Truth

Truth is one of the Three Principles of the Eight Virtues of Britannia.

Description
The principle of Truth is the one that helps to navigate through lies, regardless if from fellow people or the environment.

Truth is the foundation for the virtues of Honesty, Justice, Honor and Spirituality. In the case of Honesty, Truth is the only principle leading to it.

The symbols of Truth are the Book of Truth, which is kept in Ultima IV and Ultima IX in the Lycaeum, the Fortress of Truth on Verity Isle, and the eternal Flame of Truth, held in the same building. Many people from Britannia go to the Lycaeum to meditate or search for Truth in its many books.

The shrine of Truth with the corresponding test is situated on the Isle of Fire. It is basically a test to see through illusions and false leads. The shrine itself dissapeared before Ultima IV, when the Isle of Fire sank into the seas, so it wasn't used in the quest for the Avatar. However, the Avatar gained access to the shrine when the Isle of Fire reappeared during Ultima VII, passing the test way over 200 years after the original quest.

Truth on Serpent Isle
The mages of Moonshade do not act in the name of Truth. This might be because of their heavy reliance on illusion and deceit as well as their general feeling of superiority because of their magic powers. This also was the original reason why they departed Britannia, as they could not accept that Honesty - and thus Truth - was seen by the government as the way to overcome the mistrust of old the population held against mages and their secret ways, which had resulted into a ban on magic in the distant past.

A prime example of the corruption a lack of Truth can cause to a society however, can be seen in the sham of a trial held when the Avatar was brought before their court by the MageLord Filbercio. In it, Truth held no place, while disregard and lies did. A more correct name for the principle these mages follow would be "Illusion", in turn leading to Ruthlessness (an Ophidian anti-force of Order).

The Mirror of Truth is the symbol of this principle on Serpent Isle.