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Post by thealmightymudworm on Nov 21, 2013 20:05:34 GMT
From TUFFF... Boffo. A good one. Light touch, interesting concepts like the library of Limbo and such odd devices as an Umbrella (capitalized for emphasis). The sliding between worlds means there's an element of utter confusion on the part of the player, which works out quite well; elves being cast against type for example. Which even makes sense in context, because the player presumably considers most non-dark elves to be on the side of Good. It's also the closest one gets to a sci-fi book post-Skylord, the waste of atoms that otherwise killed off the genre, as you move through time (presumably) and space. This book in fact gets the vibe that Skylord seemed to be trying to find, but does so with much more elegance and skill. The scene in the castle, though...even more horrific than House of Hell.
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Post by thealmightymudworm on Nov 21, 2013 20:06:41 GMT
From TUFFF... Spectral Stalkers has always been one of my favourites. The well written unique plot, excellent art work and over-arching feeling of slight confusion (deliberately done, of course) not to mention the huge variety of places you visit, all gel together to create a memorable journey through the cosmos. I remember, this book came out when I was ten. I was still at Junior school. Apart from the odd different ones I'd read by that point, such as House of Hell, Starship Traveller and Robot Commando, the vast majority of FF I'd really gotten into were the typical fantasy, sword-on-your-back Allansian Warrior type fare. When I read Spectral Stalkers it just blew me away. I was utterly absorbed in the whole concept and so, so eager to find where I'd be travelling to next. When other kids wanted to borrow my Fighting Fantasy books, Id' always recommend that one, and not one other class-mate "got" it. They all said it was too confusing and they wanted your run-of-the-mill aforementioned classic monster-slaying adventure. Don't get me wrong, I loved the classic adventures and still do very much, but it was so frustrating and I remember trying to convince them to get into it but they never did. They were happy enough to try and slaughter their way through Crypt of the Sorcerer for the umpteenth time. And they all cheated, too.
The thing is, all these years later, I can come back to Spectral Stalkers and love it all over again, appreciating even more the effort that went into creating this mini masterpiece. Another classic from the (mostly) unsung hero of gamebook writing: Peter Darvill-Evans.
And, as an added bonus, it's all bound in an Ian Miller cover ~ Vae Victis! ~
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Post by thealmightymudworm on Nov 21, 2013 20:07:06 GMT
From TUFFF... It's one of my favourites, too. I lost count of the number of attempts it took me to beat this one when I first acquired it (pretty sure I died every possible way in that confounded maze), but I was enjoying it so much that I never let failure put me off.
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Post by thealmightymudworm on Nov 21, 2013 20:07:28 GMT
From TUFFF... I would love it if this book were longer - my only disappointment with this book is that you cannot explore most of the worlds very much (what happened to Khul 400 years hence? for example). I would love for another book like this which involves time/plane hopping. The good thing about the ending is that this is completely possible as the Aleph is lost through time and space. Whose lap will it fall into next?
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Post by thealmightymudworm on Nov 21, 2013 20:07:52 GMT
From TUFFF... Yes; if ever there was a candidate for raising the number of paragraphs beyond the generally accepted 400, this was it! I'll be interested to see if this book makes it into the top ten when the survey results are revealed in Fighting Fantazine #4. ~ Vae Victis! ~
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Post by thealmightymudworm on Nov 21, 2013 20:08:48 GMT
From TUFFF... Yes; if ever there was a candidate for raising the number of paragraphs beyond the generally accepted 400, this was it! I'll be interested to see if this book makes it into the top ten when the survey results are revealed in Fighting Fantazine #4. Results appear in issue #5 - you'll have to wait a bit longer I'm afraid! (328) Despite your best efforts, you find yourself decaying in front of a computer screen. Your adventure ends here.
