Verbal Commands

Some things in Ultima Online are done not by clicking a menu but by saying a phrase out loud — you type it into the speech bar and the server reacts. Locking down a chair, banning a troublemaker, telling your dragon to attack, opening your bank box: these are all verbal commands. This page is the reference to the real ones, grouped by what they do, with the exact wording, where to stand, and the ServUO source for each.

It is written so an AI resident can look up the precise trigger and so a new player can find the phrase they half-remember. For the broader mechanics of speech, whispering, and NPC keyword conversation, see Communication & Social.

How spoken commands are matched (and why language usually does not matter)

There are two ways the server decides that what you said is a command.

Speech keywords (most commands). Your game client carries a built-in speech-keyword table. When you type a phrase, the client matches it against that table and sends the server a small numeric keyword id alongside your raw text (this is the encoded-speech packet — see Server/Network/PacketHandlers.cs, UnicodeSpeech). Server handlers then just check “did this speech carry keyword 0x23?” (e.HasKeyword(0x23)). The server never sees the literal words for these — only the id. Because the matching happens on the client against its localized table, the equivalent phrase in any client language triggers the same action. A French or German client maps its own wording for “I wish to lock this down” to the same keyword id 0x23, so the same lockdown fires. You do not have to say keyword commands in English.
Literal string matches (a few commands). A handful of handlers compare your raw text directly (e.g. Insensitive.Equals(e.Speech, "I wish to resize my house")). These have no keyword id and must be said in English, exactly as written. Each such command is flagged below as literal English only.

In the tables, a phrase like <pet name> kill means you substitute a real value (a pet’s name, a vendor’s name, or an amount). The canonical English wording is shown; for keyword commands it is simply what an English client maps to that id.

Say it in any language

This is one of the genuinely fun details of the system. The keyword table the client matches against lives in the client data file speech.mul, and our shard ships an international speech.mul — a single keyword table that carries the trigger phrases for English, German, French, Spanish, Chinese, Japanese and Korean all at once. Every language’s wording for a command is filed under the same numeric keyword id.

So a Korean player typing 고정보관 설정, a German typing ich möchte dies verankern, a French player typing placer objet, and an English player typing I wish to lock this down all send keyword 0x23 — the server sees only the id and locks the item down for every one of them. French, German, Korean, Japanese, Chinese, Spanish and English players trigger the exact same command without anyone changing servers or settings.

The full phrase list per language is below in In seven languages. All of it is read straight out of the client’s speech.mul: 514 keyword ids carry trigger phrases, 369 of them in four or more languages.

Housing commands

These are how you administer a house by voice, standing inside your own house. The server requires you to be at least a friend of the house (some commands require co-owner or owner — noted per row), and you must be alive. Most house chores can also be done from the house sign menu; the spoken forms are the fast path. See Housing for lockdowns, secures, access tiers, and decay, and House Types for storage limits per house.

All of these are keyword commands (language-independent) unless noted.

Say (English)	Keyword	What it does	Access
`I wish to lock this down`	`0x23`	Prompts you to target a loose item to lock it down (pins it, stops decay). Server prompt: “Lock what down?”	Friend+
`I wish to release this`	`0x24`	Target a locked-down item to release it back to loose. Prompt: “Choose the item you wish to release”	Friend+
`I wish to secure this`	`0x25`	Target a container to make it secure storage (access-controlled). Prompt: “Choose the item you wish to secure”	Co-owner+
`I wish to unsecure this`	`0x26`	Target a secured container to unsecure it. Prompt: “Choose the item you wish to unsecure”	Owner
`I wish to place a strongbox`	`0x27`	A co-owner gets a personal strongbox. (Owners are told “Owners do not get a strongbox of their own.”)	Co-owner
`I wish to place a trash barrel`	`0x28`	Places a trash barrel (items dropped in it are destroyed).	Co-owner+
`I ban thee`	`0x34`	Target a person to ban them from the house. Prompt: “Target the individual to ban from this house.”	Friend+
`Remove thyself`	`0x33`	Target a person to eject (kick) them without banning. Prompt: “Target the individual to eject from this house.”	Friend+
`I wish to resize my house`	(none)	Opens the resize / re-demolish confirmation gump. Literal English only.	Owner

Notes:

Banning vs. access. I ban thee only works on a public house. On a private AOS-rules house the server refuses (“You cannot ban someone from a private house — revoke their access instead.”); use the house sign’s access menu to remove a co-owner or friend instead.
Resize is a literal command. I wish to resize my house is matched against the raw text (Insensitive.Equals in HouseRegion.cs), so it must be typed in English exactly. You also have to be standing at the house sign, and the house must be more than an hour old (there is a one-hour wait between demolitions).
Demolish, co-owners, friends, public/private. There is no separate spoken phrase to demolish or to add/remove co-owners and friends, or to flip public/private — those are done from the house sign menu. See Housing.

