- The Early Days
- Returning to Britannia
- Britannia
- Lost Lands
- Ilshenar
- Malas
- Tokuno
- Ter Mur
- Object of This Site
- UO Travelogues History
- 07/04/09 - Column:
- > What UO Could Be
- 07/01/09 - Travelogues:
- > Betrayal of Lord Casca
- > Into the Darkness
- > Deception and Greed
- 06/09/09 - Printable Map:
- > Sea Chart of Britannia
- 06/03/09 - Redesign
 |
 |
Ultima Online Travelogues: The Travelogues contain hundreds of stories and thousands of screenshots about Ultima Online adventures, starting back in 1997. Follow our heroes on their exciting, challenging and dangerous journeys! |
Ultima Online Adventurer's Guide: The Adventurer's Guide supplies you with comprehensive information about Ultima Online geography, including detailed maps of all landmasses, dungeons and cities. Download printable maps here! |
The Ultima Online Column:
What Ultima Online Could Be - July 4th, 2009
Who'd wander through Britannia on foot, searching for secrets and landmarks? Who'd account Felucca for a place worth traveling to? Who'd venture to old anti-virtue dungeons to explore them from top to bottom? Not many, I guess. The world of UO has a gigantic potential, which is far from being tapped. I put together 10 steps that would enhance the gaming experience and diminish some of the problems (scripting, duping, farming, boredom) at the same time. The goals would be to encourage expeditions and discoveries, get rid of repetitive treadmill activities, make the world unpredictable and dynamic, and revive the old forgotten places in Britannia.
[Read more...]
Felucca: A Niche Facet - June 9th, 2009
I was "born" in Felucca. I've been playing UO since the release and experienced all the excitement and trouble of a gaming world where the safe zone "Trammel" did not exist. Today, I am an 80% Trammel player and I miss the risk and challenge of the Early Days. That's why every now and then I venture to Felucca to join into some real PvP action. But PvP has changed. A lot. Let me explain what Felucca is like today, so we can understand how PvP in Felucca works, and what it takes to compete.
[Read more...]
The Trammel/Felucca Dilemma - March 10th, 2009
Almost daily we can find discussions about unconsentual PvP in UO on public message boards. Some think that murdering other players is an essential part of the game (risk vs. reward), and those are mostly UO veterans. Others spend all their time in Trammel and do not want PvP, and those are called "Trammies". And a lot of players are somewhere in between. This debate is almost 10 years old. And still nobody has come up with a decent solution to favor both sides. Until today.
[Read more...]
Pirate Expansion, A Concept - Feb 20th, 2009
I have been regretting for a long time that the naval content always was neglected. Just look at the map of Britannia! It consists more of water than of land. In this column will rant a bit over ideas that sprang into my mind while thinking about what seems to be the players' most anxiously awaited and desired game expansion in UO history: The Pirate Expansion. The object of the Pirate Expansion would be to breathe life and adventure into the seascape, and to add new features encouraging voyages by boat: Player-run docks! Enhanced Ships! Cannons and Sea Battles! Letters of Marque! Bad Weather! Seafaring Adventures! Merchant Quest System!
[Read more...]
Artificial Life Engine - Jan 27th, 2009
When I decided to become an UO subscriber back in 1997, I somewhere read a very appealing description about the artificial intelligence of game creatures. "Nearly everything in the world, from grass to goblins, has a purpose, and not just as cannon fodder either. If the rabbit population suddenly drops then wolves may have to find different food sources - say, deer. When the deer population drops as a result, the local dragon, unable to find the food he’s accustomed to, may head into a local village and attack.
[Read more...]
Flashback 2008 - Jan 16th, 2009
2008 was one exciting year in UO, with a lot of changes and challenges. However, the never satisfied and always demanding customer still is not happy and has a lot to complain about. Do we really recall everything we experienced in Britannia last year? Or do we just remember the bad things? Maybe the points of criticism should not be completely forgot. But after all, 2008 was a year full of activity, events and game enhancements. Let me recollect...
[Read more...]
UO Too Much Based on Items? - Dec 9th, 2008
I've been playing UO since its release in 1998. I made a long break from 2002 and 2007. After my return, I noticed how much the game had changed. First, I first want to say that many many changes have been a great enhancement of UO, and increased the breadth and the diversity of UO. So, I do not want "the good old days" back! However, one thing has destroyed a lot of the gaming experience, to my opinion. And that's the artifacts, rare uber-items and insurance. Let me explain, why:
[Read more...]
Britannian Towns Deserted - Nov 15th, 2008
Let me pull out some memories of the first 3 or 4 years in UO (1998-2001): During the first years of UO, before Ilshenar, Tokuno and Malas were invented, you would meet a lot of people in EVERY town of Britannia. Britain is the capital of Britannia. It was the most famous city, and it always was full of people. It was the town where you would find every kind of shop and vendor. I never saw less than 20 people hanging out at the First Bank of Britain...
[Read more...]
Improving the World - Oct 21nd, 2008
We all are looking forward to the upcoming changes and enhancements of UO. However, some of us think that increasing the breadth of the game (instead of the depth) might favor us veterans, while new players will still have difficulties accessing the game. And what UO needs most at times of dwindling activity, is new fresh players! I have put together some facts. Maybe I am able to point out a few weaknesses of this otherwise great game...
[Read more...]
Requesting a Pirate Expansion - Sept 30th, 2008
I came up with an idea of the next expansion after Stygian Abyss. Pirates and sea adventures are what excite many people these days, and the existing vast and unused areas of water in Britannia could finally become a destination worth traveling to. Give us a Pirate Expansion! Some details:
[Read more...]
New Craftables Discovered? - Aug 14th, 2008
Just a few minutes ago, while digging in the sandy beach in front of my house for glassblowing ressources, I accidentally dug up an old tattered scroll. Things you find on the beaches these days! The scroll was very encrusted and indecipherable. I remembered from a past event (the massacre of the Royal Council) that some speckled poison and zoogi fungus might help me. My alchemist actually managed to create a potion out of these ingredients (it took him a while and he burned a lot of poisons and fungi, although he is grandmaster). It was a yellowish liquid and was named Solvent. Using three of these potions on the scroll suddenly revealed an inscription...
[Read more...]
Returning to Britannia - Dec 15th, 2007
A kind of nostalgia finally made me return to Britannia. It happened when I accidentally discovered some old UO screenshots on a backup CD. I suddenly wanted to explore Britannia and all the new landmasses again. I reactivated my account and found my characters were still available. That was a relief, because I doubt that I would have had the nerve to start all over again. However, the game had changed a lot during the past 6 years and I had to learn and re-learn a lot of things. My Ultima Online Travelogues are now continued. Read about my adventures in the book "Returning to Britannia". If you want to find your way in Britannia, the Lost Lands, Ilshenar, Malas or Tokuno, check out my comprehensive Adventurer's Guide, which will be constantly updated and enhanced.