[Let's Play] Fighting Fantazine Adventure 11: Ascent of Darkness

[Beroli]

You tell the Treeman of the Caarth, the growing desert and of the insidious threat to Carsepolis. ‘Hmmm,’ responds the Treeman, ‘I care little for the affairs of humans but I do not want the land to become a desert. Here – take this. It is food of the gods. Something you will need for your quest.’ The Treeman lowers its branches to present you with a bronze apple. One time, when you are asked if you have the Speed of Pangara or the Strength of Telak, you can eat the Bronze Apple of Prowess and answer "yes." You thank the Treeman and bid it farewell.

The forest begins to thin out a little again. After several days’ travel, you come to a camp full of rangers dressed in green and druids in white robes. Upon seeing you, two dozen rangers grab their bows and point them at you, ready to pincushion you with arrows if you make one false move. One of the druids approaches you. ‘Welcome, hero of Carsepolis. We know who you are and why you are here. Nevertheless, you have trespassed on our lands and we require you to prove your worth. If you can do so, then you will be free to travel through our lands. Otherwise, you will have to turn back and skirt our woodland. It will add an extra day to your journey but that will be no great hardship for you, I’m sure. This may be the best option for you if you are faint of heart, for the penalty of failing our challenge is death.’

You have Hubris.

You boast that you will beat any challenge that the druids could give you. The old druid merely smiles and tells you to follow him.

The druid takes you to a young woman in short white robes. ‘This is Atalanta, our fastest runner. If you beat her in a footrace, you may continue your journey with our blessing and gifts.’

The populace of the camp gathers round to see your race. The druid waits until all are quiet and you and Atalanta line up. ‘Go!’ shouts the druid, and Atalanta sprints off at an alarming pace, leaving you desperately trying to keep up with her.

Here it checks if you have the Speed of Pangara.

Use a Bronze Apple of Prowess?
Do not?
Feel free to make more complicated votes.

Name: Hermes Conrad
Sex: Male
Skill: 12/12
Stamina: 24/24
Luck: 13/14
Cunning of Logann
Hubris
Inventory: Sword, spear, shield (-1 to enemy Attack Strength), Steel helmet, 50 Gold Pieces, food, 5 torches, flint and tinder, water skin, 2 bronze apples of prowess (Speed of Pangara or Strength of Telak once each), silver apple of healing (restore Stamina to Initial score once, not usable in combat), golden apple of the gods (increase Initial Luck by 1 and then restore Luck to Initial score once).
Deaths: Shot full of arrows by an archer, stabbed in the back by an assassin

[JourneymanN00b]

I vote to use a Bronze Apple of Prowess for both tests.

[Thaluikhain]

Second that.

[Beroli]

You do have the Speed of Pangara.

Surprisingly to everyone, not least yourself, you manage to close the gap between yourself and Atalanta until you and her are neck and neck. Can you manage one final push to victory?

You do have the Strength of Telak.

Against all odds you pass the finish line before the fleet footed druidess. The crowd is flabbergasted, but the druid declares you the winner. Later that day, you are initiated as part of the tribe of the woodland with a feast and dancing. You are taken away from the merriment by the old druid to be given gifts upon becoming part of the tribe. You may pick any three of the following items.

A wooden ring
A copper ring
Leather gloves covered in thorns
An obsidian bat amulet
A polished pebble
A bracelet of green metal
A wooden sword

Vote on which three to take.

Name: Hermes Conrad
Sex: Male
Skill: 12/12
Stamina: 24/24
Luck: 13/14
Cunning of Logann
Hubris
Inventory: Sword, spear, shield (-1 to enemy Attack Strength), Steel helmet, 50 Gold Pieces, food, 5 torches, flint and tinder, water skin, silver apple of healing (restore Stamina to Initial score once, not usable in combat), golden apple of the gods (increase Initial Luck by 1 and then restore Luck to Initial score once).
Deaths: Shot full of arrows by an archer, stabbed in the back by an assassin

[JourneymanN00b]

I vote to take the bat amulet and bracelet of green metal, and half vote for the wooden ring.

[pragma]

Bat amulet, green metal bracelet, wooden ring

[Beroli]

The druid picks up the amulet by the leather cord holding it and places it around your neck ‘This amulet, when worn about the neck, will become hot if someone is sneaking up on you with malicious intent. It will also make you more alert in combat.’ Once per combat, you may either increase your Attack Strength by 2 for one round or, when you have hit an opponent, deal an extra 4 damage to them.

