standing outside a castle every few days.. I asked him what he was doing... he was quite for a bit then said
"I was trying to catch the owner ... or the house sign to change to decay... for years I have never seen anyone in it... it don't look decorated.."
"Did you try the door I said" "Its Private" "Hmmm no its public, at least the sign says so" He walked up and opened the door...oooing and oogleing at the deco the house had.... He was gone in thought as I walked in and put away the hunting stuff I got on me... Yes is was my house.
Moral: That which you see may not be all that is there...and ownership is not based on if you see me but if I have paid for my accounts.
I helped him years later get his own castle.. he became an old dear friend.