[Let's Play] Legendary Kingdoms: The Valley of Bones

[JourneymanN00b]

According to the combat table, the slaves have an attack of 4, so the Slaves attack rolls should be 4d6 vs 5+. Or was there a mistake of some part?

I vote to have Tasha rescue Sar Jessica, as she has the shield and the best fighting score.

[Beroli]

Tempted to have Amelia rescue her sister, but sure, Tasha can do it. Developing new relationships is fun too.

[angelfromanotherpin]

Was the book deliberately withholding information about combat until we've fought our first? I thought we should have been told the rules before we assign equipment.

No, I withheld it until it came up since the system's flatness meant that it fundamentally didn't matter who had the maul's bonus or the shield's armor.

According to the combat table, the slaves have an attack of 4, so the Slaves attack rolls should be 4d6 vs 5+. Or was there a mistake of some part?

That was an error, but I have rolled the 2 omitted dice and no hits resulted.

485

If the character you chose was Tasha, turn to 37.
If the character you chose was Akihiro, turn to 735.
Otherwise, read on.
     You dash to Jessica’s defence, but alas, you are too far out of position. The axe lands with a sickening thud. Remove 3 Health from Sar Jessica. You manage to impale the barbarian from behind, kicking his dying body away from the knight. If Sar Jessica is still alive, you haul her to her feet and spin around to face the rest of your opponents. Turn to 753.

37

The Lhasbreath barbarian suddenly jolts, a blade sticking out of his chest. He falls away, to reveal a smirking Tash, her crude sword dripping with blood.
     “Thanks, Tash,” smiles Jessica, helped to her feet by the clever thief. Sar Jessica won’t soon forget this. Note in Jessica’s notes box that she has gained a heart for Tasha. Tasha also gains a heart for Sar Jessica.
     Now turn to 753.

This is part of the series' romance system.

753

The arena is a swirl of swords and axe blades, the crowd jeering as blood is spilt and bodies fall. In the centre the greatest fighters have gathered into a spectacular melee, while on the outskirts the cowardly and the injured seek momentary respite.
     • Leap into the central battle, fearlessly (turn to 101)?
     • Hang back until the fight comes to you (turn to 550)?

Name	Fighting	Survival	Stealth	Charisma	Lore	Health	Caster?	Gear	Notes
Sar Jessica Dayne	5(6)	2	1	4	3	8/8	x	Maul* (Fighting +1)	for Tasha
Lord Ti'quon	1	1	2	2	5	6/6	√
Tasha	3	3	5	3	1	8/8	x	Shield (Armor +2)	for Jessica
Amelia Pass-Dayne	3	3	2	1	2	6/6	√

Codes: A2

[Beroli]

We're not injured and let's not encourage the book to brand us cowardly. Into the thick of it.

[JourneymanN00b]

There are no wounds from anyone right now, so I vote to leap into the central battle to avoid being labeled as cowards. Maybe we can loot a good weapon or two from the effort.

[Thaluikhain]

The little good looking blonde girl said to aovid the central melee, so I vote for hanging back.

Oh, and a romance mechanic? Hmm...

[Beroli]

Ah, good point. Changing vote to "keep to the edge," at least until I have more indications that this is the "why did you think blindly following a stranger's advice was the right thing to do?" kind of gamebook and not the "it was spelled out in the text" kind of gamebook.

[SGamerz]

Follow the NPC's advice.

[angelfromanotherpin]

550

There is no point in provoking anything. You would rather deal with wounded and exhausted opponents than arena champions. You cast your eyes warily across the exterior of the battle.
     If you have the code A3, turn to 718.
     Otherwise, read on.
An arrow thudding into the ground near you, launched from one of the arena guards, spurs you back into action. Clearly you must fight hard or be executed. Hurriedly you engage with the dregs of the fight to keep busy.

Opponent	Attack	Defense	Health
Saltdad Slaves	6(5+)	3+	20

     If you win, turn to 71.

Round 1:
Our team collectively rolls 13d v 3+: 4,6,5,3,6,6,1,2,6,6,2,6,1 = 9 damage, the enemy is at 11/20.
Saltdad Slaves roll 6d v 5+: 4,6,5,5,2,2 = 3 damage, assigned to Tasha (Armor: 1,1) = 0 damage prevented.

