I've seen this touched upon from time to time, but not in a specific topic from what I can find. I would argue that the tree hack (turning all trees into stumps) should be regarded a cheat of some sort. Why wouldn't it? The only reason why it would be allowed, I suppose, is that trees don't really do anything. But they actually do and Franz have used trees many times to hide stolen goods, thus, even if killed the goods remains behind that specific third tree to the right, beside the grey rock, or whatever. But for someone with a tree hack this possibility is totally lost. I found this by Hazy which probably is the common view among tree hackers (that's right, h4xx0rzzz!!): This is what trees should do though. Block. Hide. I'm interested in hearing the justification for the tree hack though, is there a reason why it would be allowed, even though it ruins this original feature of UO?
Because making it illegal is virtually un-enforceable. The only time you'd catch someone using it is if they posted screenshots for some other reason.
I never really liked the idea. Personally, I like all aspects of the game and seeing trees is a part of that experience. But I am a roleplayer, not a PvPer. It seems to benefit that crowd the most as they can travel the land without running into stuff or having their visibility hampered.
I'm not sure everyone "agrees" it should be illegal, but I think you'd find most people only do it as equalizer because in the l33t pvp world, you can't be running around with light filters off if your competition is using them. I personally think that elements like this make make this game challenging and provides that extra bit of believability to this fantasy game.
I'm not sure "everyone" agrees. I tried it after a particularly annoying L6 chest in the Trinsic Jungle. Outside of that 7th level of Hell experience, I didn't find it to be worth the ruining of the world, so I went back to regular UO. If people want to see the world like that, man, that's all they're gonna see. /hippy
Personally, I like running the game the 'way it was created' if you modify everything int he game to different sizes and looks I feel like you are only hurting your own experience... There are plenty of decent PvPers out there that do not use the tree hack and compete well against those who use it. It really is just a loss for those using it.
There is no way that we can require players use unmodified client side files without some sort of application to verify as such. Personally I am not a fan of the modification because the UO World is a beautiful place and a world full of stumps is just not attractive. But as we have stated in the past client modifications are legal, although a grey area.
An alternative, although less abundant location would be mountain peaks and house eaves. House eaves you would have to hope that nobody is inside to see it. Also I have found that items under tower wings do not decay, and can be very easily overlooked. Best regards, Your enbittered nemisis and never-to-be-in-law
They can't be legal and a grey area at the same time ... Who ever designed the jungle areas of UO must have anticipated the tree hack. Not only the size and visuals of the trees there are immensely annoying, the placement has also gotten seriously out of hand. So unless you avoid those areas, you want to have the tree hack. Someone should make a custom tree hack where only the jungle trees are replaced
like a lot of problems in the world one side says this is right that is wrong the other that is right and this is wrong and others that say I dont care get screwed. might as well play the game and enjoy it how you enjoy it do you and yeah it sucks that people get to tweek it just right so they can have an upperhand on someone playing the actual game but hey I still have fun and just kinda avoid those who use it and chalk it up as a loss when I do lose whether it is because of that or any other reason. I'll drink to that and will see you all in game tomorrow after I sleep this drink and many others off haha!
Whoever designed the jungles, much like The Lost Lands (T2A expansion) likely did so to provide a challenging and often times frustrating environment. Combat and pretty much anything else has an increased difficulty the more dense and uneven the wilderness gets. Treehacks and client mods are for scrubs and wusses. Or people who need every edge they can get in game because they're afraid of challenge and difficulty in their gaming. Just know that any time you are bested by someone with a treehack, they likely couldn't do it any other way, at all, ever, because they are bad at playing games. In short, treehacks are the ultimate in unstoppable Trammel.
Blackthorn dragons sucks because you dont get to see one of the coolest looking monsters in the game under your control. On the other hand, when your at a champion spawn with 50 other dragons and everyones saying "I cant see the champion because of all the dragons!" it can be worth it. There are pro's and cons to both. I dont think the mods give a significant advantage. I think what you lose in visuals equals out what little you gain in game play. Its just a personal choice.
Every try to navigate a jungle in real life? It is frustrating and challenging. I think the creators hit it spot on. As for the Lost Lands, yeah... shoot the creator in the foot, twice. Razor is a great example of a tool that gives you a greater edge over people playing Vanilla UO. Much greater than someone with tree hacks.
While I understand your comparison, it is vaguely implying that they wouldn't be used in concert. There's absolutely no doubt that anyone using treehacks is also using Razor, if not more. I'm personally of the opinion that Razor should require negotiation with the server to force more strict controls of its function for a more challenging and diverse world. While I'm not entirely opposed to restock agents and things that make the mundane more efficient, I am opposed to light filters and other things that I feel detract from the qualities of Ultima. Not gonna happen though, so I'm not holding my breath for that.
