I recently stumbled across this site while looking through the forums of MMORPG.com. I currently play EQ2, but bored, I decided to see if there was any news on some of my old-time favorites. Looking at the forums there, everyone says the 'new UO' is on 'life-support,' and recommended Google-ing something like UO:Divinity. After browsing through a number of free shards, I came to one of those 'top 100' sites and saw the banner for Second Age - The Way it Was. I must say, this definitely caught my eye and got me here!
I've been lurking the forums the past night and morning. It's made me realize that there's something (or many things) about the world of UO that are calling me back. I actually started with The Realm (if anyone remembers that), and then moved on to UO (Baja server) during the end of T2A, and played a little while longer after they introduced Trammel, factions, etc. Around that time I believe EQ1 was out, and I decided to try a game with the 'greatest graphics' out there. Since then, I've been nothing but disappointed.
In every game now, it's like a cookie-cutter mold, with competitions on who can make the most CPU/graphically intensive game - but using the same-old, tired gameplay. Sure they throw in new settings / genres, or pay hoards of cash for a big brand to base their world on (LotR comes to mind), but there's nothing innovative about any of it; and the communities, in most cases, are a joke. I have to admit the same is true in EQ2, but at least there I have a number of close friends that I can play with which keeps me entertained.
Nothing compares, though, to my first days wandering around the streets of Trinsic, learning to do the most basic of tasks (like opening one's bank box). I met and became close friends with a stranger on the street (although the name escapes me now, years later - Red-something), and we began a quest to build enough wealth to purchase a ship. A huge accomplishment, we spent hours taking turns just sailing around, exploring new areas - as we traveled not much further than the peninsula south of Trinsic to hunt prior to this. We then learned how profitable mining / blacksmithing was, and started mining and crafting our way to 'fortune.'
Eventually we made enough to purchase a small-house deed (our ultimate goal) - but after days of searching, gave up on trying to find a spot to place it and sold the deed back. I joined up with a guild, Paladins of Virtue, and let my friend take the ship, and saw little of him again, as I now had a whole group to hunt with and he was more interested in the lone-wolf / duo setting (and later became a respectable PK). The guild eventually crumbled as most small guilds do (although the premise was great, and I loved all the lore they had behind it), and I went back to mining to the mountains west of Trinsic.
Of course, one day a PK came strolling through, and naturally I left all my ore there and started running, as typically all they seemed to care about was what massive pile of ore I'd left on the ground (I'd use a nearby forge outside). Not this particular PK, and he chased me south until I ran into a large group of players outside a tower sparring. Realizing my plight, they took up the chase, and the PK was quickly dispatched by the hoard of members. Shortly thereafter, I became a loyal follower of my saviors - the guild, Victory over the Unknown.
From there my adventures are all just as wonderful, with another notable time being when I helped run a casino called The Drunken Ogre. This, along with random chess games with friends and strangers, and other random moments in such an open, expansive world, are what made me love this game so much.
For all of that, I must admit I was never very good at PvP. My first experience was shortly after the factions came out, and I was put in the 'front-line' of a major battle - and died before I took a swing or cast a spell. I never understood all the intricacies (I was pretty young after all), and gave up on PvP after that (in both UO and really all MMOs since).
With all of that said, it seems this is one of the biggest, most active free shards out there, and is set in the era I most remember and cherish. I'm interested in starting, and hopefully bringing in some friends I constantly relate my UO stories to, so I can show them what a true online RPG should be like, but I have some reservations...
First, what is the general nature / attitude of the members on this server? Are PK'ers rampant, gate-camping and in general just griefing on a constant basis? Or is it possible to enjoy and see the areas of the game without constant fear of being ganked? (Again, I played mostly in Felucca, so I used to deal with 'reds' but maybe Baja was different, as I rarely worried about them or even saw them - which was nice, as those you did see were immediately feared) In other words, I like the idea of needing to be vigilant / fearful of dying (unlike most games), but is the community primarily filled with PKs / reds?
Second, what's the best way to get started? Honestly, it's been so long, I don't remember much of how I got started in the first place. Obviously, magery is an extremely expensive endeavor, so it's not something I'd probably start with, but something that I know is obviously necessary. I did enjoy playing a warrior, tamer, and bard, though. Are there any suggestions on a first character build for one just starting out?
And finally, is crafting viable here? I would assume with a smaller population, fewer crafters are needed, and don't want to eventually start another blacksmith, only to find everyone already has one as an alt and unable to turn even a small profit
Anyways, thanks for taking the time to read this and answer my questions! Good luck to you all, and hope to see you in-game soon!
-Kat