Round 2:
Our team collectively rolls 13d v 3+: 1,4,3,2,4,1,5,3,5,3,4,2,1 = 8 damage, the enemy is at 3/20.
Saltdad Slaves roll 6d v 5+: 2,2,3,1,4,6 = 1 damage, assigned to Tasha (Armor: 2,1) = 0 damage prevented.

Round 3:
Our team collectively rolls 13d v 3+: 6,6,3,1,4,4,3,1,4,3,1,2,1 = 8 damage, the enemy is defeated!

71

With a final flourish, you slay your last opponent. Although there are other living slaves in the arena, the battle suddenly stops as the Iron King stands. In a thickly accented voice, the king declares you champions of the arena. The crowd go wild, cheering you heartily as you catch your breath from the intense battle.
     Any hopes you had that being made champion would grant you freedom are soon quashed. Instead you are disarmed (cross all items of equipment off your team sheet) and led back into the dungeons to nurse your wounds.
     Turn to 608.

608

Did any Party Members use magic spells whilst in the arena? If so, they are taken away by the guards to a small room where their tongues are cut out and then sealed with branding irons. Each magic-using character loses 3 Health and cannot cast spells unless they can find a way to regrow their tongues!
     Now turn to 792.

Harsh, but we avoided it.

792

As arena champions your quarters are improved a little. You now have your own cell to sleep in, half the size of an inn room, with a dirty straw mattress. In addition, you are given some basic training from an experienced gladiator called Che Long, who claims to be a sword saint from the nearby city of Chalice. The meals are slightly better, too, with Milagros, the slave girl, serving you rice and cooked meat as well as your water ration. All your party members can restore 4 Health points.
     Between training bouts you have many talks with Che Long, who is damning of the Iron King’s rulership of Saltdad. “I care not who hears it, the man is a tyrant,” he exhorts. “Life is hard in the valley, but wanton cruelty such as his is uncalled for. It sticks in my throat that I fight for his pleasure.”
     “I had heard that all the kings of the valley are petty tyrants,” you say between mouthfuls of water.
     “It was not always so,” mutters Che Long. “In times past we were ruled by a noble queen, the immortal Everchild, who cared more for her people than her comfort. After the destruction left by the demon lord Abraxas all that was left was ruins, and without her leadership the people of the valley became little better than barbarians. Only Chalice has a glimmer of civilization left.”
     After a hard day of training you make your way back to your cell. You have another bout in the arena tomorrow and will need all your strength.
     If you have the code A2, turn to 495.
     Otherwise, turn to 157.

That heal is enough to get Tasha back to full. But now there are consequences for our actions to face.

495

During your evening meal, one of your characters has wandered off. Choose which character and turn to 285.

Pick one of our cast to make themselves vulnerable.

Name	Fighting	Survival	Stealth	Charisma	Lore	Health	Caster?	Gear	Notes
Sar Jessica Dayne	5	2	1	4	3	8/8	x		for Tasha
Lord Ti'quon	1	1	2	2	5	6/6	√
Tasha	3	3	5	3	1	8/8	x		for Jessica
Amelia Pass-Dayne	3	3	2	1	2	6/6	√

Codes: A2

[Beroli]

Hm. I vote Tasha.

[JourneymanN00b]

A couple of nitpicking here:

Shouldn't the team be rolling 13d instead of 12d since the team Fighting total is 13, including the maul's power? And why is Sar Jessica Dayne's 5(6) still? Shouldn't it be just 5 since she was disarmed of her maul?

Anyway, I vote for Sar Jessica to be the character who has wandered off.

[angelfromanotherpin]

Shouldn't the team be rolling 13d instead of 12d since the team Fighting total is 13, including the maul's power? And why is Sar Jessica Dayne's 5(6) still? Shouldn't it be just 5 since she was disarmed of her maul?

Utterly correct, now retconjured.

[SGamerz]

I'll go with Tasha. She has the most balanced stats to deal with different kinds of potential threats (and I doubt those bullies we antagonized earlier can come up with anything that will require Lore to deal with).

