Utilities!

Produced by: Jason “Xarton Dragon” Penney
Website: JCZorkmid
Releases:
* Portable Ultima 1-6 Patches (PDAR) (1.8 MiB, 234 hits)
* Portable Ultima 7 Patches (PDAR) (21.7 KiB, 108 hits)
* Portable Serpent Isle Patches (PDAR) (51.2 KiB, 80 hits)
* PDAR for Windows (2.4 MiB, 142 hits)
* PDAR Source Code (ZIP) (24.3 KiB, 69 hits)
* PDAR Source Code (TAR.GZ) (17.1 KiB, 62 hits)

A set of patches for Ultima 1 through Ultima 6, developed by Xarton Dragon, which should theoretically be applicable to most installations of the games, inside or outside of DOSBox. The patches are distributed in the PDAR (Portable Delta ARchive) format, and contain only the differences between the patched files and the unpatched files. This should streamline and speed the process of patch application, and also removes much of the hassle of the actual installation process that other patching utilities utilize.

Most of the major patches for each game are included, and a complete listing (as well as installation instructions) can be found in the main download. Also available for download are a Windows PDAR application and the PDAR source code.

These have been tested against the GOG versions of the games and are confirmed to work thereupon. The newly released the Ultima 7 box set is also supported. Xarton will soon be testing them against the Ultima Collection CD installations, and it is expected that the patches will prove effective for those versions of the games as well.

Note: the Ultima 7 patches are supplied as ZIP files, and each archive contains a pair of files: a General MIDI patch and a “GOG Extra” patch. Here are his instructions for applying these patches:

Ultima7.General_MIDI-1.1.pdar or Ultima7p2.General_MIDI-1.0.pdar

Modifies necessary files in place. No need to run batch installer. After applying simply run INSTALL.EXE to change your music device to MT-32 to activate.

Ultima7.General_MIDI-1.1-GOG_Extra.pdar or Ultima7p2.General_MIDI-1.0-GOG_Extra.pdar

Run the General MIDI patch first. This patch modifies the U7.CFG supplied with the GOG distribution to activate the GM/GS patch without the need to run INSTALL.EXE.

Utilities!

Produced by: Pix
Website: Pix’s Origin Adventures
Releases:
* Pix's Ultima Patcher (5.4 MiB, 676 hits)

With the release of Ultimas 1-3 and Ultima 4 on Good Old Games, Ultima Aiera published an article containing information about patching and updating those Ultima titles that have been re-released for sale thus far. Ultima fan Pix (whose repositories of scans of Ultima documentation are really worth checking out, by the way) took it upon himself to collect all of the various patches and updates discussed in that article into a single, easier-to-use application.

The utility should now cover all Ultima titles available on GOG, including the Underworld games and the Ultima 7 box set.

Pix cautions that while the Patcher should work on clean installations from Good Old Games, installations that have been modified in any way already could cause strange results. It includes DPMI and other necessary files as well, so that the graphical upgrade patches for each game work properly.

Presumably, this utility will continue to be expanded to cover additional Ultima titles should they be released on Good Old Games.

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Produced by: gulbsoft
Website: gulbsoft’s Channel @ YouTube

This is a second online remake of Ultima 6, which is apparently being developed by someone at BioWare in his spare time. Which, in turn, is really cool.

At present, this remake features a full implementation of the game’s day/night cycles, keyword-sensitive dialogue, and limited interactivity with containers and other objects. Powder kegs work, their explosions being handled and rendered by a high-speed particle system, and their ability to destroy nearby doors upon exploding is implemented. This remake also features a custom UI that derives elements from Ultima Online; it boasts a full-featured inventory interface, dragging & dropping of items, and an improved conversation system.

gulbsoft is implementing Britannia Online in C#. At present, he has no definite plans to release it, although that may change in the future.

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Produced by: agentorangeguy, Zygon Dragon
Website: Ultima VI Remake
Forum: pics of my u6 mod @ the Exult Forums

Another mod for Exult that attempts to recreate Ultima 6 using the Ultima 7 engine.

