Ararat
The Ararat was the ship of Captain Johne, found wrecked in the Underworld. This event was key to the emergence of the Shadowlords.
Descirption[edit]
One day at sea, the ship was swallowed by a whirlpool, and washed ashore on an island deep within the Underworld beneath the dungeon Despise. This implicitly happened during or after the creation of the Underworld at the conclusion of Ultima IV.
In Ultima V, the Avatar found Captain Johne in the wreck of the ship where he said he had been living for years. Johne told the Avatar how the three shards of the Gem of Immortality had driven him insane, making him kill his three mates. From their bodies the Shadowlords arose. The Avatar rescued Johne, and the Ararat was left behind.
Following the collapse of the Underworld, the wreck was lost.
Lore[edit]
| “ | One day, not really all that long ago, a furious maelstrom sprung up from nowhere to swallow Captain Johne’s ship, dragging captain and crew into the lightless void beneath the waves. ’Twas a shipwreck far more grievous than thou art thinking, for upon that day was Britannia’s fate truly sealed. Still the Captain lives, though the same cannot be said of his erstwhile crew. – from Paths of Destiny (Ultima V)
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Trivia[edit]
- Even though the Ararat is a wrecked ship, the "keep" icon was used to represent it on the Underworld map.
- The Tale of Captain Johne by Michael D. Hilborn is based upon Captain Johne's story from Ultima V, and expands upon the story of the Ararat. The complete text can be found at: http://www.biggles2k.com/johne/ttocj_toc.html
- The ship is named after Mount Ararat in modern Turkey, the place where according to the Bible, Noah’s Ark found land again.