[Let's Play] Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Gamebook #8: Nightmare Realm of Baba Yaga

[Thaluikhain]

I suggest running away.

[JourneymanN00b]

I vote to run as well.

[Beroli]

"Mjolnir!" you shout. "Let's get out of here before that thing smashes us to pieces!"

Without replying, Mjolnir breaks into a run, easily outdistancing you, despite his shorter legs, as the two of you fly through the museum with the iron golem behind you. As you run, a horrible thought occurs to you.

"If I remember correctly," you shout, "Nicodamus once said iron golems can breathe poisonous gas!"

Mjolnir glances briefly behind him and wails aloud, "Darn you, Jerrak! I think you went an ' put ideas in that thing's head!"

You turn in horror. The golem, sensing that it can't outrun you, has stopped some distance behind. Its iron jaws open, and a huge green cloud of boiling vapor spews out toward you. You realize it will reach you in seconds!

You see an open door ahead. Mjolnir hurries through, leaving it open for you. Moments before you reach the exit, however, the green cloud of gas blasts past you and pushes the door closed. Unable to stop, you slam into the door, jamming it shut.

Your lungs begin to fill with poisonous gas. At first you can only cough., the incredible fumes burning your eyes, your throat, your sinuses. You stagger back from the door, your lungs aching as if they were on fire.

I've got to get out of here! you think desperately. Wheezing and gasping, you grab for the door and tug on the knob. It won't move! Desperately you summon all your strength and jerk on the knob as hard as you can.

Roll 1d6 and add Jerrak's Strength of 4. 6 or higher is successful. Will you spend one Experience Point?

[JourneymanN00b]

I vote no on spending an experience point.

[deaddmwalking]

I'm okay not spending any XP here.

[Thaluikhain]

Again I'm leaning towards spending a point more as we go on, but I'm ok not spending any just yet.

[Beroli]

Your result is a 9, success.

The door groans as you tug desperately on it. You're blind from the stinging in your eyes, racked with coughing from the poisonous green vapor that fills the air around you, and terrified that you're going to die before you have a chance to rescue the Sage Beryl.

Suddenly the door pulls free! Staggering through the doorway, you barely have strength to pull the door shut behind you before the floor rushes up to meet you....

What seems like ages later, you awaken as cool water splashes against your face. Coughing, you roll over and manage to sit up. Your lungs ache and your eyes and nose are running uncontrollably--but you're alive!

"It's 'bout time you got up, Jerrak," Mjolnir says with obvious relief. "I was gettin' kinda worried 'bout you, I was. Looks like you took a good snort o' gas there."

"I'll--cough!--be fine--cough, cough, cough!" you gasp through a dry, itchy throat. You force yourself to relax and try to catch your breath. Soon you feel well enough to continue. You get to your feet and look around in the new room you've entered.

As your eyes adjust to the bright light, you're astonished to see that you've apparently entered a museum of some sort. Beautiful paintings, mounted in solid gold frames, hang on white marble walls. Fine statuary, carved from the finest quality stone and disturbingly lifelike, rests on pedestals or stands on the floor. Cases and cases of jeweled necklaces, bracelets, tiaras, rings, headbands, earrings, and crowns flash beneath globes of crystal light, suspended from the ceiling on sparkling silver chains.

Mjolnir's breath is taken away momentarily. When he recovers, he whispers softly, "In all my born days as a thief, I never guessed I'd see a place like this! Ain't no king or queen ever had this much wealth!"

You know what's going through his mind. No guardians seem to be about, and Mjolnir's gotten little in the way of treasure from this adventure so far. Perhaps it wouldn't hurt to let him take a little souvenir before moving on in search of the Sage Beryl....

Let Mjolnir take a few items?
Stop him from doing so?

Jerrak Kimbal
Hit Points: 50/50
Experience Points: 6
Judgment Points: 6
Fighting: 4
Strength: 4
Observation: 4
Mjolnir's Stealth: 3
Starlight's Antimagic: 3

[Thaluikhain]

Nope, stop him.

[deaddmwalking]

Keep your eyes in the prize. Maybe later, but no treasure now

[JourneymanN00b]

I also vote to stop him.

[Beroli]

Mjolnir reaches out toward a glass case filled with sparkling rings. Quickly you catch his arm.

"After all we've been through here," you say evenly, "do you think that Baba Yaga would leave all these riches undefended? Use your head, Jole!"

Mjolnir hesitates, then bites his lower lip. "You don't s'pose the ole witch' d miss just one bitty ring, do you?"

"What do you think?" you say in exasperation. "The ring would probably rot your arm off or turn you into a radish or something. Forget it! Let's go!"