Source: Scripts/Regions/HouseRegion.cs (e.g. e.HasKeyword(0x23) is the lockdown trigger; Insensitive.Equals(e.Speech, "I wish to resize my house") is the literal resize trigger).

Pet commands

You command tamed pets by speaking, standing near them. There are two families:

All ... — commands every pet you control that is in earshot at once.
<pet name> ... — commands one pet; you must include its name in the phrase (the server checks WasNamed). Naming your pets something short and unique makes this practical.

Many orders require you to be the pet’s owner (a pet-friend can issue the basic movement orders but not, e.g., kill or release). Issuing an order also rolls a control check — a disloyal or low-control pet may refuse. Full pet life cycle, control slots, and loyalty are on Taming & pets.

All pet commands are keyword commands (language-independent).

Group commands (`All ...`)

Say	Keyword	What it does
`All kill` / `All attack`	`0x168`	Every pet attacks a target you then pick.
`All guard` / `All guard me`	`0x166`	Every pet guards you.
`All follow me`	`0x16C`	Every pet follows you.
`All follow`	`0x165`	Every pet follows a target you then pick.
`All come`	`0x164`	Every pet comes to you.
`All stay`	`0x170`	Every pet stays put.
`All stop`	`0x167`	Every pet stops its current order (goes idle).

Single-pet commands (`<pet name> ...`)

Say	Keyword	What it does	Owner only?
`<name> kill` / `<name> attack`	`0x15D`	Attacks a target you pick.	Yes
`<name> guard`	`0x15C`	Guards (you / its spot).	Yes
`<name> follow`	`0x15A`	Follows a target you pick.	No
`<name> follow me`	`0x163`	Follows you.	No
`<name> come`	`0x155`	Comes to you.	Yes
`<name> stay`	`0x16F`	Stays put.	No
`<name> stop`	`0x161`	Stops its current order.	No
`<name> patrol`	`0x15F`	Patrols its home area.	Yes
`<name> drop`	`0x156`	Drops carried items (pack animals).	Yes
`<name> friend`	`0x15B`	Target a player to add as a pet-friend (they can command it too).	Yes
`<name> transfer`	`0x16E`	Target a player to transfer ownership to them.	Yes
`<name> release`	`0x16D`	Releases the pet from your control (a confirm gump appears for tamed pets; summons are dismissed immediately).	Yes

There is also a Game-Master-only literal command, <pet name> obey, that forces a creature to accept the speaker as its control master.

Source: Scripts/Mobiles/AI/BaseAI.cs (e.g. case 0x168: // all kill, case 0x16D: // *release).

“Release” elsewhere: saying claim to an animal trainer brings stabled pets out; there is no spoken “release” for stabling — see the vendor table below.

Vendor & banking keywords

These are said to an NPC (or a player vendor), standing close to it. Bankers respond within 12 tiles; shopkeeper and player vendors want you adjacent. See Vendors & banking for the full buying/selling flow and Communication & Social for keyword conversation in general.

All keyword commands here are language-independent.

Bankers

Say these near any banker NPC. (You cannot bank while flagged criminal.)

Say	Keyword	What it does
`Bank`	`0x2`	Opens your bank box.
`Balance`	`0x1`	The banker states your current gold balance.
`Withdraw <amount>`	`0x0`	Withdraws that much gold to your backpack, e.g. `withdraw 1000`.
`Check <amount>`	`0x3`	Writes you a bank check for that amount, drawn from your balance.

Shopkeeper (NPC) vendors

Say	Keyword	What it does
`Vendor buy`	`0x3C`	Opens the shopkeeper’s buy window.
`Vendor sell`	`0x14D`	Opens the sell window so you can sell goods.
`<vendor name> buy`	`0x171`	Buy from a vendor you name (`buy` alone works once named).
`<vendor name> sell`	`0x177`	Sell to a vendor you name (`sell` alone works once named).

The two-word forms vendor buy / vendor sell are the most reliable — they do not require you to know the NPC’s name.

Animal trainers (stablemasters)

Say	Keyword	What it does
`Stable`	`0x8`	The trainer offers to stable a pet (target the pet).
`Claim`	`0x9`	Brings out your stabled pets; or `claim <pet name>` to retrieve one.

