The Herald

UO Herald - Hotfix

Enhanced Client Patch

2/13/2025

Greetings,

A patch has been deployed to the Enhanced Client to resolve the following issues,

  • Health bars working improperly
  • Use of the special move Double Strike would result in a missing string message

See you in Britannia,

UO Team


Good Morning, Sosaria!

2/4/25

In 1998, during middle school gym class, my friend told me about this game where you could literally do anything you wanted—you could even have a pet dragon! I remember going to the local game store and asking the guy at the counter if The Second Age came with the first age. Little did I know that question would spark the beginning of a journey that has led me here today.

Like many of you, I have spent thousands and thousands of hours in Britannia, living in a world born of mystic arts and ancient sorcery. When the opportunity to work on Ultima Online became available, I jumped at the chance. Having had the pleasure of being part of the UO Dev Team and creating adventures for all of you over the last thirteen years has been the ride of a lifetime!

None of this would have been possible without the trust and confidence of Bonnie Armstrong, and for that, I am so thankful. She plucked me from obscurity and gave me the chance to become an Event Moderator and later a Designer. Her dedication, longevity, and love for this community are something rarely seen in the video game industry.

Ultima Online is a special place for so many of us. Its enduring legacy is unmatched. Being entrusted with that legacy is something I take with the utmost seriousness, and I am beyond fortunate to have an incredible team of game development professionals who have become like family after so many years. The team is dedicated to keeping the magic of Britannia alive for decades to come.

I’m beyond excited to go on this adventure with the Ultima Online community and can’t wait to show you what comes next.

See you in Britannia,

Greg “Kyronix” Havlusch

Producer


Stepping down as Producer

Greetings all,

  I am writing to all of you to inform you that I am stepping down as Producer. Greg Havlusch aka Kyronix will be taking over as Producer and will drive the roadmap, all of the systems, and content in the game. I am  stepping back with some of my responsibilities but will continue to own the Customer Service also known as Game Masters and Event Moderators.

  I am sure all of you are curious as to why am I stepping down as Producer.  I have been the luckiest person alive to be able to work with all of the players and the smart creative people I have worked with present and past. But it is time for me to enjoy some time off to work in my greenhouse, play with puppies, and snuggle with my hubby.

  On a personal note, I want to say the last 26 years working on UO and interacting with some of the most creative, fun, and passionate players I have ever known has been a highlight for me.  This has been a difficult decision but one that is good for me.

Thank you for all the years!

Bonnie Armstrong


Publish 119 Test Center Publish #1

1/30/2025

Greetings,

We are pleased to announce the first release of Publish 119 will be coming to Test Center 1!  This update includes the “Eclipsed Dawn” event and new Veteran Rewards!

Please be sure to check out the publish notes for full details.  We look forward to your feedback.

Please be sure to patch up your clients to the latest version before testing.

See you in Britannia,

UO Team


UO Herald - Special Announcement

Account Center – Credit Card Subscription System Upgrades

1/30/2025

Greetings,

The account center will be coming down today at 4pm ET today for a brief update.  Following this update only new credit card subscriptions will be disabled while the payment system goes through an upgrade.  We expect this work to conclude on Thursday, February 6, 2025.

Update February 7, 2025: we expect this work to now conclude on Tuesday, February 11th, time TBD.  We will update as we have additional details.

During this time existing subscriptions and renewals will not be impacted. 

Only new credit card subscriptions will be temporarily disabled.  This includes reactivating closed game accounts and upgrading Endless Journey accounts via credit card payment.

Game time codes may still be used to reactivate closed accounts and upgrade Endless Journey accounts, you may still add game time to existing active accounts.  If you have a game time code you may visit the Account Center to activate it.  If you need to purchase a game time code, please visit the EA Store.

See you in Britannia,

UO Team


UO Herald - Special Announcement

Login Server Issues

1/28/2025

Greetings,

We are currently investigating issues with the login server.  We appreciate your patience while we work to resolve these issues.

Update 1/28/25 5pm ET

We will be pushing a client patch shortly to both the enhanced & classic clients to address login server issues.  We appreciate your continued patience.

Update 1/28/25 10pm ET

We have deployed patches to the Classic and Enhanced clients that should resolve the persisting login server issues.  Please be sure to fully patch your client before attempting to login.  We appreciate everyone’s patience as we worked to correct these issues.

See you in Britannia,

UO Team


UO Herald - Special Announcement

2025 Roadmap Winter Update

1/21/2025

Greetings,

We hope everyone’s new year is off to a great start!  We’d like to give you an update on what you can look forward to in Publish 119 and beyond!

Publish 119 is currently slated for World Wide Release on February 25, 2025 (barring major issues) – we hope to bring the first batch of Publish 119 to Test Center 1 soon as it makes its way through QA.  Some of the highlights include,

  • Veteran Rewards – new decorative & utility items as a thank you for your continued support throughout the years!
  • Paladin Armor Sets – Available in the Ultima Store, customize your paperdoll with unique armor designs!
  • Eclipsed Dawn – Our next live event brings a dramatic crescendo to the Echoes of the Blighted Realm!  Experience a challenging champ spawn where those brave and lucky enough will reap the rewards of their hard fought battles!

Time is also running out on your chance to tame a rare Nightmare!  The creatures will return to the ether from whence they came and no longer spawn as of the WW release of Publish 119 – get yours today!

There’s also still time to enjoy some of our other live events before they conclude..

Shadow’s Awakening will conclude after server maintenance on February 4, 2025

Shattered Sanctum will conclude February 11, 2025 after server maintenance

Looking beyond Publish 119 we are planning our next update to the Ultima Online New Legacy shard!  New Legacy Publish 2 will bring an exciting event that will explore the origins of the Echoes of the Blighted Realm!  We look forward to you joining us on that adventure this Spring!

This summer you can look forward to Publish 120 to our live servers – will the long standing peace that King Blackthorn has enjoyed finally be running out?  Small skirmishes and inconveniences have underscored King Blackthorn’s rule – is there something bigger and more sinister on the horizon?

We appreciate everyone’s patience as we worked through the unexpected server downtime we experienced last week.  We are continuing to monitor server performance and take any steps necessary to preserve stability.  We’ll be continuing our server migration plan this week with Oceania, Europa, Drachenfels, Yamato, Wakoku, Mugen, Hokuto, Formosa, Arirang and Balhae.

Finally, we would like to acknowledge an incredible milestone by our Great Lakes Event Moderator – Malachi!  His next event will mark his 1000th!  This milestone is a testament to his creativity and continued dedication to Ultima Online – well done!

See you in Britannia,

UO Team


UO Herald - Special Announcement

Server Downtime

1/14/2025

Greetings,

We are currently experiencing unexpected server downtime unrelated to the recently announced hardware migrations.  We appreciate your patience while we work to resolve these issues.

See you in Britannia,

UO Team