Anybody else playing U6P for the 1st time?

Their forums are pretty dead and it looks like most of the folks over there have played the games so many times that the 1.0 version isn't really anything special. I think it's a pretty decent game, especially concerning the limitations of the engine. There's a lady, I think they're female, responding to my posts but I'm kinda bummed that all that effort has so little traffic as a result. This is a pretty solid game. Kudos for what you folks accomplished!

3 Favorite things:
1. Feel-it feels like an Ultima game through and through.
2. Dungeon delving-all the dungeons are monstrous and you can and will get lost in them.
3. Monetary balance-you're not dripping in gold 5 minutes after you start the game.

3 least favorite things:
1. Automapping is very weak. Even if you turn off using peering gems only, the game doesn't allow you to zoom out very far to see where you're at and where you still need to go.

2. Respawning dungeons. These things are absolutely enormous. There is no reason for monsters to respawn as soon as you leave. Almost all of the dungeons are very large and you can't complete them without leaving to restock. There is no mark and recall so each time you have to fight nearly everything to get back to where you left. That in turn causes you to use many of the resources that you left to get in the first place.

3. Lighting. Dungeons are very dark, which is a good thing. However, a standard light spell only lasts a couple of minutes and barely lights up a small room. Torches are plentiful but can't be equipped in the offhand. That means it replaces a good damage weapon with a terrible damage weapon. There is a greater light spell (Vas Lor) but you can't buy it in the first areas and you only find a few scrolls. This should be a standard scroll sold in the provisioners shop in vast quantities.

The gripes are minor. This game is so big that I doubt that I'll ever finish it but it's still a great effort. I'm having a very good time. Seriously considering taking a day or two off work to marathon game.

The respawning has actually been turned down from what it was initially. It's dependent on the size of your party and can be turned down more in the game settings. Once you know where to look, buying spells like Vas Lor is easy. We went for realism with dark dungeons and the use of torches. Maps are available for them. I actually was able to complete each one without leaving which is what you are supposed to do. If you think the early ones are tough, wait till you find Hythloth!!

Not only have I never played U6P before, but I've haven't played -any- Ultimas. This is sort of surprising considering my farely extensive rpg background. I'm -considering- playing it when I've finished my game of Baldur's Gate 2. I have Dungeon Siege, so it's easy for me to get started.

Do you folks think I'd enjoy the game if I enjoy Baldur's Gate 2?

hmm..I have to find the DS disk. I just don't think I have the time right now to actually play thanks to the commute of my summer job.

I think you should enjoy U6P if you like BG2. But, I may be biased!!

It probably depends on what you enjoy in Baldur's Gate. Do you enjoy inter-party conversations? U6P has quite a bit of this. Do you enjoy all the combat options? U6P was built with Dungeon Siege's engine which is much less "hands on" than the Baldur's Gate engine. Do you like exploring where getting lost is a very likely? This is a big possibility in U6P and not so much in BGII. Do you like being able to steal and kill NPC's? You cannot do this in U6P without paying consequences. See that nice magical sword on the table? It's not yours and if you take it your party members will take exception.

I'm finding the game pretty enjoyable. It doesn't hold your hand much and sometimes you'll want to be able to do something and have no idea why you can't. I'm thinking about buying/building/finding a ship in particular. Character classes are not created equal in this game. Certain classes are WAY more powerful than other classes. If you decide to play and want some suggestions, you can let us know. It really depends on how hard you want the game to be, as to which class to choose.

I enjoyed U5 Lazarus enormously and I'll need to try this too.

Is there still lot of bugs there?

I haven't run across anything game-breaking yet. There are a few dialogues that need to be cleaned up but overall the game is flowing nicely. The compendium is enormous and well-written, though I hate the thee's and thou's. I couldn't finish Lazarus because I couldn't remember stuff from session to session. U6P takes care of this with the compendium that has several places you can type into and also the buyable maps can have pins everywhere if you so desire. It's a nice setup. Another nice feature is breadcrumbs that allow you to attach a note to them. I'd prefer a better automap but the breadcrumbs beat guesswork.

