Geoffrey

Geoffrey
Geoffrey, from Ultima Underworld II
Species:	human
Appearances
Ultima Underworld II Location: Castle Britannia Ultima IX Geoffrey, from Ultima IX Location: Destard Transcript: Geoffrey Ultima VII Geoffrey, from Ultima VII Location: Castle Britannia Ultima VI Geoffrey, from Ultima VI Location: Castle Britannia Transcript: Geoffrey The Ultima 6 Project Geoffrey, from The Ultima 6 Project Location: Castle Britannia Ultima V: Lazarus Geoffrey, from Ultima V: Lazarus Location: Buccaneer's Den Ultima V Geoffrey, from Ultima V Location: Buccaneer's Den Transcript: Geoffrey Ultima IV Geoffrey, from Ultima IV Location: Jhelom Description: Companion Transcript: Geoffrey

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This article is about a character from the Ultima game series. For the character from the manga Ultima: The Quest of the Avatar, see Geoffrey (manga).

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Geoffrey, a strong and capable fighter, is a recurring character and one of the companions of the Avatar. Possessing a longevity typical of many Terrans dwelling in Britannia, Geoffrey has spent centuries in service to the realm, many of them as the commander of Lord British's personal guard.

According to his description from his dialogue in Ultima IV, he is a 6' 5" tall great warrior.

History

Age of Darkness

It is not known precisely when Geoffrey first came to Sosaria/Britannia, and there are, in fact, some legends which claim the fighter as a native to the world. Whatever the case, the first record of Geoffrey can be found in Lord British's Great Work – a tome of commissioned exploratory writings which set to chart the boundaries of the young king's realms. In this volume, Geoffrey (known then by the title of "the Giant" – likely in reference to his imposing stature) explored and mapped the Perinian Depths, a dungeon northeast of Britain.

Age of Enlightenment

Later, after the eventual defeat of the Triad of Evil, Lord British sent out a call for an individual to champion his new system of virtues, hoping to move his kingdom out of the brutality of the dark ages it had endured and into an enlightened era of philosophy, scholarship and art. In this age, Geoffrey took residence in Jhelom, a city dedicated to the concept of Valor, where he eventually met the aspirant Stranger. Speaking of his own of longing for battle, the fighter offered his services as a combatant, and joined with the hero in the quest to obtain Avatarhood, going into the depths of the Abyss..

This association with the Avatar of legend, however, would ultimately prove a burden to the warrior. Geoffrey, along with the others who had accompanied the hero, became a target during the time of the regent Blackthorn's regime and was marked as an outlaw during the rule of the Oppression. Fleeing the society that persecuted him, the gallant came to dwell in Buccaneer's Den, where he awaited the Avatar's return, hoping to fight alongside against Blackthorn's tyrannical regime. Should the hero approach him during the course of Ultima V, the fighter would prove eager to proffer what assistance he could.

Eventually, Blackthorn was deposed and British restored, and the following years saw Geoffrey rise to the post of captain of the royal guard under the returned sovereign. Years later, during the gargish war, Geoffrey was charged with launching a counterattack to attempt to reclaim the occupied Shrine of Compassion, dispatching several members of the town guard to combat the invaders. This campaign ended with calamitous results, and the surviving men were all severely injured. The Avatar could later speak with their leader, Gertan, to hear tales of the bloody affair.

With such martial engagements seeming to occupy the bulk of Geoffrey's days, the warrior was unable to accompany the hero to end the conflict during Ultima VI, and had little to speak of aside the war. Eventually, the hero managed to resolve the conflict peaceably, and Geoffrey presumably returned to the peacetime routines of a civil servant.

Age of Armageddon

Over the next two-hundred years, Geoffrey maintained his post by British's side, aging only slightly throughout the ages of relative tranquility which the kingdom enjoyed. By the time of the Avatar's return in Ultima VII, the fighter claimed that he had grown too old for adventuring, and that his responsibilities demanded he remain in Britain. These long years of relative inaction had given the warrior a slightly contemplative outlook on life, and he had taken to the study of philosophy in the comparatively tame world of the early Age of Armageddon.

Later, in Ultima Underworld II, he was among those in attendance at the ill-fated fête in which the revelers were imprisoned inside of a great blackrock dome of the Guardian's artifice. In these close quarters, the aging soldier took up a challenge to spar with the comparatively young Master Syria of Jhelom's Library of Scars – a duel which he lost with embarrassing rapidity. Realizing that the long years of quiet had dulled his fighting edge, the shamed captain rededicated himself to the art of war – vowing to reacquire his gift with weaponry, if only to better protect Lord British.

After weathering the years of the Imbalance and the eventual incursion of the Guardian onto Britannian soil, Geoffrey, like many of the Avatar's other companions, was seduced by the power of the columns, taking on the name Yerffoeg and the mantle of the Wyrmguard. When the hero encountered him in Ultima IX, the transformed man denounced his liege, Lord British, and could be found guarding the Guardian's work near the Dungeon Destard. Should the Avatar have chosen to play upon the cowardice of his corrupt state and frighten him off with threats, the fighter would not come to blows with the champion, and could later be found in Valoria, after the Shrine of Valor had been restored. He reported that he intended to go and beg for Lord British's forgiveness for his actions.

