The Gates of Death - Rules to actually make it playable

[proboardsisshit]

Anyone who's played GoD through will know that it's virtually impossible not to complete on your first attempt due to Higson not realising that Fighting Fantasy books don't work if you treat them like video games. ie allowing you to backtrack anywhere at any point and allowing you virtual 'continues' when you make a stupid decision just to see if you can actually die in the game...

Therefore, apply these handy fixes to actually be able to play this as a normal FF book :

1) Instead of starting with 10 Vials of Smoke Oil roll 1 D6 for your total. It's impossible to even have 10 fights in one entire playthrough thus rendering Higson's original fight avoiding mechanic pointlless. (Not to mention the series is called 'Fighting' Fantasy not 'Smoke Oil' Fantasy for a reason.

2) Roll 1 D6 any time you are given or find 10 Gold Pieces or more and use that total instead.

3) If you are given a choice of taking three items out of 6 or whatever, just take 1.

4) Treat all weapons the same as any other FF book, ie 2 stamina damage and no bonuses to Attack strength.

5) When in the invisible City you can only visit each room once, not an infinite number of times. (unless you are passing through to get to another room) This means that you will need to remember or be told the correct items/characters to speak to in order to win rather than be given an unlimitted maze like tedium of visiting them at leisure with no threat whatsoever...)

Stick to those rules and then some of your choices will actually be meaningful.

[philsadler]

Thanks for this. I don't have the book yet but if I ever do, reckon I'll follow your rules.

[sylas]

Point 5 is necessary but the others are not. The simplest alteration would be if you ever need an item to go back in time, you die instead.

[Charles X.]

May 5, 2018 18:21:06 GMT proboardsisshit said:

Anyone who's played GoD through will know that it's virtually impossible not to complete on your first attempt due to Higson not realising that Fighting Fantasy books don't work if you treat them like video games. ie allowing you to backtrack anywhere at any point and allowing you virtual 'continues' when you make a stupid decision just to see if you can actually die in the game...

Therefore, apply these handy fixes to actually be able to play this as a normal FF book :

1) Instead of starting with 10 Vials of Smoke Oil roll 1 D6 for your total. It's impossible to even have 10 fights in one entire playthrough thus rendering Higson's original fight avoiding mechanic pointlless. (Not to mention the series is called 'Fighting' Fantasy not 'Smoke Oil' Fantasy for a reason.

2) Roll 1 D6 any time you are given or find 10 Gold Pieces or more and use that total instead.

3) If you are given a choice of taking three items out of 6 or whatever, just take 1.

4) Treat all weapons the same as any other FF book, ie 2 stamina damage and no bonuses to Attack strength.

5) When in the invisible City you can only visit each room once, not an infinite number of times. (unless you are passing through to get to another room) This means that you will need to remember or be told the correct items/characters to speak to in order to win rather than be given an unlimitted maze like tedium of visiting them at leisure with no threat whatsoever...)

Stick to those rules and then some of your choices will actually be meaningful.

This is going to sound negative but I think it's mission impossible to make Gates Of Death playable. It's just too much of a suckfest, with its poor, dull writing. If you want a half-good example of an FF tribute, R. Pratchett is your writer. It feels like there was absolutely no playtesting here, because no one said to the author, one, FF readers prefer works where you have to risk dice rolls on the true path (ST being a different beast anyway, much shorter than the average FF),  two, that wouldn't matter if the writing and artwork were good, both are below-average, three, there are lots of errors in the book.

[The Count]

I would just get someone else to take the same concept and rewrite it in its entirety, then there might be something salvageable from it. Even Ian could make a better job, and his last few efforts read like they were submitted via a dodgy Zoom link while on mute.

[King Gillibran]

THe thing I dont like is that you cannot die in the abyss (or anywhere else) THe abyss you have had your mortal body killed so when your spiritual one is killed you should be doubly dead not alive. and the seeds should not be in the same place then the demon horde is easy and i ended gates of death destroying Ulrakaah with skill 14 because of the /khopesh which you cannot not get. I like the idea but not the playing. Oh yeah and why can't you use smoke oil on brother Tobyn.