Ami Cheat's Page - ULTIMA I

STRATEGY

THE BEGINNING

Once you create your character, and endow him or her with race, type, and attributes, you are ready to begin your adventure. Each race and type of character has its own advantages and disadvantages. Obviously, a fighter is vicious in battles, wizards or clerics throw potent spells, and thieves are good at thievery. Experiment with different characters. Your first step, upon finding yourself in the middle of a grassy plain, is to ready your armour (leather) and a weapon (dagger). Thus prepared, you may then begin to explore the world of Ultima.

You will encounter a number of strange creatures during your travels. On land, you will find Orcs, Evil Trents, Hoods, Knights, Bears, Wandering Warlocks, Necromancers, Hidden Archers, Thieves, Dark Knights, and Evil Rangers. In the ocean, there are Giant Squid, Ness Creatures, Dragon Turtles, and Giant Octopi. It is likely that you'll be killed quickly. If so, you will be reincarnated. (If you're reincarnated in the middle of water, keep trying to move or attack. These actions will use up your food and hit points, and you'll be reincarnated again -- hopefully on land the next time.) However, your resurrected self is lacking in food, gold, and weapons. Take heart! Although the process of building up your points and possessions seems slow, if you persevere you will "ultimately" be victorious. The following strategy hints should be helpful:

• It is often advisable to avoid combat. Try to run away from an enemy until you can build up your hit points.
• Buy and steal as much armour as possible. If you are killed, you will retain your armor, vehicles, and spells, but you will lose your weapons.
• To increase your gold supply, you can sell some of your armour.
• As soon as possible, descend into a dungeon. By entering a dungeon and killing a number of creatures, you will gain hit points, experience points, and gold (and food, if you're killed in a dungeon). You can do this again and again, building up your character.
• Always buy a drink from Varg the tavern keeper in a pub. He may give you some helpful clues.
• As you gain experience points, you will find that more advanced weapons and transportation become available in the cities. Items such as pistols, blasters, and phazors are invaluable in battles (in fact, sea creatures will be "out of weapon range" until you get a hold of, at least, a set of bow and arrows). By a strange quirk in the game, you may be able to steal technologically advanced weapons or armor even before they're available for purchase! Use of a vehicle will conserve your food supply during your travels. Seagoing vessels and air cars allow you to visit islands and cross oceans. Once you've obtained a frigate or an air car, you can use its cannons or lasers to fire on enemies. A space shuttle will be required for space travel.
• When you enter a castle, be sure to transact with the King. If you have sufficient gold, he will sell you hit points. If you offer service, he will send you on a quest for which you will be handsomely rewarded.
• Save the game frequently. You never know when 7 Hidden Archers or 4 Ness Creatures might attack and kill you.
• Beware of Wenches, Jesters, and Bards. They like to steal your possessions.

THE DUNGEONS

Dungeon experience is vital in order to increase your hit points. It can also be fatal. If your character is a novice, it's best to explore only the 1st or 2nd level of a dungeon. Then you can retrace your steps, climb out of the dungeon alive, and repeat the process. As you become stronger, you can descend deeper into a dungeon. There you will do battle with increasingly powerful creatures, but you may also gain hundreds of hit points and gold pieces. You will encounter the following enemies in any dungeon:

Levels 1 and 2: Thieves, Rangers, Skeletons, Bats, Giant Rats

Levels 3 and 4: Giant Spiders, Cyclopes, Orcs, Gelatinous Cubes, Vipers

Levels 5 and 6: Ettins, Minotaurs, Mimics, Carrion Creepers, Lizard Men

Levels 7 and 8: Wraiths, Wandering Eyes, Liches, Tanglers, Gremlins

Levels 9 and 10: Daemons, Balrons, Mind Whippers, Zorns, Invisible Seekers

Even if you have accumulated many thousands of hit points, some of the more powerful creatures can easily destroy you. You will have to discover, through trial and error, which weapons or spells you should use against them. (Note: Only a wizard can use the Blink, Create, Destroy, and Kill spells.) The following strategy hints should help you in surviving dungeon travel:

