
Greetings, everybody. Hopefully everyone isn’t too bored with pirate content to check this ACE gamebook out. As with the previous ACE gamebook, this adventure presents the choice of playing as one of several characters. The details for that are listed later in this post. Anyone interested in joining this adventure is welcome. I will try to update this thread on a twice per day basis, although this frequency is not guaranteed due to my current workload, especially as we approach the Thanksgiving holidays.
Preface
NEVERLAND – Here Be Monsters! is a strange sort of a book. In fact, it is a portal to another world: a place lost in time and home to creatures long thought extinct; a place thought by many to exist only in legend; the mysterious island known as Neverland.
As well as the book itself, you will need two dice (or a standard pack of playing cards), a pencil and an eraser. Using these tools, and a simple set of game rules contained within the book, you will take on the role of the one of the protagonists of J. M. Barrie’s Peter Pan and Wendy in a thrilling re-imagining of this classic children’s literature.
YOU decide which route to take, which perils to risk, and which of Neverland’s strange, prehistoric denizens to fight. Play as shipwreck survivor Wendy Darling, automaton avenger Peter Pan, heroic hunter Tiger Lily, or plundering pirate Captain James Hook himself. But be warned – whether you succeed in your quest or meet a dire end will be down to the choices YOU make.
Will you manage to escape from Neverland?
“Second star to the right and straight on ‘til morning.”
Introduction
For the purposes of this thread, the NEVERLAND – Here Be Monsters! Adventure Sheet will be hand-made and periodically displayed.The book you hold in your hands is a gateway to another world, the mysterious island known as Neverland. Once inside its pages, you will find yourself washed up upon a distant shore by stranger tides, to embark upon a thrilling new adventure.
For this is no ordinary book. Rather than reading it from cover to cover, you will discover that at the end of each narrative section you will be presented with a series of choices that allow you to control the course of the story.
In NEVERLAND – Here Be Monsters! you will be transformed into one of the characters from J. M. Barrie’s classic children’s story Peter Pan and Wendy, taking on the role of either shipwreck survivor Wendy Darling, automaton avenger Peter Pan, heroic hunter Tiger Lily, or even the dastardly plundering pirate Captain James Hook. You decide which path to take, which risks to brave, and even which of the strange inhabitants of Neverland you will meet along the way to engage in battle.
Success is by no means certain and you may well fail to complete the adventure at your first attempt. However, with experience, skill, and maybe even a little luck, each new attempt should bring you closer to your ultimate goal.
In addition to the book itself, you will need two six-sided dice, or a conventional pack of 52 playing cards, a pencil, an eraser, and a copy of the NEVERLAND – Here Be Monsters! Adventure Sheet (spare copies of which can be downloaded from www. snowbooks.com).
Playing the Game
Two six-sided dice will be used to play though this adventure, unless a majority of posters requests otherwise.There are three ways to play through NEVERLAND – Here Be Monsters! The first is to use two conventional six-sided dice. The second is to use a conventional pack of 52 playing cards. The third is to ignore the rules altogether and just read the book, making choices as appropriate, but ignoring any combat or attribute tests, always assuming you win every battle and pass every skill test. (Even if you play the adventure this way, there is still no guarantee that you will complete it at your first attempt.)
If you are opting to play through NEVERLAND – Here Be Monsters! using the game rules, you first need to determine your strengths and weaknesses.
You have three attributes you will need to keep track of during the course of the adventure, using the Adventure Sheet. Some of these will change frequently, others less so, but it is important that you keep an accurate record of the current level for all of them.
Agility – This is a measure of how athletic and agile you are. If you need to leap across a chasm or dodge a deadly projectile, this is the attribute that will be employed.
Combat – This is a measure of how skilful you are at fighting, whether it be in hand-to-hand combat, or wielding a keen-edged blade in battle.
Endurance – This is a measure of how physically tough you are and how much strength you have left. This attribute will vary more than any other during the course of your adventure.
Unlike some adventure gamebooks, in NEVERLAND – Here Be Monsters! your strengths and weaknesses are not determined randomly. Instead, they depend upon which role you choose to take on to play through the story.
In addition to your three basic attributes, you also have certain special abilities that you can employ at critical moments during your journey through Neverland. These vary depending on which character you decide to play in the book but they are described here together for the sake of convenience.
