Getting Started

Getting Started

General Information

Ultima's Legacy Lives On!

What is Ultima Online?

Ultima Online (UO) is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG), released on September 24, 1997 by Origin Systems, later Electronic Arts, and now Broadsword. The game is played in a fantasy setting similar to the other Ultima games that preceded it.

Ultima Online was one of the first major MMORPGs and helped establish the genre. It is an online-only game played by thousands of users on various game servers (also known as shards). It remains one of the longest-running MMORPGs with an active player base.

Because it was released before the DMCA (1998), technically minded users are able to create and host their own custom free shards using various UO emulators (e.g., RunUO). These shard operators can modify the server and create custom content. As a result, free shards have been growing and evolving since that time.

You can read more about the history of Ultima Online on:

• Wikipedia

What is Angel Island?

Angel Island is a classic Ultima Online shard circa Publish 15 with enhancements, set in a Felucca ruleset. More important than the era is the philosophy behind the design. The Angel Island team set out to build a solid and robust incarnation of Ultima Online that embodies what many players loved about early UO while still growing and expanding to remain interesting over time.

I started out playing on the OSI (Origin Systems) Ultima Online Napa shard in 1998 and played through July 2002 when OSI released the now infamous Publish 16. Publish 16 changed elements of the game that removed much of the risk, and for me, much of the fun. What I found fun was knowing you could lose all your possessions if you died in a dungeon. OSI changed this so that upon death in a dungeon, you were teleported back to safety with all your belongings.

I was a roleplayed player killer on Napa (PK). My method of operation was to protect the monsters of the town of Wind (the lich to be exact). If I found you in Wind and you were not wearing a red bandanna (a show of respect), you would be killed. However, I would usually return some of your stuff, give you a book explaining the rules of hunting in Wind, and give you sufficient means to return home. Publish 16 destroyed this. I could kill you but I could not roleplay the rest of our encounter.

There were many other unwelcome changes as well, including many new weapons and armor ill-befitting of the time period. Item insurance, and all sorts of crazy enhancements associated with weapons. You could literally have a sword with ten lines of goofy enhancements.

In March 2000, and before leaving OSI, I wrote up a proposal for a prison system called "Angel Island" and got overwhelming support from the Ultima Online community. Over 1000 members of the Ultima Online community mailed in support of the "Angel Island" prison system, many of them legends in their own right. Here is the original proposal with many of the supporters listed. (The links are long dead now.) I sent the proposal off to Runesaber (a lead developer at OSI) and a few others. I later heard the proposal was discussed at an annual OSI event, but nothing came of it.

It was at this time I left OSI and decided to launch my version of UO: one set in the Publish 15 time period, and one where roleplayed player-killing was an integral part of the game. I launched the Angel Island free shard in March of 2004 and maintained and developed it for the next 13 years. My team and I built the Angel Island prison system described in the proposal, and you will find it here today.

I had a saying back then, and I still believe it now: life is only as sweet as death is painful.

Angel Island adds many new features and systems including new character templates (the Summoner and Slayer), Townships, Sea Gypsies that will take you on a seafaring quest, almost 2000 treasure map locations, themed treasure chests, alignment (align with Orcs, pirates, savages, etc.), a War Ring for guilds, the Angel Island prison system, special seasonal champion spawns, an automated event system, ransom quests (kin protect the ransom and other alignments try to steal it), Island Siege (an island dedicated to PvP; no murder counts), a bounty system (where players can place a bounty on the head of their murderer), anti-macroing systems (CAPTCHA for miners), enhanced AI for monsters, and more.

Server Features

Our Angel Island shard runs on a dedicated PowerEdge T640 with 10 cores (20 logical) and a 1000mbps fiber internet connection. The Angel Island server platform ensures you will have 24/7 access to your UO account!

I hope you all enjoy Our UO. We’ve had a lot of fun putting it together.

"It is not the strongest of the species that survive, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change" — Charles Darwin

What is Siege Perilous?

Siege Perilous is a separate shard hosted by Adam Ant which uses a different ruleset than the Angel Island shard. On Siege Perilous, players are limited to one account with one character. This creates an interesting challenge for players, as they are still limited in how many skill points that character can have. This dynamic enhances player interaction and brings the community closer.

The Siege Perilous shard is currently in an open beta stage of its development where players are invited to test the shard’s mechanics.

