Difference between revisions of "Artifacts"

Revision as of 22:50, 9 February 2008

Artifacts are special items with unique names that can be obtained by using the Stealing skill to pilfer them from various environments, through specific monster drop systems, from drops during events associated with game-wide fiction, or by crafting them using rare ingredients.

The original Artifacts were introduced in the Age of Shadows expansion in the dungeon Doom. Various items spawned throughout the dungeon that could only be picked up by using the Stealing skill on them. This was a move by the development team to vindicate the concept of collecting Rares, and as a throwback to the way that Rares had originally been created - as items, unobtainable to players, that had been used to decorate the environment, but had been accidentally left unlocked and could be picked up and wandered off with. These stealable items were spawned with a new item property called Artifact Rarity, which denoted the frequency with which they spawned.

Along with these stealable Artifacts there was introduced a set of items that could be obtained in the Gauntlet as rare drops that went straight to a character's backpack. These, too, possessed the Artifact Rarity property, but in this context this did not always directly correlate to their spawn frequency.

When the Paragon system was introduced in 2004, people began calling the named items that dropped as "Minor Artifacts" due to the system's similarity to the Gauntlet and the unique names that the items possessed, even though the items themselves did not possess the Artifact Rarity property. This custom was repeated for the Treasure of Tokuno events and later for the artifact drop system and named, craftable items introduced in Mondain's Legacy.

More Artifacts were eventually introduced through various in-game events, such as Halloween 2006 and the Ophidian Invasion, via various quests, such as the Truth and Redemption quest which had The Redeemer as a reward, and later through a drop system in the Anti-Virtue Dungeons similar to that of the various Paragon systems. These items have all returned to the practice of possessing the Artifact Rarity property.

Standard Artifacts

Artifacts that adhere to the policy of possessing the Rarity item property can be classified into several categories.

Doom Artifacts - Artifacts that can be found in Doom. These fall into two categories:
- Items that can be stolen in Doom.
- Items that drop in the Gauntlet.
Tokuno Island Stealables - Artifacts that can be stolen in the Tokuno Islands.
Artifacts (Virtue) - Artifacts that have begun spawning in the eight original Anti Virtue Dungeons. Originally introduced as part of the 10th Anniversary festivities, but reputed to become a permanent drop system.
Other Artifacts - There are also several other artifacts, such as The Redeemer, which could be acquired through quests, in-game events, or by other means.

Other Artifacts

It is also common parlance to call several other types of items Artifacts, even though they do not possess the Artifact Rarity property.

Ilshenar Minor Artifacts - Items that drop as part of the Paragon system in Ilshenar, several of which are exclusive to this system.
Treasure Map Minor Artifacts - Items that drop from Treasure Maps. These items include those that drop as part of the Paragon system, as well as some which are exclusive to Treasure Maps.
Leviathan Minor Artifacts - Items that drop from the Leviathan, a sea monster that is spawned through use of a certain fishing net. These items include those that drop as part of the Paragon system, as well as some which are exlusive to the Leviathan.
Treasures of Tokuno Artifacts - Items that dropped and could be claimed as part of the the Treasures of Tokuno events. At current, the Treasures of Tokuno is not running, thus these items do not currently spawn, however, there are many of them available for sale on most Shards. They fall into two categories:
- Major Artifacts - These artifacts are claimed through a turn in system.
- Minor Artifacts - These artifacts dropped in a way similar to those that drop in the Paragon system, and could be turned in for the major artifacts.
Mondain's Legacy Minor Artifacts - Items that drop in the same style as those associated with the Paragon system, but only in Mondain's Legacy Dungeons or from Peerless bosses.
Peerless Artifacts - Items that drop only on the corpses of Peerless bosses. Each Peerless boss drops specific artifacts.
Craftable Artifacts - Craftable items that, due to their high end properties, are considered artifacts. Rare ingredients available only from Peerless monsters are required to craft them.