Beast Lore – You understand the habits and behaviours of the ancient beasts that dwell within Neverland, either having studied palaeontology or through first-hand experience.
Earth Lore – You are aware of the tectonic forces that work deep beneath the Earth’s crust, threatening to tear the very ground apart, and that cause volcanoes to erupt.
Flight – You are able to defy gravity and fly as free as a pterosaur.
Hieroglyphs – You are able to decipher and interpret the meaning hidden within the hieroglyphic script carved into the age-worn ruins found throughout Neverland.
Plant Lore – You are extremely knowledgeable about all manner of plants, knowing which can heal and which will harm, either thanks to having lived close to nature your whole life, or because you have made a specialist study of the science of botany.
Sea Lore – You are aware of the movements of tides and ocean currents, as well as the warning signs that indicate a storm is brewing, and how these might affect a vessel at sea.
Strength of Will – So driven are you to accomplish your aims you are a veritable force of nature, able to subdue weaker minds and lesser creatures by exerting the full force of your indomitable will.
The Pen is Mightier – You are not native to Neverland, and, on occasion, to avoid coming to blows with an enemy, you may alter the narrative of the encounter, enabling yourself to escape unscathed.
Tracking – You are able to read the tracks left by animals and people as they move about the island, from footprints left in mud to broken twigs and disturbed grazing sites.
Wish Upon a Star – You are not native to Neverland, and so if you find yourself in a tight spot you can change the nature of the world around you.
When you are told to select a certain special ability, simply put a tick next to it (or circle the relevant number) on the Special Abilities table on your Adventure Sheet.
These very special abilities can only be used three times each during the course of the adventure, except for Flight, which can be used ten times. Each time you specifically call upon one of them, you must cross off a box on your Adventure Sheet next to the appropriate special ability.
Your Character
There is also additional content in the form of an exclusive character that was designed to be available to some of the backers of the Kickstarter campaign that funded the project. Said character is Deinosuchus, King of Crocodiles, and this character will also be made an available option in addition to the four main choices.On the following four pages you will find each of the four playable characters in NEVERLAND – Here Be Monsters! described in turn, along with their strengths and weaknesses. Read through these carefully before picking which character you want to play during the course of the adventure, as each one will affect the course of the narrative in quite different ways.
Wendy Darling
Shipwreck Survivor, The Girl Who Lived
Eldest child of George and Mary Darling, Wendy was eighteen years old when she and the rest of her family – including her younger brothers John and Michael, and their pet dog Nana – boarded the RMS Titanic at Southampton on 10th April 1912, for the passenger liner’s maiden voyage.
She is well-educated, well-mannered, and resourceful. While at finishing school in Switzerland, as well as learning the formal rules of etiquette and improving her French, she also learnt how to fence.
Whenever you see a shipwreck icon beneath a section number, rather than read that section, subtract 10 from the number, turn to this new section immediately, and read that one instead.
AGILITY 9
COMBAT 8
ENDURANCE 18
Special Abilities – Wendy has the special abilities The Pen is Mightier and Wish Upon a Star. However, she may also choose an additional two from Beast Lore, Earth Lore and Plant Lore, giving her four special abilities in total.
Equipment – None.
Companion – Wendy is accompanied by her faithful Newfoundland Nana. If Wendy ever engages in battle, the dog will assist her. As long as Nana is with her, Wendy may reduce the Combat Rating of any opponent by 2 points, and if Wendy wins a Combat Round, roll one die (or pick a card); if the number rolled is even (or the card is black), she may double the damage she causes her opponent. However, please note that if Wendy becomes separated from Nana, these modifiers may no longer be applied.
Peter Pan
Automaton Avenger, The Boy Who Never Grew Up
Peter remembers little of his life before arriving on the mysterious island his father referred to as ‘Terra Numquam’, and that some call Neverland. What he does recall is that his father was a highly intelligent man, a Scottish-born explorer and inventor, and while it was because he was the former that they became stranded on the island in the first place, it was because he was the latter that Peter is still alive today.
