Spellbook strap still broken

McDougle

Can we get acknowledgement? A fix date? A refund of our vet reward?

Seth

They are so quick to impose "fixes" that limit what we can do, minor exploits, and they are unsurprisingly Error-Free, 100% perfect coding. 

Also things like e.g. setting a 300,000 points for high seas, underwater nerf. 

McDougle

I'd at least like to know how the pet costume bug that no one ever heard of was reported so effectively that it merited a hot fix that we did hear about and had to fix the fix.. if i knew how that was reported I could report the spellbook staps bug the same way..

Seth

Maybe they cannot figure out how to debug this issue.

I reported this issue when it was first tested in TC, and appeared to be fixed back then, but then it became inconsistent once we start to move the spellbooks around.

@Misk ;

How far down the queue is this bug? Can this be scheduled for the next publish?

Yoshi

"this is very low priority issue, does not affect gameplay, (can fix by placing spellbook strap in trash even)"

McDougle

Note that neither fey reptile or dragon slayer going back into strap along with previously noted demon undead or regular spellbook 

Yoshi

“I actually had a thought, maybe this is working as intended.

description reads

• Spellbook Strap – 3 Year
• Blessed container to accept only spellbooks
• Holds up to 25 spellbooks
• When a player dies, all contents will remain in the spellbook strap
• Spellbooks can be used to cast spells while in this sub-container

If you’re taking the spellbook out of the strap for use as a slayer, that’s on user, I don’t think it must return back to the strap.
“

Grimbeard

Yoshi said:

“I actually had a thought, maybe this is working as intended.

description reads

• Spellbook Strap – 3 Year
• Blessed container to accept only spellbooks
• Holds up to 25 spellbooks
• When a player dies, all contents will remain in the spellbook strap
• Spellbooks can be used to cast spells while in this sub-container

If you’re taking the spellbook out of the strap for use as a slayer, that’s on user, I don’t think it must return back to the strap.
“

Why on earth would each book not return to it's original location? If you're still willing to offer the refund the  developers refuse I'll take a fishing pole on pac 

Yoshi

"hmm, well when you arm a weapon it doesn't go back to a specific spot

but yeah i'll give you a fishing pole on pac"

Grimbeard

Thanks yoshi 

Grimbeard

Yoshi said:

"hmm, well when you arm a weapon it doesn't go back to a specific spot

but yeah i'll give you a fishing pole on pac"

But it does go back into the same spot

Yoshi

"on grid mode? it will go to the first available location, which will sort of always be the same spot in that sense, but on classic backpack mode a disarmed weapon falls to random spot"

Grimbeard

Yoshi said:

"on grid mode? it will go to the first available location, which will sort of always be the same spot in that sense, but on classic backpack mode a disarmed weapon falls to random spot"

Agreed at any rate it's sad that yoshi is left in charge of customer service 

Pawain

So all this time you are expecting spell books that were not in to bag to go into the bag when you die?

And you call that a bug?

I was under the impression you said the ones in the bag fell out upon death. 

Chrille

Somehow books can get bugged.
I have 20 or so spellbooks in my strap and 2 of them will not go back in when I use equip last weapon macro to switch between the last 2.
Rest works fine so far, not sure what triggers books to get bugged and would like a solution to reset the books that doesn't work.

Yoshi

"I actually don't have one, i haven't thought of a use for it,

all the spellbooks i carry in my bag that i don't use - i stack ontop of each other so they don't take up any space,

all the slayer books i use are color coded and go to one side of my backpack, so them being in another bag i can't see assisting. "

Grimbeard

I have 50 sdi book equipped i use EC macro to change to demon slayer the expected result would be for the sdi book to return to the strap rather than my main pack 

Pawain

So if only 2 do not go back when you use equip last weapon,  maybe it would help posting a more detailed bug report, using the criteria that has been specified.

They probably have tested some that work and see no bug.

A note on an item that says broken is not good enough in a game or in RL. Seen plenty of those when I repaired hospital equipment.  Turn item on, verify every feature works, in this case it just does 1 thing, then return it as fixed, about 90% of the items never came back to the shop even tho I did nothing to "fix" it.

Grimbeard

Pawain said:

So if only 2 do not go back when you use equip last weapon,  maybe it would help posting a more detailed bug report, using the criteria that has been specified.

