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

maglag · Post by **maglag** » Tue Dec 22, 2015 12:14 pm

We want to collect as much ghost powers as possible. Try to learn Invisibility.

Berkserker · Post by **Berkserker** » Tue Dec 22, 2015 1:35 pm

I can dig that. Ghost powers activate! ...hopefully.

angelfromanotherpin · Post by **angelfromanotherpin** » Tue Dec 22, 2015 1:49 pm

Yeah, that's a Casper classic; go for it.

SGamerz · Post by **SGamerz** » Tue Dec 22, 2015 2:12 pm

maglag wrote:We want to collect as much ghost powers as possible.

Well.....

....actually, although we'd cause a mass panic and have to go through a fight, we do end up unlocking another ghostly power if we allow ourselves to be seen, too.

Since Isolde's SKILL of 12 means she auto-passes the SKILL test, she only needs to pass the WILL test to unlock the new power....

Dice roll = 4 (Success!)

You are able to make your incorporeal form invisible to the human eye, dissolving into the shadows with a single thought. Record the Shade special ability on your Adventure Sheet and turn to the paragraph with the same number as the one that you were just instructed to write down.

And in a trice it's as if you weren't there at all, your ghostly form dissolving into the darkness that permeates the shadowy corners of the room. As you survey the bar, your attention is drawn to two men seated at a corner booth. The first Is dressed completely in black, with a broad-brimmed hat on his head, and a velvet cape around his shoulders. He is also festooned with all manner of charms and is holding a finely-wrought, basket-hilted silvered rapier in one black-gloved hand. His companion looks like nothing less than a thug. The rogue's nose has obviously been broken on more than one occasion, the tattoo of a spider's web covers one side of his shaven head - although he still sports a bushy beard - and a contraption that looks like a silver bear-trap hangs from his waist by a chain. Approaching their table you listen in on their conversation.

'Form what I hear, the old Burgomaster up at the grand house seems to think this cesspit's crawling with lost souls,' the tattooed man whispers out of the corner of his mouth.

'Then my holy work may progress a-pace,' the darkly-dressed gentleman mutters, a look of grim satisfaction on his face. 'My brother shall be avenged! I shall rid this Sleath of its ghost once and for all, or my name is not Josef Van Richten.'

'And a pretty penny it'll cost 'em, too,' his companion sniggers.

'Streng,' the other scolds, 'that is not why we are here.'

'No, but it helps. Cover our costs as it were. That's all I'm saying.'

'It is time I retire for the evening, to prepare for the work that awaits me here,' And with that the ghost hunter rises from his seat. Followed by his bruiser of a henchman, he makes his way upstairs; his must have taken a room at the inn.

If you think the ghost hunter could help with the search for your killer and want to follow him upstairs, turn to 331. If not, there is no point in delaying here any longer and so you depart the tavern.

The brother mentioned by Josef Van Richten is a character who appears in 'Howl of the Werewolf' (another Jonathan Green FF) as Vampire-hunter. I don't think he had a first name in that book, though. So apparently, this is something of a family trade.

Do we want to risk getting close to the local ghostbuster?

Darth Rabbitt · Post by **Darth Rabbitt** » Tue Dec 22, 2015 11:49 pm

If he's related to a character from the same author he's probably good news. So let's try to get his help.

angelfromanotherpin · Tue Dec 22, 2015 11:55 pm

He probably knows more about ghosts than we do, hit him up for info.

SGamerz · Post by **SGamerz** » Wed Dec 23, 2015 12:31 pm

Darth Rabbitt wrote:If he's related to a character from the same author he's probably good news.

I don't think that should ever be used as a guideline.

In Deathtrap Dungeon, there was a certain female troll who was related to a city guard in the City of Thieves.....and she was anything but good news. And of course, FF21 features Baron Sukumvit's brother.....who was probably the biggest asshole in the entire book.

Still in your shadow form, you follow the ghost hunter and his accomplice to one of the inn's guest bedrooms. While Streng makes himself uncomfortable in a chair outside, watching the corridor for any signs of danger, you easily slip past him and follow Van Richten into the room. Having closed the door behind you both, the Ghost Hunter goes over to a table by an open window where he unrolls a velvet cloth containing the tools of his ghost-hunting trade. There is a crucifix, a flintlock pistol and silver bullets, a flask of holy water, a holy talisman, and so on and so forth. You get the feeling that you won't get a better chance to talk to him than this and so, with a single thought, you re-materialize in the room directly in front of him.

