Blood Sword Campaign 1: The Battlepits of Kraarth

[champskees]

BLOOD SWORD

Your world is the magical land of Legend. In Legend there are many kinds of Adventurer, each with unique skills and techniques for dealing with creatures of the supernatural. Those who rely on a good sword and the strength of their right arm are called Warriors. The practitioners of the magical arts are called Enchanters, with many deadly spells always ready at their fingertips. Sages are a class of ascetic monks - wise in ancient lore, but also skilful in the use of quarterstaff, bow and unarmed martial arts. Lastly there are the Tricksters; they are swift and dextrous swordsmen, but their true forte is the use of stealth, guile and cunning to achieve their ends.

These are the main rules governing the adventure. Worth reading them now, not necessary to have every sentence committed to memory. Making this the first post so you can flip back to this page later on.

TERMINOLOGY

The usual role-playing abbreviation is used to indicate different Dice rolls. This uses the basic format of

X Dice+Y

meaning that X Dice are rolled and Y is added to the total.

As an example, 2 Dice+3 means 'roll two Dice and add three' - giving a number from five to fifteen. Taking another case, 1 Die - 1 means 'roll one Die and subtract one' - negative numbers count as zero unless otherwise stated, so this would give a score from zero to five.

ATTRIBUTES

Each character is described by four attributes. These are:

Fighting Prowess a measure of how powerful a fighter the character is;
Psychic Ability an indicator of the character's resistance to attack spells and (in the case of an Enchanter) his or her aptitude for magic;
Awareness a difficult concept, as it encompasses quickness of thought, dexterity and general nous;
Endurance the attribute measuring the character's state of health; wounds are deducted from Endurance, and if it reaches zero then the character dies.

COMBAT ACTIONS

Combat takes place in Rounds, each of which represents about ten seconds of action. Each Round, everyone who is taking part in the combat gets the opportunity to perform one action if he or she wishes: to attack, cast a spell, or whatever. Actions are taken in sequence based on each combatant's Awareness score. The combatant with the highest Awareness acts first, then ... [We get the idea.] Combatants with equal Awareness scores act simultaneously. A combatant who is killed (reduced to zero Endurance) before his turn does not get to act!

These are the possible combat options and the circumstances in which they may be used. A character may choose any option for which he or she is eligible as his or her action for the Round:

MOVE

This action allows the character to close and fight an enemy, or to move to an exit (if any). If you take the move option while an opponent is fighting you, then (unless your Awareness is higher than the opponent's) you take an automatic wound. Once all surviving characters in the party have moved to an exit, the party may flee at the start of the next Round. If you want to simply move away from a particular enemy, I see no problem with that either.

FIGHT

The character must have previously chosen the move option in order to be close enough to an opponent to fight. (But there are exceptions to this rule; sometimes your opponents are directly adjacent to you at the start of the combat, in which case an immediate attack is possible.)

DEFEND

You cannot attack in the Round in which you choose this option, but it has the advantage of making you harder to hit. If you defend, then your opponent must roll equal to or less than his Fighting Prowess on three Dice in order to hit you. You do not get to strike a blow yourself in the Round you are defending.

SHOOT

This is an option for Sages and Tricksters only. You fire an arrow at any one opponent. Unlike the fight option, you do not have to move first because (of course) arrows are long-range weapons. You cannot choose to shoot if an opponent is striking at you in the same Round - that is, you must dispose of any opponents who have closed to attack you before picking off others with your bow.

FLEE

Sometimes the text will give your party the option to flee from a fight. All surviving Adventurers must have made a move before the party can flee. When this option is taken, the entire party flees at the start of the Round, so their opponents get no chance to hack at them or cast spells as they run off.

CALL A SPELL TO MIND/CAST A SPELL IN MIND

These are options for Enchanters only. They are explained in the special section on Enchanters.

You can perform one of these actions in each Round. (Tricksters sometimes get the opportunity for two actions in a Round though, as explained later in their special rules.)

COMBAT RULES

The rules for combat are designed for ease of play [ha!] but require a short explanation.

• When striking at an opponent (that is, when you take the fight option for a Round), you roll two Dice.
• A score of equal to or lower than your Fighting Prowess means that your blow has hit.
• If you hit, you roll a damage Die (or Dice, at higher ranks) to see how much of an Endurance loss you have inflicted.
• If your opponent has an Armour Rating, you must reduce your Die roll for damage by this amount, and the result (if greater than zero) is deducted from the opponent's Endurance.

