Ultima I:The First Age of Darkness - Origin

                      Solution by Sue

The first of the on-going Ultima series features basic graphics,
sound, combat, magic and character interaction but is surprisingly
compulsive.  There is the usual character generation at the start
with four races (human, elf, dwarf, bobbit), two sexes (the usual)
and four classes (fighter, thief, cleric, wizard) to choose
between. Some classes have extra spells available to them. If you
aren't offered a spell for purchase in the Magic Shops, they don't
worry - you wouldn't be able to use it if you COULD buy it!

There are four major land masses to explore in your ultimate quest
- the defeat of the evil wizard Mondain, who is ravaging the fair
land of Sosaria. These are shown on the map provided in the
packaging. Their titles are written in a strange, runic script,
easily decieperable into Lands of Lord British (where you start),
Lands of Danger and Despair, Lands of the Dark Unknown and Lands
of the Fuedal Lords.  Each contains several Townes, two Castles
(complete with King and captive Princess), two Signposts and many
Dungeons. Some of these may be on off-shore islands so you'll need
some sort of specialised transport to reach them.

Getting Started:

Getting started is hard unless you make use of the (S)teal command
to get yourself extra food, good weapons (phaser is best) and
armour (aim for vacuum or, better, a reflect suit). You can sell
back any unwanted items to the unsuspecting shopkeeper. If you
decide to play honestly, be prepared for much rebooting in the
early stages as death and subsequent resurection will strip you of
your weapons and most of your hit points.

Towns:

Not all are as well-equipped in terms of the facilities they offer
as others.  The most useful spells, Ladder Up and Ladder Down, are
never found in the same town. Stock up well with these two spells
and life will be much easier when you explore the dungeons. Buy an
air car when you can afford it.

Hints, some useful, some not, can be gained by chatting to
innkeepers. Useful hints include "Thou should destroy the evil
gem", "Thou must go back in time", "A Princess will give reward to
one who saves her and an extra gift to an 8th Level Ace" and
"Destroy 20 vessels in space to become an Ace".

Dungeons:

All are of the same basic shape and size but their interior design
varies with walls, doors and forcefields in different places. And
the mnsters ... they, understandably, get tougher the deeper you
go but the same variety is always found on the same level in each
dungeon eg skeleton, rat, bat and ranger on every level 1. This
makes it easier to search out specific beasties when on quests for
Kings. Your HP are boosted when you leave a dungeon. Magic users
have a good range of spells at their disposal in dungeons for
actions such as creating or destroying walls of force. Open or
unlock any chests and coffins you find though they may hold more
than you bargained for!  You can't save your game underground.

Signposts:

There are eight, two in each land. Some are called Towers or
Pillars but they all look like signposts. Four need to be visited
as part of the quest (see Castles). The other four still increase
a statistic or give information/help when visited.
Pillars of Protection - on island to northeast of Lands of Lord
British - +3 agility.
Pillar of the Argonauts - on island to west of Lands of the Feudal
Lords - you find a dagger.
The Eastern Signpost - on island to north of Lands of Danger and
Despair - message 'go east to go east'. This means that
continually travelling east will take you to each land in turn.
Ultima Thule - on island to northwest of Lands of Dark Unknown -
+2 stamina.

Castles:

1. Kings:

The King in each castle can be (T)ransacted with if you walk up to
him.  Offering (P)ence will gain you extra hit points. The more
money you offer, the more hit points (obviously). Selecting
(S)ervice will send you on a quest. For each land, one King will
ask you to visit a certain location, the other will want you to
bump off a particularly nasty monster.

Quests to visit locations are easy once you have transport to
carry you across the sea. Completing one of these quests by
standing on the signpost and (E)ntering it will immediately gain
you an increase in one statistic; returning to the King after
completing the quest will increase another stat. It is possible to
complete each quest more than once for further increases in stats.
The increase given by the King is not a constant amount.

Castle of Lord British - Lands of Lord British - Find the Grave of
the Lost Soul - found on northwest island of the Lands of Danger
and Despair - gains +2 stamina - King gives +6 to +9 strength.
Castle of Barataria - Lands of the Feudal Lords - Find the
Southern Signpost - found on west coast of Lands of the Dark
Unknown - gains +2 charisma - King gives +7 strength.
Castle of Olympus - Lands of the Dark Unknown - Find the Pillar of
Ozymandias - found on island off southwest coast of Lands of the
Feudal Lords - gain +2 wisdom - King gives +8 strength.
Castle of White Dragon - Lands of Danger and Despair - Find the
Tower of Knowledge (yes, it IS a signpost, not a tower!) - found
on island off northeast coast of Lands of Lord British - gains +2
intelligence - King gives +5 strength.

