[Let's Play] Fighting Fantasy 64(?)-Night of the Necromancer

[Darth Rabbitt]

Yeah, the evil chancellor we couldn't possess because he's here.

[SGamerz]

Unthank is right.

Although we missed the direct evidence that he's the one who masterminded our murder, I guess it's not that hard to work out.

Like I said, this riddle section is the harshest part of the book due to the simple fact that failing to answer any of the 3 correctly is a direct game over. We don't get killed here (so no going to hell and regenerating and coming back later), but we're forever trapped here.

The most tricky one is the very first riddle. The reference, like angel said, is not too obscure and possible to guess, but since there're 2 ways to find the answer in the book, I'm actually not sure if we're supposed to be able to pass without getting those clues. After all, guessing the answer like we did would mean Isolde suddenly getting meta-knowledge from outside the FF world.

As abruptly as it appeared, the light is gone, plunging the entrance hall into darkness once more. But, undaunted, you continue on your way until it opens out into a vast chamber and you begin to realize how much the Keep has been altered in the time you've been away.

The interior of the vast structure is now nothing more than a shell. The upper floors and internal walls have been pulled down, the rubble from this mass destruction piled in great drifts of brick and stone at the sides of the vast chamber so created. Where once the skeletons of those bests slain by the lords of Valsinore Castle were displayed in all their ossic glory, now there is only a pile of broken bones. On the other side of the chamber, at the north-west and north-east corners of the Keep, you can see two still-intact spiral staircases, leading up, towards the battlements, and down, into the dungeons, respectively.

But it would seem that there is life in these calcified remains yet. As you enter the chamber, some of the bones start to move, rattling across the stone floor towards each other, joining together as if they remember how they once connected in life. And yet bones from all manner of shattered skeletons and joining together in this way as something monstrous manifests within the shell of the Keep. How will you deal with this latest threat? Will you:

Race across the chamber towards the north-west staircase?
Try to make it to the north-east staircase?
Prepare to fight whatever it is that is manifesting here?

And of course, the interior of the Keep is conveniently re-designed and renovated. I bet this is just a flimsy excuse for the author to give us more random direction options later as we can no longer find our way in our own ancestral home. Well, at least he bothers to give an excuse this time.

Fight or run?

[Mr Shine]

Run for the north-west, (up) staircase.

[angelfromanotherpin]

North-west is fine. Is there ever an explanation for why there's a three-riddle barrier out of nowhere?

[Darth Rabbitt]

I'll third northwest.

[SGamerz]

North-west is fine. Is there ever an explanation for why there's a three-riddle barrier out of nowhere?

No official explanation, but presumably the same reason why PCs often encounter riddle/puzzle games while going through the Game(book) Bosses' lairs. Unthank decided to set them after making this his new lair.

A bony tail suddenly comes out of nowhere and whips you off your feet. (If you still have a physical body lose 2 STAMINA points.) You now have no choice but to fight whatever it is that is coming into being here.

Again, there's no real explanation given, but going for the other stairway allows us to avoid the fight with a successful LUCK test, but this one is an auto-failure.

The last few bones slot into place and then the Bonebeast is complete. But what is it that stands before you now? From the bones of which monster was it formed? Roll one die. On a roll of 1-2, turn to 153; on a roll of 3-4, turn to 183; on a roll of 5-6, turn to 212.

Die roll = 2

The bones that make up the body of the Bonebeast are mainly those of dragons, wyverns and the various other worms slain by your ancestors around the time of the Rise of Kakhabad. So prepare yourself for a titanic struggle indeed.

DRAGONKIND BONEBEAST SKILL 11 STAMINA 12

If the Bonebeast wins an Attack Round, roll one die and consult the table below to discover what damage it inflicts upon you.

Die Roll - Attack and Damage

1-3 - Terrible Claws - the Bonebeast savages you with its cruelly sharp claws. Lose 2 STAMINA points.
4-5 - Tail Lash - the dragon-thing's tail hits you, knocking you off your feet. Lose 2 STAMINA points and reduce your Attack Strength by 1 point for the duration of the next Attack Round as you get up again.
6 - Savage Bite - the monster catches you in its mouth and sinks its fangs into you. Lose 4 STAMINA points.

If you manage to defeat the Bonebeast, turn to 236. Alternatively, after three Attack Rounds have elapsed you can attempt to flee by running for the descending staircase. If you want to do this you must forfeit one Attack Round and suffer the consequences, but if your gamble pays off, turn to 205. However, if your battle with the Bonebeast results in your ethereal form being destroyed, write the number 110 on your adventure Sheet and turn to 100.

We have an option to run from the fight here, but note that this option leads to us running down the northeast staircase, not the one we were previously heading for. Do we want to try running? Or stay and kill the thing so that we get a choice where to go next?