• Use the Inform and Search command frequently. This will disclose traps which you can then avoid (rope and spikes will save you from falling through a hidden trap, but you lose them).
• Use the Destroy spell to dissolve force fields.
• Use the Blink spell to escape to another place on that level (useful when monsters are attacking from all sides or when you're surrounded by force fields and have no Destroy spells).
• Map each level so you don't get lost. Or, purchase plenty of Ladder Up and Ladder Down spells to allow you to move easily between levels.
• Remember: You cannot save the game from within a dungeon. Also, you cannot put on any new armour if it has been destroyed (by a Gelatinous Cube, for example).
• You may wish to use an Unlock spell to open chests, and an Open spell to open coffins. You will find additional gold in these containers.
• If you are on a quest (to kill a Balron, Liche, Cube, or Creeper), do not dally on other levels. Go straight down to the level where the creature you are seeking lives (using Ladder Down spells), kill it, then get out of the dungeon quickly (using Ladder Up spells). It is very easy to be overwhelmed by enemies on the lower levels, and you could be killed. Gremlins may steal all your food; Invisible Seekers may annihilate you before you can locate them; Mind Whippers may destroy your intelligence with their mental attacks.

SPACE TRAVEL

You have been exploring the four continents of Ultima, crossing plains and oceans, and increasing your attributes and possessions. Suddenly, you find advanced weapons, armour, and vehicles in the cities. Purchase a space shuttle as soon as you have enough gold. The shuttle will carry you out into space where you will strive to destroy 20 enemy vessels. If you do this, you will be designated a "Space Ace". You will want to be a Space Ace before rescuing the princess. If you destroy the enemy spacecraft, and return alive to Ultima, you will have gained thousands of experience points and will be ready to save the Princess. Space movement can be tricky, and the following strategy hints should help:

• The first view you will see is your shuttle, motionless in space. Nearby is a Base, a Star, and Ultima. You can use your shuttle for continued travel, or you can dock at the base and purchase a different vehicle (500 gold pieces each time you exchange ships). The smaller vehicle has limited fuel, but a lot of shield power. The larger vehicle has plenty of fuel, but negligible shielding. Take the smaller ship since you won't want to go very far from base.
• Docking with the base in order to exchange ships takes a little practice. If you do not dock exactly at the entry point in the base, you will destroy your shields and be disintegrated. Try this method: One forward thrust until you are near the base; one retro to stop your vehicle; one left turn or right turn to position your ship in the direction you want to go; one forward thrust to get it moving again; one retro to stop it; etc. In this way, you can slowly and carefully position your shuttle so that you can make a precision docking. Exchange ships.
• Once you have a new ship, you must do a sector scan. This is accomplished by the Inform and Search command. Note: You will always be in the centre of the sector scan. When you start out in space, you will be where the "B" is in the middle of the sector scan. The blank lines indicate empty space, the stars indicate stars, and the carets indicate enemy spaceships.
• Since you don't want to get too far from your starting point, and you don't want to get lost and run out of fuel, always check the sector scan to make sure you know where you are. If the scan shows enemy ships to the left, turn your ship to the left. If the scan shows enemy ships below you, turn your ship downward. Apply thrust, then go into View change. Now you're in open space. Hit the Hyperspace key. At this point, you will be in a sector containing enemy ships.
• Once you've destroyed the enemy ships (usually three), go into View change mode again. Stop your ship with one retro. If you went left originally, you'll want to return right. If you went down originally, you must turn your ship upward, and so on. Turn your ship to the appropriate direction, and apply thrust. Change the view again, hit hyperspace again, change the view again. You should be near your origination point, by a base. You can exchange ships again, or return to Ultima. This process can be repeated many times until you become a Space Ace.