Quests to kill nasties are harder and involve descent into a
dungeon. There are plenty to choose from, all with different
layouts but based round the same basic 10 levels of 9 by 9
locations. You'll be told to kill certain creature and can always
depend on it being found on a specific level or levels of any
dungeon. The easiest way is to purchase sufficient Ladder Up and
ladder Down spells before entering and make sure your hit points
are well up. (R)eady (S)pell Ladder Down and then (C)ast it and
(K)limb down through the levels until you reach the correct one.
Bump off the nasty, (R)eady (S)pell Ladder Up, keep (C)asting it
and (K)limbing and get the hell out of there!  Return to the King
to gain your reqard. In each case it will be a gem - white, red,
green or blue - and either a hint or a pressie. Again, you can
complete each quest more than once.

The Black Dragon's Castle - Lands of the Dark Unknown - King tells
you to go and kill a Lich - found on levels 7 or 8 - return to
King after to be told a Princess will help a space ace through
time and to be given a blue gem.
Castle Rondorin - Lands of the Feudal Lords - King tells you to go
and kill a Carrion Creeper - found on level 5, harder to spot than
usual as it hangs from the ceiling! - return to King after to be
told the time machine must be used in order to win and gives you a
green gem.
Castle of the Lost King - Lands of Lord British - King tells you
to go and kill a Gelatinous Cube - found on level 4, beware, it
can destroy your armour and is also hard to see unless it blocks a
doorway. Take note of messages and you'll be told when one's
nearby - return to King after to be told you require all four gems
to launch a time machine and to be given a red gem.
Castle of Shamino - Lands of Danger and Despair - King tells you
to go and kill a Balron - found on level 10 - return to King after
to be told you can take 9 items (no more!) from his store rooms
and to be given a white gem.

2. Princesses:

There is one in prison in each Castle. To free her, kill the
Jester (easy) and avoid the guards to get to her cell (not so
easy). Try to (U)nlock the cell, praying that you've got the right
key (sometimes the Jester carries a dud!) and lead the Princess
out to safety, battling guards all the way.  Luckily they won't
attack if she's between them and you so try to arrange it that
way. Once outside, she'll reward you with 500 HP, 500 EXP and 500
GP so it was worth the battle. If you're also a Level 8 Space Ace,
she'll give you an extra reward - telling you in which direction
you can find a time machine.  Just travel in the direction she
says and you'll see a white sphere with coloured dots sitting
waiting patiently. That's the fabulous time machine!

Into Space:

We're really travelling now! Buy yourself a space craft and take
off.  Make sure you've got a suitable vacuum suit on so you don't
suffer fatal decompression. You'll find youself flying high above
the planet near to a space station. Don't try to enter deep space
in your current craft, it'll burn up.  Conversely, don't try to
land on the planet in a deep space vehicle - or try to land on the
sun! It's bad news. Instead, dock your craft at the station (I
hope you have 500 GP for the docking fee?) and pick your craft.

Pull away from the space station, get moving slowly ahead (make
sure the route you've chosen is clear), pick the forward (V)iew
and (H)yperspace. Use (I)nform to see which sectors have space
stations or aliens. You need to hyperspace to the aliens' sector
and blast 'em in a fairly easy arcade sequnce.  To keep them in
position, manoever so that you stop them flying off the edge of
the screen.  In that way you can keep them in the middle of the
screen and shoot them. Keep and eye on your shields and make sure
you've got enough fuel to get back to base. Sometimes it's all too
tempting to go after just one more bunch of aliens ... but
remember, in space nobody can hear you SAVE ...

Once back at the space station, get back into your original craft.
Of course, if you've got enough cash you can refuel at one of the
stations and go hunting again. Otherwise it's back to Earth to
earn more gold. Keep doing this until you've shot down 20 aliens -
it may take a while. Then rescue a Princess for a great reward.

Time Travel:

So you've got all four gems and found your time machine?  Why not
(B)oard it?  Fitting the gems automatically, you set off on a
whirlwind trip, finally landing in Mondain's lair. He's standing
near a pulsating gem and will start zapping you with mind-blowing
spells pretty quickly. if you start attacking him, you'll find he
turns into a bird and flaps off. He's really tricky to catch and,
frankly, you're wasting your time. Taking care not to touch the
walls (ouch, they're hot!), head for the gem and (G)et it. You're
burnt but, hopefully, still alive. Mondain, on the other hand, is
feeling rough. His powers have gone. Head in for the kill, walk
over to him, start bashing him and keep going until you win.

A rain of silver lightning heralds the death of Mondain. Fleeting
glimpses of fates avoided rush through thy mind as the arcane
power of the mage's dying scream echo in thy ears. A thousand
years pass in but a moment's time as a strange sleep overcomes
thee.

Upon awakening thou dost find thyself in new surroundings. A
stately youth in violet robes helps thee to thy feet whereupon
thou dost see the thousands who gaze upon thee in adoration.

"Thy selfless heroism hath saved our people, my worthy one.
Should our gratitude alone not be enough to sustain thee, know
that I, Lord British, hereby ordain that the entire realm of
Sosaria be at thy service for all time henceforth. So let it be
done."

Is Sosaria safe for all time? With many more games to go,
seemingly not. See you in Ultima II!

















                              - o -