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Post by thealmightymudworm on Nov 21, 2013 20:09:28 GMT
From TUFFF... New book for me, one that I don't even remember seeing around when I was young. And with such an eye-catching cover by Ian Miller (as all of Miller's covers are), I think I would remember seeing it before. Might just have been unlucky then, but I'd rather be positive and think of myself as lucky now. What is unfortunate is that SS is another book to add to the long list of book that should have been re-published by Wizard: instead of having a third copy of Armies of Death, we could have shiny new ones of this one, along with titles like Slaves of the Abyss, Daggers of Darkness, Dead of Night or Legend of the Shadow Warriors, just to name a few. Worthy addition to the FF library, one and all. Newcomer Tony Hough's (at the time, or course) illos are great, love his style. He does sure draw some big feet on his characters, but it's easy to see that the guy's got a vivid imagination, not at all intimidated by Peter Darvill-Evans's also vivid imagination, able to grasp at the strange concepts and run along with it, coming up with complex and breathtaking imagery. As for the story itself, it's a blast. I played it as fair as possible, letting the die decide for my destiny (no real reason not to) and ended up doing not so bad on a first run. Of course, I only got five items out of seven so I didn't get to get Semeion's precious knowledge, which lead me into a tough spot at the end where I would have surely died. But since I'm cheating with the dices anyway, I kept going and finished it, and though I didn't get the satisfaction of doing it right, it did leave me with the satisfaction of knowing there was still a lot to play out of this book, to discover, to improve, lots of mystery, to sum it up, and I know I will enjoy playing it again straight many times in the future. A good book. Speak in extremes, it will save you time.
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Post by thealmightymudworm on Nov 21, 2013 20:09:58 GMT
From TUFFF... Anyone find the choices in the encounter with Metron the Mapmaker a bit odd? You can either buy a globe off him or attack him. Last time I played I had no money for the globe so I had to launch an attack and suffer the penalty. Where's the "shuffle off without doing anything" option?
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Post by thealmightymudworm on Nov 21, 2013 20:10:27 GMT
From TUFFF... It's funny because I was thinking this tonight. Every so often I open my glass cabinet (seriously), pick a book off the shelf by the little pouches of silica gel (seriously), and flick through various illos and paras and let the memories envelop me. And I'd never noticed before, being at this time "out of gameplay" I suppose, how odd it is that you have to attempt to kick the crap out of him if you can't afford his globe. How odd! Absolutely does N O T interfere with my immense enjoyment of this fabulous classic in any way though, let's get that straight! ;-) ~ Vae Victis! ~
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Post by thealmightymudworm on Nov 21, 2013 20:12:14 GMT
From TUFFF... Personally I'm astonished at the love for Spectral Stalkers. This has always been one of my least favourites in the series. It's tone just never seemed right - it feels like Darvill-Evans was aiming for a Doctor Who/spooky but fun vibe but got, well, Skylord.
It's not the writing or even the ideas (and I rate POE and especially BNC very highly) but the characters and settings that seem so off, at least to me. Ironically with all of the world an plane hopping I thought the best section took place in Khul with that eerie wasteland tavern and the goblins. It doesn't help that Tony Hough is one of my least favourite of the FF illustrators. Still, that's the beauty of FF. Each to their own
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Post by thealmightymudworm on Nov 21, 2013 20:13:24 GMT
From TUFFF... Spectral Stalkers has always been one of my favourites. Never played Spectral Stalkers or Portal of Evil (were never translated). But i guess it is very difficult to one of those to be better than the other Dravill Evan's Gamebook, Beneath Nightmares Castle. I always loved Xakhaz, always felt some kind of identification with that villain sorcerer, as he was some kind of evil brother to me in other life or something like that. Fantastic enemy in a fantastic book, with a very beautifull witch girl as his first commander. Razaak's apprentice
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Post by thealmightymudworm on Nov 21, 2013 20:15:22 GMT
From TUFFF... It's tone just never seemed right - it feels like Darvill-Evans was aiming for a Doctor Who/spooky but fun vibe but got, well, Skylord. Now, now, steady on, let's not say things we can't take back! I would say that Spectral Stalkers is (by its very nature) quirky and all over the place, but there does seem to be an internal consistency to each of the worlds you visit. While with Sky Lord I get the impression Martin Allen was making stuff up as he went along whilst coming up with as many silly terms as he could think of. Course I actually think readability-wise Sky Lord is quite entertaining - it's the relentless instant death that lets it down in my book. While as Spectral Stalkers is extremely playable with the annoying maze being its only major downside in my opinion (although it would be nice if the Stalkers actually had a chance of catching you). That one's quite good, but I find the haunted castle even spookier - probably FF's scariest moment. Metron the Map Maker is also a great riff on those who over-analyse to the extent of taking all the magic and wonder out of life. Ah, see I would consider him one of the better artists, but as you say each to their own.
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Post by thealmightymudworm on Nov 21, 2013 20:16:57 GMT
From TUFFF... While as Spectral Stalkers is extremely playable with the annoying maze being its only major downside in my opinion (although it would be nice if the Stalkers actually had a chance of catching you). Maze aside Spectral Stalkers is pretty easy though.
Yeah Hough (and John Blanche who strijes me as his sort-of predecessor) just don't do it for me.
I love Ian Miller's cover for this though!
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Post by thealmightymudworm on Nov 21, 2013 20:18:21 GMT
From TUFFF... Maze aside Spectral Stalkers is pretty easy though. True, but then it's also more replayable than most books. And if you want a hard version, you can try and gather all 7 signs and portents. Still haven't managed that one myself (though got very close in my last playthrough).
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Post by thealmightymudworm on Nov 21, 2013 20:18:47 GMT
From TUFFF... While not in my Top 5, this one definitely gets an honourable mention. The cover art for this is fantastic, and really cements for me how much I love Ian Miller's grotesque, gothic style. I sometimes wish he'd been given the opportunity to illustrate the interior of the book as well. There's nothing at all wrong with the illustrations in the book, and in particular I love the very first illustration of the weird faery-thing plummeting to Earth; the rather unsettling ones of the Silica Serpents, black-warrior-guys and creepy bat-thingies on the Ziggurat World are excellent at portraying an alien, menacing landscape; and the one of the innkeeper in Khul is still engrained vividly in my memory for some reason, which is a good sign. But I really think this one could have meshed well with Miller's style, and might have added a darker edge to what sometimes to me seems an almost comic-book kind of atmosphere. Most of my FF books are stored in a box on my parents' property, which is several hours' drive away from where I live. This one, however, is on my bookshelf, and has a particular role in my life. It is a Toilet Book. This is kind of disgusting, but if I ever feel like reading on the loo, I often grab my copy of Spectral Stalkers to pass the time. I turn to random sections, and just generally enjoy the vivid variety of encounters on display while I do my filthy business. The short span of the numerous encounters, as well as their number and vast differences in style/substance make it perfect for rendering bearable the generally dull, utilitarian necessity of toilet encounters. And if I am ever in a tight spot without any toiler paper at hand, Spectral Stalkers could be my salvation. While I am loathe to damage books of any kind, not least beloved FF books, I could probably sacrifice with only a few qualms a couple pages relating to that naff encounter with the vampire & catwoman if necessity called. Racknee's apprentice
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Post by thealmightymudworm on Nov 21, 2013 20:24:09 GMT
From TUFFF... Interesting. I really love Spectral Stalkers. I've loved it since primary school, when I let my friend Mark Brookes borrow it and he returned it many weeks later - thinking I wouldn't notice that the gold dragon cover had become a black dragon cover and the spine was intact and adventure sheet unused. God knows what he did with the original.
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Post by thealmightymudworm on Nov 21, 2013 20:26:14 GMT
From TUFFF... Ha! Seems like a very polite way of saying "Too much information, no more posts on 'toilet books' please!" Racknee's apprentice
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Post by a moderator on May 24, 2014 13:29:51 GMT
My TUFFF playthrough:
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Post by slloyd14 on Aug 19, 2022 9:04:25 GMT
Why has no one talked about this one?
FF does Dr Who. A crazy whirl of set pieces with something for everyone. Also you have to defeat the bad guy by not fighting a boss monster.
I don't know if this was intentional but you can also complete this one with minimum stats and super quickly.
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Post by a moderator on Aug 19, 2022 13:00:01 GMT
I don't know if this was intentional but you can also complete this one with minimum stats and super quickly. It's closer to 'with minimal stats or super quickly'. Yes, there's a possibility of even someone with an Initial Stamina of 14 surviving the 'roll below your Stamina on 6d6' check just before the endgame, but the odds are by no means favourable.
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