[LP] More gamebooks?

Stories about games that you run and/or have played in.

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What should I run first?

DestinyQuest 2: The Heart of Fire
2
29%
Fighting Fantasy: The Port of Peril
5
71%
Give Yourself Goosebumps Special Edition 1: Into the Jaws of Doom
0
No votes
Storytrails 3: The Evil of Mr. Happiness
0
No votes
Storytrails 4: The Haunters of Marsh Hall
0
No votes
Virtual Reality 4: Necklace of Skulls
0
No votes
Virtual Reality 6: Twist of Fate
0
No votes
 
Total votes: 7

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Darth Rabbitt
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[LP] More gamebooks?

Post by Darth Rabbitt »

So I've gotten a few gamebooks over the holidays and also had a few that I considered running at times on top of that. In alphabetical order (with all quotes coming from the respective back covers). Choose up to 8 different gamebooks!

DestinyQuest #2: The Heart of Fire
The world will be cast down in fire. And from its ashes, an archdemon will rise.

You are a prophet, both gifted and cursed by your strange powers. Imprisoned in the infamous dungeon of the inquisition, you are tormented by visions of a nightmarish future. No-one has ever escaped. Doomed to live out your days in chains and darkness, a twist of fate provides you with a chance for freedom - to take on a new identity and start a new life. But no matter where you go, where you hide, you can never escape the haunting images of your own prophecy ...

Is it possible to outwit destiny and change the future? You decide in this epic fantasy adventure - the highly anticipated follow-up to the bestselling gamebook The Legion of Shadow. Every decision you make will have an impact on the story - and, ultimately, your fate.
The first book was of course covered by angelfromanotherpin. Mechanics are mostly the same, with some new abilities and classes of course, and also there's a team battle subsystem (more on that if this one's picked.)

Fighting Fantasy: The Port of Peril
Are YOU brave enough to face the savage demons of the underworld...?

Evil stalks the land as undead hordes rise from their graves to terrorize the living. Embark on an epic quest from Moonstone Hills, to the shadowy streets of Port Blacksand, to the depths of Darkwood Forest and ultimately face your worst nightmare...
This is another FF book by Ian Livingstone (which may or may not mean we want high stats) and makes references to a lot of his other books. It has a different art style for its illustrations, which I think is for the worse (again, more on that if this one's picked.)

Give Yourself Goosebumps Special Edition #1: Into the Jaws of Doom
TALK ABOUT A JAWBREAKER!

Help! You're trapped in the Hall of Science. And a mad Super Computer wants to keep you there forever.
Escaping is the ultimate challenge. Because in this book, there's only one way out. That's right. Make one mistake--and you're cake!
The Hall of Science is filled with tools you can use to protect yourself against a terrifying T-rex, a rampaging robot arm, and other enemies. But look out! The giant mutated germ will make you sick. And the pendulum will hypnotize you...to death!
The choice is yours in this scary GOOSEBUMPS adventure. It's packed with over 20 super-spooky endings--but only one way out!
Give Yourself Goosebumps were among the first pieces of interactive written fiction I read, and I still have the whole series (minus the later Special Editions.) The writing quality isn't very good but if anyone has a Goosebumps itch this will scratch it. Most were basically Choose Your Own Adventures with no game mechanics (some not even really trying to be spoopy in any way) but this one has inventory management, die rolling, and as the back cover gushes about, a One True Path (the later Special Editions were less ambitious).

Storytrails #3: The Evil of Mr. Happiness
You have been recruited by the CIA to investigate some very strange happenings on an island in the Caribbean. Can you carry out your dangerous mission in the face of killer bats, trained assassins and the evil Mr Happiness himself?
Most of what SGamerz said about the Storytrails series in the LP of the first one is true here. This one is essentially a Bond story.

Storytrails #4: The Haunters of Marsh Hall
You have become the owner of the mysterious Marsh Hall. You find yourself alone at night in a mansion that is haunted by . . .
Can you survive the terrors of the night - and learn the secret of Marsh Hall?
And this one is a horror story. As far as I can tell they all cover different genres.

Virtual Reality #4: Necklace of Skulls
The sole survivor of an expedition brings news of disaster. Your twin brother is lost in the trackless western sierra. Resolving to find out his fate, you leave the safety of your home far behind. Your quest takes you to lost jungle cities, across mountains and seas, and even into the depths of the underworld.

