[LP] The Way of the Tiger. (Complete)

[Ancient History]

I'm desperate to hand Dadkiller his ass mano-e-mano, but generally when they give you the option to use special items like the Silver Shuriken you should take it.

So, one vote for Silver Spiky Star Thing.

[hogarth]

There's no option to finger the statue? Then go with the silver shuriken.

[angelfromanotherpin]

The silver Shuriken whistles across the Throne Room and flies to its mark in the Usurper's throat, but the smile never leaves his face. The silver star falls out of the wound and clatters to the marble floor and the blood that flows is not red, but purblish-black. At first it seems as if the Shuriken has done some harm; the Usurper's flesh burns red and bloated. Then spikes start to grow out of his back with a noise of tearing flesh.

Before your very eyes, the Usurper is turning into a Duke of Hell. Asyou stare, transfixed, he has grown huge bat-like wings, terrible claws and fangs. His face transformed into a mask of hellish evil, far beyond the petty malevolence of mortals.

• Use a Poison Needle?
• Use your martial arts skill?

[hogarth]

I doubt poison works on devils, but maybe he has a flashy quip to make if you try it. I vote for a useless poison needle.

[Ancient History]

Counter: I don't think poison is going to save us this time. Let's kick his ass.

[hogarth]

Counter: I don't think poison is going to save us this time. Let's kick his ass.

Whatever. Why don't we skip to the martial arts and angelfromanotherpin can summarize what happens if you use the poison needle? Same difference.

[Darth Rabbitt]

Another "curious to see what would happen if we use Poison Needles here but don't think we should actually use them" here.

He's the final boss, so we need to fight him in hand-to-hand combat.

[angelfromanotherpin]

The cloth-of-gold robes have split and fallen from the massive red torso of the Duke of Hell. The poison needle streaks unseen to its mark in the red flesh, but you see it blacken, smoke, and shrivel to nothing. The Duke of Hell advances, towering over you, oblivious to this minor irritation. You will have to use your martial arts skills.

(Interestingly, if you open with the poison needle, it actually does a fair chunk of hurt before he can shed his mortal form.)

Avenger, Rightful Heir to Irsmuncast
Modifiers: Kick +1, Throw +1, Fortune +1
Inner Force: 3/5
Endurance: 20/20
Techniques: Acrobatics, Climbing, Disable Device, Poison Needles, Kwon's Flail, ShinRen.
Shuriken: *****-*****-***
Ninja Tools: Ninja Costume, Breathing Tube, Iron Sleeves, Garotte, Flint & Tinder, Spiderfish.
Special Items: Opal Ring, Pouch with 14 Gold Pieces, Locket with Saint's Hair, (Silver Shuriken), Statuette of Dama, Coronation Day Coin, Ruby Circlet.

(Well, this is unexpectedly bad.)

'So, you dare to challenge Astaroth, seventh Duke of Hell, puny mortal.' The Hell-Duke's flesh burns red and the great leathery wings exude a nauseating stench which causes you to gag. Cursing Fate, who has made it your destiny to fight Astaroth, one of the most powerful denizens of the Nine Hells, you screw up your courage and give battle.

• Tiger's Paw chop?
• Winged Horse kick?
• Kwon's Flail?! √

(I assume we're always going to use this option when the Winds of Fate allow.)

Astaroth stalks towards you and as you move in to strike, a torrent of hail pours from his mouth in a wide jet. The battering chill saps your energy. Lose 4 Endurance. If you are still alive, you may attack. If you are using Kwon's Flail, you may add 2 to the damage inflicted if you succeed.

ASTAROTH THE SEVENTH DUKE OF HELL
Defence: 8
Endurance: 33(!)
Damage: 3 dice (!)

(2+1, we miss.)

You are forced back under a fusillade of death-dealing blows. Your Defence against Astaroth's mighty claws is 5. If you are wearing an amulet containing the hair of a saint, it protects you and you lose 3 less Endurance than the dice show if Astaroth hits you. If you are wearing a circlet with a ruby gem, this also protects you and you lose 4 less Endurance than the dice show.

(6, he hits, barely. Totally not worth the block. Fortunately his damage roll is 8-7=1, so it's just a scratch. Still terrible. Especially since we return to the top of the page now.)

(Astaroth's hail breath peels another 4 Endurance off Avenger. Down to 11)

(Avenger kicks; 8+1 hits. The first time Avenger hits, we're directed to another paragraph – always bad.)