Mjolnir sighs and nods in grudging agreement, and once more you set off in search of the Sage Beryl.

Mjolnir follows you through the museum, through gallery after gallery of untold riches and exquisite art masterpieces. You feel tiny and insignificant when you think of the meager possessions you've accumulated in your own life. How can you hope to achieve success against a witch with power and wealth such as this?

Just as you are thinking of turning back, Mjolnir tugs at your sleeve. "Jerrak," he says. "Look at that sign over there." You follow his gaze to a sign hanging over a small alcove.

THE SAGE BERYL

Sitting on crystalline pedestal, on a cloth of the finest white silk, is a fist-sized green gem that glows faintly in the museum's light.

You can't believe your good fortune! The Sage Beryl! Your grandfather's gem! The magical gem that contains your old friend Nicodamus!

You start forward, then suddenly come to a dead stop. There must be a trap somewhere nearby! You ask Mjolnir to check, but he finds no traps at all nearby.

Shivering with excitement, you reach out for the Sage Beryl.

Roll 1d6 and add your current Judgment Points. You may not add Experience to this roll. Something different will happen for a result of 1-3, 4-6, 7-9 or 10-12. The result is 11.

You grab the Sage Beryl in your hand-and an old, familiar voice cries, "Jerrak! Jerrak!"

"Nicodamus!" you shout, delirious with joy. "Finally I've found you!"

"Is that th' green gemstone a-talkin', or what?" Mjolnir asks in surprise. You hastily introduce the dwarf to the unseen mage hidden inside the gem.

"Jerrak, you shouldn't have come after me in Baba Yaga's hut!" Nicodamus says in excited tones. "You've put yourself in grave danger!"

"I had to do it," you tell him hurriedly. "The witch destroyed grandfather's mansion and ate everyone there. I had to get you back, at least!"

"I have some news for you concerning that," Nicodamus says, "but first you've got to get out of here. If Baba Yaga catches you--"

Another voice interrupts the conversation--a sharp voice, chill as winter's wind. "I just might let you go..."

When you and Mjolnir spin around, you see a hunchbacked old woman in filthy robes standing only a few feet behind you. Her face is incredibly ugly. Her long nose is covered with warts, and two tusks curve up from her lower lip. Her catlike eyes burn with a white, unholy fire that chills you to the bone.

"You're a mere mortal," the hunchbacked woman continues. "I've seen more mortals pass through here than I can count. At least you're a clever one, and I don't happen to be particularly hungry at the moment--not even for dwarf, which happens to be a favorite of mine." She leers at Mjolnir, who turns pale.

"But fortunately for you, I've decided to let you go," she finishes. "You're no threat to me, and watching you romp your way through my hut offered me amusement. My sorcerous powers allow me to see everything."

The witch extends a clawed finger and traces a glowing red rune in the air before her. "I hereby cast you out of the hut and back into the swamp. Getting home from there is your problem."

VA-ROOM! With a loud explosion, you and Mjolnir find yourselves standing outside the dancing hut, ankle deep in thick mud. The Sage Beryl is still in your hand!

The gem is still and silent as you turn it over and over in your hand, your heart pounding. "Nicodamus!" you shout aloud. "Nicodamus, are you there?"

"Jerrak!" cries a familiar voice from the gemstone as it begins to pulse brightly. "We've escaped, my boy! You've done it! How did you ever manage to find me?"

You hastily explain the events since you discovered the ruins of your grandfather's mansion, including your quest to recover the Sage Beryl. "You're all that I have left now," you finish sadly.

"Not so!" shouts Nicodamus, the green beryl fairly glowing with light. "Watch!"

Nicodamus utters a few magical phrases from inside the Sage Beryl. Suddenly a host of people appear all around you. Stunned, you recognize your grandfather and all of his servants and assistants!

"Baba Yaga didn't eat them after all," Nicodamus explains as everyone shouts for joy at their escape. "I used my powers to draw them safely inside the beryl so Baba Yaga couldn't harm them!"

After a joyful reunion with your grandfather, you, Mjolnir, and the whole company begin to make your way out of the depths of the swamp. It will be a long journey back to ciVilization, but it will be a happy one.

"I wish I coulda picked up just a little bit o' treasure from that there hut!" Mjolnir grumbles. "But at least I got a few good stories t' tell about th' trip."

You likely took the fastest route to the Sage Beryl, so this was quicker than I expected. Let me know if you have any questions!

[deaddmwalking]

That was fast! None of the choices seemed random so confirmation that we mostly made good choices isn't totally surprising.

Were there any insta-deaths that we avoided? If we had failed some of the checks would that have diverted us to a longer path? What would success on that first perception check have given us? Just avoided the skull encounter?

