Hail Siege!
Since I stopped the Peerage interviews, Talia and I disbanded our guild [SPHS] to join [UWSP]. It has been a blast, but recently I began thinking about the folks that Siege Perilous lost this year, and those we hope return one day. With that in mind I plan on starting the Peerage (at a slower pace) back up, since it seems to draw additional interest to our slice of UO. Starcon, one of my fellow ex-[TDO] members, has graciously allowed me to get back in the groove with his interview. Anyone who has played with Starcon knows he is a level-headed and fair player and he is a great member of [UWSP]. So without further ado...
[SPHS]: What was your first experience with the Ultima games? What was your first experience with Ultima Online?
Starcon: I was familiar with the Ultima games but never really played any of them. My first experience with Ultima Online was in the summer of 97. A friend of mine was working for Origin on the game and I visited them in their office. I remember creating a character and they took me out into the world, somewhere near Vesper if I remember correctly, and threw out some monsters for me to fight, mostly orcs and they kicked my tail. I ended up buying the game in late 97 after it was released and have been playing ever since.
[SPHS]: Wow! Can you say more about the office when you visited during UO development? What was the environment like? Is this after the EA acquisition then?
Starcon: It was before the EA acquisition. The Origin offices at the time were in Austin, TX near the 360 bridge (a very scenic part of Austin). I was there on a weekend so it was fairly empty except a few other employees. It seemed like any other office environment. My friend was a game master at the time, but he went on the be a designer later
[SPHS]: What brought you to Siege? How long have you played here, and how frequently do you play now?
Starcon: I came to Siege in Feb of 2016. Catskills was my main shard and I had just started playing a little on Atlantic when Freja posted an open invitation to try Siege in UHall. At the time Siege appealed to me because of its similarities to UO before AoS.
[SPHS]: How did you first meet Freja? I'm curious because the first time I met her was when she ran over my hidden character on the road...
Starcon: I first met Freja through her post in UHall advertising Siege. So I was already familiar with her when I made my first character on Siege. She didn't give me any pressure to join TDO. Instead she advocated for all of the guilds on Siege, her thought being that if you join the guild that fits your playstyle, your more likely to stay on Siege.
[SPHS]: In the last month, what did you spend the majority of your game time doing?
Starcon: This past month, most of my time has been spent on shrine battles, champ spawns, and training pets.
[SPHS]: What do you think about the updates to taming? What pets do you think work best on Siege? Is there a pet (other than Blaze Cu) that you are still looking to tame?
Starcon: I really like the updates to taming. It opened up a much larger variety of pets that a tamer can use. For me, I tend to like the pets that I can ride but there are many different pets that are useful. I tend to use my giant beetle the most, but I also like to use my Cu, Lesser Hiryu, fire steed, and najasauras. It all depends on what I'm doing. At this point, the main pet I would like to add is a Blaze Cu.
[SPHS]: To date, what has been your best day on Siege?
Starcon: My best day on Siege will be that day in the future when I finally tame a blaze Cu (of course the shard will revert a few minutes later). Other than that, any day I have time to play on Siege is a great day.
Above: The Governor at Work
[SPHS]: You have been an active Governor on Siege. What towns have you served as Governor, and how long did you serve? What appeals to you in being a Governor?
Starcon: The only town I have been governor of is Britain on Siege. I've been governor of Britain since late 2016 ( I think the December election). I ran for Britain after Freja and Hoffs both told me I should run. For a long time while I was Governor I was just trying to keep the city funded so the trade deal could be used. But since the cargo event, all of the cities are now funded for a long long time.
Starcon: Another thing I've been trying to figure out is for a while now, years, I've wanted to do a jousting contest in the streets of Britain, but I haven't figured out feasible way to make it happen. Maybe someday I will find a way to make it work.
[SPHS]: How often do you participate in the Governor Meetings? Is there something you wish the EM could do to better that experience?
Starcon: I try to participate in the Governor Meetings every time, however the last few meetings have been announced a few hours beforehand. It is hard for me (and many others also) to make the meetings when the notice is that short.
[SPHS]: Which players do you interact with the most?