Historically, Siege Perilous was a shard conceptualized during the Ultima Online beta. When it first launched years later, it was stated that the intention was to capture the feel of Ultima Online when it was freshly launched. At that time, there were no highly detailed systems in the game. The developers wanted to create a more challenging version of the game which would be a true test of skill and character.

What is Mortalis?

Mortalis is a classic Ultima Online shard based on the Publish 15 era, running under a Felucca ruleset, with a deliberate focus on consequence, identity, and permanence.

In Mortalis, death is permanent at the character level. When a character dies, that life ends. The player returns to the world through reincarnation rather than resurrection. While individual lives are finite, Mortalis preserves continuity across generations through inheritance systems such as bank contents and housing, ensuring that progress endures without trivializing loss.

Mortalis is intentionally strict about disposable characters and low-risk progression. Players are limited to one account per IP and one character per account, reinforcing personal identity, social accountability, and long-term consequence within the world.

New Player Guide

Once you’ve logged in, you’ll need to know the basics. Here’s a quick guide on how to function in the world.

Creating a character and logging in

You can pick which stats and skills your character will start with. For simplicity, pick the Warrior pre-made skillset. From there you can customize your character’s appearance and choose a name.

Once you are ready, press the green arrow in the bottom right corner and you will be logged into the world.

Note that some client versions allow choosing skills that you typically can't see on the starting skills menu. Any points devoted to these skills will be removed entirely upon character creation. Skills affected by this are listed in Skills.

Starting Equipment

On all shards, your starting items are geared toward your starting skills and selected profession. You may get useful equipment, so be careful to select the skills you believe are important to your character as a whole. See also: Items.

On Siege Perilous, every character starts with the same equipment:

• Clothing (newbie items)
• 1 dagger (newbie item)
• 100 gold coins
• 25 ingots
• 1 shovel
• 1 bag with 10 of each reagent
• 1 katana

On Angel Island, starting equipment is similar in spirit, but the starting gold is replaced with an Unemployment Check. Unemployment Checks may be spent at NPC vendors for goods and services (including basic skill training where available).

On Mortalis, starting equipment is similar in spirit, but the starting gold is replaced with a Training Voucher. Training Vouchers may only be used for skill training (not for purchasing goods). Mortalis starting equipment is specially handled: starter resources are removed on death/reincarnation, cannot be sold to vendors, and are of limited use to other players.

Note: On Siege Perilous you can't ask NPCs for skill training.

Moving and Playing

You will appear in the new player training area just outside the city of Britain (walk into the sparkles to enter the city). This area has some useful information and a demonstration of the artificial intelligence adapted to many of the NPCs you will encounter.

To move, point the cursor in the direction you wish to go and hold down your right mouse button. To inspect items or NPCs, click on them with the left mouse button once. To use an item or open a door, double left-click the item or door.

Stand still and double left-click your character sprite to open your paperdoll. This is where you equip weapons, clothes, and armor. It also includes useful buttons such as Options, Skills, and Log Out.

Combat

The War/Peace button in your paperdoll will put your character into combat mode. Double-clicking any creature will attack it. Be careful not to attack anything that highlights as Blue (innocent), or you may become a criminal and be subject to the town guards if you are in a guarded area.

Entering war mode does not automatically make you a criminal. You commit a criminal action when you are in war mode and double click an innocent player or NPC.

Notoriety system

UO has a notoriety system that indicates what is appropriate to attack:

• Blue: Innocent
• Grey: Criminal
• Red: Murderer
• Orange: Enemy (Guild War or Alignment)
• Green: Ally (Guildmate)

You can find out a player’s notoriety by single-left clicking on their sprite and checking the color of their name.

Blues are innocent players and NPCs. You can attack them, but this will likely result in the guards being called on you if you are in a guarded town. Monsters are typically grey, meaning they are freely attackable.

There is also a criminal status for players who have committed criminal acts recently, such as attacking an innocent blue player or stealing from somebody. Criminal status lasts for 120 seconds after the last criminal offense and returns to blue status after the timer ends. Grey players are freely attackable by anyone during this duration, guarded or not.

