Current situation with Castles and Keeps?

[Saphireena]

Hey guys

Some of you might remember the famous Big Mamas establishment castles (Big Mamas Shoppe, then Big Mamas Nightclub and Big Mamas Apartmentos, run in two castles, all from about a decade ago. With the help of my son, I was lucky enough to place those 2 castles when Trammel opened up (and even through all the horrid lag!). At some point I sold off the Trinsic castle and have been keeping the Vesper castle for myself as a private home (actually been used more by my son than by me for years now) ever since. I waited and waited and waited and waited and waited...

<insert about 300 "waited">

... and waited for castle plots to finally become customizable. But it never happened and this has probably been one of the reasons I was so demotivated to play the game for so many years. I felt like I was being robbed of one of the coolest things you can do in the game and it felt pointless to play if I couldn't customize my castle. (and I really hate how castles look, with a passion - just so depressing)

It's now come time to give up on the wait and finally sell the Vesper castle to someone who would appreciate it more than I do. Then place a 18x18 somewhere if I can find room, and finally enjoy the game again. In fact I'm thinking of perhaps reincarnating the Big Mamas Apartmentos idea!

My question to you guys is:

Are castles even worth selling anymore? Or should I just demolish it and place the 18x18 on the same space?
If castles are still worth selling, how much do they usually go for these days (Trammel).
Has anyone noticed ANY talk WHAT SO EVER on castles and keeps becoming customizable?

 

[Ahuaeyjnkxs]

Oh yes we did, welcome back honored contributor.

Oh yes we did...



huh

 

[Larisa]

It's been a big resounding NO to make Castles and keeps customizable...I think the main reason being noone wants to see a 32x32 *borg cube* as people say..all over the place.

You must admit some people have no creativity and the eye-sores that would insue..ensue? from making them customizable would be horrific at best.

Though the idea to make some of the interior walls movable/customizable and the courtyard to be an actual usable area has been brought up, as well as changing the look of the walls to a different color or stone type.

As for value, it depends on the shard you reside on.

 

[Raptor85]

It would be impossible via current game mechanics anyways, a HUGE number of castles have at least 1 "blocking" tile in the courtyards, and many have uneven terrain. The vast majority of castles, if they were attempted to place as a 32x32 custom would be placed in a way that would cause issues with the terrain, thus the server would not let them be placed. They would have to make a new "custom" house footprint for castles only that left the courtyard "outside" of the house as it is now.

And yeah, the last thing I want to see also is even larger borg cubes, at least castles look nice as is. (part of me wishes all custom housing had to pass by an approval board before being built )

 

[jack flash uk]

i have been asking for castle basements for years now to give owner a floor to customise without the borg cube eyesore

still hoping one day this will happen

and yes yr castle is worth selling 400/600m right there

 

[Ahuaeyjnkxs]

The technical answer was that it would take many "combined" plots and...

well finally there is no and... exept that they'd have to edit the map file... no big deal

the idea was simply ignored ; just like many gameplay bugs which are important ; so they can work on more pixel *censored*...

We tried to dig the logical motivation for ignoring the idea which brough up a very nasty can of worms I am not allowed to discuss on these boards.

Sorry...

 

[Saphireena]

Although I understand the "eyesore" point, on the other hand I find it a bit silly because you could easily fill that same area with several smaller eyesores just as well. Then when weighing the amount of "pain" the two cases cause 1. The pain caused by seeing someone's eyesore (which you'll see out and about in the lands ANYHOW and no-one is forcing you to hang around such an area anyhow) compared to 2. The pain caused to a player who works their way up to owning a keep or castle, only to discover that they can't do anything creative with it and suffer every single time they play. Even to the point of not wanting to play. Well, to me the latter of the two pains is more prominent. Sure, some people make eyesores, but what about considering all of the AMAZING things people could do that have an eye for visual beauty? The possibilities for completely new kinds of establishments that smaller houses don't really allow. Personally I think the pros to allowing customization FAR OUTWEIGH the cons. Of course, being an owner of a castle, I'm bias *cackles*

And the shard is Europa.

 

[Ahuaeyjnkxs]

I just hope my soul can be freed from this place before people start breaking down in tears...

I can't stand this suffering... because I so understand it.

But wait... theres new items in SHAME !!!