They probably have tested some that work and see no bug.

A note on an item that says broken is not good enough in a game or in RL. Seen plenty of those when I repaired hospital equipment.  Turn item on, verify every feature works, in this case it just does 1 thing, then return it as fixed, about 90% of the items never came back to the shop even tho I did nothing to "fix" it.

There have been multiple reports from multiple users 

Pawain

The item description is:

• Spellbook Strap – 3 Year
• Blessed container to accept only spellbooks
• Holds up to 25 spellbooks
• When a player dies, all contents will remain in the spellbook strap
• Spellbooks can be used to cast spells while in this sub-container

So, it does 4 things.

Is it Blessed and only hold spellbooks... Yes
Does it hold up to 25 books ...Yes
When a player dies do the contents remain in the strap... Yes?
Can you cast spells with all your spellbooks in the container... Yes

Which of those 4 things is "broken".

It does not say that when a book is removed from the strap, it goes back in it.

Arroth_Thaiel

@Grimbeard

When you use "Equip Item" actions, the location from which the item was drawn is not saved. So, when you then equip the next item, the game doesn't have any idea where to return the currently held item, and drops it into your main pack. At least, this is what happens most of the time.

However, the EC has the lovely undress agent to address just this circumstance.

For the books that will not return to the spellbook strap, write yourself an undress agent, set the spellbook strap as the default container, and add the books you want placed in that container. Now go into Actions>Other>Undress Agent, drag it to a macro, right click to select the undress agent to execute, and when you use that macro (hotkey or hotbar) the books you've selected in the agent should be "undressed" into your spellbook strap (the default container of the agent).

If that works for you, add a delay of 1.0 s to the macro (so the spellbook has time to be undressed), then add the equip new item macro (the spellbook you wish to equip).

Here is a layout:


It's a three part macro instead of one, and you do have to create an undress agent, but it should put the books back into the Spellbook strap for you.

Grimbeard

Arroth_Thaiel said:

@ Grimbeard

When you use "Equip Item" actions, the location from which the item was drawn is not saved. So, when you then equip the next item, the game doesn't have any idea where to return the currently held item, and drops it into your main pack. At least, this is what happens most of the time.

However, the EC has the lovely undress agent to address just this circumstance.

For the books that will not return to the spellbook strap, write yourself an undress agent, set the spellbook strap as the default container, and add the books you want placed in that container. Now go into Actions>Other>Undress Agent, drag it to a macro, right click to select the undress agent to execute, and when you use that macro (hotkey or hotbar) the books you've selected in the agent should be "undressed" into your spellbook strap (the default container of the agent).

If that works for you, add a delay of 1.0 s to the macro (so the spellbook has time to be undressed), then add the equip new item macro (the spellbook you wish to equip).

Here is a layout:


It's a three part macro instead of one, and you do have to create an undress agent, but it should put the books back into the Spellbook strap for you.

Thanks @Arroth_Thaiel

Pawain

You have been saying the bookstrap is broken for how many years now?

But, it works as intended.  

Grimbeard

Pawain said:

You have been saying the bookstrap is broken for how many years now?

But, it works as intended.  

No it doesn't. do bandages fall out of if the belt when used? Do arrows fall out of the quiver? 

Yoshi

"(I thought this workaround could be replicated in CC with UOAssist,

However there were actually 2 problems.

Problem 1, it doesn't recognise the spellbook strap as a container.

Problem 2, if you do use a valid container, spellbooks do not go into the container, only weapons

I'll perhaps contact tugsoft)"

ForeverFun

At least in EC, the UO server keeps track of the backpack slot ID number where the item started in, That is true for spellbook, weapons, and armor.    It appears the UO server keeps track of just the starting slotID, not the containerID. 

If you put an item in any sub-container in your backpack, and hit a macro to equip that item, when you unequip, it tries to put that in the SlotID where it started, always in the main backpack.

(*)  As a test, put your favorite spellbook into a subcontainer, say a slot near the bottom.  Verify that same slot is available in your main pack.  You'll see it unequip into the main pack at the same slot number it started in, just in the wrong container.

