A Challenge for all you home makers.

[bwitched]

Tried to stay near the orginal castle specs as much as possible and make it only a 2 level not to cause anymore blocking then there already is. Made use of wasted space hope you like, didn't make a garden because i have seen some really nice stuff people have done by themself on castles and takes the fun out of it.


Roof level. My preferred style I like lots of outside space and removing the lower right tower clears up the area for a nice and open view. More classic version in last two pics at the bottom.

Main entry level.

Basement level.

Alternate version very near classic castle look.

Alternate version Main Entry level.

 

[Lord Nabin]

I have to say everyone I am very impressed. Good Luck. I can't wait till Monday to see the final results.

Kurgan, Thank you for putting this on it was an excellent idea!

 

[Pandora_CoD]

/bump


This is phenomenal guys! Amazing.

 

[Mesanna]

Hello everyone, since we are talking about redesigning castles I would like to add that any designs you would like to submit to the dev team to submit to the game can include any wall tiles except for the gothic and the rustic walls tiles and the crystal and the obsidian wall tiles. The floor tiles and wall tiles are open for use as a completely rebuilt castle. Give us an idea of what you want.

Please keep in mind prefabs are easier to do like this than redoing the whole system. If there are any other types/ sizes of prefabs you would like to see in the game this is your chance to submit those also.

 

[Evianne]

Hello everyone, since we are talking about redesigning castles I would like to add that any designs you would like to submit to the dev team to submit to the game can include any wall tiles except for the gothic and the rustic walls tiles and the crystal and the obsidian wall tiles. The floor tiles and wall tiles are open for use as a completely rebuilt castle. Give us an idea of what you want.

Please keep in mind prefabs are easier to do like this than redoing the who system. If there are any other types/ sizes of prefabs you would like to see in the game this is your chance to submit those also.

If there were some actual options for castles and/or keeps it might actually make me want one

 

[Viquire]

Hello everyone, since we are talking about redesigning castles I would like to add that any designs you would like to submit to the dev team to submit to the game can include any wall tiles except for the gothic and the rustic walls tiles and the crystal and the obsidian wall tiles. The floor tiles and wall tiles are open for use as a completely rebuilt castle. Give us an idea of what you want.

Please keep in mind prefabs are easier to do like this than redoing the who system. If there are any other types/ sizes of prefabs you would like to see in the game this is your chance to submit those also.

@Mesanna , we are talking about possibilities for recreating the tool that allowed these custom designs to be built. Because of data changes in the client over the last five years or so, I do not recall the exact patch, the original tool no longer functions as it can not access the art. The interest of the team is greatly appreciated, as is the desire to have players contribute!

I am of the belief that something official, a contest or specific call to action, if allowed to be open for a reasonable period of time would bring in a much greater number of submissions and variety of textures.

Thank you, Ma'am!

 

[Riyana]

Hello everyone, since we are talking about redesigning castles I would like to add that any designs you would like to submit to the dev team to submit to the game can include any wall tiles except for the gothic and the rustic walls tiles and the crystal and the obsidian wall tiles. The floor tiles and wall tiles are open for use as a completely rebuilt castle. Give us an idea of what you want.

Please keep in mind prefabs are easier to do like this than redoing the who system. If there are any other types/ sizes of prefabs you would like to see in the game this is your chance to submit those also.

Yes! And what Viquire said! I sooooooooooo hope this happens!

:mylittlepony:

 

[Viquire]

Also @Mesanna

In this thread,

http://stratics.com/community/threads/enhanced-client-file-format.300768/

forum member @Kons had worked to recreate the tool insideUO, a popular art viewer used to spoil many publishes and patches in the past. Originally he stated that no code would be made available through the project, but in his last post on these forums, back in 2013, he posted a link to all his work, and possibly the source code. Found here:
https://code.google.com/p/kprojects/wiki/UOArchitect

I won't be able to take an in depth look at this until the early part of next week. But by the title, I'd say it is possible he was either working on, or had completed the tool we need.