Take an example. You have a Fighting Prowess of seven and a damage roll of one Die. You are attacking a Troll whose Fighting Prowess is six and which also rolls one Die for damage. You have the higher Awareness, so you get the first blow. Rolling two Dice, you score a three; this is less than your Fighting Prowess score, so you have succeeded in hitting it. Next you roll one Die for the damage your blow inflicts. You get a six, but the Troll has an Armour Rating of two so only four points are deducted from its Endurance. If still alive, the Troll now gets to hack back at you. It rolls six on two dice - equal to its Fighting Prowess, so good enough to hit you (though only just!). For its damage Die roll it scores a one; because you have an Armour Rating of two this means that you lose no Endurance. The Troll's claws hit you, but scrape harmlessly off your studded leather jerkin. [Note for future reference: this world's Trolls suck.] The battle rages on for another Round ...

Two others factors need to be considered. If you defend, then your opponent must roll equal to or less than his Fighting Prowess on three Dice in order to hit you. You do not get to strike a blow yourself in the Round you are defending.

The other point concerns the move option. If you have a high Awareness and can move away from an opponent before that opponent gets his or her action for that Round, all well and good. If you try to move away from an opponent who has already attacked you earlier in the Round, however, then he or she immediately gets a second strike at you - and this is an automatic hit. For this reason, it is usually best to dispose of one opponent before you move to engage another.

ARMOUR

You will start your adventure with a suit of armour. This gives an Armour Rating of three if you are a Warrior or of two if you belong to one of the other adventuring types.

You cannot wear two suits of armour in combination.

WEAPONS

If you lose your weapon, you must reduce your Fighting Prowess and damage Dice rolls by two until you find a replacement.

SPECIAL CHARACTER OPTIONS

Sometimes there will be the option for a character of a given class to act - for example, 'If there is a Trickster in the party, turn to ...'. If such an option is taken, sometimes part of a section will be 'restricted' and printed in spoiler tags. This means that the player can, if he or she wishes, keep that part of the information withheld from the other players. You are NOT to read information under a spoiler tag unless you are playing that particular character.

For instance, there might be the option for a Sage to read an ancient piece of parchment. The book passes to the Sage player, who reads in his 'restricted' section:

'(SAGE) You decipher the faded runes on the parchment.

SPOILER: Click to show

[It tells you that the safe route to the Emblem of Victory lies beyond the gold door.]

Turn to 559.'

The player can tell his or her companions what was said, but he or she is not obliged to do so (or tell the truth lol!).

In a situation where two or more players are both given the chance for individual action (say, the Sage could speak to a demon or the Trickster could shoot it with an arrow), the players roll Dice and highest score decides who acts. We will use that option as a last resort. If the team can reach majority on who should do something, we'll go with that first.

ENCOUNTERS

At all times players must specify their battle order. Battle order may be changed at any time except when in combat.

Generally (but not always!) the first player, being at the front, will be the one to get to hit by surprise attacks and so on. If players cannot agree on a battle order then they must adopt the following standard arrangement: first Warrior, then Sage, then Enchanter, then Trickster.

Encounters are almost always played out on a tactical display of the room, corridor or what-have-you. An example is shown here:

The numbers on this tactical map show where the Adventurers are standing when the combat starts. The Ms refer to the monster's starting locations.

It is possible to fight a monster only in an adjacent square, not across a diagonal, and it is not possible to move onto a square already occupied by a monster or another player. When a monster or character is slain, remove them from the map; in other words, you can step over or even stand on a fallen foe. You cannot move where there are no squares, nor on to a blacked-out square, which represents an obstacle such as (in the map above) a pillar or a large statue. Shaded squares can be moved through by monsters but not by players. In the map above, for instance, the shaded squares indicate a bed of coals which the monsters are immune to.

Note that as DM, I will control the enemies. Generally speaking, if they are in combat they will try to finish their opponent off first. Otherwise, they will likely act in a way that is congruent with their descriptions in the text.

ENCUMBRANCE

There is a limit to how much you can carry. You can usually have ten items at a time. If you are fully encumbered and find another item you want, you must discard one of the items you're already carrying (or give it to another player) in order to make space for it in your backpack. 

Two special points need to be made. A quiver (available to Sages and Tricksters) will hold up to six arrows. The quiver counts as one item for encumbrance purposes regardless of the number of arrows it contains. That is, if you have a quiver containing six arrows then it still counts as only one item and not as seven items.

Your money pouch counts as one item too. As with the quiver, the contents are not relevant. The money pouch will hold a maximum of a hundred coins (of any type), but whether it is full or empty it counts as only one item.

MAGIC

Magic is the special province of Enchanters and, to a much lesser extent, Sages. The way in which magic functions for these classes is fully set out in their special sections (see pages 23 and 27), but there is one thing that every Adventurer must know about magic.

There are two types of magic. BLASTING spells simply inflict damage when they are cast, and if you happen to be the target there is not much you can do about it! You deduct the damage the spell does (less your Armour Rating) from your Endurance score. The other sort of spells are PSYCHIC spells, and these you can try to resist. To resist a PSYCHIC spell you must roll two Dice and obtain a score equal to or less than your Psychic Ability score. If you make this roll, the spell fails to work against you.

You will always be told whether a spell is of the Psychic or Blasting variety.

EXPERIENCE POINTS

Experience points are a measure of a character's skill and power. If you complete The Battlepits of Krarth successfully, you will be awarded a number of experience points to be divided among all the surviving characters. At the same time you add up any special bonus awards (or penalties) you were given during the adventure. The total experience points a character accumulates will enable him or her to rise in rank.

Basically, every 250 experience means plus one rank.

You start the adventure at second rank.

After successfully completing the adventure and totting up your experience points, keep the Character Sheet. Characters who emerge alive from the Battlepits are eligible for Blood Sword 2: The Kingdom of Wyrd.

GETTING KILLED 

If you die, you die. You are out of the current game, and the surviving characters will have to go on without you (sob). 

If all characters die, then it is game over.

I am possibly considering allowing a new character to join the party if one or more characters die but the party makes it to the next book.

[champskees]

Part II: Choose your character.

Each player must choose from one of the four options available: Warrior, Trickster, Enchanter or Sage. First in, first served. You also need to decide on a name (or use your Fantazine handle). A picture of what you look like will also be appreciated. You are expected to keep your own record of stats etc - I will relay the story and information, but you need to tell me if you are at zero endurance, for example.

THE WARRIOR

You are the master of the fighting arts. You have better Fighting Prowess than any other adventuring type at the same rank, and when you strike a blow you inflict more damage. You also have chainmail armour which provides an Armour Rating of three - better than the armour available to other characters.

These advantages give you a real edge in any fight, but you do not get things all your own way. You have none of the other characters' special skills - the Sage's ESP, for instance, or the Trickster's low, devious cunning. Also, because you are of noble birth and follow the honourable traditions of your ancestors, you must be careful to stay true to the code of chivalry. You may take an experience point penalty if you behave in a dishonourable, cowardly or uncouth manner.

NAME: ??
RANK: 2nd

Experience: 250

Fighting Prowess: 8
Psychic Ability: 6
Awareness: 6
Endurance: 12
Damage: 1 Die+1

Items (Max 10):
1 Sword
2 Chainmail armour (Armour Rating 3)
3 Money pouch (10 gold pieces) 

THE TRICKSTER

Some Adventurers are honest, chivalrous and honourable. Not you. You are basically a rogue - a likeable rogue, perhaps, but a rogue nonetheless. You live by your wits. If you can win a fight by trickery or by shooting someone in the back, you will. Cunning is your main weapon.

But when you have to face someone in a straight fight, you are no pushover. After the Warrior, you are perhaps the best fighter in any party.

Three special rules apply to you:

Dodging technique
You are very adept at evading attacks. When an opponent makes a fight roll against you, he or she (or it) must roll 2 Dice+1 instead of the usual 2 Dice.

Archery
As long as you have your bow and arrows, you can use the shoot option in combat. You do not have to be in an adjacent square in order to shoot. A shoot roll is just like a fight roll - that is, to hit you must roll equal to or under your Fighting Prowess on two Dice.

Regardless of your rank, arrows inflict only one Die Endurance damage (less Armour Rating) on the target.

Quick Thinking
Once in each combat you can use this ability to take two actions in the same Round. The first action happens at the point in the Round when you would normally get to act, that is, as governed by your Awareness. The second action comes at the end of the Round when everyone else has had a chance to do something.


NAME: ??
RANK: 2nd

Experience: 250

Fighting Prowess: 7
Psychic Ability: 6
Awareness: 8
Endurance: 12
Damage: 1 Die

Items (Max 10):
1 Sword
2 Studded leather armour (Armour Rating 2)
3 Money pouch (10 gold pieces)
4 Bow
5 Quiver (6 arrows) 

THE SAGE

Your upbringing has been in the spartan Monastery of Illumination on the barren island of Kaxos. There you studied the Mystic Way - a series of demanding psionic disciplines and rigorous physical training.

Several special rules apply to you:

Archery
As long as you have your bow and arrows, you can use the shoot option in combat. You do not have to be in an adjacent square in order to shoot. A shoot roll is just like a fight roll - that is, to hit you must roll equal to or under your Fighting Prowess on two Dice.

Regardless of your rank, arrows inflict only one Die Endurance damage (less Armour Rating) on the target.

Quarterstaff technique
Your expertise in quarterstaff fighting includes a knowledge of critical nerve points. When attacking with the staff, you can elect to make your fight roll on three Dice instead of two. This is obviously more difficult, but it means that if you do hit you inflict an extra one Die damage and knock your foe off-balance, causing him to take his action at the end of the following Round (that is, as if he had an Awareness score of one).

Healing
You can use this psionic ability at any time except during a combat. When you attempt to Heal, you decide how many points of Endurance you are going to use. You deduct these from your Endurance, then roll 1 Die-2 and multiply this by the number of points you expended. The result is the Healing energy (in the form of Endurance points) that you are able to draw from the Cosmic Flux. These points may be distributed as you wish among the players (including yourself). No player can increase his or her Endurance above its initial score, of course.

An example will show how this works. Alfric is a Sage who decides to expend five Endurance in a Healing attempt. He thus rolls 1 Die-2 and multiplies the figure by five - rolling four on the Die, say, and thus getting a total of ten Endurance points. He could restore his own Endurance to what it was before he tried the Healing, and this would still leave him with five points to distribute to himself or his companions as he wishes.

Negative results on the 1 Die-2 roll are counted as zero, as mentioned earlier. Your power of Healing is always a gamble, though, because you might roll one or two on the Die and thus get back no points from the Cosmic Flux.

Since this is a very powerful ability - and to make the gambling aspect of it more meaningful - I suggest that we say that there can only be one Healing attempt per section (more if a long passage of time is indicated). Basically after every decision you can attempt to heal, which is still pretty good.

Other psionic powers
Your other psionic powers will be explained in situations where you might need them. They include:

ESP the ability to detect thoughts;
Paranormal Sight the ability to see through soft materials such as curtains, fog or water (not stone or metal);
Levitation the ability to negate the force of gravity on your body, allowing you to rise vertically into the air;
Exorcism the ability to dispel ghosts and other wraiths by stifling the paranormal energies that sustain them.

NAME: ??
RANK: 2nd

Experience: 250

Fighting Prowess: 7
Psychic Ability: 7
Awareness: 6
Endurance: 10
Damage: 1 Die

Items (Max 10):
1 Quarterstaff
2 Ringmail armour (Armour Rating 2)
3 Money pouch (10 gold pieces)
4 Bow
5 Quiver (6 arrows) 

THE ENCHANTER

Forget the mundane arts of swordplay. You can use a sword if you have to, but your true forte is in the manipulation of occult powers of Sorcery.

Your special skills are more involved than those available to any other character because you have a host of useful and deadly spells at your command. The procedure for spellcasting is quite involved, so read the following stages carefully.

1. Before you can cast a spell, you must call it to mind. If done during a combat, this takes one Round. You can call spells to mind at any time - and keep them in mind without effort - so you may wish to have a few ready before encountering an enemy - rather like having a cocked and loaded crossbow.

However, each spell that you have in mind temporarily reduces your Psychic Ability by one until it is cast. If you keep several spells in mind at all times, you will therefore be adventuring with quite a low current Psychic Ability, and this makes you vulnerable to psychic attacks.

2. The attempt to cast a spell takes one Round. It does not happen automatically. In order to cast a spell successfully, you must roll equal or less than your Psychic Ability on two Dice. You must add the Complexity Level of the spell to the Dice roll. If you fail to cast it, you can try again the next Round; this time the roll is easier, as you subtract one from the two-Dice-plus-Complexity roll. If you fail again, you subtract two from your roll on the next Round. If the spellcasting process is interrupted (for example, you take a Round out to dodge or fight) then you have to go back to stage one.

An example will show how this works. Ragnarok is an Enchanter with a Psychic Ability of nine. He has called two spells into mind in case of trouble, so he currently has a reduced Psychic Ability score of seven. In an encounter with three hobgoblins he decides to use his Sheet Lightning spell. This is a Complexity Level four spell, so the first round he tries to cast it he must roll seven or less on 2 Dice+4. He fails this difficult roll but continues trying on the next Round, this time making 2 Dice+3. He fails again, so on the third round he needs to make his roll of seven or less on 2 Dice+2. This time he succeeds, and a crackling bolt scatters the hobgoblins. If Ragnarok had stopped trying to cast the spell in order to fight, and then started trying again the Round after that, he would have had to start with a 2 Dice+4 roll again.

COMBAT SPELLS

Volcano Spray Complexity Level 1
Causes all enemies in the vicinity to lose one Die Endurance.
This is a Blasting spell, so it cannot be resisted.
The enemies' Armour Rating, if any, is deducted from the damage Die roll.
For this and all other spells that affect multiple enemies, I assume that damage dice are rolled separately for each target.

Nighthowl Complexity Level 1
A Psychic spell that affects a single opponent.
If the opponent fails to resist, he/she/it must make fight or shoot rolls using one Die more than usual (that is, on three Dice rather than two Dice) for the next four Rounds.

White Fire Complexity Level 1
This Blasting spell strikes one opponent, causing the loss of 2 Dice+2 Endurance (less Armour Rating).

Swordthrust Complexity Level 2
A Blasting spell affecting one enemy, who loses 3 Dice+3 Endurance; armour reduces the damage in the usual way.

Eye of the Tiger Complexity Level 2
When this spell is cast, you can either add two to your Fighting Prowess and damage rolls or add one to the Fighting Prowess and damage rolls of everyone in the party including yourself.
This lasts for four Rounds of combat.

Immediate Deliverance Complexity Level 2
Used during a combat from which you wish to flee, this spell Teleports everyone in the party to the exit (if there is one).
You are then ready to beat a retreat in the next Round.

Mists of Death Complexity Level 3
All enemies in the vicinity lose two Dice Endurance if they fail to resist this Psychic spell. Armour gives no protection.

The Vampire Spell Complexity Level 3
This Psychic spell can be directed against a single foe, who loses four Dice Endurance if he fails to resist it.
Some of the vital energy he loses is channelled into you: your own Endurance is increased by half the amount he loses (rounded down).
Of course, your Endurance still cannot exceed its initial score.

Sheet Lightning Complexity Level 4
A powerful Blasting spell that inflicts 2 Dice+2 damage to all opponents in the vicinity. Armour protects from this as usual.

Ghastly Touch Complexity Level 4
This is the only spell that requires you to be in an adjacent square to your intended victim. It is a Psychic spell that affects one opponent, who loses seven Dice Endurance if he fails to resist it - and two Dice even if he does resist it. Armour gives no protection.

Nemesis Bolt Complexity Level 5
This highly focused bolt of energy strikes one foe, who loses 7 Dice+7 Endurance.
It is a Blasting spell, so armour will reduce the damage.

Servile Enthralment Complexity Level 5
This Psychic spell affects one enemy.
If not resisted, it brings the enemy under your control.
He/she/it simply stops moving and in non-combat situations may respond to your questions.
If you order an Enthralled foe to fight for you (that is, against his own former companions), you must roll one Die: on a 6 he recovers his wits and attacks you.
Enthralment lasts long enough for you to leave the vicinity, so you proceed as though you had slain the opponent in question.

Non-combat spells
You also have a number of non-combat spells. These include Summon Faltyn, which calls a sly, faerie creature to serve you for a time; Prediction, which grants a glimpse into possible futures; and Detect Spells, which informs you when magic is operating nearby. There is no need to make Dice rolls to cast such spells because it will not usually matter whether it takes several attempts to get them to work.

NAME: ??
RANK: 2nd

Experience: 250

Fighting Prowess: 6
Psychic Ability: 8
Awareness: 6
Endurance: 10
Damage: 1 Die-1

Items (Max 10):
1 Sword
2 Silver armour (Armour Rating 2) [armour of any other material interferes with your magic]
3 Money pouch (10 gold pieces) 

[kieran]

Any objections to me taking the warrior, gents?

[sylas]

i'll have a go at the Sage.

[a moderator]

I'll go with Trickster.

[champskees]

Let's begin (good luck, brave adventurers - you will likely need it).

Party:
Kieran the Warrior
Sylas the Sage

Greenspine the Trickster

and

the Edified Enchanter - he is a mystery wrapped in an enigma.

1

For the whole day now you have been approaching the smoke columns rising up vertically hundreds of metres from the flat plains of Krarth. The sky above is blue, cloudless and cold. A bitter wind blows across the dry, sere grass of the marshes and send sluggish ripples through the puddles of mire which occupy the low ground. The monotony of the landscape is broken only by the occasional stunted willow growing by black, muddy pools and meres.

Kalugen's Keep is a monolithic black citadel looming ahead of you. Hoping to reach its gates before nightfall, you curse the throng of peasants and merchants milling towards it. You jostle through them towards the citadel - this morning just an imperceptible speck across the bleak wastes, but now a monstrous edifice that seems to fill the horizon.

You know that you have only until tomorrow to find a sponsor among the magi of Krarth, for tomorrow battle will be unleashed in the pits beneath the citadel. Fame and fortune will go to the Adventurers - and their sponsor - who return from the labyrinthine Battlepits with the Emblem of Victory. If you find no magus who is prepared to sponsor you this time, you will have to wait through another long year for the next contest. A year through which the marsh waters will rise, drowning the land and the causeways leading to the citadel, rendering Kalugen's Keep impregnable. No one enters or leaves in that time except the magi on their flying carpets, and only in the mid-year can the citizens emerge to sow their fields with corn and rice before the harsh winter months begin again.

At last you manage to break through the gabbling crowds of the baggage train and ride under the grey blocks of the massive gate, its portcullis open like the maw of a hungry god. The dour streets are festooned with the flags of the magi - the one week of the year when this grim place is ablaze with colour, you reflect wryly - and street criers call out the glories of their lords. In the central square you see a booth where the magi's stewards are registering the combatants whom their masters have employed for tomorrow's contest. Each hero, or group of heroes, must take their sponsor's pennant with them into the Battlepits, but as you scan the racks outside the booth you see that only three pennants remain. Three stewards stand by the pennants. Three magi seek champions.


The stewards grin sourly as they see you eyeing the pennants. Over the years they must have engaged dozens of brave Adventurers on their respective masters' behalf - and how many of those Adventurers went down into the Battlepits never to emerge? You scowl back at them grimly, but they only smile the broader. They know you must choose one of the pennants. As you debate the choice, an old merchant wrapped in greasy furs and obviously the worse for drink sees you contemplating the booth.

If you ignore the drunken merchant and go over to the booth, turn to 452. If you talk to the merchant, turn to 69. If there is a Trickster in your group and he or she wishes to act, turn to 58. If a Sage wishes to try something, turn to 18. If an Enchanter wishes to try something, turn to 398.

Note that the member-specific options only require that that character wants to act. If everyone decides to talk to the merchant but the sage wants to try something, then the specific choice takes priority.

If there is a situation where (as is possible in this paragraph) two or more characters have member-specific options, you can provide a more detailed choice i.e. if you are playing enchanter you could say 'The enchanter wishes to try something if the sage doesn't want to'. If you don't have a member specific choice, you can only choose from the party options. In this example the warrior can only choose to talk to the merchant or ignore him - and it is likely neither option will be chosen!

 When voting for what action to take, please remind me which character you are and what the paragraph number for that option is.

[kieran]

Warrior - I vote for ignoring the merchant and head for the booth - 452

[a moderator]

Trickster: let's see what shenanigans I can get up to at 58.

[sylas]

I am the Sage and I want to try something. 18.

[champskees]

When there is a tie, a roll is made to see who gets priority.

Trickster rolls a 4.

Sage rolls a 2.

58

(TRICKSTER) Under the merchant's beer-stained fur jacket you notice a bulging money pouch. Being a Trickster, your thoughts naturally turn to theft.

If you wish to try to rob the merchant, roll two Dice. Your attempt at robbery succeeds if you roll less than or equal to your Awareness (turn to 121). If you roll more than your Awareness, then your attempt fails (turn to 181). If you don't want to try robbing the merchant, return to 1 and choose again.

I'm going to go ahead and say that you do want to rob the merchant here. Note that I won't usually do this, but this seems like a no-brainer to me.

Trickster rolls a 5. Success!

121

(TRICKSTER) You saunter casually past the merchant and, reaching deftly inside his jacket, remove his doubtless ill-gotten gains. He is so drunk that he does not notice a thing.

SPOILER: Click to show

[Inspecting your haul, you find that you now have the grand sum of fifty gold pieces.]

 Turn to 344.

344

(TRICKSTER) You saunter [Tricksters clearly love a good saunter] over to the booth. The three stewards sitting on the bench in front of it view your approach with contempt. 'Come to try your luck, have you?' one of them asks archly?

You detach your money pouch from your belt and heft it in your hand. The chink of gold changes the attitude of the stewards dramatically; they now look at you with undisguised interest. Your gaze wanders over the three pennants as if you were uncertain which of them represented the best proposition.

'Allow me to advise you,' declares one of the stewards, jumping to his feet.

'Or me,' says another, tripping him so he blunders past you, falling into the gutter. This fellow is somewhat bigger than the other two stewards, who allow him to approach you without any further argument.

'Such advice will be well worth the five gold pieces I am prepared to pay, I hope,' you say.

'Doubtless its value lies not far off the ten gold pieces I am prepared to accept for it,' he replies.

If you agree to pay him ten gold pieces, cross them off your Character Sheet and turn to 292. If you insist that you will pay only five gold pieces, cross them off your Character Sheet and turn to 454. If you say you'll pay him five gold pieces now and five after he's advised you, cross five off your Character Sheet and turn to 166.

So I guess it's back to Ed (as this is a trickster paragraph).

While we are at it, party order. Need to tell me where your character is in the party by giving a number between 1 and 4. 1 is the person who is in the front, 4 is usually the person in the back.

The enchanter has elected to be in spot 3.

The Edified Enchanter has also committed a spell to mind - White Fire.

[kieran]

As the fearless warrior I shall of course be priority 1

[sylas]

I'll take spot 4.

[a moderator]

That leaves slot 2 for me.

5 gold now, 5 gold after (166).

[champskees]

166

(TRICKSTER) 'Five now, five then,' you tell him. You produce ten large gold coins and put five of them in his hand. You still keep your own hand closed around them.

He looks eagerly at the five coins in your other hand. 'The scarlet banner is the symbol of Magus Balhazar, who is noted for an almost human compassion at times. This quality sets him apart from the other magi, who have hearts of cold rock.'

'Thanks for the advice,' you say with a smile. You whip the first five coins out of his hand and give him the other five instead. 'Five before, five after.'

'You scurvy scum! You sly wretch! You pustule of gangrenous venom!' he screams. 'Well, I lied, see. The scarlet banner's the worst one to take, in fact.' Flushed with anger, he slopes back to where the other two stewards sit chortling gleefully.

Turn to 332

Trickster has paid only 5 Gold Pieces as a result.

332

There are three banners, and you must choose one. Will it be the scarlet banner (turn to 28), the olive-green banner (turn to 52) or the black and purple banner (turn to 381)?

Note that this is a party decision - everyone gets a vote.

[a moderator]

Scarlet (28).

[sylas]

'I do not normally approve of such deceptive strategies but you do get results. Scarlet it is then.'

[kieran]

I have little sympathy for a swindled swindler. I would however vote green but I shall go with the majority.

[champskees]

28

You snatch up the red pennant and hold it aloft. Two of the stewards look at each other barely concealing their frustration, and stomp off to the booth. The third rushes up to you excitedly. 'You have chosen the pennant of the esteemed and generous Magus Balhazar!' he cries.

Just at this moment a tall man dressed in scarlet robes sweeps majestically across the square towards you. The steward bows abjectly to him.

Turn to 397.

397

'I am Balhazar,' says the man in red, stroking his moustache. 'I will be pleased to engage you to represent me in tomorrow's contest. First, however, I must test your worthiness. Regardless of your strength and courage, you will require great cunning if you are to win for me tomorrow, and several promising candidates have already been rejected because they lacked the necessary intelligence. Therefore, come to my mansion tonight. When you arrive there, you will know the nature of the test ...'

Turn to 64.

64

You arrive at Balhazar's mansion as the temple gongs of the citadel sound out the hour of midnight. A long avenue flanked by cedar trees and decorated with gaily covered lanterns and embroidered banners on poles stretches to the white marble portico of the main entrance. Guards patrol up and down the avenue, but they seem to ignore most of the guests. However, they stare long and hard at you and are just about to step up and challenge you when Balhazar's usher rushes from the doorway of the house to greet you. He gestures you towards the doorway, behind which you can see a party in full swing. All the revellers wear masks concealing their identities. They are entertained by jugglers and musicians.

The usher offers you a tray with drinks and sweetmeats laid out on it. 'My master will speak to you of employment,' he says. 'That is' - he gestures at the dozens of revellers - 'if you have the ability to find him ...'

You stare in bewilderment at the masked party-goers. How are you to locate your prospective employer among them?

If there is a Trickster who wishes to bribe the usher, turn to 53. If there is a Sage who intends using ESP, turn to 309. If there is an Enchanter who thinks it is worth summoning a Faltyn, turn to 232. If you just want to use your powers of deduction to work out which of the revellers is Balhazar, turn to 458.

[kieran]

Guess I have to opt for the old powers of deduction - 458

[sylas]

I think i should try ESP first. It would be wiser to gather more information on these men behind masks before we resort to deduction.

309

[a moderator]

Sept 28, 2015 16:04:28 GMT sylas said:

I think i should try ESP first. It would be wiser to gather more information on these men behind masks before we resort to deduction.

309

I support the Sage's plan, if that's allowed.

[champskees]

309

(SAGE) ESP is not always reliable or easy to use. You retire to a quiet corner of the room and meditate, clearing your mind of all distractions. The sublime strains of the flautist's music help you to focus and channel your thoughts into 'the space between thought' when all your psionic abilities become operational. You reach out with your mind, scanning the thoughts of those in the room. Obviously Balhazar has anticipated this strategy, because you discover he has placed a blanketing spell on all the guests. You detect no thoughts from anyone present (apart from those of your companions).

But wait! You do pick up one set of thoughts - from a saturnine man dressed in a dark-blue cloak and a horned bull mask.

Turn to 348.

348

ESP indicates thoughts from only one of the revellers.

If you wish to approach this man and declare him to be Balhazar, turn to 382. If you wish to attack the man, turn to 29. If you don't trust ESP and would rather rely on your ingenuity, turn to 458.

Note that the above is a party choice.

[kieran]

Not that I doubt your powers, Sylas, but it seems to me a powerful Magus like Balhazar wouldn't make things so easy. I think we should rely on our ingenuity - 458.

[a moderator]

If Balhazar has placed a blanketing spell on all the guests, the fact that someone here is not included in the spell suggests that he is not a guest. So he probably shouldn't be here. So I think we should introduce Mister Uninvited to my friend Dirk Intheback. 29.

[sylas]

'Greenspine has a point and while i agree that we should use our ingenuity to find the Magus, we should first deal with the one who shouldn't even be here at the party.'

I'll make no move to stop Greenspine from 'introducing himself' to the uninvited guest (though if it comes to a fight i will have my bow ready). 29.

[champskees]

29

You saunter over while the man is selecting a pastry from a tray. Position yourself beside him as shown. You get one free Round before he can act because he was not expecting your attack.



Man in Blue
Fighting Prowess: 7
Psychic Ability: 7
Awareness: 7
Damage per blow: 1 Die+1
Endurance: 15

For some reason, no one else at the party comes to your aid. If you flee from the mansion, turn to 119. If you kill the man, turn to 184.

Well, you each get one free round because you have surprised the poor guy. Basically with combat, we will do it round by round. You tell me what your character is doing. If you are attacking, you roll the dice for your character and post your roll to hit & damage roll. I will post the actual combat results after everyone has given their orders. Or if you prefer I can do the dice rolling - what do you guys think?

It is likely you will kill this guy pretty quickly, but remember that you have options (flee,defend,shoot an arrow etc) in other combats.

[kieran]

I take a swipe. Roll 5=hit. Roll for damage. Roll a 3 so 4 damage dealt to our mysterious foe.

[sylas]

Wasn't expecting to be right next to him. i guess i will try to strike him with my staff then.

Roll = 8. i missed.


(we'll see how long this first combat takes then decide if you making the rolls is easier.)

[a moderator]

I roll 3 - a hit, for 3 damage. And unless the Enchanter manages to immolate the man in blue on the spot, I'll use my Quick Thinking option to get in another blow.

SPOILER: Click to show

Rolling 9, and thus missing.

[champskees]

I see no problem with players rolling for hit/damage at this stage, so we'll continue with the current system in future combats.

To fight someone, you must be directly adjacent to them, no diagonals (unless you were shooting with your bow) i.e Sylas you would have to move then attack as you are in position 4.

Also, I'm not 100% sure of the rules, but can you move and fight in the same round? It seems that this is what the gamebook rules state, but I thought I better clear this up now before we get into the more technical combats.

Round I: Man in Blue 

The Trickster shanks the poor Man in Blue in the upper back for 3 Damage just as he turns to select another pastry.

The Man in Blue draws his sword, spitting on the ground. 'So, the hunter is now the hunted, eh?' he sneers.

With a mighty battle roar, the Warrior slashes the Man in Blue deeply across his chest, inflicting 4 Damage.

The Sage moves in to cut off the Man in Blue's retreat and takes a swipe with his quarterstaff. The Man in Blue dodges skilfully despite his wounds.  

At the same time, the Enchanter succeeds in casting White Fire, rolling a 4 & 5 for damage. The Man in Blue screams in howling agony and is burnt for 7 Damage from the white-hot flames. The enchanter laughs maniacally as he observes his handiwork.

Moving in to deliver the coup-de-grace, the Trickster whispers 'Time to say good pie!' into what is left of the Man in Blue's right ear and thrusts his sword towards the man's unprotected back. However, by some instinctive reflex, the Man in Blue manages to twist away from the blade just in time!

End of Round I.

Please give me your orders for round 2. Note that the Man in Blue is left with 1 Endurance point.