The bracelet has healing powers and it will make you immune to any poisons. At the end of each combat, the bracelet will restore 3 Stamina points.

‘This ring will confer the life and strength of the forest into you.’ While you are wearing this ring, increase your Initial Stamina by 2 and you may deal 1 extra point of damage whenever you win an attack round (stunt damage remains unchanged).

You have a joyful time at the dance and feast. The druids tend to your wounds (restore your Stamina to its Initial level). In the morning, you bid Atalanta and the rest of the tribe goodbye and continue your journey. You make good time through the woods and plains. You journey for several days until one morning when the sky is red from the dawn sun. As the first light spreads across the land, you see the shining city of Carsepolis in the distance. You are almost home.

You are sitting on a rock, eating the last of your rations when you see movement some distance away. You look in the direction of the movement to see a man in a leather jerkin aiming an arrow at you. He looses it. Before you can move, it hits you in the shoulder.

Throw your spear at him?
Chase him?

Name: Hermes Conrad
Sex: Male
Skill: 12/12
Stamina: 26/26
Luck: 13/14
Cunning of Logann
Hubris
Inventory: Sword, spear, shield (-1 to enemy Attack Strength), Steel helmet, 50 Gold Pieces, food, 5 torches, flint and tinder, water skin, silver apple of healing (restore Stamina to Initial score once, not usable in combat), golden apple of the gods (increase Initial Luck by 1 and then restore Luck to Initial score once), obsidian bat amulet (once per combat, you may either increase your Attack Strength by 2 for one round or, when you have hit an opponent, deal an extra 4 damage to them), bracelet of green metal (immune to poison, regain 3 Stamina at the end of each combat), wooden ring (+2 Initial Stamina, +1 damage).
Deaths: Shot full of arrows by an archer, stabbed in the back by an assassin

[JourneymanN00b]

I vote to throw the spear but not retrieve it. Then I vote to do everything else we did before heading off of the docks, excluding the actions that resulted in nothing, but buy the spear and shield this time.

[Beroli]

Your spear flies through the air and hits the man in the arm. You hear him yelp in pain before he runs off, and you give chase.

You briefly feel dizzy. The arrow was poisoned and you would die now if you did not have the bracelet.

You pull the arrow out of your arm and look around for the archer that ambushed you, but he is nowhere to be seen.

You did throw your spear at him.

Your spear is now on a rocky outcrop and it will require some climbing to get to.

You leave it there.

Eventually, you come to the gates of Caresepolis. The guards stand to attention and salute as you approach them. You walk through the gates and along the streets to where your house can be found. The atmosphere in the city is glum – it seems that a cloud has descended upon the people here. You walk up the stairs to your mansion where your steward is standing at the door, a look of melancholy upon his face. Upon seeing you, his face brightens.

‘My Lord…’ he says.

‘Greetings, Stelios. I will greet you properly when I have dealt with the infestation in my house.’ You stride down the corridors, following the sound of raucous merriment until you come to the banquet room. Your mother sits at the head of the long table bedecked with a glorious repast which is being torn apart by a score of drunk and uncouth courtiers like pigs feasting on caviar. Upon seeing you, the merriment stops. ‘I am the master of this house and you will all leave.’

‘Oh yeah?’ says one of the drunken courtiers, almost falling over as he gets up. ‘You won’t be ordering me about when I’m your daddy.’ Roars of laughter go up from the diners.

You remain stone faced. ‘If that’s the case, then you’re going to have to kill me.’

The young men all get up and draw short swords, eager for combat in the hope that you might kill some of their rivals. They all advance upon you with a drunken overconfidence. Once they are ten paces away, you draw your own sword and prepare your shield. You are going to enjoy teaching these men a lesson. Fight the courtiers as a single creature. As long as the courtiers’ Stamina is 10 or more, you must lose 1 Stamina point at the end of every combat round as you cannot block all of their blows.

COURTIERS Skill 8 Stamina 18

Hermes Conrad Attack Strength: 15, COURTIERS Attack Strength: 9. Stunt result 3, success. Courtiers bleed for 1. Amulet used for +4 damage. COURTIERS's Stamina is 10, Hermes Conrad's Stamina is 25.
Hermes Conrad Attack Strength: 21, COURTIERS Attack Strength: 17. Stunt result 3, success. Courtiers bleed for 2. COURTIERS's Stamina is 5.
Hermes Conrad Attack Strength: 14, COURTIERS Attack Strength: 12. COURTIERS are dead.