 

[Viquire]

@Nok @Flutter There is no hope of recovering these files, is there? TLL went the way if the wind so long ago.
http://stratics.com/community/threads/entries-for-house-builder-contest-now-up.136971/

 

[Viquire]

@Nok @Dermott of LS could either of you guys take a look at this download and tell me what you think about its abilities in this capacity?
https://code.google.com/p/kprojects/downloads/detail?name=UOArchitect_modK_2.6.8.rar&can=2&q=

 

[Kayhynn]

@Nok @Flutter There is no hope of recovering these files, is there? TLL went the way if the wind so long ago.
http://stratics.com/community/threads/entries-for-house-builder-contest-now-up.136971/

Good news/bad news.

Good news - the site is findable on archive.org.

Bad news - none of the images were archived.

There might be a possibility to search google and see if any of the images are saved or to contact the individuals who entered the contest to see i fthey still have the images. I know i have some of the contest folks contact.

If we can get the images, i'll host them on UOHomeDecor. The other good news is it seems like several of the entries are in this thread.

 

[Flutter]

@Nok @Flutter There is no hope of recovering these files, is there? TLL went the way if the wind so long ago.
http://stratics.com/community/threads/entries-for-house-builder-contest-now-up.136971/

Sadly no I don't believe any part of TLL was saved.

 

[Flutter]

Sigh... I am going to have to unlock everything in my castle aren't I?

 

[Kayhynn]

I have an idea, but not sure how to code it.

If we could create something similar to this: https://www.buildwithchrome.com/

But with UO walls instead.....and a 31x31 tile plot like a castle.

 

[Viquire]

That architect program

I have an idea, but not sure how to code it.

If we could create something similar to this: https://www.buildwithchrome.com/

But with UO walls instead.....and a 31x31 tile plot like a castle.

That architect program, I would bet my le... well, I would make a sizable wager that it has what we need, or very close.

 

[Viquire]

Sigh... I am going to have to unlock everything in my castle aren't I?

You could submit a dark themed castle that maintains the exact same footprint, but trebles the available torture space. And, then, no...you wouldn't.

 

[Viquire]

Sadly no I don't believe any part of TLL was saved.

I feared as much, but thought it was worth a shot. I couldn't remember if any of it actually got migrated to WordPress before it was allowed to go inactive. Now if Nok or Dermott will take a look at the other thing, maybe we have something worth working with.

 

[Kayhynn]

I'll take a look at UO Architetcht in a bit

 

[Lord Taliesin]

If someone can get a program running with which to design houses I'll certainly try to come up with some designs. The idea of new castle designs and other prefabs makes me giddy!

 

[Lady Michelle]

this is is my prefab design on a 18 by 18 plot could be used for a keep or castle. The Devs will have to stretch it out

 

[Viquire]

That looks very nice! Its been ages since I did any designing. I was going to take a stab at the castle contest, but stuff came up.

 

[Mandrake of DF]

it's always been my thought that a castle should have a grander entrance than it currently does ~~ it should be easily defended (current design accomplishes that) and there should be ample room for servants and all of the daily business of a tiny kingdom ~~ and it should have a large, functional courtyard

the bottom floor presented here would be all of the trades ~~ the second floor with a grand entryway for receiving visitors and entertaining ~~ for myself, I would use the center and northeast rooms of the bottom floor for kitchen and food prep, with the northeast corner room of the second floor as dining ~~ the northwest corner room would be library-music and the front rooms living/bedrooms

I *think* it conforms to support rules, but I didn't count the tiles to confirm that

I love this!

 

[Lady Michelle]

That looks very nice! Its been ages since I did any designing. I was going to take a stab at the castle contest, but stuff came up.

thank you good thing I took pictures. tc 1 was wiped

 

[Viquire]

thank you good thing I took pictures. tc 1 was wiped

Yes I was just thinking the same thing. I was also thinking that having a builder outside the game just got confirmed as important.

 

[Endrik]

Hello everyone, since we are talking about redesigning castles I would like to add that any designs you would like to submit to the dev team to submit to the game can include any wall tiles except for the gothic and the rustic walls tiles and the crystal and the obsidian wall tiles. The floor tiles and wall tiles are open for use as a completely rebuilt castle. Give us an idea of what you want.

Please keep in mind prefabs are easier to do like this than redoing the whole system. If there are any other types/ sizes of prefabs you would like to see in the game this is your chance to submit those also.

Man this is some of the greatest news I have heard in a long time! I would love to submit a few castle designs! I wish there was a way to build some mock ups. I am anxiously keeping my eyes on this thread to see if we get a tool to help us participate in this initiative. I don't suppose it would be possible to make a test shard with nothing but open green grassland with a rule set that allows 32x32 plots? Probably not, but I figured it would be worth throwing it out there.

