Discussion - What should we ask the devs to quickly implement?

[Bruin]

The devs requested that we get back to them on of all the changes we requested, which ones were the meaningful changes that we felt could be accomplished quickly. The changes we requested were:

Reintroduce T2A Blackrock
Add Siege to Shard List
Increased Bank Storage
Increased Arti and Cursed Arties
Grandfathered Housing
Second Character SLot
Rot Timer Changes


Discuss....

 

[Morgana LeFay (PoV)]

When you say "Grandfathered" housing...what do you mean?

 

[Luka Melehan]

T2A Blackrock for the quick change...keeping in mind this is not the end all fix. Just something to have until August or whenever.

 

[VinnySP]

When you say "Grandfathered" housing...what do you mean?

House's that were implemented before housing rules,or a primary house.

 

[IanJames]

Blackrock and add Siege to shard list...

 

[Sweeney]

You missed the first part of the meeting Bruin. You and Kat need to consolidate your list into one thing and one of you PM Calvin with the list. Make sure you specify the easiest to implement.

 

[Førsaken]

Blackrock and add Siege to shard list...

QFT for the initial quick fixes.

 

[HD2300]

The devs requested that we get back to them on of all the changes we requested, which ones were the meaningful changes that we felt could be accomplished quickly. The changes we requested were:

Reintroduce T2A Blackrock
Add Siege to Shard List
Increased Bank Storage
Increased Arti and Cursed Arties
Grandfathered Housing
Second Character SLot
Rot Timer Changes


Discuss....

You are kidding me right?!? They are all EASY changes that can be done QUICKLY

Reintroduce T2A Blackrock - reenable disabled event
Add Siege to Shard List - add "Siege" to list of shards
Increased Bank Storage - for Siege shard change 125 to 400
Increased Arti and Cursed Arties - for Siege change 900 in equation to 300 or just drop one every DF
Grandfathered Housing - for Siege use TC housing code
Second Character SLot - for Siege change 1 to 2 or use prod shard code
Rot Timer Changes - change 15 to 5

btw I just replaced a 15 here in this post with 5 and it took me 20 minutes including the time it took to make and drink a coffee

I am going to cry if you guys have to wait until October and all you get is Siege on the shard list and Blackrock. You get what you expect

 

[Bruin]

You missed the first part of the meeting Bruin. You and Kat need to consolidate your list into one thing and one of you PM Calvin with the list. Make sure you specify the easiest to implement.

Weren't Kat's and my list the same thing? And while we could guess the easiest to implement, wouldn't they know better than us?

 

[Sweeney]

Weren't Kat's and my list the same thing? And while we could guess the easiest to implement, wouldn't they know better than us?

I don't know about the lists, I was away from the forums for a long time.

I don't think Calvin would know the easiest to implement, I don't think he's a coder. A few of us know what would be easiest to code in for Siege, you probably do.. just things dealing with #'s, bankboxes, RoT gains, etc.

Just make sure only you or only Kat send him a PM or he will think we can't decide on a single representative (which he asked for).

 

[Tjalle]

You missed the first part of the meeting Bruin. You and Kat need to consolidate your list into one thing and one of you PM Calvin with the list. Make sure you specify the easiest to implement.

Weren't Kat's and my list the same thing?

Even though some pointed out that they have already gotten all the proposed changes in a PM, Uriah said that one of you should send a single PM to him on Stratics with the proposals in it...

 

[Kat]

You missed the first part of the meeting Bruin. You and Kat need to consolidate your list into one thing and one of you PM Calvin with the list. Make sure you specify the easiest to implement.

Weren't Kat's and my list the same thing? And while we could guess the easiest to implement, wouldn't they know better than us?

Indeed, our list is one and the same, as we have [as a community] hashed this out before. Further, since we are not game developers, we can only guess a what might be the easiest to implement.

On another note: I may have missed his intention in the chaos, so maybe someone can clear this up for me. By asking for a list of "low hanging fruit", was the producer indicating that those [easier to implement] items might possibly be added during one of the next publishes? That was my understanding.

According to The Producers Letter in UHall, they are planning a mini publish and a regular publish over the next couple of months. If I understood him correctly, a few simple changes might make one of those.

If thats the case I do have several suggestions for that, if this is what Sweeney is refering to.

Oh and PS... Just to make this easier, I'll defer to Bruin to be the sender of the requested PM. If you need a sounding board, Bruin, hit me up in ICQ or PM.

 

[Sweeney]

Indeed, our list is one and the same, as we have [as a community] hashed this out before. Further, since we are not game developers, we can only guess a what might be the easiest to implement.

On another note: I may have missed his intention in the chaos, so maybe someone can clear this up for me. By asking for a list of "low hanging fruit", was the producer indicating that those [easier to implement] items might possibly be added during one of the next publishes? That was my understanding.

