False Prophet


 * For information on Ultima VI: The False Prophet, see .

The False Prophet is what the gargoyles thought the Avatar was -- until the end of proved the last part of their prophecy wrong.

The Prophecy
This prophecy of the end of the world, written in the Book of Prophecies, is as follows:

"An ancient prophecy tells of the final days, when the end of our world shall come.

Three signs shall precede the end.

''Thrice shall a being of great evil come unto our land, and by this it shall be known that the end is nigh. This evil one is of another race, who consider the evil one a great prophet. Yet this false prophet follows not the principles of Control, Passion and Diligence.''

''One day the false prophet will come and desecrate our most holy shrine. And the false prophet will steal our most holy artefact, the Codex of Ultimate Wisdom. This shall be the first sign of the end.''

''Then it is written, the false prophet shall descend deep into the bowels of the earth. And the false prophet will cause the underworld to collapse. This will cause great earthquakes to tear our world asunder, and there will be a time of plague and famine. This shall be the second sign of the end.''

''One last time shall the false prophet come. This time the false prophet will come with a band of warriors. And they will destroy all that remains of the Gargoyle race.''

There is only one way that this prophecy may be averted:

That is by the sacrifice of the false prophet." 

History
In, the Codex was discovered by the Avatar, but the gargoyles were still a largely unknown species. The hero was blamed for the theft of the Codex, although it was the Great Council that had removed it. The rescue of Lord British from Doom in appears to have caused the underworld to collapse, but again, no one knew of the gargoyles. By, the panicked gargoyles fought for their survival. They thought killing the Avatar as a sacrifice would prevent the last sign from happening. In the end, the prophecy was averted by the Avatar, by returning the Codex to the Void. From there, it showed both kings the truth, and in the following time, the Gargoyles were evacuated from their lands. The resolution allowed for the Codex to remain in the Void, so that no one -- neither human nor gargoyle -- could possess it and claim it as their own.

Due to the hardships the gargoyles did face after the destruction of their homeland, a number of embittered gargoyles would continue to call the Avatar the False Prophet, the term having turned into an insult by then.