Mining in Unsafe Zone

I would say majority of people would say that PVP should be a part of the UO experience, given that- yes, a kill is actually an achievement. My opinion is that no matter what class you play, there shouldn’t be the possibility of someone showing up, clicking you, and you instantly dying (unless a stacked lvl 6 warrior puts a sword in a naked mages face or some other obvious scenario).

When a stacked player can insta-kill a slightly less stacked player, I think its safe to say PVP is broken, and that creates an atmosphere that makes it easy for players to end up grieving.

In the case of crafter though- its already such a thankless job. They get the shit end of the stick and they in turn provide so much. Somebody throw them a damn bone.

Glad to see there is at least a conversation about it.

Personally, my friends and I found our way of mining outside without being hassled, so I wasn’t really speaking on behalf of my own interests. My concern comes moreso from the way this particular sever is ran and played and any new people coming onto the scene– not so much about what the games initial intent was.

That is to say that even though UO and its original dynamic for a crafter was go out look for something by way of adventure (which is certainly an admirable principal to base a game on), the problem is that ZHO is much, much different in practice than that original game ever was. The class, loot, and PvP system here offers a lot of varying benefits and penalties that shift that dynamic completely.

PvP grants success here. You can spend a huge hunk of your life running boss spawns, but if you aren’t PvPing and winning… then you are still losing. That atmosphere (although certainly containing its perks as far as playability) offers almost close to nothing for a crafter. You have to be reaaaally nostalgic to just sit and click a tool and then click the ground and derive any enjoyment out of that for hours.

That being said, why not make it easier to carelessly macro a crafter so that you can put your love and attention into a character that is actually participating? If the fear is that gems will become too easy to get, then just make their rate of harvest a little bit slower, but as my original message still stands, a bunch of useless pre-marked death zone mines aren’t doing anybody any good, and it only makes a really cool class on this shard less interesting to play.

As far as the class being neglected, it seems to me that the sandbox-esque aspect of this game is what has kept it alive all these years. There is so much to do, and many different ways to do them. Zulu shards always seem to get so caught up in the pvp hunt-grind part of the game that they often overlook the benefits this game has to offer as far as creativity and recreation. Crafters should be able to craft decorations that people actually want, and sell/trade them. Make the resources for doing this super complicated and maybe even really rare so that its an actual accomplishment. Such as, a “glass table” requires like 10 RND, 500 glass, 50 logs. That way you don’t have an over abundance of next tier decor, but also have the ability to use the resources in that direction if you so wish.

Crafters should also be able to earn access to hues with tailoring. Maybe they have a chance to mine up a “Sewing Kit of Vibrance” or something that allows them to color an item once. Make it super rare to find… like once every 50 hours of macroing mining or something, and maybe all hues are possible so the chance of getting a really awesome color is even rarer.

In every game I’ve ever played, the ability to manipulate the aesthetics and alter your own avatar was always met with enthusiasm. There is a lot of different ways a crafter can be a vessel to alter and shape the way the shard looks. It would be a fun outlet for a lot of people. I know its easy to say “This shard isn’t about crafters, its about pvp and hunting” and just rule these people out like if you dont like it then move and get out of my country, but the truth is that the shard should keep its player base, so throw them a bone damn it.

Crafter Lives Matter