RPG Gamebooks

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

Fighting Fantasy:  The Warlock of Firetop Mountain Part 4


Herman's policy of walking west at every turn had served him well so far, but perhaps he was relying too much on LUCK.  He heard shouting behind a doorway at the end of a western passage, and he could either check it out in Section 158, or walk away in Section 293.


The second key's location was still unknown, so Herman had to accept new challenges wherever they arose.  But the text never said what species the shouting was coming from.


168  With the whip in his hand, the ORC CHIEFTAIN has been beating his servant, who is whimpering beneath him.  His room had a "solid-looking table" different from the common barracks.


Herman may have been a common bandit when he killed the drunken ORCs to take their spellbook, but he saw a potential ally in the ORC CHIEFTAIN's slave and wished to spare him in Section 65.  The alternatives in CHOICE #14 were to kill them both in Section 372 or return to the intersection in Section 293.


(Judging by the illustration, the ORC CHIEFTAIN already has one eye looking at the player while holding his whip above the cringing slave, so an option to escape cleanly seems odd.)


Herman's bigotry against ORCs was validated when the servant joined the battle. . .against him!  "Ungrateful wretch" indeed.


The battle commences!  The text says "Fight them one at a time" instead of "in turn", so I assume Herman is supposed to finish killing the ORC CHIEFTAIN before slaying the SERVANT, unlike the two drunken ORCs where he alternated turns attacking each one.


ORC CHIEFTAIN

SKILL 7
STAMINA 6

SERVANT

SKILL 5
STAMINA 3


Round 1


Herman rolls 6+6+14=26
ORC CHIEFTAIN rolls 6+6+7=19

Herman scratches the Orc Chieftain in spite of his swift lash.  ORC CHIEFTAIN STAMINA=4


Round 2

Herman rolls 4+1+14=19
ORC CHIEFTAIN rolls 4+2+7=13

Herman wounds the ORC CHIEFTAIN as he falters.  ORC CHIEFTAIN STAMINA=2


Round 3

Herman rolls 5+1+14=20
ORC CHIEFTAIN rolls 4+3+7=14

With one stroke, Herman cuts through both the whip and the ORC CHIEFTAIN.


Round 4

Herman rolls 5+5+14=24
SERVANT rolls 3+6+5=14

The SERVANT rises to avenge his cruel master, but is wounded.  SERVANT STAMINA=1


Round 5

Herman rolls 4+3+14=21
SERVANT rolls 1+1+5=7

As the SERVANT dies, he blindly flails with his stick.


Herman examined the ORC CHIEFTAIN's room and saw a locked chest "made of strong oak and iron".  Fighting Fantasy training did not involve Lockpicking, so his CHOICE #17 options were to smash the lock with the sword in Section 339, or abandon it and return to the intersection in Section 293.


Herman had no method of gaining experience points in his world, so loot was the only reward for fighting the ORC CHIEFTAIN and his SERVANT.  The lock was flimsy and soared off into the distance with one strike of the sword.  Upon opening the chest, Herman noticed "a fair number of Gold Pieces", a "small black bottle with a tight glass stopper", and a "silky black glove".  Could this have been a source of the Warlock's power as the village rumors suggested?


But our hero had other concerns when a 1D6 dart trap pricked his stomach!  Fortunately, he rolled a 2, so the poison was more painful than lethal.  He then moved on to Section 201:  there was not even a grisly Death scene available apart from the standard depletion of STAMINA.


Herman's STAMINA after the poison dart trap=20


Herman put a bandage where the dart pricked him, and took inventory of the treasure:  25 Gold Pieces, a Potion of Invisibility (one dose), and the unidentified "silky black glove".  There was no item limit in the rules, and Herman took them all and moved on to Section 293 at last.


Section 293 was only the corridor that led east, and Section 113 was the true CHOICE #19:  North in Section 285, or East in Section 78.


Current Stats for Herman


SKILL:  14
STAMINA:  20 (initial 22)
LUCK:  17

Provisions:  10
Potion:  Fortune-2 doses, Invisibility-1 dose
Items:  26 Pieces of Gold, "Bronze-Coloured" #99 Key, "silky black glove"
Spells:  Dragonfire


EDIT:  Herman could have eaten Provisions after enduring the dart trap, but they heal 4 STAMINA and would be wasted on a minor injury like this.

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

Fighting Fantasy:  The Warlock of Firetop Mountain Part 5


Herman followed the eastern corridor to its end, and heard "strange mutterings and the clatter of what could be pots and pans" behind the next door.  He thought this could be the kitchen of Firetop Mountain, and CHOICE #20 was whether to enter in Section 159 or turn around in Section 237.


In the room were five ORCs swallowing "rat-gizzard soup".  Herman wondered for a moment if rats even had gizzards.  The "mutterings" were an argument over who would devour the rat bones.  In CHOICE #21, Herman could have decided on a suicidal or pointless battle with 5 ORCs in Section 365.  Chances are there was no treasure in a dining room.  But he wanted to Test Your Luck.  If he passed, he could leave in Section 237 without incident, or fail and have to fight the ORCs in Section 365.


Test Your Luck rolls:  3+4=7


SKILL:  14
STAMINA:  20 (initial 22)
LUCK:  16 (initial 17)



Herman quietly left the dining room and turned North at the intersection, advancing to Section 285.  Herman listened through a "well-used door", and heard a man calling for help.  He could either enter this room and try to help him, or reject him with either callousness or paranoia about traps in Section 314.


The door was locked-probably because the screaming man was a prisoner.  Herman would have to pass a 2D6 SKILL check to barge open the door in Section 36, or fail and injure his shoulder for a 1 STAMINA loss in Section 314.


Door ramming check rolls, equal or less to pass:  3+3=6


With his prowess, Herman was guaranteed to succeed. 