Besides, putting Tasha in danger may give Jessica a chance to return the favour and continue story development.

[Thaluikhain]

Yeah, makes sense for pirate-y types to wander off, I guess.

[angelfromanotherpin]

285

You turn a corner to see Tommul, one of the thugs you bullied in the dungeon on your very first day. He is accompanied by another muscular man, armed with a club. "I told you I would get even with you, scum!" he snarls, advancing menacingly towards you.
     Run for it (turn to 544)?
     Try to talk Tommul down (turn to 649)?
     Raise your fists (turn to 239)?

Name	Fighting	Survival	Stealth	Charisma	Lore	Health	Caster?	Gear	Notes
Sar Jessica Dayne	5	2	1	4	3	8/8	x		for Tasha
Lord Ti'quon	1	1	2	2	5	6/6	√
Tasha	3	3	5	3	1	8/8	x		for Jessica
Amelia Pass-Dayne	3	3	2	1	2	6/6	√

Codes: A2

[SGamerz]

Just one guy? I expected a mass ambush. I'm tempted to just fight, but I think running potentially gives us the highest chance in the case any stat checks.

[Thaluikhain]

Half vote for trying to talk him down, in the expectation that we'll beat him to death because that won't work.

[Beroli]

Talk.

[JourneymanN00b]

I vote to try to talk Tommul down. Running for it is will probably be disastrous, and Tasha would probably be forced to fight if talking failed.

[angelfromanotherpin]

649

It won’t be easy to talk these brutes down. If your selected character is Brash, turn to 697. Otherwise you warn about the impending arrival of the guards. You must use the Charisma skill of the character you have chosen.
     Talk down Tommul (individual check)
     Skill and DC: Charisma (5+)
     Successes Required: 2
If you succeed, turn to 815. If you fail, turn to 291.

Brash is the only starting character with a decent chance of success here, and he auto-succeeds with a hilarious bluff. Tasha however (3d v 5+: 5,5,4), gets lucky.

815

Your threat about the guards unnerves Tommul. A distant sound of whipping and the crash of a cell door make him jump. Swearing to savour his revenge at a more opportune time, he quickly slips away. You breathe a sigh of relief and make your way back to your companions. Turn to 157.

157

The sound of drums and crowds roaring echo in your ears as you are once again lined up in the gatehouse in preparation for your latest bout. Up to four crude blades (Fighting +0) are available to your characters. Again, one character may be armed with a shield (Armour +2), and another with a two-handed maul (Fighting +1)*.
     Equip your characters as you wish then turn to 170.

I'm going to assume the previous loadout to save time. Not a lot has changed.

170

You step out into broiling heat, the sun scorching the sands under your bare feet. You are the first competitors into the arena and receive a roaring cheer from the crowd as you appear. High above you the Iron King gazes down impassively, Malronac the Deathengine standing unflinching by his side. You look across the heat-swept arena as the far gate is opened. You cannot help but swallow as a pair of shaggy-haired desert lions come snarling out of the gate. Their manes are stained red with the blood of other victims, and they roar at you with filthy yellow teeth. You must fight for your lives.

Opponent	Attack	Defense	Health
First Lion	4 (4+)	4+	9
Second Lion	3 (4+)	4+	10

Note: You cannot use spells in this fight, under threat of mutilation!
     If you win, turn to 236.

Round 1:
The first lion is both more dangerous and easier to kill, so obviously the priority target.
Sar Jessica attacks First Lion, 6d v 4+: 5,5,1,3,2,2 = 2 damage, FL at 7/9.
Tasha attacks First Lion, 3d v 4+: 2,5,6 = 2 damage, FL at 5/9.
Amelia attacks First Lion, 3d v 4+: 5,5,1 = 2 damage, FL at 3/9.
Ti'quon attacks First Lion, 1d v 4+: 2 = 0 damage.
First Lion attacks, 4d v 4+: 2,3,3,4 = 1 damage, assigned to Tasha (armor 2: 2,4) for 1 damage prevented.
Second Lion attacks, 3d v 4+: 4,3,3 = 1 damage, assigned to Tasha (armor 2: 3,3) 0 damage prevented, Tasha at 7/8.

