From the back cover wrote: The war between the kingdoms is over, but there is still much to be done. The evil generals who went to ground in the Badlands beyond Gallantaria have been tracked down by bounty hunters. The feared Inquisitor General, Karam Gruul, has eluded capture for so long, however, that many believe him dead.
You alone know different. Gruul is very much alive, and plotting to rekindle the flames of war once more. YOU must use your skills as a bounty hunter to track him down and bring him, finally, to justice.
So yeah, we're basically a WH40K Inquisitor, only with no psychic powers or retinue of minions. Most of the following pages are the standard mechanical rehash on Skill/Stamina/Luck and the combat system. Key deviations are:The Introduction wrote: Exploring the Lacynthian Caves, striking beyond Orchelm enemy lines, rediscovering the Forgotten Temple of Daemos, defying the monstrous Vampire Lords of Vannan - most adventurers would be proud to have achieved but one of these feats, but you have done them all, and many more besides. What is more, all these death-defying exploits were accomplished as part of your apprenticeship! For you have joined the few whose very lives are a byword for danger: you have become a Bounty Hunter.
As a Bounty Hunter, you are a grim, experienced and fearless survivor who lives off the rewards offered by the civilized nations of the Old World for the capture of wanted criminals. Unlike most of your sort, who are ruthless, money-grubbing scum, you don't waste your time arresting petty thieves, however; you look to hunt down the handful of arch-villains who you know are behind the many foul wars and cruel mishaps that have recently threatened to bring your native land of Gallantaria to her knees. You will not rest until you have uncovered and arrested each and every one of these evil fiends.
and...Fighting More Than One Opponent wrote: When you find yourself under attack from more than one adversary at the same time, each will make a separate attack on you in the course of each Attack Round, but you can choose which one to fight (unless you have the Combat Special Skill - see Special Skills, below). Attack your chosen target as in a normal battle. Against any additional opponents you roll for the Attack Strength of yourself and each opponent in the normal way. If your Attack Strength is greater than your adversary's however, you will not inflict a wound; you can regard it as having parried an incoming blow. If your Attack Strength is lower than your enemy's, you will be wounded in the normal way.
So, pick us up 4 Special Skills.Special Skills wrote:
Over the years, you have acquired a number of Special Skills which have served you time and again on your many bounty hunting ventures. Choose four from the following list and mark them in the Special Skills box on your Adventure Sheet. THe Special Skills are:
Acrobatics: You have a remarkable sense of balance, coupled with the ability to attempt a variety of physical stunts which most people would find impossible.
Climb: You are able to climb with ease up almost any surface, even those which offer you only the slightest of handholds.
Combat: You are a master in the art of man-to-man combat. If ever you are told to fight more than one opponent at the same time, you may strike back at each one of them, wounding all opponents whose Attack Strength is lower than yours.
Con: This skill calls for fast thinking, a modicum of acting ability, and the gift of being able to keep a straight face while telling the most outrageous lies. If it is possible for you to get what you want out of a situation through words alone, you'll manage it.\
Disguise: You have the ability to alter your appearance so radically that you may seek to pass almost anywhere unnoticed. obviously, the longer you spend on preparing your disguise and the more materials you have to hand (sic), the more effective your disguise will be; you should remember, however, that disguises mask only your appearance.
Lock Picking: There's hardly a lock made that can keep you out - and all you need to open one is the small hooked piece of metal which you carry, concealed on your person at all times.
Sleight of Hand: Your nimble fingers are adept in the art of trickety, and your joints can be popped at the mere flexing of a tendon. You can make small objects seem to appear and disappear before a person's very eyes; you can plant items on that person or simply pick that person's pockets. Another invaluable aspect of this skill lies in using it to extricate yourself from bonds or to slip through the thinnest of gaps.
Sneak: If you so choose, you can hide from others or use your incredibly light tread to get past them, unheard and unseen. Though happiest when there are plenty of hiding places around or during the hours of darkness, you can always make the best use of whatever cover is available when trying to evade detection.
Tracking: Equally as good in the city as in the wilds, you are able to follow humanoid or beast anywhere - provided your prey has left a trail for you to follow. How well you are able to pick up the trail depends on where the trail is, what it is, and how old it is. All the same, you have often used this skill to spectacular effect.
Unlike most other FF books, we actually start out quite light on gear. The Bounty Hunter travels light, carrying a sword, durable clothing, a backpack, and a purse with... 22 Gold Pieces. That's it; no potions, no magic, nada. No provisions either, oddly enough, but this book isn't too lethal and is fairly light on the Skill/Luck draining sections.
And now, the prelude to the adventure!
Welcome to the Badlands
Oooooh, scary.In response to an urgent message, it has taken you just three days to reach the delta where the lands of Gallantaria,, Brice and Mauristatia meet - three days to reach that lawless and unruly part of Gallantaria commonly known as the Badlands. At the heart of this notorious region standing on the Border River, is the sprawling city of Blackhaven, a place so dangerous that the City Guards have to go around in groups of ten. Yet it is to this city's solitary, beleaguered guard post that you have been summoned.