I guess another option would be do enable a 32x32 plot, and then make all the custom wall/door/flooring graphics as craftable deeds. You did say you want some ideas for giving crafters a new use right? This would kill two birds; it would allow customizable large-size plots, and increase crafter use. Just a thought.

 

[Petra Fyde]

I believe we can only have 'prefab' homes that size, not customizable.
The 'Master Building Table' lists castles as 31 x 31, as does the old UO Herald Playguide. Some people are referring to 32 x 32. Which is it?
Probably best get that solved before anyone starts designing.

 

[Lady Michelle]

I believe we can only have 'prefab' homes that size, not customizable.
The 'Master Building Table' lists castles as 31 x 31, as does the old UO Herald Playguide. Some people are referring to 32 x 32. Which is it?
Probably best get that solved before anyone starts designing.

Its 31 by 31 from the outside. If you count inside the castle you will only count 29 tiles. So I went outside and counted 31 by 31.

 

[Viquire]

I believe we can only have 'prefab' homes that size, not customizable.
The 'Master Building Table' lists castles as 31 x 31, as does the old UO Herald Playguide. Some people are referring to 32 x 32. Which is it?
Probably best get that solved before anyone starts designing.

Kurgan had shown blank foot prints for both castle and keep at the very beginning of this thread, and listed the dimensions.

 

[Endrik]

I believe we can only have 'prefab' homes that size, not customizable.
The 'Master Building Table' lists castles as 31 x 31, as does the old UO Herald Playguide. Some people are referring to 32 x 32. Which is it?
Probably best get that solved before anyone starts designing.

Hi Petra,

You are right, it is 31x31. My point about the customizable option was that it would still be possible to have customizable houses simply by using a different approach. For example, make a 31x31 "prefab" template, then allow walls, doors, floors, etc to be customizable deeds made by crafters. Both sides would be fulfilled: no redesign of the entire housing system for the devs, yet players would still be able to customize castle size plots.

 

[Mandrake of DF]

Hi Petra,

You are right, it is 31x31. My point about the customizable option was that it would still be possible to have customizable houses simply by using a different approach. For example, make a 31x31 "prefab" template, then allow walls, doors, floors, etc to be customizable deeds made by crafters. Both sides would be fulfilled: no redesign of the entire housing system for the devs, yet players would still be able to customize castle size plots.

As Mesanna pointed out, it will not be a option to customize keeps and castles. Therefore, they give us option to make some prefab designs - wich we can can choose from. So put out your inspiration and creativity now!!!

 

[Lady Michelle]

@Bleak @Mesanna
For the prefab castles & keeps
want to know if we are allowed to put in
bar, & garnish fountain.

 

[DevilsOwn]

Hello everyone, since we are talking about redesigning castles I would like to add that any designs you would like to submit to the dev team to submit to the game can include any wall tiles except for the gothic and the rustic walls tiles and the crystal and the obsidian wall tiles. The floor tiles and wall tiles are open for use as a completely rebuilt castle. Give us an idea of what you want.

Please keep in mind prefabs are easier to do like this than redoing the whole system. If there are any other types/ sizes of prefabs you would like to see in the game this is your chance to submit those also.

Mesanna, would my post in this thread be acceptable as a submission or should I email a link to the post somewhere? thanks

 

[Viquire]

Mesanna, would my post in this thread be acceptable as a submission or should I email a link to the post somewhere? thanks

I expect this has been a busy week for them. I hope they get back to us with some specifics fairly soon, and I hope you will let us know if you hear/have heard anything.

 

[DevilsOwn]

yah, they've had their hands full, no doubt hopefully we'll hear something soon about how to go about submissions, and ideally it would be here in this thread..... I will surely let you all know if I personally hear anything, Viq!

and while I'm here, thank you so much everyone for the positive feedback on my design.. I had such fun doing that with Kurgan's program and I sure wish it was still a viable option for all the designers

 

[Lord Obsidian]

By chance, does anyone still got an original installer / zip file of Kurgan's House Builder from back in 2009?

(I know it is not functional anymore )

 

[Kayhynn]

Actually...yes.