Starcon: Most of my interactions are with Magichands, Tanager, Ol Rac and the rest of the UWSP guild. However I will interact with anyone and I think most people will tell you what I treat everyone the same (from guildmate to ruthless pk).
[SPHS]: Are you in a guild, and if so, how many other players are in it? What guilds were you in before this one?
Starcon: I started out in TDO, but when Freja stopped playing it really fell apart. Now my main guild is UWSP. I'm not sure how many are in USWP, but I know there are a lot. TDO and UWSP are the only two guilds I've been in on Siege. I still have one chr in TDO, but most of my chrs are in UWSP.
[SPHS]: How many guild members have you met in RL? Do you interact with any of them outside of UO on a regular basis?
Starcon: I haven't meet any guildmembers outside of UO.
[SPHS]: If you could pick one player who is no longer on the shard that you could return, who would it be and why?
Starcon: That would probably be Freja because I think she was good for the shard. I know she didn't get along with everyone, but her intensions were almost always trying to help the shard.
Starcon: If I could bring back any player, it would be Reggie Black from Catskills. Reggie and I played together a lot for many many years.
[SPHS]: If you could permanently REMOVE one anything (activity / item / player / encounter / mechanic) from the shard, what would it be and why?
Starcon: I would remove some of the unnecessary grind in the game. For example, why does spinning wool need to be such a one click at a time chore (that's just one example, there are numerous others).
[SPHS]: If you could permanently ADD one anything (activity / item / player / encounter / mechanic) from the shard, what would it be and why?
Starcon: I would open Malas up to castles and keeps. The reason for the restriction a long time ago is no longer valid.
[SPHS]: You are dropped into an IDOC brawl and have time to grab one item. What item would you wish to grab above anything else?
Starcon: Maybe a single tile soulforge, but really I don't get too hung up on items like that. Now if the players pets also dropped, I would grab a blaze Cu.
[SPHS]: What do you use your Siege bless on the most?
Starcon: Usually I use it on a piece of armor, that way if someone loots my suit, it's easier to replace if I have a main piece to build around.
[SPHS]: If you could give one piece of advice to new or returning players to Siege, what would it be?
Starcon: Just relax and enjoy the game.
Since I stopped the Peerage interviews, Talia and I disbanded our guild [SPHS] to join [UWSP]. It has been a blast, but recently I began thinking about the folks that Siege Perilous lost this year, and those we hope return one day. With that in mind I plan on starting the Peerage (at a slower pace) back up, since it seems to draw additional interest to our slice of UO. Starcon, one of my fellow ex-[TDO] members, has graciously allowed me to get back in the groove with his interview. Anyone who has played with Starcon knows he is a level-headed and fair player and he is a great member of [UWSP]. So without further ado...
[SPHS]: What was your first experience with the Ultima games? What was your first experience with Ultima Online?
Starcon: I was familiar with the Ultima games but never really played any of them. My first experience with Ultima Online was in the summer of 97. A friend of mine was working for Origin on the game and I visited them in their office. I remember creating a character and they took me out into the world, somewhere near Vesper if I remember correctly, and threw out some monsters for me to fight, mostly orcs and they kicked my tail. I ended up buying the game in late 97 after it was released and have been playing ever since.
[SPHS]: Wow! Can you say more about the office when you visited during UO development? What was the environment like? Is this after the EA acquisition then?
Starcon: It was before the EA acquisition. The Origin offices at the time were in Austin, TX near the 360 bridge (a very scenic part of Austin). I was there on a weekend so it was fairly empty except a few other employees. It seemed like any other office environment. My friend was a game master at the time, but he went on the be a designer later
[SPHS]: What brought you to Siege? How long have you played here, and how frequently do you play now?
Starcon: I came to Siege in Feb of 2016. Catskills was my main shard and I had just started playing a little on Atlantic when Freja posted an open invitation to try Siege in UHall. At the time Siege appealed to me because of its similarities to UO before AoS.
[SPHS]: How did you first meet Freja? I'm curious because the first time I met her was when she ran over my hidden character on the road...
Starcon: I first met Freja through her post in UHall advertising Siege. So I was already familiar with her when I made my first character on Siege. She didn't give me any pressure to join TDO. Instead she advocated for all of the guilds on Siege, her thought being that if you join the guild that fits your playstyle, your more likely to stay on Siege.
