Ultima Online Character Creation and Client Setup: Documented Gameplay Basics

Choosing Your Client: Classic or Enhanced

Before entering Britannia, the getting-started documentation frames the first decision as choosing a client, stating that your choice of client will affect how you view and play the game. Two versions exist: the Ultima Online Classic Client, described as the original client used to play Ultima Online, with fewer features than the Enhanced Client but favored by longtime players who prefer its simpler nature; and the Ultima Online Enhanced Client, the alternative improved client, which includes improved graphics, a macro bar, and custom interfaces. Download instructions list both clients as selectable options.

Installation starts by double-clicking the downloaded file and following the on-screen instructions, and the download page states that Ultima Online requires DirectX version 8.1 or higher. The client decision is not permanent: you are free to switch between the Classic and Enhanced clients so long as you have both installed on your system. The documentation notes the switch point only as a prerequisite of having both installed, so choosing one client first does not lock you out of the other if the second is also present.

Selecting a Shard: Unique Servers with Distinct Histories

Shard selection begins with choosing among multiple servers, and the documentation frames this as more than picking a machine. Each shard is a unique server with its own distinct history, guilds, and player organizations. The lore behind that split is explicit: the Gem of Immortality was shattered into many shards, and each shard is represented by a different server. Before the shattering there was one world, not multiple shards; after it, their histories diverged and each became home to unique people, places, and traditions.

Because shard cultures developed separately, the documented advice is to do some research on the shards and read up on recent events hosted by the in-game Event Moderators. There are different guilds and different player organizations on each shard, so what exists on one server may not exist on another. The rule interaction is direct: a shared origin up to the shattering, then divergent people, places, and traditions, which makes the choice of shard a choice about which community and history you are joining.

Character Races: Humans, Elves, and Gargoyles

Humans, the first playable race in Ultima Online, naturally heal faster than Elves and Gargoyles and are more adept at basic resource gathering. They can carry greater weights. Their most significant trait, "Jack of All Trades," provides a "hidden" minimum of 20 skill points in all skills, even ones they have not trained past 0. Humans are the most widespread race, with kingdoms in Britannia and Tokuno, as well as towns in Malas and the Lost Lands. Each race has differing physical appearances and access to different types of weapon, armor, and clothing.

Elves hail from Heartwood, and their lives are tied to the wellbeing of all of Sosaria. They are more in touch with nature, granting greater ability in locating special resources. Their wisdom imparts an automatic increase to total Mana and a higher natural resistance to energy-based attacks. They also have a higher ability to move without being tracked and are better able to detect hidden creatures. Gargoyles rely on wings for quicker transportation instead of riding mounts. They are fierce warriors able to do greater damage as they take more damage themselves, and have greater ability in Throwing and Mysticism skills and Imbuing weapons with magical properties.

Gender and Appearance Options

Gender selection in Ultima Online determines more than a label. Characters have male or female gender options, and some armor and clothing are gender-specific, meaning a garment wearable by one gender may not be wearable by the other. Mount compatibility also follows gender lines: certain mounts can only be ridden by one gender or another. After choosing gender, hair, skin, and clothing each present a number of options. Gargoyles replace hair with horn styles, so their appearance menu offers different horn designs instead of hair. Starter clothing provides no protection against attacks and exists for modesty’s sake.

None of the appearance choices are permanent. Hair, skin, and clothing selections can all be changed later on during the course of play, so a character’s initial look is not locked in. The name, however, is a separate decision from appearance: before selecting skills, the client presents a naming step, and the documentation advises thinking carefully before selecting one. That places gender, clothing, hair, skin, horn style, and name in the same appearance-related portion of character creation, immediately ahead of the skill selection stage.

Skill Selection: Presets, Advanced Mode, and Hybrid Builds

At the skill selection screen, Ultima Online offers two routes. You can choose from pre-selected skill sets that suit a particular type of character, which grants starting items and skills tied to that set. Alternatively, selecting the “Advanced” option lets you pick three starting skills and adjust their level, along with the level of your starting Stats: Strength, Intelligence, and the third stat shown alongside them. Both paths sit within the same character creation flow, so the preset route simply skips the manual distribution that Advanced mode exposes.

Nothing restricts you to a single archetype once skills are on the character. The documentation states you are free to mix and match different skills on a single character, giving examples such as a warrior who dabbles in alchemy, a mage who is also an accomplished blacksmith, or a bard with an uncanny ability to reel in the “big one” when fishing. Advanced mode handles this at creation directly: the three starting skill picks and adjustable stat levels are chosen by you rather than derived from a pre-selected set.

Starting Location: Facets, Town Moongates, and Shard Research

The final step in character creation is choosing a city to start in. You select either the Trammel or Ter Mur facets at the bottom, then select each town to read a description of them before making your choice. The starting items and skills you receive are determined by your choice on this screen. After committing to a town, travel between towns is usually accomplished via permanent town moongates. This means once you have selected a starting city, you can use these moongates to move between settlements.

Shards share a common history up until the point when the Gem was shattered; before that, there was only one world and not multiple shards. From that moment, their histories diverged, and each became home to their own unique people, places, and traditions. There are different guilds and different player organizations on each shard. To make an informed choice, do some research on the shards and read up on the recent events hosted by the in-game Event Moderators.

First published Oct 15, 2026.