[Mr Shine]

With a Korzen/Nightslayer combo bonus that makes its effective stats SK10, ST8, let's fight it.

[MisterDee]

Assuming it doesn't maul us too badly in the first three rounds we have to fight anyway, let's fight it.

[SGamerz]

Thou shalt not deprive us of free directional choice!

COMBAT LOG:

Dragonkind Bonebeast 17, Isolde (Marrok) 16. Marrok rolls a 3 and takes 2 damage. Marrok is at 18.
DB 14, Isolde (Marrok) 18. DB is at 9.
DB 17, Isolde (Marrok) 17. Tie.
DB 16, Isolde (Marrok) 18. DB is at 6.
DB 20, Isolde (Marrok) 21. DB is at 3.
DB 20, Isolde (Marrok) 20. Tie.
DB 14, Isolde (Marrok) 22. DB is destroyed.

At your killing blow, the necromantic magic holding the Bonebeast together is dispelled in a burst of noxious energy, and it crumbles into a pile of skeletal remains once more. Amidst all the bones and rubble that fills the interior of the Keep, you find scraps of treasure and a few other items of interest, which are only going to be of any use to you if you still have a physical body with which to carry them. If you do, and you want to pause for a bit of treasure-hunting, turn to 273. If not, which way do you want to go from here; up the north-west spiral staircase or down the north-east stairs?

Do we want to try searching for loot (yeah, that took a particularly long time for this option to pop up, compared to most FF)? If not (or after that), do we still want to go upstairs like we wanted earlier?

[angelfromanotherpin]

Benefits of the flesh! Loot!

[Darth Rabbitt]

Hunt up some treasure.

[SGamerz]

Roll two dice, a total of three times, to see what you manage to collect from the rubble. (If you roll a umber you have rolled before, you do not find anything that turn.)

Dice roll Treasure
2 Potion of Skill - you have the codeword Host you can drink this to restore your host body's SKILL score to its Initial level.
3 Shield - add 1 to your SKILL score (even if this takes it above its Initial level).
4 Velvet Purse - containing 6 Gold Pieces.
5 Potion of Strength - if you have the codeword Host you can drink this to restore your host body's STAMINA score to its Initial level.
6 Firestone Ruby - worth 8 Gold Pieces.
7 Dry Provisions - enough for 2 Meals.
8 Potion of Fortune - if you have the codeword Host you can drink this to restore your host body's LUCK score to its Initial level.
9 Jet Amulet - carved to resemble a human skull.
10 Battleaxe - after a successful hit, on a roll of 5-6 on one die, will cause 3 STAMINA points damage; however, it is not a magical weapon.
11 Onyx Medallion - worth 4 Gold Pieces.
12 Ironbane - you find a leather pouch containing spores of this metal-eating fungus.

When you are done searching for treasure, will you leave this chamber via the north-west spiral staircase, or the north-east stairs?

1st Die roll = 4! Well, I wouldn't say no to valuables, but could have bee something more interesting...

2nd Die roll = 8! We got a luck potion....pity it can't take us above Initial score, so our LUCK is still gonna suck. :/

3rd Die roll = 5! Another potion (for STAMINA).

Now, are we sure we want to go upstairs like we were going to? Or take the north-east stairs down instead?

Adventure Sheet:

Name: Isolde Laodegan
SKILL: 12/12 (Host: 11/11)
STAMINA: 13/19 (Host: 18/22)
LUCK: 7/7
WILL: 13
Equipment: Deathsbane, Nightslayer (does 3 STAMINA damage on Undead), Velvet Purse (worth 6 GP), Potion of Fortune (restire LUCK to full), Potion of Strength (restore STAMINA to full)
Abilities: Apparition, Poltergeist, Shade, Spook, Fizzgig the Homunculus (3 uses out of 4 following spells: Banish Undead, Luck, Skill, Strength)
Codewords: Ironheart, Barking, Best Friend, Steed, Gateway, Devourer, Rest In Peace, Banshee, Catacombs, Watcher, Host, Hellfire
Provisions: 6 Meals (+4 STAMINA each)

Note: When fighting opponents with physical forms, opponents' Attack Strength is reduced by one while Korzen ("Best Friend") is with us.

[angelfromanotherpin]

If the guard-beast didn't want us to go up, then up we go.

[Darth Rabbitt]

Yeah, I assume it was guarding the stairs up for a reason.

[SGamerz]

Making your way up the winding stair you come at last to a turret room that must be at the very top of the Keep. The room is completely empty, apart from the shimmering ball of light three metres in diameter, hovering at its centre, and the object you can just about make out through the glare of the swirling surface of the spectral sphere. It would appear to be a book of some kind. Will you:

Enter the sphere of light?
Strike the shimmering sphere with your weapon?
Use the Banish Spirit special ability (if you have it)?
Re-trace your steps and descend the north-east stairs?

