The Great Lakes Roleplaying Community
by Elder Klaitu

So, despite the odds, you've gotten yourself a copy of Ultima Online. Chances are a friend recommended it to you, or maybe you saw it in the store and thought "That looks different". Maybe you've got a 10 year old computer and Ultima Online is the only game that will run on it. Maybe you're a fan of the Ultima series. Heck, maybe you just tried it on a whim. Whatever the reason, you're probably itchin to meet some friends, slay some dragons, and throw back an ale or two.. maybe get in an adventure or two.

First off, I'm going to spell it out to you. UO is not meant to be a game for gameplay's sake. That's why it's not as popular as other MMO's on the market. UO is a system of tools designed to help players create their own stories and advsntures.

When you get "to the top" in other MMO's, there's really nothing to do but do it all over again. In Ultima Online, gameplay is just a step in building your character. In other words, UO gives you the opportunity to play a role.

Playing a role is all well and good, but it's even better if you have someone to play alongside with. You create an audience for them, and they you. That's how roleplay works.

Plugging In

First off, check out some of the RP-centric websites for Great Lakes. There you'll find information on participating in events, quests, and adventures with other roleplayers. There are many great GL sites out there, but here are a few of the major ones:

  • Tomes of Sosaria
    A centralized portal site with news, forums, and it's also the home of the High Council of Britannia.

  • The Daily Herald
    The Daily Herald regularly posts news that is of specific interest to Great Lakes Roleplayers. It also provides the news for Tomes of Sosaria.

  • Kazola's Treetop Keg and Winery
    Kazola's is the setting for many forms of Social RP. Visiting during their business hours will get you quickly immersed in Roleplay.

Of course, there are many more groups that roleplay on Great Lakes, but there are so many of them, and they change from time to time. The above sites will keep you updated with the latest community and guild links.. so what are you waiting for? Take a gander!

Tools of the Trade

Connecting in-game is great, but sometimes it's easier to organize logistics when you have an out-of-game mode of contact. There are 3 primary modes that Great Lakes roleplayers use for communication:

  • ICQ
    ICQ is as old as the hills, and UO players like to do things the old way. ICQ is a free instant-messaging program akin to AOL instant messenger. I personally recommend you use a program called Trillian Which integrates ICQ, AIM, Yahoo, and MSN into one program more efficiently than any other program.

  • #uoglrpc on Stratics IRC
    If you thought ICQ was old, we're going back even farther to the IRC days. There are a plethora of IRC programs, but I personally recommend mIRC. #UOGLRPC is also available through Trillian. The most basic way to connect is via the Stratics Website which has a basic java program. Here's the connection info you can use to configure any IRC client to connect:

    stratics.frws.com port 6668
    irc.glowfish.de port 6668
    stratics.afraidyet.net 6668
    irc.stratics.com 6668

    The channel is #uoglrpc (Which stands for Ultima Online Great Lakes RolePlaying Community)

  • E-mail
    If you already have an E-mail address, great! If not, gmail will give you a pretty good one for free.

Just who are you anyway?

So, now that you know how to get in touch.. what kind of character are you going to be? Are you dastardly evil? Are you a goodie two-shoes? You'll want to give some thought as to who you're going to be. You might want to check out our Character Design section for brainstorming ideas to help your character develop.

In Conclusion..

I hope these links, sites, and programs help you to get into the community that we long-time UO players know and love. Here's to seeing you in the community soon, so don't be a stranger!

Elder Klaitu



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