*turns around*

*sees about 1000 people who ask for a customizable LEVEL of a castle*

*turns around*

*sees about 20 people asking for arenas*

*turns around*

*censored*

 

[Minerva Foxglove]

IF Saphireena was allowed to costumice a castle it would become breathtaking. IF Saphireena was allowed to create the paperdoll for EC I would play EC.
I feel exactly the same about castles.. Waiting and hoping. Both for the joy of doing it and to get rid of the reapers and gargoyles that spawns in the yeard.

Catles on Europa Trammel grass have costerd around 500 mill last years.

 

[RavenWinterHawk]

Seriously. Place 2 18x18 next to each other or similiar.

You can build in a way they look like the blend together. The look as one.

Then use Housing teleport tiles to transport across linking hallways.

Not perfect but looks pretty good.

Raven

 

[Ahuaeyjnkxs]

Never tought I'd see the day a player would find a solution for a passionate player who is recognized by the community to be "genuine" in her request ; like this.

This is amazing, and its true I've seen it done it works well.

But we all know, people that IF, they were given a castle... would make wonders.

Theres a whole bunch I can hear them.

*grumbles*

 

[BajaElladan]

Hail Folks,

Folks have been "customizing and decorating" Castles and Keeps since Beta! Some of our Most imaginative and creative Folks created super sofas, uber beds, Grand Pianos, Aquariums and display cases, Long BEFORE house customization was ever imagined by any Developer.

I am One Voice, hopefully not the Only Voice, extolling our "Classic" style Homes including Castles and Keeps.

We really Do NOT need nor do I want to see our Legacy Castles and Keeps made customizable in the same way in which 18 x 18's etc are currently.

Hopefully, I am not alone in my view. Regardless, I felt a need to at least voice my view.

Elladan of Baja

 

[Ludes]

Wish I had a castle!

On Catskills, one sold recently for 400 mil I think.

 

[Ahuaeyjnkxs]

If its you guys that invented the pianos and other things, its a wonder you do not have a special mention or webpage on stratics to display it (reminds me of the dancing thread)...

I liked to see those things, but you see it's unreal that you'd come here and voice against choice.

You want to have choice, yet you haven't.

And don't, please don't take this personally... we've had SHARES of people coming in the last thread and saying basically the same thing, without really meaning it.

To me when this kind of repetitive behavior happens, I see a flashing red light.

I'm not going to expand anymore on this.

It is what it is.

I've seen people make amazing castles on 18x18... I am certain with all the nice new HIGH RES HOUSE STUFF THEY MAKE IN 3D

THAT THEY'RE GOING TO SEE THIS BIG BLUNDER OF IGNORING THEIR VETS ABOUT THIS AND LETTING PEOPLE COME TO TELL US WHAT WE SHOULD THINK SEEMINGLY WITH A UNIFIED VOICE (the anti-customization mafia? ¿)

wth I'm not taking myself seriously here, but this is HANDED TO ME.

Look, there they go again !

 

[Lady Storm]

I can say on 90% of the shards castles have a value. So depending on the shard your on, sale might be your better option then dropping it and placing a plot. (on Atl they go very high in the Billion gold range and on lower shards you migh see the lower end of 100 mill. You can place up a board and solicit offers if your intent on selling) Plots in Malas in good locations are on most shards.

Larisa is quite right. We have talked over changes including making the plot customizable. Now the past Dev leaders have nixed the idea of a plot sized as the footprint of a castle and keep... but things change with each Dev Team change. So I wont go so far as say it wont EVER happen as we all know you never try to pin down the Dev.

I do support the stone color change and perhaps even moving walls and doors. I even have been thinking it might be a good idea for the customizable plots to have the ability to have strps and doors on the right side of the building. This would help some homeowners.

Castles and keeps if done well look and function just as other homes do. If you need insparation on decoing there are tons of super nice castles and keeps around the shards. Many here can show you designs that would make a lovely home.

 

[A Thought Elemental]

In the game's guts, a castle is one object. All of the classic, pre-fab houses place this way, as simply one object. It's got its collision information etc. (or, whatever passes in UO for collision, I don't know) as one object.

