Here plays the
Theme of Ultima V.
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Herein is a selection
of notes and information about Ultima V, called Warriors of Destiny.
Being A Listing
of Three Spells that are Unknown to the Majority of the Magi
The First Circle
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An Ylem
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Negate
Matter
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Anytime
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Garlic,
Bloodmoss
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This spell negates
small objects which may obstruct the caster. It is of limited use
for the most part.
The Second Circle
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In Xen
Mani
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Create
Food
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Noncombat
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Ginseng,
Garlic, Mandrake
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This spell creates
food for the caster. It should only be used in emergencies as the
cost of the reagents far outways the cost of the food created.
The Sixth Circle
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Rel
Xen Bet
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Transform
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Combat
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Ash,
Silk, Nightshade, Mandrake
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This spell transforms
the victim into a giant rat. It thus is a quick way of reducing the
danger posed by the mightiest monsters of Britannia and the Underworld.
Of the Last Bastions
of the Virtues
When the need
for an example for the populace of Britannia became great, the Shrines
were created by the Great Council of Mages. These places were where
a seeker could gain great wisdom, in a given Virtue by dedicated
meditation. Most of the Shrines are marked on thy Map of Britannia.
They are near the towns which are dedicated to the same Virtue,
usually within an easy distance for traveling.
The sole exception
to this is the Shrine of Spirituality. When the Council created
the Shrines, their greatest achievement was to modify the Moongates
to allow access to a part of the Ethereal Void. In this part of
the Void they created the Shrine of Spirituality, safe from outside
forces. The Shrine could only be entered while both moons were of
equal height in the sky, at the hour of Midnight. Unfortunately,
what was created by men can be destroyed by men. The tyrant Blackthorn
seeks the Mantras, for with their power he can destroy the shrines.
Yet even in the ruins, their Virtuous power would remain. By using
the appropriate Word of Power, and then meditating on the Virtue
of the destroyed Shrine, it should indeed be possible to restore
it. Of all the Shrines, it would seem that only the Shrine of Spirituality
would be untouchable by the fell Evil of such destruction.
Gaudy Jewellery
or Regalia of Power?
It is said by
those who are knowledgeable that the Crown Jewels of Britannia are
items of great magical power. Since the disappearance of Lord British,
they too have vanished, and it seems that few if any know of their
current location.
The Crown of
Lord British has the power to negate magical spells. It also can
prevent the possession of people in the party it protects by hostile
monsters such as wisps or daemons. It is thought by the Resistance
that it is kept by Blackthorn himself, in his dark palace, behind
doors locked by magic. Its mighty power prevents the use of all
magic spells save those of the yrant Blackthorn and his masters
the Shadowlords inside the palace. Of all magics, perhaps the fruit
of the Skull Tree in Micoc alone can serve.
The Serpent Amulet
of Lord British is said to come of another world altogether. Though
its powers are rumored to be many and varied, even to controlling
the gates between worlds, it takes great wisdom to use them. Its
sole power to the uninitiated is to shed light where no other light
can shine. The Amulet was worn by Lord British when he went to explore
the Underworld. The scroll relating the fate of his ill-fated expedition
may lead to its resting place, but if not it is surely lost.
In direct magical
force, it is thought that the mighty Scepter is the most powerful
of the Crown Jewels. Only a few know that it has the power to shatter
all barriers, even those that doth exist not in this plane of existence.
Its power is such that the Shadowlords themselves are said to have
it in their Keep named Stonegate, protected by daemons, terrible
traps, and by a spell to summon themselves should any fool intrude.
If thou wouldst
quest to recover these fabulous treasures, seek out Lord Simon and
Lady Tessa in their hidden fastness of Bordermarche, for of those
known to be living, they know the most of these Artefacts.
Unbeknownst to
most, there is a fourth Crown Jewel. This item was concealed by
Lord British himself before he left on his ill-fated Expedition
to the Underworld.
Of the Rulers
from the Shadows...
Britannia is
under the sway of the three Shadowlords. These are 'fraternal' triplets,
and are the literal incarnations of the opposites to the Principles
of Truth, Love, and Courage. While these creatures are eternal,
immortal, and indestructible, normally they can only act in the
hearts of men, and are powerless to affect physical events save
through their victims. Long ago, the Evil Mondain was defeated by
the Stranger who became the Avatar. His Gem of Immortality was smashed
into three fragments, which lay powerless for many years, their
power neutralized by the proximity of the Codex of Ultimate Wisdom,
which, unknown to the Stranger and Mondain lay in a temple nearby.
Years later, the Stranger who became the Avatar found the Codex,
and it was brought to the surface of Britannia by the Great Council.
This caused a great volcanic upheaval, creating a new island, upon
which the Codex was enshrined. More importantly, the eruption caused
the formation of a vast Underworld, and removed the balancing power
that neutralized the shards. Cracks in the sea bottom caused whirlpools
that could take ships into the Underworld. One such ship struck
an island, and was beached there. There were four survivors. The
captain of the vessel, Johne, recovered and explored the island.
He found the Shards of the Gem of Immortality, and their Evil was
such that they could force him to kill his friends. The use of the
Shards for such a dark deed gave the everpresent Shadowlords a chance
that they had long awaited. From the blood of the murdered crewmen
they created physical forms, incarnations of their own true natures.
They imprisoned Johne, and lured Lord British into the Underworld.
