tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post1611437120380780777..comments2024-03-19T02:45:56.380-04:00Comments on The CRPG Addict: Ultima V: Shards, Shadowlords, and the UnderworldCRPG Addicthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01238237377918550322noreply@blogger.comBlogger34125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-41994448464269473432022-03-16T01:01:18.427-04:002022-03-16T01:01:18.427-04:00It might have been a pretty wise move, actually.
...It might have been a pretty wise move, actually. <br /><br />When you get the Carpet you will be in LB's chamber. The more times you are in LB's chamber the more opportunities you have to get the item that IS crucial to winning (as opposed to finishing) the game. <br /><br />A similar line of thinking applies to awakening in LB's castle after a resurrection: since you need something(s) from there, let's make sure we put you there often. <br /><br />It reminds me of something I mentioned elsewhere: the conversation with Lord Kenneth is (to the best of my recollection) the only conversation in the game that can't be voluntarily ended. The harpsichord is critical and so the designers tried to make sure you knew how to play it, even if that meant glueing you to Lord Kenneth. <br /><br />Not so much dick moves as they are paternalistic moves. Hythloth is a Word?noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-89327220195727047112020-11-04T13:12:04.459-05:002020-11-04T13:12:04.459-05:00I know this info probably comes 10 years (almost) ...I know this info probably comes 10 years (almost) too late: but if you are ever lost on any key elements of the plot like mantras, power words, shards, crown-jewels etc., you can bribe any barkeep and they will give you a hint on who to talk to and their location. At least in the C64 version.Mr. Khttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02397502482588912323noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-51592500923204841992018-09-20T17:53:24.780-04:002018-09-20T17:53:24.780-04:00Oh, and you're right about the experience thre...Oh, and you're right about the experience thresholds for levelling up. Incidentally, I think Serpent Isle/Silver Seed is the only numbered Ultima that allows five-figure experience and therefore levels above the eighth. Romhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17424138564206888866noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-63723447151917337202018-09-20T16:29:26.866-04:002018-09-20T16:29:26.866-04:00Um, doesn't the word hythloth mean pride or hu...Um, doesn't the word hythloth mean pride or hubris?<br /><br />Your old comment about tossing Mondain's gem into a whirlpool is interesting. Did you ever try sailing into one? The first time I did so, I expected to resurface in Lock Lake, per U4. I got a nasty surprise...Romhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17424138564206888866noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-59283219150945741092017-01-16T20:41:30.963-05:002017-01-16T20:41:30.963-05:00Noting more differences from the NES version:
The...Noting more differences from the NES version:<br /><br />The sceptre only dispells the magic fields in the final dungeon. The guardian asks the riddle, but doesn't attack in any case. In fact, he's not actually guarding the door, so nothing prevents the party from walking right in (except the magic door).<br /><br />The dungeons are all the same, with some notable sections that are offer few rewards. They're all only four levels deep, but some twist up and down. There are no pit traps, but there are damaging tiles clearly visible. There are no secret triggers.<br /><br />Once again, the enemies don't cast magic, so the crown was useless to me. (i.e. No summoning, possessing, invisibility, or teleportation.)<br /><br />The shard location of Covetous was changed to Wrong.<br /><br />There are no gems to help map the underworld, and no spell equivalent.<br /><br />In fact, the spells were mostly useless combat spells, and only four per level.Zenic Reveriehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16441583549326102945noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-26772800825351812552016-01-27T06:41:18.582-05:002016-01-27T06:41:18.582-05:00The shards of the Gem of Immortality are also the ...The shards of the Gem of Immortality are also the central conceit behind Ultima Online. The premise is that at the end of Ultima I, Mondain actually seals the world of Sosaria inside of the Gem. When the person who became the Avatar shattered the Gem, each shard became the container of an alternate timeline, all of which started out the same as the original timeline except that the Avatar (and, presumably, the Gem shards) wasn't in them. This is how the lore explains why there are nearly thirty distinct versions of the game world (i.e. game servers) each with its own population, none of which have a mighty Avatar rendering adventuring as an obsolete profession.<br /><br />I don't think they ever explained how the Ultima V shards related to all of this. And yes, the idea that the Avatar was the main character in the first game is a retcon, though I'm not sure when that was decided.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03554576552816176081noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-59096389002530299962015-12-27T12:09:04.307-05:002015-12-27T12:09:04.307-05:00Well, he did nourish the player in a way.Well, he did nourish the player in a way.CRPG Addicthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01238237377918550322noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-10726520897445808922015-12-27T06:16:29.058-05:002015-12-27T06:16:29.058-05:00Here's another thing you can learn from CRPGs ...Here's another thing you can learn from CRPGs ;)<br />In polish Sutek means... nipple!