A goodly portion of the mainland has been mapped out (apart from small details like the Fens of the Dead), and things like NPC schedules are working (although not fully usecoded as yet). A number of NPC conversations have been implemented, and the shrine-freeing quests are under development.

agentorangeguy plans to make the game a tad more linear than the original, and plans to use Ultima 7′s more advanced scripting in order to ensure that experienced players can’t just skip ahead by e.g. freeing shrines without first learning the mantras, or digging for Hawkins’ treasure without first finding all the pieces of the map. He also plans to add one or two additional recruitable NPCs to the game, and might even have a go at implementing a side quest which would let the player solve Quenton’s murder. He also plans to flesh out the presence of the gargoyles in Britannia and enhance the presence of the Royal Guard in hot and/or strategic locations, to give the game a more proper sense of a land at war.

Zygon Dragon has recently signed on with the project as well, providing it a better home on the Internet than MySpace, and assisting with NPC conversations.

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Produced by: Ian Albert
Website: Ultima 6 Minecraft Conversion @ Ian-Albert.com
Releases:
* Ultima 6 Minecraft Conversion (5.1 MiB, 1,186 hits)

A total conversion for the block-based adventure game/creativity platform Minecraft, this mod painstakingly re-creates the world of Ultima 6: The False Prophet within the game. The entirety of the overworld, and all of the dungeons (including the Gargoyle Realm) are included.

It’s worth noting that this map is the result of an automated conversion; Mr. Albert wrote a Java program that took the data from the original Ultima 6 map data files and converted it into a blocky 3D world within Minecraft. The conversion is nearly perfect, apart from a few small edits made to get around specific issues with the Minecraft engine. (For example, two trees near Nicodemus’s house had to be deleted because they were catching fire and burning down half of Britannia.) He also had to make some lengthy connective corridors in order to properly link together those dungeons that cross-connect in the original game.

Even so…it’s an awesome effort.

Ian Albert has dedicated this project to Codex Dragon, known to mere mortals as Felicia Day. The module requires Minecraft Alpha to play.

And remember: the first annual Aiera Thanksgiveaway is still on!

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Produced by: Jim Ursetto
Website: pu6e @ 3e8.org
Releases:
* PU6E v0.6.0 (Windows) (2.8 MiB, 208 hits)
* PU6E v0.6.0 (Source) (82.7 KiB, 140 hits)
* PU6E v0.6.0 ReadMe (12.5 KiB, 145 hits)
* U6Edit v0.5 (52.7 KiB, 130 hits)
* U6Edit v0.5.0 ReadMe (8.0 KiB, 132 hits)
* Ultima 6 Notes (10.9 KiB, 130 hits)

PU6E, which is pronounced “puce“, probably stands for Python Ultima 6 Editor, since that is the language it was written in. It uses OpenGL and wxWindows on top of that, and is an editing environment for Ultima 6: The False Prophet.

Using PU6E, one can create, modify, and delete objects in Ultima 6, manipulate containers (via a tree view), edit terrain and map chunks, view all map and object tiles, view tile and palette animation, view and move NPCs, view book contents, save map/object/NPC data, and (most importantly) play new worlds of your creation. In other words, it is primarily a world editor; it cannot be used to edit the game’s plot, book texts, or character dialogues.

That said, the editor works with all the members of what the producer calls “the Ultima 6 family”: Ultima 6, Martian Dreams, and Savage Empire.

An older version of the editor, called U6Edit, is also available; it was built with Perl and GTK.

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Produced by: Origin Systems (presumably)
Downloads:
* Ultima 6 Design Document (164.1 KiB, 500 hits)

Courtesy of Lost Dragon, Aiera is pleased to host for download this design document for Ultima 6. It is mostly focused on game mechanics, covering everything from monster stats to pathfinding, and as such affords an interesting glimpse under the hood of my personal favourite Ultima title. What it doesn’t cover, however, is plot points, dialogues, or other in-game text.

This document was obtained a few years ago, in an Ultima discussion forum. It is apparently an older document, and so some of the information recorded in it may not reflect the final values and functions that went into the game.