These customizeable houses are very different. They are made from a square shaped housing base and the player builds stuff on top of it, out of individual objects. When the thing is saved by the player, the game server is clearly able to simplify it in the game world somehow so that you don't get a massive lag spike every time you walk near someone's customizeable house. (I know it's doing some sort of simplification because I've seen what happens when you actually build an entire structure out of items and walk up to it via the UO client. You get a lag spike from hell).

If any change at all was to be made to castles and keeps (which btw doesn't seem that it would affect many players so I can see where it would be hard to justify dev time). I think it would only make sense to allow the existing prefab castle object to be directly replaced with a different castle pre-fab object. That has its own little set of caviats, as some of the locked down player items in the first-version castle would be improperly placed in the new one due to, I'd say, stairs leading up to the castle's new levels. There's ways to make the player handle that, tho.

K yeah not saying it should be done. But if for some reason it was to be done, with the way things work now, I think that is what you would end up seeing - because the customizeable thing is like a different generation of housing and it's incompatible with castle placement characteristics.

 

[old gypsy]

I understand why a player would like to be able to customize a castle or keep. At the same time, I think the larger classic homes -- castles, keeps, and large towers -- are beautiful in their own way. I've had numerous homes during my years in UO, some classic, some custom. About a week ago I went back to my "first love" -- a classic large tower. It's one building in UO that I wouldn't want to change at all.

Back to castles, though... yes, I think it would be great if the courtyards could be made functional, and if interior walls could be made moveable.

 

[A Thought Elemental]

I do support the stone color change .

Devwise, that would be easy-ish to do.

and perhaps even moving walls and doors.

... and that would be a horrible nightmare development-wise, to the point where I'd never expect to see it, and wouldn't ask for it.

 

[Muck]

The Main Problem, why Castles cannot be customizable is the inner Yard.
(Same occurs to keeps, the unused area inside the walls)

In those Yards are trees, Gravestones, uneven Terrain etc etc..

All those things would block placing a 32x32 House in most cases.

 

[MalagAste]

Although I understand the "eyesore" point, on the other hand I find it a bit silly because you could easily fill that same area with several smaller eyesores just as well. Then when weighing the amount of "pain" the two cases cause 1. The pain caused by seeing someone's eyesore (which you'll see out and about in the lands ANYHOW and no-one is forcing you to hang around such an area anyhow) compared to 2. The pain caused to a player who works their way up to owning a keep or castle, only to discover that they can't do anything creative with it and suffer every single time they play. Even to the point of not wanting to play. Well, to me the latter of the two pains is more prominent. Sure, some people make eyesores, but what about considering all of the AMAZING things people could do that have an eye for visual beauty? The possibilities for completely new kinds of establishments that smaller houses don't really allow. Personally I think the pros to allowing customization FAR OUTWEIGH the cons. Of course, being an owner of a castle, I'm bias *cackles*

And the shard is Europa.

Saphireena,

I feel your pain. As the proud owner of a keep and a castle I know exactly how you feel. The Keep and Castle are two of the most user unfriendly buildings in all of UO. And while yes you "could" get folk making a 32x32 eyesore of a borg cube I think that the benefits of making them customizable FAR outway the possibility of someone making one "ugly". I have myself begged for a change that would allow us to customize the buildings... I'd even settle for allowing us to design something that keeps the current footprint... but allows the walls and floors to be changed. I would like to add doors to some area's... as it is now the moment you let someone into the inner confine of the castle you pretty much give them permission to roam freely about your castle. You can't control the courtyard so all sorts of things spawn in there.. I've come home to find several reapers, corpsers, gargoyles and other nasty things inside the courtyard..... and you can't even BAN them from there.

I've asked them to allow us to have 4 or 5 different castle/keep designs to choose from... but each and every request is denied.

There are some truly exceptional designers out there who make extremely beautiful designs... any one of whom could custom a castle that would wow the entire playerbase. I just wish we could have the chance.

As for basements they have said they can't do that... but I don't think they are getting the concept of how it could work. They could do basements if they wanted simply by giving folk a token that works EXACTLY like the house teleporters but looks like say a hatch or hole with a ladder sticking up from it... one that you can lock down in your house that the other side is BOUND to a plot somewhere else... one that you can design and deco that resembles a dungeon... It could be a purchasable item sold on their website that offers a "basement/dungeon" plot that is 32x32 fully customizable with new "dungeon/basement" tiles much like those that are currently IN dungeons... along with select ones from the current housing menu... It could offer a person say 3200 lockdowns/storage. I'm sure they would make TONS of money from this.