Before you can say anything, the ghost hunter leaps up knocking over his chair with a cry of, 'Gods preserve me!' He grabs the container of holy water from the table and throws it at you. Where it touches your wraith-like form it burns like acid. Roll one die and lose that many STAMINA points. (If this has finished you off, write the number 259 on your Adventure Sheet and turn to 100.)

You try to explain why you are there and that you need his help but Van Richten won't listen. 'Have at you, hellish spectre!' he declares, grabbing his silvered blade from the table. 'In the name of Libra I shall exorcise you from this place and banish you to the outer darkness to join your evil masters there.' And then you are fighting for your un-life once again.

JOSEF VAN RICHTEN SKILL 10 STAMINA 9

If the ghost hunter slays you for a second time by doing away with your undead form, write the number 259 on your Adventure Sheet and turn to 100. If you make it to six Attack Rounds without being killed again, turn to 365 at once. If you manage to kill the ghost hunter in less than six Attack Rounds, turn to 383.

Turns out that he's the fanatically-devoted-to-his-job type. That holy water looks nasty....

Dice Roll = 5 STAMINA loss! Ouch!

If we want to kill him in less than 6 rounds, we literally need to win every round, since Isolde can't afford to gamble her low LUCK for extra damage.

COMBAT LOG:

Josef Van Richten 18, Isolde 20. JVR is at 7.
JVR 18, Isolde 18. Tie.
JVR 16, Isolde 19. JVR is at 5.
JVR 20, Isolde 20. Tie.
JVR 16, Isolde 19. JVR is at 3.

Although not enough to damage us, he's just skilled enough to survive for six rounds!

The door suddenly bursts open and the ghost hunter's henchman enters the room. You must now fight the two men together. Streng's stats are as follows.

STRENG SKILL 8 STAMINA 8

The weapons they bear are enchanted so as to be able to harm undead creatures, such as you. If both Van Richten and Streng wound you on two consecutive Attack Rounds, turn to 208. If your ghost-form should be slain by the ghost hunter or his henchman, wrote the number 250 down on your Adventure Sheet and turn to 100. However, if you manage to defeat both your opponents' turn to 383.

At least the henchman's stats don't look too scary, so the chances of them both hitting us for 2 straight rounds aren't very high. Let's focus on finishing off the bigger threat (Van Richten).

COMBAT LOG (continued):

JVR 18, Isolde 20. JVR is at 1.
Streng 12, Isolde 19. Isolde avoids Streng's attack.
JVR 19, Isolde 18. Isolde is at 12.
Streng 18, Isolde 19. Isolde avoids Streng's attack.
JVR 14, Isolde 24. JVR is slain.
Streng 17, Isolde 21. Isolde avoids Streng's attack.
Streng 16, Isolde 17. Streng is at 6.
Streng 19, Isolde 20. Streng is at 4.
Streng 16, Isolde 19. Streng is at 2.
Streng 13, Isolde 21. Streng is killed.

The nastiest encounter we've had so far due to the holy water damage. Also, since we fought humans and not other spirits, this is one of those fights where we don't get to absorb life essence from defeated opponents to regain STAMINA after combat.

Hearing shuts from outside the room you realize that the noise of your battle with the ghost hunter has alerted the attention of others elsewhere in the inn. This whole exercise has been a disaster from start to finish and you don't want things getting any worse. You decide that the best course of action you can follow now is to look elsewhere for aid. Fleeing from the room and the inn you return to the village square.

Too bad we don't have the physical form to loot all f Van Richten's equipment. Pretty sure they'd have been useful.

Anyway, we've explored al the places of interest in Sleath, so the only thing left for us is to continue our way back to our castle.....

And then you come before the main gate of Valsinore Castle. This was the place where you and your sister played as children and which became your responsibility upon the death of your father at seventy years old, and who had himself been widowed many winters before. But your ancestral home appears anything but welcoming to you now. Its high crenulations loom over you while its torch-;it windows seem to stare down with malignant intent. There is an oppressive atmosphere hanging over the place.

