Armour Shop

The armour shop is like its counterpart, the weapon shop, a common sight in the far past of Sosaria and in the earlier days of the Age of Enlightenment. Here shoppers can buy armoury of different kinds, from the mundane to the otherworldly.

History
As per today, the more combat-orientated purchaser could simply buy both armour and weaponry at one of the armouries that could be found in the cities or towns of Britannia. However, it was not always like that.

Pre-History to Akalabeth
In the far history of Sosaria also known as "Akalabeth", armouries did not yet exist, but there were some shops selling a very primitive and small assortment of armoury. For instance, axes,  bows and  arrows, rapier,  shields, besides  food and the mystical Amulet were its primary wares.

Age of Darkness
It wasn't until the second attack on the Realm by the wizard Mondain with his hordes of evil and foul magic, when  things clearly started to change. Instead of one single primitive assortment, a more advanced establishment of different merchandise started to blossom. Now, individuals could actually buy weapons or armour in two separate shops.

Due to Mondain's alliances with starwalking monsters of unparalleled savagery, strange and alien technology was brought into the Realm. One of them, the highly advanced armoury became truly sought-after by the customers in the armour shop.

These alliances came to an end when the Stranger slew Mondain. Because no one knew how to make them, this alien technology disappeared from the face of Sosaria. Other more sophisticated weapons came in its place. This became the norm in the following ages of these dark times.

Minax's Earth
With the extended use of time doors Minax the time line of  Terran history altered. One of the strange side effects is, that the same technology that was brought by the aliens in the First Age of Darkness, such as vehicles,  highly advanced weapons and the  highly advanced armour, which could be bought in the armour shops started to appear throughout all four major time zones once more.

As before, they became common trade goods in the towns and cities on this strangely altered world. Only to disappear again, as the Stranger slew the consort and apprentice of the Evil One and therefore history righted itself.

Age of Enlightenment
After the unification of Britannia and during the Quest of the Avatar, the economy flourished even more. People still could buy their arms at these weapon shops. All these armour shops became profitable armouries during the reign of the tyrannical Lord Blackthorn.

Notable Examples

 * The Adventure Shop: One of the first, yet primitive shops in the far past of Sosaria.
 * The Armour Shop of Lord Eldric D'Charbonneux: A more sophisticated establishment in the early days of the Age of Darkness.

Trivia

 * In the original version of Ultima I, every town and city has the same armour shop with the same wares.