Many have asked to have a second home... having a basement with the added storage of a second home would be PERFECT. Not only would it give castle/keep owners a customizable plot but it would give home owners a second home without the need to upgrade to a keep or castle or get a second account to increase their storage space.

But as with many things this idea has fallen on deaf ears.

I just hate that I can't use the empty area's in the keep.... and can't stand that I have zero control over the courtyard of the castle. And I too would LOVE to fix them both. But I very much doubt that will ever change.


And seriously welcome back! Your castle is worth a great deal... I am sure. Good luck whatever you decide.

 

[Ahuaeyjnkxs]

I don't like to do this again but do you guys see ?

The Main Problem, why Castles cannot be customizable is the inner Yard.
(Same occurs to keeps, the unused area inside the walls)

In those Yards are trees, Gravestones, uneven Terrain etc etc..

All those things would block placing a 32x32 House in most cases.

This always happen, and I rehiterate that it is not personal sir, you probably just meant to give information and this is not a reprimand.

But I said earlier in the thread "edit the map file" we know it is easy to do, the software, by the devs, was declared to us to be now more flexible proof : magincia plots.

Now we demand more flexibility, thats all... (and WHY in HEAVEN did I predict this kind of arguing would happen again, while logically, it should be ignored... logic broken, quest for truth accepted)

 

[Saphireena]

Holy moly! This topic is obviously one that people have strong emotions about. Looks like I'll have to save my responses until I get home from work tonight since this is going to be a long haul .

 

[Lord Frodo]

In the game's guts, a castle is one object. All of the classic, pre-fab houses place this way, as simply one object. It's got its collision information etc. (or, whatever passes in UO for collision, I don't know) as one object.

Back when Custom houses came out it was asked and answered by a DEV (cant remember which one) that there were in fact 5 houses that could not be customized. They may display as 1 object but they are not.

On the server side of UO the largest plot size allowed is an 18x18.
Castles and Keeps require 4 housing plots.
Tower with wings take 3 plots.
L-Shaped (2 styles) take 2 plots.

Because of the housing rules of spacing these had to have special rules applied so they looked as one and linked together on the server side.

 

[Cogniac]

Holy moly! This topic is obviously one that people have strong emotions about. Looks like I'll have to save my responses until I get home from work tonight since this is going to be a long haul .

Let me save you the trouble and just sum this whole topic up, as it happens so frequently on this board: "You have something that I do not have. Therefore, you are a terrible person, probably a scripter, and The Great Satan of our times. Thusly, not only should you not be allowed to customize anything, you should also be banned from the game and your real life house should burn down. Good day, sir and/or madam. I SAID GOOD DAY!"

No amount of argument will ever convince anyone of anything on this topic, so just give up now.

(Disclaimer: I have never owned a castle or keep. Ever.)

 

[Zosimus]

Holy moly! This topic is obviously one that people have strong emotions about. Looks like I'll have to save my responses until I get home from work tonight since this is going to be a long haul .

Actually I would hold onto the castle. Since Grimm and the design team has been doing some graphical updates they may eventually do some enhancements to housing in the future.

 

[Lord_Spartacus]

I'd trade in my Keep for an 18x18 that had the same amount of lock downs. I'm not into decorating a whole lot, but I love having storage room. I know there's more people like me that would down-grade in size if I could keep the same amount of lock downs or more.

 

[claudia-fjp]

I don't like to do this again but do you guys see ?

The Main Problem, why Castles cannot be customizable is the inner Yard.
(Same occurs to keeps, the unused area inside the walls)

In those Yards are trees, Gravestones, uneven Terrain etc etc..

All those things would block placing a 32x32 House in most cases.

This always happen, and I rehiterate that it is not personal sir, you probably just meant to give information and this is not a reprimand.

But I said earlier in the thread "edit the map file" we know it is easy to do, the software, by the devs, was declared to us to be now more flexible proof : magincia plots.