Your blows fell the courtiers easily. Some flee upon seeing your skill, but you chase them down and finish them off. Such is the penalty for being so disrespectful towards your house and your mother. You chase one man to his room and burst through the door. He is curled up on the floor. ‘Mercy!’ he shouts. When he sees the look on your face, he tries another tactic ‘I am the Crown Prince of Salamonis! Kill me and you may bring war upon Carsepolis. We might be too weak to fight you now, but think of how my murder will sound amongst the city-states. Spare me and I won’t hold it against you.’

You do not have Rage.

ou let the courtier go, and he thanks you profusely. He offers you a gift for sparing his life. It is a ring of charm – wearing it will make people react more favourably towards you. Obviously, it does not work on people who are enraged with you. You take the ring and tell the courtier that you never want to see him again.

Your mother is in the dining room, ordering the servants to clear up the mess that both the courtiers and yourself have made. When she sees you, she runs to embrace you. As she does, she cries with joy.

‘I am so glad to see you again. I cannot thank you enough for ridding me of those disgusting men,’ she says. ‘But now you must avenge your father. Search the city, find those responsible and kill them.’

You swear that you will not rest until your father’s murderers are dead. Once your house has been cleaned up, you and your mother enjoy a fine meal, and healers tend to your wounds. You feel blessed for ridding your house of a poisonous element. Restore your stamina to its Initial level and restore 1 Luck point. Your mother also gives you part of your inheritance – several hundred gold pieces in coins, gems and jewellery. Note that you have 1000 Gold Pieces. You also have a trireme which is moored at the docks, but you must find a new crew as your mother dismissed the old one when your father died. You lost your spear and so you take a new one.

Once you have finished, you set out into the city to find out who killed your father.

This spear is enchanted to deal extra damage to reptiles and their ilk. You discard your previous spear for it (any traits that spear had no longer matter, but it had none).

Despite being highly polished so that it reflects like a mirror and being well decorated, this shield is not enchanted. However, it is no worse than your ordinary shield, so you keep it.

You do not go to the wizards' guild or the docks as those accomplished nothing previously.

You approach the large doors of the palace and request to see the king on a matter of the utmost urgency. The guards let you in with a salute but they leave you waiting in the antechamber. You are getting very irritated by the time a priest in white robes appears. He introduces himself as High Priest Ikunum. You have never heard of this man before and you thought you knew everybody ‘I am sorry that the king cannot see you my lord, but is there anything I can help with?’ You tell him that you have a message of utmost importance and that it is for the king’s ears only. ‘Then you will have to return another time for the king is indisposed with the affairs of state.’ Ikunum asks the guards to escort you from the palace. Six heavily armed guards approach you. You do not want to fight the king’s men so you leave.

You hang around the palace to see who this Ikunum is and what he is up to.

You leave the palace, but instead of walking through the gardens to the gate, you skirt around the palace walls. You run straight into a patrol of guards, but when they see who you are and what you are doing, they let you go on your way. ‘I never trusted that Ikunum,’ mutters one guard. ‘His quarters are round the back of the palace on the ground floor.’ You thank the guards and continue on your way. When you get to Ikunum’s window, you peek inside in case there is anyone in the room. You could climb into the window to see if there is anything you can find.

You do have a bat amulet.

The talisman glows hot, and you whirl around to see a woman preparing to plunge a dagger into your back. You draw your sword and prepare to fight her. (If you had Achilles' Heel, and she rolled an 11 or a 12 and won the combat round, she would automatically kill you.)

ASSASSIN Skill 11 Stamina 11

Hermes Conrad Attack Strength: 23, ASSASSIN Attack Strength: 19. Stunt result 2, failure. Amulet does +4 damage. ASSASSIN's Stamina is 4, HERMES CONRAD's Stamina is 24.
Hermes Conrad Attack Strength: 17, ASSASSIN Attack Strength: 18. Stunt result 3, success. Hermes Conrad's Stamina is 22. Assassin bleeds for 1. Assassin's Stamina is 3.
Hermes Conrad Attack Strength: 18, ASSASSIN Attack Strength: 15. Stunt result 2, failure. Hermes Conrad's Stamina is 20. Assassin bleeds for 1. ASSASSIN is dead.

The sound of the battle attracts a dozen guards. They all look at the woman in bewilderment. You then search Ikunum’s rooms while the guards, who do not trust the priest, keep watch. You find letters to various people talking about the time of Elim, the old god of darkness, and also about bringing down the king. Armed with the evidence of treason, you lead the guards to Ikunum and declare that he is under arrest. Ikunum merely smiles and vanishes in a puff of smoke. You explain this all to the king who thanks you gravely. ‘I am indebted to you for revealing this traitor to me. For your mission, what is mine is yours – you have the use of my men if you wish.’

