Version 121

The new St. Patrick's Day Content was added

Leprechaun Luck Machine Added: Slot machine focused on the monthly event and uses Leprechaun gold
Leprechaun Gold Added
Goblin Drink Thief Added: Fast moving drink throwing keg tossing bar crawler
Leprechaun Gear Added: High Alchemy and luck pieces
Leprechaun Pot of Gold Hunt Added
Random Luck Deed Added
Domino's Deco Deeds Added: 66 new deco items


Harvest System Updated: AFK Checking now in effect.  I do not believe in auto jail, if you fail it simply will not gather the resource. (Simple as that)
BOD Rewards: Frostwood kit was coming a bad item
Small Bods - Carp: Hopefully a better blend now.
Harrower Updated: No more 305 scrolls.. might be a little harder though
Player Mobile Updated: Added AFK Info
Base Creature Updated: Fixed some display issues
Base Creature Updated: Changed how Tamed/Bonded is displayed.  Now will also display the bonding date as well
Turn In Quest NPC Updated: Added the %Day data modifier

Dungeon of Sin Updated
Ambush Spawner Updated
Captcha Added

AFK Checking will be changed in the next update, if you have any suggestions however they are always welcome.  We are simply to the point in population where it takes 3 staff to check, that is time we could of been creating new content.

Follow along with the UO Evolution Dev Logs on the wiki
http://uoevolution.com/wiki/index.php/UOE_Development_Logs_2016#Update_121

Hi Kane - first I'd like to say thanks for the update. The consistent new content keeps the server so lively and fresh + not only the quantity but the QUALITY of Domino's deco additions is simply amazing! I'm a happy player


Regarding the AFK checks, I would like to share some player perspective and positive suggestions. Let me start by saying I'm all for AFK checking of some sort. I could go on and on but suffice it to say I really hate AFKing, both the action and the aftereffects. I was subjected to the checks a couple of times this morning when using my halberd to cut corpses. I understand that halberds also double as axes for the purpose of lumberjacking, so that makes sense to me. I see how it works - it doesn't allow the action to be performed until the question is answered correctly.


I didn't test it because I had to run to a doctor's visit but if this check also currently includes non-axe blades used for the purpose of cutting corpses, I would ask for that to be removed from the checks. If someone is cutting corpses AFK then the larger problem really is the AFK killing. Also, having one's target cursor frozen in the middle of a champion spawn will mean guaranteed death. I take a lot of pride and pleasure in being able to manage champing, corpse cutting, and organizing my resources simultaneously.


Regarding the AFK checks for other things, they're incredibly frequent at the moment. I've been checked on 3 out of 5 attempted axe uses today. I'd like to suggest that turning them down a bit in that respect would be a good thing.


Beyond that, I have an alternate suggestion to the frozen cursor system for mining/lumberjacking altogether. The reason is that personally, and I'm sure I'm not alone in this, I try to squeeze every millisecond and piece of ore/wood I can out of my macros. It's like an art to me, not to mention that it's just plain efficient. Frozen cursors won't make such players miss one swing but many and what's worse is that if they mess up recalls also, that is unrecoverable in Razor. The macro has to be restarted. If it happens a lot, the macro is rendered almost useless. In my previous experiences with systems similar to this, they made resource gathering at least as difficult for the attended as they did for the unattended.


My suggestion for improving this system, taking into consideration your comment about jail, is this: Give the players an as-yet-to-be-determined amount of time to reply. Make it so the question does not hinder the macro. If the question is failed, move the player to a GM room from which there is no recalling. BUT it isn't a jail - it's easy for the attended to get out of. Place an exit door in the room with a public moongate behind it, like the entrance to Joker's lobby. Make it so that answering a question just like the AFK check is required to open that door. Once you determined a fair time in which to allow pass/fail, this would almost totally negate the impact of these checks on attended players and only truly impede AFK players who would be unable to free themselves from the easily-left room.

Thank you for inviting discussion on the topic. I've never played on a server where staff was as receptive to player feedback, it's wonderful. 

I do have an idea for an AFK related issue, but I'd rather team speak chat about it with you Kane; as I don't wish to waste  anyone's time with theories that might be on your list of things to do already. Also, writing the idea down might take some time. So please PM me if you have some spare time, and Ill jump on team speak with you.