36  Inside the room the floor is covered with bones, rotting vegetation and slime.


A "wild-haired old man" ranted and charged at Herman!  Was this Farrigo Di Maggio the wizard, or someone who believed he was a cartoon caveman?  Herman's next decision may have been a Morality Test:  shout at the man to calm him in Section 263, or immediately attack him in Section 353.


Herman yelled "You are freed, old man!", and "Instantly, his rantings cease".  The old man cried and thanked Herman, and introduced himself as a former adventurer whom the ORCs captured and placed in solitary confinement.  Understandably, after this many years he wanted to leave Firetop Mountain, not join Herman as a companion.


The old man said to "pay your respects to the boatman", that the RIGHT-hand lever was the one to pull at the end of this passageway, and that the Boat House keys were protected by "a man and his dog".  Herman restored 1 LUCK with his heroism.



SKILL:  14
STAMINA:  20 (initial 22)
LUCK:  17



CHOICE #25 was to enter another silent room in the east wall in Section 223, or to continue forward in Section 300.  Herman was curious as always, but he would have to force the lock in Section 53 in CHOICE #26, or ignore it and keep walking in Section 300.


Herman once again tried the "shoulder ram" technique, perhaps learning it from the legendary scrolls of Wario.  This was yet another 2D6 SKILL check.  Failure meant losing 1 STAMINA and going to Section 300, and passing would advance to Section 155.


Roll to ram yet another door:  6+1=7


Herman easily overpowered the door with twice the SKILL needed in CHOICE #27.


155 A torch hangs from one wall lighting up a small armoury room stocked with swords, shields, helmets, daggers and the like.


Nothing in this room was better than Herman's equipment, save the "circular iron shield with a golden crescent at its centre".  Shields had the capacity to roll 6 to reduce the standard 2 STAMINA loss to 1, or 0 damage if the enemy somehow only dealt 1 damage.  The catch was having to abandon one Equipment List item to carry the shield because it was so heavy.  Herman decided against it, thinking potions, spells, and his SKILL score were sufficient.


Herman's next decision in CHOICE #28 was to enter a "solid metal" door where "tortured screams" could be heard in Section 102, or ignore it in Section 303.  That will be for another post. . .


Current Stats

SKILL:  14
STAMINA:  20 (initial 22)
LUCK:  17

Provisions:  10
Potion:  Fortune-2 doses, Invisibility-1 dose
Items:  26 Pieces of Gold, "Bronze-Coloured" #99 Key, "silky black glove"
Spells:  Dragonfire

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

Fighting Fantasy:  The Warlock of Firetop Mountain Part 6


"Tortured screams" were coming from behind the door because it was a torture chamber.  Two "hunchbacks" were cutting a Dwarf hanging on a hook with their swords.  The Dwarf passed out and the hunchbacks glared at Herman.  CHOICE #29 was to close the door quickly and leave in Sectoin 303 (as if the hunchbacks wouldn't pursue?), fight the hunchbacks in Section 19, or poke the Dwarf with the sword and laugh with the torturers in Section 68.


They weren't so much hunchbacks as GOBLINs, who "attack you one at a time".  (I'll play this fight by the "kill one monster before moving on to next" rule.)


First GOBLIN

SKILL 5
STAMINA 5

Second GOBLIN

SKILL 5
STAMINA 6


Round 1

Herman rolls 4+3+14=21
First GOBLIN rolls 6+2+5=13

Herman stabs the First GOBLIN.  Enemy STAMINA=3


Round 2

Herman rolls 6+4+14=24
First GOBLIN rolls 4+1+5=10

Herman parries the First GOBLIN and ripostes.  Enemy STAMINA=1


Round 3

Herman rolls 3+4+14=21
First GOBLIN rolls 2+2+5=9

Herman thrusts his sword into the First GOBLIN's vital organs and kills him.


Round 4

Herman rolls 5+6+14=25
Second GOBLIN rolls 3+1+5=9


Herman slashes the Second GOBLIN.  Enemy STAMINA=4


Round 5


Herman rolls 5+4+14=23
Second GOBLIN rolls 4+5+5=14

Herman blocks the incoming attack and strikes back.  Enemy STAMINA=2


Round 6

Herman rolls 4+5+14=23
Second GOBLIN rolls 4+4+5=13

Herman cuts down the Second GOBLIN and wins the battle.


It was too late to save the deceased Dwarf, but Herman looted the corpse just like his favorite heroes of yore.  (Unbeknownst to him, these are actually all RPG characters.)  He found a piece of Cheese that was surprisingly still good.  He moved from Section 317 to Section 303.


303 An iron portcullis blocks your way and no amount of charging is going to budge it.


The narrator of the chronicle of the Warlock of Firetop Mountain had grown weary of Herman's shoulder-charging habit.  But the prisoner adventurer that he rescued had given him the answer for CHOICE #31:  the Right lever in Section 128, not the Left lever in Section 243.


"You hear a deep rumbling noise and the ground begins to shudder".  Herman walked to another intersection for CHOICE #32:  West in Section 210, or East in Section 58.  Herman always went West if he could help it, and also continued westward in CHOICE #33's Section 225 instead of turning northwards in Section 357.


Herman followed the west passage to its end, then turned north.  A "narrow passage" led to the west in Section 63, and the north path continued in Section 77.  So of course Herman had to investigate the detour in CHOICE #34.  A "deep, resonating laugh" bellowed from this area, and CHOICE #35 was to continue West in spite of the danger in Section 281, or turn back while Herman still had the chance in Section 10.


But Herman was no pacifist like those wimpy Choose Your Own Adventure protagonists that the village bards had sung about.  He had slaughtered several ORCs and GOBLINs, and had memorized the Dragonfire spell.  What could defeat him now?


This passage was actually a dead end and a red herring.  All that happened was that Herman couldn't crawl any farther and had to return to Section 10, then 77.  While walking north, Herman found an alcove where he could eat Provisions if he wanted to.  But he insisted on continuing his journey in CHOICE #36:  West in Section 18, or East in Section 345.