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-Generally speaking, an artifact is an item with a name other than the kind of item it is.  For example, there is an artifact [[katana]] called the [[Blade of Insanity]], an artifact [[radiant scimitar]] called the [[Soul Seeker]], and an artifact [[spellbook]] called the [[Tome of Lost Knowledge]].
+'''Artifacts''' are special items with unique names that can be obtained by using the [[Stealing]] skill to pilfer them from various environments, through specific monster drop systems, from drops during events associated with game-wide fiction, or by crafting them using rare ingredients.
-Artifacts can come from many places in the game.  The first artifacts spawned in the backpacks of randomly selected players who had achieved looting rights on various boss monsters in the Dungeon [[Doom]].
+The original Artifacts were introduced in the [[Ultima Online: Age of Shadows|Age of Shadows]] expansion in the dungeon [[Doom]]. Various items spawned throughout the dungeon that could only be picked up by using the [[Stealing]] skill on them. This was a move by the development team to vindicate the concept of collecting [[Rares]], and as a throwback to the way that [[Rares]] had originally been created - as items, unobtainable to players, that had been used to decorate the environment, but had been accidentally left unlocked and could be picked up and wandered off with. These stealable items were spawned with a new item property called [[Artifact Rarity]], which denoted the frequency with which they spawned.
-Artifacts vary greatly in power.  Some, called "minor" artifacts and detailed below, generally are just really good normal items with a name.  ("Really good" in this context generally means an item with several properties that are nearly maximum, and perhaps 1 or 2 properties that are a little over maximum.)
+Along with these stealable Artifacts there was introduced a set of items that could be obtained in the [[Doom#Gauntlet|Gauntlet]] as rare drops that went straight to a character's backpack. These, too, possessed the [[Artifact Rarity]] property, but in this context this did not always directly correlate to their spawn frequency.
-By contrast, "major" artifacts (again, see below) often have properties that far exceed those normally available on items of that type.  For example, the Ornament of the Magician has FC 2 FCR 3 (the normal limit is 1/3), along with a superb amount of [[Lower Mana Cost]] and [[Lower Reagent Cost]].
+When the [[Paragon]] system was introduced in 2004, people began calling the named items that dropped as "Minor Artifacts" due to the system's similarity to the [[Doom#Gauntlet|Gauntlet]] and the unique names that the items possessed, even though the items themselves did not possess the [[Artifact Rarity]] property. This custom was repeated for the [[Treasure of Tokuno]] events and later for the artifact drop system and named, craftable items introduced in [[Ultima Online: Mondain's Legacy|Mondain's Legacy]].
-Some artifacts no longer spawn, some are available through use of the [[Stealing]] skill in certian dungeons, some are available from certain monsters and "spawn" in a character's backpack, some spawn as normal loot, some are craftable, some are available as rewards for contributing to the [[Vesper Museum Collection|Vesper Museum]], the [[Moonglow Royal Zoo Collection|Moonglow Royal Zoo]] or the [[Britain Library Collection]]s.
+More Artifacts were eventually introduced through various in-game events, such as [[Halloween 2006]] and the [[Ophidian Invasion]], via various quests, such as the [[Truth and Redemption]] quest which had [[The Redeemer]] as a reward, and later through a drop system in the [[Anti-Virtue Dungeons]] similar to that of the various [[Paragon]] systems. These items have all returned to the practice of possessing the [[Artifact Rarity]] property.
-Some artifacts spawned as the result of specific events, such as the Ophidian invasions and the demon invasion of the City of [[Magincia]].
-Though most, and the most famous and sought after, artifacts are of a practical nature (weapons, armor, etc.), some are strictly for decoration.  Examples include the [[Ruined Painting]] and [[Thorvald's Medallion]].
-Some artifacts spawn with a property called Artifact Rarity, a number that varies from 1 to 12.  In theory, the higher the number, the less common the item.  However, the relationship between the number and the item's presence in the game is at most casual.  The [[Blade of the Righteous]] for example, Rarity rating of 10 and stealable, is less common than some of the Doom artifacts obtainable from the Doom Gauntlet, which are mostly rarity 11.  Also, the decorative [[Ruined Painting]] is a rarity 12, and so is the [[Berserker's Scythe]] (an artifact from the demon invasions of [[Magincia]]), yet the Scythes are far more common.  (The ruined painting spawns only a few times per calendar year.)
