Please give a great big Catskills welcome to our two newest reports….Ludes and Norrar (aka Va’lis). Welcome Gentlemen and good luck!

News and event information can be sent to [email protected]

And The WINNING LIMERICKS Are….

Norman Bates
First Place Limerick
 Thar once were a pirate named KEYES…
‘ew terrorized the High Seas…
’til the day he got caught,
bein’ hung was his lot
An they leff him ter twist inna breeze :]

Delilah The Mad
Second Place Limerick
 Knew a seafaring lass named Rouxx
She found herself quite a nice crew
But they thought her a fool
Her acts misconstrued
Alas how I miss that sweet Rouxx

Gregette
Third Place Limerick
On Siege, mean nasty pirates inhabit Arrr
They sail the seas near and far
From sea farers they extract booty
Which is pilfered by Liandra the cutie
Making the pirates shout -Arrr!

Tang
Fourth Place Limerick
There was a young pirate named Parium,
Who escaped from the Siege Sanitarium,
When confronted with capture,
He exclamed in rapture,
“Cogito Ergo Pirateum!”

Hearty thanks to the members of The United Pirates of Catskills who crossed to our shard and served as impartial judges:
Trinsac, Guild Captain
Blind Tom, Captain’s Hand
Margaret, Lovely Arse-Kicking Wench
Mikie – Member Who Can Read
They all spent hours into the late night judging dozens of limericks.
Note that if you disagree with their choices, they were not unanimous themselves. But after much rum was swilled and some blood was spilled, they made their decisions final.
We like ’em and would definitely like to see some of these role playing marvels join us here on Siege.

DJ Def of UOradio.com did a marvelous job announcing the winners Saturday night. UOradio set a record for the number of listeners as the good DJ played music requested by the players who listened in for the news. Chat was abuzz with wishes of good luck between those who had entered a limerick. DJ Def staggered the news and with each announcement the winner was good naturedly congratulated by the others.

The Pirates Of Arrr and Yarrr have given us two events recently that were hallmarked by the humor and the good nature of the participants. The Limerick Contest and last Saturday’s Pirate Chase gave Siege citizens the opportunity to have fun whether they directly participated in the events or followed the participants in Chat.
These events attracted more players than we normally see involved in Siege life.
The Pirates are successfully increasing player participation in events.

Thanks again! to Parium the Black for most of the Limerick Contest’s fabulous prizes  & to Captain Sureno and Liandra the Cutie for the Pirate Chase.

Famine donated some of the incredible variety of prizes totaling many millions in value. He did this because, “This game has given me so much. I want to give some back.” Famine’s museum on the north side of Zento will open soon. The museum’s purpose is to preserve some of the rarer UO artifacts. When y’go, tell Famine “Thanks.” UO is a richer experience because of Famine.

Join the discussion at
http://uo2.stratics.com/community/threads/and-the-winning-limericks-are.306820/

HAWKEYE PIKE -UO’s First Pirate

The Leader of the United Pirates of Catskills, Captain Trinsac and his friend, Wench Margaret, have arrived on Siege to serve as judges in Arrr’s Limerick Contest. I was Intrigued by their commitment to strong pirate roleplay (I had to throw all the windows open. Apparently, pirates fart alot.) I wanted to know more, so….

I tracked down Andreas Schulze, German born author and Trans-Alp bikepacking enthusiast who, as the UO character Hawkeye Pike, founded The United Pirates, UO’s oldest pirates guild.

Q: Why did you start the United Pirates of Catskills?
Hawkeye: When we started the United Pirates back in 1998, Britannia was haunted by lots of player killers. Those who preferred to play UO for the purpose of role-playing were quite annoyed by the “violence” that was forced onto them. They simply did not want to participate in pure unconsenting fighting contests with the result of being looted dry afterwards. (There was no such thing as a safe Trammel world at that time.) That’s when we decided to try something new by playing evil characters just for fun, without negative side effects for our “victims”.

Since we loved the pirate theme in general, UO offered items like tricornes, cutlasses and krysses and there were no pirates in UO yet, we found a handful of like-minded people, dressed up and started our shady business.

