We go ahead a fight without spells.
A simple Sleep spell from the Elf would have put them all back to sleep and skipped this combat. That's why I have been keeping all the section numbers in the text, to give players a chance to use the situational spells without being prompted.
COMBAT:
Round 1:
Asgrim rolls a 5 and misses his target (he's really not used to fighting with his bare hands).
Eildonas rolls a 1 and hits, killing the Second Bat.
Anvil rolls a 2 and hits killing the Bat.
Fortunato rolls a 1 and hits, killing the Fourth Bat.
(Again, our best fighter is the only one that misses!)
Bat #1 rolls a 1 and hits. Asgrim's BODY point is down to 6 after rolling a 3 as his breastplate doesn't protect him.
Bat #2 rolls a 1 and hits, bringing Eildonas's BODY down to 5 before the latter riposte kills it.
Bat #3 rolls a 5 and misses, and the dwarf cut it in half.
Bat #4 rolls a 1 and hits, and the Wizard is down to 3 BODY points.
Bat #5 rolls a 2 and hits, Asgrim rolls a 6 and his BODY is down to 5.
Round 2:
Asgrim rolls a 1 and finally hits. killing Bat #1.
Eildonas rolls a 4 and just manages to hit, killing Bat #5.
Bat #1 rolls a 4 and misses, and that's its last shot.
Bat #5 rolls a 3 and misses, and that's all she wrote.
Pretty nasty fight considering how weak the opponents are supposed to be.
You unlock the door. It opens with a gravid creak to reveal a young girl cowering inside a small bare cell.
"My name is Perdita, and I am from the village a few miles across the moor," she tells you.
"How do you come to be here?" you ask.
"I'm not sure. On my way home I was overtaken by dusk. Since this is Samhain Eve, I quickened my step, but just then I saw a tall shadow of a figure lurking among the trees by the side of the road. I crossed over and hurried by on the other side, but I hadn't gone far before I saw the figure again - somehow ahead of me still. I began to feel very frightened then. I lost sight of the figure as I backed away down the road. Then suddenly I bumped into something large behind me, and I was seized. That's the last I remember."
Realizing this is no place to hang around, you take Perdita to the boat and row back across the lake. Ascending through the cellar, you emerge into the entrance hall of the manse once more. If you were going to breathe a sigh of relief, however, then it was premature: someone is here waiting for you.
Turn to 89.
Uh oh....
Grim Dugald stands in the gloom of the hall. He has been waiting for you.
His flesh is the colour of candlelight, and other-world energies have swollen his already huge frame until his head almost scrapes the rafters. His eyes - two icy pebbles in the mistletoe-bush of his beard and hair - roll horribly, and as he sees you his growl of hate is like the howl of a hanged man.
Do you have an item you want to use?
If so, turn to 112.
Otherwise, turn to 123.
I'll just go ahead and see what we have to use to save time:
Which of the following will you try:
A phial of holy water and the bottle of win? (You need to have both items.) Turn to 133.
A phial of holy water on its own? Turn to 10.
A sprig of garlic? Turn to 21.
Unfortunately, we used up the holy water, and the wine's no good on its own. But we do have the garlic. This is the Big Boss so there's no point saving any items for later, so I'll go ahead and use it:
You had heard that Grim Dugald died thirty years ago. Is he now a vampire? Who can say - the realm of the supernatural spurns such glib classifications. But certainly he seems to shrink back from the garlic flowers as you thrust them towards him.
Turn to 123, but note that when you fight Grim Dugald you can subtract 1 from his COMBAT score to represent the distraction caused by the garlic.
Do you have the codeword CARFAX written on your character sheets?
If so, turn to 43.
If not, turn to 55.
We do.
Grim Dugald towers up over you, more monstrous even than in life. He will kill you if you can for trespassing his manse, and you must fight now as never before.
GRIM DUGALD: COMBAT 5 4 BODY 10
There is room for up to three players to fight him at one time ( a fourth player could of course cast spells at him, if any). The sword Wraithreaver, if you have it, will inflict double damage on him - i.e. two points per blow instead of one.
If you flee out of the manse, turn to 67.
If you succeed in overcoming him, turn to 78.
Without CARFAX his default score would have been COMBAT 6/BODY 18.
Yes, fleeing is an actual option here.
How do we want to do this? Does the Elf fight as normal or use a spell? Does the wizard want to use a spell, play cheerleader, or take a nap?
Adventure Sheet:
Asgrim the Barbarian
BODY: 5/8
MIND: 2/2
COMBAT: 4/5
SPEED: 2/3
Battle Order: 1
Items Carried:
1) Torch
2) Garlic
3) Jewelled Breastplate (wearer takes no damage on a roll of 1 or 2 in combat, -1 SPEED)
Anvil the Dwarf
BODY: 6/7
MIND: 3/3
COMBAT: 4/4
SPEED: 2/2
Battle Order: 3
Items Carried:
1) Battleaxe
2) Money pouch (6 silver)
3) Bronze Key
Fortunato the Wizard
BODY: 3/4
MIND: 6/6
COMBAT: 3/3
SPEED: 3/3
Battle Order: 4
Items Carried:
1) Dagger
2) Bottle of Wine
Spells: HEAL BODY, ROCK SKIN, PASS THROUGH ROCK, GENIE, SWIFT WIND, TEMPEST, FIRE OF WRATH, BALL OF FLAME, COURAGE
Eildonas the Elf
BODY: 5/6
MIND: 4/4
COMBAT: 4/4
SPEED: 4/4
Battle Order: 2
Items Carried:
1) Sword
2) Rope
Spells: SLEEP, WATER OF HEALING, VEIL OF MIST
Codewords: CARFAX