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Produced by: Team Archon
Website: The Ultima 6 Project
Releases:
* Ultima 6 Project v1.0 (1,015.3 MiB, 6,494 hits)
* Ultima 6 Project v1.01 Patch (1.3 MiB, 5,455 hits)
* Ultima 6 Project v1.0 (1/10) (105.0 MiB, 136 hits)
* Ultima 6 Project v1.0 (2/10) (105.0 MiB, 151 hits)
* Ultima 6 Project v1.0 (3/10) (105.0 MiB, 147 hits)
* Ultima 6 Project v1.0 (4/10) (105.0 MiB, 141 hits)
* Ultima 6 Project v1.0 (5/10) (105.0 MiB, 136 hits)
* Ultima 6 Project v1.0 (6/10) (105.0 MiB, 140 hits)
* Ultima 6 Project v1.0 (7/10) (105.0 MiB, 135 hits)
* Ultima 6 Project v1.0 (8/10) (105.0 MiB, 132 hits)
* Ultima 6 Project v1.0 (9/10) (105.0 MiB, 143 hits)
* Ultima 6 Project v1.0 (10/10) (69.2 MiB, 154 hits)

Upgrades and Mods:
* Enhanced Graphics (11.5 MiB, 1,052 hits)
* New Spell Scrolls Mod (114.0 KiB, 104 hits)
* Chuckles Spell Scroll Changer (7.4 KiB, 100 hits)
* Blank Bread Crumbs Mod (1.7 KiB, 96 hits)
* Buy Reagents in Bulk Mod (170.0 KiB, 103 hits)
* Reagent Highlighting Mod (1.7 KiB, 110 hits)
* Spiders Drop More Silk Mod (5.8 KiB, 94 hits)

Milestones:
* Milestone 1 (147.9 MiB, 248 hits)
* Milestone 2 (225.6 MiB, 242 hits)
* Milestone 3 (270.9 MiB, 240 hits)
* Milestone 4 (356.8 MiB, 239 hits)
* Milestone 5 (442.5 MiB, 234 hits)
* Milestone 6 (140.0 MiB, 246 hits)
* Milestone 6 Patch (3.2 MiB, 209 hits)
* Milestone 7 (713.7 MiB, 253 hits)
* Milestone 8 (Beta Release) (808.9 MiB, 241 hits)
* Ultima 6 Project Beta 2 (834.0 MiB, 481 hits)
* Ultima 6 Project Beta 3 (994.9 MiB, 387 hits)

Tools:
* Font Builder (619.0 KiB, 249 hits)
* Interface Designer (1.2 MiB, 248 hits)

Tech Demo:
* Tech Demo (36.8 MiB, 253 hits)

Another Dungeon Siege-based remake, this high-profile (and high-tech) project aims to re-create Ultima 6, adding many of the same features to the game that Lazarus added into Ultima 5: enhanced music, expanded storyline, new characters and additional side quests.

The project has been in the works for a number of years, but their development pace has seemed to surge ahead in the last year or so; they’ve achieved several milestone releases since first being posted to Aiera, each one adding vast amounts of additional functionality to the game.

Akalabeth on a Nokia

Produced by: Arnim Sauerbier
Website: Arnim Sauerbier
Releases:
* Aklabeth for Nokia Smartphones (33.6 KiB, 555 hits)
* Ultima 7 - Exult - Program (1.0 MiB, 373 hits)
* Ultima 7 - Exult - Data (14.0 MiB, 330 hits)
* Ultima 7 - Music (mono) (12.5 MiB, 322 hits)
* Ultima 7 - Music (stereo) (28.7 MiB, 377 hits)
* Ultima 8 - Pentagram - Program (766.2 KiB, 354 hits)
* Ultima 8 - Pentagram - libSDL (16.2 KiB, 303 hits)
* Ultima 8 - Pentagram - Configuration (998 bytes, 290 hits)

These are actually just ports of other Ultima projects (linked below), but as I’ve never seen so many in one place at one time (and from one person!), they are classified not only as ports but as their own separate entry on Aiera.

The following projects have been ported to the Nokia 770/N800 internet tablets:

• Akalabeth – a port of Paul Robson’s SDL version of the game
• Ultima 5 – a port of Nazghul/Haxima
• Ultima 6 – a port of Nuvie
• Ultima 7 – a port of Exult
• Ultima 8 – a port of Pentagram

It serves to note that these ports are ongoing works, and it further serves to note that some of the projects that have been ported (Pentagram, for an easy example) are themselves incomplete. However, O Reader, if you use a Nokia 770/N800 internet tablet, and would like to be able to play some classic Ultima titles whilst on the go, this is likely a project for you!

