Shadowlords

The Shadowlords are the main villains in Ultima V.

When the Gem of Immortality was shattered by the Stranger, three big shards of it went missing. Each of the shards opposed one of the Principles. The shards ended up in the Underworld, but they were safe there, until the ship The Ararat, under Captain Johne, was sucked into the Underworld by a whirlpool. Johne found the shards, and they drove him to temporary madness. He slew his three companions with them, and their blood fell on the shards. And from it, the Shadowlords were born:


 * Astaroth, the Shadowlord of Hatred.


 * Faulinei, the Shadowlord of Falsehood.


 * Nosfentor, the Shadowlord of Cowardice.

They wasted no time in spreading their evil. Scattering the three shards in the Underworld, they attacked Lord British in the Underworld below Dungeon Destard during an expedition and captured him, imprisoning him in the dungeon Doom. On the surface of Britannia they established their keep: Stonegate, with the daemon Balinor as a doorwarden.

They corrupted Lord Blackthorn, making him cruel and twisting his perceptions of the Virtues. They themselves haunted the cities, and their mere presence would infect the peoples' personalities like a disease. It was a dark time for Britannia.

While many tried to stand up to the Shadowlords, none prevailed. Those who weren't killed outright suffered the lingering agony of being pierced by the Shadowlords' Black Arrows. Notable examples of this are Shamino, Mariah and Kindor.

The Shadowlords hunted specifically for members of the Great Council, as they knew the Words of Power that could unseal the dungeons, perhaps allowing someone to find the shards. They also hunted for the companions of the Avatar so they would not be able to summon him/her.

This was the situation when the Avatar arrived in Britannia in Ultima V. After confronted with the fact that the Shadowlords could not be destroyed by conventional means, he/she learned about the nature of the Shadowlords as much as possible, and finally banished them by casting the shards of Hatred, Falsehood and Cowardice into the Eternal Flames of Love, Truth and Cowardice.

But true evil can't be destroyed, as the Shadowlords were only physical manifestations of the darkness in men's hearts, where they continue to exist, as seen in Martian Dreams, where they confront the Avatar in his/her dreams.

Shadowlords in Combat
When a Shadowlord attacks you in Ultima V, or you attack it, your party is 'transported' to a shadowy plane. This plane is impossible to flee from, meaning you must either win the fight, force the Shadowlord to flee, or die.

Shadowlords are capable of teleportation, invisibility, summoning daemons, possession, sleep spells, and throwing magical bolts of energy. They have strong physical attacks which can also cause poisoning.

The best way to defeat a Shadowlord in combat is to use the Crown of Lord British to negate all of a Shadowlord's spells, then use Time Stop and Summon Daemon scrolls to kill it while it's immobile.

A Shadowlord dissipates once it's killed in combat, but it must be defeated twice in a row before it vanishes from a city. What's more, this will not get rid of the Shadowlord for good. It'll be back the next night.

Trivia

 * If you engage a Shadowlord in combat while in possession of Lord British's Scepter, you get the message "The Sceptre has been reclaimed!" and it vanishes from your inventory, going back to Stonegate.
 * All three Shadowlords must be destroyed to enter Dungeon Doom and win the game.
 * In Stonegate, all remaining Shadowlords are always present.
 * Between 12:00 and 1:00 in the night, a Shadowlord can't move.
 * In Martian Dreams the Shadowlords give themselves gender. Astaroth and Faulinei call themselves brothers, while Nosfentor is called a sister. While they have dialogue in this game, in Ultima V they never spoke.
 * Sin Vraal used to serve the Shadowlord Astaroth.