Nixies
| Nixies | |
|---|---|
 Nixie, from Ultima IV manual | |
| Only appearance: | Ultima IV |
Nixies are a hostile race of sea-dwelling humanoids which could be encountered during Ultima IV.
Description[edit]
Nixies are said to be descended from the elves of Sosaria, and appear have to outlived their more peaceable cousins. While they appear to have been a sapient species capable of speech, little is known about nixie society or culture, if there is one – given that almost all of its interactions with mankind were violent. Known to frequently harass and attack human travelers at sea during the early Age of Enlightenment, these aquatic beings were often seen in the company of giant seahorses and would harry their targets by hurtling their long tridents at them from across the waves.
Nixies were not sighted by human travelers after the Avatar's first quest in Britannia, having either gone the way of their elven cousins or contenting themselves to remain unengaged with the realm's land-dwelling races.
Lore[edit]
| “ | These aquatic first cousins of the ancient race of Elves rise from the depths to strike terror into the hearts of seafarers. The evil Nixies wield sharp tridents which can be hurled against a ship's crew from afar, causing great damage. – from The History of Britannia (Ultima IV)
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Notable Examples[edit]
- Noxum: a peaceful nixie found in Serpent's Hold; bears information on the wheel of HMS Cape.
Trivia[edit]
- Nixies are probably based on the "Nixe" or "Nix" of Germanic folklore. These mythological water spirits were generally malevolent in character and were said to lure travelers to their death in whatever bodies of water they inhabited, beguiling their prey with songs and seductions.
- Illustrations from the manual for the NES-port of Ultima IV depict the entire body of a nixie, showing them to have a fish-like lower torso similar to that of a mermaid. The nixies in that port are also all female. Interestingly, while the censorship policies Nintendo held at the time caused the nixie in the manual to wear a seashell bikini, those in the game itself are entirely topless.