Nuvie

Produced by: Eric Fry
Website: Nuvie @ Sourceforge
Releases:
* Nuvie v0.3 (Windows) (999.5 KiB, 117 hits)
* Nuvie v0.3 (Mac) (3.1 MiB, 98 hits)
* Nuvie v0.3 (Source) (1.2 MiB, 93 hits)

Snapshots:
* Windows Snapshot (999.2 KiB, 406 hits)
* Mac OS X Snapshot (2.7 MiB, 313 hits)

Eric Fry’s novel remake of the Ultima 6 engine is also going to be compatible with Savage Empire and Martian Dreams. Though currently being developed under Mac OS X, there are downloadable binaries for both Windows and OS X. The program source code is also available. Linux users will have to compile Nuvie from source.

Although the project website went silent between 2007 and 2011, work continued on Nuvie, as evidenced by the steady stream of code commits taking place in the background. New features were being added all the time — as of early 2011, the project even partially supported the FM-Towns port of the game, with its voiceovers and advanced sound effects. More than that, however, Nuvie also added limited support for the addition of custom sound sets as of that same date.

In April of 2011, just prior to the Easter weekend, Eric Fry announced the release of version 0.1 of Nuvie, the project’s first official release. It has since reached version 0.3.

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Produced by: Troy Forrest
Releases:
* Chunk Editor (17.9 KiB, 273 hits)

A simple editing utility for modifying the graphics ‘chunks’ in Ultima 6.

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Produced by: Paul Gilbert
Website: U6Edit @ Sourceforge
Releases:
* U6Edit (523.5 KiB, 328 hits)

This powerful editing suite for Ultima 6 allows for the modification of the original game’s maps and graphics, and also includes a complete editing suite for conversations, with opcode highlighting. Currently, the program seems to support both Ultima 6 and Martian Dreams (but not, apparently, Savage Empire).

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Produced by: DOUG the Eagle Dragon
Website: IT-HE Software
Releases:
* The Unoffical Ultima VI Developer's Kit v1.0 (128.9 KiB, 359 hits)
* Ultima 6 Items List (24.9 KiB, 301 hits)
* Ultima 6 Savegame Manager (100.0 KiB, 314 hits)
* Book Editor (17.6 KiB, 261 hits)
* Finder (20.6 KiB, 292 hits)
* IT-HE Utilities Source Code (1.4 MiB, 277 hits)
* Ultima 6 Editing Information (132.7 KiB, 300 hits)

The always amusing, always inventive DOUG the Eagle Dragon has produced an incredible wealth of software for editing many different aspects of Ultima 6, so much so that a “brief” description is rather difficult to give.

The Unofficial Developer’s Kit is a comprehensive utilities package that includes four programs that can be used to edit Ultima 6:

• Tweak – a party roster editor (add people to your party, even if in the game they won’t respond to the join command!) with a few other bonus features
• Map – world editor, edit the chunks and map
• RedSetter – affix ‘temporary’ objects to the ground, making static scenery
• Undead – repairs characters who have been rendered “brain-dead” by violent death and subsequent resurrection

DOUG has also released some useful subsidiary programs to this utility:

• Savage Empire Patch (96.0 KiB, 278 hits) – a patch that enables the editor to work with Savage Empire
• Martian Dreams Patch (69.2 KiB, 270 hits) – a patch that enables the editor to work with Martian Dreams
• Party Fix Utility (11.4 KiB, 260 hits) – a small program that corrects an occasional error in Tweak that causes ‘solid’ characters

Conversely, the Items List is more of a cheat than a utility (since you can only use the ‘item creation’ feature of Ultima 6 if you use the ‘spam’ cheat); this is a list of many of the items you can get Iolo to create in the game.

The Savegame Manager is a useful program that allows for more than one save-game in Ultima 6, even when using ‘hacked’ versions of the game.

The Book Editor will allow you to UNBIND all the books and signs in Ultima 6 into a text file, and then REBIND them into the game format after you edit their contents.