Sounds good, except I'm alittle worried about the lack of combat options. I like the BG2 hands on combat- pausing to make a move, for example. Everything else seems to my liking. Yes, please give me some examples of the more-powerful classes. I don't want the game to be too hard for me.

You can definitely pause combat and set up things like hold position, attack freely, set up your caster with a different spell, etc. What I meant was that once you initiate your actions, you no longer control the party. They aim, walk, pursue, etc. based on your instructions.

By far the easiest character to play, in my opinion-Corwin might have a say, is a Paladin. Why? They have decent mana, can wear all armor, are proficient in all weapon styles, start with good equipment and are quite capable of soloing monsters if caught away from the party.

If you want an insane challenge pick a shepherd. Mages are tough to start but probably come into their own eventually. Fighters are good, but no magic. Rangers and Bards are great at ranged damage but not good in toe-to-toe. I'm not sure if U6P went with all Avatars having magic. If so, then some of this doesn't apply.

There should be no major bugs in the game; it has been tested hundreds of times and even most of the tiny stuff was squashed. The Avatar always has some magic ability. You can buy a ship, but you need to complete several quests first. Eventually a ship will become necessary.

A pity they did not finish all the portraits.

I only played one of the milestones (5 or 6 I think) for a few hours, so it is basically completely new to me.

The forums over there do seem pretty dead. Sucks, but I guess I understand given that DS is almost 10 years old now and difficult to find.

I've been playing around with the GemRB engine and the infinity games. It's made me wish there was a similar clone engine for DS as I think the number one limitation for people playing U6 or Lazarus is finding the game.

blatantninja said:

I only played one of the milestones (5 or 6 I think) for a few hours, so it is basically completely new to me.

The forums over there do seem pretty dead. Sucks, but I guess I understand given that DS is almost 10 years old now and difficult to find.

I've been playing around with the GemRB engine and the infinity games. It's made me wish there was a similar clone engine for DS as I think the number one limitation for people playing U6 or Lazarus is finding the game.

Click to expand...

Agreed. It's a pity that it took them so long to build, but I completely understand why. They've made some radical changes to DS. Also you have people from 3 or 4 different continents working together. As someone who works for a worldwide company, I can understand the logistical nightmares.

Blatant, you should have seen me looking around for the Sacrifice Shrine I remembered where it was from Ultima IV and spent over an hour in that area. I had to go look in the forum to find out that it had been moved for later Ultimas!

Can anyone help me find magic shops? Are there any on the mainland outside of Cove? I've been to Yew, Minoc, Trinsic, Paws, Britain and Cove and have only found Rudyom of Cove to sell spellbooks and a few little spells. Looking for a spoiler if I've missed something.

Magic is also available on Skara Brae and obviously in New Magincia. SB will be the easiest for you to reach as it's only a short forest walk away!!

crpgnut said:

Can anyone help me find magic shops? Are there any on the mainland outside of Cove? I've been to Yew, Minoc, Trinsic, Paws, Britain and Cove and have only found Rudyom of Cove to sell spellbooks and a few little spells. Looking for a spoiler if I've missed something.

Click to expand...

Nicodemus is northeast of yew as well.

I'm in Trinsic right now. Having a small issue:

The mayor is still there. he might be sleeping. Trinsic has been WELL tested, so there really should be no issues. Save there, go check back with Goeff and if it's not all ready, then you can simply load your save and wait. Leaving won't mess anything up, though getting back in could be bothersome!!

Blatant, have you freed the shrine and the moongate area? Those are the next steps. The mayor will tell you the mantra and the rune is on a pedestal in town. You'll need the invis potions from Baden to reach the moongate without alerting the Gargles. If you've told Geoffrey the plan and those two things are done, you should get a cutscene when you free the moongate.

Finally found the mayor and then headed out to the shrine. Now trying to find the moongate! My journal said it was already restored as soon as I grabbed the moonstone from the shrine. I'm assuming that is an error.

Correct. The moongate is located to the south of the city. I seperated my avatar from the group, made sure I had a couple black potions and snuck past the Gargles to the moongate. The path I chose has you walk through water. Not sure if that's the only path. If you see a house near water, that's the path I took.