¶ Announcements from UO Strange Earth, a very retro, and fresh shard!
At UO Strange Earth, we're not just another shard – we're a community-driven haven for passionate UO players who crave a balanced and immersive gaming experience. We believe in longevity, not quick fixes, and we're here to stay.
While our journey began years ago, it wasn't until early 2023 that UO Strange Earth opened its gates to the public, inviting players from all walks of life to join our adventure. Since then, we've been hard at work, weaving in a tapestry of quality-of-life improvements and innovative systems to enhance your gameplay.
Whether you're a seasoned veteran or a newcomer to the world of Ultima Online, we're here to welcome you with open arms. To help you get started, we offer personalized welcome letter and comprehensive guides to ensure you have everything you need to make your journey here epic!
~ Hephaestus & Team
¶
Massive update - 6/12/26
Adventurers,
We've just deployed a substantial update to UO Strange Earth that introduces new world events, new quests, crafting improvements, pet AI upgrades, leaderboard enhancements, and numerous bug fixes. Below are more details on todays update.
Custom IDOC (In Danger of Collapse) Event
Abandoned and decaying houses now transform into a live world event as they approach collapse. Over their final three weeks, structures emit escalating visual and atmospheric effects - subtle trembling and ambient disturbances at 21 days, growing fire and shadow at 7 days, and a full eruption of flame-strikes and crackling energy in the final 24 hours. Nearby players will receive atmospheric broadcast messages at each stage to signal the danger.
- Upon collapse, dimensional rifts tear open at the site and spawn creatures carrying the contents of the fallen house. Creature tier scales with the weight of loot recovered, making high-value abandoned homes a genuine world event worth attending.
- This also means the idoc detector got an upgrade to help include the new house looting monsters.
"Treasures Of" Seasonal Dungeon Events
Several OSI-style Treasures Of seasonal events are now integrated into the shard, each tied to a specific dungeon and its own point-tracking system. During active seasons, players earn points by defeating dungeon creatures, with both fame and luck factoring into point gain. A Potion of Glorious Fortune provides a 1.5x point bonus during eligible events.
Active events include,
- Treasures of Fey Wrath (Destard)
- Treasures of Hythloth
- Treasures of the Archlich
- Treasures of the Undead Lords
- Treasures of Wildfire
More details on these seasonal dungeon events can be found here https://wiki.strange-earth.com/en/guides/TreasuresOf
Runic Toolkit - Fletcher Tools Added
The runic toolkit can now be applied to fletcher tools, expanding runic crafting possibilities for dedicated bowcrafters in line with all other supported tool types.
Pet AI - Beneficial Spell Enhancements
Pets will now cast three additional beneficial spells during combat: Agility, Strength, and Cunning. This makes pets more self-sufficient and effective over the course of extended engagements.
Kill Tasks - Pet & Player Kill Credit
Kill task objectives will now properly register kills made by your pets and other players in your group. Tasks will progress more fairly during tamer-style play and cooperative hunts.
Gravekeeper Improvements
The Gravekeeper system has been updated with two key changes,
- It will no longer attempt to pull insured or blessed items from players.
- Staff have improved administrative tools for managing and interacting with the system.
Account Registration Improvements
Account registration has received a round of quality-of-life updates. Staff have also been given enhanced administrative capabilities for reviewing and managing registered accounts more efficiently.
Wallet Command - City Loyalty Integration
The [Wallet gump now includes a dedicated City Loyalty section. Any city where you have an active loyalty standing - positive or negative - will be displayed with color-coded indicators:
Color Standing
🟢 Green Strong allegiance (10,000+)
🟡 Yellow Moderate loyalty (5,000+)
🔵 Blue Positive standing
⚪ Gray Neutral
🟠 Orange Negative standing
🔴 Red Strong opposition
Only cities with non-zero loyalty are shown, keeping the display clean for newer characters.
City Loyalty - Point boon
You can now gain loyalty through champ spawns and the rate has been increased to help combat the insane low rate that OSI coded.
City invasions
A more refined city invasions than what we have seen in the past. [InvasionInfo command can now be used with the skill forensic evaluation in order to see the type of invasion, how far it has progressed, and a few other details. Invasion alerts are spaced out at 10 min each and will stop after 6 alerts to prevent spamming. These alerts can also be toggled off with [InvasionAlerts
Magincia 2007 Rubble event,
has been brought back to life with the help of @ßåяя¥ 2.0. Huge shout out is in order as this classic event had previously been lost to the sands of time. https://www.uoguide.com/Rubble
@ßåяя¥ 2.0 's hard work inspired me to start working on https://wiki.strange-earth.com/en/guides/MaginciaRestorationQuests. I shall have these three quests ready within the next week or two.
