2012

Simply Working Deeds #WurmOnline

stargrace February 6, 2012 No Comments

I’ve been doing a lot of sailing in Wurm these days, mostly between my two deeds but also to deeds that have fallen apart (as long as they’re by the coast). I’ve collected a lot of scrap wood and dirt, two very precious items (especially for me, since I really dislike cutting down trees). I have been working on both deeds diligently, for Darkpaw Bay that involves planting a number of birch and maple trees along my coast (a row of birch and then a row of maple) and taking care of the gardens. Perhaps finishing some floor boards in Petterm’s neglected (cough) house. At Les Reveur there’s more work to be done, but I haven’t quite come to a decision about it yet. The land has been heavily worked, but there are changes to it I’d like to make. I also need to finish the water front, put down slabs, and hopefully GM’s can get rid of the boat that’s moored on my deed, I’ve sent in a /dev report but no one responded. I’ll send another in today perhaps.

I neglected the grooming on one of my horses at Les, and now it’s diseased. I had to isolate it and feed / groom it in the hopes that the disease fades. That’ll teach me to neglect grooming! My rooster is still (surprisingly) alive, I’ve been hand feeding it grains. He’s certainly not as plump as the horses, but hey at least it’s alive. For now.

Speaking of horses, I had to put one down yesterday. I had too many males, and with a limited amount of space to keep the animals I decided to kill it and butcher it. A little cruel perhaps but at least I can make use of the parts that resulted from that. Just one more of the difficult decisions you have to make while playing. I suppose I could have just let him run free and another player would have found him – but that doesn’t save him from anything, it just prolongs it. I’d rather make use of the extra bits myself.

Aside from the daily deed chores as I call them, I’ve been working on my mining. Prospecting too, although that is moving quite slowly. I’ve discovered a cavern in behind my mines at Les, and I’m working on uncovering it. So far it’s a slow process, but I’m excited. Eventually I’d like to make lamps to light my deeds up at night, but lamps are tricky things to make and use an entire log, so I’m a bit far from attempting them quite yet.

As always, happy gaming no matter where you find yourself! Sorry for the lack of enthusiasm in my posts lately, but I’m dealing with a bit of RL stress, and so you’ll just have to put up with it for now. I’m sure things will be back to normal in no time at all. <3

The importance of Planting #WurmOnline

stargrace February 3, 2012 No Comments

Before – sever lack of trees

When I first purchased my deed there was an incredible lack of trees. In fact there were so few trees I had major concerns that I would be unable to put up my home, or build some of the much needed items like a bsb or fsb (bulk storage bin, food storage bin). It was by luck that I stumbled into some ruins, and purchased a boat, and then hauled off the logs from those ruins to make all of the items I required for this deed.

After – a miniature forest grows

I worked really hard at re-planting, bringing trees over to the deed from my primary location at Darkpaw Bay. I planted over 100 trees total, most of them pine because those grow the fastest and I’d be able to pick sprouts from them then cut them down to use for logs and re-plant. I was also given some sprouts by Arkenor, one of which was a lemon tree that planted successfully. I added maple and cedar to the few birch that grew, and in time my wasteland of a deed that was nothing but packed dirt and cobblestone tiles began looking like a deed I could be proud of.

It’s incredibly important to plant trees in Wurmonline as they are not an infinite resource. Once you’ve cut down all of the trees, that’s it, you’re done. One of the first tools any new player should attempt to make (despite it’s difficulty) is a sickle. This tool is not one granted in the beginner pack (although it should be) and it’s the tool required to replant (ie: cut sprouts) those trees you cut down.

It’s also really important not to cut trees as they’re sprouts. They won’t supply you with the logs you’re seeking. Fruit trees are also a poor substitution for logs, as are olive trees. Although I personally find olive trees annoying so I cut them down (on my deed!) out of spite. I also make sure to re-plant everything.

It’s hard for players to realize that resources don’t last forever. One of the common complaints I hear in game is about marsh – you CAN get rid of marsh by using floor tiles, but once the marsh is gone, it’s gone, there’s no way to bring it back. That’s one of the reasons why there are strong activists in game, although they do need to keep in mind that this is a game. Speaking of, I think it’s time to play a bit. Happy gaming, no matter where you find yourself!

A Deer Friend, From My Dear Friend #WurmOnline

stargrace February 1, 2012 6 Comments

Turns out that yesterday a deer lair spawned relatively close to Les Reveur, and now my deed is being visited by these cute little critters. I managed to tame and lead two of them back to my pens, but the one pictured above, the elusive green ‘scared’ deer, was always just out of my reach, high up on the mountain side. I really love her neon green glow, and have high hopes of breeding her once she’s of age – but I wasn’t going to be able to do any of that if I couldn’t tame her and lead her onto some flatter ground.

The entire event of obtaining this psychedelic deer is quite a tale. It started out with Arkenor coming to visit the deed, and wandering by land instead of the coast (as is my typical rout, because creatures scare me). Along the way he found an abandoned catapult which he began dragging with him. Now, there is a tunnel through the mountain behind my deed but it has been difficult to pass through because on my side there was a wall blocking the entrance. He thought that the catapult might be used to break down that wall, and clear my way through the mountain.

