Blue Boar Tavern

Blue Boar Tavern
Ultima VII Type: tavern Location: Britain Proprietor: Lucy Ultima VI Blue Boar Tavern, from Ultima VI Location: Britain Proprietor: Anya and Matt Ultima V Blue Boar Tavern, from Ultima V Location: Britannys Proprietor: Jaymes Ultima III Blue Boar Tavern, from Ultima III Location: Moon

The Blue Boar Tavern in Britain is one of the oldest drinking establishments in Britannia, having been in continuous operation since its days as a West Britanny pub in Ultima V through its last years as a renowned center of drink and entertainment in Ultima VII. A solid presence in the reality of Britannia's fabric, the well-established alehouse is also present within the fragmented worlds of Ultima Online.

History

Age of Darkness

It is likely that the Blue Boar of Britain derived its name from a tavern of the same name in the Sosarian city of Moon, which was in service during the Stranger's quest against Exodus. This historic tavern, in addition to likely being the inspiration for the famed drinking house of Britain, also appears to have carried its name to the far-flung shores of Serpent Isle, where a Blue Boar Inn was established by Moonish immigrants within the mage-ruled city of Moonshade.

Age of Enlightenment

The original Blue Boar was a modest tap house which nevertheless dominated the small hamlet it occupied, catering to the local farmers. At the time it was operated by Jaymes, and purportedly had been the original eatery to serve mutton a la Britanny as prepared by its chef Andre, which was later popularized at the Wayfarer's Inn in central Britain.

Over the years, as the Britannys became absorbed by the ever expanding capital, the Blue Boar ended up in the eastern part of the city – the city having grown around it – eventually coming under the ownership of Anya and her husband Matt during the time of the Gargoyle War in Ultima VI. Now at the heart of a Britannia's cosmopolitan urban center, the tavern's customer base expanded greatly, with Zoltan's kumpania making frequent stops during its wanderings and the Covite bard Lazeena often gracing the establishment with her music. Indeed, the strong competition forced the Wayfarer's Inn to drop out of the tavern market.

Age of Armageddon

Centuries later, little had changed about the now well-entrenched eatery, which appeared by the time of Ultima VII to be a source of regular restaurant meals for much of the metropolitan center's populace. Now owned by the exuberant Lucy and run with the aid of the bubbly Jeanette, the tavern had become a major entertainment stop for Britons, with numerous patrons coming to see the popular house band, "The Avatars."

Sadly, in the years that followed, the Blue Boar, like many popular locales in Britain, vanished from the vibrant cityscape – likely having succumb to either the Imbalance or the Great Cataclysm by the time of Ultima IX, at which point it had been replaced by the much smaller King's Head as the premier tavern of Britain.

Lore

“	Between holidays I find the Blue Boar Tavern quite servicable [sic], though it's nothing exceptional. Poor Anya is always looking for some miracle cure for her husband... If she mentions it, best not to get her hopes up. – from The Book of Prophecy (Ultima VI: The False Prophet)

Goods

Ultima III

Prices in Ultima III are in the Moonish tavern of this name as follows:

Goods	Cost (gp)
Drink	3

Ultima V

Prices in Ultima V are as follows:

Food Cost (gp) Cheese 5

Drinks Cost (gp) Wine 1

Ultima VI

Prices in Ultima VI are as follows:

Food Cost (gp) Rations (mutton) 4 Cake 8

Drinks Cost (gp) Mead 4 Ale 3 Wine 6

Ultima VII

Prices in Ultima VII are as follows:

Food Lucy (gp) Jeanette (gp) Beef 20 18 Ham 20 18 Mutton 6 5 Trout 5 4 Bread 4 3 Cake 3 2 Silverleaf 50 45

Drinks Lucy (gp) Jeanette (gp) Ale 5 4 Mead 15 12 Wine 5 4

Patrons

Ultima VI

• Zoltan's kumpania: gypsies
• Lazeena: Covite bard

Ultima VII

• Shamino: Companion of the Avatar

Trivia

• The Blue Boar was slated to appear in an earlier draft of Ultima IX, developed under Bob White's tenure as lead designer. In this prior version of the game, the historical tavern was to be a haunt of Raven's in the event the rogue was not among the Avatar's party of companions, as well as a point of contact in the hero's liaising with Samhayne's Guild. As a vestige of this appearance, artwork for the Blue Boar's signage remains in the final game's data files.