Astaroth's flesh glows firey red, and when you strike him a numbing smart jolts your limbs. Lose 2 Endurance, or 1 Endurance if you are wearing a locket containing the hair of a saint. Your blows do not have the same effect on Astaroth, seventh Duke of Hell, as on men or beasts. He takes only half the damage which you inflict. (Fuck! Also, down to 10.)

([4+4]/2=4. Only 29 to go!)

(Astaroth claws; 4, miss.)

(After two rounds of this, we're sent to another reference.)


Astaroth catches you in his claws and hurls you against the statue of the goddess Dama. You land with a sickening thud as your head hits the statue's and lose 3 Endurance (down to 7). If you are still alive, you may drink a Healing Potion if you have one; this will restore your Endurance to 20. (S.O.L.)

Somewhere in the Palace, you hear a shout and the clash of arms, but inside the Throne Room, Astaroth steps back onto the throne and roars 'Scourge, my servant, come to me!' The name Scourge seems to echo dully, as if the Duke of Hell had shouted into a bottomless well. Suddenly a new monster faces you. Astaroth has summoned one of his servants, a Greater Devil, from the Inferno.

(Oh, come on!)

Scourge has the body of a giant Centaur, but his tail is a mass of writhing serpents and his head is a lion's skull. His steaming flanks drip black blood. Scourge roars and gallops to the attack, and you are hard put to defend yourself, while Astaroth lolls at ease on the throne. You decide to use kicks against Scourge as he is too tall for punches to really affect him.

SCOURGE THE CENTAUR DEVIL
Defence (against Kwon's Flail): 5
Damage: 2 Dice + 2
Endurance: 22

Your blows affect Scourge as if he were a normal beast, while he is not in hell, but Inner Force does not affect him. The locket and ruby circlet will protect you against Scourge as they did against Astaroth, as the Centaur Devil rears and smashes down his iron hooves to stave in your skull. Your Defence as you try to leap aside is 7, or 8 if you are an Acrobat.

(9+1 hits, but Kwon's Flail doesn't do extra damage to this guy. 6+2 damage. 5, he misses.)

(6+1 hits, 6+2 damage. 10, he hits, 3+2-7 is nothing. Avenger is mopping the floor with this thing. It has 6 Endurance left)

(Again, after two rounds, we have a new page reference.)

You leap back as Scourge's iron hooves throw up a shower of marble chips and your blood runs cold as you hear Astaroth and Scourge cry togther. 'Hazarbol and Mazarbol, Devils of Twilight, come to us.' If you still have a potion of healing you may gulp it now as two more horrendous forms appear before the throne. Two hyenas as large as the gates of the Temple of the Rock, with eyes of liquid fire, stare at you balefully, tensing as if to spring.

(Avenger did not travel to Irsmuncast on the piebald charger of a paladin.)

The Devils of Twilight begin to laugh so loudly that you can hardly think for terror. You will have to think of something else, as the odds are becoming impossibly high.

Avenger, Rightful Heir to Irsmuncast
Modifiers: Kick +1, Throw +1, Fortune +1
Inner Force: 3/5
Endurance: 7/20
Techniques: Acrobatics, Climbing, Disable Device, Poison Needles, Kwon's Flail, ShinRen.
Shuriken: *****-*****-***
Ninja Tools: Ninja Costume, Breathing Tube, Iron Sleeves, Garotte, Flint & Tinder, Spiderfish.
Special Items: Opal Ring, Pouch with 14 Gold Pieces, Locket with Saint's Hair, (Silver Shuriken), Statuette of Dama, Coronation Day Coin, Ruby Circlet.

• Use a magical dagger with a rune carved on it?
• Hurl your father's seal at his coat-of-arms and ask his spirit to aid you?
• If you have a statuette of the goddess Dama, take it out and pray?

Edit: Missed 1 point of Endurance loss, corrected.

[MisterDee]

The Dama statue is something we could have missed, so let's try that.

[hogarth]

Might as well use the statuette.

[angelfromanotherpin]

As Hazarbol and Mazarbol, the Devils of Twilight, spring, you shout, almost panic-stricken as you clutch the statuette, 'Dama, Shieldmaiden of the gods, aid me!'

(Avenger has a locket containing the hair of a saint.)