During one of his father’s expeditions, their yacht became caught in a terrible storm, the like of which they had never seen, whilst making the crossing from Bermuda to the Turks and Caicos Islands. Their boat sank, and Peter and his father almost drowned. But as luck would have it they were washed up on the shores of a mysterious island. They gathered up what possessions of theirs were washed up as flotsam, and plundered the wreck of a Spanish Galleon to build themselves a treehouse, after they realised they were trapped on the island, and the nature of the animals that dwelt there.
It was one of the primeval monsters that almost killed Peter when it attacked him in the jungle, not far from the treehouse. He was found by an islander and taken to their stronghold, where a medicine woman treated his wounds and stopped the bleeding. However, he had been terribly maimed, and was not expected to see out the week, and so his father was summoned.
The ingenious inventor set to work immediately, rebuilding his son’s body with materials salvaged from their yacht – providing him with artificial organs, and replacing several bones with metal rods – so that, underneath his skin at least, he is now as much machine as he is living flesh. Since he is effectively a cyborg, Peter no longer ages, and will remain a youth until his artificial heart finally gives out, although whether that will be in ten years’ time or a hundred, he has no idea.
But Peter’s father was old, and all that had befallen him took its toll. Before he died, Peter’s father gave him two final gifts – a jetpack and a device for detecting holes in time – and a duty, to protect the people of the Accala tribe who had helped save his life.
Whenever you see a clock icon beneath a section number, rather than read that section, subtract 20 from the number, turn to this new section immediately, and read that one instead.
AGILITY 10
COMBAT 9
ENDURANCE 24
Special Abilities – Flight, The Pen is Mightier, Tracking.
Equipment – Jetpack, Short Sword, Chrono-Detector, Shardstone Amulet.
Companion – Peter is accompanied by his tiny clockwork guardian Tinker Bell. If Peter ever engages in battle, the tiny automaton will assist him. As long as Tinker Bell is with him, Peter may reduce the Combat Rating of any opponent by 2 points, and if Peter wins a Combat Round, roll one die (or pick a card); if the number rolled is even (or the card is black), he may double the damage he causes his opponent. However, please note that if Peter becomes separated from Tinker Bell, these modifiers may no longer be applied.
Tiger Lily
Heroic Hunter, Saviour of the Accala
Daughter of Chief Great Panther of the Accala, and therefore technically a princess, Tiger Lily nonetheless dreams of being inducted into the elite warrior brotherhood of the tribe. She is already well on her way, having raised her Sabretooth steed Fang from when he was a cub, after his mother was killed while protecting him from one of the terrible lizards that dwell on the island. She is adept at using not only her flint-headed tomahawk axe but also a spear, whilst hunting with Fang.
Tiger Lily models herself on the great Warrior Queen Lai Tai’Glaa, the legendary ruler of the Accala who supposedly first brought her people to the promontory the tribe now calls home.
Whenever you see a sabretooth icon beneath a section number, rather than read that section, add 10 to the number, turn to this new section immediately, and read that one instead.
AGILITY 10
COMBAT 11
ENDURANCE 20
Special Abilities – Tiger Lily has the special abilities Strength of Will and Tracking. However, she may also choose an additional two from Beast Lore, Earth Lore, Hieroglyphs and Plant Lore, giving her four special abilities in total.
Equipment – Spear, Tomahawk, Shardstone Amulet, 3 Meals.
Companion – Tiger Lily is accompanied by her trained sabretooth tiger Fang. Fang is a deadly hunter in his own right, and thanks to him, Tiger Lily is able to take down large prey, such as Mammoths or even the terrible lizards, with which the Accala share the island.
Record Fang’s stats, as outlined below, in the Steed section of your Adventure Sheet.
SABRETOOTH TIGER AGILITY 10 COMBAT 10 ENDURANCE 24
Captain James Hook
Plundering Pirate, Master of the Jolly Roger
Educated at both Eton and Balliol College, Oxford, and having served as bo’sun to the infamous Blackbeard the pirate, Captain James Hook is now master of the Jolly Roger, and the Scourge of the Seven Seas. A bon vivant, an epicure, and a dandy, he enjoys the finer things in life. However, there is also a ruthless streak in him a nautical mile wide, and he maintains discipline on board ship with an iron will and an iron fist to match, not being averse to making men walk the plank if they displease him. Indeed, it is said that he is the only man of whom Barbecue was afraid.
Whenever you see a hook icon beneath a section number, rather than read that section, add 20 to the number, turn to this new section immediately, and read that one instead.
