Videric: Welcome to the Tales of a Traveller interview Pad, it is great to have you here.
Pad: Thanks Videric.
Videric: To questions then... Could you tell when did you start role-playing, which games have you played prior or play besides to Ultima Online?
Pad: Well, I think it was back in 1984 when me and my friends saw a nice blue box with dragons on it in a shop; it was called Dungeons & Dragons.
That was my first role-playing game and we stuck to it for some time. Later we started playing "Das Schwarze Auge" (=The Black Eye), a German RPG. After that it was Middle Earth RP and Rolemaster, then Warhammer Fantasy.
I never played any RPGs beside Fantasy, except Call of Cthulhu, and that is because I'm a big H.P. Lovecraft fan.
Of computer based I played the Ultimas, all of 'em *grins* and probably most "classic" RPGs that hit the market. Of course, I played Diablo *grins* But I didn't like Diablo II, it simply can't compete with UO.
Videric:Which Ultimas have you played, and which Ultima is your favorite of classic series?
Pad: As I said, I played 'em all, but I started with Ultima II. By accident I found it on a hard disk on a computer in school *grins*. I think the best Ultima is Ultima IV, it is the one that had most impact on the Ultima series and even continues in UO, but not the way I would have liked to see it. The Virtues weren't given that much priority in UO, that is a bit sad.
Videric: So what brought you to Ultima Online and how long have you been playing Ultima Online?
Pad: I first read about Ultima Online the day after the Open Beta closed. But as soon as it was available in Europe I bought it. I think that was January 1998.
Videric: Did you begin UO as role-playing game or did you do something other at first?
Pad: *laughs* No, at first I had no clue about this game, as everyone else I guess. My friends and me started out at the worst PK place on Atlantic, the Britain east road. I wanted to play an alchemist, so I started with alchemy, high intelligence, and nearly no strength. No need to say that I lived long. *grins*
I remember walking the lands of Britannia in search for reagents to make potions. I walked for hours through the lands and picked up every reagent I could find, and then made potions, only to discover that shopkeepers paid 7 gold for my potions, while I had to buy bottles for 5gp! *laughs*
I guess it took me three months to get into the game, and then I stumbled upon a tavern in the Yew woods, called the Serpent's Cross Tavern, and that got me into role-playing.
Videric: It is a very familiar place to me as well.
Pad: The Serpent's Cross was a quite well established Tavern already with many very good people around, like Perianwyr, Ce'Nedra Willow ... and of course a sinister mage called Khellendros, who I call one of my best friends in UO. You might know him under another name ... Fenris. *smiles*
Ah yes, my name was ... Pad O'Lion of course *grins*
Videric: Same name there as well?
Pad: Aye, of course. Pad O'Lion was my first character back in my D&D times. *smiles*
Videric: I see. *grins*
Spiritwood is now very famous town/hamlet/outpost, I am not sure which title you prefer, and Fenris already told a bit of it's founding... but could you tell about it in your perspective?
Pad: Sure. It was at the Trinsic Summer Fair Festival, late August '98 on Atlantic. There were four of us sitting at a table and plotting. Since OSI already had announced the opening of the Europa shard.
The four people were Khellendros (Fenris), Primus (my brother), Llilith, The Flying Dutchman and me. Well, I guess, that's five then. *grins*
Our goal back then was to establish a player-run town. To accomplish this, we had to make money as fast as possible, since without money, well there is no town. *grins*
The plan was to build a small house just outside the Cove town gates, so that Theros (Fenris) and Mell (Primus) could mine and smith within town protection.
The day the shard opened, Llilith and me started to make money to buy the house. We worked the first 26 hours after the shard opened and placed the house on the second day. I guess it was one of the first houses on Europa. After we placed it, Theros and Mell started to mine. Now they didn't have to mine in Minoc, where miners got constantly killed. They could mine in safety and soon became grandmaster smiths, while Lilith and me explored the lands.