Thanks for running this. Hope you're up for running another soon.

Assuming I could get my hands on one if these types of books, any that you are keen to play?

[Thaluikhain]

Thanks for running.

[Beroli]

Yes. Trying to push over the iron golem would have been an instadeath. "You realize it weighs tons. Then you realize you've gotten close enough for it to grab you. Then..."

If you had succeeded on the initial observation test, you would have seen the skull before it saw you and gone around it, encountering an imp. (The swamp also held a criosphinx, hobgoblins, and a black dragon who you could have encountered before getting into the hut.) Failing the Strength check and falling off the roof would have meant (in addition to taking damage) that you couldn't get in through the trapdoor, and thus wouldn't start already in the museum.

And hm. What kind of book do you have in mind? This (Advanced Dungeons and Dragons) kind specifically, or any gamebook...?

And I appreciate the thanks.

[deaddmwalking]

This or any other kind. I don't even mind running one that's already been run. Hopefully people don't remember all the details with perfect recall. Provided I can find a copy (which usually isn't too hard).

[JourneymanN00b]

Thank you for running this and holding the line, Beroli. This is especially in light of my recent health issues, which are now concerning for me and a big factor on my current inability to host any Let's Plays on my end anytime soon. I am considering *every* available option at this point, with some of them taking up a lot of my time and money to carry out. Let's see if I get significantly better in near future. If I do, I do have a couple of titles in mind...

[Beroli]

I hope your health improves soon, JourneymanN00b.

[Beroli]

This or any other kind. I don't even mind running one that's already been run. Hopefully people don't remember all the details with perfect recall. Provided I can find a copy (which usually isn't too hard).

Okay well. Going off the list found here, ones that I am interested in include:

1986 Super Endless Quest 6: Master of Ravenloft
2014 Fabled Lands Quest: Keep of the Lich Lord
2021 ACE Gamebooks 6 Dracula - Curse of the Vampire (note: high chance that JourneymanN00b will run this at some point)
1984 Golden Dragon 1 Crypt of the Vampire (original version, not revised)
1984 Golden Dragon 2 Temple of Flame (warning: it's a meat-grinder, so if you choose this one, I strongly recommend not stopping at the first--or tenth--death)
1985 Golden Dragon 3 The Lord of Shadow Keep
1985 Golden Dragon 4 The Eye of the Dragon
1986 Golden Dragon 5 Curse of the Pharaoh
1986 Golden Dragon 6 Castle of Lost Souls
1986 Marvel Super Heroes 1. The Amazing Spider-Man: City in Darkness
1986 Marvel Super Heroes 4. Doctor Strange: Through Six Dimensions

Lots of others I'm unfamiliar with, and some I'm familiar enough with to think they'd be a bad idea (the Narnia series are only Choose Your Own Adventure with no stats, for example, and the Combat Heroes books are designed for two players to play against each other with the only plot being that one of them has finally killed the other one, and the single-player version of each remains extremely plot-light).

[JourneymanN00b]

Thank you for the well wishes, Beroli.

This or any other kind. I don't even mind running one that's already been run. Hopefully people don't remember all the details with perfect recall. Provided I can find a copy (which usually isn't too hard).

Okay well. Going off the list found here, ones that I am interested in include:

1986 Super Endless Quest 6: Master of Ravenloft
2014 Fabled Lands Quest: Keep of the Lich Lord
2021 ACE Gamebooks 6 Dracula - Curse of the Vampire (note: high chance that JourneymanN00b will run this at some point)
1984 Golden Dragon 1 Crypt of the Vampire (original version, not revised)
1984 Golden Dragon 2 Temple of Flame (warning: it's a meat-grinder, so if you choose this one, I strongly recommend not stopping at the first--or tenth--death)
1985 Golden Dragon 3 The Lord of Shadow Keep
1985 Golden Dragon 4 The Eye of the Dragon
1986 Golden Dragon 5 Curse of the Pharaoh
1986 Golden Dragon 6 Castle of Lost Souls
1986 Marvel Super Heroes 1. The Amazing Spider-Man: City in Darkness
1986 Marvel Super Heroes 4. Doctor Strange: Through Six Dimensions

Lots of others I'm unfamiliar with, and some I'm familiar enough with to think they'd be a bad idea (the Narnia series are only Choose Your Own Adventure with no stats, for example, and the Combat Heroes books are designed for two players to play against each other with the only plot being that one of them has finally killed the other one, and the single-player version of each remains extremely plot-light).

I indeed have that ACE Gamebook, and I do plan to run it if my health improves, unless there is a strong demand for another title.