  --Sturger--

  @ Harper


  Could you be more specific as to what you were doing when you were asked to answer a question. I know you were chopping corpses--shrugs as to why-- but none the less, very well.

  I only ask because I was trying to come up with a positive answer to Kanes request for conversation on the topic of AFKillegal actions.

  I went out gold panning and on my first panning attempt I was asked to answer 4 + 4, but that was the only time I was asked by any AFK preventative system. I gold panned for awhile longer-- long enough to decrease the charges of two gold panning pans down to 47 each-- but was never asked to answer another math problem.


  To be honest, I didn't mind the system at all. So perhaps you had bad luck?


    Just curious,


      --Sturger--

  @ Harper


  Could you be more specific as to what you were doing when you were asked to answer a question. I know you were chopping corpses--shrugs as to why-- but none the less, very well.

  I only ask because I was trying to come up with a positive answer to Kanes request for conversation on the topic of AFKillegal actions.

  I went out gold panning and on my first panning attempt I was asked to answer 4 + 4, but that was the only time I was asked by any AFK preventative system. I gold panned for awhile longer-- long enough to decrease the charges of two gold panning pans down to 47 each-- but was never asked to answer another math problem.


  To be honest, I didn't mind the system at all. So perhaps you had bad luck?


    Just curious,


      --Sturger--

I was wondering why I was being asked to perform simple mathematics when redeeding home add-ons with my hatchet!     The first and second times were puzzling - the third and fourth and fifth were annoying. I definitely understand the need for it but since house add-ons go back into the moving crate every time you enter customization (grr!) any serious deco/designing means a pretty fair amount of placing/chopping deeds to get them just right and apparently A LOT of AFK checks. IMO - the frequency needs to be turned down just a notch.

Harper the reason you might have been afk check a few times was we have no way of telling what staff did a afk scan and or when it was done other than word of mouth. I know that when I log on the first thing I do is my AFK check. I'm not sure how the other staff like to do them but I watch the player for a bit to see what is being done and if it seems that it is being repeated. There are some very crafty macro scripter out there now so we cant be to easy and its not because the halberd doubles as a lumberjacking tool skinning falls under the gathering for a profit being the reason you were checked.

  @ Harper


   I agree one good or bad experience doesn't make it balanced. I was just trying to establish what was happening. More information might help the checks and balances.

  Also, I was using simple macro's and manual keystrokes to do gold panning, and like I said I was only asked a math equation once, on my first gold pan attempt.

  As I do not know what you were running to do your MoB skinning... I will mention that there is a command for it. [Claim -c. Using this macro will loot and skin the corpse according to what you have set your loot bag up to claim or grab.


   @ Symphony & Harper

   I use macros-- created through the UO macro options-- which allow me to use last object or last target. I even have a third macro which does them both simultaneously. I mention this because I was using the third macro 60% of the time when I was gold panning, and like I said I was only asked the math question one time.

  I do believe that scripting macros are being targeted here.  My first thoughts after reading Harper's second post where: "With change comes adaption." I hope there is a more complex simple fix to the AFK issue, which isn't game disruptive.

   My final thought is to agree that Symphonies issue is rather obnoxious. Simply double clicking an axe, shouldn't involve a check, it should be the continuous use of that axe over an X amount of time, that triggers an inspection. {Note} that-- for all I care-- that time could be 45 seconds to 5 minutes. I just hope I don't find myself in a situation like Symphony's while out hitting the mountain, manually.

     
     --Sturger--

I do see how it could become a pain in the behind, it is something that has been added just recently so I'm sure Kane will do everything he can to make it run perfect. We do appreciate all the input and hopefully Kane gets it working to the point it doesn't become a problem.

  @ Harper


...As I do not know what you were running to do your MoB skinning... I will mention that there is a command for it. [Claim -c. Using this macro will loot and skin the corpse according to what you have set your loot bag up to claim or grab.


--Sturger--

You can also use [Grab -c   or at least I believe you can.

Thanks (again!) for the suggestion, Sturger but it doesn't work. :/  It gave me a lecture about how [grab -t is the only syntax that will work. That would have been kind of OP so I don't mind too much, lol

  *Nods*


  Well Kane changed how AFK checking was being done... so hopefully it is more acceptable to all.  Just give him time, he always gets it right... The sin dungeon is a great example. Fun and deadly all in one.