You have seen neither hide nor hair of the Death Acolyte since your encounter with him and his murdering band on the moor turnpike, but you can't shake the feeling that the truth you are searching for will be found within your castle home. But how do you plan on gaining access?

Two guards, armed with halberds, are on sentry duty before the main gate. However, you do know of another way in. Along the eastern wall of the outer ward of the castle is a culvert, a drain that lets filth and waste water out under the wall and down over the cliff edge into the sea. The prospect of crawling up a sewer - even if you are a ghost - does not fill you with glee, and staring up at the looming walls you wonder what it would be like to soar over them in your spectral form.

If you want to try to fly over the battlements, turn to 75. If you would rather try gaining entry through the culvert, turn to 36. Then again, if you simply want to approach the main gate and the guards on duty there, turn to 242.

How do we want to get into our own house?

Adventure Sheet:

Name: Isolde Laodegan
SKILL: 12/12
STAMINA: 12/19
LUCK: 7/7
WILL: 9
Equipment: Nightslayer
Abilities: Apparition, Poltergeist, Shade

angelfromanotherpin · Post by **angelfromanotherpin** » Wed Dec 23, 2015 2:23 pm

Approach gate, seems like Shade-ing through is possible.

SGamerz · Post by **SGamerz** » Sat Dec 26, 2015 4:07 am

Hope ya'all had a Merry Christmas!

The main entrance to Valsinore Castle stands within the imposing edifice of the Outer Gatehouse. Two guards stand on duty here but there are other defenses besides them, including the sturdy gates themselves, a heavy iron portcullis, murder holes, a siege ballista and a second portcullis. Nobody gets in or out unless the castellan wills it. But that person should be you, and right now you are on the wrong side of the gate.

As you move in sight of the gate you consider what would be the best way to gain entrance. If you have the Spectre special ability and wish to use it, turn to 272. If you have the Shade special ability and wish to use it, turn to 334. If you possess neither of these abilities, or do not want to use them, you will just have to approach the gatehouse as you are.

We only have one of the abilities listed, and the one vote we got from the last option indicated that he favoured using Shade anyway, so let's proceed....

At a thought you melt into the darkness and approach the gate. As you pass between the two sentries unseen, one of the shoots an anxious glance at his companion, the hairs on the back of his neck rising. 'Did you feel that?' he asks, a panicked look in his eyes.

'Feel what?' the other says, sleepily.

'I don't know,' replies the first, 'A feeling like someone just walked over your grave.'

'No,' yawns the second. 'You're imagining things.'

You have got as far as the main gate but you still need to get into the castle. If you have the Apparition special ability and wish to use it, turn to 414. If you have the Poltergeist special ability and want to try that instead, turn to 363. if you have neither if these abilities, the only option left open to you is the drainage culvert.

For some reason, we've lost the option to consider flying.

Thankfully, we do have both abilities listed! Which one do we use here?

maglag · Post by **maglag** » Sat Dec 26, 2015 7:14 am

Poltergeist will probably rise the alarm since everybody will see the gate moving on its own. Use Apparition!

angelfromanotherpin · Post by **angelfromanotherpin** » Sat Dec 26, 2015 1:35 pm

Apparate like your tail's on fire.

Darth Rabbitt · Post by **Darth Rabbitt** » Sat Dec 26, 2015 3:10 pm

Apparate.

SGamerz · Post by **SGamerz** » Sun Dec 27, 2015 1:20 am

You are inside the castle at last, within the courtyard of the large Outer Ward to be precise. Overhead, the moon hangs like a silvery orb amidst the backdrop of a myriad stars limning the buildings in its monochrome light.

You take a moment to reacquaint yourself with your castle home, having been away for so long. It appears to be as you remember it but you can sense a sinister atmosphere hanging over it like a funerary shroud. Flitting through the air above the castle is a multitude of incandescent ethereal forms, spiraling and moaning on the chill wind coming in off the Diamond Sea.