I found two sites that have it as a zip file. I do suggest scanning with a virus checker before opening.

http://www.tukaram.net/homebuilder.htm

http://homepage.ntlworld.com/cragproductions/ultima2.htm

 

[Lord Obsidian]

Actually...yes.

I found two sites that have it as a zip file. I do suggest scanning with a virus checker before opening.

http://www.tukaram.net/homebuilder.htm

http://homepage.ntlworld.com/cragproductions/ultima2.htm

tyvm.
Just downloaded the zip from your first link. So I assume there has never been a newer version of Kurgan's Homebuilder around since 2003?

 

[Kayhynn]

Whenever Inside UO stopped working, this stopped working as well, so no, there hasn't been an updated.

If I knew HTML 5, I'd try to play around with creating a web app for it, but I don't have enough knowledge of it.

 

[Kayhynn]

I've got an idea on how to create something that's usable, but people would have to know how to use GIMP or photoshop to make it work...and it would be a very time conusming effort to try it and zip it. But basically it would be to make a big image of a keep and a second of the castle with no walls. Then provide the .png of walls from the house customizer menu and make the edges all transparent. Then people would have to place the various walls by C&P into the plot and put them where they want them. It won't be clean by any means. Thoughts?

 

[Lord Obsidian]

Whenever Inside UO stopped working, this stopped working as well, so no, there hasn't been an updated.

*nods* this is due to the missing "art.mul" and "artidx.mul" files, which have been converted to "artLegacyMUL.uop". After tinkering a bit, I was able to bring Kurgan's House Builder back to life with inserting these two files from an old unpatched UO install (pre march 2012 version), and adding a registry key under [HKLM\SOFTWARE\Origin Worlds Online\Ultima Online\1.0]: "ExePath"="[my UO directory]\client.exe" (like "d:\uo\client.exe").

The question is, whether someone (stratics, if they wish/are willing to?) is allowed to provide these files in a "unconverted" version for d/l to get House Builder up and running again. This same question already arose on behalf of insideuo about a year ago, and remained unsolved.

 

[Kayhynn]

I'd be willing to host House Builder on UOHomeDecor if we can get an answer to it. My bigger question would be getting in trouble if Kurgan had any copyright on that program.

 

[Viquire]

These are wonderful developments!

 

[DevilsOwn]

alright, it's very late and I should be asleep, but I'm remembering something..... a post quite some time ago regarding how to open InsideUO after the files had been changed... if we could find that post, and since Kurgan's runs because it recognizes those old files, then the problem would be to get Kurgan's to recognize the new files... I know diddly-squat about programming and such, but someone around here must know how to do this

 

[DevilsOwn]

hi guys - just wanted to let you know that some days ago I sent a note requesting information about how to submit a design via the "contact us" button on the UO webpage - so far I've not had a reply, but I'll be sure to update you when I do

 

[Viquire]

hi guys - just wanted to let you know that some days ago I sent a note requesting information about how to submit a design via the "contact us" button on the UO webpage - so far I've not had a reply, but I'll be sure to update you when I do

Bump, because with all the other stuff going on, this should not be forgotten.

 

[DevilsOwn]

very hesitant to mention this, cause some may try it and never forgive me, but.... did you know that you can open up InsideUO and copy the pieces to your paint program? trust me, it's a terrific pain to build anything this way, one mistake, a forgotten piece or what not, and you'll be screaming obscenities, likely with my name attached.... you've been warned

also, no reply yet to my query

 

[Kayhynn]

Oh yes. I knew that. That was what i was referring to to make a base file of all the wall tiles etc and people having a knowledge of photoshop/gimp to use them. ITw ould be a pain.

 

[Viquire]

I'm not quite dead yet. I think I'll go for a walk. I feel happy!

 

[Kayhynn]

Let me ask this - as it would be stupidly time consuming.

If I created a zip file containing the blank floor plan for a castle plot as well as all the housing tiles for it with the understanding you'd just have to create a secondary level in a different file, would people be interested in playing in Photoshop or GIMP to create designs?

What you'd have to do is create a different image for each floor. So if you wanted three floors, it would be three separate images. Make sense?

 

[DevilsOwn]

I've played with Gimp some, not very much, but I'd be willing to try anything at this point

and thanks for bumping this, gives me the opportunity to let you all know that I've had no reply to any of my inquiries