I almost forgot we still have that spell-casting homunculus with us! Do we want to try banishing, entering, or attacking it?

[Darth Rabbitt]

Banish it to the Shadow Realm!

[angelfromanotherpin]

I am a little concerned that since there's no obvious spirit that this is a decoy to draw out and waste our banish. But it's also a good opportunity to learn if this book does that sort of thing. Banish away!

[MisterDee]

We have (theoretically) three shots of Banish, right?

Blue option.

[SGamerz]

The Spirit Sphere disappears in an explosion of actinic light, accompanied by the howling of spirit voices, as a tremendous rushing wind fills the turret room. The book that was previously suspended at the heart of he sphere drops to the floor with a bang.

It is an evil-looking thing, bound in what you hope is only black leather and bearing the image of a leering human skull on its front, along with its name: Codex Mortis. If you want to take this book of dark magic with you, add it to your Adventure Sheet. Whether you do or not, there is nothing left to do other than to leave the chamber again.

Dropped with a bang? Must be one heavy book. We can probably use it to hit opponents over the head even if we can't use its "evil" contents!

We're now directed back downstairs...

Descending the staircase you enter the dungeons that lies beneath the great Keep. This is an area you had little to do with when you were alive but now that you're dead you have little choice but to explore the dungeons; your nemesis awaits you somewhere within the dark passageways and half-forgotten cells.

It is not long before you come to a plain wooden door in the right-hand wall of the passage. The only thing of interest about it is the sign that has been written on a torn scrap of parchment in what appears to be red ink - although it could well be blood - and nailed to the door. It reads, "KEEP OUT!" but you can't help noticing that the door is slightly ajar. If you want to enter the chamber beyond, turn to 185. If you would rather continue on your way, turn to 56.

Do we obey the sign? And do we take the "evil" book?

[angelfromanotherpin]

Take the book, disobey the sign.

[Darth Rabbitt]

Agreed. Pick up the Necronomicon and enter the chamber.

[SGamerz]

You find yourself inside an utterly appalling room. It is a torture chamber - there can be absolutely no doubt about that. The implements of the torturer's trade are everywhere - braziers, chairs covered in iron spikes and all manner of confining irons litter the dungeon cell or hang by chains from the ceiling . But some are as deserving of awe as the two-metre tall iron maiden that stands in the centre of the chamber. It has been made to mimic the shape of the human body, having two arms and two legs, as well a trunk and a head. But you could never have guessed how closely it resembles a human being until, with a squealing of rusted iron joints, the horrific torture implement comes to life. Stomping across the floor on its iron-shod feet blocks your way out of the torture. If you have some Ironbane and wish to use it, turn to 128, otherwise you have no choice but to fight the magically-animated Iron Maiden, which is as capable of injuring you as you are of damaging it.

IRON MAIDEN SKILL 8 STAMINA 10

If you are fighting the magical metal construct with a crushing weapon - such as a hammer of some kind of your own iron fists - or a magical weapon, each successful strike you make against it will inflict 2 STAMINA points of damage. Ordinary bladed weapons (such as battelaxe or a dagger) will only cause 1 STAMINA point of damage with each successful hit. If you destroy the torture chamber's guardian, you leave its cell as quickly as possible. If, during the battle, your spirit-form perishes, write the number 56 on your Adventure Sheet and turn to 100.

While I understand this is obviously magically-animated, I'm not sure why it should be able to hit our spirit-form....

Well, even if we didn't pick up Nighstlayer, Marrok has his own magic weapon, so no problems there, at least.

COMBAT LOG:

Iron Maiden 18, Isolde (Marrok) 21. IM is at 8.
IM 14, Isolde (Marrok) 20. IM is at 6.
IM 16, Isolde (Marrok) 18. IM is at 4.
IM 16, Isolde (Marrok) 15. Marrok is at 16.
IM 14, Isolde (Marrok) 19. IM is at 2.
IM 13, Isolde (Marrok) 18. IM is destroyed.

A little further, along the passageway you come to another door, this time on your left. However, this one is made from the same black wood as the Spirit Door that first prevented you from entering the Keep and has the same arcane symbols etched into it in silver. Unless you still have a physical form, and know what to do, you will not be able to pass beyond this door. When you are ready to proceed along the passageway, turn to 436.

This section has an asterisk, so we may add 30 to the section number to proceed....but to we want to check what's behind the door?

[Darth Rabbitt]

Check it out.

[angelfromanotherpin]

Seeing more content is good, and getting a full accounting of the crimes that have been committed here in our absence is also good.

[MisterDee]

Sure, look at the content (also, I think we should be nomnoming our Meals whenever useful - we're loaded with health refills, and if we die we lose it all. To me that screams "keep HP as full as possible" especially considering that this book tends to have tough opponents.)