Now we demand more flexibility, thats all... (and WHY in HEAVEN did I predict this kind of arguing would happen again, while logically, it should be ignored... logic broken, quest for truth accepted)

Do YOU know every blocking tile in every possible placement site for a keep or castle on the entire map? There's a HUGE difference in bulldozing a couple dozen 15 x 15 spots on 1 small empty island and finding every possible keep and castle location on an entire server... Remember these are the people who can't find ownerless houses on their own servers after over a decade and have to ask the players to report them (who they then ignore).

 

[Tazar]

It's been a big resounding NO to make Castles and keeps customizable...I think the main reason being noone wants to see a 32x32 *borg cube* as people say..all over the place.

But I like my Borg Invasion Fleet!

 

[THP]

Like jack said..ya castle is worth about 500m on europa trammel

dont knock it down to place a 1818!!!!..that would be plain silly ...if u really hate it ...sell it then buy a nice 1818 in tram for a few millo or even a max storage 1515 in magincia for few millo.....

 

[anna anomalous]

not to be rude, but do we really need to discuss this topic over and over?

a quick search shows similar posts with the same answers;
custom+castles

 

[A Thought Elemental]

On the server side of UO the largest plot size allowed is an 18x18.
Castles and Keeps require 4 housing plots.
Tower with wings take 3 plots.
L-Shaped (2 styles) take 2 plots.

Interesting. I think you are right that castles/keeps are 4 mega-units and not one, and I forgot about it.

Now that I think back, I recall exactly what you're saying about the towers with the wings. That really is how towers are. I remember now that the big body of the tower is one object and the wings practically stick onto the side/top of the building and are separate objects. I'm going to say that this is what facilitates the wings of the tower being able to exist over top of treetops and obstructions on the ground.

Those sorts of configurations would certainly not lend themselves nicely to being converted into a customizeable housing plot... the tower doesn't seem so nuts but the L shape houses are of course messed up, and castles/keeps have too huge a footprint.

 

[Saphireena]

Larisa: If they made it so the construction of the castle stayed as is, but one could atleast customize what wall, floor tile etc types are used, it would be good enough for me! My biggest problem is the dark grey stone which just never feels like home. However, I think I've just come to the point that I've given up on the castle and can't be bothered to have any hope anymore. I'm so tempted to just demolish the bloody thing even though selling it would be the wisest thing to do, that's how fed up I am. Like one of those days when you just get tired of clutter in your home and go berserk throwing stuff out. But yeah, I'll need to count to ten and all that.

Raptor85: I've been pondering some solutions. I have no idea if any of these are feasible and most likely they are not. But here goes anyhow.

1) Foundation excludes current courtyard area.
2) Foundation which has collisions removed from the courtyard tiles so that stuff is able to stick through the bottom floor. (this is ok if it's only a visual problem, but if it obstructs walls being built on those tiles, not good)
3) Foundation with an elevated courtyard area which goes over the collision boxes of any possible rocks, foliage etc underneath. More of a challenge to customize, and would force people to work around the elevated floor adding steps etc, but might be quite nice and unique actually).

I can imagine the devs (and the techie players) facepalming now!

 

[Saphireena]

Minerva Foxglove: Awwww thank you for your kind words... *kicks ground bashfully*
500 mill eh? Ok good to know!

RavenWinterHawk: That actually ain't a half bad idea. I might actually have to give that some serious thought...

Ahuaeyjnkxs: Yeah the community of UO is amazing. (at least until someone is having a grumpy day! ;-)

BajaElladan: I remember those times and although using one's imagination to create things from piles of cloth, wool etc was fun, in today's standards with so many people having even more fun creating amazing ARCHITECTURE, it just feels unfair not to be able to enjoy that too. It's good that you spoke up to defend your view on safekeeping the classics, I'm sure you're not the only one that feels that way. I can respect and appreciate what you're getting at, leaving the largest houses in their original architecture does make them special and retains a lot of the nostalgia of years past.

Lady Storm: Thanks for the information!

A Thought Elemental: Very valid points you mentioned! Sounds like dreaming anymore is a lost cause really.

 

[Tazar]

Seriously. Place 2 18x18 next to each other or similiar.

You can build in a way they look like the blend together. The look as one.

Then use Housing teleport tiles to transport across linking hallways.

Not perfect but looks pretty good.