Gargoyle's Pickaxe Expanded
The Gargoyle's Pickaxe now has a chance (~10%) to summon an elemental while mining, with the type of elemental tied directly to the ore vein being mined. Higher-tier ores awaken more dangerous creatures. This adds both risk and reward to using this rare and coveted tool.
Doom Rabbit - Spawn Window Adjusted
The Doom Rabbit's respawn timer has been changed from a fixed 2-week cooldown to a randomized window of 1–2 weeks. Expect the unexpected.
Lumberjacking Boon - Increased Yield
The Lumberjacking boon now grants approximately 5–7 bonus chops per activation, up from 2. The boon is now a meaningful benefit for dedicated woodcutters.
Underworld Passage - Pitfall Resolved
A section of the Underworld passage near the map boundary contained a pitfall that players could fall into but could not escape. This area has been corrected and players can now navigate freely through the passage.
Resme Healer Arrows Removed
Resme healer arrows have been removed from the game.
Thank you for your continued support of UO Strange Earth. As always, report any issues to staff in-game or via the Discord support channel.
Hephaestus - Keeper of UOSE
¶ Bulk Order System Improvements - 5/5/26
Introducing the Master BoD Key The BoD system has always been powerful, but not always enjoyable to manage. This update is focused on reducing friction and giving you better tools to spend less time sorting, and more time crafting.
- Instantly organize your BoDs by type with a single click. No more digging through cluttered books or backpacks.
- Have old BoD books lying around? Just drag and drop them onto the Master BoD Key, it will absorb and sort all stored deeds automatically into the BoD storage key.
- This system allows you to filter and extract specific BoDs without the usual hassle.
- Pairs perfectly with the recently added BoD auto-fill functionality, making the entire crafting loop smoother and faster.
To obtain your first BoD key, look no further than to your local Strange Earth Rewards globe located in Luna. As always, keep the feedback coming. The Keepers of UOSE - Heph
¶ UOSE Client Patcher Improvements 4/29/26
What a strange and wild world we live in… It turns out we’ve been taking TazUO for granted. Our previously bundled version wasn’t actually pulling in the latest updates like we expected, and that’s now been corrected. The next time you launch the UOSE Client Patcher, you’ll see a couple of prompts,
- An update for the UOSE Client Patcher itself
- A follow-up update for TazUO
This ensures you're running the latest and most stable version moving forward. This latest version of TazUO brings,
- Improved stability
- Better overall performance
- More in-game quality-of-life features
There is currently a patching loop issue affecting some Windows 11 users. If you encounter this, please refer to the temporary workaround here,
https://wiki.strange-earth.com/en/HowtoConnect#patching-the-patcher
As always, keep the feedback coming. The Keepers of UOSE - Heph
¶ Quality of Life & System Improvements 4/27/26
We’ve rolled out a mix of long-requested fixes, quality-of-life upgrades, and backend improvements to make your time in UOSE smoother and more rewarding.
- When crafting with metals, the decorations will now inherit the name such as a valorite lamp.
- Armor crafted using Adamantite and Orichalcum will now properly display their material in the item name. Example: Adamantite Plate Chest instead of just Plate Chest
Runic Tool Box Expansion,
Fletchers, you’re up.
- The Runic Tool Box now includes Runic Fletcher’s Tools:
Mage Quality of Life!
- The Mage Guild Master will now convert any armor piece into Mage Armor, regardless of how many properties it has.
- Removed previous restrictions on heavily modified gear
Bulk Order Deeds (BODs) now includes an Auto-Fill System,
- Double-clicking a BOD now automatically pulls matching items from your backpack
- Completed small BODs in your pack will automatically be applied to large deeds if the matching one is present
Achievements, Tracking Fixes
- Several achievements were not properly registering due to backend issues. These have now been corrected:
- Dart Trap (Tinkering)
- Clockwork Assembly (Tinkering)
- Hide Chest (Tailoring)
- Bone Chest (Tailoring)
- Ornate Wooden Chest (Carpentry)
- Spinning Hourglass (Glassblowing)
- Hollow Prism (Glassblowing – both variants)
- Stone Statue (Masonry)
- Corgul the Soul Binder (Combat)
- & lots more Achievements added,
Note: If you previously completed these, you may need to complete them one more time for credit to apply.