You will plunge into the eerie world of Mayan myth. You will confront ghosts and gods, bargain for your life against wily demons, find allies and enemies among both the living and the dead. If you are brave enough to survive the dangers of the spirit-haunted western desert, you must still confront the wizard called Necklace of Skulls in a deadly contest whose stakes are nothing less than your own soul.
I actually have the Critical IF re-releases of these books (in which this book is #3 in the series). I don't know how heavily they differ, if at all, but I'm listing them first and foremost as the Virtual Reality versions since those are the ones that the other two in the series that have been done here are. Mechanically they're similar to the previous two VR books, barring a couple of different skills. This one is especially notable to me since I can't think of a single other gamebook that focuses on Maya culture.

Virtual Reality #6/Critical IF #4: Twist of Fate/Once Upon a Time in Arabia
You have made a powerful enemy. Jafar, advisor to the Caliph, plans a coup that will put him on the throne of Baghdad. You are the only one who can warn the Caliph, but who will listen to a penniless adventurer? Especially as Jafar's assassins who are scouring the city to find you.

You will go in search of the fame and fortune that will give you the means to expose Jafar’s treachery. Striking out from the city, your travels take you to the furthest corners of the world. Your travels take you to ghoul-haunted oases, magical palaces, lost cities of gold, and uncharted isles full of mystery and danger. Threatened by bandits, fire wizards, thieves and fearsome creatures, you must risk all in your determined quest to save the kingdom.
I have heard that this one was heavily revised (certainly it was the only one to have its title changed.) I also love that the villain is basically described as and is literally named after the bad guy from Disney's version of Aladdin here.
Last edited by Darth Rabbitt on Sat Jan 13, 2018 2:29 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Post by Thaluikhain »

Always had a thing for the FF books, myself, even if the newer ones aren't quite the same.
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Post by Omegonthesane »

Full vote for DestinyQuest 2 if we get to play as Trellis as she was at the end of DestinyQuest 1 with her ability that could literally never be used in that book.
Half a vote for it otherwise.
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Post by angelfromanotherpin »

I heard that the DestinyQuest books improved as the series went on, so I'd def like to see what the next one is like without having to pay for it or type out the mega-sections.
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Post by SGamerz »

I'm familiar with the last 4 books, so I'd take any of the first 3, which I haven't read before.
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Post by Darth Rabbitt »

Omegonthesane wrote:Full vote for DestinyQuest 2 if we get to play as Trellis as she was at the end of DestinyQuest 1 with her ability that could literally never be used in that book.
Half a vote for it otherwise.
We wouldn't be able to play as her for most of the book but we would be able to use her for the team battles (ability included). I'm not sure if that would count as a half or not. I'll call that 3/4 of a vote?
angelfromanotherpin wrote:I heard that the DestinyQuest books improved as the series went on, so I'd def like to see what the next one is like without having to pay for it or type out the mega-sections.
I intend to do what you did with the first one, i.e. comment as I run it. I haven't yet finished the third book, but I intend to run it at some point after the second (I suspect I'll be a bit worn out after doing the second so I'll probably do a shorter book next). A fourth is supposed to come out at some point this year after being in development hell for about 3 years.

According to the posts in this thread, it's somewhere between 1.5 and 2 for Heart of Fire, 1 for Port of Peril, and 1 for [any one of DQ, FF or Goosebumps], which would make DestinyQuest 2 take the lead. According to the poll it's 3 for Port of Peril with no votes opposed. I'm not sure exactly how to process that, so unless there's more votes for Heart of Fire I guess I'll start with Port of Peril and then do the second DestinyQuest afterwards. I'll set up the topic tomorrow after I get back from work, but votes are still open until then.

edit: just as I posted this a 4th vote came in for Port of Peril, probably making it the winner! Heart of Fire will be done afterwards.
Last edited by Darth Rabbitt on Fri Jan 12, 2018 5:00 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Post by Queen of Swords »

I have all the original FF books, but the first of the new ones I bought was Eye of the Dragon, which was so ridiculous that it made me reluctant to pick up another Livingstone book. That said, this would be a great way to test Port of Peril beforehand.
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Post by SlyJohnny »

The virtual reality books are awesome, let's do one of those.
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Post by Darth Rabbitt »

So first off is The Port of Peril, which will probably be followed by The Heart of Fire (unless there are objections).
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