Raven

I did that with 4 18x18's in a square and merged via illusions and tele-tiles. Then it slowly grew to where I currently have 11 houses all 18x16 or larger merged into one giant fortress.

If you'd like to see it for ideas Saphireena just send me a PM.

 

[Mirt]

On the last thread of this there were some amazing designs that while not customizable looked much better maybe we should all try to champion those.

 

[Mirt]

I did that with 4 18x18's in a square and merged via illusions and tele-tiles. Then it slowly grew to where I currently have 11 houses all 18x16 or larger merged into one giant fortress.

If you'd like to see it for ideas Saphireena just send me a PM.

PLEASE PLEASE PICS!:bowdown:

 

[Tazar]

The place is too large to easily get a pic of - and I am horrible with screenshots. Here is a pic taken several years ago when there were 6 plots in the place to give you an idea.

 

[Mirt]

:bowdown:
Ohh now that is someplace I have to go see. It really looks amazing.​

 

[Tazar]

Feel free to visit any time. Parts are always "under construction" but at least 9 houses are done at any one time.

Atlantic Shard - Malas. Just off the west shore of the lake outside Umbra.

If you go to the Makato-jima moongate, go west to the road then north and the first house on your left is a teleport house. The tele in the SW corner of the first floor leads to the place.

 

[Saphireena]

MalagAste: I agree that it'd be enough to at least customize the current footprint. I'd be so happy! I know your pain about the reapers. I didn't have a reaper problem but back in the old days when one had to use those stones to teleport between Fel and Tram, there was a castle on the fel side placed on the exact same tiles as my own and a guild of very irritating griefer type teenagers lived in that castle. They'd teleport into Tram inside the courtyard and would end up in MY courtyard and cause all kinds of havoc! Thank goodness those days are over.

Although the basement idea is nice, I can't see it solving the issues I'm having with the castle. I'd just like the freedom to be creative with my home and truly make it according to my own tastes.

Thanks for the well wishes!

Lord Frodo: Interesting to hear about the bigger houses using several plots, I never knew that! No wonder it's a hard nut to crack for the devs.

Zosimus: Good to know and thanks for mentioning that. But I'd only wait any longer if there was some info regarding changes that are coming for sure. If not, just feeling too fidgety to wait any longer. My fingers are absolutely burning to try out a certain grand plan I have in my head.

 

[Minerva Foxglove]

But it would take several accounts to make such fantastic place

 

[Tazar]

But it would take several accounts to make such fantastic place

For every positive there has to be an off-setting negative. *sighs*

 

[Raptor85]

...

what about trees and tall bushes?

 

[Goldberg-Chessy]

Although I understand the "eyesore" point, on the other hand I find it a bit silly because you could easily fill that same area with several smaller eyesores just as well. Then when weighing the amount of "pain" the two cases cause 1. The pain caused by seeing someone's eyesore (which you'll see out and about in the lands ANYHOW and no-one is forcing you to hang around such an area anyhow) compared to 2. The pain caused to a player who works their way up to owning a keep or castle, only to discover that they can't do anything creative with it and suffer every single time they play. Even to the point of not wanting to play. Well, to me the latter of the two pains is more prominent. Sure, some people make eyesores, but what about considering all of the AMAZING things people could do that have an eye for visual beauty? The possibilities for completely new kinds of establishments that smaller houses don't really allow. Personally I think the pros to allowing customization FAR OUTWEIGH the cons. Of course, being an owner of a castle, I'm bias *cackles*

And the shard is Europa.

Saphireena,

I feel your pain. As the proud owner of a keep and a castle I know exactly how you feel. The Keep and Castle are two of the most user unfriendly buildings in all of UO. And while yes you "could" get folk making a 32x32 eyesore of a borg cube I think that the benefits of making them customizable FAR outway the possibility of someone making one "ugly". I have myself begged for a change that would allow us to customize the buildings... I'd even settle for allowing us to design something that keeps the current footprint... but allows the walls and floors to be changed. I would like to add doors to some area's... as it is now the moment you let someone into the inner confine of the castle you pretty much give them permission to roam freely about your castle. You can't control the courtyard so all sorts of things spawn in there.. I've come home to find several reapers, corpsers, gargoyles and other nasty things inside the courtyard..... and you can't even BAN them from there.

I've asked them to allow us to have 4 or 5 different castle/keep designs to choose from... but each and every request is denied.

