We had 13 entries from the Drachenfels shard that included some very creative stories.
For your enjoyment, here are the 5 winners:
[Somewhere in Sosaria back in 1999…]
Dear diary,
*inkblot*
It´s been some weeks now, since I started travelling the lands of Sosaria. In my efforts to become a good citizen I had to encounter fearsome creatures like Mongbats, Ettins and evil undead.
My brothers Hegor and Kregor are good-for-nothing, lambasting murderers and bandits down at the crossroads, but I think a woodelf should follow the path of the virtues.
… more or less. *smiles and takes a nip of Ale*
Enviously I noticed all those fine structures built by respected and honorable people everywhere throughout the lands. So I decided to become a home owner…
*inkblot*
Little did I know about what it means to become the proud owner of even a small property in the lands of Sosaria. It is extraordinarily expensive, knotty and tough. So I slayed thousands of Harpies, Headless and Gazers down in dungeon Covetous. And it was dangerous and harsh and my collection of grey robes was astonishing.
But eventually I did it! – I earned enough money to buy the scroll and rights for a little plot.
*moaning*
And this was when the second part of the journey began – finding a free building plot somewhere in Lord British´s realms seemed to be even more challenging than to defeat a Shame blood elemental barehanded.
Well, anyway…
After almost endless travels throughout the lands I was desperate…
…until I found this little plot on a small island today! Even big enough for a small tower!
Hurray! *praises the gods*
I placed my new home.
A bit leaning – but all mine!
*nip of ale*
Tonight I will spend the first night in my new home – people say, things you dream about in the first night will eventually come true.
Well… *nip*
*Falls asleep and dreams about a Lady killing people in Roulette games giving out strange lanterns…*
Odd.
Our son was born at September 29, 2010. With his birth, our dream came true: We became a family. Soon everything in our lives changed: Nights without sleep, weekends without parties, years without vacations – and love without conditions. The first months were challenging and exhausting but also magical and rewarding.
However, sometimes we felt lonely: We have always been very sociable, being part of a large circle of friends. We went to the pub, to the cinema, to festivals and parties. After our son´s birth, many of these activities came to an end: Our friends didn´t have children, they lived their lives as they always did. And in many situations, we couldn´t participate – and felt sad about this loss of social moments.
It was in such a lonely mood in February 2011, when I had an idea: It was a cold winter night, my wife and the little boy were sleeping. He had a terrible cough and I promised to watch his sleep. I looked out of the window and reminisced about my past. I remembered how I moved to Sosaria in the late 1990s – and how I lived there with my friends for about two and a half years. It had been more than eight years since I left and I never forgot how wonderful this time was. I wondered how this world might have changed, if there were still people living in Britain, if my Sosarian incarnations would still be alive, if this would still be a place of adventure and friendship.
At the same night, I decided to visit this old, intimate world. And yes, there were still people here, my avatars still were alive – and indeed, many things had changed. My first steps led me through Britain – it felt like coming home: The West Britain Bank was camped by the notorious banksitters, the graveyard was inhabited by undeads and in the stables I found Ozzy, my old reptile friend – a White Wyrm. Socializing wasn’t hard: I met some wonderful people who invited me to their guild and helped me with everything needed to make a new start. I felt that this was still the great, distinctive place of adventure and friendship it has always been.
I had many wonderful moments since my return, but my most memorable moment was when my wife decided to join me and to become an inhabitant of Sosaria. I presented her to my friends and they gave her a warm welcome. For me, it was a return. For her, it was a step in a completely new world.
Today, we have a fulfilling social life – even if we cannot go to parties every weekend or visit the cinema. At night, when our child sleeps, we grab our spellbooks and longswords and join our friends. We are now living a richer life: A life with our child and our families, another life with our friends and relatives – and a third, a new life in Sosaria. And this time, we won´t leave again.
One of my memorable moments in Uo was, when I started playing UO in 1998. My in the first days I hunted a lot of monsters, I was training and trying every skill I got. At this time I had no clue about skill limit nor how to make money or how to train easy a skill.
So I started hunting around shame area, bought my first bow and killed monster for hours.
After 8 hours I had about 2000gp of money. – A fortune for a newbie like me. Heavy loaded I carried that stuff back to Britain my home town.
I could hardly move. At that time no “real” map existed for me, so I was wondering around in the forest. Finally after 30 minutes I came close to a house which was placed in the middle of a hedge mace. – I was so happy to see that seemingly there was one guy right in the middle, whom I can ask what the shortest way back to Britain is.
So I stepped close and formulated my words. “Hail good Sir, could you please tell me shortest way to Britain, please……” – But guess what. – That guy started to cast on me:
“Corp Por”- I got shocked, so I did not react on the first time
“Des Mani” – I tried to run… – Could not move
“Kas Vas Flam”
Dead, I am DEAD. – NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO, NOOOO.