AGILITY 9
COMBAT 10
ENDURANCE 22
Special Abilities – Sea lore, Strength of Will, Wish Upon a Star.
Equipment – Rapier, Spyglass, 6 Pistols (worn on a bandolier strapped across Hook’s chest).
Companion – Captain Hook is accompanied by his crew, aboard the Jolly Roger, but his most trusted lieutenant is his conniving bo’sun Smee, a stunted dwarf of an Irishman, who never goes anywhere without his cutlass, which he calls ‘Johnny Corkscrew’.
Mutiny – If Captain Hook does anything to antagonise his crew, he runs the risk of them mutinying. Hook’s Mutiny score starts at zero, but may well change during the course of the adventure. Please note that it may never drop below zero.
Once you have decided which character you want to play as, write their name in the Character box on the Adventure Sheet, along with the icon you need to look out for, and the section offset you need to apply when you see it. Then record the value of each attribute in the appropriate box on the Adventure Sheet in pencil, and make sure you have an eraser to hand, as they will doubtless all change at some point as you work through the adventure (and some more than others).
Although there are limits on how high each of your attributes can be at the start of the adventure, there is no limit as to how high your Agility and Combat scores can be raised during the course of the adventure, dependent upon bonus points you may be awarded. Your Endurance score may also go higher than its starting level, but it may not exceed 30 points. However, should your Endurance score ever drop to zero, or below, then your adventure is over and you should stop reading immediately; if you want to tackle the adventure again, you will have to re-start it from the beginning, either playing as the same character or as a different one – it’s up to you!
If you acquire a bow and quiver of arrows, or a flintlock pistol, during the course of your adventure – you may even start with one! – you may use them when instructed by the text, but also during some combats. They both behave in the same way.
If you find yourself in battle, and you have the initiative in the opening Combat Round, you may choose to shoot an arrow or fire a pistol before engaging in hand-to-hand combat. Take a Combat test and if you pass the test, you cause your opponent 3 Endurance points of damage; if you fail the test you have simply wasted your shot.
If you hit your opponent you may take a second shot, but no more after this. Whether you hit your opponent or not, remember to cross off one arrow, or one pistol, from your Adventure Sheet and then conduct the battle as normal.
When you acquire a bow and quiver of arrows, or a bandolier of pistols, you will be told how many you have and therefore you will know how many shots you can make using them.
Please note that flintlock pistols and bows and arrows cannot be used underwater!
Testing Your Attributes
At various times during the adventure, you will be asked to test one or other of your attributes.
If it is your Agility or Combat that is being tested, simply roll two dice. If the total rolled is equal to or less than the particular attribute being tested, you have passed the test; if the total rolled is greater than the attribute in question, then you have failed the test.
If it is your Endurance score that is being tested, roll four dice in total. If the combined score of all four dice is equal to or less than your Endurance score, then you have passed the test, but if it is greater, then what is being asked of you is beyond your capabilities and you have failed the test.
If you are playing as Captain Hook and are asked to test your Mutiny score, roll one die. If the total rolled is equal to or greater than your Mutiny score, you have passed the test; if the total rolled is less than your Mutiny score, then you have failed the test.
There are various ways that you can restore lost attribute points, or be granted bonuses that take your attributes beyond their starting scores, and these will be described in the text.
However, an easy way to restore lost Endurance points is to find sustenance. Sometimes you may find enough sustenance that you can take some with you to consume later on in the adventure.
Make sure that if you do find any supplies of this nature you record them on your Adventure Sheet, along with any information about exactly how many attribute points they will restore when consumed. (Unless you are told otherwise by the text, one Meal will restore 4 Endurance points.)
No matter which character you choose to play through the book with, you will be joined by a companion. However, for one reason or another, your companion may not always be with you during the course of your adventure.
To help keep track of whether your companion is with you or not, there is a Companion box on your Adventure Sheet. If your companion is currently with you, simply tick or circle the ‘Yes’ box. If they are not with you for some reason, rub out the mark in the ‘Yes’ box and tick or circle the ‘No’ box, until you are reunited – if you are reunited!
During the course of your adventure you may acquire a steed. You may even start with one. If you do acquire a steed, make sure that you record its attributes in the Steed section of your Adventure Sheet.
