Let's Play Fighting Fantasy #18 Rebel Planet

angelfromanotherpin · Post by **angelfromanotherpin** » Sun Apr 06, 2014 7:00 pm

Darth's position is well-reasoned. Rocks.

Mr Shine · Post by **Mr Shine** » Sun Apr 06, 2014 8:09 pm

The pall of smoke provides excellent cover until you are quite near the rocks Then you are spotted, and the silver craft races in pursuit. But the drifting smoke causes it to misjudge the distance and, as you squeeze into coverer, it smashes into the rock-face above you and explodes. Test your Luck If you are Lucky, if you are Unlucky

4 is Lucky

The shockwave of the ziridium blast knocks you unconscious, Deduct 2 STAMINA points

When you come to, you have difficulty focusing on who you are, where you are and what you're doing here anyway. But you can make out the blurred shape of a human bending over you. Then you remember - your mission! 'How long have I been out?' you ask, trying to get up.

'He's coming round Dorado,' calls the man.

'Coming Mizar,' a voice replies. You've been out for about forty-five minutes,' says the first man, who is evidently Mizar. 'And the Arcadians are almost upon us.' Forty-five minutes! Then there is no time to lose! You will scarcely make it back to the spaceport in time for your flight! You must send one of the men to defend the pass and buy you enough time to talk to the other and escape. Will you send Dorado away or Mizar?

Jim, the Cheddar Monk
SK 9/9 (-1 whilst on Halmuris), ST 17/21 LU 6/11
2405 Credits
Laser Sword

Running total of deaths: 3
Running total of non-fatal Game Overs: 1

Darth Rabbitt · Post by **Darth Rabbitt** » Sun Apr 06, 2014 9:41 pm

This is a very strange choice, and to my knowledge there's been no hint as to which one to send. Mizar sounds less important to me, so send him I guess.

Starmaker · Post by **Starmaker** » Sun Apr 06, 2014 11:22 pm

Darth Rabbitt wrote:Mizar sounds less important to me, so send him I guess.

Sure, let that be on Darth's conscience.

Mr Shine · Post by **Mr Shine** » Sun Apr 06, 2014 11:37 pm

'Dorado,' you say, 'I must go. But first tell me what you know about the digits of the Arcadian computer' 'Identify yourself,' he says in reply. 'What's the password?' You will now either know what to do, or you will get nothing more out of Dorado, however much you protest that you cannot know his password, having only just arrived on the planet. You have failed.

Looks like poor Mizar gave his life for nothing. Let's go back to

Having no food, your body becomes more vulnerable to the cold, and you can hardly sleep at all for trying to keep warm. Gain only 1 STAMINA point. In the morning you follow a path heading roughly north east until it divides. Will you branch right or left?

and turn left instead.

You walk on for about an hour, and then stop to rest and shelter from the heat: gain 1 STAMINA point While gazing idly into the sky, you notice a large bird coming into land on the rock-face above you. What strikes you in particular is that the bird is carrying something which flashes as it catches the sunlight. Do you want to investigate this further or carry on with your journey?

Jim, the Cheddar Monk
SK 9/9 (-1 whilst on Halmuris), ST 21/21 LU 7/11
2405 Credits
Laser Sword

Running total of deaths: 3
Running total of non-fatal Game Overs: 2

Darth Rabbitt · Post by **Darth Rabbitt** » Mon Apr 07, 2014 12:41 am

Investigate.

angelfromanotherpin · Post by **angelfromanotherpin** » Mon Apr 07, 2014 6:08 am

Always look closer at shiny birds.

Mr Shine · Post by **Mr Shine** » Mon Apr 07, 2014 7:55 am

The cliff should not be difficult to climb: the freezing cold has broken it up into larger and smaller ledges, which will afford handholds and stepping-places. After about twenty minutes you can hear the bird nearby, and you circle round, so that you can approach it from above.

The nest is on a fairly wide ledge. The bird itself is a Halmuriain Rockbuzzard, whose fluffy appearance belies its dangerous nature It looks like a large ball of soft feathers: as protection against the cold, it has developed the habit of burying its head and neck within its copious body feathers, until it looks like nothing so much as a large, cuddly hedgehog, with a tail and folded wings. If you jump on to the ledge, you will have to fight it. ls this what you choose to do√ or does its size aid the precariousness of your situation make you change your mind, and return to the path?