A few difficulties came next. One, caves are fickle locations. You can’t hit a wall that is outside a cave, from inside. You also can’t use a catapult, as it turns out. Our only course of action would be to drag the machine around the mountain, and then approach the wall from my side. This was made into the epic battle of a life time as we were surrounded by an anaconda (which we fought and successfully killed together, after many many bandages), some spiders (also fought and killed), a few mountain lions, and wolves. Hours passed and we were still no closer to defeating the wall enemy then before.

Finally, it looked like everything was dead. Arkenor dragged the catapult part way up the incline behind my deed, and proceeded to make bricks and launch them into the air, hoping to find the ‘sweet spot’ to be able to hit the wall. After a little while – he succeeded! Shortly after he found the sweet spot, the wall blasted open and the path through the mountain was cleared. I was hiding inside the house due to another spider attack, and unbeknownst to me Arkenor had managed to lure the deer with his soothing voice and tamed it with a handful of seed. He placed it in my pen so that when the spider finally wandered off in search of easier prey, I saw the eerie green glow from my door step. I was incredibly happy.

Even though I got absolutely nothing ‘done’ last night (aside from Arkenor bashing in that wall, and a lot of fighting skill) I had a blast. It’s these adventures in Wurmonline that really make the game for me. Sure, I can farm and teraform and mold the lands to my specifications, but it’s the adventures and mishaps that happen that make a great story.

As always, happy gaming no matter where you find yourself!

Sailing in a Gale #WurmOnline

stargrace January 31, 2012 5 Comments

I purchased my first ship yesterday, a lovely Corbita. I decided it would be much easier to bring items between my two deeds, plus there were all those logs I wanted to take back to Les Reveur, as well as some dirt, sprouts, and clay. I learned some pretty important things about ships, this being the first one I’ve ever sailed. Number one, the wind is always going to dictate (at least for my ship) where you go. No wind means you’re going no where fast (again, on my ship. Other ships are different). I tried to fight a gale early on in the morning. I slugged along at 1km/h. BAD idea. I waited until the wind died down to a breeze, and slugged along at 4 km/h. With the gale at my back, I was reaching speeds of easily 24km /h and sailing right along. In fact I was sailing so well that when it came time to dock I crashed and found myself up in the market area of Fippy Harbor. Whewps. It took me about 30 minutes to push and pull the ship back into the water instead of on land, and while I’m talking about my misfortunes lets not forget that I dropped my anchor into the water, twice, and had to frantically swim after it while praying that my ship didn’t sail away. Yes, it was quite an adventure.

That being said, when the wind is favorable, the speed is fantastic, and there’s no better way for me to move between my two deeds. At this moment I have 300 items or so loaded into the ship, it can hold 100 rafts, and each one of those rafts can carry 100 items. I have .. 5 rafts. I’ll have to work on getting more. It looks like Jackeen may be moving into my little area, which is fantastic. I’ve been trying to help him find a deed, and given him refuge in my own villages in the mean time.

I’m hoping to post some before / after pictures of Les Reveur before too long. The new trees I planted are coming in nicely, and the deed is a LOT better now than the condition I found it in. I’m also just a short bit away from being able to convert into a priest of Fo, which is something I’ll talk a lot more about once I get there.

As always, happy gaming, no matter where you find yourself!

Waste Not, Want Not #WurmOnline

stargrace January 30, 2012 No Comments

Despite 90% of my posts being about how I’m planting, and harvesting, there is another ‘side’ of wurm that I’m quite active in and that’s exploring. This portion of the game has proven to be incredibly exciting – but it also comes with a lot of rules that players have to be aware of, which is where the learning curve comes in once more. How can exploring possibly have a learning curve you say? Take my latest exploration trip as an example. I stumbled across a collection of buildings that were falling down. The damage to the walls was 92% and there was damage to everything on the old deed. The land itself was no longer deeded (as in no one was currently paying rent on it) and I was lucky enough to find a treasure trove of items that I could take home. Due to the high damage of the walls I didn’t feel ‘bad’ about collecting these items – if I didn’t take them, someone else would OR they would rot, which is worse.

If someone had of been actively repairing walls, or the doors were locked (thus preventing anyone from taking any of the items until they had decayed) it would be incredibly bad form for me to ransack this location. Just because a place is not deeded does not mean that the contents should be a free for all. There for if you ARE going out exploring and do happen to stumble across a bit of un-deeded land, be sure to check for signs of life before taking any items. It’s also incredibly bad form to make off with carts from deeds, especially moving large ones that can’t be opened. There’s no stealing on Deliverance and no lockpicking, so you have to be really careful about what you do.

In any case, this was by far my most successful adventure as far as ‘loot’ goes. It took me both characters, a cart, and a lot of containers to get everything back to my deed, and I still had to leave some of it because I didn’t have a boat. I’m attempting to purchase one, but who knows when that will take place. I’ve been trying to take a more active role in the community of Wurm, posting on forums and getting involved in discussions and on channels, talking and being friendly to my neighbours. It’s something that will take time, but it makes the game experience so much more fun.

Happy gaming, no matter where you find yourself!