<br />It was so funny for me that crucial informations was delivered fron a guy with such a name :)Kokshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03378976510544574341noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-26354022973504779262013-09-17T13:43:21.716-04:002013-09-17T13:43:21.716-04:00LOL - I also loved the Morrowind world. I remember...LOL - I also loved the Morrowind world. I remember once stopping along the road and staring up at the beauty of the two moons, rapt with attention as if I was there, and indeed my imagination did kind of put me there. Another game with a huge amount of space was Might and Magic 6. The dungeons in the game (and they are plentiful) are huge and intricate. The entire Might and Magic 7 and 8 are (excellent games but) tiny by comparison. The feeling of space while planning the (MM6) game was amazing. Ultima 6 was a good game, but the one scale made it seem small, while Morrowind was one scale, but was simply so huge that I have never heard it described as small and it always felt like a huge, intricate world. It was so huge that it required a great deal of patience at times.<br /><br />EE_WorzelleAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-38700799778764843992013-07-13T20:54:35.849-04:002013-07-13T20:54:35.849-04:00I'm debating whether I agree on the "sens...I'm debating whether I agree on the "sense of scale" thing. What I like better about U6 and U7 is that the same game mechanics apply no matter where you are. Anything can happen. Enemies can wander into towns and NPCs can be found in little huts and treehouses out in the wilderness. In U4 and U5 by contrast, you knew that everything out of town was something to kill.<br /><br />The game world I love the most--<i>Morrowind</i>--has the same single-scale, although I suppose you could argue that the separate transition into buildings and dungeons introduces multiple scales.CRPG Addicthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01238237377918550322noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-89662349601885145332013-07-13T14:44:19.348-04:002013-07-13T14:44:19.348-04:00I loved this game and it took me quite a while to ...I loved this game and it took me quite a while to play it... thoroughly enjoyable and I tried to do all the side quests. It was deep and complex and I loved the split party aspects. I remember at the time writing down conversations on 5" x 7" note cards (I had quite a pile of them that I discarded only a few years ago).<br /><br />What was great about this game, other than the depth of plot and party aspects, in my opinion, was the sense of space. It was very imaginative. This was the last Ultima game in the series that had multiple scales, i.e. the city was small within the land until you entered and buildings were small within the city until entered. It had the impact of making the world huge and mysterious. Ultima VI and beyond used all one scale (and the development team actually bragged about doing so), but it felt like a downgrade from the gradually improving games that peaked at Ultima V. I like Ultima IX, and still play it, but it is still all one scale.<br /><br />EE_WorzelleAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-53143940684555880402012-10-24T23:09:59.002-04:002012-10-24T23:09:59.002-04:00I've always had the magic carpet before trying...I've always had the magic carpet before trying for the scepter, so it was never a big deal.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-75227648675656737752012-02-28T01:23:17.587-05:002012-02-28T01:23:17.587-05:00It's been a while, but if I recall correctly, ...It's been a while, but if I recall correctly, you can "(K)limb" over rocks, including those left by slain gargoyles.CRPG Addicthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01238237377918550322noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-88276479877483767402012-02-27T17:52:45.247-05:002012-02-27T17:52:45.247-05:00From post: "The most difficult creatures I...<b>From post: <i>"The most difficult creatures I've found in the game are gargoyles. [...] I lost my Avatar in the battle below and had to flee the <a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-blsaVD1G6VY/TmRDpFZALSI/AAAAAAAAFMw/CmCnR-z1Ssk/s400/ultima_161.png" rel="nofollow">screen</a>."</i></b><br /><br />That was a tricky L8 dungeon room in Hythloth. A mistake would be to use pole-arms to blindly multiply & pre-kill some of the gargoyles within the hidden chamber, 'cos the resulting stone corpses would very likely obstruct the way out for whoever who had entered the eastern chamber via the door (which immediately disappears). My 1st attempt resulted in the avatar, Janna & the 3 remaining gargoyles permanently-trapped within their respective stone enclosures.<br /><br />I was wondering if a possible solution might be to let all of the others in the party escape the dungeon room first, then use the avatar to somehow lure the waiting gargoyles to the SE area of the room, before making the avatar exit to the spot where the party was originally standing, & then utilize pole-arms to attack the gargoyles from behind the walls.Patnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-57834219602985358402011-09-10T01:40:53.890-04:002011-09-10T01:40:53.890-04:00Donn, thanks for the tip on the walls. I didn'...Donn, thanks for the tip on the walls. I didn't think about that. Helped me with some daemons tonight, until my computer crashed and I lost everything (see today's posting).<br /><br />Fenrus, I'll read those over. They don't seem overly long.