The Devils close in around you, together they are too strong for you. Suddenly there is a grating noise of granit on marble as the statue of the goddess Dama comes to life. You shelter behind it as her sword, glowing silver, flashes through the air. The statue may triumph, but Scourge has moved behind it to attack you. Once again you decide to use kicks against him, as he is far too tall for punches to really affect him.

SCOURGE THE CENTAUR DEVIL
Defence (against Kwon's Flail): 5
Damage: 2 Dice + 2
Endurance: 22 6

(The rest of the set-up with Scourge is as before.)

(7+1 is a hit, damage 1+2, 3 Endurance left; Scourge rolls 9, a hit. Avenger blocks, 6, success.)
(2+1-2 is a miss, Scourge rolls 5, a miss.)
(9+1 is a hit, damage 2+2 fells him!)

If you win, Scourge disappears, banished to the spirit plane and Astaroth alone of the devils remains. The statue returns to its pedestal and becomes stone again. You must fight Astaroth once more, and you decide to use the Iron Fist punch against him, as he is much weakened.

ASTAROTH
Defence: 8
Damage: 3 Dice
Endurance: 2

If Astaroth still fights on, you try to avoid his champing jaws, your Defence is 8.

(I don't know if it was the strain of chain-summoning, or if Dama got a piece of him, but damn, he is not the Duke of Hell he used to be. No more hailstorm-breath even. Maybe it was 3/day and he'd already used it once to chill his drinks? The only downside is that our Avenger isn't much of a puncher.)

(I know he's only got 2 Endurance left, but with his damage-halving, I'm blowing Inner Force on these punches. His 3d6-7 damage vs our 4 Endurance makes me not want to take chances.)

(7 is a miss; so is his 3.)
(9 is a hit, 6 damage! Astaroth goes down.)

The Throne Room is silent. No trace of Astaroth remains. The rose-crown lies wedged against the statue of Dama, but you leave it where it lies. There is yet much to do.

Outside the Throne Room, the corridors are deserted. Your Garotte slices through the throat of an orcish guard on the landing and then you are climbing the eastern-most tower of the Palace. The top of the winding stair ends at the tower roof. The sky is blue above the battlements. The Usurper's flag, a stag with spiralling horns and a barbed tail flutters in the breeze. A single pull on the rope draws it down below the battlements.

(Avenger has a statuette of the goddess Dama and a coronation day coin.)

As the silk flag flutters down to the tower roof, you walk to the battlements and look out over the panorama of the city. You can clearly see Force-Lady Gwyneth on a grey warhorse, apparently inspecting her troops. They are ranged in serried ranks on the parade ground beyond Cross Street. The majority are women dressed in chain-mail, but a sizable number of men, too, carry the lozenge-shaped shields of Dama. A few are in full plate armour, their faces hidden behind visors.

A small detachment of halvorcs and men bearing the Usurper's stag emblem slouch nearby at ease. Gwyneth's lieutenant points up at you and the trumpeter sounds five short notes. Gwyneth shouts a command and the shieldmaidens divide into two, half marching towards the Palace, and half towards the army barracks. The detachment of halvorcs and men react slowly, many have fallen to quick sword thrusts before they realise that the revolt has begun. Then they flee.

The skill at arms of Gwyneth's warriors is a joy to behold as they meet the Usurper's men in open battle on the streets below. They are reinforced by the monks of Kwon, and for some time the fighting sways back and forth, but the warrior-women are outnumbered and their advance is halted before the Palace gates. Looking down to Cross Street, you can see that the barracks is holding out and a group of priests are leaving the Temple to Nemesis, marching to the relief of the army. The battle hangs in the balance. There is nothing you can do but watch. It would be foolish to fight your way out through the Palace.

Suddenly, as if from nowhere, a horde of people appear around the priests of Nemesis. The mob has risen, armed themselves with short swords, axes, and clubs. The spells of the priests kill many of the crowd, but they are forced to retire inside the Temple. The word spreads like wildfire through the city and the streets become thronged with people. The army are forced to give way and the shieldmaidens and monks gain the walls of the palace garden.

(Shogun Kiyamo did not give Avenger a hundred Samurai.)

It is only a matter of time before the Usurper's army must surrender.


The tide of battle has turned in your favour. As the Usurper's halvorc guards fall back towards the Palace gates, it seems everyone has declared for you. The shieldmaidens make a determined attack and the rabble pelt the halvorcs with bricks and spears. Golspiel's mercenaries arrive as the monks of Kwon scale the walls of the palace gardens. Only the priests of Time do not take to the streets in your support.

