Custom Carpets

By kittykat, September 2009

With the new Stygian Abyss expansion, players now finally have access to customizable carpets for their home.  Instead of being whole carpets in an add-on deed form, there are pieces of carpet for purchase that can be used in any way needed to make a carpet perfect for the UO home.  To be able to purchase and place these carpet pieces the player must be upgraded to the SA content and undertake a short quest chain.

So, let’s get started…
In order to do the quest to be able to access the carpet vendor’s wares, you’ll need to have access to Ter Mur, and most specifically to the Royal City.  Once in the Royal City, go to the middle square and then slightly north of the town soulforge to the tailor shop.  Inside the shop you’ll find Laifem the weaver.  Double click on her to get the quest offered to you.

Shearing Knowledge

Description: (quest chain)
Welcome to my little shop!

Don’t you just love these beautiful carpet samples?  Look at these embroidery patterns!  And the intricate knotwork!  It was sure worth every gold piece I paid to have these shipped from Vesper.

What’s that?  No, no, I’m sorry, these aren’t for sale!  I’m working towards recreating each of these gorgeous styles myself, you see, and just wanted to show my future customers what they might one day expect!  By the skies though, how do I even begin learning these new patterns?

I know!  If you help me get started, you could be one of my first customers!  Yes, that’s it – I need to get into the mind of a Britannian crafter, so I need Britannian wool!  Real, natural wool, mind you, none of the cheap sort you see on the vendors.

Maybe you could find some by shearing some of those… what do you call them?  Sherp?  Sheeple?

Objective:
All of the following: Obtain 10 Britannian Wool

Reward:
A step closer to having access to Laifem’s inventory of decorative carpets

 

You will need to go somewhere to shear sheep, such as the Yew pens.  Any sheep outside of Ter Mur will do.  After you’ve accepted the quest, when you shear a sheep you get 2 piles of wool.  One is normal and the second is darker in color and labeled Britannian Wool.  When you have 10 of these, return to Laifem. Laifem will be most pleased with you…

 

Wow!  Isn’t this amazing?  It’s so soft, so pure – surely this is the key to my efforts!

*Laifem skillfully spins the wool into a beautiful ball of white yarn – before you know it, she’s staring down at her first attempt to weave a Britannian carpet*

Weaving Friendships

Description: (quest chain)
*Laifem stares down at the ruins of her first carpet weaving attempt*

Hrm… I guess I thought this would be a bit easier.

*She reaches up and twists on her ear a little, obviously deep in thought*

You know… I think I need some professional assistance!  There’s a tailoring shop in Vesper called, hrm.  “The Spinning…”  “The Spinning…” something or other.  Sorry, I just don’t have a head for all those clever Britannian shop names.

*laughs*

I’m sure someone there could help, do you think you could deliver a letter of introduction for me?

Objective:
All of the following: Deliver 1 Letter of Introduction
Deliver to

Reward: A step closer to having access to Laifem’s inventory of decorative carpets.

Upon accepting the quest, you will recieve Laifem’s Letter Of Introduction.

Proceed to Vesper.  Now in Vesper there are two tailor shops, and amusingly enough both are named The Spinning Wheel.  The shop you are seeking is the southern one, inside the city (as compared to the eastern one that is over the bridge and outside the city).  At the southern The Spinning Wheel, you will find a weaver named Dermott; this is the NPC you are looking for.  Double click him to complete this portion of the quest.

A letter?  From a Gargoyle you say?

Now to the final section of the quest chain…

A New Spin on Things

Description: (quest chain)

Oh my!  Now isn’t this something?  A Gargoyle seeking to master the ways of our humble little industry.  Why, this is nothing short of inspriational!

I think I have just the thing for him.  There’s a book over… oh!  It’s a her?  My apologies, I just don’t have a knack for those Gargish names you know!

Regardless, please take this back to the young lady, if you would be so kind.

Best regards!

Objective:
All of the following: Deliver 1 Mastering the Art of Weaving
Deliver to  Laifem

Reward: Access to Laifem’s inventory of decorative carpets.

 

Take the book back to Laifem and double click her to turn it in.

This is perfect!  Thank you so, so much!

*Laifem eagerly begins reading the book while pacing about the room*

Yes, yes I see.  *nods*  And the loops are done in a… with mohair knots…  *her fingers begin weaving idly in the air as she thinks* and then to finish off the tassels I just…

This is everything I need to begin weaving my very own decorative carpets.  You see, I won’t just make the larger carpets.  I’m going to make them in smaller pieces that can be put together to make any size or combination!  Isn’t that wonderful?

After clicking continue on the quest log, you will receive the following message in the lower left of your screen:

You have succeeded in aiding Laifem’s attempts to master Britannian weaving, and can now access her inventory of decorative carpets!

Congratulations!  You are done with the quest and now can buy carpet pieces from Laifem.

Carpet Pieces

Laifem sells a total of 61 different carpet pieces (in a non-exhaustive supply of 500 of each), which match together to form 6 different shades of carpet.  The pieces include middle sections that will take up one square of your house floor, as well as side pieces that will take up less than one square (visually).  The carpets can be laid out in any pattern you choose, including long thin carpets, large square carpets, going around corners, etc; the possibilities are endless.

The carpets are as follows:

	Cost: 127 gold per piece # of matching pieces: 13
	Cost: 127 or 137 gold per piece # of matching pieces: 11
	Cost: 252 or 262 gold per piece # of matching pieces: 9
	Cost: 377 gold per piece # of matching pieces: 9
	Cost: 377 or 387 gold per piece # of matching pieces: 9
	Cost: 627 gold per piece # of matching pieces: 10

Coloring Carpet

Not only can you customize your carpet into any shape and length you want with the various pieces, but also by color. Carpet pieces can be colored with the following items:

• Regular Dye Tub
• Special Dye Tub
• Black Dye Tub
• ToT Pigments
• Natural Dyes

Simply target the carpet piece while it is in your backpack to color it with whichever method you choose to use. Below is a sampling of the different methods available to dyeing.

Placing carpet pieces

Carpet pieces may only be placed by the owner or co-owner of the house, and the placing character must be SA entitled (although a co-owner character that is SA entitled *can* place carpet in the house of an account that is not SA entitled).

The pieces are quite easy to place.  Simply set one down on the tile you wish it to sit on.  It will turn a yellow highlighted color until you click it.  Now double click it, to lock it down.

Even though it’s double clicked to lockdown, it does not actually count against your lockdown storage in your house.  This means you can have as much carpet as you wish without using up your storage space.

A decorating tip: It is hard to place items on top of your carpet pieces, so if you wish an item, such as a table or chair, to be on top of the carpet, do the following:  First place the item.  Secondly, raise it with an interior decorator one or two times.  Now place your carpet and double click to set.  Finally use your interior decorator once more, lowering your piece back down.  Now you have your carpet under the item the way you wished it to be.

That’s all there is to getting your very own custom carpets!

Interesting History Trivia
Carpet tiles were originally attempted in 2001, inspired by an idea by the player “Dermott”.  The system was created by Vex, but never made it into the game because of various exploits and complications.  As a nod to the original idea of Dermott’s, you’ll find the weaver in Vesper is named after him.