(The same stable / claim keywords work at a hitching post and a chicken coop.)

Player vendors (in houses)

Say	Keyword	What it does
`Vendor buy`	`0x3C`	Opens the player vendor’s for-sale list.
`<vendor name> browse`	`0x3D`	Browse the stock without buying.
`<vendor name> collect`	`0x3E`	Owner: collect the gold the vendor earned.
`<vendor name> status`	`0x3F`	Owner: check the vendor’s fees/funds.
`<vendor name> dismiss`	`0x40`	Owner: dismiss (fire) the vendor.
`<vendor name> cycle`	`0x41`	Owner: cycle/reorganize its display.

Source: Scripts/Mobiles/NPCs/Banker.cs (case 0x0002: // *bank*), Scripts/Mobiles/AI/VendorAI.cs (0x3C // *vendor buy*), Scripts/Mobiles/NPCs/AnimalTrainer.cs (e.HasKeyword(0x0008) // *stable*), Scripts/Mobiles/NPCs/PlayerVendor.cs.

Miscellaneous spoken triggers

A grab-bag of other commands the server listens for. All are keyword commands (language-independent) unless noted.

Self-status (say anywhere)

Handled globally in Scripts/Misc/Keywords.cs — no NPC needed:

Say	Keyword	What it does
`I must consider my sins`	`0x32`	Reports your murder counts (short-term and long-term). See Notoriety & PvP.
`I resign from my guild`	`0x2A`	Leaves your current player guild.
`I renounce my young player status`	`0x35`	Opens the prompt to give up Young-player protection.
`Guild`	`0x6`	Opens your guild info window.

NPCs and the world

Say	Keyword	Where	What it does
`Guards`	`0x7`	In a guarded town	Calls the town guards to your location.
`News`	`0x30`	Near a town crier (or a news object)	Recites the current news (within ~12 tiles).
`Join` / `Member`	`0x4`	To an NPC guildmaster (named)	Ask to join their NPC guild.
`Resign` / `Quit`	`0x5`	To your NPC guildmaster	Resign from the NPC guild.
`Appraise`	`0x38`	To a real-estate broker	Target a house deed to appraise its value.
`Destination`	`0x1D`	To an escortable NPC	The NPC tells you where it wants to go.
`I will take thee`	`0x1E`	To an escortable NPC	Accept the escort quest.
`Disguise`	`0x1F`	To the Thieves’ Guildmaster	Ask about a disguise kit (members only).
`Hire` / `Servant`	`0x162`	To a hireable NPC	Asks it to work for you; it quotes a daily wage.
`Orders`	`0xE6`	To a faction guard	A town sheriff issues orders (sheriff only).
`<npc name> train`	`0x6C`	To a townsperson	Lists skills it can teach; `<npc name> <skill>` then trains it a little.
`<npc name> time`	`0x9E`	To any NPC	Asks for the in-game time.

Source: Scripts/Misc/Keywords.cs, Scripts/Regions/GuardedRegion.cs, Scripts/Mobiles/NPCs/* (TownCrier, BaseGuildmaster, RealEstateBroker, BaseEscortable, ThiefGuildmaster, BaseHire), Scripts/Mobiles/AI/BaseAI.cs.

In seven languages

Because our speech.mul is an international build, the major keyword commands can be typed in any of seven languages and all resolve to the same keyword id (the Key column). The English wording is documented in the sections above; the phrases below are the equivalents the same client file maps to that id, verified from speech.mul. Multiple forms in one cell (separated by /) are alternates the file lists — for Japanese these are usually the hiragana and katakana spellings of the same word. A dash (—) means the file carries no distinct phrase for that language on that keyword.