Seeing that there is no hope left, the palace guard surrender and the Force-Lady Gwyneth orders them to be confined to barracks, after they have lain down their swords. You walk down the stairs of the tower and out into the garden and a great cheer goes up as the rapturous crowd recognize you. 'Behold your new Overlord, Avenger!' cries the High Grandmaster of the Temple to Kwon.

At evening that day, you are seated in the Throne Room of the Palace. Your father's flag flies proudly where, until today, that of the Usurper had flown. Force-Lady Gwyneth raises the rose crown of Irsmuncast and hands it to the High Grandmaster. Bowing your head, you give thanks to Kwon as he sets the crown upon your brow, saying, 'I crown thee, Avenger, Overlord of the city state of Irsmuncast nigh Edge, Protector of the Manmarch against the Rift.'

A loud cheer echoes round the Throne Room, but the people cheering you are all strangers. You put a brave face on it. As you process onto the balcony and the crowd screams its adulation, you reflect that the days ahead will be a true test of your wisdom. Can you sow the seeds of good government in a city of religious schisms, racial tensions, unscrupulous greed, and warring factions with proud leaders? Only time will tell in what could be your greatest challenge yet.

Avenger, Overlord of Irsmuncast-nigh-Edge
Modifiers: Kick +1, Throw +1, Fortune +1
Inner Force: 1/5
Endurance: 4/20
Techniques: Acrobatics, Climbing, Disable Device, Poison Needles, Kwon's Flail, ShinRen.
Shuriken: *****-*****-***
Ninja Tools: Ninja Costume, Breathing Tube, Iron Sleeves, Garotte, Flint & Tinder, Spiderfish.
Special Items: Opal Ring, Pouch with 14 Gold Pieces, Locket with Saint's Hair, Silver Shuriken, Statuette of Dama, Coronation Day Coin, Ruby Circlet.

(Wrap-up to follow. Comments, questions, etc. welcome as usual.)

[Omegonthesane]

We're S.O.L. so should probably begin throwing random plot-bestowed panic buttons at the problem.

[hogarth]

What do you get if you ask the Temple of Time and the merchants for help?

What is the path if you don't go visit Glaivas?

Is there any use for ShinRen other than recognizing that one dude is an assassin? If you don't have ShinRen, do you have to fight him?

Did we miss any boosts to our Punch/Kick/Throw bonuses?

[MisterDee]

Who's Golspiel? One of the merchants? Why does he have mercenaries and why are they helping us?

I imagine we get a hundred samurai if we killed Jikkyu back in book 2?

[angelfromanotherpin]

What do you get if you ask the Temple of Time and the merchants for help?

The priests of Time show off their fabulous time-stopping powers and promise some vague sort of support. Then they're complete no-shows, no matter what.

What is the path if you don't go visit Glaivas?

I'll get into this a bit when I go over skipped content, but the short version is: you run into people looking for payback.

Is there any use for ShinRen other than recognizing that one dude is an assassin? If you don't have ShinRen, do you have to fight him?

Yes. It tells you that the smily-faced knight is pure of heart (once he puts his visor up and you can read his face); and it also tells you whether or not you've actually got the merchants on your side.

Did we miss any boosts to our Punch/Kick/Throw bonuses?

I don't think so.

Who's Golspiel? One of the merchants? Why does he have mercenaries and why are they helping us?

Golspiel is the chief merchant and the merchants have a pile of mercenaries on retainer (probably mostly for security purposes). In the version of events we experienced, they threw in with Avenger when it became clear he was winning.

The shieldmaidens and the mob will win the battle by themselves, but if you're missing one of them, the samurai and/or the mercenaries can be the deciding factor.

I imagine we get a hundred samurai if we killed Jikkyu back in book 2?

Yes, but only if you told them to travel to Irsmuncast past Doomover, and not through the Valley of the Lich-Kings.

[hogarth]

It tells you that the smily-faced knight is pure of heart (once he puts his visor up and you can read his face); and it also tells you whether or not you've actually got the merchants on your side.

How do you get him to raise his visor? Keep quiet? And what happens to the hyena-devils if you "rode into town on a piebald charger"?

[angelfromanotherpin]

How do you get him to raise his visor? Keep quiet? And what happens to the hyena-devils if you "rode into town on a piebald charger"?

