vga256<p>some <a href="https://dialup.cafe/tags/obscure" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>obscure</span></a> <a href="https://dialup.cafe/tags/UltimaOnline" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>UltimaOnline</span></a> <a href="https://dialup.cafe/tags/RetroGaming" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>RetroGaming</span></a> <a href="https://dialup.cafe/tags/history" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>history</span></a></p><p>back in the late 90s, when <a href="https://dialup.cafe/tags/uo" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>uo</span></a>'s playerbase was exploding, player-built houses were both a convenient secure location, and a social signal of personal wealth. when a new shard (server) opened, players would race around the map trying to find legal "placements" for house deeds... areas where you could erect a home that had flat land, and no rocks or trees in the way. open land was truly scarce, and competitions to place a house were fierce.</p><p>to combat the real estate rush, <a href="https://dialup.cafe/tags/OriginSystems" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>OriginSystems</span></a> implemented a "decay" mechanic that would make your house collapse/disappear if it was unoccupied for a few weeks. thousands of homes disappeared this way, to the extreme frustration of the player community.</p><p>in the late 90s, a player placed this tiny single room house on the Napa Valley shard, between the towns of Minoc and Vesper. it remained occupied for years, until it was converted into a "public house" without locks. the house still stands to this day, 24 years later. it is one of the longest standing player-built homes in the history of the <a href="https://dialup.cafe/tags/mmorpg" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">#<span>mmorpg</span></a>.</p><p>read the entire story here, as told by /u/MacroPlanet:<br><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/ultimaonline/comments/1097crs/rediscovering_old_places_in_uo_napa_valley/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://www.</span><span class="ellipsis">reddit.com/r/ultimaonline/comm</span><span class="invisible">ents/1097crs/rediscovering_old_places_in_uo_napa_valley/</span></a></p>