About a week after the house was placed we got the idea to place a guildstone to form a guild, just for our friends and us; thus the Custodes Fati were founded. At first we just wanted a guild for ourselves, but then more and more people asked to join our guild. One of the first people that joined were Delwin, Gideon Acres and Tandril. After the guild grew we started to work towards our primary goal ... to establish a town.
First we wanted to place it in the southern Trinsic jungles, but one day Gideon showed me a large clearing east of Skara Brae. Nothing was there back then. It was a silent and peaceful place without any buildings as far as you could see. And that's where we placed the Custodes Fati tower and Fenris, who was also CF back then, his tavern.
One thing I forgot to mention *grins*. We heard of the town of Deepwater before we started to place in Spiritwood. Of course we offered our help and tried to become part of Deepwater, but sadly no one took us all too serious, and so we stuck to our original plan and built Spiritwood.
Videric: The town's name is quite familiar to those who looked at Old Ultima's maps... could you tell about the naming of the place?
Pad: To be honest, I don't know who came up with the idea of the name. I think it was Chandalir or Konrack, but it was very fitting for that place. Some time later Elisel (Ivy) run a quest, which contained the history of the town prior it's building by us. Spiritwood is built on the ruins of an ancient Elven Town. That's why there are spirits wandering about from time to time. *smiles*
Videric: And the forest around you is Spiritwood as well according to Ultima lore. (Just to clarify what I meant to readers)
Pad: Aye.
Videric: I imagine running a whole town has brought some troubles along the way, can you tell a little about it?
Pad: You know, Videric, Spiritwood never had an appointed mayor or a council or anything like that, just a bunch of very devoted people who took care of it.
Of course there has been trouble, of course we had the murderers and thieves hunting our people, but I have to say, that back then Deepwater took away a lot of stress from Spiritwood.
Spiritwood though, had a slight different policy for murderers and the like. Although we welcomed them as long as they didn't cause harm, we fought them as good as we could when they tried to spoil our events.
I guess CF was the backbone of the town back then. The guild had huge resources, because of a large amount of members and so we could afford to take up the fight.
We fought long to shake off the "Guild Town" image we had, but I guess people know by now, that Spiritwood is not CF town, at least I hope so.
Videric: So how is Spiritwood today?
Pad: I'd like to mention three people though, without them Spiritwood wouldn't be what it is today. That is Fenris, Gideon and Shri ... *smiles*
Today... Well, I guess it is a well-established little community within the cruel lands of Felucca, a small island in a sea of blood. We try to get new faces to Spiritwood whenever and wherever we can. Only new blood keeps a community expanding.
I thought Trammel would hit us harder, but amazingly people still come to Spiritwood and enjoy the place. I think we established what we dreamed of, a stage to allow players to act upon with their characters: A peaceful environment where role-players can meet and enjoy their time.
Videric: What have you learned of Spiritwood, and what kind of tips would you give people making new establishments?
Pad: That is a tough one, Vid. *grins*
The most important thing, I guess, I learned is, that without true friends such endeavour is impossible. And the second thing is, that sometimes talk won't bring you any further and then it's time to fight back, to stand up for your believes.
Tips, well ... at first I wouldn't go for much publicity. I would try to establish the core of the community and get it running, expanding it slowly by telling people about it.
The over time start to announce events at the major sites and try to draw more and more people with events, events and events, and when you got some time left, then make an event. *grins*
Videric: Unfortunately everything has an end, and it has come a time for the final question in this session: What is your most remarkable or unforgettable moment(s) in Ultima Online?
Pad: In fact two events. The first is the guarding of the FoA chests back on Atlantic, where we stood guard the whole night at some chests throughout the land to prevent the FOA to get the Blackrock. I've never seen such teamwork and companionship in UO again.
The second thing is the placing of the CF tower and the Tavern. It was a moment I won't forget in my life I guess.
Videric: It was great that you could come and talk with me, Thank you very much for coming Pad O'Lion
Pad: Yer welcome, master Videric. *smiles*
Interviews