Round 2:
Sar Jessica attacks First Lion, 6d v 4+: 6,1,6,5,6,4 = 5 damage, First Lion is defeated.
Tasha attacks Second Lion, 3d v 4+: 2,1,2 = 0 damage.
Amelia attacks Second Lion, 3d v 4+: 4,6,5 = 3 damage, SL at 7/10.
Ti'quon attacks Second Lion, 1d v 4+: 3 = 0 damage.
Second Lion attacks, 3d v 4+: 4,5,6 = 3 damage, assigned to Tasha (armor 2: 1,1) 0 damage prevented, Tasha at 4/8.

Round 3:
Sar Jessica attacks Second Lion, 6d v 4+: 6,6,2,6,5,1 = 4 damage, SL at 3/10.
Tasha attacks Second Lion, 3d v 4+: 5,3,3 = 1 damage, SL at 2/10.
Amelia attacks Second Lion, 3d v 4+: 6,5,4 = 3 damage, Second Lion is defeated.

236

The cheers from the crowd resound across the arena as the final lion falls dead. You cannot help but stifle a tear at the death of the noble beasts, cruelly plucked from the wild to fight for the entertainment of the savage crowd.
     Feeling more bestial than even a lion, you are taken from the arena and disarmed again (remove your weapons and armour from your adventure sheet), eager for another bowl of water to slake your aching thirst. You come upon a sight of even greater cruelty. Poor Milagros is being shouted at and struck by an angry guard, enraged at receiving a splash of soup across his armour. The poor girl is on the ground, in his shadow, nursing a bruise on her cheek as the guard pulls out his whip to punish her further.
     Dash to her defense (turn to 812)?
     Keep well out of it (turn to 319)?

Name	Fighting	Survival	Stealth	Charisma	Lore	Health	Caster?	Gear	Notes
Sar Jessica Dayne	5	2	1	4	3	8/8	x		for Tasha
Lord Ti'quon	1	1	2	2	5	6/6	√
Tasha	3	3	5	3	1	4/8	x		for Jessica
Amelia Pass-Dayne	3	3	2	1	2	6/6	√

Codes: A2

[Beroli]

Dash to her defense.

[JourneymanN00b]

The question is, are we able to escape the Saltdad Arena? Going to Milagros's defense will definitely cause trouble with the guards, and we need to be prepared to be able to escape the dungeon to escape death or permanent maiming. With Tasha at half health, this would be a big risk. I still vote to dash to Milagros's defense, and hope she knows a secret passage out the area or something.

[SGamerz]

Help her and return the favour.

[angelfromanotherpin]

812

You rush the guard, pulling him to the ground and kicking his whip away. Alas, more guards are never far away, and soon the room is full of sweating swearing soldiers who restrain and beat you as the other slaves look on. Each character must lose 2 Health points. If this takes any character below 1 Health, they stay on 1 Health. The guards will not beat you to death... this time. Eventually you are released, bloodied but unbowed.
     Turn to 700.

700

You bend to help the injured Milagros, who tells you not to worry. “I’ve had much worse, but you are gracious to help,” she says, wincing as she smiles. “Perhaps you would walk me to the kitchens? I fear my hands tremble too much to carry the soup.”
     Assisting Milagros, you follow her down the poorly lit tunnel towards the kitchen. “You are brave warriors, and you have kind hearts,” she says. “It is not right that you suffer and stultify here. There is... a plan, to abruptly shorten our sentence. If you would be free, follow me.”
     Milagros makes a sudden turn, down a narrow tunnel that plunges into darkness.
     • Follow her (turn to 379)?
     • Avoid trouble and return to your cells (turn to 223)?

Name	Fighting	Survival	Stealth	Charisma	Lore	Health	Caster?	Gear	Notes
Sar Jessica Dayne	5	2	1	4	3	6/8	x		for Tasha
Lord Ti'quon	1	1	2	2	5	4/6	√
Tasha	3	3	5	3	1	2/8	x		for Jessica
Amelia Pass-Dayne	3	3	2	1	2	4/6	√

Codes: A2

[JourneymanN00b]

Heh, I called Milagros knowing a secret passage out of here. I vote to follow her the hell out of this joint, as we need to get something for everyone losing 2 Health points.