They then defeated him deep in the dark where his power was lessened,
and imprisoned him in a supposedly inescapable prison, forged of
the same Magic that was created to bind Daemons.
With the disappearance
of Lord British, Blackthorn took power in Britannia. Although originally
a good man, indeed he was the bearer of the Shield of Valor, the
Shadowlords twisted and corrupted him into a self-righteous tyrant,
and those who opposed him began to disappear. Those who had aided
the Avatar in his Quest for the Codex were declared outlaws and
hunted. Meanwhile the Shadowlords began a systematic attack upon
the Virtues. Although they could not enter and attack the Keeps
of the Principles, they hoped to weaken them by eliminating the
Virtues in the Towns. Blackthorn sought after those who knew knowledge
that could aid him, such as the Words of Power, but he most desperately
sought the Mantras so that he could destroy the Shrines. Some of
the people fought the Shadowlords, but they were defeated. They
found that in combat with a Shadowlord they were drawn into a strange
dimension, with ethereal wards separating them from their allies.
The Shadowlord would then pick them off one at a time. Some valiant
heroes managed to defeat them, despite their physical toughness,
and resistance to magic, but when a blow struck that would kill
any lesser creature, the Shadowlord would simply vanish, to appear
the next day with no ill effects from the experience.
Despite this
however, the Shadowlords do have their weaknesses. The very fact
that they hunt the Avatar and his companions so persistently shows
that they have cause to be fearful, for it seems that their weaknesses
could be exploited by those strong and cunning enough to find them.
The Shadowlords cannot move during the hour between Midnight and
1 am. During this time the power of the Shrine of Spirituality seems
to hold them in place. The only places that the Shadowlords cannot
enter are the Keeps of the Principles. Those places yet hold their
powers at bay, and those who fight Blackthorn can find refuge in
them. Yet be warned that the may enter these places if invited by
speaking their name aloud.
Each of the Shadowlords
opposes a Principle of the Avatar. The two Brothers are Hatred and
Falsehood, while the sister is Cowardice. Their names are rarely
spoken, for they can be heard and if they are invited by the calling
out of their name, they can enter any place, even the Keeps. The
Shadowlord of Hatred is named Astaroth, his Brother of Falsehood
is Faulinei, and their Sister, the Shadowlord of Cowardice, is called
Nosfentor.
Those who have
read this text closely will realize that the Shadowlords gained
physical forms in Britannia through the Shards of the Gem of Mondain.
If wise, they will then wonder of the fate of the Shadowlords should
those shards be destroyed. It would seem that this destruction is
feared by the Shadowlords. The Shards are scattered through the
Underworld, moved by their masters to well hidden locations. However,
for those who have the strength to find them they may indeed be
destroyed, and their masters with them. Beware however, because
a single mistake will allow a Shadowlord entry into a Keep, and
it will not easily be displaced. In each Keep is a sacred Flame,
its fires burning blue. Stand before it while holding the opposing
Shard, and call to thee the Shadowlord who opposes the Flame. Wait
until it stands upon the flame itself, then cast the Shard into
the Flame.
The Shadowlords
have hidden the Shards well, but they do not trust others to guard
them. Thus they may be taken by the strong or the fortunate to be
destroyed. The Shard of Hatred is hidden at the location IA, IA
in the Underworld section beneath the dungeons Wrong and Covetous.
It can only be reached by the use of the Grapple, and much fortitude
is needed to survive the full route for the weaker Quester. The
Shard of Cowardice is hidden at LF, LI under the dungeon Hythloth.
It can be reached by many applications of the spell named In Por,
for the mountains surrounding the valleys are impassable even with
a grapple. The Shard of Falsehood is under the dungeon Deceit. In
the Underworld it is necessary to travel far to the north until
the sunless waters are reached. Then follow the river south, over
many waterfalls, until a great lake is reached. In the center of
the lake is a small island, upon which lies the Shard.
It may well
be that the Avatar will use this knowledge to destroy the Shadowlords,
or so he thinks. For the Shadowlords are not just the physical forms
that can be destroyed. They are the incarnations of Hatred, Falsehood,
and Cowardice inside the human heart and mind, and while humanity
exists, so to shall they. They know that one day the Avatar will
once again step where they have power. They will wait for that day,
for Nosfentor forsees it, and states that on that day the Avatar
will belong to THEM. They are patient, they are eternal, and that
day is truly inevitable. They will wait, until the Avatar again
must face them in a Realm of Dreams...
A Listing of
the Comparitive Effectiveness of the
Various Weapons and Armours found in the Land of Britannia.
To Know Thine
Own Worth...
If thou wouldst
know thine own Karma, upon that Array of Runes with which thou dost
relay thy commands to within Britannia, press CTRL and K.
To improve thy
Karma, visit the Shrines often, and do not lie or steal. Follow
the Way of the Avatar, not the Corrupted Laws of Blackthorn and
the Shadowlords.
So, what is
it thou doth seek? The Texts and
Manuscripts describing Britannia during this time have been
reproduced by Micro Dragon. A large map has also been provided by
Xe Dragon.
Kaleb Dragon's Dungeon's
of Destiny shows maps of the Dungeons and Underworld.
A solution to
thine quest may be found within the Ultima
Web Archive, while an editor for your characters is found in
the domain of Xenerkes
Dragon.
Through the
artistry of the Lazarus
team and the engine of Dungeon Seige, a reborn Ultima V has been
released.
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