[Let's Play] Fighting Fantasy 32 - Slaves of the Abyss

[Beroli]

Going left will mean we've gone left at nearly every opportunity and right never...which sounds wise if what we're trying to avoid most is getting lost in the middle of the swamp.

[SGamerz]

You forge ahead further into the heart of the forest. The trees seem to close in on you, crowding out the sunlight. The forest floor is now carpeted with rotting leaves, and you find yourself making moderate progress on this springy turf. The atmosphere is close and humid, and you begin to wheeze with the effort. Walking in this weather is exhausting. Lose 1 point of STAMINA as the hours of trudging pass. Finally, you come upon a fork. If you take the right-hand path, turn to 366. If you take the left-hand path, turn to 273.

"Hours of trudging" doesn't seem to cost us any time unit, although it did cost us STAMINA.

Do we persist on not going the right way?

Adventure Sheet:
[spoiler]Name: Dastan
SKILL 12/12
STAMINA 12/17
LUCK 9/10
Equipment: Sword of Fangthane steel, leather armour, Sige's Pomander, 'Ghulsh' potion (turn to 258 when drunk), 'Arahl' potion (turn to 285 when drunk), 'Zazzaz' potion (turn to 369 when drunk), Blow-pipe, Foxgloves
Provisions: 5
Gold & Treasure: 22 GP
Time remaining: 13/20 (turn to 57 when crossing off 18th time unit, and to 326 when crossing off the last time unit)
Notes: Paths taken in shifting forest: '3'-'2'-'1'.
[/spoiler]

[Queen of Swords]

Let's try right this time.

[JourneymanN00b]

Okay, I guess we can take the right-hand path this time. Let's see if going fascist will do Dastan any good. If not, then that is why my signagure says "Say No To Fascism. The left is the one true way to go."

And I also vote to eat a Provision to regain 4 Stamina.

[SGamerz]

You are beginning to lose all hope of ever finding your way out of this shifting maze of pathways when the trees ahead thin out and the trail leads into a large clearing. Add 1 LUCK point and tick off a time box. Before you is one of the strangest dwelling-placed you have ever seen: a crude mud hut sitting proudly on four spindly legs, twenty feet off the ground. There are windows in its walls, but they are too high up for you to see inside. There is no sign of a door, even though you walk all the way round the hut. If you walk under the hut, turn to 254. If you try to climb its legs, turn to 202. If you wait to see what happens, turn to 145.

LUCK is back to full.

How do we approach Baba Yaga's residence the hut?

Adventure Sheet:
[spoiler]Name: Dastan
SKILL 12/12
STAMINA 12/17
LUCK 10/10
Equipment: Sword of Fangthane steel, leather armour, Sige's Pomander, 'Ghulsh' potion (turn to 258 when drunk), 'Arahl' potion (turn to 285 when drunk), 'Zazzaz' potion (turn to 369 when drunk), Blow-pipe, Foxgloves
Provisions: 5
Gold & Treasure: 22 GP
Time remaining: 12/20 (turn to 57 when crossing off 18th time unit, and to 326 when crossing off the last time unit)
Notes: Paths taken in shifting forest: '3'-'2'-'1'.
[/spoiler]

[Thaluikhain]

Insurance ads in Australia seem to think that Baba Yaga's hut should be pursued in a car for some reason, but this time I think we might wait for a bit.

[Beroli]

Wait to see what happens.

[Queen of Swords]

Walk under the hut.

[Beroli]

Actually, remembering a little more (or a little less, we shall see), I'm changing my vote to walk under the hut too.

[JourneymanN00b]

I vote to walk under the hut, as there might be something that we can use to enter the house there.

[SGamerz]

As you step between the narrow legs, you notice an opening in the floor of the hut above you. You are just wondering how on earth you are going to make it up there when the hut begins to lower, the spindly legs bending. You position yourself directly under the opening as the hut descends towards you.

Inside the hut there is none of the clutter you have come to expect from the dwelling-places of magical folk. There is no furniture of any kind, no books or scrolls, not even a single vial of potion! Through the windows set in the smooth walls you can look out into the forest. Squatting in the middle of the floor is an old woman dressed in rough shift. Her hands are raised above her head, and between them you see a shimmering vision, floating in the air, in a swirling void hangs a wall of cells, full of dishevelled prisoners. She looks you in the eyes and speaks: "A vision from your future, perhaps? Look closely. Look hard at the slaves of the abyss! Their souls are in thrall to its Master, and you must rescue them before it is too late. This much I will tell you. If you wish for more you must pay for it. Can you speak my name?" Do you say:

"Enthymesis"?
"Aletheia"?
"Albudur"?
"I cannot"?

[Beroli]

"He had told her that he had to undertake a dangerous journey to seek guidance from Aletheia the Sage who dwells in a shifting forest in the mountains to the north."

