Nestled within the ancient trees of the timeless forest east of Skara Brae, lies a great keep. Its mighty stone buttresses are marked with great strands of creepers and moss, but not in a manner that looks to be overgrown, or that would make the building seem to be desolate and abandoned - the encroachment of nature upon the forboding walls has been carefully cultivated, lending an apperance of having blended the building in to the surrounding woods.

This is the University of Spiritwood, foremost amongst Britannia's teaching institutions. Travellers from across the land venture far and wide to come here, to learn what they can from the noble teachers of the University, to join its scholarly ranks in their continued research of the arts and philosophies of Britannia, to study the tomes of the great library, to gain a presitigious diploma, or to become a teacher there themselves. It is a centre of learning and culture, a radiant beacon of the Virtues, nurturing the brightest of Britannia's young.

Below the myriad corridors, lecture theatres, dorimitories, classrooms, laboratories, and offices of the University can be found the Hall of Records. This venerable oak-beamed cavern contains the accumulated bureaucracy of Spiritwood University ... shelf after shelf, case after case, row after row ... all holding the scrolls, books, and accounts that note and enshrine in ink the people, history, and arrangements of the institution.

Outside the mighty wooden door of the Hall of Records stand two senior students of the Martial Arts School, attention strict, halberds straight. They consider it their privilege to take turns to guard the Hall from those who would misuse the information contained within, for only the most trusted and Virtuous eyes may set upon the records of the University ...

The University of Spiritwood is a community of students and staff on the Europa Shard of Ultima Online dedicated to bringing out the best in all of its members. Our aim is to provide the finest possible environment for teaching, learning and roleplaying, and our record of success has backed this up. Our role and mission, as defined by our guiding founders, is to offer training in not only practical skills to the young of Britannia, but to also offer a gateway into the world of roleplaying for the uninitiated, to open their eyes to a world filled with excitement and experiences that they can treasure. The University of Spiritwood acts as a catalyst to extend the personal development of new and old players alike beyond the mere minutiae of Ultima Online, and bring them to a greater level of depth and enjoyment in their playing experiences - be it feeling the gentle zephyr of spray across their face as they walk the cliffs of Deepwater with friends, or sweltering in the jungle heat of Naeloth, sword and shield gripped warily in hands.

The aim of the University is not retention - it is to offer a wide and comprehensive range of opportunities for learning, in the form of various courses, which any person may attend at their will … and if they have the enthusiasm to do so, they may put in the effort to gain a recognised Spiritwood University Diploma in a subject(s) of their choosing. We then offer further opportunities for those who should wish it, in the form of placements with leading guilds in roleplaying communities throughout Europa, to put to use the skills and knowledge gained at the University.

Our mission is a noble one, and above all a worthwhile one. If it were not a goal to be pursued, the University - and other institutions like it - would not exist at all. But of all quests in this exciting land of adventure and bravery, there is none so important as the quest for knowledge. It is a quest we embark upon daily.

- Ceinwyn
Third Chancellor