-There are several kinds of artifacts.
 ==Standard Artifacts==
@@ Line 25: / Line 17: @@
 ** Items that [[Artifacts (Doom)#The_Gauntlet|drop in the Gauntlet]].
 * [[Artifacts (Tokuno)|Tokuno Island Stealables]] - Artifacts that can be stolen in the [[Tokuno Islands]].
-* [[Virtue Artifacts]] were obtainable as part of UO's [[10th Anniversary]].
+* [[Artifacts (Virtue)]] - Artifacts that have begun spawning in the eight original [[Anti Virtue Dungeons]]. Originally introduced as part of the [[10th Anniversary]] festivities, but reputed to become a permanent drop system.
-* [[Artifacts (Other)|Other Artifacts]] - There are also several other artifacts, such as [[The Redeemer]], which can be acquired through quests and by other means.
+* [[Artifacts (Other)|Other Artifacts]] - There are also several other artifacts, such as [[The Redeemer]], which could be acquired through quests, in-game events, or by other means.
 ==Other Artifacts==
+It is also common parlance to call several other types of items Artifacts, even though they do not possess the [[Artifact Rarity]] property.
-It is also common parlance to call several other types of items Artifacts, even though they do not possess the [[Item Property]] [[Artifact Rarity]].
+* [[Artifacts (Paragon)|Ilshenar Minor Artifacts]] - Items that drop as part of the [[Paragon]] system in [[Ilshenar]], several of which are exclusive to this system.
-* [[Artifacts (Paragon)|Ilshenar Minor Artifacts]] - Items that drop as part of the [[Paragon]] system in [[Ilshenar]].
 * [[Artifacts (Treasure Map)|Treasure Map Minor Artifacts]] - Items that drop from [[Treasure Map]]s. These items include those that drop as part of the Paragon system, as well as some which are exclusive to Treasure Maps.
-* [[Artifacts (Leviathan)|Leviathan Minor Artifacts]] - Items that drop from the Leviathan, a sea monster that is spawned through use of a certain fishing net. These items include those that drop as part of the [[Paragon]] system, as well as some which are exlusive to the [[Leviathan]].
+* [[Artifacts (Leviathan)|Leviathan Minor Artifacts]] - Items that drop from the [[Leviathan]], a sea monster that is spawned through use of a certain fishing net. These items include those that drop as part of the [[Paragon]] system, as well as some which are exlusive to the [[Leviathan]].
-* [[Artifacts (ToT)|Treasures of Tokuno Artifacts]] - Items that dropped and could be claimed as part of the the [[Treasures of Tokuno]] events. These items no longer spawn, though there are many of them available for sale on most [[shards]].  They fall into two categories:
+* [[Artifacts (ToT)|Treasures of Tokuno Artifacts]] - Items that dropped and could be claimed as part of the the [[Treasures of Tokuno]] events. At current, the [[Treasures of Tokuno]] is not running, thus these items do not currently spawn, however, there are many of them available for sale on most [[Shards]].  They fall into two categories:
 ** [[Artifacts (ToT)#Major_Artifacts|Major Artifacts]] - These artifacts are claimed through a turn in system.
 ** [[Artifacts (ToT)#Minor_Artifacts|Minor Artifacts]] - These artifacts dropped in a way similar to those that drop in the Paragon system, and could be turned in for the major artifacts.
-* [[Mondain's Legacy Minor Artifacts]] - Items that drop in the same style as those associated with the Paragon system, but only in [[Mondain's Legacy Dungeons]].
+* [[Mondain's Legacy Minor Artifacts]] - Items that drop in the same style as those associated with the Paragon system, but only in [[Mondain's Legacy Dungeons]] or from [[Peerless]] bosses.
-* [[Artifacts (Craftable)|Craftable Artifacts]] - Craftable items that, due to their high end properties and their having a specific name rather than just named for the type of item they are, are considered artifacts.  Ingredients available from the [[Peerless]] monsters are needed to craft them.
+* [[Artifacts (Peerless)|Peerless Artifacts]] - Items that drop only on the corpses of [[Peerless]] bosses.  Each [[Peerless]] boss drops specific artifacts.
-* [[Artifacts (Peerless)|Peerless Artifacts]] - Items that drop from Peerless bosses.  Each peerless boss drops specific artifacts.  They also drop the Mondain's legacy "minor" artifacts.  Artifacts from Peerlesses spawn on the creature's corpse.
+* [[Artifacts (Craftable)|Craftable Artifacts]] - Craftable items that, due to their high end properties, are considered artifacts.  Rare ingredients available only from [[Peerless]] monsters are required to craft them.
-* [[Artifacts (Virtue)|Virtue Artifacts]] - These items spawn in the old dungeons, the ones named after the 8 Sins or [[Anti-Virtue Dungeon|Anti-Virtue]].  They appeared for UO's [[10th Anniversary]], but are likely to continue to spawn ''en perpetuity'' according to statements made by the dev team.
+==See Also==
+* [[Items]]
 [[Category:Items]]