Tell him the truth about who you worship. It confuses his hatred of assassins and he uses detect evil on you to resolve the matter.

If you make friends with him, he kicks in the door and takes on the devils at the climax, basically replacing the statue of Dama, although instead of turning back to stone he just gets too wounded to continue.

[hogarth]

How do you get him to raise his visor? Keep quiet? And what happens to the hyena-devils if you "rode into town on a piebald charger"?

Tell him the truth about who you worship. It confuses his hatred of assassins and he uses detect evil on you to resolve the matter.

See!? I told you guys that ninjas should always tell the truth to random strangers!

[angelfromanotherpin]

This is Aiguchi the Weapon Master, one of Yaemon's homies. Traveling past Doomover gets you ritually challenged by him (you can refuse, but its a permanent penalty to your Fate modifier).


This is the map of the ritual dueling ground.

Honoric shows up looking for satisfaction as well. He is... a very bad time. One of the uses of ShinRen is to not suffer penalties from his sword's fear effect.

The paladin without his creepy visor down.

An immortal flesh golem you can run into near the Rift – you fight him, discover he's unkillable, and wind up throwing him down the hole.

Golspiel of the Silver Tongue, head of the merchants. Not having gone to see him will cause a continuity issue in Book 4.


Speaking of Golspiel, if you don't make some very elaborate promises to him, he sends a werewolf to guard the entrance to the endgame tunnel. Any damage from the werewolf infects Avenger with lycanthropy.

The temple to Time. The whole thing is a sundial, which is pretty cool.

The book has multiple ways to encounter a lot of things, and here are some illos of things we encountered, but I didn't realise we had at the time.


The spearmen guarding the hedge.


The Spectral Company.


Gwyeneth and her soldiers.

[Darth Rabbitt]

Does the Silver Shuriken do more damage on him if you toss it when he's turned into his demonic form, or do you not get the option then?

EDIT: I mean on the Usurper/Astaroth.

[angelfromanotherpin]

No, the silver shuriken doesn't do squat to the Usurper. It's meant for the werewolf.

[angelfromanotherpin]

I don't really have a lot of criticism for this book; I think it's genuinely pretty great. You get some genuine adventure on your way to the city, and once there you have to wrangle a revolution; plus the final throwdown is metal as balls. The book is reasonably forgiving, but still fairly tense.

There is an unfortunate matter where the Overlord deals at least 12 unavoidable damage to you, and has a very real chance of rolling high on his 3d6 damage and just ending you, holy protection or not. Also, the section with Glaivas is in many respects a 'follow the instructions' path. But hey, when I first played through the book, I screwed up following those instructions and didn't get the Spirit Tiger; Glaivas had to lead the Fiend from the Pit into an ambush of pixies. It was still awesome.

If I had to criticize something, it would be that there's a lot less 'feeling like an awesome ninja' than there is in Book 1. The Skills don't really shine, and there are a lot of moments like the shuriken not reaching the hawk and the trolls catching you by scent that undermine the whole bad-ass experience. Not a big deal, but a missed opportunity.

Next up, Overlord!

[hogarth]

So what's the deal with the Death Knell? Does that carry over from one book to the next, or is it just a "3 strikes and you're out" effect in "Usurper!"?

[angelfromanotherpin]

So, this is the one that really changes it up. Oh, there's definitely some neat ninja-based action-adventure; but the book opens with ruling a city-state! A completely different experience from anything I'd ever seen in a gamebook before, it sucked me in like nobody's business. The first page of the book is titled 'Charter of Rulership,' and lets you know in advance all the ruler-type stuff you're going to be dealing with. I'm actually not going to post it (unless there's a lot of demand for it), because I think it's actually a bit of a spoiler.

The opening recap is barely a recap – Yaemon killed your dad, you swore revenge, and you got it. Here's the new stuff:

The campaign rules refill our Endurance and Inner Force, give us another 5 Shuriken, and still refuses to refill our Flash Powder. No new Skills or Modifiers.

Well, nothing gained by waiting.


The magnificent royal bedroom is not decorated to suit your tastes. Although the bed is decked with sable furs and satin sheets, the walls are hung with paintings of souls in torment. Ordering the beautiful handmaiden who brings you balm to turn these to the wall, you sink gratefully into the furs. The High Grandmaster of the Temple to Kwon himself will sleep in the antechamber and his monks will stand guard outside your door. Drifting into slumber, you think back to the crowning ceremony.

