Rune stones

Rune stones in-game

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This article is about the stones used with runic magic. For other uses, see Runes (disambiguation).

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Rune stones are magical foci used in the casting of runic magic. They appear in Ultima Underworld and Ultima Underworld II.

Description

The exact origins of rune stones are not known, as the magical system which utilizes them does not appear to be native to Britannia. The first known examples of rune stones were found in the Stygian Abyss by Cabirus' colonists, who eventually intuited their use in runic magic and crafted appropriate containers for housing them. Later, following Nystul's research into inter-dimensional spellcraft, several of these rune stones were imported to Castle Britannia, where the Avatar was able to make use of them during the disaster of the blackrock dome.

Rune stones are each etched with one of twenty-four symbols that correspond to the magical Words of Power (although there are no rune stones for XEN or ZU). A magician may use up to three of these stones to craft a runic spell, holding them between the fingers of the casting hand, and will frequently be limited in his spell-casting by the number of different stones he possesses. Fabrication of such stones, at least the simpler ones, does not need a mage, as shown by their industrial production on Talorus. The more powerful ones, especially the FLAM and VAS stones, are highly valued.

Runestone Meanings

It is easier to remember the runic magic spells when one knows the meanings of the runes:

They are presented here first in a table with rune stones as they appear in the games, and then with the runes as presented in the game manuals.

Stone		Name	Meaning
UW1	UW2
		An	Negate
		Bet	Small
		Corp	Death
		Des	Down
		Ex	Freedom
		Flam	Flame
		Grav	Energy
		Hur	Wind
		In	Cause
		Jux	Harm
		Kal	Summon
		Lor	Light
		Mani	Life
		Nox	Poison
		Ort	Magic
		Por	Movement
		Quas	Illusion
		Rel	Change
		Sanct	Protection
		Tym	Time
		Uus	Raise
		Vas	Great
		Wis	Knowledge
		Ylem	Matter

THE RUNES OF MAGIC
AN Negate BET Small CORP Death DES Down EX Freedom FLAM Flame GRAV Energy HUR Wind IN Cause JUX Harm KAL Summon LOR Light MANI Life NOX Poison ORT Magic POR Movement QUAS Illusion REL Change SANCT Protection TYM Time UUS Raise VAS Great WIS Knowledge YLEM Matter

Lore

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We have discovered a way to cast magic which works only in the Abyss, and which does not require the user to carry a cumbersome tome with him. There are, scattered among the corridors in the depths, special stones charged with mystic potency. Each of these stones is inscribed with a rune identifying its nature. These rune stones are similar in function to the syllables of magic used in ordinary Britannian magic. Any spell can be cast by a mage who possesses the rune stones pertaining to that spell, unless the caster lacks the experience to utilize the spells of that Circle. – from Memoirs of Sir Cabirus (Ultima Underworld)

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In the practice of runic magic, there are no reagents to act as physical ingredients to the spell, and no magic syllables to be spoken. The principal component of runic sorcery is the runestone, a small rock inscribed with one of the twenty-four known runes. Each of these runes has its own significance, a particular meaning and application, which when combined with other runes becomes articulated in a spell, a focused release of magical energy which accomplishes a particular effect on the world. The casting of the spell is accomplished through a complicated set of hand gestures. Even if a runic mage obtains all the correct runestones for a given spell, the appropriate gestures may yet be beyond his or her skill. – from A Safe Passage Through Britannia (Ultima Underworld II)

Usages

For a list of runic spells and the runes needed to cast them, see: Runic magic spells

For an analysis of which runes are used in how many spells, see sub-article: Uses

Locations

Sub article: Locations

The Trinket

In the original release of Ultima Underworld, a pouch with six metal rune stones was included as a trinket. These rune stones are supposedly the same as the ones in the game, as they do fit between the fingers exactly as intended and described. The six rune stones included are BET, IN, JUX, LOR, ORT and SANCT.

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  The rune stones as trinket

Trivia

• The lack of the XEN-rune stone is explicitly mentioned in Ultima Underworld in the notes of the late dark mage Vilus. In it, he is complaining that there is no stone for XEN, making summoning a creature much more difficult.
• The rune stones in the trinket are exactly the same the Avatar finds as starting rune stones in the game.

References

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Trinkets and Merchandise
Trinkets	Ankh amulet ☥ Cards of Virtue ☥ Codex Coin ☥ Fellowship medallion ☥ Coins of the Kingdom ☥ Hildebrandt poster Lord Blackthorn action figure ☥ Orb of the Moons ☥ Pentagram coin ☥ Rune stones ☥ UO pin ☥ Ultima VI audio tape
Foreign Trinkets	Ankh key ring ☥ Ankh paperknife ☥ Codex amulet ☥ Crystal paperweight ☥ LED snaphook ☥ Second Age mouse pad Serpent coin ☥ Ultima V FM Towns poster ☥ Ultima VI FM Towns poster ☥ Ultima Collection game cards
Merchandise	Exodus "Ultima Mix" CD ☥ Exodus t-shirt and wrist watch ☥ Origin Soundtrack Vol. 1 ☥ Origin Soundtrack Vol. 2 ☥ Origin Soundtrack Vol. 3 Ultima IX Soundtrack CD ☥ Ultima Online 2 action figures ☥ Ultima II phone card ☥ Ultima V t-shirt ☥ Ultima VII boomerang Wild Basin Expedition t-shirt
Non-Computer Games	Ultima Generation ☥ Ultima III jigsaw puzzle ☥ Ultima Legend