I know this thread is a little old but yes, you do need the High Seas xpac to decode the map. I'm not sure if someone without the xpac could dig up the map after it was decoded. I've done one and it was horrible, spawned two renegade changelings (this being in Ilshnar) that were like paragon Irks... just about the worst thing I've ever tried to solo. After calling in help to kill the guardians there was nothing remarkable in the chest to show for it, just 35k  7 essences and a minor artifact from the same loot table as the level 6 maps. Oh, and more junk. I think the only special it that drops from the level 7s is the master skeleton key, which is a single use item. I know that one map isn't enough to accurately gauge the level 7s, but after the first I dont think I'll be doing another one.

I really loved he old games from back in the day.  Shame is that 99.999% of the people today would simply laugh at them.  However, back then I played them for 100s of hours.  Man, between Bards Tale, Wizardry, Questron and the Ultima series (through IV) I probably spent 75% of my free adolescent time playing those.

Anyhow, thanks for the intro update and the opportunity to wander down Memory Lane.

BTW, I always thought the Ebolt looked like a staple from a staple gun.  lol

You should see the faces my boyfriend's 15 year old son makes over UO... For him, graphics are everything! And if a movie is in black and white, well you can just forget about it. We had a hell of a time getting him o sit through The Seven Samauri with us. Black and white AND subtitled? He couldn't get away from the living room fast enough. 

I've found that the bard tmapper template can easily solo up to level 6 maps, assuming that said maps are located in Malas, Ter Mur, Tokuno, or Ilsh. Ancient wyrms don't spawn on maps in those zones.  my template is:

100 magery
120 music
100 provoke
100 peacemaking
100 lockpicking
100 cartography
100 mining

I wear an LRC/luck suit with all 70s resists, some DCI, and enough mana regen to make up for the lack of med/focus. Jewelry brings peace and provo to 120 and magery to 110. I use Jaana's staff for DCI and have enough magery imbued onto the jewelry to make up for the -20 skill cut and still bring the total skill to 110.

I personally have trouble finding the new spots without mining but if you're really awesome then you don't need the skill. When looking for skill bonus items to help out with a cramped template, don't forget about the + 5 mining bod reward gloves - they are imbuable!

Something to consider when joining the thieves guild - being a member will allow you to steal from players, but it also means that you won't be able to give murder counts to anyone that kills you.

The spread cards guardian loot seen in on the test server never made it to live.

On t-maps:

- Fel maps are the only maps that have any chance at all to drop Scrolls of Transcendence. I have done 500+ Tram/Malas/Tokuno/Ilsh/Ter mur maps of all levels since the changes were implemented and the only chests that ever dropped a transcendence scroll were located in Felucca.

- In my experience the best place to get t-maps is vendors. I check vendors wherever I am, and buy any t-maps being sold for the amount of gold I will get back for doing them. I can usually find them being sold for less, at least on Chesapeake. I consistently have more maps then I can do.

- "Vintage" t-maps still have the old set locations. If you're scooping up every cheap map you find you'll get plenty, so don't toss out that t-map library just yet!

- If you get a map located on Magincia, set it aside and wait for the spot to reset. That place is a death trap.

- Luck does effect the loot you get from the guardians, but it does not effect the loot from the chest. If you like to "milk" the chest for spawn, wear a luck suit. If you grab the items you want and break the chest then luck is optional IMO.

- Different facets DO have different loot types in the chest. Ter Mur has gargoyle items, and I BELIEVE Malas has elf items in the chests. Tram/Fel/Ilsh chests contain standard human pieces.  

Sincerely,

A Grizzled Old Treasure Hunter

Hello Everyone -

   I have been playing UO since I was 17 or so, and I am now 28. When I think about it I feel pretty old! My high school boyfriend introduced me to the game but I didn't pick it up on my own until after we broke up. We're together again for the long haul, and I'm back to playing this game after taking a 5 year break. I wish that he would play with me, but he's since moved on to other games! I feel that UO has a lot of life left in it even though it is seriously outdated in a lot of ways.

   I've played Chesapeake practically since I started out. As I recall, I started on Catskills and switched to Chessy one day when Cats was down! I've made lots of friends through this game that I still have contact with, even though we don't all play the same games anymore. I've even met several people in person. As for my playstyle, I mostly PVM although I currently have a sweet little house at Yew gate. It's an active area and I find it extremely entertaining to watch other players fight right outside my house. I used to PvP before my 5 year break, but I was never very good. One of these days I'll get around to getting my feet wet again...

   My favorite character template is the animal tamer. I'm really itching to try out that pet rating script! I've trained 3 tamers to 110, all utilizing the same super awesome script. When people in my guild comment that I must really enjoy taming, I just feign innocence. Their stance on scripting is the same as politics and religion on this board, we just don't talk about it. I think that's a good policy since its a subject people have such strong opinions on. If it would ruin what is otherwise an excellent gaming relationship, I'd rather not bring up the fact that I spent most of my training time sleeping on the couch. I do love PLAYING the tamer though. My favorite pet team is a rune beetle/mare combo. I also like the cu sidhe - they remind me of my favorite breed of dog, the Great Pyrenees - but I don't actually like using them all that much.

   I've been using EasyUO for the majority of my UO "career". I feel that it is an excellent tool that has improved my gaming experience significantly. My favorite scripts are those that reduce the number of key clicks I have to do or otherwise simplify the game for me. I'm so dependent on scripting for tasks such as looting that I would probably close my accounts if EUO was no longer updated or if Mythic started to take a WoW stance on 3rd party programs (insta-ban). I've never written my own script, but I've altered others slightly. My skills are pretty much limited to replacing a line as directed by someone more knowledgeable or adding an item type somewhere. I'm looking forward to having access to the scripts here (hey! just being honest  ) as well as participating in the community. Hopefully you guys will find me to be good company.