[SPHS]: In the last month, what did you spend the majority of your game time doing?
Starcon: This past month, most of my time has been spent on shrine battles, champ spawns, and training pets.
[SPHS]: What do you think about the updates to taming? What pets do you think work best on Siege? Is there a pet (other than Blaze Cu) that you are still looking to tame?
Starcon: I really like the updates to taming. It opened up a much larger variety of pets that a tamer can use. For me, I tend to like the pets that I can ride but there are many different pets that are useful. I tend to use my giant beetle the most, but I also like to use my Cu, Lesser Hiryu, fire steed, and najasauras. It all depends on what I'm doing. At this point, the main pet I would like to add is a Blaze Cu.
[SPHS]: To date, what has been your best day on Siege?
Starcon: My best day on Siege will be that day in the future when I finally tame a blaze Cu (of course the shard will revert a few minutes later). Other than that, any day I have time to play on Siege is a great day.
Above: The Governor at Work
[SPHS]: You have been an active Governor on Siege. What towns have you served as Governor, and how long did you serve? What appeals to you in being a Governor?
Starcon: The only town I have been governor of is Britain on Siege. I've been governor of Britain since late 2016 ( I think the December election). I ran for Britain after Freja and Hoffs both told me I should run. For a long time while I was Governor I was just trying to keep the city funded so the trade deal could be used. But since the cargo event, all of the cities are now funded for a long long time.
Starcon: Another thing I've been trying to figure out is for a while now, years, I've wanted to do a jousting contest in the streets of Britain, but I haven't figured out feasible way to make it happen. Maybe someday I will find a way to make it work.
[SPHS]: How often do you participate in the Governor Meetings? Is there something you wish the EM could do to better that experience?
Starcon: I try to participate in the Governor Meetings every time, however the last few meetings have been announced a few hours beforehand. It is hard for me (and many others also) to make the meetings when the notice is that short.
[SPHS]: Which players do you interact with the most?
Starcon: Most of my interactions are with Magichands, Tanager, Ol Rac and the rest of the UWSP guild. However I will interact with anyone and I think most people will tell you what I treat everyone the same (from guildmate to ruthless pk).
[SPHS]: Are you in a guild, and if so, how many other players are in it? What guilds were you in before this one?
Starcon: I started out in TDO, but when Freja stopped playing it really fell apart. Now my main guild is UWSP. I'm not sure how many are in USWP, but I know there are a lot. TDO and UWSP are the only two guilds I've been in on Siege. I still have one chr in TDO, but most of my chrs are in UWSP.
[SPHS]: How many guild members have you met in RL? Do you interact with any of them outside of UO on a regular basis?
Starcon: I haven't meet any guildmembers outside of UO.
[SPHS]: If you could pick one player who is no longer on the shard that you could return, who would it be and why?
Starcon: That would probably be Freja because I think she was good for the shard. I know she didn't get along with everyone, but her intensions were almost always trying to help the shard.
Starcon: If I could bring back any player, it would be Reggie Black from Catskills. Reggie and I played together a lot for many many years.
[SPHS]: If you could permanently REMOVE one anything (activity / item / player / encounter / mechanic) from the shard, what would it be and why?
Starcon: I would remove some of the unnecessary grind in the game. For example, why does spinning wool need to be such a one click at a time chore (that's just one example, there are numerous others).
[SPHS]: If you could permanently ADD one anything (activity / item / player / encounter / mechanic) from the shard, what would it be and why?
Starcon: I would open Malas up to castles and keeps. The reason for the restriction a long time ago is no longer valid.
[SPHS]: You are dropped into an IDOC brawl and have time to grab one item. What item would you wish to grab above anything else?
Starcon: Maybe a single tile soulforge, but really I don't get too hung up on items like that. Now if the players pets also dropped, I would grab a blaze Cu.
[SPHS]: What do you use your Siege bless on the most?
Starcon: Usually I use it on a piece of armor, that way if someone loots my suit, it's easier to replace if I have a main piece to build around.
[SPHS]: If you could give one piece of advice to new or returning players to Siege, what would it be?
Starcon: Just relax and enjoy the game.
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