You now have a crew for your ship.

‘I have been suspicious of insidious goings on for some time. Powerful priests have sprung up from nowhere and have integrated themselves amongst the rich and powerful. I was always suspicious of Ikunum and sent spies to find anything out about him. Two of them were murdered. I see who did it now. If you can find out anything, please tell me. Now you must go, for I have the affairs of state to attend to.’ You thank the king, bow and return to the city.

You do not go to the taverns as that accomplished nothing previously.

The temple of Logaan looks like any other building, but all know of the strange goings on within its walls. Priests wearing multi-coloured robes enter and leave the building by the front door. You enter the building and are approached by the high priest. ‘Welcome to the temple of the tricksters my lord. How may we help you?’

You do have Cunning of Logann and used it to defeat the Caarth.

Upon seeing you, the priest’s jovial face turns serious. ‘I see you have undergone great trials, my lord, and I am glad that the cunning of the tricksters helped you. However, I still see that the balance has swung in the favour of chaos, and for this we must help you in order to restore the balance.’ The priest takes you to a room containing an Elvin hovering over a pool of water glowing with many colours. The priest whispers to the Elvin who dives into the water. After a few minutes, the Elvin surfaces and whispers to the priest. ‘There is a powerful and evil artefact of the Old Gods buried and forgotten in the Wizards’ Guild Archives. Those who upset the balance are searching for it. Find it first to save us.’

The priest gives you the blessing of the tricksters. Restore your Luck to its Initial level. You go on your way.

You approach the large doors of the Wizards’ Guild and knock on the brass knocker. A young apprentice in blue robes answers the door and welcomes you to the guild. The apprentice asks you how he may be of help.

You're looking for something specific.

You ask the apprentice to show you to the archives. He takes you down several winding stairs into a huge cavernous room with shelves stretching for as far as you can see. Upon the shelves are scrolls, books and artefacts of all descriptions. You are looking for a needle in a haystack. Test your Luck; you cannot fail this.

After several hours of fruitless searching, you are almost ready to give up, but then something catches your eye. It is a plain metal box. The metal has a blue sheen but it sticks out from the other artefacts because it is not decorated. If it were not for the strange colour of the metal, it would look like any other battered metal box. Cautiously, you open the box. As soon as you do, it seems that the lights dim. There is a dagger inside, made of black steel and surrounded by an aura of evil and darkness. You look upon it for barely a moment before there is a crash and you are engulfed in dust and smoke. When the dust clears, you see that a huge EARTH ELEMENTAL has broken its way through the floor and faces you, ready to crush you under its giant fists.

You do not have an enchanted melee weapon.

You charge at the elemental, but you cannot damage it. It crushes you beneath its stone fists.

Rewinding...

[Beroli]

You climb the outcrop but as you do, you graze your leg on a sharp rock (lose 1 Stamina point). Once you have recovered your spear, you continue your journey. Wary of further ambushes, you climb onto higher ground for the final leg of your journey.

Eventually, you come to the gates of Caresepolis. The guards stand to attention and salute as you approach them. You walk through the gates and along the streets to where your house can be found. The atmosphere in the city is glum – it seems that a cloud has descended upon the people here. You walk up the stairs to your mansion where your steward is standing at the door, a look of melancholy upon his face. Upon seeing you, his face brightens.

‘My Lord…’ he says.

‘Greetings, Stelios. I will greet you properly when I have dealt with the infestation in my house.’ You stride down the corridors, following the sound of raucous merriment until you come to the banquet room. Your mother sits at the head of the long table bedecked with a glorious repast which is being torn apart by a score of drunk and uncouth courtiers like pigs feasting on caviar. Upon seeing you, the merriment stops. ‘I am the master of this house and you will all leave.’

‘Oh yeah?’ says one of the drunken courtiers, almost falling over as he gets up. ‘You won’t be ordering me about when I’m your daddy.’ Roars of laughter go up from the diners.

You remain stone faced. ‘If that’s the case, then you’re going to have to kill me.’

The young men all get up and draw short swords, eager for combat in the hope that you might kill some of their rivals. They all advance upon you with a drunken overconfidence. Once they are ten paces away, you draw your own sword and prepare your shield. You are going to enjoy teaching these men a lesson. Fight the courtiers as a single creature. As long as the courtiers’ Stamina is 10 or more, you must lose 1 Stamina point at the end of every combat round as you cannot block all of their blows.