<br /><br />Steve, I agree. Ultima V doesn't get everything right, but the game world is superb.CRPG Addicthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01238237377918550322noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-3965316296926905272011-09-08T00:15:23.913-04:002011-09-08T00:15:23.913-04:00Ultima also focuses on having a really interesting...Ultima also focuses on having a really interesting world, and other cool things like the magic system that is in the next blog postStevenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-15327246142640185212011-09-08T00:14:34.741-04:002011-09-08T00:14:34.741-04:00I was reading the previous posting about the comba...I was reading the previous posting about the combat being so-so in U5, but I feel like the main strength of the Ultima games is how they focus on exploration and discovery, rather than combat. It reminds me of the Might and Magic games where you have to travel throughout the world, piece together tons of clues and then eventually get to the main quest. Probably why those are my two favorite series.Stevenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-8503079965747151822011-09-07T13:35:18.754-04:002011-09-07T13:35:18.754-04:00Now that the discussing is on the emergence of the...Now that the discussing is on the emergence of the shadowlords, there is a rather good fan fiction novel "Tale of Captain Johne", which acts also as backstory for UV: Lazarus. I guess I have to read it again, as I don't remember pretty much anything about it..<br /><br />http://www.biggles2k.com/johne/index.html<br /><br />And while there, you could also check the other piece "The Fall of Lord Blackthorn"<br /><br />--FenrusAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-5204548164727233212011-09-07T11:11:51.526-04:002011-09-07T11:11:51.526-04:00I generally assumed that Hythloth was the dungeon ...I generally assumed that Hythloth was the dungeon opposing Humility, and that Doom opposed Spirituality, a theory borne out in Ultima IX.<br /><br />And a tip for those wisps behind walls: polearms do very nicely to attack creatures behind walls or pillars. No need to let your crown guard down.Donnhttp://ultimavforipad.tumblr.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-86552111803848813002011-09-06T20:43:45.266-04:002011-09-06T20:43:45.266-04:00You have to wonder how they even constructed that....You have to wonder how they even constructed that. A pit all the way to the center of the world? Think of the geothermal uses!CRPG Addicthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01238237377918550322noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-78294253069069173112011-09-06T19:46:36.535-04:002011-09-06T19:46:36.535-04:00Yeah, I saw your screenshot that specifically stat...Yeah, I saw your screenshot that specifically stated that it was Mondain's gem, but I played Ultima IV and V before Ultima I, and so I only really had experience with the skull. Which only explains why I tended to think it was the skull instead of the gem.<br /><br />For some reason I feel that there was some consequence of destroying the skull, though...was it the Isle of Fire in the Ultima VII expansion pack? Perhaps some plot point of Ultima Underworld? Some throwaway explanation for something in Ultima IX? Probably just wishful thinking on my part.<br /><br />Anyway, the pits in Stonegate drop you to the "center of the earth" (or perhaps "world", I don't recall). I think there's the same sound that plays when you fall into a pit in a dungeon, but it lasts a lot longer, and then you see your corpse in a field of fire that fills the full screen. And then you get resurrected with all of your items, like usual.<br /><br />So it is interesting to note that as broken as the magic carpet is, it is completely necessary to beat the game.Oneiromancernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-46950510502085266412011-09-06T19:14:52.662-04:002011-09-06T19:14:52.662-04:00DGM, it may be a while before I can get back there...DGM, it may be a while before I can get back there. What happens if you fall down those pits?CRPG Addicthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01238237377918550322noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-39747022136224142302011-09-06T19:14:18.633-04:002011-09-06T19:14:18.633-04:00Oneiromancer, your explanation would actually make...Oneiromancer, your explanation would actually make a lot of sense--if it wasn't contradicted by the in-game text. Still, it would be nifty if tossing Mondain's skull into the Abyss had SOMETHING to do with the emergence of the Shadowlords.<br /><br />When you think about it, every bad thing that happens to Britannia following <i>Ultima IV</i> is a direct consequence of what happens in <i>Ultima IV</i>. I hope getting an Avatar of Virtue was worth it.CRPG Addicthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01238237377918550322noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-65253987229450688752011-09-06T16:31:19.297-04:002011-09-06T16:31:19.297-04:00The dungeons and their virtue counterparts are:
D...The dungeons and their virtue counterparts are:<br /><br />Destard -> Valor<br />Despise -> Compassion<br />Deceit -> Honesty<br />Shame - > Honor<br />Wrong -> Justice<br />Covetous -> Sacrifice<br />Hythloth -> Spirituality<br /><br />Humility does not have a dungeon in Ultima IV because the city of Magincia represented "Pride".<br /><br />The Great Stygian Abyss is more a testing ground for the Avatar, and represents a challenge to the Virtues on a whole, rather than a single one. There is no Abyss in Ultima V-VII; the dungeon on Avatar Isle is typically Hythloth.<br /><br />Ultima IX has both Hythloth and the Abyss, but a last-minute change moved Hythloth to "under Magincia", one of the many sore points with fans... it would have been better if they'd just called the dungeon "Pride" instead.Adamantyrhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14962009901412877763noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6162314467762792782.post-44259743707050831512011-09-06T08:11:05.537-04:002011-09-06T08:11:05.537-04:00I always liked to think that the shards were the b...I always liked to think that the shards were the broken pieces of Mondain's skull, which you as the Avatar can destroy in Ultima IV (and which I think the Addict did on his playthrough).<br /><br />I both hated and loved the Shadowlords--they were a real pain to deal with, but they helped make the world of Ultima V that much more unique. I was so excited when they made their cameo appearances at the end of Martian Dreams.Oneiromancernoreply@blogger.com