The wisdom of the Codex
Below is a comprehensive list of messages written in the Codex of Ultimate Wisdom throughout the Ultima series.
Ultima V[edit]
The following are messages the Avatar reads from the Codex in response to the quests ordained by the Shrines of Virtue:
- Honesty: "A dishonest life brings unto thee temporary gain, but forsakes the permanent."
- Compassion: "Only a detested life owes its pleasures to another's pain."
- Valor: "Those who fear to try, know not their limits and thus know not themselves."
- Justice: "Those who inflict injustice upon others, cannot expect fair treatment unto themselves."
- Sacrifice: "None live alone, save they who will not share their fortune with those around them."
- Honor: "It is the guilt, not the guillotine, that constitutes the shame."
- Spirituality: "To forsake one's inner being is to abandon thy hopes for thyself and thy world."
- Humility: "Pride is a vice, which Pride itself inclines one to find in others, and overlook in oneself."
Once all these messages have been received, the Codex turns its pages and reveals this information:
"Beyond Shames egress in the center of the Underworld there is a place of darkness. Beyond this darkness lies the gate to the core of the world. When thou art ready thou must call forth VERAMOCOR to unlock the gate and venture past ethereal wards and stealers of souls. That which the world hath lost, dost awaits thy coming!."
Ultima VI[edit]
The following message is revealed by the Codex as a result of the quest ordained by the Shrine of Singularity:
"To return the Codex to the Vortex, place a convex lens exactly midway between the Codex and the Flame of Singularity, so that the light from the flame converges on the Codex. Place a concave lens between the Codex and the Flame of Infinity, so that its light diverges over the Codex. Then place the eight Moonstones within the Vortex Cube. Set it on the ground in front of the Codex, and use it to return the Codex from whence it came."
Ultima IX[edit]
The Codex presents the following message to the Avatar to instruct them in the way they might defeat the Guardian.
"How can one half of a thing be removed if it is separated from the other half that forms the whole? Good and evil can not exist without the other. If one is to be removed, it must join with the other."
"The Barrier of Life must be cast before Ascension. Place the 8 Sigils on the eight pillars in the Guardian's Chamber. Move to the circle in the center of the room, there you will be asked for the incantation. Speak the words, "Sanct Vas Grav In Mani An Corp" and the barrier will rise around the chamber. A gate shall then appear, summoning the other half that makes the whole into the room."
"The most destructive of all magic must be used to remove the whole from Britannia. Armageddon must be cast, but only after the Barrier of Life is in place, lest all the world be destroyed. To perform this ritual, you must have the eight sigils at hand. Then you must use three pieces of the dimensional portal. When you are asked for the incantation, speak the words correctly. They are "Vas Kal An Mani In Corp Hur Tym".
Other Prophecies[edit]
In the documentation that comes with Ultima VI, the following is said to have been revealed to Lord British as a prophecy given by the Codex:
"One will arise with the strength of an army, the vision of a prophet and the heart of a saint. This Great One will bring about an end to the struggle between the Darkness and the Light."