There are some truly exceptional designers out there who make extremely beautiful designs... any one of whom could custom a castle that would wow the entire playerbase. I just wish we could have the chance.

As for basements they have said they can't do that... but I don't think they are getting the concept of how it could work. They could do basements if they wanted simply by giving folk a token that works EXACTLY like the house teleporters but looks like say a hatch or hole with a ladder sticking up from it... one that you can lock down in your house that the other side is BOUND to a plot somewhere else... one that you can design and deco that resembles a dungeon... It could be a purchasable item sold on their website that offers a "basement/dungeon" plot that is 32x32 fully customizable with new "dungeon/basement" tiles much like those that are currently IN dungeons... along with select ones from the current housing menu... It could offer a person say 3200 lockdowns/storage. I'm sure they would make TONS of money from this.

Many have asked to have a second home... having a basement with the added storage of a second home would be PERFECT. Not only would it give castle/keep owners a customizable plot but it would give home owners a second home without the need to upgrade to a keep or castle or get a second account to increase their storage space.

But as with many things this idea has fallen on deaf ears.

I just hate that I can't use the empty area's in the keep.... and can't stand that I have zero control over the courtyard of the castle. And I too would LOVE to fix them both. But I very much doubt that will ever change.


And seriously welcome back! Your castle is worth a great deal... I am sure. Good luck whatever you decide.

If anyone has such huge issue with castles and keeps why do they still buy/own them? There was never any surprise in the design. Its been the same since day one of UO.
You say you "can't stand that I have zero control over the courtyard of the castle." ?
If you still own said castle I guess you actually can stand it no?

You seriously dislike their design? Uhh, dont buy one. Its very simple.
You HAVE to own the largest piece of property in the game? I can understand that. Then deal with it if thats the case.

That being said, I would personally not mind at all if they made them customizable one day in the future. I have owned castles & keeps on multiple shards but its still a non-issue for me.
The only time I guess it would be an issue for me is if I was told that other things that are actually not working correctly in the game were neglected to spend resources on perfectly fine castles/keeps.

 

[jack flash uk]

So how about we ask for Basements for castle and keeps, so we can customise and it wont affect the landscape

 

[MalagAste]

If anyone has such huge issue with castles and keeps why do they still buy/own them? There was never any surprise in the design. Its been the same since day one of UO.
You say you "can't stand that I have zero control over the courtyard of the castle." ?
If you still own said castle I guess you actually can stand it no?

You seriously dislike their design? Uhh, dont buy one. Its very simple.
You HAVE to own the largest piece of property in the game? I can understand that. Then deal with it if thats the case.

That being said, I would personally not mind at all if they made them customizable one day in the future. I have owned castles & keeps on multiple shards but its still a non-issue for me.
The only time I guess it would be an issue for me is if I was told that other things that are actually not working correctly in the game were neglected to spend resources on perfectly fine castles/keeps.

Well Ms. High and Mighty... there are a number of reasons WHY someone would both love and HATE Castles and Keeps...

1) You just can't match the storage... Lets face it even with all the additions to storage you just can't match that kind of storage space on ONE account. I already have multiple accounts.

2) The Castle in question isn't just "mine"... It belongs to the Guild. I'm it's caretaker. I didn't "buy" it. It was left to me by the former owner... whom I promised I'd care for it.

So you see while I'm not terribly "fond" of it or the design... I really don't have much choice unless I want to betray the trust of an old friend.

I do try to make the building not be so horribly user unfriendly but there really is only so much you can do.


Being insulting is quite rude... reminds me of someone else who I don't really see posting anymore...

You should keep your personal rants against others to yourself where they belong.

 

[Saphireena]

Still working on my other responses, but just a quick word in: Guys, please take the fight elsewhere so the thread isn't locked, 'kay? I know it isn't easy - I've been in a few myself long long ago - but I just know from experience that they never lead anywhere good. Let's talk about the matters at hand instead of getting personal. I think it's fine to debate and it's good for us to hear varying opinions, just play nice when you do it. And if the other party refuses to play nice, be the bigger man/woman by not getting sucked into nastiness. It will do a world of good in boosting your rep while the other person will quickly be seen as a troll. So staying nice is a win win situation! ;-)