According to The Producers Letter in UHall, they are planning a mini publish and a regular publish over the next couple of months. If I understood him correctly, a few simple changes might make one of those.

If thats the case I do have several suggestions for that, if this is what Sweeney is refering to.

He didn't promise anything Kat.

 

[Sturdy]

Incoming wall.

I dont really have a negative reaction to any of the items you posted. They are mostly excellent ideas. Stay on message and it should work out.

I do have a suggestion for the developers about the process and one for Mythic about gaining players.

If the developers need to make changes in a slow and deliberate way they could prioritize them based on polling data- from polls they post themselves.

Basically the team that would implement would cream off the most likely/easiest/best ideas and present them as a poll to the players. This avoids a bunch of chatter about unworkable ideas. I believe that the devs are often expert in this stuff and need to take a leading roll. This poll would be most effective if it was not a Stratics poll but one pushed out to subscribers. I presume they can sort subscribers by what shard they play on most. (could be wrong)

All paying customers who care about Siege should get a chance to give input, not just the hardcases who hang out on this forum. As a side benefit it would be good marketing. If it has to be a Stratics poll so be it.

Which leads to gaining players. I think the bottom line is that the game is excellent. The developers have done a generally excellent job. I am not interested in arguing this point beyond pointing out that you would not be reading this if you didnt on some level agree. The problem is external to the game- marketing and competition. Ultima is not marketed in any detectable way. No advertising, no game press, nada. Most references to UO I see on the web are in the past tense.

To bring players Mythic will have to market the game. It is my opinion that Siege could be a great asset in any marketing effort. During my break from UO I played up through WoW (and SWG, DAoC, & Guild Wars) PvP is better in UO than in any of those games. WoW has a million + players who consider themselves PvPers- players who dont know that the original and best MMO PvP game is still going. (and couldnt PvP out of wet paper bag, but thats a different thread)

Siege could be the poster child for real "skill based" (dont like the term)MMO PvP. Likewise, the crafting, player housing, merchanting, and world customization features in UO are better than any of the big name games I have played. Simply spending a few bucks on marketing to these people would bring people to UO - Not just returnees like myself but new players.

Thanks for reading- Messana, Uriah and any UO staff reading this - Thanks for all your hard work!

 

[Sweeney]

Incoming wall.
...
Thanks for all your hard work!

Personally, I find it a bad sign that Calvin/aka/Uriah couldn't even promise ANY development time (even 10 mins a week! He didn't have to give a number for the amount, just an assurance that some would be given).

The event was just a publicity stunt to bide time.

 

[Kat]

Indeed, our list is one and the same, as we have [as a community] hashed this out before. Further, since we are not game developers, we can only guess a what might be the easiest to implement.

On another note: I may have missed his intention in the chaos, so maybe someone can clear this up for me. By asking for a list of "low hanging fruit", was the producer indicating that those [easier to implement] items might possibly be added during one of the next publishes? That was my understanding.

According to The Producers Letter in UHall, they are planning a mini publish and a regular publish over the next couple of months. If I understood him correctly, a few simple changes might make one of those.

If thats the case I do have several suggestions for that, if this is what Sweeney is refering to.

He didn't promise anything Kat.

Hence the word "might".

Can anyone else clear this up, possibly?

 

[IanJames]

Personally, I find it a bad sign that Calvin/aka/Uriah couldn't even promise ANY development time (even 10 mins a week! He didn't have to give a number for the amount, just an assurance that some would be given).

The event was just a publicity stunt to bide time.

STOP the presses... I agree with Sweeney on this...

 

[Sweeney]

He meant easy to implement changes, ie. numbers in RoT, bank storage, etc.

 

[Morgana LeFay (PoV)]

Personally, I find it a bad sign that Calvin/aka/Uriah couldn't even promise ANY development time (even 10 mins a week! He didn't have to give a number for the amount, just an assurance that some would be given).

The event was just a publicity stunt to bide time.

No...Cal is right, dev schedules don't happen overnight. I was a little more than surprised that he was even willing to discuss timeframes at all.

For the record, I am not a game developer, but I do work in software development (sort of).

They have to gather requirements, then come up with a plan on how to implement these things.

Some of these things really should be easy fixes however...like bank box capacity. That's changing a single number. I would assume that RoT timers are as well.

But keep in mind, the devs have limited hours in each day, and they have projects that were on the boards before this was decided on (even though it was presented a while back).

I don't mean to sound like I am making light of the concerns of the Siege community...but I would consider it a very positive thing that Cal took the time to do what he did. From what I know of Cal, he is not just blowing smoke here.

 

[Sweeney]

No...Cal is right, dev schedules don't happen overnight. ...

For the record, I am not a game developer...

...the devs have limited hours in each day, and they have projects that were on the boards before this was decided on (even though it was presented a while back).

...