You leap down on to the ledge, away from the nest, so as to have a secure landing. Your precipitous arrival awakens the bird, which instinctively attacks.

ROCKBUZZARD SKILL 6 STAMINA 8

Jim 16 Rockbuzzard 14, use luck, unlucky, Rockbuzzard at 7
Jim 16 Rockbuzzard 11, use luck, unlucky, Rockbuzzard at 6
Jim 13 Rockbuzzard 10 Rockbuzzard at 4
Jim 10 Rockbuzzard 13 Jim dead

Try again..

Jim 16 Rockbuzzard 12 use luck, lucky Rockbuzzard at 4
Jim 14 Rockbuzzard 12 use luck, lucky Rockbuzzard dead.

If you win without being wounded by its beak or talons, However, if you are wounded once, this means that the bird has got past your flashing sword, and its weight will knock you off the ledge to die on the path below.

Curiously, there is no immediate sign of the shining object the bird was carrying when you first spotted it. Then you notice two deep fissures in the ledge, into which you could insert your hand. Will you try the left fissure, or the right one?

Alternatively, you could decide that anything could be living in such cracks and that it would be best to return to the path without taking any further risks.

Jim, the Cheddar Monk
SK 9/9 (-1 whilst on Halmuris), ST 21/21 LU 5/11
2405 Credits
Laser Sword

Running total of deaths: 4
Running total of non-fatal Game Overs: 2

Starmaker · Post by **Starmaker** » Mon Apr 07, 2014 8:13 am

This book is brutal. Left, for no reason.

(Someone do a Curse of the Mummy '95)
trollface.png

Darth Rabbitt · Post by **Darth Rabbitt** » Mon Apr 07, 2014 10:08 am

Sure, left.

Mr Shine · Post by **Mr Shine** » Mon Apr 07, 2014 6:53 pm

You are bitten by a Saw Toothed Rat. The teeth of this unpleasant creature are designed to give an excellent grip on the victim, in this case two of your fingers. You only succeed in dislodging the little horror by withdrawing your hand and breaking the creatures back on the rock. Roll one die. If the number is even, if it is odd√

It is not your sword-hand that has been injured. Reduce your STAMINA bv 2 points for the agony. If you have not yet done so, you can explore the other
crack√, if you think that it is time to continue your journey

The crack is deep and narrow, and you cannot reach too far. The strength of the bird, which you already knew from your fight with it, is further proved by the size of the objects you find - smaller things have presumably fallen into the inaccessible depths of the fissure. Apart from some useless chunks of metal and a broken spy missile, you find a staff with seven strips of different metals coiled around its wooden stem, a casket containing 180 credits, and a mind-probe.

The probe will fit into your anti-grav pack, and you put the money In your money-belt, but if you take the staff it will make your descent down the cliff more risky, since you will have to carry it by hand. Even more alarming is the fact that a faint power seems to be suggesting that you take the staff You cannot tell whether the power is good or evil, but you are able to resist it, if you want to. Note down on your Equipment List what you take Will you now explore the other fissure, or climb back down to the path to continue your joumey√

If you are carrying a staff with you√, turn to, otherwise

If you were bltten by a Saw toothed Rat,√, otherwise

Test your Luck If you are Lucky, you fall down the last bit of the cliff for 2 STAMINA points of bruises, and you break the end off the staff; but you keep the rest with you, having risked so much to bring it down. If you are Unlucky, you fall from a great height and are smashed on the path below

9 is unlucky, which is good, as continuing with a broken staff is a death sentence anyway.

What if we hadn't tried the left fissure?

If you are carrying a staff with you√, otherwise

If you were bltten by a Saw toothed Rat, otherwise√

Test your Luck. If you are Lucky, you make it down the cliff without difficulty. If you are Unlucky, you fall down the last bit and sustain 2 STAMINA points of bruises.

10 is Unlucky

In a short while, your path is joined by another to the left. Will you continue straight on or take this branch√

Straight on leads back to the same reference number as the start of the agricultural station scene.