THE GAME

SAVING THE PRINCESS

In each castle, there is a Princess imprisoned. You will see her pacing in her cell in the lower right of the castle. The key to her cell may or may not be in the possession of the Jester (hopping around near the King). You must kill the Jester in order to get the key. Keep trying until you get the correct key that will unlock the Princess' cell. The following strategy tips should assist you in freeing the Princess:

• You'll notice that the Jester sometimes comes near you as you enter the King's throneroom. Try to get him to stay near the entrance. Then you can kill him, and run (quickly!) down and over to the Princess' cell. Hit "U" to unlock the door. The Princess will follow you out of the cell if the correct key has been used. If you have not obtained the correct key, and the one you have does not unlock the door, follow the instructions below anyway in order to try to escape with your life.
• The moment you kill the Jester, the guards will be upon you. They are virtually impossible to kill, so your best course is to outrun them. First of all, try to position the Princess between yourself and the guards. This will take a little practice, but eventually you should learn how to line the guards up behind you as you run for the castle exit.
• Move quickly, being careful not to run into walls, trees, or ponds. One false move, and you'll be trapped between guards. In the far left room, try exiting to the north of the pond, and out left. It's tricky, but possible. As you leave the castle, the Princess will reward you handsomely and will tell you where to find the Time Machine.

BATTLING MONDAIN

Once you rescue the Princess and locate the Time Machine, you are ready to do battle with the evil wizard Mondain. Board the craft and launch. Although you are now an expert fighter (you've done away with Balrons and Liches, right?), Mondain will nevertheless engage you in the battle of your life. The following tactics should help you destroy the Evil Gem, kill Mondain, save the universe and, not incidentally, win the game:

• You must first destroy the Evil Gem. Immediately approach the gem and hit "G" to get it. This action will destroy the gem. It will also drain away most of your hit points.
• If you do not destroy the gem immediately, you will not be able to permanently kill Mondain. The Evil Gem that he created makes him immortal, so you must destroy the gem before turning to Mondain.
• Now, begin to attack Mondain. Kill spells will not work against him; they only make him stronger. Just keep firing away until he weakens. Persist in your attack even though he unleashes an onslaught against you.
• If your character is a wizard, you can use the Create spell to place a force field in front of you, however, it's best to continuing attacking Mondain. Hopefully, he will be weakening. You can tell that this is happening because he changes into a bird and ceases attacking you. Continue firing until you receive the message that Mondain is dead and that you're victorious.

LAYOUT

The game of "Ultima I" involves travel on land and sea and through space and time. This file is to help you map a dangerous world. The planet consists of four continents separated by oceans. These continents contain many cities, castles, dungeons, and landmarks which the traveler must explore. Once the adventurer has purchased a seagoing craft or an air car, he or she may traverse the oceans with ease. When sufficient gold and experience points are accumulated, a space shuttle may be obtained for extraterrestrial journeys.

CONTINENT ONE

OVERVIEW

Continent One contains two castles (Lost King and Lord British); eight cities (Yew, Fawn, Britain, Montor, Grey, Paws, Moon, and Tune); nine dungeons (Perinia, Lost Caverns, Mondain's Gate to Hell, Unholy Hole, Mines of Mt. Drash (1 and 2), Death's Awakening, Montor, and Doubt); and two landmarks (Pillars of Protection and Tower of Knowledge).

QUESTS

Quest for King of the Castle of the Lost King: The King will ask you to destroy a Gelatinous Cube. To do so, you must climb down to level 3 or 4 of any dungeon and kill a Gelatinous Cube. Having done so, return to the King who will give you a red gem. He will also tell you that you will need four gems to launch the Time Machine.

Quest for the King of the Castle of Lord British: His Majesty will send you to find the Tower of Knowledge. The landmark is located on an island to the northeast of the continent. You will receive additional strength from the King when you complete your quest and return to him.

LANDMARKS

Pillars of Protection: This landmark is located on an island to the northwest of the continent. Enter the landmark, and your agility will be increased.

Tower of Knowledge: The Tower of Knowledge is on an island to the northeast of the continent. Your intelligence will be increased when you enter this landmark.

BARTENDERS' CLUES

Pubs: In the cities, there are pubs. Be sure to transact with Varg the tavern keep, since he may give you clues such as: "Destroy the Evil Gem," or "Best watch out for the wench."

CONTINENT TWO

OVERVIEW

This continent is located across the ocean to the east of Continent One. Continent Two contains two castles (Rondorlin and Barataria); eight cities (Snake, Owen, Gerry, Arnold, Linda, Helen, John, and Wolf); eight dungeons (Scorpion Hole, The Labyrinth, Where Hercules Died, Advari's Hole, The Savage Place, Horror of the Harpies, Gorgon's Hole, and Dead Warrior's Fight); and two landmarks (Pillars of the Argonauts and Pillar of Ozymandias).