COURTIERS Skill 8 Stamina 18

Hermes Conrad Attack Strength: 24, COURTIERS Attack Strength: 12. Stunt result 1, failure. Amulet used to do +4 damage. COURTIERS's Stamina is 11. Hermes Conrad's Stamina is 22.
Hermes Conrad Attack Strength: 14, COURTIERS Attack Strength: 16. Stunt result 3, success. Courtiers bleed for 1. Hermes Conrad's Stamina is 19. Courtiers' Stamina is 10.
Hermes Conrad Attack Strength: 23, COURTIERS Attack Strength: 18. Stunt result 2, failure. Courtiers bleed for 1. COURTIERS's Stamina is 6. Hermes Conrad's Stamina is 16.
Hermes Conrad Attack Strength: 21, COURTIERS Attack Strength: 14. Courtiers bleed for 1. COURTIERS's Stamina is 2.
Hermes Conrad Attack Strength: 20, COURTIERS Attack Strength: 11. COURTIERS are dead.

Your blows fell the courtiers easily. Some flee upon seeing your skill, but you chase them down and finish them off. Such is the penalty for being so disrespectful towards your house and your mother. You chase one man to his room and burst through the door. He is curled up on the floor. ‘Mercy!’ he shouts. When he sees the look on your face, he tries another tactic ‘I am the Crown Prince of Salamonis! Kill me and you may bring war upon Carsepolis. We might be too weak to fight you now, but think of how my murder will sound amongst the city-states. Spare me and I won’t hold it against you.’

You do not have Rage.

Spare him?
Execute him?

Name: Hermes Conrad
Sex: Male
Skill: 12/12
Stamina: 19/26
Luck: 12/14
Cunning of Logann
Hubris
Inventory: Sword, spear, shield (-1 to enemy Attack Strength), Steel helmet, 50 Gold Pieces, food, 5 torches, flint and tinder, water skin, silver apple of healing (restore Stamina to Initial score once, not usable in combat), golden apple of the gods (increase Initial Luck by 1 and then restore Luck to Initial score once), obsidian bat amulet (once per combat, you may either increase your Attack Strength by 2 for one round or, when you have hit an opponent, deal an extra 4 damage to them), bracelet of green metal (immune to poison, regain 3 Stamina at the end of each combat), wooden ring (+2 Initial Stamina, +1 damage).
Deaths: Shot full of arrows by an archer, stabbed in the back by an assassin, crushed by an elemental

[JourneymanN00b]

Hold on, I thought the spear qualified as an enchanted weapon for the Earth Elemental, based on the description last time. I certainly would have decided to buy just the warhammer and spear if an “enchanted melee weapon” was required.

Anyway, I vote to execute him this time to see if our hero missed something from sparing him.

[Thaluikhain]

Actually, yeah, seeing as we'll probably die again soon and can reverse that decision if it's a bad one.

[pragma]

Still a half vote for sparing. That seems like the "right" play.

[Beroli]

Looking some more, you're right, it is possible to use the spear in melee, not just throw it. My mistake. Cancel that death.

EARTH ELEMENTAL Skill 12 Stamina 18

Since you do only 3 damage to the elemental's 4, vote on whether to do anything nonstandard.

[JourneymanN00b]

I vote to use the original plan that our hero has stuck to in combat situations like this, with the exception that if our hero gets to 8 Stamina or less, I vote to use Luck to deal extra damage.

[Beroli]

Hermes Conrad Attack Strength: 15, EARTH ELEMENTAL Attack Strength: 22. Stunt result 1, failure. Hermes Conrad's Stamina is 20.
Hermes Conrad Attack Strength: 20, EARTH ELEMENTAL Attack Strength: 14. Stunt result 6, success. Bat amulet gives +4 damage. Earth Elemental bleeds mud for 1. EARTH ELEMENTAL's Stamina is 10
Hermes Conrad Attack Strength: 18, EARTH ELEMENTAL Attack Strength: 20. Stunt result 5, success. Earth Elemental bleeds mud for 2. Hermes Conrad's Stamina is 18. Earth Elemental's Stamina is 8.
Hermes Conrad Attack Strength: 17, EARTH ELEMENTAL Attack Strength: 22. Earth Elemental bleeds mud for 2. Hermes Conrad's Stamina is 14. Earth Elemental's Stamina is 6.
Hermes Conrad Attack Strength: 23, EARTH ELEMENTAL Attack Strength: 16. Earth Elemental bleeds mud for 2. EARTH ELEMENTAL's Stamina is 2.
Hermes Conrad Attack Strength: 24, EARTH ELEMENTAL Attack Strength: 13. Earth Elemental is dead.