In time you will learn the advantages, and disadvantages, of having a mount. Combat with steeds is covered in the next section.
Combat
You will repeatedly be called upon to defend yourself against the denizens of Neverland. Sometimes you may even choose to attack these monsters yourself. After all, as they say, the best form of defence is attack.
When this happens, start by filling in your opponent’s Combat and Endurance scores in the first available Neverland Encounter Box on your Adventure Sheet.
Whenever you engage in combat, you will be told in the text whether you or your enemy has the initiative; in other words, who has the advantage and gets to attack first.
1. Roll two dice and add your Combat score. The resulting total is your Combat Rating.
2. Roll two dice and add your opponent’s Combat Score. The resulting total is your opponent’s Combat Rating.
3. For each Combat Round, add a temporary 1 point bonus to the Combat Rating of whichever of the combatants has the initiative for the duration of that round.
4. If your Combat Rating is higher than your opponent’s you have wounded your enemy; deduct 2 points from your opponent’s Endurance score, and move on to step 7.
5. If your opponent’s Combat Rating is higher, then you have been wounded; deduct 2 points from your Endurance score, and move on to step 8.
6. If your Combat Rating and your opponent’s Combat Rating are the same, roll one die. If the number rolled is odd, you and your opponent deflect each other’s attacks; go to step 10. If the number rolled is even, go to step 9.
7. If your opponent’s Endurance score has been reduced to zero or below, you have won; the battle is over and you can continue on your way through Neverland. If your opponent is not yet dead, go to step 10.
8. If your Endurance score has been reduced to zero or below, your opponent has won the battle. If you want to continue your adventure you will have to start again from the beginning, maybe changing the character you want to play as. However, if you are still alive, go to step 10.
9. You and your opponent have both managed to injure each other; deduct 1 point from both your Endurance score and your opponent’s Endurance score. If your Endurance score has been reduced to zero or below, your adventure is over; if you want to play again you will have to start again from the beginning. If you are still alive but your enemy’s Endurance has been reduced to zero or below, you have won; the battle is over and you can continue on your way through Neverland. If neither you nor your opponent are dead, go to step 10.
10. If you won the Combat Round, you will have the initiative in the next Combat Round. If your opponent won the Combat Round, they will have the initiative. If neither of you won the Combat Round, neither of you will gain the initiative bonus for the next Combat Round. Go back to step 1 and work through the sequence again until either your opponent is dead, or you are defeated.
Occasionally you may find yourself having to fight more than one opponent at once. Such battles are conducted in the same way as above, using the ten step process, except that you will have to work out the Combat Ratings of all those involved. As long as you have a higher rating than an opponent you will injure them, no matter how many opponents you are taking on at the same time. However, equally, any opponent with a Combat Rating higher than yours will be able to injure you too.
If you are attacked by one of the gigantic beasts or terrible lizards that dwell within Neverland, and you are riding a Steed, you may engage in battle. As with battles you fight yourself, start by filling in the monster’s Combat and Endurance scores in the first available Neverland Encounter Box on your Adventure Sheet. You will be told in the text whether you and your Steed, or the monster, has the initiative.
1. Roll two dice and add your Steed’s Combat score. The resulting total is your Steed’s Combat Rating.
2. Roll two dice and add its opponent’s Combat score. The resulting total is the monster’s Combat Rating.
3. For each Combat Round, add a temporary 1 point bonus to the Combat Rating of whichever of the combatants has the initiative for the duration of that round.
4. If your Steed’s Combat Rating is higher than its opponent’s, your Steed has wounded the monster; deduct 4 points from the monster’s Endurance score, and move on to step 7.
5. If the monster’s Combat Rating is higher, then your Steed has been wounded; deduct 4 points from your Steed’s Endurance score, and move on to step 8.
6. If your Steed’s Combat Rating and its opponent’s Combat Rating are the same, roll one die. If the number rolled is odd, the animals deflect each other’s attacks; go to step 12. If the number rolled is even, go to step 11.
7. If the monster’s Endurance score has been reduced to zero or below, your Steed has won the fight; the battle is over and you can continue on your way through Neverland. If the monster is not yet dead, go to step 9.
8. If your Steed’s Endurance score has been reduced to zero or below, the monster has won the battle and will quickly finish you off too. If you want to continue your adventure you will have to start again from the beginning, maybe changing the character you play as. However, if your Steed is still alive, go to step 10.
9. Roll two dice and add your Combat score to calculate your Combat Rating. If it is higher than the monster’s Combat Rating, you also injure the beast; deduct an additional 2 points from its Endurance score. If you have killed it, you can continue on your way, but if the monster is still alive, go to step 12.
10. Roll two dice and add your Combat score to calculate your Combat Rating. If it is lower than the monster’s Combat Rating, the creature has also injured you; deduct 2 points from your Endurance score, and if you are still alive, go to step 12.
11. Your Steed and its opponent have both injured each other; deduct 2 points from your Steed’s Endurance score and the monster’s Endurance score. If your Steed’s Endurance score has been reduced to zero or below, the monster has won the battle and will soon finish you off too; if you want to play again you will have to start from the beginning. If your Steed is still alive but the monster’s Endurance has been reduced to zero or below, the battle is over and you can continue on your way through Neverland. If neither your Steed nor its opponent are dead, go to step 12.
12. If your Steed won the Combat Round, it will have the initiative in the next Combat Round. If its opponent won the Combat Round, the monster will have the initiative. If neither won the Combat Round, neither will gain the initiative bonus for the next Combat Round. Go back to step 1 and work through the sequence again until either the monster is dead, or your Steed is defeated.
An Alternative to Dice
Rather than rolling dice, you may prefer to determine random numbers during the game using a pack of playing cards.
To do this, when you are called upon to roll dice, simply shuffle a standard 52-card deck (having removed the jokers) and draw a single card. (If you are asked to roll four dice, draw two cards.) Number cards are worth the number shown on the card. Jacks, Queens and Kings are all worth 11, and if you draw an Ace, it counts as being worth 12 (for example, if you are engaged in Combat), and is an automatic pass if you are testing an attribute – any attribute.
After drawing from the deck you can either return any cards you have drawn or, using the Pontoon method, leave those drawn cards out of the deck. Both styles of play will influence how lucky, or unlucky, you may be during the game, when it comes to determining random numbers.
Equipment
You may start your adventure with nothing, or armed to the teeth, but during the course of your quest you will no doubt find all manner of curious items that you will want to pick up and take with you, just in case they prove to be of use later on.
Anything that you do collect should be recorded on your Adventure Sheet, including any clues or passwords, as well as weapons, provisions, and other miscellaneous unusual objects.
Hints on Play
There is more than one path that you can follow through Neverland to reach your ultimate goal, but it may take you several attempts to actually complete the adventure. Make notes and draw a map as you explore. This map will doubtless prove invaluable during future attempts at completing the quest, and will allow you to progress more speedily in order to reach unexplored parts of the island.
Keep a careful eye on all of your attributes throughout the game. Beware of traps and setting off on wild goose chases. However, it would be wise to collect useful items along the way that may aid you further on in your quest.
Ending the Game
There are several ways that your adventure can end. If your Endurance score ever drops to zero or below, your trials in Neverland have exhausted and overcome you. If this happens, stop reading at once.
There may also be occasions where you are prevented from progressing any further through the adventure thanks to the choices you have made, or if you meet a sudden and untimely end. In all of these cases, if you want to have another crack at completing the adventure you will have to start again with a new Adventure Sheet and begin the story afresh from the beginning.
There is of course one other reason for your adventure coming to an end, and that is if you successfully complete your quest, the very same quest that awaits you now…
Here Be Monsters!
Second to the right and straight on ‘til morning, it is time to begin your adventure…
If you are playing as Peter Pan, turn to 150.
If you are playing as Tiger Lily, turn to 300.
If you are playing as Captain James Hook, turn to 450.
If you wish to play as Deinosuchus instead of the above four characters, then we would turn to section 65.
Please keep all spoilers covered out of respect to those who want a blind experience. I will use personal instinct to break any ties.
Please vote for the following:
Which of the five characters should we play as? In the case of Wendy and Tiger Lily, which additional Special Abilities should be selected?
Should we follow the gamebook’s rules? If so, should we use dice or a pack of playing cards (specify whether you want to return or leave out any drawn cards if you vote to use playing cards)?
Please make your decisions before 9:00 AM PST to guarantee that they will be counted.













