Killing Lord British

Lord British's assassination in Ultima Online

Killing Lord British has become an accomplishment in itself over the years. Richard Garriott had something against the players trying to assassinate his character Lord British. At first Garriott made this task extremely difficult, but program oversights sometimes still made it possible. Later, the whole thing was seen more humorous. Therefore, here now are the known ways to kill Lord British in the games:

Ultima I

• Lord British has plenty of hit points, but with maximum stats and the best weapons and armour, it is possible to kill him the normal way.
  • This does not work in the 1986 DOS remake. Lord British does not take any damage in that version.

Ultima II

• As in Ultima I, British again has a large, finite amount of hit points.

Ultima III

• Lord British is invulnerable to most weapons in Ultima III, but not ship cannons. The player can lure Lord British towards the moat, after making him aggressive, and kill him with the cannons of the ship parked there.

Ultima IV

• In the NES version Lord British can be killed much like in Ultima I and II.

• In the Atari 800 version, Lord British can be killed with the Skull of Mondain in his presence. He just disappears along with everyone else in the room.

Ultima V

• Finishing the game without having the sandalwood box causes the Avatar’s party to be trapped with Lord British with no means of escape, which is another means of a game over. Presumably, this means all will die from starvation, although this begs the question of how Lord British hadn't done the same.

Ultima VI

Killing Lord British in his sleep

• Dragging a poison trap to the throne and detonating it while Lord British sits on it will poison him, killing him in only a matter of time.

• While Lord British is asleep, is is possible to kill him with a glass sword.

• Surrounding his throne with enough powder kegs and igniting them while he sits on it kills him.

Ultima VII

• Every day at noon, Lord British stays in the doorway to the throne room. Reading the plaque above the door will cause it to fall, beheading the king. This was inspired by an incident at the Origin building; a metal bar, where the magnet on the door attached to it, fell on Garriott's head, warranting a visit to the hospital.

• It also is possible to use The Black Sword against Lord British, which results in a humorous scene before the deed is done.

Ultima Underworld II

• There are no known ways to kill Lord British in Ultima Underworld II.

Ultima VII Part Two

• Since Lord British is met in the Dream Realm, he can be attacked by normal means. He complains of how far the Avatar has fallen before waking up.

Ultima IX

• The Avatar can use a bread maker together with rat poison to make poisoned bread. This can be taken to Britannia, and exchanged with Lord British's meal in the kitchen. Lord British will come in, eat the bread, and die from the rat poison.

Trivia

• The whole thing also accidentally happened in Ultima Online (see top-of-article image). A character called "Rainz" used a stolen firewall-scroll while Lord British gave an audience. Richard Garriott, who had forgotten to activate his "Lord British-invincibility" must have looked quite shocked, when his alter ego dropped dead on the spot.