This patch focuses heavily on reducing friction in core systems while fixing long-standing issues behind the scenes. More content and system expansions are already in the pipeline. As always, keep the feedback coming. The Keepers of UOSE - Heph
¶ Spring time patch notes 4/16/26
New Content
- Track online travelers, murderers, housing, events, economy stats, and now Strange Task rankings in real time through our online dashboards.
- Doom drops and Uber Doom Boss catalyst drops can now be combined to forge Uber Equipment. Hunt smart. Craft harder.
- Spring Mini Champ is now active. 🌸 Head to the moon ripple gate at Luna for the Spring Mini Champ, courtesy of decaf. Get out there and earn it.
- Spring Task Rewards are now active. Visit the floating globe at Luna for the full reward list.
BUG FIXES
- Ship cannons no longer vanish along with their supplies
- Oversized fish now appear at your feet instead of fading into the void
- Task kill credit now properly awarded when your pets do the killing
- Gold Ledger bag tooltip now displays the correct amount above 1,000,000 gold
As always, report bugs, chase glory, and watch your back in Felucca.
The Keepers of UOSE - Heph
¶ Patch release notes 3/31/26
The fabric of Strange-Earth continues to shift in subtle and curious ways. Time itself has begun to behave… differently. Some travelers report lost days returning to them, while others swear fortune can now be bottled and consumed. Whether these changes are a blessing or something far more peculiar remains to be seen, but one thing is certain, this strange world is evolving.
Daily Login System Improvements,
- Fixed an issue where players would not receive login credit unless they logged out and back in. You will now correctly receive credit for consecutive days while remaining logged in.
- Added mouse-over tooltips to the daily login interface for better visibility into individual rewards.
New Item, Time Crystals,
- Introducing Time Crystals, a new item designed to help maintain your login streak.
- Available in multiple rarities, each allowing restoration of missed login days.
- Higher rarity crystals restore more missed days.
Gameplay Fixes & Adjustments, Power Hour Fix
- Power Hour will now only consume the exact amount needed when finishing off remaining skill gains.
Character Name Limit Increased
- Maximum character name length increased from 16 to 18 characters.
New System, Custom Character Titles
- Added a Custom Title System for staff.
- Allows GMs to easily create, manage, and distribute unique player titles.
New Consumable, Fractured Vial of Fortune
- A new luck-enhancing potion has been added.
- Grants +1000 Luck for 60 minutes upon use.
- Perfect for treasure hunting, loot runs, and high-risk encounters.
Temporary Change,
- Doom Gauntlet has been temporarily disabled for rework.
- We are making improvements and tuning the experience. It will return soon.
Moon Ripples, A New Way to Travel
The ancient moongates have begun to fade, their once-stable energies unraveling into something far less understood. In their place, a new phenomenon has emerged, Moon Ripples. These unstable distortions shimmer with lunar energy, reacting not just to location… but to the traveler themselves.
- All moongates have now been upgraded to Moon Ripples.
- Interacting with a Moon Ripple will now display a cost breakdown before travel.
- Travel costs are dynamically reduced based on your character’s progression and reputation.
Discount System Overview,
- Your Adventuring Skill contributes the largest reduction.
- Even a fraction of a skill point provides a small discount, while mastery can grant up to 53% cost reduction.
- Fame and Karma each contribute additional reductions of up to 11% each.
- When combined, players can achieve up to a 75% total travel discount.
- All legacy moongates have been removed to fully embrace this new system and its place within the evolving Strange-Earth lore.
Story: The Legend of Alaric and the Moonripples
Audio version of the story
Walk carefully,
The Keepers of UOSE - Heph
¶ Hephaestus Event update 3/16/26
🍀 St. Patrick’s Day 🍀
New Haven has been overrun by mischievous leprechauns, and they’re not making it easy for anyone brave enough to hunt them down…
If you watch closely from a distance, you might catch them rummaging through their pots of gold. Move fast, if you’re quick enough, you can loot their treasure before it vanishes!
Four Leaf Clovers and St. Patrick’s Gold can be turn-in to the reward stones just outside Luna bank. The rewards? Unique decorative trophies crafted by @RedRooster, perfect for showing off in your treasure rooms.
This event will only run for one week, so don’t miss your chance! Good luck out there… and may fortune favor the bold. 🍀
¶ Patch release notes 2/6/26
🚀 Strange-Earth UO Launcher Update
We’ve given the launcher a big upgrade to make getting into the game faster, smoother, and way less painful—especially for new players.
If you’re brand new, check out the new quick-start video here
What’s New & Improved?
- You can now choose TazUO or ClassicUO right in the launcher. So after patching, your preferred game client will lauch
- No more launcher freezing while downloading, the window stays responsive and animated during updates, clear progress and better status messages while patching
- Smarter Error & Safety Checks, Warns you if UO is already running before patching, Better messages when something goes wrong (and what to do about it)
- Automatically finds your client, even if it’s installed in a weird folder
- Cleaner, Better-Looking Interface, Scales properly on all screen sizes and resolutions
- No more random command windows flashing
- Cleaner startup and shutdown behavior
- Won’t accidentally close your game client
- More reliable first-time setup experience
Run into trouble? Have questions? Just ask, our staff and the Discord community, we have your back.
Walk carefully,
The Keepers of UOSE - Heph
¶ Hephaestus Event update 2/4/26
The Quest for Love (and Against Love) is LIVE!
Adventurers, the season of tangled hearts and questionable life choices has begun! Our limited-time event “The Quest for Love and Against Love” is now active and will run through the 15th.
Whether you’re fighting for love… or against it, jump in, experience the story, and snag those sweet rewards before time runs out. Also because heartbreak (and loot) waits for no one.
Good luck out there, and watch your heart. 🧙♂️
¶ Patch release notes 1/27/26
Strange-Earth has endured a rare and violent calamity.
A failure deep within the bones of the realm tore a wound through time itself, forcing the world to rewind its steps . Though the land now stands stable once more, echoes of what was lost still linger in the soil. But know this, the shard did not fall unattended .
To mark this moment in Strange-Earth’s history, and to honor those who weathered the storm. For a limited time, upon logging in you will receive,
- 1 random “I Survived” Trophy,
- 1 “I Survived” Painting,
- 3x 100 luck deed scrolls,
- 50x Strange Dirt,
These are more than items, they are proof that you were here when the world bent… and endured.
Long hours were spent within the forges and scriptoriums of Strange-Earth, I have also brought forth additional updates for everybody to enjoy,
- Task system interface was rebuilt and reforged, their runes enlarged and clarified so travelers may read them clearly once more.,
- The flow of knowledge within the Wallet of Sovereignty was re-channeled, granting new insight and the ability to extract Heritage Sovereigns directly.,
- -This was not quick work, it was careful work.,
Recent changes require the use of our custom client patcher. Without it, the newly reforged Task System interface may appear distorted. This is expected. The updated interface, larger, clearer, and rebuilt by popular demand, can only be acquired through patching. If something looks strange, the patcher is your first step back to balance.
A new Daily Login Reward system has taken root. Simply logging in will grant,
- Strange Dirt,
- Gold,
This system is young, but it will grow, branching into richer rewards, deeper tracking, and perhaps… something unexpected.,
Strange-Earth is not maintained by automation alone. It is crafted, watched, rebuilt, and defended, sometimes late into the night, so that when you step back into the world, it is ready for you. Thank you for standing with us through the strange times.
Walk carefully,
The Keepers of UOSE - Heph
¶ Patch release notes 1/3/26
Strange Travelers of UOSE,
After watching your journeys, listening to your tales, and heeding your feedback, several improvements have been woven into the fabric of the Strange Task System.
- Pet Damage Now Counts. Your loyal companions are finally getting their due. Damage dealt by pets will now properly count toward kill tasks.
- Reroll deeds now correctly account for your current maximum task slots, ensuring fairness no matter how far you’ve progressed.
- An issue has been resolved where unshrinking pets could incorrectly count toward taming tasks. Only true tames will now advance your task.
- System rewards will now recognize bank checks, making large payouts smoother and more convenient.
- Collection tasks will now also scan your Master Loot Bag (thanks to Corum for the suggestion). Less juggling, more adventuring.
- Several gumps and informational pages have received clarity and usability improvements as part of our ongoing polish pass.
- Tasks that have already been completed or intentionally skipped will now enter a 24-hour lockout. You may view locked tasks and remaining time via: [tasklockout view
- A newly discovered deed may now be consumed to select and override a specific task slot, giving you more control when fate proves unkind.
I am aware of the collection tasks not giving system messages when adding to a previous stack in your bag. This will be addressed on the next patch.
These changes are part of our continued effort to ensure this Strange Task System feels rewarding, fair, and respectful of your time, while still retaining the strange unpredictability that defines UOSE.
As always, thank you for walking these strange paths with us.
Hephaestus
Keeper of Systems, Forger of Fate
Strange-Earth UO 🌒
¶ Past announcements
Archived announcements from 2025 can be found here.
Archived announcements from 2024 can be found here.
Archived announcements from 2023 can be found here.
¶ Extra Goodies
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