The Finder utility has two components, both of which will assist in the use of the RedSetter program that is a part of the Ultima 6 Developer’s Kit:

• Stamp – affixes a ‘homing device’ to the Avatar (the location of the Avatar is critical to proper use of RedSetter)
• Finder – tracks the Avatar using the ‘homing device’

Finally, the Editor source code: written mostly in Borland C, this is the code for all of the utilities from IT-HE software, as well as some information documentation to assist in its usage. Note that the source code has been RARed first, and then ZIPped, to make it smaller.

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Produced by: Rescue Raider
Releases:
* Ultima 6 Character Editor (29.0 KiB, 377 hits)

Another character-editing utility for Ultima 6.

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Produced by: Nodling Dragon
Website: Ultima Tech Info and Patches
Release:
* Ultima 6 File Formats (20.6 KiB, 330 hits)

Nodling Dragon’s incomplete reference file for some of the Ultima 6 file formats. Useful for editors.

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Produced by: Nodling Dragon, Glanestel Dragon
Website: Ultima Tech Info and Patches
Releases:
* u6encode Source (1.8 KiB, 200 hits)
* u6decode Source (3.7 KiB, 210 hits)
* u6decode v2.1 (16.5 KiB, 117 hits)

Much as with Nodling’s equivalent utilities for Ultima 4, these files let you decode (decompress) LZW-compressed data files that Ultima 6 uses, and then re-encode them in a way that Ultima 6 can read (although not with the LZW algorithm, which was patented at the time these utilities were written). Nodling Dragon points out that when one uses the encoder, the resultant file will be a bit larger than the equivalent “original” file, for this reason.

Glanestel Dragon has since produced an updated version of u6decode which will work on Ultima 6‘s conversation files as well. The files are, apparently, not entirely encoded with LZW, but do have LZW-compressed data blocks within them. Nodling Dragon’s original version can’t handle these files.

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Produced by: Xenerkes Dragon
Releases:
* LZW Decompressor v1.0 (11.1 KiB, 224 hits)

Some files of Ultima 5 and Ultima 6 are compressed using the no-longer-patented LZW algorithm. This program uses the decompression scheme for the algorithm.

Ultima 6 Online

Produced by: Galleon Dragon, Mose, Cear Dragon
Website: Ultima 6 Online
Forum: Ultima 6 Online Forums
Releases:
* U6O Client (3.1 MiB, 459 hits)

Graphics Updates:
* Chin's Tileset (561.2 KiB, 213 hits)
* David's Tileset (2.2 MiB, 188 hits)
* Quentin's Tileset (463.9 KiB, 166 hits)
* Combo Tileset #1 (3.0 MiB, 217 hits)
* Combo Tileset #2 (666.5 KiB, 171 hits)

Galleon Dragon’s ambitious re-creation of Ultima 6 — which has been brought back online by mose — takes the game into the online realm, allowing you to play against other Ultima fans. It also implements many of the quest features of the game.

As with most remakes that use the original graphics for the game, this remake requires the original game data files to be installed on your hard drive. However, the game also features a number of graphical improvements which build off of the original game data, such as higher-resolution objects and transparent atmospheric effects.

More recently, there have been a series of high-quality (or higher-quality, at least) graphics mods released for the game; they can be downloaded above or from here, where instructions can also be found as to how to install them. The picture to the right demonstrates some of the improvements (click through to find a high-res version at Flickr).

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Produced by: mikefictiti0us
Website: Exult Forum Discussion
Releases:
* Ultima 6 Patch (3.7 MiB, 429 hits)

This ambitious retooling of Exult aims to modify the Ultima 7 game world and story into that of Ultima 6. Apparently being undertaken by a single person, the early screenshots look very promising. While Ultima 7′s tile graphics lack the vibrant colour that was seen in Ultima 6, the attention to detail that mikefictiti0us has put into areas like the Throne Room and Nystul’s Lab is very promising.

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Produced by: Finire Dragon
Website: Finire Dragon
Releases:
* Speaker Patch (115.4 KiB, 299 hits)

Another timing-correction patch that allows Ultima 6 to correctly play sounds through the default PC speaker on faster systems.

Note that Finire Dragon’s webpage has no section concerning this patch – he only hosts it there.