Stratos
| Stratos | |||||
 Stratos, from Ultima VIII | |||||
| Species: | Elemental Titan | ||||
| Appearances | |||||
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Stratos (also known as The Mystic Voice) is one of the four Titans of Pagan, and personifies the element of air. She appears in Ultima VIII.
History[edit]
The Rise of the Titans[edit]
Stratos and her brethren came into power during the Second Epoch, when the denizens of Pagan turned from their belief in the Zealan deities to worship the primal elements – hoping they would be saved from a being known as the "Destroyer" whose coming had been prophesied by the seemingly benevolent Guardian.
She and the other Titans manifested in the Great Temple atop Mount Morgaelin at the climax of a ceremony meant to thwart this Destroyer (who was, in fact, the malevolent the Guardian). Following this deception, Zealan civilization crumbled in the wake of the newly arisen Titans, who wreaked havoc upon their peoples with the raw forces of nature. In this calamitous time, Stratos' winds helped to feed the storms borne of Hydros and the flames of forged by Pyros as the four beings turned their wrath upon the devotees of the old gods.[1][2]
The Founding of Theurgy[edit]
Despite her participation in the upheaval, Stratos would come to prove herself a benevolent ally to the Pagan people in the years which followed the Zealans defeat, and would come to serve as the patron of the healing arts of Theurgy. Her earliest disciple, Stellos, first heard her mystic voice on the crags of Argentrock Isle, and thereafter was able to discern truth from falsehood and even to restore life to the dead. He was further sustained by Stratos' powers such that he lived centuries beyond the normal span of years allotted to men, and went on to found an order on the island where he first heard his mistress' voice.[3][4]
Defeat by the Avatar[edit]
The Avatar arrived on Pagan, sought to join the brotherhood of Theurgists, and was granted an audience with Stratos after successfully passing the trials necessary to gain admission to the order. In speaking with the Titan, the hero learned that she granted her followers a portion of her power through the use of an artifact known as the Breath of Air, a blackrock fragment of the great Obelisk which had stood in the Temple where Stratos first appeared.
Seeking to leave Pagan through the reconstruction of the Obelisk, the Avatar stole the Breath of Air from Stratos, robbing her adherents of their ability to work their healing magics. Later, the hero would hunt her down on the Ethereal Plane and use this artifact to defeat her so as to ascend to become the Titan of the Ether.[5]
Personality[edit]
Stratos was of a gentle and patient temperament, referring to her followers as her "children," and seeing those who worked contrary to her aims as "misguided" and in need of gentle redirection. Her teachings placed a high value on honesty and detachment from worldly glory, and she exhorted those who followed her to be quiet and unassuming in their manners.[6][7]
It however is possible this personality is a pretense, since when confronting the Avatar on the Ethereal Plane, her personality shifted and she became violent as well.
Lore[edit]
| “ | Several years after the torrential rains ceased, a mystical voice contacted Stellos, a wizened follower of Stratos, while he was praying at Argentrock Isle. The voice identified herself as Stratos, ruler of Air. Stellos began telling others of the Mystic Voice, but they thought nothing of his insane ranting ... until he began performing miracles. Quickly it spread through the land that Stellos could aid the sick and draw truth from the lips of liars. – from The Chronicle of Pagan (Ultima VIII)
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Trivia[edit]
- Stratos is voiced by Diane Perella. In the French and German translations, the character is played by Patricia Fabre and Daniela Herloff, respectively.
External Links[edit]
- Ultima 8 – Stratos – Text and Speech (YouTube) – The Avatar meets Stratos for the first time.
References[edit]
- ↑ Morris, Andrew P.. "History". The Chronicle of Pagan (Ultima VIII). Origin Systems Pages 4–5.
- ↑ Nadayr of Tenebrae. The Destruction of the Temple (Ultima VIII – in-game).
- ↑ Stellos. Ethereal Software’s Ultima VIII transcript. Ultima VIII.
- ↑ Morris, Andrew P.. "History". The Chronicle of Pagan (Ultima VIII). Origin Systems Page 8.
- ↑ Stratos. Ethereal Software’s Ultima VIII transcript. Ultima VIII.
- ↑ Finding the Wisdom of Stratos (Ultima VIII – in-game).
- ↑ Raising Your Children Correctly (Ultima VIII – in-game).