QUESTS

Quest for the King of Rondorlin: The King orders you to kill a Carrion Creeper. This dread creature may be found on the 5th or 6th level of any dungeon. When you accomplish your task and return to the King, he will give you a green gem and tell you that you must use the Time Machine.

Quest for the King of Barataria: This quest involves locating the Pillar of Ozymandias (on an island to the southwest of the continent). The King will grant you increased strength upon completion of the quest.

LANDMARKS

Pillars of the Argonauts: The pillars are located on an island to the west of the continent. You are rewarded with various weapons whenever you visit this landmark.

Pillar of Ozymandias: Increased wisdom is your reward for entering the pillar (southwest of the continent).

BARTENDERS' CLUES

Pubs: If you buy a drink from a tavern keep, he may give you a hint such as, "Best you should know about space travel, and that you must destroy at least 20 enemy vessels to become an Ace!" or "The Princess will reward you if you save her, and will give an additional gift to a player of 8th level or higher."

CONTINENT THREE

OVERVIEW

Continent Three is located across the ocean to the east of Continent Two. This land mass contains two castles (Black Dragon and Olympus); eight cities (Poor, Ponder, Clear Lagoon, Gauntlet, Nassau, Wealth, Imagination, and Stout); nine dungeons (The End, The Metal Twister, The Long Death, Viper's Pit (1 and 2), Guild of Death, Troll's Hole, Tramp of Doom, and Slow Death); and two landmarks (Sign Post and Southern Sign Post).

QUESTS

Quest for the King of Black Dragon's Castle: The King orders you to kill a Liche (which may be found on the 7th or 8th level of any dungeon). If you complete this quest, His Majesty will give you a blue gem and tell you that the Princess helps the Space Ace.

Quest for the King of the Castle of Olympus: On this quest, you must find the Sign Post. It is located on an island to the northwest of the continent. The King will reward you with additional strength for completing this task.

LANDMARKS

Sign Post: This landmark is located on an island to the northwest of the continent. Upon entering the Sign Post, you will receive additional stamina. Southern Sign Post: Additional charisma is your reward for finding this landmark. It is located on an island to the southwest of the continent.

BARTENDERS' CLUES

Pubs: The tavern keep may let you in on the following information: "One thousand years ago, Mondain the Wizard created an Evil Gem which makes him immortal. You must traverse the lands until you find a Time Machine. Go back in time to destroy the Evil Gem and save the universe." Or, the bartender may tell you that "Most, if not all, of the lakes and ponds have magical powers."

CONTINENT FOUR

OVERVIEW

Traveling east across the ocean from Continent Three, you will arrive at Continent Four. This land mass contains two castles (Shamino's Castle and White Dragon's Castle); eight cities (Lost Friends, Dextron, Turtle, Wheeler, Bulldozer, Gorlab, Brother, and Magic); nine dungeons (Skull Smasher, Doom, Dead Cat's Life (1 and 2), Dead Man's Walk, Hole to Hades, Spine Breaker, The Morbid Adventure, and Free Death Hole); and two landmarks (Grave of the Lost Soul and the Eastern Sign Post). If you wish to revisit Continent One, simply continue east across the ocean from Continent Four.

QUESTS

Quest for the King of Shamino Castle: You must descend to the 9th or 10th level of any dungeon and kill a Balron. After you do this, return to the King. He will give you a white gem and allow you to take nine items from the holds of his castle.

Quest for the King of White Dragon's Castle: You must find the Grave of the Lost Soul (which is on an island to the northwest of the continent). His Majesty will reward you with added strength when you return to him.

LANDMARKS

Grave of the Lost Soul: Upon reaching this landmark, enter it. You will receive additional stamina.

Eastern Sign Post: This landmark merely has a sign saying, "Go east to go east."

BARTENDERS' CLUES

Pubs: Varg may tell you to "Have a strong one, bub," or "Go back in time." Or, he may simply say that this is a great game (as indeed it is!).