In the south-eastern corner of the courtyard is the familiar thatched-roofed structure of the smithy where you would quite happily while away hours at a time in your youth, watching the blacksmith at work, forging weapons, repairing armour and shoeing horses. Opposite the smith against the western wall of the Outer Ward are the castle stables and a little further along, abutting the northern wall that divides the Outer Ward from the Inner is the sturdy stone blockhouse that is the Guard Barracks. Guarding the entrance to the Inner Ward, the Barbican is an imposing three-storey tower, more like a small keep than merely a guardhouse. Next to the Barbican, steps lead up to the battlements while below them, against the east wall are the kennels, where the lords of Valsinore have kept their hunting hounds ever since your ancestors had the fortress constructed centuries ago.

You still have no real idea about who ordered that you be killed or where the Death Acolyte fled to, but you have an overwhelming feeling that inside the castle is where you will find the answers that you so desperately seek. So, where would you like to visit first?

The smithy?
The stables?
The guard barracks?
The battlements?
The kennels?

If you would rather not delay here, you can leave the Outer Ward and make for the Inner Ward, approaching the Barbican that separates there two parts of the castle.

Where do we begin our ancestral home tour?

Shiritai · Post by **Shiritai** » Sun Dec 27, 2015 3:57 am

Strike while the iron is hot! Visit the smithy!

angelfromanotherpin · Post by **angelfromanotherpin** » Sun Dec 27, 2015 5:58 am

Let us seek out the metal-worker.

SGamerz · Post by **SGamerz** » Sun Dec 27, 2015 6:16 am

The welcoming ruddy glow of the working forge draws you through the darkness towards the blacksmith's workshop. The blacksmith has left the door open, as always, to stop the heat inside becoming unbearable. The heat even warms your chill phantom form. You cautiously peer inside.

It is just as you remember it. You have fond memories of this place. As a child you would while away hours within the sphere of its warmth, watching Bertild the smith working at her forge, shaping pieces of armour on the anvil or perfecting sharp-edged weapons.

And Bertild's there now, working at her forge. Bertild is a tall, thick-set woman, with heavily-muscled arms and shoulders and is unmistakable thanks to the eye-patch she wears over her left eye where a silver of red-hot iron once caught her in the eye. She wears a heavy-duty apron and has a heavy-handed hammer in one thick-gloved hand and the piece of metal she is working held in a pair of tongs in the other.

You are about to enter the smithy when you notice that salt has been poured in the line across the threshold. If you want to cross this salt barrier, turn to 231. If you would rather call out to the blacksmith first, turn to 14.

Do we want to alert her yet?

maglag · Post by **maglag** » Sun Dec 27, 2015 9:27 am

Don't want to get salty, warn the youth lesbian love crush smithy about our presence.

angelfromanotherpin · Post by **angelfromanotherpin** » Sun Dec 27, 2015 1:59 pm

Call out. Crossing the ward is a dubious endeavor in any case.

SGamerz · Post by **SGamerz** » Mon Dec 28, 2015 11:59 am

Bertild the blacksmith looks up from her hammering and freezes. 'Then what they've been saying is true,' Bertild gasps and a single tear courses down her soot-smeared check. 'Here, come in, come in,' she says, hurrying over to the door and clearing a gap in the salt barrier to let you across before closing the door behind you. 'Tell me, what happened?' the woman mumbles, obviously in some distress.

And so you sit down in the comforting warmth of the forge, in the company of one of your oldest and most trusted friends, and tell Bertild how you were cut down within sight of home for the first time after three years away, and everything else that has befallen you since.

'I swear by Verlang and the spirits of the forge,' she says, a grim expression on her face, 'your death shall not go unavenged.'

To hear Bertild say that fills you with hope and you begin to believe that it truly is possible. (Regain 1 LUCK point and add 1 to your WILL score.)

'Valsinore Castle is under a curse.' the blacksmith says. 'These are dark times indeed. But listen to me going on. Tell me, what s it you need to know that you might achieve your vengeance?'

Remembering all the times you spent watching Bertild at her forge, you decide that she might be in possession of unique knowledge that could serve you well in your quest. Will you ask her whether she knows of the existence of any weapons or armour that may aid you in your quest, ask her if she has any idea as to who would have wanted you killed, or will you ask her if she knows of anyone else resident within the castle who could help you?

News of our death seems to have travelled pretty fast....

What do we want to ask our childhood crush the metal-worker?

maglag · Post by **maglag** » Mon Dec 28, 2015 12:04 pm

Request for gear upgrade. I doubt she's well versed in the matter of the necromancers of the land, and we can always go explore the rest of the castle on our own in case we're limited to one question because of plot.

Darth Rabbitt · Post by **Darth Rabbitt** » Mon Dec 28, 2015 1:49 pm

Ask our old friend for new equipment.

SGamerz · Post by **SGamerz** » Mon Dec 28, 2015 2:39 pm

'Weapons a ghost could wield,' Bertild ponders and then a twinkle enters her one good eye. 'Legend has it that hidden somewhere within Valsinore Castle is the Amethyst Blade, a magical blade with sinister life-draining powers, but from its description it could be a weapon of Evil as much as one employed by the forces of Good. And I don't know if you could wield it in your present state.' The blacksmith suddenly looks glum again. 'There was one thing that might have helped but it was taken.'

'What was it?' you ask.

'I fashioned the most wonderful suit of automation armour, a device of great artifice that would not only protect its wearer to the utmost degree but could actually fight for them. It took me the best part of a year to construct. I had almost perfected it when those dread knights of Unthank's broke in and stole it away from me.'

'Do you know where it is now?'

'I believe it was taken to the lock-up in the Barbican. The knights guard it night and day and no one's allowed in or out of there now.'

Is it just me or does the blacksmith look a little ghostly herself?:

Hearing the rattle of shifting coals coming from the forge, Bertild breaks off abruptly and you both turn to see what's making the noise. Unbelievably something is climbing out of the forge fire, two small figures formed from the coals and clinker itself, stirring the flame into crackling life as they do so. The drop from the fire onto the floor and stalk towards you, spitting and hissing like popping embers.

'We are discovered!' Bertild exclaims. 'Someone has been eavesdropping on our conversation,' she says as she stumbles to her feet, taking up her hammer and grabbing a red-hot poker from the fire. Bertild takes on the first of the clinker creatures while you deal with the second.

CLINKER SKILL 6 STAMINA 6

If the magical creature defeats you, write the number 434 on your Adventure Sheet and turn to 100. If you destroy the spark-splitting Clinker, Bertild, having beaten her opponent into a pile of cold ash, turns to you and says, 'You had best be away from here before anything else finds you, and so I bid you farewell and good luck!' You cannot fault Bertild's assessment of the situation and so leave the smithy, as the blacksmith restores the salt barrier behind you. Add the codeword Ironheart to your Adventure Sheet and turn to 434.

Hah, this is our mysterious murderer's idea of a magical assassin? Even Anvus would have kicked its clinker butt.

COMBAT LOG:

Clinker 13, Isolde 18. Clinker is at 4.
Clinker 16, Isolde 21. Clinker is at 2.
Clinker 9, Isolde 18. Clinker is destroyed.

Choosing somewhere you haven't been before, where would you like to go now, within the Outer Ward of the castle?

The smithy?
The stables?
The guard barracks?
The battlements?
The kennels?

If you would rather not delay here, you can leave the Outer Ward and make for the Inner Ward, approaching the Barbican that separates there two parts of the castle.

Next stop!

Adventure Sheet:

Name: Isolde Laodegan
SKILL: 12/12
STAMINA: 12/19
LUCK: 7/7
WILL: 10
Equipment: Nightslayer
Abilities: Apparition, Poltergeist, Shade
Codewords: Ironheart

angelfromanotherpin · Post by **angelfromanotherpin** » Mon Dec 28, 2015 4:05 pm

One of the things I dislike about this book is how little info you get about your own fucking house and the people in it. 'The blacksmith is totally a great friend of yours and a magical artificer' is information that might inform which location a person visited, is what I'm saying. If we visit the stables, will we suddenly remember that the ostler is an asshole with a magic whip? Who knows? That shit turns a situation from one where you can make reasonable guesses about where to go into a blind-choice fest, and it reduces immersion because the character is withholding immediately pertinent information from the player. It's pretty terrible.

Anyway, go to the kennels, dogs are cool.

SGamerz · Post by **SGamerz** » Wed Dec 30, 2015 12:28 pm

To be fair, I'm not sure our character was supposed to know in advance that Bertild was skilled at magical-artificing. This is possibly the first and only one of such creation by her, and it's not even completely clear whether it was magic or just really advanced mechanism/technology that she only just mastered.