Q: What was pirating like back then, before the High Seas Expansion?
Hawkeye: The life of pirating should be divided into three eras: The first age before Trammel and Felucca. The second age before the High Seas Expansion. And the third age which came afterwards.

In the first age, players had lots of freedom and playing was more risky. You actually could play a highwayman, wait at some crossroads in the wilderness for travelers to come by and rob them. People traveled more on foot or horse and they had to react in some way to the threats of a criminal.

The reactions were mostly quite surprising. When people discovered that we were no typical PKs but actual role players (and they noticed quickly by the way we were dressed and acted), they played along, payed a little ransom or offered some wares in exchange for their safety. We took what was offered and let them pass. Same was done on sea where we seeked out fishermen and miners. Only rarely we actually had to kill somebody because he was very stubborn or macroing unattendedly.

The second age changed everything, since practically all role players moved to Trammel and role-playing an evil person was not possible anymore. That’s where we focused stronger on building a large net of guild relations. Due to game mechanics, this was the only way to actually impact the gameplay of other people. Extensive rules had to be established to avoid griefing, and as in real life, with the rules came a lot of problems. The job of a guild master consisted mostly of ironing out misunderstandings, teaching players who disobayed rules and keeping a good relationship to “enemy” guilds. (Most of the guilds we were connected to were our “enemies” in a role-playing sense.) Especially since the Age of Shadows (the expansion in 2003) more and more rare and powerful equipment was introduced into the game. In order to be able to compete in fights you had to put a lot of effort into equipping your guild. Which meant: More time went into items, less time into role-playing.

Although the third age sounded promising due to the High Seas Expansion, it did not change much. The expansion was about 10 years late. UO and especially role-playing guilds had suffered from a dwindling number of players. There simply weren’t enough people to make use of all the nifty ships, cannons and stuff. We managed to pull off a couple of sea fights, but it included lots of preparational and organizational work. Another disadvantage was that sea fights were extremely resource-extensive, which would have required even more time for mindless resource gathering and less time for role-playing. Thus, the expansion did not change a lot about role-playing a pirate.

Q: What could UO do, to attract more players to the High Seas?
Hawkeye: The question is, what could UO do to attract more players to the game in general. Because I think the High Seas expansion itself is actually quite good. In 2010 I have written a short essay about my opinion about this (http://www.aschulze.net/ultima/blog/blog_20100626.htm ). The most obvious changes would be in short:

Solve the problem with complexity. UO has become a very complicated game with uncountable features. A new player has a hard time learning the game. UO needs comprehensible guides and tutorials. It also needs step-by-step in-game instructions and quests making new players acquainted with the game content.

Solve the problem of Trammel. I know many of the remaining veterans will have a different opinion. But the invention of the Trammel facet (no non-consensual PvP) took away the freedom from the players. Since most players will choose the safe zone if it is offered to them, non-consensual PvP practically died out. But taking away this freedom also killed the UO community, because unneglegible good and evil is what triggers strong emotions and builds the foundations of our society. Taking away the last bit of responsibility and freedom from the players turned them into item-hunters and killed the spirit of the game. But at the same time, especially new players need to be somehow protected from massive griefing.

Find new solutions against mindless killing and griefing. Create up-to-date graphics. Nobody will start playing a game which has graphics that are outdated since 10 years. It’s as simple as that.

To be honest, I don’t think that UO can change as extremely as it would be necessary to turn it into a magnet for new players again. It would require changes that 90% of the current player base would not accept. Nobody will risk losing the active players, but rather milk the cow until it dies and then maybe invent a new game.

Q: What is your best advice to any player seeking to enjoy pirate role play?
Hawkeye: To me, the first step to enjoying pirate role-play is to free yourself from the item-equipment-treadmill. Make a new character, get some cheap pirate equipment and get into a pirate mood! Try to stay in character most of the time. This makes you authentic. Try to strike a balance between being an evil pirate and not annoying other players too much. If you stay in character, people will understand that your swearing, bad manners and harsh words are no personal affront against other players, but actually the attributes of your character in game. Take into account to be treated accordingly.

Q: Last question: What the hell have you been doing with yourself lately?
Hawkeye: That’s hard to put into one sentence. Aside from a full-time job I’ve been doing several projects in my spare time. I’ve been planning and going on several outdoor adventures by mountain bike and on foot. I usually make short video documentaries of these trips and put them on YouTube (just look for the name “gletschersau”). In October 2013 I will release a new video about my Alps Traverse by mountain bike. I also am writing two books. One is almost finished and will be released this year. It is a guide about wilderness, bushcraft and survival. I’m also doing some creative work for friends who have a small business and need stuff like logos, flyers, ad material etc. And of course lots of sports to keep me in shape for my outdoor activities. This pretty much keeps me busy and leaves no time for TV or computer games. Well, I play the old game Titan Quest for maybe 1 hour a week to relax. I wish UO had such graphics…

Thank you Hawkeye for the entertaining and informative interview!

Join the discussion at:
http://uo2.stratics.com/community/threads/hawkeye-pike-uos-first-pirate.306261/

LIMERICK CONTEST ANNOUNCED!

The Pirates of Siege Perilous [Arrr] are holding a Limerick Contest.
The Limericks will be judged by the United Pirates of Catskills, UO’s oldest pirates’ guild.
Many useful and rare items can be yours if you WRITE AND SUBMIT AN ORIGINAL LIMERICK (no plagiarism ;p)

SUBMIT YOUR LIMERICK
by writing it in a UO book and dropping it in the Mailbox at the Perilous Inquirer; located out the Luna south gate, 3rd house on the left.

DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSION
is Tuesday, October 22nd, 2013.

WINNERS WILL BE ANNOUNCED
by DJ Def on UORadio.com, Saturday, October 26th, 2013.

RULES
1. Pirate Theme only – Limericks must be about pirates or pirating or the pirate life.
2. 3 Verse limit – One verse is fine, and no more than three verses will be considered.
3. The Limerick must be the original work of the person submitting the limerick.
4. Winner must be a Citizen of Siege Perilous.
5. Decisions of the judges will be final.

FOUR FANTASTIC PRIZES! WoW!

FIRST PRIZE

http://images.podotech.net/firstprize.jpg
Cards (valued at 30 mil)
Legacy Token
House Teleporter Set
A Flaming Head Deed
Deed for a Stone Ankh
Ethy llama
A Holiday Timepiece, A Copper Shilling, Jaana’s Hangover Remedy & A Bottle of Pink Champagne

SECOND PRIZE

http://images.podotech.net/secondprize.jpg
Rubble Blessed Wearable Pants
Complete Virtue Tile set
Deed for a Stone Ankh
A Flaming Head Deed, A Flaming Head Deed
A Clothing Bless Deed
Weapon Engraving Tool
A Heritage Token
Flowerpot, Flowerpot
Ethy Horse
A Holiday Timepiece, A Copper Shilling, Jaana’s Hangover Remedy & A Bottle of Pink Champagne

THIRD PRIZE

http://images.podotech.net/thirdprize.jpg
Ruined Painting
Bag of 12 Bulk Order Covers
Ethy Beetle
White Leather Dye Tub
A Shadow Token
A Crystal Token
A Flaming Head Deed
A Holiday Timepiece, A Copper Shilling, Jaana’s Hangover Remedy & A Bottle of Pink Champagne

FOURTH PRIZE

http://images.podotech.net/fourthprize.jpg
Tome of Lost Knowledge
Shipbuilding Hammer
12th Anniversary Gift Ticket, 13th Anniversary Gift Ticket, 14th Anniversary Gift Ticket, A Holiday Gift Ticket
Weapon Engraving Tool
Swords of Prosperity
Sleeping Hamster
A Holiday Timepiece, A Copper Shilling, Jaana’s Hangover Remedy & A Bottle of Pink Champagne

RARE PRIZES DONATED BY FAMINE
Asked why, Famine’s answer was simply, “I want to give back. This game has given me so much.”
Famine’s “Siege Perilous Museum” will soon be open to the public in the north end of Zento at 40N,40W, next to the trail going north to the desert of Deathwatch Beetles.
The purpose of the museum is to preserve many of Siege’s rare and interesting artifacts.

LIMERICKS 101
Example:
The limerick packs laughs anatomical
Into space that is quite economical.
But the good ones I’ve seen
So seldom are clean
And the clean ones so seldom are comical.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Limerick_(poetry)

Don’t get too hung up on the “rules of limericks”. To quote a favorite pirate, they be “…more what you’d call ‘guidelines’ than actual rules.”

Updates will be posted as the contest progresses.

Join the discussion at:
http://uo2.stratics.com/community/threads/limerick-contest-announced.305363/

The following was posted on Stratics Catskills EM Forum  and on EM Barnaby’s Website

by Barnaby

Wednesday, February 13, 9:30pm – Investigator Promotion Ceremony

Saturday, February 16th, 8:30pm – TBD

Sunday, February 17th, 6pm – Catskills Archery League Championship

Sunday, February 24th – “Orcs vs. Savages”

Details for each event will be provided soon.

<Discuss this Article>

Notice to all Investigators:

The King has tasked me with investigating the source of rumors regarding a strange illness that has appeared in Britannia.

I ask that you meet me at Castle Blackthorn to receive your assignment.

~Thorpe

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This event will count towards the “Investigator System”. Please read the book on “Reports” that is placed next to Thorpe.

Initial reports are due by the 8th, while follow-ups can be filed throughout the month of February.

<Discuss this Article>

The following was posted on Stratics Catskills EM Forum  and on EM Barnaby’s Website

by Barnaby

After seven competitions and thousands of arrows fired, the regular season of the Catskills Archery League has come to a close. Congratulations to Adrian Monk, who finished atop the standings with 48.6 points, including two impressive victories during the season. For the complete final standings, please visit this page.

The CAL Championship Tournament will be held in February, with the top archers from the regular season being invited. Thank you to all the participants this season, and congratulations to the invitees.

CAL Championship Roster:

Adrian Monk

Kyrnia Lathiari

Lil Ernie

Balerion Drogon

Gallion

Jonah Black Heart

Lora DeBlood

pk ghost

Spanky

Dr. Sucio

Psych

Irulia D’Arkaith

Nynaeve

Catlord

CAL Championship Alternates:

Tristan

Blackhawk

Todd

If your name is on this list and you did not fill out a registration book during the season, please contact me with your character name and email.

by Barnaby

As promised, there is one last event in the regular season of the  Catskills Archery League. It isn’t too late to compete and possibly earn  entry in to the Championship that will be held next month.

Registration will begin at 8pm at the EM Hall in Britain. Please note  that this is for Archers only – as usual bows will be provided for your  use. The format for this final event will be a little different than we  have used in the past.

Also, the start of a small event arc will begin late this month and run  through early March – I will be announcing the dates of the first events  after the competition, as well as some other information for upcoming  happenings on Catskill (this information will of course be posted here  as well).

[Discuss This Article]

The following was posted on Stratics Catskills EM Forum  and on EM Barnaby’s Website

by Barnaby

Calling all archers!

The first season of the Catskills Archery League is drawing to a close this month with two events before the big Championship Tournament. Meet EM Barnaby at the EM Hall in Britain at 8pm EST on January 5th. Once everyone has arrived and registered, a moongate will be opened to the location of the competition.

For full rankings, visit THIS PAGE. Points for each event are awarded based on how you finish, and how many people participate. There will be 14 spots in this year’s Championship, with the winners of each regular season event gaining automatic entry. The rest of the spots will be filled based upon the final season rankings. This means that even if you have not participated in one of the previous five events, a good showing in the remaining two could get you into the Championship! For those of you sitting high in the standings, don’t sit these last two events out – finishing in the top spots will give you an advantage during the Championship.

Hope to see you on Saturday!

{Discuss this Article}

presents:

Santa Claus is Coming!

to Catskills

On Monday the 24nd of December at the Bank in Luna!

He will be visiting around 8pm EST

He will bring a small bag of gifts for all the good people of Catskills

[Discuss This Article]