Later, Geoffrey would aid in the final defeat of the Guardian, journeying to the Destard again to cleanse the corrupting column linked to it, helping to cut off the Guardian's power and to divert the catastrophic collision of Trammel and Felucca.

Ultima V: Lazarus

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This is an Ultima V: Lazarus-related article or section. The information within may not apply to Ultima V or other Ultima games.

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In Ultima V: Lazarus, Geoffrey served the Resistance from Buccaneer's Den while in exile from Blackthorn. He told the hero how he had fought with the regent in Jhelom, but had been defeated despite wounding Blackthorn's face. The knight was also willing to grant Lord Dalgrin legal protection for his various crimes should Lord British return, in exchange for the pirate helping to resupply Serpent's Hold.

The Ultima 6 Project

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This is an Ultima 6 Project-related NPC article or section. The information within may not apply to Ultima VI or other Ultima games.

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In The Ultima 6 Project, Geoffrey would assist the hero by giving more detailed instructions regarding the recent assault on the Shrine of Compassion. He would further help the hero use the Orb of the Moons to transport to the Shrine. After the events in Cove, the Avatar would find out that the soldier Ed had perished in the aftermath. Bringing his body to Geoffrey, he would instruct the hero to bring Ed's body to Glen at Empath Abbey for cremation. Once that was done, the Avatar attended the funeral, where Geoffrey and other warriors would give Ed a farewell.

Later, Geoffrey would prove crucial at Baden's plan to break the siege of Trinsic. Geoffrey sent swordsmen through the moongate of Britain to the Trinsic moongate, from where they attacked the southern gargoyle forces, while Baden's men at the same time attacked the northern forces. The combined effort finally broke the siege.

Lore

“	A fighter sat in one corner of the room. He stood as we entered. He was well over six feet tall and dwarfed everyone else in the room. His hair was brown and clumsily cut. A fierceness emanated from him and his hand dropped to the sword at his side as if in a reflex action. – from Ultima: The Avatar Adventures (Ultima IV)

“	This used to be Geoffrey’s favorite place to go adventuring, back before he was made Captain of the Guard. Most people don’t know about the place, which, according to Geoffrey, keeps the place “unspoiled.” I’d say “infested with monsters,” but everyone’s got a right to their own opinion. – from The Book of Prophecy (Ultima VI)

“	Geoffrey first achieved fame fighting at the Stranger’s side during the Quest of the Avatar. In recent years he has become one of Lord British’s most trusted aides, as well as his chief bodyguard. – from A Safe Passage Through Britannia (Ultima Underworld II)

“The Tale of Geoffrey and the Dragon: A Parable of Valor”

Main article: The Tale of Geoffrey and the Dragon

Of old, in the days when the great Dragons still flew freely about the skies, there was a dragon called Ignus. Now dragons are subtle and dangerous creatures, but as a whole they are not truly evil, for they have their own way to follow, and honor after their own fashion. Ignus, however, was an exception, and in fact I believe he was the source of many of the popular libels which are spoken about his race. For Ignus was a mischievous and rapacious beast, and he took great delight in plundering and ruining the habitations of humanity. He even had a taste for the flesh of human youths, particularly females, which habit I am sure his fellow Dragons found very nearly as distasteful as we do.

So it came to pass one day that Ignus woke to find himself both hungry and bored, and he bestirred himself and off he flew, in search of amusement and sustenance among the habitations of men.

Trivia

• Geoffrey's counterpart in reality is Jeff Hillhouse, the first outside employee of Origin in 1983, who served as the Head of Operations.
• In the NES remake of Ultima IV, Geoffrey's name has been abbreviated as "Geoff". He gained the ability to wield the Axe of Legend (weapon exclusive to the NES remake), but lost the ability to wear magic chain armor.
• In Ultima VII, Geoffrey indicates that he is originally from Earth in his dialogue with the Avatar. In “The Tale of Geoffrey and the Dragon”, the budding warrior is described to have already established himself, along with his father and sister, in Lord British's realm at the age of 14.
• In Ultima Underworld II, he trains Attack and Defense skills.
• In Ultima IX, the Avatar may opt to slay Geoffrey when encountering him as a Wyrmguard. If this happens, Geoffrey will later appear as a ghost, thanking the hero for releasing him from his bondage to the Guardian. He will later be restored to life along with Dupre and any other slain companions once the Shrine of Spirituality is cleansed.
• In early drafts of Ultima IX from Bob White's tenure as lead designer, Geoffrey was to have remained uncorrupted in his post as Captain of the Guard and acted as the principal aide to an ailing Lord British. In this telling of the series' concluding chapter, Geoffrey was also to have fathered a daughter named Mistral, who, as a monk serving in the Cathedral of Love, would have cooperated with the Avatar in the hero's effort to awaken Shamino from his self-imposed magical stasis within the convent.

Gallery

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  Ultima IV, NES remake

References

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The Companions of the Avatar
The Companions	Mariah ☥ Iolo ☥ Geoffrey ☥ Jaana ☥ Julia ☥ Dupre ☥ Shamino ☥ Katrina