You are Aletheia.

[JourneymanN00b]

I vote to say "Aletheia" because of the above quote.

[SGamerz]

The vision disappears. The woman claps her hands and smile. "You are bright, for all your ragged looks. It seems destiny has guided you this far, so I must play my part in its design. Many trials lie before you, and your enemy is not easily vanquished. But Bythos has fears, and you may be his nemesis. Enthymesis has gone on ahead of you, and his aid will be invaluable." If you have Sige's pomander, turn to 295. If you do not, turn to 114.

"That heady mash of herbs you carry does more than you may think," says the woman. "You will know of its sleep-stealing properties, I warrant. But its powers on this plane are as nothing compared to those it holds in the Abyss. Eaten in that mystic region it will protect you from the Master's crystal breath. Eaten here, it will turn your stomach - that is all! You are very lucky to have such a gift; the Paa, Maet and Teth herbs are extremely rare." As she speaks, you feel a soft weight upon your shoulders. You turn your head to find yourself staring into the eyes of a serpent. You shudder and automatically grab for it. But it is too fast for you. In an instant its thick coils are wrapped around your neck. "Meet Caduceus," says the woman. Make a note of the names of the herbs in order on your Adventure Sheet and turn to 307.

"The best companion of all is he. Loyal, yet independent!" she says. You smile uncomfortably, praying that Caduceus will soon find something else to wrap himself around. Aletheia continues: "The plague which is upon this land is spread not by rats." She raises her arms above her head once more and conjures another vision. It is a swirling cloud of huge black hornets. The vision disappears, and she speaks again. "These parasites can steal a mean's spirit with their stings, banishing it to the Abyss and leaving his body a slave to evil. And what warrior can fight off foes so tiny?" She pauses, as if deep in thought, then begins to create another vision. "There is one way they can be defeated. The untainted leaf of the Jheera tree may be burnt to produce a fragrant smoke that is fatal to these soul-stealers. A young Jheera grown in the forest." But as the vision forms, her face drops and she lets out a gasps of surprise. A pile of loose soil marks the spot where a tree has been uprooted...

Aletheia is despondent, but you remember the Troll you saw carrying a sapling by the banks of the river. Quickly, you describe the tree to her, and she confirms that it is indeed the Jheera. "You must go at once and rescue the leaves," she says. "I control the paths of the shifting forest - follow the trail and you will reach the river. When you have the leaves, the path will lead you safely back to the glade where you left your horse. Be sure you never return to this place - I will not be so welcoming a second time!" You hurry from the hut and long the only path leading out of the clearing. Minutes later, you reach the river at the spot where you saw the Troll. You find his clumsy footprint in the soft mud and follow them into the forest. A little way in, you come upon him crouching by a large hole in the ground, vainly trying to poke the sapling into it. If you shot a crossbow bolt at the Troll when you saw him earlier, turn to 269. If not, turn to 122.

Aletheia never got around to telling us who or what this Bythos is and what else he can do besides breathe crystal, but I guess the urgency of rescuing the sapling distracted her from it...

The Troll looks round cautiously as you approach, waiting for you to act. He doesn't seem hostile; he is more concerned with rooting out whatever he has trapped in the hole. He hasn't had much success yet, probably because his tiny brain hasn't thought of stripping the branches from the sapling, so it keeps catching on the edges of the hole. If you attack him, turn to 6. If you suggest he strips the leaves off his tree, turn to 345.

Adventure Sheet:
[spoiler]Name: Dastan
SKILL 12/12
STAMINA 12/17
LUCK 10/10
Equipment: Sword of Fangthane steel, leather armour, Sige's Pomander, 'Ghulsh' potion (turn to 258 when drunk), 'Arahl' potion (turn to 285 when drunk), 'Zazzaz' potion (turn to 369 when drunk), Blow-pipe, Foxgloves
Provisions: 5
Gold & Treasure: 22 GP
Time remaining: 12/20 (turn to 57 when crossing off 18th time unit, and to 326 when crossing off the last time unit)
Notes: Paths taken in shifting forest: '3'-'2'-'1'. Sige's pomander contains the herbs Paa, Maet and Teth.
[/spoiler]

[Beroli]

Suggest he strips the leaves off the tree.

[Thaluikhain]

Suggest he removes leaves.

[JourneymanN00b]

I vote to suggest that he strips the leaves off his tree.

[Queen of Swords]

Yes, let's try that suggestion.

[SGamerz]

The Troll looks first at you, then at the sapling, then at you again. His brow creases effort as he ponders your suggestion suspiciously. Finally he grunts, and begins to rip the branches from the sapling, flinging them all around. You race round after them, plucking the leaves and stuffing them in your backpack. The Troll, meanwhile, uses his much-improved tool to lever a small, spiny creature out of the hole. He snatches his prey up greedily and rams it whole into his drooling mouth. A moment later, he lets out a gurgling howl of pain. Tearing at his throat maniacally, he leaps up and down. Then he catches sight of you again. "You trick me!" he croaks, and leaps to the attack.

