Ultima Ultima IV: Threat of the Trinity - fan-made U4 expansion

[Cambragol]

Screenshots are restored.

Yes, that is the phantom ship bug. It is fixed in Threat of the Trinity. There have been a number of bugs (default) found and fixed since the list posted above.

Here is the current list:

Bug Fixes/Improvements

• Moonphases restored on save
• All chest trap types working
• No more infinite Mystic Weaps/Armor
• Hythloth bug fixed
• Destard bug fixed
• Skull of Mondain bugs fixed
• Missing Lord British dialogue fixed
• Ship instant repair bug fixed
• Camping at sea bug fixed
• Omni-tavern bug fixed
• Status-Trick fixed
• Passage of the Moons-Trick fixed
• Energy Spell Dungeon Drilling-Trick fixed
• Missing Mana in Inns bug fixed
• Buggy Ankh and Lord combat sprites fixed
• Missing Sacrifice gain fixed
• Attackable chests bug fixed
• Money Overflow bug fixed
• Disappearing Horse bug fixed
• Phantom Pirate ships bug fixed
• Pre-slept Monsters bug fixed
• Shop dialogue bugs/errors
• Inn Encounter bug fixed
• Talking Chest bug fixed
• Yes/No Escape bug fixed
• Edge of World bugs fixed
• All known dialogue bugs fixed
• Other Small fixes

New Features

• New Hamlets and Towers
• New Dungeons (Crypts)
• New Caves and Mines
• New Huts and Wilderness Inns
• New World Region (Underdeep)
• New Shops and Merchants
• New Shipwrights
• New Major Quests
• New Minor Quests
• New Side Quests
• New Virtue Trackers
• More than one hundred new Characters
• Random Encounters
• New, powerful Artifacts
• 2nd levels for all Towns
• Multi-level Castles
• New magic system
• New tiles/sprites
• New mounts
• Ultima V style Active Player
• Ultima V style reagent mixing
• Ultima V style directional search
• Town Saving
• Diagonal attacks
• New Spawning rules
• Variable Battle maps
• Terrain based combat bonuses
• Terrain based Camp maps
• Virtue based NPC reactions
• Variable NPC personalities
• Apple II style LOS/Shadowcasting
• More accurate Port of Apple II original
• Expanded NPC conversations (reduced scope)
• Many, many more small additions

Other Highlights

• Saved games are compatible with vanilla Ultima IV

 

[KeighnMcDeath]

Ho ho ho!

 

[Cambragol]

Merry Christmas!

I am the developer of this 'mod/addon'. I can answer any questions anyone might have here.

*crickets*

 

[KeighnMcDeath]

When will it be done?

 

[Cambragol]

When it's done.

Actually, it is done.

But not the feelies. So when they are done.

 

[Haba]

But... why?

 

[Cambragol]

Why... why?

Isn't it obvious for a game like this? 35 years old, known for its exquisite 'feelies'...

Besides. I like feelies.

 

[Comte]

Merry Christmas!

I am the developer of this 'mod/addon'. I can answer any questions anyone might have here.

*crickets*

Where does one get the feely version?

 

[Cambragol]

I am not fully committed to it yet. I am producing them all, and am done several components already, but I may or may not 'release' them.

So one cannot currently get it.

 

[KeighnMcDeath]

Hmmm.... the trinity.

 

[Cambragol]

Wait 'til you see this appear in the game intro! Along with the massive new 'movie' that plays at the bottom. I spent a lot of time on that whole shebang. Turning an 'assembly' database into a multi-scene intro movie, telling the tale of the Threat of the Trinity.

No sneak peaks though. Sorry. I actually almost never used/released that logo above. I had thought to keep it until it could be seen in game. Obviously I changed my mind on that.

 

[KeighnMcDeath]

Hey! Why doesn't Cambragol have a DEVELOPER tag?

And....

Are you using the Ultima IV construction set?

And I saw this on an old Online project:
I'm kind of interested in the software that looks like a construction set

RUM Editor

It makes me ponder an Akalabeth - Ultima 4 redone in a U5 engine with bigger maps and content. I still remember PiX collecting those Ultima 3 modules some dude did for the appleII. I remember the ads in old magazines. Sure, nothing like the original but messing around with them is fine by me so CHEERS to your project.

 

[Cambragol]

I tried the Ultima IV Construction set, but it was a little bit too slow. Ultimately I used a two different approaches for all my map making. One was a Town Editor, created by George Stephan for his 'Dark Basic' remake of Ultima IV. It was very handy for laying out tiles initially. Also for adding dialogue. But additionally, and almost exclusively now, I just use 'Hex Fiend' and directly edit maps and talk files in hexadecimal notation:

​

That is a sneak preview of the second floor of Britain.