Horace Greeley's advice was no longer valid.  The floor was about to collapse under Herman's feet!  Test Your Luck.  Success would be returning to the fork in Section 261, and failure would be Section 348 and the guaranteed loss of 1 STAMINA in the 2 meter pit.


LUCK rolls=3+2=5


Herman deftly jumped out of the way.  Getting that LUCK enhancing surgery from the village shaman was starting to pay off.


SKILL:  14
STAMINA:  20 (initial 22)
LUCK:  16 (initial 17)



Herman sauntered through the eastern passage of Section 345 and now had to select the straight eastern passage in Section 381, or another corridor that turned north in Section 311.  At this point the reader wonders whether the Warlock really did paint numbers in every room so he could navigate his cave lair.  But Herman's next decision will have to wait until the next post.  


Current Stats

SKILL:  14
STAMINA:  20 (initial 22)
LUCK:  16 (initial 17)

Provisions:  10
Potion:  Fortune-2 doses, Invisibility-1 dose
Items:  26 Pieces of Gold, "Bronze-Coloured" #99 Key, "silky black glove", Cheese
Spells:  Dragonfire

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

Fighting Fantasy:  The Warlock of Firetop Mountain Part 7


In the next installment of the print version of Etrian Odyssey, Herman walked east and found a wooden door with iron trim.  More importantly, there were "various inscriptions" on it that he couldn't read.  Could Herman behead the Warlock right now in a surprise attack?  He thought any kind of funny writing was the work of wizards.  CHOICE #39 offered the options of entering the room in Section 84, or revisiting the junction in Section 280.


84 Seated at the table is an old man with a long grey beard, and squatting on his shoulder is a small winged beast.


This room was "comfortably furnished" with chairs, a bookcase, and a table.  An old man with a gray beard looked just like the wizard paintings from the village.  All that was missing was the pointing hat.  A gray "small winged beast" 6 centimeters tall was perched on the old man's shoulder.  


He gestured for Herman to sit down as he was throwing "two small white objects" in his hands.  CHOICE #40 was to sit in Section 204, leave the room in Section 280, or rush to attack in Section 377.  Herman knew that wizards had a penchant for long speeches, and he wanted to hear at least one in his life.  Besides, the bearded man might have had some sort of counter-spell for melee weapons.


The bearded man wanted to gamble with Herman for at least 1 Gold Piece in Section 130.  The other CHOICE #41 options were to leave in Section 280, or attack in Section 377.  Strangely, no LUCK was involved in this 2D6 dice game.  Maybe the bearded man had an anti-cheating force field?


Herman rolls 1+5=6
Bearded Man rolls 2+2=4


In spite of Herman's terrible initial roll, he had genuine luck, not just statistical LUCK.  The wizard sneered and was forced to surrender 1 Gold Piece and +2 SKILL, STAMINA, and LUCK as Herman walked to Section 280, then 311.


SKILL:  14
STAMINA:  22
LUCK:  17

Provisions:  10
Potion:  Fortune-2 doses, Invisibility-1 dose
Items:  27 Pieces of Gold, "Bronze-Coloured" #99 Key, "silky black glove", Cheese
Spells:  Dragonfire



311 The room is completely bare, but the floor is covered in a mosaic of tiles.


What the illustration's description meant was that the walls and ceilings were a blank white.  Herman could walk directly across the room and fall into a certain trap in Section 305.  The more prudent options for CHOICE #43 were to either step only on star tiles in Section 178, or step only on hand tiles in Section 108.  It seemed to Herman that there was a clue, but he had somehow missed it in the labyrinth.  Perhaps it was on the eastern side in the beginning?


Turns out to "reach for the stars" with his feet was the correct answer.  CHOICE #44 in Section 162 was yet another West or North decision.  North in Section 23, or West in Section 69.  Trying West again after the pit trap was correct this time, since an arrow pointed to North in Section 244.  This led to an underground river going through a cave.  Herman could either sit and eat Provisions in Section 143, or swim for it in Section 399 and probably die to a crocodile or something in CHOICE #45.


Herman didn't need to eat after the gambling wizard healed him, but it seemed that swimming was too dangerous.  He was wrong:  the real threat was on land. 


143 Suddenly a large tubular head breaks through the surface, twists around in the air and picks up your scent.


It was a GIANT SANDWORM with 7 SKILL and 7 STAMINA.  Whoever gave it that name had never traveled to Arrakis.


Round 1

Herman rolls 2+2+14=18
GIANT SANDWORM rolls 2+6+7=15


Herman struggles to block the GIANT SANDWORM and counterattacks.  Enemy STAMINA=5


Round 2

Herman rolls 4+4+14=22
GIANT SANDWORM rolls 3+6+7=16

Herman detaches one segment of the GIANT SANDWORM.  Enemy STAMINA=3


Round 3

Herman rolls 6+6+14=26
GIANT SANDWORM rolls 6+1+7=14

Herman musters a heroic effort and slices off another segment.  Enemy STAMINA=1


Round 4

Herman rolls 3+3+14=20
GIANT SANDWORM rolls 2+5+7=14


Herman hacks apart the GIANT SANDWORM.


The protagonist of our story gained nothing from fighting the GIANT SANDWORM, and had to swim across the river in Section 399.  The river deposited him on the south bank in Section 218 with its currents.


218  You are on the south bank of an underground river, facing across its black depths.


This really was Castle Shadowgate, or maybe the River Styx.  The fee for crossing with the ferry bell was 2 Gold Pieces.  Doing so was Section 3, and the other CHOICE #47 options were to "punt the raft across" in Section 386, "risk the bridge" in Section 209, or try to swim against the current like someone who just acquired retrograde amnesia a few seconds ago in Section 316.