TROLL SKILL 7 STAMINA 9

If you wish, you may Escape after one Attack Round - turn to 248. If you defeat the Troll, turn to 60.

COMBAT LOG:
Troll 12, Dastan 20. Troll is at 7.
Troll 17, Dastan 19. Troll is at 5.
Troll 11, Dastan 21. Troll is at 3.
Troll 11, Dastan 23. Troll is at 1.
Troll 14, Dastan 22. Troll is killed.

You have solved the Troll's indigestion problem quite effectively - he lies dead at your feet. Giving him no further thought, you make your way back to the trail which runs along the river bank.

Nothing solves a digestive issue like a sword in the gut.

The path follows the river downstream for some way before turning into the trees. Very soon you are back at the glade with the mighty oak, and pleased to see your horse still safely tethered, munching contentedly at the grass. You mount up and spur her along the path and out of the forest, glad to be away from the trees and their treacherous pathways. After several minutes, you look back and are astonished to see a sparkling blue lake where the forest should be. Far off, in its midst, a tiny hut rises above the waters, supported by its familiar spindly legs. Aletheia has many ways of discouraging unwelcome visitors to her realm, it seems. Now you have a weapon, it is time to confront the vast horde...alone.

You turn your horse back towards the huge black army. Tick off a time box. A brief ride brings you within sight of it, and you watch helplessly as it engulfs a small town in the valley below. Amid the multitude, a palanquin is borne aloft by willing hands, and above it hangs a pulsing black cloud. If you follow the army at a distance, turn to 70. If you ride down to the palanquin, turn to 368. If you have Jheera leaves and wish to prepare it now, turn to 11.

One thing about this book that requires more careful reading of the text compared to most FF gamebooks is that very often, the text does not specifically tell you to add items to your Adventure Sheet, so it's possible to sometimes miss that you've picked up something. A lot of FF gamebooks also make a point of capitalizing the initials of the item to make it clear that it is something you can pick up, but Mason/Williams generally don't do that in their books. I think there may even have been a few somewhat confusing item checks in Blackvein Prophecy because item names were not standardized, and the name of the item used for the check doesn't quite match the same as the description given in the text when it was picked up or wasn't specific enough for the reader to tell if it was the right item.

Fortunately, in this case, 'Jheera leaves' are quite specific as names go, and we definitely just picked it up not long ago.

Do we want to prepare the torch now?

Adventure Sheet:
[spoiler]Name: Dastan
SKILL 12/12
STAMINA 12/17
LUCK 10/10
Equipment: Sword of Fangthane steel, leather armour, Sige's Pomander, 'Ghulsh' potion (turn to 258 when drunk), 'Arahl' potion (turn to 285 when drunk), 'Zazzaz' potion (turn to 369 when drunk), Blow-pipe, Foxgloves, Jheera leaves
Provisions: 5
Gold & Treasure: 22 GP
Time remaining: 11/20 (turn to 57 when crossing off 18th time unit, and to 326 when crossing off the last time unit)
Notes: Paths taken in shifting forest: '3'-'2'-'1'. Sige's pomander contains the herbs Paa, Maet and Teth.
[/spoiler]

[Thaluikhain]

Prepare.

(Aw, shame we couldn't help the troll and left in peace)

[Beroli]

Prepare the leaves now.

[JourneymanN00b]

I vote to prepare the Jheera leaves now.

[SGamerz]

You tear a strip of cloth from your breeches and tip the leaves on to it. Chopping a small branch from a nearby tree, you wrap the leaf-filled cloth round one end and bind it tight. If you then decide to light the Jheera torch, turn to 34. If you ride down to meet the army with it unlit, turn to 368.

Should we light it now?

Adventure Sheet:
[spoiler]Name: Dastan
SKILL 12/12
STAMINA 12/17
LUCK 10/10
Equipment: Sword of Fangthane steel, leather armour, Sige's Pomander, 'Ghulsh' potion (turn to 258 when drunk), 'Arahl' potion (turn to 285 when drunk), 'Zazzaz' potion (turn to 369 when drunk), Blow-pipe, Foxgloves, Jheera torch
Provisions: 5
Gold & Treasure: 22 GP
Time remaining: 11/20 (turn to 57 when crossing off 18th time unit, and to 326 when crossing off the last time unit)
Notes: Paths taken in shifting forest: '3'-'2'-'1'. Sige's pomander contains the herbs Paa, Maet and Teth.
[/spoiler]

[JourneymanN00b]

I vote to light the Jheera torch.

[Beroli]

Ride down to meet the army with it unlit. Way too many opportunities for it to burn out if we light it right away.