Your last blow reduces the elemental to rubble. You have just enough time to see a blue robed wizard holding the dagger before he disappears into thin air. Dozens of wizards run to where you are, including Platonus, the guildmaster. You explain to him what happened and what was stolen. It transpires that the dagger’s thief was Erishum, a powerful wizard who had recently worked his way up the ranks of the guild. ‘I never trusted him,’ says Platonus. ‘We must discover exactly what he has stolen and what the consequences might be.’

You, Platonus and several other wizards pore through books for several hours. Eventually, Platonus finds what he is looking for, but he is not happy. Rather, he is very worried. ‘I’m afraid what Erishum stole was the dagger of Elim, a powerful weapon of the Old God of Darkness. If the church of Elim is regaining power, then we are all in grave danger. They will want to see the world returned to chaos and darkness.’

‘But where did he go? Do you know that?’ you ask.

‘Yes,’ replies Platonus, ‘my scryers have traced the teleport spell. It seems that Erishum is on Fire Island, off the Allansia coast. Maybe they are building a base there. You will have to go there to stop them. I’m afraid our resources will be spent protecting the city and detecting other magical spies, so we cannot help you. You will have to sail there. Good luck.’

You thank the wizards and continue your investigations.

You go to the temple of Ashra.

The temple of Ashra is large, but it is starting to show the wear of age. The inside of the temple is almost empty. It seems that the Old Gods have fallen out of favour with the people. An old priest in white robes carrying a crystal-topped staff approaches you. ‘Welcome to the temple of Ashra, the light of the world. How may I help?’

You say you wish to become an acolyte.

‘We are always looking for new acolytes, but only those who are close to the gods already.’

You have Cunning of Logann and did use it to defeat the Caarth.

‘It is good that you wish to become an acolyte of the god of light for few wish to follow the old gods nowadays. However, those who wish to become acolytes must still pass dangerous and gruelling tests.’

You say you still wish to become an acolyte.

‘If you wish to become an acolyte of light, then you must face the darkness,’ says the priest as he beckons you to follow him down some stairs into the depths of the temple and below the city. ‘Much darkness is buried but a true acolyte of Ashra must bring it forward and banish it.’ As he finishes speaking, he comes to the end of a corridor where he lifts up a flagstone to reveal darkness. ‘You must face the creatures of darkness down there,’ he says. You descend the steps into the inky blackness. The scant light from the surface is extinguished as the priest moves the flagstone back into place.

You cannot see a thing. The warm damp air gradually gets colder but you cannot see why the temperature should decrease. Then you feel something cold on your arm. The cold spreads through your body. In one fluid motion, you pull away from the cold feeling and draw your weapon, lashing out in its direction. You hear an unearthly scream as your weapon connects with the thing.

You do have a torch.

Your light source banishes the darkness except for a patch in front of you. Your enemy is the darkness itself! The shadow monster momentarily shrinks from the light but then starts to advance upon you. You fight it and try to avoid its chilling touch.

SHADOW Skill 10 Stamina 12

Hermes Conrad Attack Strength: 15, SHADOW Attack Strength: 22. Stunt result 5, success. Shadow bleeds for 1. Hermes Conrad's Stamina is 15. Shadow Stamina is 11.
Hermes Conrad Attack Strength: 18, SHADOW Attack Strength: 13. Stunt result 6, success. Bat amulet does +4 damage. SHADOW's Stamina is 2.
Hermes Conrad Attack Strength: 23, SHADOW Attack Strength: 17. SHADOW is dead.

Your last blow causes the thing to scream. Then its assault stops. The priest opens up the flagstone to reveal an empty room. Where has the thing gone? You climb the stairs and follow the priest back to the temple where he picks up a masterfully made staff with a large crystal on top of it.

‘You have that divine light within you,’ says the priest. He lowers the crystal tip of the staff to your forehead and starts to mumble. As he does, the crystal starts to glow. The glow gets brighter until there is an almost blinding flash of light. ‘It has never done that before,’ says the priest, shocked. ‘It appears that Ashra has chosen you for something great and wants you to use her staff to fight a great darkness in this world. If you were to strike a follower of the Old God of darkness, Elim, with this staff they would be obliterated forever.’ You return to the city.

Will you next go to:

The docks?
The temple of Pangara?
The temple of Telak?
The temple of Logaan?
The temple of Vuh?