So the problem is the server doesn't appear to track the original [sub] containerID during an unequip/swap operation.  This at least applies when the sub-container is an ordinary container like a backpack.  I don't have a spellbook strap, so can't comment on that behavior, but I imagine it's the same logic.

Having to unequip items into a specific container is pretty cumbersome, IMHO -- that causes a use delay, and those can accumulate and affect other operations.  As an example, you can swap spellbooks with a single equip operation, with no unequip (that's just one delay "tick");  whereas unequip + equip is two delay "ticks", and you're empty handed for part of that, which has its own consequences).

If the sub container tracking is not fixed (and it should be a server side fix), I think you are better off not using straps or sub-containers for books or other items you equip.  Ideally, the server would try to unequip back into the subcontainer ID it started in, so long as the container is still in scope / on the player (else it should fallback to the main pack).

Yoshi

"Maybe I better stay out of this conversation,

As i maintain my belief that for both weapons and armor and all clients you should always have to unequip before you re-equip.

Not just for the pvp and power creep implications, but just general roleplay too, it was so simple and right before, you take off one tunic, you put on another tunic...

Let us think about it for a second, why was the spellbook strap made?

because people want to carry around a lot of spellbooks...

so why are they carrying around a lot of spellbooks?

because there are lots of slayers.

What's the point in having different slayers if you can switch between them with 1 button action anyway without having to unequip? Why not just have one super duper slayer that slays all monsters? its no different to carrying 15 spellbooks and setting a macro to arm spellbook.

Same with weapons, what's the point in different weapons having different specials? when you single button press to swap weap and load a special, why not just have one weapon and you can perform every single special with it? it's no different to carrying 10 weapons - which i do carry.

removing the requirement to unequip was very strange and wrong addition in my opinion.

I mean, in EC they have the unused unequip macro, what's it for?

And in CC they have the never used unarm and undress macros, what's it for?

But i am going off topic"

Pawain

Grimbeard said:

Pawain said:

You have been saying the bookstrap is broken for how many years now?

But, it works as intended.  

No it doesn't. do bandages fall out of if the belt when used? Do arrows fall out of the quiver? 

Your books fall out? 

I think you are confusing you taking a book out and equipping it with falling out.

Which of the 4 things a strap does is not working? 

It does all 4 things it says it will do. You just want it to do more. So, that is not a bug. Nor  is it broken.

Grimbeard

Pawain said:

Grimbeard said:

Pawain said:

You have been saying the bookstrap is broken for how many years now?

But, it works as intended.  

No it doesn't. do bandages fall out of if the belt when used? Do arrows fall out of the quiver? 

Your books fall out? 

I think you are confusing you taking a book out and equipping it with falling out.

Which of the 4 things a strap does is not working? 

It does all 4 things it says it will do. You just want it to do more. So, that is not a bug. Nor  is it broken.

I think your position is clear and no need to further reply while the rest of us discuss 

Lord_Frodo

Grimbeard said:

Pawain said:

You have been saying the bookstrap is broken for how many years now?

But, it works as intended.  

No it doesn't. do bandages fall out of if the belt when used? Do arrows fall out of the quiver? 

You are using one at a time so all others remain in the bag/quiver just like spell books.  When you put bandages/arrows in your backpack do they auto go into the belt/quiver, no you must put them in there.  If bookstraps are broken then so must belts/quivers for not auto filling.

ForeverFun

Lord_Frodo said:

Grimbeard said:

Pawain said:

You have been saying the bookstrap is broken for how many years now?

But, it works as intended.  

No it doesn't. do bandages fall out of if the belt when used? Do arrows fall out of the quiver? 

  bandages/arrows in your backpack do they auto go into the belt/quiver, no you must put them in there.  If bookstraps are broken then so must belts/quivers for not auto filling.

If you're talking about quivers, a more apt comparison may be the auto-scavenged arrows that get placed in your main pack.  The server should ideally try to place those in your equipped quiver first.

These things are really "usability" type issues, that improve "QOL".

I'd tend to favor making things more usable/automatic, versus introducing extraneous / repetitive/boring steps (or more complex macros that are more likely to fail midstream, causing user frustration). 

For now, I would go with "I think you are better off not using straps or sub-containers for books or other items you equip.", until you hear something final from the developers.  Maybe bring up at the next meet and greet?