That line about Time running out is a lie though. As you may soon find out, Time literally never runs out in this adventure.
This is the first FF gamebook that's written by authors not named Steve Jackson or Ian Livingstone (and I'm counting both Steve Jacksons here ). So, this being a very early book in the series, there's really no new rules added to what we've come to know as the Standard FF Boilerplate:
Skill, Stamina, & Luck
STAMINA score: Roll two dice. Add 12 points to the result. We roll a 5+5 and get 22 (At least we can take a lot of punishment.....which we probably will with that abysmal SKILL score.)
LUCK score: Roll one die. Add 6 to the result. We roll a 4 and get 10 (Decent)
SKILL score reflects your expertise in combat, your ability with weapons, and your dexterity. STAMINA is your general constitution and "Life points" . LUCK score shows how lucky you are. None of them may exceed their Initial score unless specifically stated.
Eating a meal restores up to 4 points of STAMINA; you may only eat one meal at a time.
Testing your Luck: When instructed by the book to Test your Luck, roll two dice. If the result is equal to or less than your current LUCK score, you are Lucky. If the result exceeds your current LUCK score, you are Unlucky. Whatever the outcome, you must deduct one point from your current LUCK score every time you Test your Luck. The more you use your LUCK, the less likely you are to be Lucky.
The combat sequence is then:
1. Roll two dice for your opponent. Add the total rolled to its SKILL score. This is the Attack Strength of your enemy.
2. Roll two dice and add the total to your own current SKILL score. This is your Attack Strength.
3. If your Attack Strength is the higher, you have wounded your opponent: deduct 2 points from your opponent's STAMINA..
If your opponent's Attack Strength is higher, it has wounded you: deduct 2 points from your own STAMINA.
If both Attack Strengths are equal, you have avoided each other's blows.
4. Begin the next Combat Round, starting again at step 1. This procedure continues until either you or your opponent has a STAMINA score of zero. If your opponent's STAMINA score reaches zero, you have killed it and can continue with your adventure. If your own STAMINA score reaches zero, you are dead.
Often you will have to fight more than one opponent at a time. Sometimes you will treat them as a single opponent; at others, you will be able to fight them one at a time; and sometimes all of them will be able to attack you, while you defend yourself and may attack only one of them. Specific instructions will be given whenever you meet more than one opponent.
Using Luck in Combat
You can use your LUCK in combat to inflict a particularly serious wound, or to minimize a wound that has been inflicted on you.
Whenever you wound an opponent, you may Test your Luck. If you are Lucky, you have inflicted a severe wound: deduct an extra 2 points from your opponent's STAMINA. If you are Unlucky, you have merely grazed it, and you deduct 1 point less than normal from its STAMINA.
If you have been wounded, you can Test your Luck in exactly the same way. If you are Lucky, the wound upon you was only a glancing blow and you can deduct 1 less point of STAMINA than usual. If you are Unlucky, the wound is serious: deduct 1 extra point from your STAMINA.
You may also take a magic potion which will aid you on your quest. Each bottle of potion contains enough for 1 use, and can be drank anytime except during combat. Choose one of the following:
(a) Potion of Skill - Restores your Skill to its Initial level.
(b) Potion of Strength - Restores your Stamina to its Initial level.
(c) Potion of Fortune - Restores your Luck to its initial level and restores 1 point to Initial Luck.
And now, let's proceed with the Background:
And here we turn to page 1....You are regaining consciousness. Your eyes flutter open to the sound of a songbird, trilling joyously. You are lying on a couch of green velvet, set on the topmost turret of a great white castle hanging in the clouds.
Rising to your feet, you look around. The songbird, whose sleek feathers are a warm burnished gold, is perched on the battlements, resplendent against the ocean-blue canopy of a sky in which there is no sun.
You are clad in strange, outlandish clothes, breeches of dark-green leather and a thickly quilled leather jerkin. On your feet are russet-red calfskin boots, supple and comfortable, into which the breeches are tucked at mid-calf.
A heavy sword is belted at your side and, with a shock, you realise that somehow you know how to use it skillfully and with deadly force. As the songbird trills you try, in vain, to recall memories of Earth, but everything is hazy and distant.
You have been taken from the world you know and trained in the art of sword-play. You cannot remember even who trained you or why, but the hilt of the sword fits your hand snugly. Drawing it, you lunge and parry, marvelling at how the sword cuts through the air faster than the eye can follow.