 

[LarryTyphoid]

https://cambragol.github.io/advent-of-the-trinity/articles/Project_Update

Project Update​

FEB 17, 2022

So What's Going on Then?

So what is going on with this project? Things are moving along quickly (relatively speaking…), with most time recently being spent on developing/sourcing art and building estimation of production costs for each component of the ‘Feelies’ package.

My call out to people who are interested in a Feelies run has been, well, successful. Pretty much. More than 50 but less than a hundred have signed up, and there are still people signing up every couple of days. There seems to be enough interest, just barely, to go for a production run.

So I am carrying forward with that. I have been delving into the costs for production of the various items, and it seems the sweet spot for production (for this project) is between 100 and 250 item runs. Too much for me, but, 100 might be doable. However, certain items, like the book, must have larger runs, because of the initial set up costs of off-set printing etc. It can get pricey…

However, I am off-setting (haha) production costs by producing as much of the required art as possible. So far, that means all of it. A huge savings. Savings which can be put towards higher quality items. So, that begs the question: What is done?

Here is a breakown:

The Game​

• 99% done.
• Code stable for several months now.
• No outstanding bugs, and Beta testers are playing through a second time.
• Needs a final packaging for installation over default Ultima IV install.

The Box​

• Layout is 100% done.
• Art is sourced, but requires a slight modification (though not critical, merely aesthetic). Its not Denis Loubet, but what can you do?

The Map​

• 100% done. Ready for production.
• Test print finished. So pretty.

The Reference Card​

• 100% done. Ready for production.
• May change the small cover illustration in a final version.

The Quick Reference Card​

• 100% done. Ready for production.

The Trinket​

• 100% done. Ready for production.

The Disks​

• 100% done. Ready for production (Though the installer is not done).

The Book​

• 20% done.
• composition is finished.
• currently working on the layout and art.

This was half a year ago now. Any updates for us, Cambragol?

 

[Cambragol]

I posted an update to my blog. Not much to report. However, I am working on things now.

All that is left is the Quest Journal. Making the layout and art for a 40-50 page book is a different skill set than the coding of the game. I am working my way through it. However, with art, inspiration is sometime needed and that does not always come on demand.

 

[KeighnMcDeath]

Awesome.

 

[Comte_II]

Great looking forward to this

 

[Infinitron]

I posted an update to my blog. Not much to report. However, I am working on things now.

All that is left is the Quest Journal. Making the layout and art for a 40-50 page book is a different skill set than the coding of the game. I am working my way through it. However, with art, inspiration is sometime needed and that does not always come on demand.

https://cambragol.github.io/advent-of-the-trinity/articles/Quest_Art

Belated Update​

Art for the Quest Journal was scrapped. Moving in a new direction now.

It has been a little while since my last update. Maybe the quietest period since I started. And for good reason, as not much was happening. Last I posted I had started work on the final aspect of the project, the ‘Quest Journal’. I had some layout going on and had some potential art directions beginning. However, since then I scrapped my original art direction, started another style, nearly finished it, then realised it just doesn’t fit, and scrapped it too. After that I have been awaiting some inspiration.

Several months later I have found some inspiration, and am working on the art for the journal again. It is leaning less towards art, and a little more towards typography. A little. I am not solid on it yet, but I am carrying forward. We will see how that goes.

The rest of the project is done. Nothing has been going on codewise or bughunting wise, as it is done. It is all (nearly) frozen. I did build an install program which can be run from a floppy (3.5”), and I did add travelling NPCs to towns (which was already in the code), and variations on ‘Inn’ encounters (which was already in the code as well), to take into account inns which are in the wilderness etc.

Other than those above things not much else has been happening elsewhere.

I will continue on with the Quest Journal. Samples or Screenshots? Not at this time. I will say it leans a little towards the cover of the ‘Spell Book’ and the ‘History of Britannia’s’ cover borders. So simple. I felt in the end that page after page of lavishly illustrated borders for a glorified notebook, just didn’t sit right.

I will add a screenshot of a new ‘Inn’ encounter though. Just to add some color to this post.

AN ENCOUNTER IN AN INN

PS - I forgot to mention that I turned off commenting a few weeks back, as the spam was getting to be too much. I am going to turn it back on now, but it may only be for a short time, as my comment provider is dropping their free bracket, and implimenting a new comment system is no easy task.