Xorinite wisp

Xorinite Wisps are a race of sentient balls of light, each a part of a collective mind. The wisps identify themselves as Xorinia, a transdimensional information broker. Though the Wisps do not appear to have individual personalities, they do have a central government, the Undrian Council, and refer to themselves as a 'community'. The Wisps are very old - they gave Zog the Armageddon spell over 700,000 years ago, although they don't see the spell as something powerful.

In Ultima IV and V, Wisps regularly attacked the Avatar and did not hold conversation. Negotiations were first opened in Ultima VI.

The Avatar first met the Wisps in Ultima VI in the Deep Forest west of Yew. The Wisps gave the Armageddon spell to the Avatar as a gift, but wanted the Book of Mantras for more services. Bringing it from the Lycaeum, the Avatar had the choice between information or a as much gold as the party could carry.

The Wisps were also met in the Abyss in Ultima Underworld, on Mars of the late 19th century in Martian Dreams, and in the valley of Eodon in Savage Empire. On Eodon, the Wisps gave the Avatar a free gift, describing what exactly had happened to make Eodon the way it was. They were so fascinated by this situation that they didn't want anything in return. On Mars, a Wisp was found in the ruins west of the Syrtis Major. In exchange for some Martian dirt money, the Wisp revealed some facts about the Martians and their civilization.

In the Abyss, the Wisps conducted a little test by tempting the Avatar with the Armageddon spell. The Avatar resisted the temptation to cast the spell, and the Wisp explained that an important lesson had been learned: not all information is beneficial.

In Ultima VII, wisps could be seen in Spiritwood and the Deep Forest, always in the Abandoned Fortress. The Wisps first paid no attention to the Avatar and the Companions; after Margareta said that the Wisps had important information to share about the Time Lord, the Avatar made inquiries with Taylor at Empath Abbey. The party then sought the aid of the Emps, who provided a special whistle to make contact with the Wisps. In exchange for setting up a meeting with the Time Lord, Xorinia wanted Alagner's Notebook. In the end, while the Wisps threw in information on the Guardian and the Black Gate, they also sold out Alagner to the Guardian; the sage was immediately murdered by the Fellowship.

The last encounter with the Wisps was in Ultima Underworld II. The Avatar met them in the blue zone of the Ethereal Void. After demanding to know what had happened to Bishop, they gave the Avatar information about what had happened to the Trilkhai and their history (although other information can be asked for as well).

The Wisps weren't seen again after this. In Ultima VIII, there are reports of mysterious balls of light on the Plateau. While this does strongly point to the Wisps, it's uncertain if this really refers to them.

Trivia

 * From Ultima VI onward, the Wisps are invincible, and if the player dared to attack them it would be their end.
 * The Wisp appearing in the first Underworld game is quite different physically from all other games. This one consists of several small balls of light, and explains that Wisps can send small parts of themselves away to gather information.