The songbird seems unperturbed by your fine display of swordsmanship, but you are surprised when it cocks its head and speaks to you, its voice fluting merrily.
"Welcome, Champion of Fate. Do not be dismayed, for you are not yet in danger."
"Where am I?" you ask, feeling as if you are in a dream.
"Far, far from your home, I fear to say. This is the world of Orb and you are in the Garden of the Gods."
"What is Orb?" you demand.
"You will find it most strange and full of wonder, for it is very different from Earth. Men must share it not just with talking creatures such as I but with weird and fell monsters, giants, dragons and demons. There are warlocks and sorcerors, too, great wielders of magic, in the cities. But do not fear, you have been chosen to be our champion, for you are more likely to succeed than any other on Earth. Now I must complete my task. Come, my masters bid you join them in the chamber below. Please follow me."
With that, the golden songbird flutters away down a spiral staircase. Shaking your head in confusion, you descend the stone steps into a large circular room where two beings turn towards you.
"Welcome," says one, a pale figure enfolded in a swirling robe of many colours above which you can only see a perfectly smooth and hairless head. The robe shimmers, its colours shifting as she steps towards you, catching your mind before you realise what is happening.
Looking into her face, you see an image of yourself, fighting for your life inside a huge temple. Then the image shifts and you see yourself leaving a walled city, hastening alone across a desolate moor, only to find yourself deep in a jungle, surrounded by devils with blue skins. Your nape bristles as you realise that she is revealing glimpses of your destiny. It is only when they are over that you notice she has no eyes in her smooth pale face.
The other figure changes even as you look at him. At one moment he is an ancient white-haired man, heavy with knowledge, at another an infant, wise beyond his years. The metamorphosis through youth to age takes but a few instants, yet flows so smoothly you cannot see the features change. His voice is smooth and ageless.
"We have summoned you here to the world of Orb because we wish to prevent a fatal upset in the balance of nature. The cosmic scales have been tipped too far and you must play a part in righting them. It is not for us in the Garden of the Gods to set things right. We cannot fight him who would bring chaos to Orb. Rather we use men as our tools. I shall not say whether you will succeed."
The floor of the room upon which you are standing is the most realistic and detailed map imaginable. You can even see small figures tilling the fields and walking the streets of an entire world; a world of pinnacled castles; knights on horseback, their men-at-arms bearing banners which stream in the wind; and strange high-walled cities with towers and spires, concealing the dives of assassins and thieves amongst the splendour. The eyeless immortal steps forward, her robes now the colour of the deep sea, and caresses your cheek.
"We are sending you down to the surface of Orb. If you fall into the clutches of Death we cannot aid you. Do not fail us!"
"Fail in what?" you begin to ask. But just then, to your horror, you find yourself being drawn inexorably towards a black crack in the map. The realization that your destiny is being tampered with angers you, and you resolve to find a way back to Earth and your home at any cost. As the world of Orb rises up to engulf you, the awesomeness of what is happening overwhelms you and you lose consciousness.
So:When awareness returns you look around. You are standing in a huge vaulted chamber, deep underground.
In the chill air, you wonder what terrible fate may be in store for you. You are utterly alone, without a friend in this world, and you have no idea what fiendish horrors may exist here, so far from home.
There are no windows in the chamber, nor natural light, only the ruddy glow of flaming torches that are fixed to pillars soaring beyond sight. The walls are running with damp, the air musty and heavy with age.
There are two archways at the back of the cavern. Before you can investigate further, the torchlight flickers, and a cool gust chills you to the marrow - something in the unseen darkness is causing the air to move.
A light flashes briefly ahead and an infernal howling echoes across the vast vault. No living thing could possibly have made that dreadful sound, you think to yourself, but then you remember that you know nothing of the dreadful denizens of Orb.
You hear the sound of running footsteps approaching rapidly, but you cannot yet see who - or what - is coming. Will you run through the nearest archway or hold your ground and draw your sword?
1) Do we run or draw?
2) What potion do we bring with us?
3) What excessively-penile name shall the Champion of Fate bear? (keep in mind that it seems implied that our character is from the mundane world, so a medieval-type name might not be fitting here....but it's up to you of course)
Adventure Sheet:
SKILL 8/8
STAMINA 22/22
LUCK 10/10
Equipment: Sword, Leather Armor, Shield
Provisions: 10 Meals (+4 STAMINA)
Potion: