Ultima Online: Stygian Abyss
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Ultima Online: Stygian Abyss was UO's eighth expansion. It launched on September 8, 2009 with an upgrade cost of $29.99 and a new player pack for $39.99, which includes 30 days of gametime.
The expansion was developed alongside the Enhanced Client, a re-branding of the much maligned Kingdom Reborn Client. Both the 2D and Enhanced clients will be able to access all expansion content, including the new areas.
Early Buyer Promotion
Players who purchased Ultima Online: Stygian Abyss from September 8 - 29, 2009 received:
- Three Alteration Tokens to transform current human or elf characters into Gargoyle characters
- An exclusive gargoyle craftable pet
- Three tokens to unlock one of five decorative Stygian Abyss mob boss statues
Features
New Playable Race: Gargoyles
Players may now create gargoyle characters as members of the Gargoyle Race.
- Gargoyles are unable to ride mounts.
- Gargoyles can fly, with some locations in Ter Mur and the Stygian Abyss Dungeon only being reachable via flight.
- When flying, gargoyles move at mounted speed.
- Gargoyles cannot wear Leather/Plate/Chain/Studded armor, only new Gargoyle Armors.
- Gargoyles cannot equip most weapons (War Fork, Katana, Staff, etc.)
- Gargoyles cannot learn Archery or use bows.
- Gargoyles instead of the long-ranged skill Throwing.
New Game Client
Enhanced Client
- Redesigned and improved isometric 3D client built upon the Kingdom Reborn client's tech, with a combination of KR and 2D graphics.
- New patching mechanism
- Referred to as the Enchanced Client during public testing.
Classic 2D Client Changes
- New Make Max/Make Number buttons in crafting menus
- New mark as quest item in crafting menus
- "Alter Item [Gargoyle]" option in crafting menu
- Racial abilities book in Paperdoll next to profile scroll
Kingdom Reborn Client
- Being superceded by the Enhanced Client.
Artifacts
New Skills
- Imbuing - A new crafting skill that allows players to manage the properties added on a crafted weapon or armor piece. This will also include the ability to harvest magical properties from existing items.
- Mysticism - A Gargoyle form of spellcasting complete with it's own set of spells.
- Throwing - A new ranged weapon skill utilizing throwing weapons and consumes no ammunition. Can only be learned by Gargoyles.
New Features
- Basket weaving - A new sub-skill that allows tinkers to create colored baskets.
- Staining - A new system that allows gardeners, cooks, and alchemists to turn player-grown plants into special dyes.
- Custom Carpets - Complete a quest to gain access to a carpet vendor.
- Battle Chicken Breeding - Raise the perfect chicken and send them into battle.
- Snake Charming - Using specially made instruments, command serpents to do your bidding.
- Pet Resurrection Changes - NPCs can now raise dead pets for a fee.
- Scroll Binder - Combine power, stat and transcendence scrolls into more powerful ones.
- Gargoyle Architecture - Nine new housing tile sets showing off the style of Gargoyles.
New Areas
- Ter Mur - The Gargoyle homeland. Players will be able to place Houses in this area.
- Stygian Abyss Dungeon - The largest and most intricate added to date. Based off the one seen in Ultima Underworld, the entrance is found on Fire Island on both facets. Creatures found inside include the Medusa, Primeval Lich and the Stygian Dragon. There will also be non-consensual PVP combat areas inside the abyss.
- Underworld - The staircase to Stygian Abyss Dungeon is found here. A quest must be completed in this area of goblins and undead to pass into Stygian Abyss Dungeon
New Monsters
New Tameables
New Craftable Pets
New Bosses
- Medusa - Found in the Abyss, the Medusa can be reached with the help of her serpentine friends.
- Navrey Night Eyes - Found in the Underworld, the Navrey Night Eyes' lair is in a hole in the arachnid area past the grey goblins.
- Niporailem - Cursed Gargoyle theif, found in the Tomb of Kings.
- Slasher of Veils - Found in Abyss abandoned city.
- Stygian Dragon - Guarding its large treasure hoard, the Stygian Dragon lords over a large fortress in the Abyss with an iron claw.
New Champion Spawns
Abyssal Infernal
- Stage 1 - Horde Familiar and Chaos Daemons
- Stage 2 - Stone Harpy and Arcane Daemons
- Stage 3 - Pit Fiend and Moloch
- Stage 4 - Archdemon and Abyssal Abomination
- Champion - Abyssal Infernal
Primeval Lich
- Stage 1 - Gore Fiends and Vampire Bats
- Stage 2 - Flesh Golems and Dark Wisps
- Stage 3 - Undead Gargoyle snd Wight
- Stage 4 - Skeletal Drake and Dream Wraith
- Champion - Primeval Lich
New Quests
- Something Fishy - Found in the Underworld, the Something Fishy quest is given by the grey goblin Barreraak.
- Scraping the Bottom - Found in the Underworld, the Scraping the Bottom quest is given by the green goblin Xenrr.
- Bad Company - Found in the Underworld, the Bad Company quest is given by the green goblin Jaacar.
- A Tangled Web - Found in the Underworld, the "A Tangled Web" quest is given by the green goblin Jaacar.
Development History
The expansion was announced a week early with an accidental posting, which is no longer available, on the Japanese Ultima Online Stygian Abyss website. The following message has been translated by athos_uo on the Stratics forums and may not be exact:
"Ultima Online Stygian Abyss" is the first expansion that will be released a few months later after the launch of "Ultima Online Kingdom Reborn". You can buy it in a package on the shelf or downloading it.
New features and contents
- Gargoyle race comes back to Sosaria, having escaped from the subordination that lasted hundreds years in the harsh land, unfortunately through which a part of the harsh land was brought to Sosaria. The Stygian Abyss opens its mouth and unfamiliar and bizarre creatures stalk on the ground. But you can find adventures only there, where there are risks. Abyss would offer the treasures beyond imagination to the braves who made their way into it.
The new playable race that players can select to play: The Gargoyle race
- They appear already in a part of the story since Ultima III and are mystic and thoughtful race which is known for their ability to control, infuse or transform energy.
The largest dungeon in the history of UO: Stygian Abyss
- It was through Abyss that Gargoyle race came back from the underworld. This dungeon is several times as large as any other current dungeons in UO and offers various dangers, new monsters, new tricks and new treasures.
Originally, Stygian Abyss was to have been launched a two months after Kingdom Reborn in summer 2007. The release of the expansion had been delayed due to poor performance of the new client. At a Town Hall Meeting in Seattle on August 30 2008, it was announced as targeted for sometime in 2009. On April 29, 2009, it was narrowed to a Summer 2009 release window.
The official Stygian Abyss website was unveiled September 9, 2008.
Beta tester applications were open for submission via UOHerald.com on May 7, 2009. The first batch of Beta tester confirmations were sent out to selected UO players on June 4, 2009. Open beta began August 14, 2009 and lasted until August 23.
Concept Art
The following was distributed to the press for the announcement message. It should be noted that works of concept art are not actual images from the game, but an artist's rendering of possible game elements. Click for full view.
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