Britain

Britain is the capital city of Britannia and the seat of Lord British's power. Renamed when the realm itself was given its present title — after the defeat of Lord Robert on the Crimson Plains — the city sits at the interior vertex of the angular continent, beside a great river that flows from the eastern mountain range into Brittany Bay. It is the largest urban settlement in the realm and the canonical home of every visitor's first arrival in Britannia.

For its size, Britain is a clean city, looking much like an English city at the end of the Medieval era, just on the cusp of the Renaissance. Magnificent stone buildings intermixed with sturdy wood-and-plaster shops and homes. In the middle of the walled-city is Lord British's marvelous castle, complete with moat and drawbridge.

The architectural and cultural breadth of Britain is the design statement that distinguishes it from every other settlement in Britannia: it carries the latest and best of every discipline imaginable, second only to those communities that specialize in particular disciplines (and only in the aspects relating to those specific disciplines). Britain is the polymathic capital — second-best at everything, master of nothing, and unsurpassed in its sum.

Identity

The city sits at functional zero on the continental coordinate system — Lord British's Throne is the canonical 0°0'S 0°0'E reference point of all Britannian cartography. Every other location in the world is described in degrees N/S and E/W of this throne.

Government

In Trammel, Britain is governed by the Britannian Council in the absence of Lord British, with the role-played High Council on each shard taking the practical day-to-day governance role. In Felucca, the Faction system (Order, Chaos, Council of Mages, Minax, Shadowlords, True Britannians — historically; Vice vs Virtue in the modern era) contests control of the city's strategic infrastructure. The Trammel and Felucca versions of Britain are physically identical but politically separate.

Landmarks

Lord Blackthorn's Castle sits north of the city — the alternate seat of Britannia's parallel ruler during the events of Lord Blackthorn's Revenge.

Bridges and gates

Britain is laid across two rivers and a series of canals; eight major bridges and gates structure traffic flow:

• The Great Northern Bridge — main north entry across the river.
• Cypress Bridge — central crossing.
• Mage's Bridge — north-central crossing near the magical districts.
• Gung Farmer's Bridge — north agricultural-side crossing.
• River's Gate Bridge — south crossing into the residential district.
• Virtue's Pass — ceremonial bridge near the Chamber of Virtue.
• The Main Gate — primary city wall entrance from the south.
• Poor Gate — south-side wall entrance through the lower-class district.

Shops and services

Britain hosts the canonical full slate of guild houses, shops, and trade infrastructure. The shop list is the largest of any city in Britannia.

Banks

• The First Bank Of Britain — main bank, central plaza.
• East Britain Bank — secondary bank serving the east district.

Guild halls

• Artist's Guild
• Britain's Blacksmith's Guild
• Cavalry Guild
• Counselor's Guild — East and West branches
• The Merchant's Guild
• The Miner's Guild
• Tinker's Guild
• Warrior's Guild

Inns and taverns

• The Blue Boar — south district tavern
• The Cat's Lair — south-central inn
• The North Side Inn — north district inn
• The Salty Dog — east-side dockside tavern
• Sweet Dreams — central inn
• The Unicorn's Horn — south-central tavern
• The Wayfarer's Inn — east district inn

Alchemists and mages

• Ethereal Goods
• Incantations & Enchantments
• The Sorcerer's Delight

Bakers and butchers

• Good Eats — bakery
• The Cleaver — butcher

Carpenters, fletchers, architects

• Quality Fletching
• The Saw Horse

Healers

• Healer of Britain — central healer; the canonical Britain resurrection point

Provisioners

• Premier Provisioners and Fish Shop
• Profuse Provisions

Stables

• The Bucking Horse Stables
• Lord British's Stables — official royal stables
• Sosarian Steeds

Tailors and tanners

• The Best Hides Of Britain
• Lord British's Tailor
• The Lord's Clothiers
• The Right Fit

Tinkers and jewelers

• A Girl's Best Friend — jeweler
• Premier Gems — jeweler

Weapons and armor

• The Hammer and Anvil — blacksmith and arms
• Heavy Metal Armorer
• The Lord's Arms
• Strength and Steel
• Artistic Armour

Other notable buildings

• Britain Docks — south-coast harbor for ship landings
• Britannia Animal Care — central pet vendor; one of two major Britain stables
• Customs — south district trade office
• Sage Advice — east-side scribal counsel
• The Oaken Oar — south-side bardic establishment

The Britain Sewers

Beneath the city lies the Britain Sewers — a dungeon-tier dungeon themed around the corruption beneath the capital. Entry is at 1°29'S 11°48'E, in the east district. The sewers host their own mob roster (Sewer Rats, named undead, themed bosses) and are particularly notable for being the only sewer-themed dungeon in the realm. Both Trammel and Felucca versions exist with the same layout but their respective rulesets.

Travel

Britain is the centerpiece of the moongate transit network. The Britain Moongate sits south-west of the city center, at 1396, 2057 in surface coordinates — the canonical destination for "Go to: Britain" from any other moongate. The Trammel and Felucca gates are separate but located identically.

The Moonglow Teleporter Park (in Moonglow) and the Buccaneer's Den portal (in BD) provide named teleporter destinations to Britain for fast inter-city movement.

The throne and the central role

Lord British's Throne at 0°0'S 0°0'E is functionally the center of the realm. Every Britannian map begins from this point. In modern UO with British's long absence, the throne is the ceremonial seat and not occupied — the Britannian Council rules from the surrounding chambers, with the throne preserved as a historical landmark. Several player-driven role-playing factions on individual shards designate alternative occupants of the throne for periods.

Strategy notes

• Britain is the recall anchor. Every new character should mark a Britain rune as soon as the runebook is in hand. The moongate proximity, full vendor coverage, and central position make it the default fallback waypoint.
• The First Bank of Britain is the largest player vendor cluster outside Luna. Many shards' high-volume rare and crafted-goods sellers anchor here for the bank-traffic foot count.
• The Chamber of Virtue holds the Virtue gump. The interactive Chamber lets a character offer at the Eight Virtues — useful for Compassion, Honor, and Sacrifice meditation cycles that grant Virtue ability uses.
• The Britain Sewers house the Felucca Chaos Shrine — the only place in the realm where the Chaos shrine is reachable from a city-internal location.
• Use the Healer of Britain for resurrection — the canonical city healer; positioned to be the closest shrine for any Britain death, free resurrection on request.

See also

Castle Britannia, Lord British, Lord British's Throne, The Chamber of Virtue, Britain Sewers, Lord Blackthorn's Castle, Britannian Council, Compassion, Eight Virtues, Brittany Bay, Crimson Plains, Lord Robert, Britannia, Felucca, Trammel, Moongates, Britain Public Library, Britain Cemetery, The King's Men Theater.