Guards cannot be called on a player who is attacking a grey criminal in town. Finally, there is Murderer (red) status. A murderer is not allowed into any town and will be killed by the guards when spotted and “guards” is called, or by NPCs in guarded regions. Players become murderers after killing at least 5 human players in game (tracked via the murder count system). Murderer status can be reduced by waiting in-game or by going to the Angel Island prison (where murder counts decay faster). More info can be found in the Features section of the website.

Note that if you are in an alignment, only other members of your alignment can perform beneficial actions on you.

Basics and other Misc.

In UO, speaking is as simple as typing and pressing Enter. Anything you enter appears above your character briefly. Speech is used to talk to other players, open your bank chest, call guards, and interact with NPCs.

Bank: To open your bank chest, stand near a banker NPC and say “bank”. Each character on your account has a bank chest. Bank chests are safe from thieves. Bank access is universal by city (your bank is the same in every town).

Guards: When you are in a guarded region (you will see a message when entering or leaving guard protection), guards protect you from monsters, player killers, and often thieves. If attacked in town, say “guards” and guards will kill the attacker. Note that skilled thieves may still evade guards.

Vendors: Vendors sell equipment if you have gold. To buy or sell, stand near the vendor and say “vendor buy” or “vendor sell”. Alternatively, you can press Shift+left-click to open a context menu. Some NPCs also offer basic skill training (where enabled). On Angel Island, Unemployment Checks may be used for the purchase of goods and services from NPCs. On Mortalis, Training Vouchers may only be used for skill training and cannot be used to purchase goods.

Status bar: To open your status bar, left-click and hold on your character sprite and drag away. Double-click the bar to see more detail.

Mini-map: Press Alt+R to open the mini-map. Press Alt+R again to enlarge it.

Combat (practical): Drag a target’s health bar the same way as your own. Enter war mode (Tab or Alt+C) and double-click the monster (or player) you want to attack. Standing adjacent causes automatic swings.

Healing: Bandages are the simplest early healing. You can buy cloth from tailors and cut it with scissors, or harvest cotton and process it via spinning wheel and loom. To heal, double-click bandages and target yourself (health bar or sprite). Healing time depends on Dexterity and can be interrupted in combat (“Your fingers slip!”). If you are low, it is often safer to run briefly while the bandage completes.

Macros: Macros are shortcuts that improve gameplay. Open your paperdoll → Options → Macros tab. An important macro is “lastobject”, which repeats your last double-click action (useful for bandaging). Remember to press “apply” to save macros. You may also want an “allnames” hotkey to display creature names on screen.

Ctrl + Shift: Pressing Ctrl+Shift shows objects/creatures on screen in a list box you can drag from. Dragging a creature entry opens its status bar; dragging an object attempts to pick it up if you are close enough. Holding Ctrl+Shift or Shift can also bypass the “amount” window when moving stacks.

Guilds: You may be invited to join a guild. Guilds are player communities with shared interests/goals. Note that guild members can attack each other freely; guilds self-police. It is advisable to join a guild on Siege Perilous.

Logging out: To log out safely, find an inn (signs with a candle). Stand inside, open your paperdoll, and press “log out”. If you log out elsewhere, your character remains vulnerable for several minutes before timing out. You cannot log into another character on the same account while one is still in the world.

Housing

Housing allows players to acquire and customize homes in the world.

There are two primary types of housing:

• Classic houses (pre-built structures)
• Custom houses (designed by players/staff on the test shard and approved)

Speak with a custom house advisor in Discord if you are interested in designing custom housing.

Players can acquire houses by purchasing them from other players or from NPC architects. Once a player has a deed and places it on an open plot, they can customize it by placing furniture and decorations. Players may invite others into their homes, allow public access, and place vendors to sell goods.

Note that housing is expensive, particularly on Siege Perilous where housing prices are 10× higher than usual.

On Mortalis, housing is designed to support long-term continuity across reincarnations. House ownership may be inherited when a character dies and the player reincarnates, preserving identity and permanence while keeping Mortalis true to its consequence-driven design.

Newbie Tents

Newbie tents exist on Angel Island only (not Siege Perilous) and work like limited houses. You can’t lock items down or decorate the interior, you can’t increase storage, etc. You place your tent to gain a housing spot and an extra storage container in the wild. Don’t forget where you placed it.

Tents count toward your one Housing space per account, so if you lose track of where it is placed, you are in trouble.

