Interview with EM Petrichor!

Community Manager

This week I had the pleasure of interviewing EM Petrichor of Lake Superior! You can read all their responses below;

1.      What made you decide to start EMing?
I am very taken with the complex lore of the game. I think the game is best when it leans into its rich history, its backstory, and the elements that set it apart from other fantasy media. Getting the opportunity to contribute to this lore, even in a small way, was very appealing.

 

2.      What is your favorite part about EMing?
As an EM you have the opportunity to complicate the mundane in fun and surprising ways. After so many years, our players have become very adept at recognizing when something is amiss in this on-going world. When they pass the same spot in Britain day in and day out for 26 years they know that spot completely. But adding something to that spot, for an event or some other interaction, and watching them stop and readjust their perception about what that spot should look like is incredibly gratifying.

 

3.      What is your favorite memory thus far of EMing?
When I still EM’d on Atlantic, in between my regular setup work I’d try and keep an eye on Twitch to see if there was anyone streaming. One day I saw that there was a stream in-progress at Shadowguard. And so throwing on the Minax costume as fast as I could, I popped in to heckle the players as they came out of each room. At first they thought I was an NPC, but watching their reaction live over their stream as I began to call them out by name and their “pathetic Britannian efforts” was wonderful.

 

4.      What is your most memorable moment playing UO?
I’ll never forget the night housing opened in Trammel and I beat out the other people standing around to place my first small stone tower. Even though I was super thrilled to have won the spot I still yelled “sorry!” as they recalled away.

 

5.      What is your favorite thing to do in UO?
I think our Britannian game map is a work of art. From the southern swamps past Trinsic to the great trees in Yew, to the beautiful coasts, island cities, and little abandoned ruins dotting the world: it’s beautiful. I’ve spent hours and hours wandering the overworld on many different shards.

 

6.      Is there a specific event that you've done that is your favorite? What is it?
I’m very proud of the community collection event I designed. Our players had to gather an unmanageable amount of yeast, fruit, bottles, and other items for a new royal wine harvest. I was able to tie it into the lore of the game map via the vines in Yew, challenge them to work together in a non-combat way, and also portray our King Blackthorn as being perhaps a little.. too.. enthusiastic about his merlot.

 

7.      Was a drop you made that you favorite most out of all of them thus far? What is it?
I’m going to go against conventional wisdom here and actually say that I don’t always care for the drop rewards. They usually end up being the last element worked out in my designs. If anything, I think some of the pages of lore books my players have been able to put together over events is far more gratifying to me and better represents what I want players to take away from the experiences I design.

 

8.      Is there a specific story that comes to mind about UO that has stuck with you to date?
It’s definitely fallen into folklore at this point, but I often think about the Great Slime Attack on Trinsic. In 1999 a player utilized enough magic arrow scrolls to create an army of slimes (which would split into two mobs with the right amount of minimum damage). After creating his army he tried to extort the good and honorable citizens of Trinsic into paying up, who bravely refused him. Unfortunately, his massive slime army ended up crashing the shard.

 

9.      Do you have any words of wisdom for the players out there? New and Old?
I’m always taken aback when I see players speak of UO as a stagnant entity. Like it’s frozen-in-time, preserved in death and glory. They complain about design choices from 20 years ago, or they refuse the idea of a revamp for a system that hasn’t changed since the dialup era. Let go of this mindset! Our world is ever-changing. Don’t cling to your nostalgia, embrace the potential for the new.

 

10.   Is there anything else you'd like to add to the players out there?
Ultima Online is a machine that makes connections; it always has been. Years from now when someone thinks back fondly about their time in-game they aren’t going to think of their pixels, they’re going to think about you, and the times you had together. Be worthy of that.