You follow the wending path for a couple of kilometres. Suddenly, your attention is caught bv a shadow on the path. It's not that the shadow is particularly odd in itself it's that there is nothing around to cast it! And it is moving towards you! When it is about a metre away, it stops To your amazement, a shaft of light emerges from the ground where the shadow is. Within the shaft is a form of some kind, which is constantly changing. If this is science, it is beyond human or Arcadian knowledge. You appear to be in the presence of some unknown force. It does not seem hostile, but being alien it is difficult to judge. Will you run away from this encounter or wait and see what happens√

It speaks: 'Earthling, where zplaran?' At least, that's what the last word sounds like. The voice is strangely metallic and hollow; it certainly does not come from any living being that you can imagine. Perhaps it is a robot of some kind. If it is, then you could attack it. Is this what you choose to do or will you try to talk back to it, as it inches ever closer to you?

Jim, the Cheddar Monk
SK 9/9 (-1 whilst on Halmuris), ST 19/21 LU 4/11
2585 Credits
Laser Sword
Weird Staff
Mind Probe

Running total of deaths: 5
Running total of non-fatal Game Overs: 2

Starmaker · Post by **Starmaker** » Mon Apr 07, 2014 7:24 pm

Here zplaran. Nice to meet you. Mind refilling our luck?

Darth Rabbitt · Post by **Darth Rabbitt** » Mon Apr 07, 2014 8:05 pm

Yeah, talk to this thing. Halmuris is Planet of the Luck Tests.

Mr Shine · Post by **Mr Shine** » Mon Apr 07, 2014 8:18 pm

You pause to think. It occurs to you that it need not necessarily be a robot: the metallic tone of the voice could come from some language translation device. What is this zplaran it's asking about? It can speak enough Arcadian to cover everyday objects, it seems. If you have a strange staff or a mind-probe, you could see if one of these is what it wants. Will you try the staff or the probe. If you have neither of these, or choose not to give them up,

Darth Rabbitt · Post by **Darth Rabbitt** » Mon Apr 07, 2014 8:35 pm

I think we are supposed to use the staff; it has to be important if it can break.

Mr Shine · Post by **Mr Shine** » Mon Apr 07, 2014 10:48 pm

I don't think anyone is going to disagree with offering the staff so I'll update now.

'This zplaran?' you ask, finding yourself speaking the same pidgin Arcadian as the weird thing. 'Zplaran,' replies the thing, in a voice which sounds decidedly unfriendly to you, but is apparently not.

The staff is whisked out of your hand into the shaft of light, where it hangs, suspended by goodness knows what. Both the changing form and the shaft of light proceed to vibrate very rapidly, but in eerie silence. If the staff is broken, otherwise√

'Now I have power,' says the being. 'Enough for even my voice box to function correctly.' A wheezing noise follows, which you think might be a laugh. 'l can grant you one favour with this power, then I must return to my galaxy. This is to repay you for rescuing the zplaran from the darkness where I cannot go.' Will you ask it to restore some of your STAMINA or if by any chance it knows the whereabouts of the man you are seeking√

LUCK boost not on today's menu.

'

Yes, I know,' it replies. 'Nobody notices shadows in shadowy places, so I hear things which are denied to others. His name is Dorado, and he is working in the fields. I was by his side, though he didn't know it, when he sent you the password ''Password? What password?' you exclaim. 'No password got through to Earth. I detect the hand of treachery!'

The alien being is fading fast, but, as it goes, it calls out, 'The bitter sea , . .' Gain 2 LUCK points for this vital information. If you meet Dorado, he will ask you for this password: you should then subtract 100 from the paragraph number where you are at the time to find the next, correct paragraph. Remember this

Guess he threw one in anyway.

Your path winds through a rocky gorge, which narrows until there is only room for one person to squeeze between the two cliffs Then, laid out in front of you on a plain, is the agricultural station.There are fields of experimental shrubs being tested for survival in this harsh climate, which are being tended by human workers; and beyond the fields is the station itself, a building insulated within a thermodome. Will you back into the rocks and make your way round to the building or approach some of the humans in the fields, who appear to be unguarded

(Back here again, make same choices: Luck test 1, 5 is lucky, lose 2 STAMINA; Luck test 2, 8 is unlucky lose 4 STAMINA.)

'

Identify yourself,' he says in reply. 'What's the password?'

