Newbie to 'Ultima'

[Heskey]

Hey guys,

Been a low-fantasy RPer on the Europa shard for about 8 years now; the last time I properly played 'the game' was around the time champion spawns and powerscrolls had just come in...

My account only has 715 cap I think, not 720 at the moment..

As a newbie (Which I basically am in terms of the full game), what sort of template (and why) and things to do would you recommend for a character, for generally larking around, doing all these new exciting dungeons?

I see all these templates involving archery and bushido, chivalry and necromancy and it honestly baffles my mind because I'm still stuck in the 7x GM warrior mindset

Help please xD

- Heskey

 

[Wolfman]

Hey Heskey!

Great that you found your way back!

The first question you have to ask yourself, what motto does you (warrior-)char
have?
Are you a defensive or an offensive type (so do you want to be able to withstand pretty much all damage, or do you want to inflict major amounts of damage).
Bushido is great for inflicting damage (Lightning-Strike) AND gives you a parry chance in combination with the parry skill without using a shield. Furthermore you can cause additional damage if you honor your opponents before you attack them....so for any warrior I would highly suggest the Bushido skill, if you can fit it in somehow.
The defensive aproach focuses on parry, healing and leeching life mana (and stamina), so the necro skill is very handy.
If you read the threads about the Sampire, you will find templates that include both ways......

 

[Basara]

As for the other skills:

Chivalry has some bonuses in terms of its spells that the others don't.
1. instead of regs or scrolls, you tithe gold to a shrine for tithing points. This means that if you die, you only have to wait until you get enough mana to cast. This makes getting around on a warrior a lot easier.
2. Spells include a travel spell, a poison-curing spell, a healing spell, several combat buff spells (some multi-purpose, others PvM only), and most importantly, the only curse-removal spell in the game (while there are now talismans and specially prepared fruit items that will remove curse, they have timers and the fruit can be looted). There is even an area-effect damage spell.
3. Spells increase in power based on your karma, for the most part, so one can squeeze in sub-GM ability into a template (typically between 65-85 points) and then combine the Paladin abilities with those of the other skills. Many Bushido users and even Necro users will add some chivalry if they have the room - especially the sampire types that have their casting of vamp embrace as their only use of necro, then switch to other equipment after casting, leaving themselves with not enough necro to do anything with.

 

[Solikos]

I'm new to this end of the game as well... A PvM template that has been constantly recommended to me (and has been working, so far!) is the following:

GM Weapon of Choice
GM Tactics
GM Anatomy
GM Healing
GM Parry
GM Spell Resist
GM Chivalry (Recall, Heals, Buffs)

*Note: Some people prefer Focus to Spell Resist, or Focus to Parry... I personally don't use the mana.

Chivalry is very useful in PvM fighter builds with all the buffs and heals, and especially with recall. I've heard not-so good things about Bushido, though I'm sure it works well for some people.

This is a pretty standard setup and would look something like an old timers "7x GM Warrior" template. Hope it works for you.

By the way, skills seem to improve a lot faster these days, but perhaps it's just me.

~ Solikos