Newsletter - 20080701

The competition is on! The 2nd Rapid Age Development contest kicked off yesterday, with participants all working to fill in the city of Ahra Pahts. Best of luck to all who entered!

Everyone is waiting to hear what will come of the latest news: Cyan Worlds has re-acquired the rights to Uru and its online component. Interviews seem to point towards fan-created content being a driving aspect of the game. Nobody wants to be left behind, so be sure to check the Guild of Writers to keep up with the latest Age Creation news; and use the Guild of Writers wiki (http://wiki.guildofwriters.com/) to learn how to use Blender and PyPRP for Age Development.

Newsletter - 20080601

Every group has its periods of activity and inactivity, and the Guild of Writers is no different. Things have quieted somewhat as people embrace the summer, but inactivity lasts only as long as a lack of inspiration.

Many people are also awaiting the new versions of both the PyPRP Blender plugin, and the ULM Distribution software. PyPRP 2.0.0 should be finished within the next month, and Trylon and his team have been working hard on ULM to get it released once they've got everything working.

But far in the distance a new storm brews...
This storm takes the name "Rapid Age Development 2.0: Ahra Pahts Shells". The contest is still in the discussion stages, but will most likely be happening within the next two months. Watch the forums for more information, sign-up, and general discussion about the contest, Ahra Pahts, PyPRP, and everything else related to writing Ages.

Newsletter - 20080510

(woefully behind on this one, aren't I?)

While people are still turning out amazing pieces of work, and the tools continuously improve with new features, there is a growing unrest about the future of Age Creation. It is important to know that creating Ages with the current tools is considered to be hacking and that a Cease and Desist letter could arrive at the Guild of Writers at any time.

Warnings aside, progress is being made on many fronts, including lightmapping techniques, wavesets for proper water rendering, and more ability to handle span sorting. Many people continue to challenge the limitations of the tools and add more and more life to fan created Ages.

Newsletter - 20080401

We thank everyone who participated in the Rapid Age Development competition, all of the results were amazing and we hope to continue these events in the future. PyPRP continues development with added support for sounds, soft volumes, and visual optimizations.

We encourage everyone to show their progress on the forums long after Uru Live has closed, and developer journals are available for those who wish to document their development progress.

As always, the forums are here for discussion and questions. As daunting as Age Creation might be, we hope to make is nearly painless (and completely painless at some point in the future).

Newsletter - 20080301

The Guild of Writers lives on! Exciting new development in the PyPRP Blender plugin should allow for highly advanced effects in Ages, including animated textures, fading sound effects, and better lighting abilities with shadows.

The Rapid Age Development competition is underway, closing on March 9th. All entries will be reviewed by the Guild of Maintainers and the winning entry will be made available for download through the Uru Library Manager software. More information is on the Guild of Writers forum: http://forum.guildofwriters.com/

For those looking to enter the realm of Age Creation, we have tutorials designed to walk you through the process, which are hosted on our wiki at http://www.guildofwriters.com/wiki/. We always welcome new members, and there are no requirements to join.

It will be quite interesting to see the Age designs that come out of our first competition, and everyone is encouraged to submit an entry for critique and for fun.

Newsletter - 20080205

We are all saddened to see the Cavern close yet again, but we also look forwards to the future and what we have learned from the past.
We have the knowledge of the Art of writing worlds, we can forge the links to unimaginable places.

The story doesn't end here, the story is beginning.
With the ending finally written, we are ready to pick up the pen and write the next book, write the next Age.
Although we might not keep contact in the Cavern, the Guild of Writers forum is an excellent place to continue exploring.
http://www.guildofwriters.com/

Newsletter - 20080101

Welcome everyone to the Guild of Writers. We recently held elections, and we are pleased to announce the following as representatives:

Aloys - Councilor of Building
ChaosSong - Councilor of Sound and Vision
Adam (Hoikas) Johnson - Councilor of Tool Development
Kato - Councilor of Web Management
Darryl (Paradox) Pogue - Councilor of Public Relations

Please visit us online at http://forum.guildofwriters.com/
If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact any of the councilors, or post on the forums.