'The bitter sea,'you reply 'l know none of the digits,' he begins, and your heart sinks 'All l know is that the whole sequence of digits is a palindrome - it is the same written forwards or backwards' Gain l LUCK point. This should be enough for you to complete the code. He also gives you some food, a grey uniform which you could use for getting back into the spaceport, and enough quandar-root lotion to heal 4 STAMINA points of injuries. You thank him over your shoulder as you race off

Your journey back to the spaceport is uneventful, but tiring in this high gravity, You would lose STAMINA if it were not for the food that Dorado gave you. Will you use the grey uniform as a disguise for getting back into the spaceport√ or would you prefer to use wire-cutters, if you have them?

You walk boldly up to the eastern entrance in your disguise. The guards call you to halt, and ask what you have been doing off the base, and where you came from. You explain that you left by the western entrance. Will you say that you have been attending to a broken-down helicopter or taking provisions out to a patrol?

Anybody worked out the code?

Darth Rabbitt · Post by **Darth Rabbitt** » Mon Apr 07, 2014 11:47 pm

Me, earlier wrote:First letters of each line (of the marching song) spell out ONE O ONE. So the first three digits are 101. If we then include the 1st Century book (the other two books are meaningless; since it's binary, 2s are out) the full code is 1011.

So it's 9 digits total and we now know that it's a palindrome. It's either 101101101 or 101111101. I think it's the first one, but I'm not really sure.

I think we should say we were delivering food, since we still apparently have some of the stuff that Dorado gave us, but we don't have any tools other than a mind probe and a laser sword, neither of which are used for helicopter repair.

Mr Shine · Post by **Mr Shine** » Tue Apr 08, 2014 7:43 am

(The book said earlier that the humans in grey were cleaners/caterers)

The guards let you through without further delay. Once inside the spaceport buildings, you shed your disguise and make your way to your spaceship.

Your way to the spaceship is barred by two guards. Your heart leaps in dismay and fear, but it turns out that they are just waiting for your 'passenger' to embark. You see two Central Arcadians cross the field and enter your spaceship; neither of them returns It looks as though you have two passengers, not one. Then the guards allow you on board.

On the way to Arcadion, you may restore half as much STAMINA as your current score, rounding odd numbers down and remembering not to exceed your Initial score. Remember also to restore the SKILL point vou lost for the high gravity of Halmuris. The two Arcadians keep pretty much to themselves durng the voyage, but one night you are awoken by a rattling at your cabin door. Will you ask who it is, without unlocking the door or throw open the door?

Mr Shine · Post by **Mr Shine** » Tue Apr 08, 2014 7:45 am

Arcadian security for the win again.

Starmaker · Post by **Starmaker** » Tue Apr 08, 2014 11:27 am

Uh, open up, I guess? There's presumably no one else on the ship but the Arcadians. If it's one of them, we need to open. If it's a stowaway, we need to not alert them.

Darth Rabbitt · Post by **Darth Rabbitt** » Tue Apr 08, 2014 11:47 am

Open.

Mr Shine · Post by **Mr Shine** » Tue Apr 08, 2014 6:03 pm

Framed in the doorway is one of the Arcadians, who looks startled. “I... have a headache”, he says. “at least, I think that's why I'm here, but...”. He trails off. Will you tell him that the medical robot will bring him some interferon or invite him in?

Darth Rabbitt · Post by **Darth Rabbitt** » Tue Apr 08, 2014 8:56 pm

Invite him. At worst he'll try (emphasis on the try; he'll probably fail) to kill us, at best he has something important to tell us.

angelfromanotherpin · Post by **angelfromanotherpin** » Tue Apr 08, 2014 9:47 pm

Yes, come in, little fly.

Mr Shine · Post by **Mr Shine** » Wed Apr 09, 2014 7:06 am

The Arcadian, whose name turns out to be Musca, is obviously in a confused state, he changes from being friendly to being suspicious at a moment's notice. By cautious probing, you gradually discover that something has gone wrong with theempathic receiver in his brain, which links him to the Arcadian computer. He has held several positions of authority on Halmuris and Arcadion; you guess that the constant decision-making that these jobs involved has begun to free his will from the enslaving grip of the computer.

The side-effects include blinding headaches, and a sense of confusion and guilt. If you tread carefully, you have obviously stumbled across what could be a valuable source of information. Gain l Luck point But before you can ask any further questions, there is a knock at the door, and the voice of the other Arcadian is heard: 'Do you by any chance have my friend in there?' His pleasant tone puts you on your guard. Will you admit that Musca is with you or not?