Name: Hermes Conrad
Sex: Male
Skill: 12/12
Stamina: 18/26
Luck: 13/14
Cunning of Logann
Hubris
Inventory: Sword, magic anti-reptile spear which can be thrown or used in melee, reflective shield (-1 to enemy Attack Strength), steel helmet, 450 Gold Pieces, food, 5 torches, flint and tinder, water skin, silver apple of healing (restore Stamina to Initial score once, not usable in combat), golden apple of the gods (increase Initial Luck by 1 and then restore Luck to Initial score once), obsidian bat amulet (once per combat, you may either increase your Attack Strength by 2 for one round or, when you have hit an opponent, deal an extra 4 damage to them), bracelet of green metal (immune to poison, regain 3 Stamina at the end of each combat), wooden ring (+2 Initial Stamina, +1 damage), Staff of Ashra.
Deaths: Shot full of arrows by an archer, stabbed in the back by an assassin

[JourneymanN00b]

Do everything we did up to the point we had the choice of facing the archer, and hope that the spear works.

[pragma]

Did we go to the temple of Logan last time? I suspect we'll get rewarded for some cleverness there. I vote for that if it is not already covered by Noob's plan. Docks after that.

[Thaluikhain]

Yeah, try temple of Logann.

[Beroli]

You did go to the Temple of Logaan; this is what happened.

"The temple of Logaan looks like any other building, but all know of the strange goings on within its walls. Priests wearing multi-coloured robes enter and leave the building by the front door. You enter the building and are approached by the high priest. ‘Welcome to the temple of the tricksters my lord. How may we help you?’

You do have Cunning of Logaan and used it to defeat the Caarth.

Upon seeing you, the priest’s jovial face turns serious. ‘I see you have undergone great trials, my lord, and I am glad that the cunning of the tricksters helped you. However, I still see that the balance has swung in the favour of chaos, and for this we must help you in order to restore the balance.’ The priest takes you to a room containing an Elvin hovering over a pool of water glowing with many colours. The priest whispers to the Elvin who dives into the water. After a few minutes, the Elvin surfaces and whispers to the priest. ‘There is a powerful and evil artefact of the Old Gods buried and forgotten in the Wizards’ Guild Archives. Those who upset the balance are searching for it. Find it first to save us.’

The priest gives you the blessing of the tricksters. Restore your Luck to its Initial level. You go on your way."

Do you now choose to:

Go back to the Temple of Logaan?
Go to the docks?
Go to the docks, set sail, and throw the spear at the archer when he shoots you again?
Something else?

Name: Hermes Conrad
Sex: Male
Skill: 12/12
Stamina: 18/26
Luck: 13/14
Cunning of Logaan
Hubris
Inventory: Sword, magic anti-reptile spear which can be thrown or used in melee, reflective shield (-1 to enemy Attack Strength), steel helmet, 450 Gold Pieces, food, 5 torches, flint and tinder, water skin, silver apple of healing (restore Stamina to Initial score once, not usable in combat), golden apple of the gods (increase Initial Luck by 1 and then restore Luck to Initial score once), obsidian bat amulet (once per combat, you may either increase your Attack Strength by 2 for one round or, when you have hit an opponent, deal an extra 4 damage to them), bracelet of green metal (immune to poison, regain 3 Stamina at the end of each combat), wooden ring (+2 Initial Stamina, +1 damage), Staff of Ashra.
Deaths: Shot full of arrows by an archer, stabbed in the back by an assassin

[pragma]

Docks, set sail, throw spear

[JourneymanN00b]

I vote to go to the docks, set sail, and throw the spear at the archer this time.

[Beroli]

You go down to the docks where you see your trireme, a fine ship, ready to sail. All she needs is a crew and a destination.

You have both.

You head down to the docks to meet your crew. Then you hear a whistling sound and an arrow hits you in the chest. Lose 4 stamina points. You look around to see that the archer from outside Carsepolis is now on a boat some way down the harbour, and he is firing arrows at you at an alarming speed. Another arrow grazes your shoulder (lose 2 stamina points).

You throw your spear at him.

You hurl your spear at the archer as he looses off more arrows at you.

Perhaps you were hoping that he would turn out to be secretly a lizardman, or that the spear has undocumented powers. Unfortunately, when I said the first time "Your spear is not enchanted at all, never mind specifically enchanted against this archer," that did denote a very specific check.

Your spear is enchanted, but not in a way that helps you here.