You're forgetting the part that even considering changes takes development time. If you're supporting Calvin in saying he won't assure us that any dev time at all is applied to Siege, then you're supporting the status quo.

Yes changes take time.. they take developer time. Time is money, and this time needs to be scheduled. If Calvin won't assure us that Siege will even get a second of dev time, then he is saying we're a ****ing afterthought.

 

[Kat]

You're forgetting the part that even considering changes takes development time. If you're supporting Calvin in saying he won't assure us that any dev time at all is applied to Siege, then you're supporting the status quo.

Yes changes take time.. they take developer time. Time is money, and this time needs to be scheduled. If Calvin won't assure us that Siege will even get a second of dev time, then he is saying we're a ****ing afterthought.

Focus on the positives here. He's asked for information. We'll gather it, send it and wait for the next step. A little more brainstorming is welcomed in the meantime! pancakes is non-productive.

 

[Sweeney]

Focus on the positives here. He's asked for information. We'll gather it, send it and wait for the next step. A little more brainstorming is welcomed in the meantime! pancakes is non-productive.

You and Bruin, decide who will send the PM.. I don't know what's in the PM I've been gone for a long time, but I figure it's in everyone's interest.

Kat you were there, you saw how he refused to promise any time for Siege (We wouldn't even know about it for ****'s sake). Maybe he was being honest which is commendable.. he could have lied. But his refusal to assure developer time for Siege says about as much as a nail in our coffin.

 

[Morgana LeFay (PoV)]

You can look at it like that...but why would he even bother if he had no intention of doing anything?

For the record, Cal works in the Eastern Timezone...that means he was likely conducting that meeting in his spare time...not from work.

I don't know, maybe I am off base here, but I think Cal will do what he says...if he can.

 

[Sweeney]

You can look at it like that...but why would he even bother if he had no intention of doing anything?

For the record, Cal works in the Eastern Timezone...that means he was likely conducting that meeting in his spare time...not from work.

I don't know, maybe I am off base here, but I think Cal will do what he says...if he can.

I agree with you, but he didn't say he would do a ****ing thing.

 

[Kat]

Sweeney - We have all played this game and read dev coments enough to know that they never promise anything. The man showed up, probably from home and for sure, well after normal business hours. He didn't have to do this at all. I'm thankful for what we got tonight. Its a start of some wonderful possibilities for Siege. I have never, in my five years on Siege, witnessed a Dev, let alone, the producer of UO show up to say to even a single Siege player... I'm here, I'm listening... What can I do to help?

Thats essentially what happened tonight and I'm happy he was willing to do that. The ball is in our court again... We'll serve it back and see what happens.

If you want to sit around being Mr Negative Nancy, fine with me, but I'll be moving on.

 

[Sweeney]

Sweeney - We have all played this game and read dev coments enough to know that they never promise anything. The man showed up, probably from home and for sure, well after normal business hours. He didn't have to do this at all. I'm thankful for what we got tonight. Its a start of some wonderful possibilities for Siege. I have never, in my five years on Siege, witnessed a Dev, let alone, the producer of UO show up to say to even a single Siege player... I'm here, I'm listening... What can I do to help?

Thats essentially what happened tonight and I'm happy he was willing to do that. The ball is in our court again... We'll serve it back and see what happens.

If you want to sit around being Mr Negative Nancy, fine with me, but I'll be moving on.

It wasn't being negative.. a simple question, will Siege get any dev time in the future.. received a simple answer, "I won't make promises".

You can be a Mrs. Positive Prancy, and expect the best.. but all I asked for was some dev time, I didn't care what or how long it was for. That got no response, and in fact it got a refusal.

You let the "future of a bone (Bruin again)" blind you to what was actually said or assured.. nothing.

 

[Kat]

Sweeney - You haven't asked for squat. You haven't even been playing, yet you come here running your mouth, acting like an idiot and derailing everything with your negativity. STFU and do something constructive and helpful for once! Do a little brainstorming, come up with some ideas we haven't thought of, think outside the box and see if there aren't some other things we an do to HELP Siege. Otherwise... I dunno, maybe... just STFU?!

 

[Sweeney]

Sweeney - You haven't asked for squat. You haven't even been playing, yet you come here running your mouth, acting like an idiot and derailing everything with your negativity. STFU and do something constructive and helpful for once! Do a little brainstorming, come up with some ideas we haven't thought of, think outside the box and see if there aren't some other things we an do to HELP Siege. Otherwise... I dunno, maybe... just STFU?!

Are you speaking out of your ass again? I was there, and I asked for future dev time (to be determined by Calvin) and he refused.

I've actually been around a while, not that you would ever know aside from my forum posts and global chats, so again you're talking out of the bum's end.

My brainstorming was asking for some actual consideration, one that noone else came was with, not ideas floating in the wind. What good are these ideas when there is no time devoted to them? Riddle me that Kat-Man.