Herman remembered the adventurer's words and rang the bell.  What else was he going to do with 27 Gold Pieces in a dungeon?  


A "withered old man" whose name was probably Charon demanded 3 Gold Pieces in Section 272 because of "inflation".  Herman thought about the purpose of the gold standard being to prevent inflation, then reasoned that "Charon" could be telling the truth because of the example of Mansa Musa's hajj.  Herman could have threatened the ferryman in Section 127, but decided against it in CHOICE #48.  He was no miser.


Herman paid the Gold Pieces and traveled through Sections 272 and 7 before arriving at 214.  CHOICE #49 was to  take a northwest passage in Section 271, open the door across from him in Section 104, or take the east riverbank passage in Section 99.  The room had mosses of many colors above, and an "eerie silence" throughout.  Herman's next adventure will be in another post.


Current Stats

SKILL:  14
STAMINA:  22
LUCK:  17

Provisions:  10
Potion:  Fortune-2 doses, Invisibility-1 dose
Items:  24 Pieces of Gold, "Bronze-Coloured" #99 Key, "silky black glove", Cheese
Spells:  Dragonfire


EDIT:  The Gold Piece count was slightly off for the next few posts, although that was irrelevant to gameplay.  It should be 24, not 25.

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

Fighting Fantasy:  The Warlock of Firetop Mountain Part 8


Herman decided to try the timber door in Section 104 to avoid missing any necessary items on the other side of the river.  He entered Section 49 and was conked on the head!  In Fighting Fantasy world, head injuries were exactly as severe as every other kind of wound.  Maybe the brain wasn't one of Herman's vital organs, and his species had only a superficial resemblance to Earth humans.


SKILL:  14
STAMINA:  20 (initial 22)
LUCK:  17



Herman came to his senses in Section 122, a room "about eight metres square, with doors to the north and south".  Four men stand still, but they were probably NOT humans in the Fighting Fantasy sense.


122 Their skin is a greeny-grey colour.  Their clothes are tattered and torn.


These creatures wielded a club, a scythe, a pick, and an axe.  They ignored Herman at first, but it was hinted that they would not do so for long, since there was a human corpse with a sword and shield on the opposite side of the room.  Then they started to look at Herman.  CHOICE #50 was to talk to the zombies (?) in Section 268, attack them in Section 282, or run to the closest south door in Section 13.


Herman tried diplomacy on the undead. . .and unsurprisingly they could only speak in "moans and groans".  CHOICE #51 was the same as CHOICE #50, except without the talking option.  It was hinted that the escape option was the correct decision because the combat option said "resigned yourself to a battle".


But this was a false clue.  Herman tripped on a pebble and fell down.  Fortunately, the zombies weren't smart enough to surround him, and instead assaulted him in "single file".


My naming of the ZOMBIE was correct!  Their stats were below, which makes me question how an unintelligent rotting corpse could have the finesse and wits of an ORC CHIEFTAIN.


ZOMBIE

SKILL 7
STAMINA 6

ZOMBIE with scythe

SKILL 6
STAMINA 6

ZOMBIE with pick

SKILL 6
STAMINA 6

ZOMBIE with axe

SKILL 6
STAMINA 5


Round 1

Herman rolls 2+3+14=19
ZOMBIE rolls 1+5+7=13

Herman thrusts his sword into the ZOMBIE's putrid flesh.  Enemy STAMINA=4


Round 2

Herman rolls 3+6+14=23
ZOMBIE rolls 6+4+7=17

Herman knocks aside the ZOMBIE's club and strikes.  Enemy STAMINA=2


Round 3

Herman rolls 1+2+14=17
ZOMBIE rolls 1+5+7=13

Herman's swing parries the even clumsier ZOMBIE swing and re-kills it.


Round 4

Herman rolls 4+4+14=22
ZOMBIE with scythe rolls 2+6+6+14

Herman stabs through the opening in the scythe swing.  Enemy STAMINA=4


Round 5

Herman rolls 3+3+14=20
ZOMBIE with scythe rolls 6+4+6=16

Herman cuts the ZOMBIE after ducking the attack.  Enemy STAMINA=2


Round 6

Herman rolls 2+6+14=22
ZOMBIE with scythe rolls 3+5+6=14

Herman becomes the Grim Reaper instead of the pale imitation ZOMBIE with scythe.


Round 7

Herman rolls 5+1+14=20
ZOMBIE with pick rolls 1+5+6=12

Herman blocks the ZOMBIE with pick's attempt to mine his skull.  Enemy STAMINA=4


Round 8

Herman rolls 4+5+14=23
ZOMBIE with pick rolls 2+3+6=11

Herman parries the pick.  Enemy STAMINA=2


Round 9

Herman rolls 1+1+14=16
ZOMBIE with pick rolls 2+4+6=12

Despite his poor technique, Herman struck down the ZOMBIE with pick.


Round 10

Herman rolls 5+6+14=25
ZOMBIE with axe rolls 5+4+6=15

Herman concentrates after feeling shame about earlier performance.  Enemy STAMINA=3


Round 11

Herman rolls 2+5+14=21
ZOMBIE with axe rolls 6+5+6=17

Herman dodges the ZOMBIE with axe's wild swing.  Enemy STAMINA=1


Round 12

Herman rolls 2+1+14=17
ZOMBIE with axe rolls 5+1+6=12

Herman falters, then ensures the enemy gets the axe instead of him.



After the first ZOMBIE, Herman would have restored 2 LUCK if he were below his initial value.  When the battle ended, the chronicles presented it as a mercy:  "The poor wretches lying dead at your feet almost look happy to be relieved of the burden of life".  CHOICE #53 was what to examine in the room:  the weapons on the floor in Section 95, the human corpse in Section 313, or the barrels in Section 330.  But he probably only had time for one, as he sensed that something else knew about the end of the ZOMBIEs.  Perhaps whatever threw him into this room?



Current Stats

SKILL:  14
STAMINA:  20 (initial 22)
LUCK:  17

Provisions:  10
Potion:  Fortune-2 doses, Invisibility-1 dose
Items:  24 Pieces of Gold, "Bronze-Coloured" #99 Key, "silky black glove", Cheese
Spells:  Dragonfire

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

Fighting Fantasy:  The Warlock of Firetop Mountain Part 9





Herman wanted to investigate the dead adventurer in CHOICE #53 in case he had either clues to Firetop Mountain or a magic weapon.  He had a "suit of leather armour no better than your own", a wooden shield, and a "steel-bladed sword".  More importantly, there were 8 Gold Pieces and a Silver Crucifix.  He could take any two that he wanted.  Recovery of 1 LUCK and 1 SKILL was redundant.





SKILL:  14

STAMINA:  20 (initial 22)

LUCK:  17



Provisions:  10

Potion:  Fortune-2 doses, Invisibility-1 dose

Items:  32 Pieces of Gold, "Bronze-Coloured" #99 Key, "silky black glove", Cheese, Silver Crucifix (4 GP?)

Spells:  Dragonfire







HOLD IT!  CHOICE #54 was which item to take first:  the armor in Section 72, the shield in Section 132, the sword in Section 27, the 8 Gold Pieces in section 110, or the crucifix in Section 170.  Herman always listened to stories of Vampire Hunters, and wanted the holy protection before all else.  Besides, it it was made out of silver, it would also be good for killing werewolves.  But the narrator of the chronicle thought in materialistic terms:  "The crucifix is solid silver and worth 4 Gold Pieces".





CHOICE #55 was to either take another item in Section 221 (i.e. CHOICE #54), or move on in Section 81.  Herman picked up the 8 Gold Pieces, then found 2 more in the corpse's boots.  Was he the reincarnation of a Tamriel adventurer for grave-robbing to be this profitable? 







SKILL:  14

STAMINA:  20 (initial 22)

LUCK:  17



Provisions:  10

Potion:  Fortune-2 doses, Invisibility-1 dose

Items:  34 Pieces of Gold, "Bronze-Coloured" #99 Key, "silky black glove", Cheese, Silver Crucifix (4 GP?)

Spells:  Dragonfire







A startling noise in Section 81 caused Herman to dash out the northern door in the ZOMBIE room and advance to Section 205.





205  The room is very large.  At one end is an altar, and various coffins are strewn about the room.





Herman had two options in the "dark crypt":  check out the southern area of the room in Section 254, or decide that "the place gives you the creeps" and exit through the west door in Section 380.  Herman had experience fighting undead for treasure, and he had his lucky crucifix. . .





"The silence is deathly.  A slow drip startles you as you creep around the coffins.  The altar is ornately carved and studded with jewels.  Beautifully woven drapes hang from the walls although they are threadbare in places."





The chronicler gives so much detail to the interior decoration!  A ZOMBIE or WEREWOLF would never have such extravagant tastes, so the pale man coming out of the coffin can be. . .none other than a VAMPIRE!  Herman thought the only way to give that away more was to have classical music playing in the background.





CHOICE #57 had four options:  approach the monster in Section 352, draw a sword in Section 333, look for another item to attack with in the bag in Section 279, or flee through the west door in Section 380.  Herman wondered why monsters were never able to just follow him out of the room, but suspected it was a spell cast by the Warlock to ensure his minions couldn't escape.





Herman's suspicions were correct:  the enemy was a VAMPIRE!  Everyone in the Firetop Mountain region knew that swords "will do little real damage".  Only a wooden stake could kill it in CHOICE #58's Section 17, but none were found in the crypt.  It was possible to use the Crucifix's holiness to freeze the VAMPIRE in place and escape into Section 380, or drive it off with the sword.  Fighting the VAMPIRE without any adequate preparation would lead to Section 333.





Herman didn't bring any stakes to this wizard dungeon, so he brandished his Crucifix from the ZOMBIE room at the VAMPIRE and entered an intersection to the west in Section 37.  CHOICE #59 was North in Section 366, West in Section 11, or South in Section 277.





11 You are now watching various tools digging and hammering as if being handled by invisible workers.





Warlock lairs were just as inefficiently maintained as highways in stories about the fantasy land of Earth, or so Herman thought.  A sign at a staircase with only 3 steps built said "Under Construction".  Tools were lying on the ground until Herman drew near, then started floating in midair and carving new steps.  A "humming chant" sounded like "Heigh-ho, Heigh-ho, It's off to work we go. . ."  Herman "chuckled" at this Snow White joke that I had wasted in the Hijacked! playthrough in the other thread, and talked to the tools.  What they told each other is lost to history.





Herman could have restored 1 SKILL if needed, but the real benefit was the 2 STAMINA that healed the head trauma he sustained in the ZOMBIE room.  CHOICE #60 was to turn North as if Herman had done so in CHOICE #59, or South around the bend to Section 250.  That will wait for another part.




Current Stats


SKILL:  14

STAMINA:  22

LUCK:  17



Provisions:  10

Potion:  Fortune-2 doses, Invisibility-1 dose

Items:  34 Pieces of Gold, "Bronze-Coloured" #99 Key, "silky black glove", Cheese, Silver Crucifix (4 GP?)

Spells:  Dragonfire

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

Fighting Fantasy:  The Warlock of Firetop Mountain Part 10


CHOICE #60 after the singing tool staircase was not actually a CHOICE at all:  South led to a dead end, and Herman had to turn North in Section 366 anyway.  He walked until finding a turn to the East, which he could have followed in CHOICE #61's Section 62.  Instead, he investigated a "narrow opening in the north wall" in Section 89.


Herman climbed down 20 steps, only to be greeted with a chamber that "stinks of putrefying flesh".  Three corpses lay in the room, and CHOICE #62 was what to do with them:  check out the first in Section 294, the second in Section 275, the third in Section 148, or "tiptoe through the room" and leave in Section 107.


No details were mentioned about the rotting bodies in the chronicle, and Herman was suspicious that it was a trap.  He may not have been the kind of Thief who could use Lockpicking, but at least he trained his Stealth, and he thought "that was easy" upon leaving the room.  Too easy.  If it WERE a trap, why didn't it spring?  And Herman was greedy enough to imagine that the corpses had treasure.


CHOICE #63 was whether to turn back and search the third body in Section 148, or ignore the "putrefying flesh" room and advance in Section 197.  Checking out the body was a mistake.  "Maggots crawl from its nose and mouth.  You jump back startled when its eyes suddenly flick open!"  In section 230, the monster started to attack with its fingernails.


"The creature now standing before you is a semi-decayed man.  His quick eyes dart from side to side watching you.  His long tongue flashes out with a hissing noise.  His teeth and nails are sharp and he doesn't seem to be afraid of your weapon.  He is a GHOUL!"


GHOUL

SKILL 8
STAMINA 7


Round 1

Herman rolls 6+1+14=21
GHOUL rolls 5+6+8=19

Herman blocks the claw with his sword and counterattacks.  Enemy STAMINA=5


Round 2

Herman rolls 2+4+14=20
GHOUL rolls 1+2+8=11

The GHOUL stumbles as Herman thrusts his sword into its decaying body.  Enemy STAMINA=3


Round 3

Herman rolls 3+6+14=23
GHOUL rolls 4+3+8=15


Herman slashes the GHOUL's arm.  Enemy STAMINA=1


Round 4

Herman rolls 1+1+14=16
GHOUL rolls 3+5+8=16

Herman and the GHOUL flail wildly and both MISS!


Round 5

Herman rolls 5+2+14=21
GHOUL rolls 5+2+8=15


Herman hacks the GHOUL into pieces.



One property of the GHOUL mentioned in the historical records is its power to Paralyze its foes if it landed 4 attacks.  This further supports my hypothesis that life in the Fighting Fantasy world does not have vital organs like Earth animals, but instead a "life force" distributed evenly in the body.


(Most encounters are an automatic loss if the hero's HP is reduced to 0, but the GHOUL has a special scene for either Death or Paralysis in Section 64.)


Herman won two earrings worth a total of 2 Gold Pieces, 5 Gold Pieces from the first corpse in the room, and would have restored 2 LUCK if that were possible.  This was also an opportunity to eat Provisions if Herman was not at full STAMINA.  Herman could either go North in Section 120 in CHOICE #65, or trust in his LUCK too much and loot the second body in Section 393.


The 2nd corpse was not a GHOUL, and had more interesting treasure than merely money.  It still had 8 Gold Pieces, but also a "bottle of liquid" and "an old piece of parchment".  CHOICE #66 was to read the parchment in Section 212, or test the liquid in Section 369.


Did Herman "test" the unknown liquid by quaffing it?  Was the parchment a malefic spell that activated immediately upon reading?  Find out in the next chapter of the Warlock of Firetop Mountain chronicle.


Current Stats

SKILL:  14
STAMINA:  22
LUCK:  17

Provisions:  10
Potion:  Fortune-2 doses, Invisibility-1 dose
Items:  47 Pieces of Gold, "Bronze-Coloured" #99 Key, "silky black glove", Cheese, Silver Crucifix (4 GP?), two Earrings worth total of 2 GP, Parchment, Old Bottle
Spells:  Dragonfire


EDIT:  Why does Realms Beyond like to add unnecessary spaces between lines so often when you try to edit a post?

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

Fighting Fantasy:  The Warlock of Firetop Mountain Part 11


Herman struggled to read the parchment, but that wasn't because of the low literacy rate in Fighting Fantasy.  Most of the words were gone, and the only coherent part was the title of The Maze of Zagor.  Was this a map?  One room was labeled ". . .GER", and an eastern room was labeled "SM. . .P. . .LE". 


(If the North room is meant to hint DANGER, then Ultimate Ending:  The Tower of Never There ripped off a puzzle from Warlock of Firetop Mountain.)


CHOICE #67 was to "test the liquid" in Section 369, or walk North in Section 120.  Curiosity got the best of Herman, and. . .


"You swallow some of the liquid".


Were you really as stupid as I'd predicted, Herman?  You didn't think to pour a bit on the ground to at least find out whether it's sulfuric acid or something?


"The bottle contains HOLY WATER, blessed by the Overpriest of Kaynlesh Ma".


Herman didn't survive that by having higher LUCK than the average adventurer, since there was no dice roll mentioned in the chronicle.  At this point, he must have been blessed by Kaynlesh Ma to suffer no consequences from his behavior, not merely the Overpriest.  The HOLY WATER would have restored him to 2 STAMINA and 1 SKILL below Initial values, and 4 LUCK outright. . .had he suffered enough to be under those thresholds in the first place!


The HOLY WATER itself was alcoholic, as "You feel euphoric and a little drunk at the same time".  Perhaps Kaynlesh Ma was similar to Bacchus from Roman religion?


Herman walked north in Section 120, then continued in Section 197.  This was a point of no return:


"As you pause to get your bearings, you hear a creaking in the rock behind you.  You spin round in time to see a heavy portcullis drop to seal off the passageway behind you.  Your only way now is forward!"


CHOICE #69 was to either go straight ahead in Section 48, or check for secret passages near the closed portcullis in Section 295.


The chronicle is mysterious here regarding the threat after Herman failed to find secret passages:


"To find what sort of wandering monster you have come across, turn to 161.  You must fight the creature and, if you defeat it, you may press on down the passageway by turning to 48.  However, at section 161 you will not be told where to progress to, so write down '48' now so you will know where to go after 161".


Did the historian forget that readers could turn to previous pages, or did some law of magic in the Fighting Fantasy world make it impossible?


RPG worlds normally have random encounters, but the Firetop Mountain dungeon was usually static:  the Warlock must have preferred Order to Chaos.  Section 161 was his experiment with a random encounter, using the following table with a 1D6 roll:


1 GOBLIN

SKILL 5
STAMINA 3


2 ORC

SKILL 6
STAMINA 3


3 GREMLIN

SKILL 6
STAMINA 4


4 GIANT RAT

SKILL 5
STAMINA 4


5 SKELETON

SKILL 6
STAMINA 5


6 TROLL

SKILL 8
STAMINA 4


Herman stared down the GIANT RAT and drew his sword.


Round 1

Herman rolls 6+4+14=24
GIANT RAT rolls 6+3+5=14


Herman cuts off the GIANT RAT's tail.  Enemy STAMINA=2


Round 2

Herman rolls 6+4+14=24
GIANT RAT rolls 6+4+5=15


Herman exterminates the GIANT RAT.


Our hero gained nothing from this battle but another intersection in CHOICE #70:  East and then North in Section 391, or West in Section 60.  West was blocked by another portcullis, so Herman wandered back to Section 48 and then took the other path in CHOICE #71.


CHOICE #72 was another junction.  Was this the Maze of Zagor?  The options were an East passage in Section 52, to check for Northern secret passages in Section 362, or Southwest in Section 48 (i.e. CHOICE #71).  What happens next will be revealed in the next post.


Current Stats

SKILL:  14
STAMINA:  22
LUCK:  17

Provisions:  10
Potion:  Fortune-2 doses, Invisibility-1 dose
Items:  47 Pieces of Gold, "Bronze-Coloured" #99 Key, "silky black glove", Cheese, Silver Crucifix (4 GP?), two Earrings worth total of 2 GP, Parchment of Maze of Zagor
Spells:  Dragonfire


EDIT:  According to a Fighting Fantasy wiki, Kaynlesh-Ma is actually a city, not a god.  Not that the relevant section in the book tells you that, of course!

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

Fighting Fantasy:  The Warlock of Firetop Mountain Part 12


Herman remembered that the parchment said "SM. . .P. . .LE" for an East room in the Maze of Zagor.  This was probably the name of some exotic monster he hadn't heard of, but it was the only clue he had.  The labyrinth was suitable for a minotaur, as CHOICE #73 involved FIVE options!  South in Section 391, South secret passages in Section 362, North in Section 354, North secret passages in Section 234, and East in Section 291.


CHOICE #74 was to go to the East dead end in Section 315, return to the junction in Section 52 (CHOICE #73), or go North to a wooden door after a short passage in Section 227.  CHOICE #75 was to check for secret passages in the dead end in Section 306, or return to CHOICE #74's eastern junction in Section 291.


There were no secret passages at the dead end, but there was the CHOICE #70 and Section 161 random encounter list!  If Herman won, he was to return to CHOICE #74 and Section 291.  Once more, a GIANT RAT drew near.


GIANT RAT

SKILL 5
STAMINA 4


Round 1

Herman rolls 1+6+14=21
GIANT RAT rolls 1+4+5=10

Herman feels deja vu as he cuts off the GIANT RAT's tail.  Enemy STAMINA=2


Round 2

Herman rolls 2+2+14=18
GIANT RAT rolls 3+1+5=9

Herman avoids being bitten and skewers the GIANT RAT.


The only place left to check this far East was the wooden door, so Herman opened it in CHOICE #74.  Herman entered a room where four midgets were playing cards:


227 Sitting in the room around a wooden table are four tiny men, with weathered skin and long bushy beards.


They were about 1 meter tall, and were enjoying drinking and playing card games until Herman showed up.  One scolded him for not knocking before entering, not being used to nosy adventurers.  CHOICE #76 was to talk to them and try to be friendly in Section 131, apologize and leave in Section 291 and CHOICE #74, try to join the card game in Section 100, or attack the midgets' leader in Section 20.  (If the hero had already been here, the room would be empty in Section 291).


Herman had no quarrel with them, so he wanted to try diplomacy.  "They feel lonely in the dungeon with so much evil about and are happy to speak to visitors of a lawful disposition."


The midgets told Herman that he was in The Maze of Zagor, just like the parchment.  He said the correct way to go forward was to leave this room, then RIGHT, RIGHT, LEFT, KEEP GOING STRAIGHT. . ."and then they begin to get a bit vague".


CHOICE #73 must qualify as the first RIGHT.  I'd be facing West, so the second RIGHT would be North in CHOICE #73.  Left would then be West, and continuing West until something happens.


Herman returned to Section 291, went North in CHOICE #73, then encountered CHOICE #77:  West in Section 308, South in Section 52, West secret passages in Section 14, and South secret passages in Section 234.


Our protagonist knew that checking for secret passages was only bait for GIANT RATs, so he walked West until hitting CHOICE #78:  West in Section 187, North in Section 54, South in Section 160, or East in Section 354.


At the end of the West passage was CHOICE #79:  a North dead end in Section 171, or East around a bend in Section 308.  CHOICE #80 was to check out the wall in Section 337, or turn back to CHOICE #79 and Section 187.


"You find no secret passages, but as you press the walls, you hear a click.  You feel dizzy and slump to the ground.  When you come to, the surroundings seem strange.  Turn to 267".


Was this the "-GER" the map was talking about?  Had the midgets deceived Herman?  Perhaps it was a teleporter:  none of the Section numbers on the walls in CHOICE #81 were familiar to him.  North in Section 312, South in Section 246, West in Section 79, and East in Section 349.


Herman decided to try West.  This was a dead end:  CHOICE #82 was to check for passages in Section 137, or go back to the CHOICE #81 crossroads in Section 267.


The secret passage warped Herman to Section 354, which he realized was CHOICE #77.  The Warlock's obsession with labeling rooms even in his mazes would be his downfall.  For now, I'll take a break.


CURRENT LOCATION IN MAZE OF ZAGOR:  CHOICE #77, Section 354.



Current Stats

SKILL:  14
STAMINA:  22
LUCK:  17

Provisions:  10
Potion:  Fortune-2 doses, Invisibility-1 dose
Items:  47 Pieces of Gold, "Bronze-Coloured" #99 Key, "silky black glove", Cheese, Silver Crucifix (4 GP?), two Earrings worth total of 2 GP, Parchment of Maze of Zagor
Spells:  Dragonfire

[Herman Gigglethorpe]

Fighting Fantasy:  The Warlock of Firetop Mountain Part 13


Herman looked at the "Section 354" painted on the wall and knew where to walk in order to try again.  What fun would it have been for the Warlock if adventurers kept dying of starvation in the maze without any hints?  But Herman never seemed to require food or water.


In CHOICE #81 after taking the CHOICE #80 teleporter, Herman marched North past Section 312 through a passage that meandered North, West, and North to Section 308.  Too bad this was CHOICE #78!  Herman realized that the CHOICE #80 teleporter sent him South of that location.  Walking East in CHOICE #79 would have also led here.


Herman was going to have a word with those card-playing midgets who gave him directions.  If he was going to have to solve the maze by the brute force method, so be it.  By Fighting Fantasy law each dungeon was only allowed to have 400 Sections, and many of them had already been used up before the Portcullis of No Return.


In CHOICE #81, Herman tried South this time.  CHOICE #83 after a "west, then south, then west again" passageway covered in cobblestones had the option of North in Section 329, West in Section 180, and "back east" in Section 70.  None of these numbers had been established before, so it might have been new territory.


West was another dead end.  Was it also another teleporter?  CHOICE #84 was almost the same as CHOICE #83, except with the new option of checking out the dead end in Section 22.  This dead end activated a "small jet of gas" trap.  Herman collapsed in a melodramatic fashion:  "you flop to the floor in an unconscious heap".  He awoke in Section 4.


Neither the Warlock nor his minions harmed Herman at all after they had outwitted him.  Scrying these misadventures with his crystal ball was probably the only entertainment the Warlock had available.  CHOICE #85 was uncharted:  Section 46 to investigate the northeast passage, or Section 332 for the southeastern passage.


Herman sauntered North then East until reaching CHOICE #86:  return to CHOICE #85 via Section 4's bend, or open a door to the East in Section 206.  He encountered a "grey-haired old man sitting at a desk" writing with a quill pen in a room with thousands of books.  CHOICE #87 is whether he'd recognize Herman or not:  if he did, he'd go to Section 284, and if he was new, he'd visit Section 314. 


The old man was not pleased to see Herman there.  In CHOICE #88, he could either apologize and go West in Section 46, apologize and go South in Section 392, talk to him pleasantly in Section 220, or make demands in Section 191.


Herman didn't want this potential Warlock to fight immediately without time to prepare, so he feigned politeness.  Should he have tried the Civilization version of Montezuma's approach?


"He is enraged by your pleasantries.  He waves his hands in the air, mumbles a few strange syllables and then points at you.  You feel your head spinning and pass out.  You awake in a dead-end passage.  Turn to 171".


Herman behaved well for all these dungeon denizens, and what did he get?  Nothing but teleports and misdirection.  He was sent back to CHOICE #80, determined to behead the sorcerer responsible after retracing his steps.  Herman must have lost his nerve by the time he returned to the Mazemaster, and was intimidated by an "icy glare".


"You again?  You are disturbing my concentration.  Be off with you!"


CHOICE #89's only options were West in Section 46 (CHOICE #86), or South in Section 392.  Herman left through the South door and seemed to immediately forget about the Mazemaster in CHOICE #90, because one option was to reenter his room in Section 206.  Section 329 to the South was sometimes mentioned but still uncharted.


CHOICE #91 was another intersection, with a West door in Section 157, the North door to CHOICE #90's Section 392, East to Section 299, and South to Section 238.  Most options were unknown, so Herman tried West.  This was an error since CHOICE #92 was just another path to either Section 4 (CHOICE #85), or turn back to CHOICE #91's Section 392.


Trying East in CHOICE #91 seemed more worthwhile.  CHOICE #93's options were to look for secret passages and probably get a random encounter in Section 260, or go directly North in Section 359.  CHOICE #94 was yet another junction:  North in Section 190, South in Section 94, East in Section 121, and West in Section 385.


CHOICE #95 was to walk South in Section 114, West in Section 297, or check out a North dead end in Section 398.  Dead ends would probably just cause more Mazemaster teleports, so he tried West.


CHOICE #96 was West in Section 150, or East in Section 256.  Once again he walked West.  CHOICE #97 was North in Section 222, East in Section 297, and South in Section 133.  That will have to wait for a future update!


In my copy of the book, there's a small handwritten note between the pages for Sections 149-155.  The numbers are crossed out and seem to say "208, 180, 161, 177, 4, 267, 327, 60, 267, 190".  I have no idea whether the previous owner of The Warlock of Firetop Mountain completed the maze and beat the game.  The only other note by this person is "FROM:  GREAT GRANDMA XMAS 2002" written directly on the title page.


Current Stats

SKILL:  14
STAMINA:  22
LUCK:  17

Provisions:  10
Potion:  Fortune-2 doses, Invisibility-1 dose
Items:  47 Pieces of Gold, "Bronze-Coloured" #99 Key, "silky black glove", Cheese, Silver Crucifix (4 GP?), two Earrings worth total of 2 GP, Parchment of Maze of Zagor
Spells:  Dragonfire


CURRENT LOCATION:  CHOICE #96, Section 297