Chuckles

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This article is about the in-game jester. For the out-game programmer, see Chuck Bueche.

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Chuckles
Chuckles, from Ultima VII
Species:	human
Appearances
Ultima VII Location: Castle Britannia Ultima VI Chuckles, from Ultima VI Location: Castle Britannia Transcript: Chuckles The Ultima 6 Project Chuckles, from The Ultima 6 Project Location: Castle Britannia Ultima: Runes of Virtue Chuckles, from Ultima: Runes of Virtue Location: Castle Britannia Ultima V: Lazarus Chuckles, from Ultima V: Lazarus Location: Castle Britannia Ultima V Chuckles, from Ultima V Location: Castle Britannia Transcript: Chuckles Ultima IV Chuckles, from Ultima IV Location: Castle Britannia Description: jester Transcript: Chuckles Ultima III Chuckles, from Ultima III Location: Castle of Lord British Ultima II Chuckles, from Ultima II Location: Pirates Harbour

Chuckles the Bumble is royal jester of Lord British's court. Having a longevity comparable to those Britannian's of Terran origin, the fool of Castle Britannia has had ample time to carve out a reputation through the centuries – and is well known for his irritating mannerisms and veiled clues. While not a appearing a malevolent man by nature, Chuckles seldom breaks his jovial character, which can lead to rapid frustration in those not accustomed to his person.

Biography

Age of Darkness

Chuckles first appeared during the Golden Age of time doors, on the Earth as created by Minax. The man's exact origins are difficult to pinpoint: he could be a native Earthman, or one of the many Sosarians who traveled through time doors before the Stranger did. On Earth, he used to dwell in the post-apocalyptic Soviet settlement of Pirates Harbour during the twenty-second century. If encountered by the Stranger in Ultima II, the wandering fool appeared another victim of the cataclysmic desolation wrought by the nuclear wars of the age, asking repeatedly if "it" was over yet.

Regardless of whatever world and time Chuckles was originally native to, the jester traveled to Sosaria before the time doors disappeared. There, he eventually found employ with Lord British as his personal entertainer and could be found in Sosaria by the time of Exodus' incursions in Ultima III, where he served as a greeter for travelers coming to the young lord's castle.

Age of Enlightenment

With the death of the last member of the Triad of Evil, an outpouring of academic, political and philosophical renewal was fostered in by the sovereign of the nascent realm of Britannia, and it was heralded throughout the land that the ambitious Lord British wished a champion to arise in guidance of his people. During this exciting period, Chuckles maintained his post as a welcomer to the Castle Britannia, asking those who entered its demesnes if they bore ankhs – a symbol which had been adopted by pilgrims in pursuit of virtue. Should the Stranger approach Chuckles for advice, following the instructions of his friend Zajac of the Lycaeum, the royal fool would instruct the hero to speak to the living waters of the castle well and ask it of the altar rooms fitted to the stones of virtue.

Later, after the tragic disappearance of his lord during a mission to the Underworld, Chuckles struggled to keep the corrupt regent, Blackthorn from seizing British's enchanted Crown Jewels. After the public appropriation of the royal crown shortly after the Oppression's rise to power, the loyal jester arranged for the king's sceptre to be delivered to Lord Malone of Serpent's Hold, although ultimately his couriers were intercepted by the Shadowlords. Despite such failures, the jester attempted still to bring cheer to wayfarers seeking refuge in Castle Britannia during this dark time, and could be found here providing merriment as best he could during the course of Ultima V.

Curiously, an inmate of the castle's prisons, Drudgeworth, made accusations at this time which insinuated that Chuckles was somehow involved in the accidental death of a woman – a crime for which he had been jailed. While Chuckles denied any knowledge of this affair and his accuser proved violent if freed, a secret passage could, in fact, be found in Chuckles' room, with a corpse stowed inside it. What the body of this scandal entailed, however, was never fully explained.

Years later, during the threat of the Gargoyle War, the affair of the body seemed to be long forgotten, with the passage that hid it absent from the remodeled castle architecture. Chuckles, jovial as ever, would tempt the Avatar during Ultima VI with a scavenger hunt of notes scattered throughout the kingdom, purporting that a clue awaited the hero at the end of the game. Humorously, this chase after information ended with advice to go to Smith, the talking horse, who gave the hero sage words as to how to solve problems already long resolved.

Age of Armageddon

Over the next two centuries, Chuckles remained of much the same humor, and when the hero again returned to Castle Britannia in Ultima VII the fool once more offered a clue – but only if the champion of legend could master his linguistic "game." Should the hero manage this, the jester would give the hero genuine and apt advice (albeit at the end of an exasperatingly long scroll), and would direct the Avatar to Margareta of Minoc, a wise woman who had much insight into the current state of Britannian affairs.

After this, the jubilant Chuckles eventually faded from the annals of Britannian history – either having died or been otherwise removed from the realm by the time of Ultima IX. While Sir Dupre gave brief mention during his imprisonment in the Guardian's blackrock dome that the frustrating jokester had remained outside of the castle, no record of Chuckles' fate after this point has been discovered.

Lore

“	"'Welcome All!' the Royal Jester Chuckles issues his greeting inside the entrance to the castle of Lord British." – from Secrets of Sosaria (Ultima III)

“	All Chuckles does is juggle and tell jokes all day. He might be able to help you. but usually he'd rather just say something silly. – from Runes of Virtue manual (Runes of Virtue)

“	Would that jester had as little to say! All life's a grand comedy to him, and he likes nothing more than playing tricks on the unwary. – from The Book of Prophecy (Ultima VI)

“	I tried to enter the castle proper but was prevented at first by that rascal, Chuckles. He continually forced me to play a foolish word game which took some time to untangle. Finally, I noticed the pattern of single-syllable words in all of his sentences, and was able to satisfy his thirst for amusement. – from Key to the Black Gate (Ultima VII)

Trivia

• Chuckles' real world counterpart is Chuck Bueche, a highschool friend and college roommate to Richard Garriott and one of the original founders of Origin Systems.
• Chuckles is the author of a book entitled 101 Avatar Jokes.
• In the Nintendo remake of Ultima IV (where most character names were omitted and dialogue was significantly modified), Chuckles simply introduces himself and jests, without any link to Zajac or Water.
• In Runes of Virtue and Runes of Virtue II, Chuckles roams Castle Britannia and may provide the Avatar with helpful information.
• In the German version of Ultima VII, the translation was not properly done with Chuckles' game, thus resulting in some of the correct choices being ones that logically should break the rules of the game. The fan-translation Ultima VII auf Deutsch fixes this, so that the rules of the game are not broken.

Gallery

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  NES remake