I can see your point about immersion, it'll certainly help a lot if the player were given whatever information that the character already. The fact that it would mean the author has to put in more work to take those information into account in presenting his in-game options is probably one of the main reason why almost all the other FF books consist of just faceless generic PCs exploring random new lands/dungeons he knows nothing about (you can't present the traditional random left/right options when the character is supposed to know exactly where he should be going).

About the blind-choice thing....I'm don't think that matters too much, at least with the way it's presented in this book. The information is given to you as soon as you visit the relevant place, so unless the location is an auto-death trap that kills you as soon as you visit it, it's not as if it's that much of a difference-maker. You may be more eager to visit the smithy first if you knew you had a friend there, but it doesn't really hurt to visit it last instead. In fact, although the text didn't tell us exactly how close we are to the blacksmith, it did mention that we used to spend a lot of time in the smithy watching the smith at work, so that would have been a good indication that visiting it is a tempting option for the PC.

There is one location where withholding the information from the player that the character should have really affects the gameplay in a bad way (I think we'd be coming upon it soon), and I really hate that particular part....but I think it's the only one I can think of in this book.

At least we do have some background information that gives us reason visit the kennels, which I'm surprised hasn't been brought up. We were told in the introductory text that the one other member of the castle (other than our sister) that we're most eager to see again is our pet wolfhound, so let's go meet him....

As you enter the kennels you hear the dogs chained up within whining in fear. Wolfhounds and lean hunting dogs cower before your ghostly presence or start barking furiously, but you know that none of them can hurt you. However, their barking may well alert others within the castle to your presence. (Add the codeword Barking to your Adventure Sheet.)

But one of those animals present does not tremble and whine in your presence but instead runs up to you, barking in delight and wagging its tail. It is your own hunting hound, Korzen, your faithful companion who you have not seen for three years, since you left him behind to keep your sister Oriana and the castle safe from harm.

If you have the phrase Fool's Bargain recorded on your Adventure Sheet, turn to 23; if not, turn to 43.

We don't have the codeword....

...which is a good thing. Like I mentioned earlier, if we had asked Mother Toadsfoot to help boost our power, there would have been a pretty horrible price: we would be forced to kill the first being we meet and that we dearly love. And the dog apparently qualifies as such a being. Bertild apparently doesn't qualify....I guess we're not really THAT close to her! We can resist the hex and not kill the dog, but there would be a pretty nasty stat penalty for it.

Seeing your old friend again fills you with a renewed sense of hope. And now that the two of you have been reunited, there's no way Korzen is going to allow himself to be left behind again. Your search of the kennels having turned up nothing else, as you head out into the courtyard of the Outer Ward again, the wolfhound follows you, trotting along at your side.

From now on Korzen will accompany you as you explore Valsinore. This means that whenever you are involved in a battle with a corporeal creature (including demons, undead that have a physical form, such as zombies, and magical constructs, as well as other people and animals) Korzen will harry you opponents, which has the effect of reducing their Attack Strength by 1 point. However, he can do nothing to help you against other incorporeal creatures such as other ghosts; these you will have to face alone. (Regain up to 2 LUCK points, add 1 to your WILL score and record the phrase Best Friend on your Adventure Sheet.) Now turn to 434.

This gives us an effective SKIL of 13 against half of your opponents! And our WILL is now close to the level where we'll be immune to normal test failures.

434 is back at the section where we pick another place to visit. Where to now? (Options left are stables, barracks, battlements, or proceed Inner Ward)

Adventure Sheet:

Name: Isolde Laodegan
SKILL: 12/12
STAMINA: 12/19
LUCK: 7/7
WILL: 11
Equipment: Nightslayer
Abilities: Apparition, Poltergeist, Shade
Codewords: Ironheart, Barking, Best Friend

angelfromanotherpin · Post by **angelfromanotherpin** » Wed Dec 30, 2015 1:39 pm

Dog companion is extremely sweet. Hm, two out of five entirely positive encounters is pretty good for FF. Barracks and battlements are probably manned with enemies, and I don't know what we'd expect to gain from the stables. So while in general more content is more gooder, I think the Inner Ward is our best bet at this point.

The Gaming Den

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

Who do we want to play as?