You don't need to make insults to get your point across.. you're better than that. If you think asking for dev time (which in the end, all of our bright ideas come down to, no matter what they are.. look into software development some time) is asking too much, then you're stuck in a pipe dream.

 

[Morgana LeFay (PoV)]

I was there, and I asked for future dev time (to be determined by Calvin) and he refused.

Not what he said...he said he would not make any promises.

 

[Morgana LeFay (PoV)]

I suppose I am going to get flamed off of the Siege forum for saying this, but here goes:

If you guys want to attract more players, you are going to have to be flexible...even if that means giving up some things that made Siege what it was (RoT, 1 character slot, etc.).

I don't envy Cal for having to address this situation, because as I see it, there is no way to win. Siege needs players, the entire game needs new players...but new players generally are not going to start on Siege...and current UO players...at least the majority...want big time Easy Mode, all the time. Siege is anything but.

I don't say this to be negative...but I think, as Kat said, you are going to have to think outside the box. The list of changes that are being proposed look good...if you are a Siege player, but what are they really going to do to bring in players that:

- Don't like PvP
- Want insurance
- Don't like push-through
- Are already established on existing shards

I am not claiming to have answers here...I am just trying to be realistic.

The best hope Siege has of drawing new players, IMO, is to try to draw old players back to the game. This could be mistaken as a Classic Shard plug...and maybe it is, to an extent...but I think that Siege needs to get back to it's roots...or it needs to abandon them completely. Being caught in the middle between Classic and Modern is what is killing this shard (well, that and the fact that the game is 13 years old).

 

[Kat]

He didn't refuse anything.
Your negativity is sucking the life out of anything positive that might come from tonights meeting.
My tolerence for your negativity is zero!

 

[Diablo FTW]

PWND

 

[Petra Fyde]

I would consider the increased bank storage and grandfathered housing to be and either/or option. I am probably wrong on that, but I would like some clarification on what 'grandfathered housing' would actually mean?

1. Would it mean if we had a house on prodo and a house on Siege both houses would need to be manually refreshed?
2. Would it mean if we had a house on prodo and a house on Siege one would be 'primary' and not need refreshing, but the other one did?
3. Would it mean that every house on Siege had to be manually refreshed? That would royally screw up anyone relying on the 90 days before it falls scenario.
4. Would it mean that if you had only one house on an account nothing would change and that house only falls if the account is inactive.

 

[SoulWeaver]

I would consider the increased bank storage and grandfathered housing to be and either/or option. I am probably wrong on that, but I would like some clarification on what 'grandfathered housing' would actually mean?

1. Would it mean if we had a house on prodo and a house on Siege both houses would need to be manually refreshed?
2. Would it mean if we had a house on prodo and a house on Siege one would be 'primary' and not need refreshing, but the other one did?
3. Would it mean that every house on Siege had to be manually refreshed? That would royally screw up anyone relying on the 90 days before it falls scenario.
4. Would it mean that if you had only one house on an account nothing would change and that house only falls if the account is inactive.

I think it should be kept refreshed but with a longer time. You dont want all the prodo people coming here just filling the shard up with empty plots and not ever letting them drop or be used... Maybe make the timer have like a 2-3 month refresh to it instead of weekly. Shouldn't be hard to put in that way people will tend to forget from prodo if they do leave and their home will still fall.

 

[Symma]

The list of changes that are being proposed look good...if you are a Siege player, but what are they really going to do to bring in players that:

- Don't like PvP
- Want insurance
- Don't like push-through
- Are already established on existing shards

I understand where you're coming from but Insurance really isn't the answer. Even a limited number of items being insured, like 2 or 3, would lose the identity of Siege.

I'd also like to say that I don't like to PvP. For all the time I've played I've never got into it. Always avoided it if I could. I'm pretty **** at it lol.

BUT, i don't mind people PvP and PKs killing me (except Diablo because he just gets all excited and starts to bash his keyboard with random insults).

I want to see changes to help the PvP community.

I don't PvP, as alot of us don't, but I still enjoy Siege.

If I can enjoy myself, along with other crafters and Roleplayers here, so can newer players. They just need to get past the mis-conceptions of what Siege is.

 

[Kat]

I would consider the increased bank storage and grandfathered housing to be and either/or option. I am probably wrong on that, but I would like some clarification on what 'grandfathered housing' would actually mean?

1. Would it mean if we had a house on prodo and a house on Siege both houses would need to be manually refreshed?
2. Would it mean if we had a house on prodo and a house on Siege one would be 'primary' and not need refreshing, but the other one did?
3. Would it mean that every house on Siege had to be manually refreshed? That would royally screw up anyone relying on the 90 days before it falls scenario.
4. Would it mean that if you had only one house on an account nothing would change and that house only falls if the account is inactive.

This...

Would it mean if we had a house on prodo and a house on Siege one would be 'primary' and not need refreshing, but the other one did?

and this...

Would it mean that if you had only one house on an account nothing would change and that house only falls if the account is inactive.

were how I was thinking it would be. I'd require a monthly refresh for the secondary house. That way people could travel or have surgery without worry of their house collapsing and at the same time, it discourages unused housing crowing up the shard unless someone can live by the refresh clock.

 

[Barry Gibb]

The devs requested that we get back to them on of all the changes we requested, which ones were the meaningful changes that we felt could be accomplished quickly. The changes we requested were:

Reintroduce T2A Blackrock
Add Siege to Shard List
Increased Bank Storage
Increased Arti and Cursed Arties
Grandfathered Housing
Second Character SLot
Rot Timer Changes


Discuss....

The first question that you need to ask yourself (generic, not directed at anyone in particular) is "What do I wish to accomplish with the changes to Siege?". It is perfectly fine if you come up with a list of reasons, but then prioritize your reasons as what is most important for both you nad the shard as a whole.

That said, I beleive that the changes need to make Siege Perilous more attractive to more people. Any changes aimed at this are the most important. Not all the changes listed will intice people to play on this shard.

Reintroduce T2A Blackrock
This is the most insignificant change on the list. It will not draw any players to the shard. Newer players will not know what this is, since they were not around for that brief event. All this change does is alter a very small, desolate corner of Sosaria. That area will open up more opportunities to grief, and does not provide any benefit for training at least half of all the skills in UO. This change is like using a bandaid to stop the bleeding if you lost a limb. There is a larger issue of skill gain (the current ROT system) being percieved as deterant to players. The problem needs to be addressed at a larger scale.

Add Siege to Shard List
I have no idea what the Shard List is. I can pick SP when I log in. How would this draw more players?

Increased Bank Storage
This change is good and would attract some more players, but not as many as other suggestions on this list. It is always good to have more storage space. This option is a very mini version of the Housing option.

Increased Arti and Cursed Arties
This option will not bring the least amount of players to the shard (if any at all). So I can get an artifact easier, so what... This option caters more to the current players of the shard, that already have well developed characters. It allows everyone the opportunity to be evenly equipped. This would be best implementing after other changes on this list. Currently players can stay on production shards, to get the same artifacts.

Grandfathered Housing
This shard is all about community, and a community needs a place to live. This is one of the best changes on the list. Many players are turned off to SP, because they don't want to lose everything they have worked for on their production shard, if the "moved" to Siege. I am partly of this mindset. I have been living out of my bank box on SP, but I could do so much more if I had a house. Houses on UO give a sense of belonging. This change would accomplish the same thing as the "Increased Bank Storage" change as so much more.

Second Character SLot
This change will not bring more players to Siege. If they do not play here already with one character, allowing them to make a second won't help at all. The single character slot is one of the things that makes the SP community so good. You can't do everything, all the time, on your own. I hate that on production shards. It is one of the reasons I refuse to blacksmith. My guildmate loves to, so I ask him to make things for me (though I have two 120 smiths of my own, to run BODs for him).

Rot Timer Changes
This is one of the best changes on this list. The ROT skill gain system is one of the biggest turn-offs to SP. Once you start to use it, you will find that it is blessing for some skills, but a curse for most others. I understand the need for it, but it needs to be changed. Something needs to be done to relieve the restrictions is imposes. To some unfortunate degree, the player base today finds more enjoyment out of "bieng there" than "getting there" (I hate the term End Game, there is no End Game is UO). If ROT changes are made, the stigma behind it lessens and less players will be put off by it.

These are my thoughts on the changes listed. I am not a programmer, so I don't know how easy/hard any of them are to make. All of the changes given are all existing game mechanics. I have no reason to believe any of them are more time consuming than the other. They will all have to be tested. Get the right changes made to get more players here.


Staying Alive,

BG

 

[HaHa]

The option to spam links to the dev is still open... just sayin.

 

[Luka Melehan]

Heres the thing about insurance and siege. We have a community. Even tho the shard seems to be dying, we still have that. Because we don't have insurance not everyone is running around with arties. Because we only have one character slot, we are dependant on our crafters and vendors for our needs. This creates a player based economy. I would bet imbuing didn't have the effect on any other shard that it had one ours. For me personally, it meant finally being able to run with decent gear. For those of you who don't know me, I am known in other games as the propetual aggro magnet. Here, I am an easy kill. I couldn't PvP my way out of a paper bag. Yet I love Siege for its community. I like there being an undefined risk when I hunt and farm. Both of my houses are not safe houses and are, in fact, open to the public. I like the subtle differences in the way PKs react to me based on my who I am in the community or who shops at my vendors. I love conflictive RP and this is the perfect setting for it.

That is not to say I am not willing to change for the sake of new players. But players from other shards need to understand the huge difference the play is here because of no insurance and only having one character slot.

The same goes for town vendors not buying stuff from players. It creates a situation where new players have to interact with others. Even with this small of a community, there are multiple people who would buy cloth and leather from a new person at any time, if not help them in a multitude of other ways. Just ask on the forums.

Sure, a new person might log in, get killed and stripped of everything they own on thier first day. All they would have to do is jump on the forums and simply ask for help. No crying or griefing necessary.

 

[Kat]

Barry - Maybe I can help you understand our logic behind the proposed changes. If you still feel some of this is the wrong direction, please point that out and let us know why. We do want to make the right choices!

Reintroduce T2A Blackrock -This "event" was hugely popular here. It brought in many players and despite the PK's, many of them found the accelerated skill gain very helpful. Plus, a few guilds spent time defending and/or rezzing/healing new players at the BR areas while they were all gaining skill. On top of that, it got people out of Luna for a change and I have to say that I met more people, new and veteran players alike, during this event than I have in years! We gained a number of new recruits from this event as well.

It benefits the shard in obvious ways and some not so obvious. For instance. It gives the PK's something to do, but it also gives the anti-pk's someone to protect... a reason to PvP. Such is the nature of Siege.. or at least it used to be.

Add Siege to Shard List - Players with new accounts cannot see Siege Perilous on the list of shards to select to play on, until they log onto a prodo shard first and renouce their young status. It may not bring in tons of players, but it could bring in the the types of new players that would like the Siege ruleset... whatever we end up with.

Increased Bank Storage - This addition isn't quite as "mini" as you might think. What we are asking for is something along the lines of 500-1000 item bank boxes, so folks without houses or the money to place one, can actually live out of their bank for a while. In this intensely item-based game, we felt this would be a good addition and beneficial to, not only new players, but everyone. We could possibly forego this one for Grandfathered Housing, though.

Increased Arti and Cursed Arties - To help you understand this addition, you have to understand that this one isn't just for new players. You also have to understand that we have some issues that affect current Siege players. As a shard without insurance, the cost to equip these days is incredibly high these days. We're talking several hundred k up to a couple mil... per death. That absolutely has to be reduced because PvP is currently dead on Siege and its because everyone is afraid to lose a suit. The cost to replace it is too high. We like full loot, but don't want insurance... so we have to reduce the cost.

Prodo costs what... roughly 5-10k per death with insurance? We pay 300k up to 2 mil. That pretty much guarantees ganks, no 1v1 fighting and any group that happens to be outnumbered to retreating to the house and/or logging out. Even if the cost could be brought down to say 50k - 100k that would change a lot.

[3x the cost to purchase from NPC's should maybe be removed as well, to reduce the cost of gems.]

Its a complicated issue, but a serious one and it will affect new players who wish to eventually PvP.

Increased arty drops will help several ways.
1. To bring down the cost of equipping, for all players.
2. It means more relic frags, which will reduce the price of imbued items that require them.
3. It helps even the playing field between factioners and non-factioners.
4. Its also a risk vs. reward thing. Danger lurks around every corner and you could be killed/looted at any time and any place and lose all your good fortune!

Grandfathered Housing - Clearly you get this one!

Second Character SLot - This was a tough issue for us to accept, but it was one of the top 3 complaints when we polled potential future Siege players on UHall. It will allow a player to have a PvMer and a Crafter, a Pvmer and PvPer, Crafter and Resource gatherer... there are a number of options and this is beneficial for those who can't or don't want to invest in soulstones just yet. I have a crafter myself, yet I purchase kegs from other crafters because I don't have or even want to train an alchemist. I also have cooking and can make enchanted apples and egg bombs, but because I'm far too lazy to do it myself, I purchase those things from other crafters. hehe There are a lot more like me around here, too!

Rot Timer Changes - You appear to understand this one just fine and I agree that this is an important change.

 

[Elmer Fudd]

STOP the presses... I agree with Sweeney on this...

Then lets add devopment time to our list of easy changes we would like to see fixed...IMO

1. Development time a week
2. Black Rock
3. Seige Added to Shard List

 

[Luka Melehan]

Barry - Maybe I can help you understand our logic behind the proposed changes. If you still feel some of this is the wrong direction, please point that out and let us know why. We do want to make the right choices!

Reintroduce T2A Blackrock -This "event" was hugely popular here. It brought in many players and despite the PK's, many of them found the accelerated skill gain very helpful. Plus, a few guilds spent time defending and/or rezzing/healing new players at the BR areas while they were all gaining skill. On top of that, it got people out of Luna for a change and I have to say that I met more people, new and veteran players alike, during this event than I have in years! We gained a number of new recruits from this event as well.

It benefits the shard in obvious ways and some not so obvious. For instance. It gives the PK's something to do, but it also gives the anti-pk's someone to protect... a reason to PvP. Such is the nature of Siege.. or at least it used to be.

Add Siege to Shard List - Players with new accounts cannot see Siege Perilous on the list of shards to select to play on, until they log onto a prodo shard first and renouce their young status. It may not bring in tons of players, but it could bring in the the types of new players that would like the Siege ruleset... whatever we end up with.

Increased Bank Storage - This addition isn't quite as "mini" as you might think. What we are asking for is something along the lines of 500-1000 item bank boxes, so folks without houses or the money to place one, can actually live out of their bank for a while. In this intensely item-based game, we felt this would be a good addition and beneficial to, not only new players, but everyone. We could possibly forego this one for Grandfathered Housing, though.

Increased Arti and Cursed Arties - To help you understand this addition, you have to understand that this one isn't just for new players. You also have to understand that we have some issues that affect current Siege players. As a shard without insurance, the cost to equip these days is incredibly high these days. We're talking several hundred k up to a couple mil... per death. That absolutely has to be reduced because PvP is currently dead on Siege and its because everyone is afraid to lose a suit. The cost to replace it is too high. We like full loot, but don't want insurance... so we have to reduce the cost.

Prodo costs what... roughly 5-10k per death with insurance? We pay 300k up to 2 mil. That pretty much guarantees ganks, no 1v1 fighting and any group that happens to be outnumbered to retreating to the house and/or logging out. Even if the cost could be brought down to say 50k - 100k that would change a lot.

[3x the cost to purchase from NPC's should maybe be removed as well, to reduce the cost of gems.]

Its a complicated issue, but a serious one and it will affect new players who wish to eventually PvP.

Increased arty drops will help several ways.
1. To bring down the cost of equipping, for all players.
2. It means more relic frags, which will reduce the price of imbued items that require them.
3. It helps even the playing field between factioners and non-factioners.
4. Its also a risk vs. reward thing. Danger lurks around every corner and you could be killed/looted at any time and any place and lose all your good fortune!

Grandfathered Housing - Clearly you get this one!

Second Character SLot - This was a tough issue for us to accept, but it was one of the top 3 complaints when we polled potential future Siege players on UHall. It will allow a player to have a PvMer and a Crafter, a Pvmer and PvPer, Crafter and Resource gatherer... there are a number of options and this is beneficial for those who can't or don't want to invest in soulstones just yet. I have a crafter myself, yet I purchase kegs from other crafters because I don't have or even want to train an alchemist. I also have cooking and can make enchanted apples and egg bombs, but because I'm far too lazy to do it myself, I purchase those things from other crafters. hehe There are a lot more like me around here, too!

Rot Timer Changes - You appear to understand this one just fine and I agree that this is an important change.

The only thing I have trouble with is the second character slot. I will support it though, and heartily support everything else here.

 

[Barry Gibb]

The only thing I have trouble with is the second character slot. I will support it though, and heartily support everything else here.

It's not that I don't support the changes, I see some as more meaningful than others (as was stated in the original post).

Stayin Alive,

BG

 

[Barry Gibb]

Barry - Maybe I can help you understand our logic behind the proposed changes. If you still feel some of this is the wrong direction, please point that out and let us know why. We do want to make the right choices!

Here is a link to the rest of the her post, above: Kat's post. It would have been too much text.

Reintroduce T2A Blackrock
This was an event. A new, unique experience for all players to participate in. It is possible that the event gave the illusion of more players, since events run for short durations (usually). It concentrated players in a small area. I have no doubt that it was fun and that it gave alot of people things to do (which you mentioned). What was the draw that brought all of the players out? Was that event more or less fun/popular that other events (and why)? Did they show up because it was an event that they wanted to participate in? Did they see an opportunity to gain skill, without the restrictions of the current ROT system?

This change does not address the real issue, that ROT is putting people off from Siege. Alone, without other ROT changes, this change will be a "flash in the pan". There will be no lasting benefits. It will become stale and most will see the Blackrock Areas as lures for griefing newer players. It offers enhanced skill gain for some skills, but not for all of them (I'd be suprised if it was even 50%, most of the crafting skills are impractical or unable to be trained there). This change should be made ONLY IF they cannot adjust the ROT system, which they already have done (twice if I recall correctly).

Add Siege to Shard List
Thank you for explaining this to me. It seems very silly (to put it politely) that Siege is not listed in that manner. This should just be corrected, without any of us having to ask for it. I would want my entire product available to a paying customer.

Increased Bank Storage
Compared to the Grandfathered Housing change, this one is merely a crutch. This should only be considered ONLY IF the housing change was impossible/impractical to do. However the housing change is just a reimplimentation of an existing part of the game, so it is very practical and possible to do. Aim high! If you shoot for the stars and hit the moon, it's alright (for anyone who doesn't get it, don't settle for this if you can change housing).

This next part may sound a bit silly, since it's all pixels... Houses in UO are a very tangible thing. I can sculpt it the way I want (customization or decoration). I can see my treasures and display my accomplishments. I can offer a haven and other amenities to other players. The housing change is the way to go. Increasing bank storage offers only a place to store crap, it is far from a house. It may get a few people, but they will still feel like they have to choose SP over their production shard. I don't want a place for more crap. I want a home. I want a place in the comminity!!

Increased Arti and Cursed Arties
I could not find a smiley for "indifferent" or else I would have used it. Thank you for the detailed rationale of the change. However, given the context of bringing players to the shard, i don't think it will make a difference. It will make a difference in keeping the players though. Anything to tilt the playing field towards level is a good thing. It will never be level (and it shouldn't) or else we would be on test center (yuck). It will always favor those who invest the time and effort into their character (be it equipment or practice).

Grandfathered Housing
Thank you! It is tied for best option on the list.

Second Character SLot
Again, in the context of getting players to come to Siege, this won't help. If someone doesn't like something, two of them won't change that. This is similar to the Artifact change, it won't do much to draw people, but it will help keep people. This change will draw more players than the artifact change. It gives them options to play with (but not everything). If there was a smiley for "indifferent" I would have used it here too.


Rot Timer Changes
Thank you! It is tied for best option on the list. This is the core change that the Blackrock area tries to address (but comes up well short). If changes were made to ROT, I would speak more positively about the blackrock area change. However, the blackrock area seems to be treated as seperate entity than this change. It seems to read that "we want both changes (blackrock area and ROT), but we'll accept the blackrock area". The stance should be "Change ROT, and once that is done turn on the blackrock area for those who want to take the risk. Bring It!". Don't settle for less. ROT is a good thing to have, as it governs the character building time, but right now it is too restrictive. Open it up a bit. Once that is done, let me chose to open it further (add the blackrock area later, after the ROT is changed).

It sounds that the Devs want a smaller, perhaps prioritized list, from the original post: "which ones were the meaningful changes that we felt could be accomplished quickly". If I had to choose which changes were the most meaningful it would be Housing and ROT (hand's down). They will bring the most players. They will fuel the fire of the shard.

If I had to prioritize all of these changes, here is how it would go:
0. Add Siege to Shard List (should be done regardless of asking for it)
1. Grandfathered Housing
2. Rot Timer Changes
3. Increased Arti and Cursed Arties
4. Second Character Slot
5. Reintroduce T2A Blackrock (only if #2 was in place)
6. Increased Bank Storage (not needed if #1 was in place)

Stayin Alive,

BG

 

[archite666]

*Chimes in*

No pet bonding + Passive detect

*runs away*

Seriously though, I know we want to boost population but is it possible to also take in consideration the things that drove people away?

 

[nightstalker22]

*Chimes in*

No pet bonding + Passive detect

*runs away*

Seriously though, I know we want to boost population but is it possible to also take in consideration the things that drove people away?

No pet bonding is fine by me - if you allow a Siege Bless to be used on all pets, whether they are using 1 or 5.

Passive detect is a bad idea. Do not punish thieves and assassins because stealth tamers abuse it.
Do not reward everyone with the chance to reveal someone with the effect of GM Detect, though no points are invested and the skill wasn't actually used. There are many ways to reveal a stealther already, dont punish role players for your lack of creativity. :gun:

 

[Symma]

Argh, no passive detect. its the bain of my life on other shards.

 

[Morgana LeFay (PoV)]

The list of changes that are being proposed look good...if you are a Siege player, but what are they really going to do to bring in players that:

- Don't like PvP
- Want insurance
- Don't like push-through
- Are already established on existing shards

I understand where you're coming from but Insurance really isn't the answer. Even a limited number of items being insured, like 2 or 3, would lose the identity of Siege.

Not what I was saying here.

What I meant was 'what does Siege offer as an alternative to players that want those things.

I hate insurance...it was a very bad idea that is killing the game as we speak on the other shards.

Siege needs something to make potential players go "well, I won't have insurance...but Siege has _______, so I don't care...I will play there anyway".

 

[Kat]

Not what I was saying here.

What I meant was 'what does Siege offer as an alternative to players that want those things.

I hate insurance...it was a very bad idea that is killing the game as we speak on the other shards.

Siege needs something to make potential players go "well, I won't have insurance...but Siege has _______, so I don't care...I will play there anyway".

She's right on the money. That is exactly what Siege needs!

 

[Ole Cheapy]

I wont even ask why my post was deleted cause it doesnt really matter nor do I really care but FYI this attitude is probably the second biggest reason why this shard is a ghost town. Hope you guys that have really faught long and hard for siege get exactly what you're wanting but silencing people with different opinions is not the way to go. If you do this you're only gonna have a handful of people happy and subsequently is all you will have left on the shard. Thus giving you exactly what you have now, a ghost town. Have fun, kiddos.