All my 8 hour work was gone. I saw him looting my corpse!!!!
Gosh, I was so upset. – SO ANGRY!
I was jumping around him in circles. And I blustered him for quite some time.
And believe me, that guy ignored me totally!
So I went to the woods and was looking for a healer to ress me, but I could not find any. Finally after 20 minutes some people on a street ressed me and I told them that I need their help to kill that pk.
But they seems to freighted about PKs, so they just left me alone after my ress and run away.
….
Well that was the time, where I was thinking of stopping playing UO….
But as you can see I am still with the game and still enjoying it.
So now for the memorable moment:
The moment was there… about 4 years later.
When I passed by accident hedge maze again and I noticed: That PK, who lived there was a NPC Pk.
DOOOH! – I felt like a newbie and when i was realizing, that I was yelling and screaming for several minutes to an NPC in that old time.
After so many years walking the world of Sosaria it is hard to pick one memorable moment.
But the most memorable moment must have been the wedding between Lessa and me.
One day i just had this idea to ask Lessa how she would feel for a wedding between Lessa and Frarc.
She did ask me why at first , so i explained that would be for in game fun.
But i was glad she did accept to do it and we filled in some forms and sended that to a counselor.
We had to choose a date and place and even a engraving for our wedding rings.
“I am my beloved and my beloved is mine”
I still have that ring in my bank box.
I just not wanted to tell everyone our idea for the wedding ,so i ask Max Wulf our guildmaster to help us out on something.There was a guild tournament planned to see who was the best PvPer.
We ask Max to cheat on the drawing of opponents.
Lessa and me would fight each other on the second fight.
When the battle started i refused to fight her, i role-played that a trowed away my sword and took of my helmet. Its where i ask Lessa to married me.
And of course she accepted.
The date was set : 31 July 1999
Max prepared the castle for the wedding.
Morgaine the guilds blacksmith made two matching full plate valorite suits.
She made a matching blue cloak.
In those days those suits where very valuable!
Invitations been send out for the day with big announcement on the guilds web page.
The day of the wedding had come and we where all ready for it.
I was even not allowed to see Lessa ingame that day.Good thing we had other characters.
Lessa stood with Max at the altar in the castle while i was waiting outside the counselor would come to do the wedding.
He was late… so i thought.
Its the day you learn that GMT is not the same as CEST!
A lot of people came, even people that played often on other shards like Ariye came for the wedding.
All dressed up nicely for this occasion.
Eventually the Counselor appeared and my brother took me to Lessa.
It was all nicely done , like a real royal wedding.
The counselor did a great job!
We took our vows and then gave each other the wedding ring.
After we kissed it was time for celebration. With many food, drinks and presents!
Its a day i never forget.
Many years gone by since then , many people left and new friends where made.
But Lessa and Ariye they still here with me after all this time.
I honestly have no idea what i would do without them!
So Thank You Ultima Online to bring all these people from the last fourteen years in my life even when some already moved on!
My time travel
________________________________
Yesterday I had a very very nice for me UO experience.
I am very interested in old stuff from past UO days, rummaging through old houses which are apparently uninhabited for years, is for me the greatest, they are like time capsules are where the clock stopped.
For old items I do everything.
Even old threats in UO forums that were written years ago, I often find most interesting.
Unfortunately, there is not the skill archeology, I would Legendary archaeologist
* g *
Yesterday I met a beginner who enjoyed a huge horse-given, after a few minutes it became clear that he had played a few years ago already times.
I told the reactivate the old account, if he knew the old account name yet, the old email address would still etc.
And it worked!
After waiting a few minutes opened up not far from me a Moongate, and out ….. a 5 year old Char, logged out years ago and now for the first time came back online, including the dusty knowledge of the player in front of the screen.
A player in a PvP armor Valorite would now bear no more, the blacksmith of it produced there for years no longer than one swinging Tunic, a weapon that everyone would be lying in front of the bank.
Although this equipment has probably cost a fortune at that time nothing was insured, his ancient horse was not Bondet and the BackPack there were strange items that I had never seen before.
He stood there like a reawakened dinosaurs from prehistoric times, and alive to the touch, … madness!
Something I had only seen on old screenshots.
We three went to the third was (coincidentally on site and would also like to try to reactivate an old account, I am looking forward
* G *) tap into a dungeon to the earth elementals the rust from the old armor.
He had to fight hard to maintain and looked enviously at the paladin spells and weapons of the two companions of the future.
For the Poison Elemental he unfortunately died twice, his old armor was just too weak to give us companions time to heal, even his old horse, he lost here.
Still, it was all great fun, and for me it was like going back in a time machine to the past, an unforgettable experience.