Keeping your composure had taxed you sorely after the terrible struggle with the Usurper and his minions, summoned from the depths of the abyss. The coming of the mightiest people of the city to do obeisance before you seems little more than a dream, but tomorrow you begin the trials of your reign in earnest.


The first day of the month of Harvest Bounty dawns fine. You awake refreshed, and the dark and graceful Palace handmaidens, evidently chosen by the Usurper or his Lord High Steward for their beauty, assist you to bathe and dress. They wait on you hand and foot, but you cannot tell if their murmured admiration of your toned body is genuine or mere sycophantic toadying.

You breakfast alone with Parsifal, the High Grandmaster of the Temple to Kwon, who explains that the customs ordained by your father, the Loremaster, for his successor, dictate the order of happenings on this, your first full day as Overlord of Irsmuncast. The Loremaster did not, of course, rule unaided; he depended on four advisers who sat with him in the Privy Council of the Star Chamber. Parsifal ends, 'All those who wish to be considered for the posts of Privy Councillors of Star Chamber must present themselves before you in your Throne Room this very morning.'

As you process solemnly towards the Throne Room, followed by the monks of Kwon and those few of the Usurper's courtiers who have not fled, Parsifal explains the procedure: 'All those who wish to be considered for the honour of being your personal advisers are waiting in the vestibule. Tradition demands that they be presented to you in the order in which they arrived. They will enter the Throne Room one by one, and you, Your Majesty, shall decide whether they take a seat in the Star Chamber or leave the Palace in disappointment. Remember, only four may become Privy Councillors.'


Parsifal beckons and a young page boy hands him a scroll from which he begins to read as you look over his shoulder.

'First Supplicant: The Lord High Steward of the Usurper's court, a follower of Nemesis who administered the city at the whim of the Dark Overlord.

'Second Supplicant: Force-Lady Gwyneth, High Priestess of the Temple to Dama.

'Third Supplicant: Golspiel of the Silver Tongue, a merchant.

'Fourth Supplicant: the Demagogie, a mob orator, popular with the common people.

'Fifth Supplicant: Greystaff, High Priest of the Temple to Avatar.

'Sixth Supplicant: Foxglove, a priestess of Nemesis, the head of the Usurper's 'Secret Informers' – a master spy.

'Seventh Supplicant: Solstice, High Priest of the Temple to Time.

'Eighth Supplicant: Parsifal, High Grandmaster of the Temple to Kwon, my humble self, Your Majesty.'

(Anyone you turn away can be recalled later if there are spaces left unfilled. On some level, it's best to turn everyone away and make your decisions only after you've heard everyone's pitch... but some people don't handle rejection well.)

As you enter the Throne Room, all those present kneel. Parsifal bows and backs out into the vestibule. Though he is High Grandmaster, he shows every mark of respect. A hush descends as the first supplicant walks into the room.


The Usurper's Lord High Steward sweeps into the room like a great Blackhawk. His silver and sable cloak is topped by curving wings of black velvet at the shoulders. His face is pale and drawn with a long thin nose and a little grey goatee which emphasises the length and point of his chin.

He bows elaborately and says, 'Your Majesty, I have been running this city since the death of your father. In that time we have suffered no attack from beyond the city walls. I know more about the problems of this city, its religions and races, than any other. I am practiced in statecraft and I am the representative of the Temple to Nemesis, without whose support your days as Overlord will be numbered. I give you my word that I will act in your best interest and not seek to supplant you. Our people deserve to be represented on the Privy Council like any other. And so I believe you must appoint me to the Star Chamber.'

He seems about to go on, but checks himself. There is no missing the veiled threat in his manner. About three in ten of the beings in Irsmuncast worship Nemesis, the Supreme Principle of Evil. You must decide between pleasing them and the usefulness of the Steward and the potential danger of adding to his power.

• Order the Lord High Steward into the Star Chamber?
• Disappoint him?

Charter of Rulership
The four Privy Councillors appointed to Star Chamber are:
1. TBA
2. TBA
3. TBA
4. TBA

[angelfromanotherpin]

So what's the deal with the Death Knell? Does that carry over from one book to the next, or is it just a "3 strikes and you're out" effect in "Usurper!"?

I've never seen it come up again. Possible remnant of an otherwise removed mechanic? I can't be arsed to go down all the paths of that encounter to make sure.