neosapian: if you really don't want that ship, I'd use the directory's u3reset.exe in DOSbox window instead of removing a file from the game. might be intentionally placed there. the frustration of acquiring a damned ship in the original version grates at everybody's nerves since 1983 LOL I understand Pirates no longer attack after LB gives you Level 5!
dtgreene: Actually, I'm pretty sure that your level doesn't affect the appearance of pirates in most versions of the game. The only thing unusual about the IBM PC version here is that the encounter rate on the overworld is significantly lower than in other versions. There's also the issue that enemies can be stuck in areas of the map that are not easy to reach, and the number of enemies on the map at once is limited, so a softlock is theoretically possible (though it can be escaped via a glitch).
The whole thing about pirates and level 5 that's sometimes mentioned is a holdover from the NES version; in the NES version (and probably the MSX cartridge version), the enemies that appear on the world map are dependent on your level. At levels 1 and 2, the only enemies that appear are those that can be killed with 0 MP spells (and those spells can be successful multiple times per battle and can be manipulated to not fail completely), making staying at those levels a good strategy for earning money, but pirates don't appear until level 5. This whole mechanic is not present in computer versions of the game.
good tips
I recall playing the Apple II version and it was a pain, but maybe the guys at Origin Systems Inc(company that owned the game back in those days) must have given me info about level 5 based on the NES version since it released after the Ultima Trilogy(I played it on then) foggy memories of that. I played that a thousand years back! 1989!
Anyway, there is a glitch in many computer versions of the game, including the DOS version, that lets you get a ship if the game is refusing to give you one:
0. This glitch relies on the game's auto-save functionality, so if you've disabled it (via the Upgrade mod or some other mod), you will need to enable it. Also, it might help to have a throwaway level 1 character with no armor in the front row.
1. Go into Lord British's castle.
2. There is a ship inside the castle. Board that ship. (If only there were a way to take it out of the castle...)
3. Fire at someone to make the guards come at you. (Watch out, because Lord British will come after you!)
4. Get into a fight while onboard the ship.
5. During the fight, intentionally let one of your characters die. This will trigger the auto-save.
6. Reload the save. You will be on the world map, in the state you were when the auto-save occurred. This means you will have a dead party member (hence why using a throwaway might be a good idea), be on top of Lord British's castle, and will be on a ship. You can now move into the ocean and proceed from there.
I had recalled hearing that somewhere online and forget where. it works on the IBM original version unpatched. thanks! Now I know it all! I had tried it once before, but that was 6 years ago when I first purchased this from GOG. forgot how.