As the spear flies through the air, another arrow hits you. The spear strikes the archer, but he continues to fire arrows at you relentlessly. You try to run to the boat to fight him, but you are peppered with arrows and you cannot make it. Eventually, with a dozen arrows sticking out from your body, you collapse at the docks, never to get up again.

Rewinding...

[Beroli]

You climb the outcrop but as you do, you graze your leg on a sharp rock (lose 1 Stamina point). Once you have recovered your spear, you continue your journey. Wary of further ambushes, you climb onto higher ground for the final leg of your journey.

Eventually, you come to the gates of Caresepolis. The guards stand to attention and salute as you approach them. You walk through the gates and along the streets to where your house can be found. The atmosphere in the city is glum – it seems that a cloud has descended upon the people here. You walk up the stairs to your mansion where your steward is standing at the door, a look of melancholy upon his face. Upon seeing you, his face brightens.

‘My Lord…’ he says.

‘Greetings, Stelios. I will greet you properly when I have dealt with the infestation in my house.’ You stride down the corridors, following the sound of raucous merriment until you come to the banquet room. Your mother sits at the head of the long table bedecked with a glorious repast which is being torn apart by a score of drunk and uncouth courtiers like pigs feasting on caviar. Upon seeing you, the merriment stops. ‘I am the master of this house and you will all leave.’

‘Oh yeah?’ says one of the drunken courtiers, almost falling over as he gets up. ‘You won’t be ordering me about when I’m your daddy.’ Roars of laughter go up from the diners.

You remain stone faced. ‘If that’s the case, then you’re going to have to kill me.’

The young men all get up and draw short swords, eager for combat in the hope that you might kill some of their rivals. They all advance upon you with a drunken overconfidence. Once they are ten paces away, you draw your own sword and prepare your shield. You are going to enjoy teaching these men a lesson. Fight the courtiers as a single creature. As long as the courtiers’ Stamina is 10 or more, you must lose 1 Stamina point at the end of every combat round as you cannot block all of their blows.

COURTIERS Skill 8 Stamina 18

Hermes Conrad Attack Strength: 24, COURTIERS Attack Strength: 12. Stunt result 1, failure. Amulet used to do +4 damage. COURTIERS's Stamina is 11. Hermes Conrad's Stamina is 22.
Hermes Conrad Attack Strength: 14, COURTIERS Attack Strength: 16. Stunt result 3, success. Courtiers bleed for 1. Hermes Conrad's Stamina is 19. Courtiers' Stamina is 10.
Hermes Conrad Attack Strength: 23, COURTIERS Attack Strength: 18. Stunt result 2, failure. Courtiers bleed for 1. COURTIERS's Stamina is 6. Hermes Conrad's Stamina is 16.
Hermes Conrad Attack Strength: 21, COURTIERS Attack Strength: 14. Courtiers bleed for 1. COURTIERS's Stamina is 2.
Hermes Conrad Attack Strength: 20, COURTIERS Attack Strength: 11. COURTIERS are dead.

Your blows fell the courtiers easily. Some flee upon seeing your skill, but you chase them down and finish them off. Such is the penalty for being so disrespectful towards your house and your mother. You chase one man to his room and burst through the door. He is curled up on the floor. ‘Mercy!’ he shouts. When he sees the look on your face, he tries another tactic ‘I am the Crown Prince of Salamonis! Kill me and you may bring war upon Carsepolis. We might be too weak to fight you now, but think of how my murder will sound amongst the city-states. Spare me and I won’t hold it against you.’

You do not have Rage.

Spare him?
Execute him?

Name: Hermes Conrad
Sex: Male
Skill: 12/12
Stamina: 19/26
Luck: 12/14
Cunning of Logann
Hubris
Inventory: Sword, spear, shield (-1 to enemy Attack Strength), Steel helmet, 50 Gold Pieces, food, 5 torches, flint and tinder, water skin, silver apple of healing (restore Stamina to Initial score once, not usable in combat), golden apple of the gods (increase Initial Luck by 1 and then restore Luck to Initial score once), obsidian bat amulet (once per combat, you may either increase your Attack Strength by 2 for one round or, when you have hit an opponent, deal an extra 4 damage to them), bracelet of green metal (immune to poison, regain 3 Stamina at the end of each combat), wooden ring (+2 Initial Stamina, +1 damage).
Deaths: Shot full of arrows by an archer, stabbed in the back by an assassin, shot full of arrows by an archer

[JourneymanN00b]

I *was* hoping that the archer was a lizard man.

Anyway, I vote to kill the courtier this time.