Attributes

• Size: 8×8
• Can be placed anywhere a small house can be placed.
• To unpack: double-click the tent bag and target the ground where you’d like to place it.
• Vendors can be placed in tents (note: you must use a “contract of employment” — vendor rentals don’t work).
• Can be dyed (dyeing changes the color of the tent bag, the tent’s secure backpack, and the tent roof, but not the tent walls).
• Once placed, the tent contains a backpack that is locked down and secure. It must be emptied before the tent can be packed up again.
• Tent bag is newbied.
• Cannot be purchased from NPC vendors.
• When a tent decays, everything in the backpack also decays.
• Given to all characters once.
• Cannot be placed if the player already has a house.
• To pack up: double-click the bedroll.
• When packed up, the tent bag ends up on the ground (where anyone can pick it up).
• Decay time banking is similar to house banking, up to five days. In other words, if you place it and log out for five days, it will decay, but if you continue to play, it will not decay. Housing and Newbie Tents on Angel Island don't require use to refresh besides just playing normally.
• Default tent bag color is beige (like a bedroll).
• Default tent roof color is light gray.
• Tent wall color is light blue.

Making Money

Begin the game in Britain and head north to the cemetery for some easy money for equipment. This will help you train your skills and stats.

Some skills are free to train and are good for gaining stats, such as Hiding (Dexterity/Stamina) or Arms Lore (Strength/HP).

Once you are ready to start training, move on to the following sections for advanced starter build information.

Note that skill and stat training on Siege Perilous is limited by a Return Over Time (RoT) system that restricts daily gains.

Bard Warrior

You can nearly build this template for free, and it is capable of bringing in great amounts of gold once you master it. Take a look at The Bard's Table to find out the difficulty of the type of monster you wish to slay.

I’d start the character with 50 Healing and 50 Resist.

First, travel to the cotton fields east of Skara Brae (or west of Britain) and collect as much cotton as you can hold. Use spinning wheels to spin it into thread and looms to process it into cloth. Use scissors to cut the cloth into bandages.

Training Weapons Skills

Purchase the training weapons of choice in a quantity of about 10. The training weapons for each skill are:

• Fencing = dagger
• Swordsmanship = skinning knife
• Archery = regular bow bought from NPC
• Macing = shepherd's crook

Hire a fighter from across the west bridge in Britain. Stand next to one of the fighters and say “<name> hire” or use the drop-down context menu (Shift + click the NPC). Then drop the requested gold amount (or more) onto the NPC after it tells you its rate. Note that hireling NPCs cost more on Siege Perilous.

Have the NPC follow you to a safe area. Set up a Razor macro that looks something like:

• Double Click Bandage
• Wait 0.5 seconds
• Target NPC
• Wait 8 seconds

…and set it to loop. You may need to adjust delays for lag.

Now command the NPC to attack you with “all kill”. Quickly type “all stop” followed by “all follow me”. If you did this correctly, your NPC should be standing there while you swing and heal at the same time. This can raise weapon skill, tactics, anatomy, and healing.

Training Musicianship

Purchase about 10 instruments from a vendor and find a safe place to macro. Create a Razor macro that looks like:

• Double click instrument (set by type)
• Wait 0.3 seconds
• Use skill Peacemaking
• Wait 0.3 seconds
• Target Self
• Wait 11 seconds

…and set it to loop. Adjust delays for lag.

This should raise your musicianship and peacemaking to GM if you macro overnight on Angel Island, but not on Siege Perilous (due to RoT limits).

Example skill layout:

• 100 Weapon
• 100 Tactics
• 100 Anatomy
• 100 Healing
• 100 Musicianship
• 100 Peacemaking
• 50 Resist (optional: raise another skill like Hiding to 50 for convenience)

Getting that Gold!

Start by farming a graveyard or other overland spawn until you have enough money for decent player-made armor and weapons. Beware other players who frequent these areas to hunt new players; plan an escape route to the nearest guard zone.

Peacemaking is very useful: use it, target a monster, and begin attacking with reduced risk. Practice how long your heals take and how long peacemaking holds before you need to re-apply it. Be cautious around mages while your Resist is still low.

Once you can afford GM/magic weapons and armor, you can take on larger spawns and earn more gold. After you master peacemaking you may be able to handle Ogre Lords. Save some gold for making a mage next if you intend to participate in PvP.

That’s it. You’re now a capable adventurer, ready to enjoy all that Angel Island and Siege Perilous have to offer!