Britannian Magic



The magic of Britannia is a highly complex art, which only very few can master. The ability to do magic can't be learned. Either it is with the mage from birth, or it will never come at all. And even if the ability is there, it takes years to learn the art. But once it is learned, the mage can do devastating and constructive things with his or her art. To do magic successfully, several things have to be in the possession or knowledge of the mage.

This section will be a good explanation, how magic in Britannia works in the Ultima series, and what rules have to be looked at when casting a spell.

Magic before the current rules
Before the current rules of magic applied, the usage of magic was different.

In the Age of Darkness (up to Ultima III), no reagents were needed, and the now well-known Words of Power were not yet in use. The results of these earlier incantations could somewhat unstable as a result.

In the first two Ages of Enlightenment (Ultima IV and Ultima V), the spells had to be mixed manually. These mixtures then had to be used by speaking the correct words of power, to activate them.

From Ultima VI onward, the current rules apply.

The Spellbook
The Spellbook is the most important part of casting spells, and without it, no magic can be done. In the spellbook, all spells known to the mage are written down, to be easily accessed. The Spells can be learned from other mages, and can then be written down into the book, for easy access and fast spellcasting. The more experience the mage has, the fuller the spellbook is.

Spellbooks only became common from Ultima VI onward. Before, spellbooks weren't needed, and the spells directly mixed. In Ultima V, magic scrolls also appeared, but they were unpractical, and vanished again after a while. In Ultima VI, mages sell spellbooks, Lord British has one ready for the Avatar at the beginning of the game. In Ultima VII, Lord British has a Spellbook ready for the Avatar in the castle, a few others can be found in the game, but haven't any use.

Reagents


Needed for the spell are reagents. These chemical substances are needed as a link between the physical world of the spellcaster and the ethereal waves of magic. Each of them can be found in specific places, or bought from other mages, who earn money with the selling of reagents. Reagents have to be prepared in a special manner, before they can be used to can any spells.

These reagents are in use since Ultima IV, where the magic system was altered significantly, and became more complex. Since then, the reagents have stayed the same, and appeared in every installment in Britannia.

Black Pearl
Fewer than one in ten thousand pearls is black. They have been found at the base of tall cliffs on Buccaneer's Den. Black pearl is ground up into a fine powder. The black pearl is used as kinetic propellant.

Can be bought.

Blood Moss
The only places where this strange substance can be located are in the Bloody Plains across the mountains from Cove (where many years ago thousands of soldiers lost their lives) or in the enchanted forest of Spiritwood, beneath the rotting bark of dead trees. Blood moss is used to enhance mobility and movement.

Can be bought.

Garlic
There are few kitchens in all of Britannia that are not supplied with at least a few cloves of this spice. Garlic cloves are washed and ground into a paste, providing significant protection from harmful magic.

VERY common and easy to buy.

Ginseng
The healers of our fair land have known of the healthful and restorative powers of this bitter root for hundreds of years. But to the mage it requires special preparation. It must be boiled and reboiled in the freshest of water no less than forty times! This reduces it to a strong-smelling syrup that makes a very potent reagent.

Can be bought.

Mandrake Root
A most sought after magical reagent. It is one of the most difficult of all reagents to prepare, for in being dug up the tap root of the mandrake plant must not be broken. Also, that root itself must be properly prepared, boiled and dried. Mandrake root can be found on the Bloody Plains and in a place known as the Fens of the Dead, south of Paws. Increases the power of the desired enchantment.

In Ultima IV, it can only be found. Later, it can be bought.

Nightshade
Not to be confused with the rank-smelling plant of the same name. The fungal cap from this rare and unusual mushroom may be either crushed or boiled into a tea. The mage must always use great care when handling nightshade, for it is not only a very potent hallucinogenic, it is also extremely poisonous. Adds illusion or poison.

Can only be found in Ultima IV. Can be bought in later games. The Nightshade was screwed up in Ultima IX, where is was transformed into a leaf plant, which goes against everything known before about it.

Spider Silk
While a common reagent, it can be very difficult to gather any significant quantity of it from any single source. Mages have been known to frequent caves and crypts and even run their own personal spider farms in order to maintain an abundant supply of spider's silk. It usually takes at least an ounce of silk to cast a spell. Adds binding powers for spells.

Can be bought.

Sulfurous Ash
The great quantities of ash generated by a volcanic eruption makes this a common commodity as far as magical reagents go, but one does usually have to travel in order to acquire a large quantity of it. Adds high levels of energy to the spells which require it.

Can be bought.

Words of Power
The last and important part of doing magic, is the incantation itself. These words have to be spoken when activating the spell, so that the magic can free the power of the force tempered with. The combination of the syllables is what defines the spell, beside the combination of Reagents. Following are the syllables, their meaning for a spell and pronunciation.

In Ultima V, the magic words had to be typed in by hand. From Ultima VI onwards, the computer did all this work, thus making spellcasting a lot easier and therefore much more fun.

The Spells and Casting
Casting a spell is done by holding the Spellbook in one hand, with the page consisting the desired spell open, and chanting the right Words of Power. The pre-prepared Reagents haven't needed to be held in the other hand. They only have to be in the possession of the spellcaster. They will vanish in the right quantity as the spell's effects take place.

The number of spells is very great in the Britannian magic system. Far too many to list all of them on this page. Therefore they are found in a extra category. This category is:
 * Britannian Spells.