It is the dead of night, and no one sees you as you slip in through a secret door in a side wall of the small stone keep. Inside, you are met by Guard Marshal Bennet, who quietly leads you up a spiral staircase and into his candlelit room. There, the aged Marshal wastes no time in explaining why you have been summoned: The War of the Four Kingdoms - Gallantaria,
Femphrey, Brice and the Northlands - almost tore the Old World apart, but the four sides turned away from the abyss and made a fragile peace which has lasted up to the present day. Yet this peace is constantly being eroded by the many agents of Chaos who seek to aggravate old rivalries. The Old World can never know true peace until its barbaric past is finallyl aid to rest. He pauses to sit down at his desk then adds, "High in the Brician ranks was Karam Gruul - the Inquisitor General." You cannot help but shudder in fear and loathing at the mere mention of this name.
"Gruul," Bennet continues, "was swift in urging Brice to war, and his was the guiding intellect and the dark magics which lay behind many of Brice's military successes. It was he who prepared the murderous firetraps along Brice's borders; he who had thousands of war prisoners dragged, screaming, into his Tower of lnquisition, where horrific deeds were perpetrated; he who tortured and killed peaceful Bricians with his "traitor-hunts"; he who assassinated his fellow generals when they spoke out against him; and, finally, it was he who remained unseen and unknown while his men died on foreign soil. Not for nothing was Gruul nicknamed"the Hand of Death".
"When peace finally came, a condition of the armistice was that Gruul should be made to stand trial for his crimes against humanity. But the warmongering Brician king claimed that Gruul had died in the Last Battle and that his body was but one of thousands ploughed under the earth. Moreover, the king denied any knowledge of Gruul's atrocities and he ordered that all mention of Gruul be erased from his country's histories
and monuments. Most believed that Gruul - whose face was known to so very few - had not died; and so began the Great Manhunt. But no sign of Gruul was found; it was as if he had never existed. His damned Tower of Inquisition was razed to the ground, but the villain himself escaped us. Since then, a constant vigil has been maintained for signs of Gruul's inevitable return. And now, at the cost of many gallant lives, we have at last obtained news as to his whereabouts!"
"Gruul is in Blackhaven, and his presence here can only mean that he is planning something terrible, some plot important enough to make him risk exposure after years of hiding. However, we don't know exactly where he is, or in what guise; only that he is here. We dare not use the City Guards or any other band of men to fetch him; Gruul would soon learn of their
coming and would go into hiding once more. But if someone worked alone - someone with stealth, cunning and resourcefulness the equal of Gruul's, someone who could move efficiently and quietly through the deadly streets of Blackhaven - then we just might catch him You are that someone. Find Gruul for us and take him to face justice at the High Court in Royal Lendle, capital of Gallantaria. lf you do, the reward..."
You have been listening to Bennet's words with rising passion, and now you feel compelled to interrupt: "Save your gold! For years I have been looking for seven arch-fiends in lhe service of Chaos; six are now behind bars; but Gruul, the seventh and most evil, has always eluded me. No, seeing Gruul made to account for his wrongdoings will be reward enough. And... I have a personal debt to settle!"
Turn to paragraph 1.
Paragraph 1 wrote: Bennet sighs with relief and thanks you before continuing: "There are rumours that Blackhaven is in the grip of a secret society called the Cabal of the Werewolf. All we know about this organization is that its members are said to bear "the Werewolf's Mark', and that it is supposed to have connections with a powerful clique of Brician nobles who are hell-bent on starting a second War of the Four Kingdom.s If this is true, then
Karam Gruul must have dealings with fhe Cabal. Word has reached me that an inmate of Craven Asylum, Matra Ouspenskaya, is claiming that she was a member - but is now a victim - of the Cabal. This could be the break we seek; you must go and question her to find out if there is any truth in her wild ravings. Next, it is said that Cabal members meet in a docklands tavern, the Last Octopus, which you should also investigate. Finally, it might be worth your while to visit Silas Entador,a useful wretch who is one of our paid informers and who lives in Malt Lane. If Gruul has made contact with this Cabal - or, indeed, with any part of Blackhaven's underworld - then Entador will know about it."
The Marshal stands up behind his desk. Though mystic shields hide our walls from scrying eyes, I fear that one of my own men may be a traitor, so only I and the Ruling Council in Royal Lendle, to whom Gruul must be taken, know of your mission. In my drawer I have some gold to cover your expenses and a Letter of Introduction to Craven Asy-"
Decide! Also, our hero needs a name, and 4 special skills, and some clue as to where to proceed...A stifled cry escapes the old man's lips as he falls forward on to the desk, a dagger protruding from his back! The knife can only have been thrown through the tall, open window behind Bennet's chair, a window which is twelve metres above the ground. Will you try to help Bennet (turn to 12), go round the desk to his drawer so that you may take the gold and the letter (turn to 31), or rush over to the window (turn to 80)?
Skill 11/11
Stamina 21/21
Luck 10/10
Gear: Sword, 22 golds, backpack, clothing.
Stamina 21/21
Luck 10/10
Gear: Sword, 22 golds, backpack, clothing.