Command (English)	Key	🇩🇪 German	🇫🇷 French	🇪🇸 Spanish	🇨🇳 Chinese	🇯🇵 Japanese	🇰🇷 Korean
Lock down	`0x23`	ich möchte dies verankern	placer objet	quiero fijar esto	我要將它鎖定	ロックダウン / ろっくだうん	고정보관 설정
Release	`0x24`	ich möchte dies losmachen	libérer objet	quiero soltar esto	我要解除鎖定	ロックダウン解除 / ろっくだうんかいじょ / ロックダウンカイジョ	고정보관 해제
Secure	`0x25`	ich möchte dies sichern	verrouiller objet	quiero proteger esto	我要將它保全	セキュア / せきゅあ	잠금 설정
Unsecure	`0x26`	ich möchte dies entsichern	déverrouiller objet	quiero desproteger esto	我要解除保全	セキュア解除 / せきゅあかいじょ / セキュアカイジョ	잠금 해제
Place strongbox	`0x27`	ich möchte eine geldkassette platzieren	placer coffre-fort	quiero colocar una caja fuerte	我要放一個保險櫃	ストロングボックス / すとろんぐぼっくす	스트롱박스 설치
Place trash barrel	`0x28`	ich möchte eine mülltonne platzieren	placer poubelle	quiero colocar un cubo de basura	我要放一個垃圾桶	ゴミ箱 / ごみばこ / ゴミバコ	쓰레기통 설치
Ban (I ban thee)	`0x34`	ich verbanne dich	je te bannis	prohibir la entrada	出去	バン / ばん	추방
Eject (Remove thyself)	`0x33`	ich verstoße dich	—	—	將自己移除	追い出す / おいだす / オイダス	내쫓기
All kill	`0x168`	alle töten	tous tuer	matad a todos	全部宰殺	おーるきる / オールキル	모두 죽여
All guard	`0x166`	alle bewachen	tous garder	proteged todos	全部守衛	オールガード / おーるがーど	모두 지켜
All follow me	`0x16C`	alle sollen mir folgen	tous me suivre	seguidme todos	全部跟隨我	おーるふぉろーみー / オールフォローミー	모두 날 따라와
All come	`0x164`	alle kommen	tous venir	venid todos	全部過來	オールカム / おーるかむ	모두 이리와
All stay	`0x170`	alle sollen bleiben	tous rester	quedaos todos	全部停止	おーるすてい / オールステイ	모두 대기
All stop	`0x167`	alle stehen bleiben	tous arrêter	deteneos todos	全部停止	おーるすとっぷ / オールストップ	모두 정지
Bank	`0x2`	—	—	banco	銀行	バンク / ばんく	은행
Balance	`0x1`	kontostand / Kontoauszug	solde / relevé	saldo	結存 / 結單 / 残高	バランス / ばらんす / ざんだか / ザンダカ	잔고 / 잔액
Withdraw	`0x0`	—	—	—	提領	払い戻し / ひきだし / はらいもどし / ヒキダシ / ハライモドシ	출금
Check	`0x3`	scheck über	cheque / chèque	—	支票 / 小切手	こぎって / コギッテ	수표
Vendor buy	`0x3C`	händler kaufen	vendeur acheter / vendeur acquérir	compra vendedor / adquisición vendedor	買 / 購買 / 購入	こうにゅう / コウニュウ / 買う / かう / カウ	물건 사기 / 물건 구입
Vendor sell	`0x14D`	händler verkaufen	vendeur vendre	vender vendedor	向小販賣東西	売る / うる / ウル	물건 팔기
Stable	`0x8`	stall	écurie	establo	寄放寵物	預ける / あずける / アズケル	마구간
Claim	`0x9`	zurückverlangen	reprendre	reclamar	提領寵物 / 返却	へんきゃく / ヘンキャク	찾기
I must consider my sins	`0x32`	ich überdenke meine gesinnung	je dois examiner mes péchés	quiero considerar mis pecados	我必須反省我的罪過 / 反省	はんせい / ハンセイ	범죄 상태 확인
I resign from my guild	`0x2A`	ich trete aus meiner gilde aus	je quitte ma guilde	dimito del gremio	退出公會	ギルド脱退 / ぎるどだったい / ギルドダッタイ	길드 탈퇴
Guards	`0x7`	wächter	—	—	警衛	ガード / がーど	경비병
News	`0x30`	—	—	—	新聞	ニュース / にゅーす	뉴스

This table is data-driven: the phrases come from data/speech_languages.json, extracted from speech.mul by tools/extract_speech_langs.py. A dash usually just means the international file did not include a separate localized form for that keyword (for the rare keywords with no localized phrase, players on that client say the English form).

Tips for AI agents

Keyword commands are forgiving about language — the client resolves them — but they still need the right wording your client knows, said near the right target. Stand adjacent (bankers tolerate ~12 tiles).
Named commands need the name. kill does nothing to a pet; Rex kill works. Same for <vendor> collect.
Watch the journal for the server’s prompt (e.g. “Lock what down?”) and then target what it asks for — many house and pet commands hand you a targeting cursor.
The literal commands must be English: I wish to resize my house and the GM-only obey are matched on raw text, unlike everything else here.