Let's Play The Gates of Death: Fighting Fantasy (Sch#12)

Thaluikhain · Post by **Thaluikhain** » Wed Jan 30, 2019 6:08 am

Bier goggles? Oh dear.

I think we should take them, dunno about the others.

SGamerz · Post by **SGamerz** » Wed Jan 30, 2019 11:59 am

Goggles, star, map.

SlyJohnny · Post by **SlyJohnny** » Wed Jan 30, 2019 1:42 pm

I think the map is the one he bought in Salamonis, and it'll be the same as ours. Let's get the Bronze compass, as the adventurer was pretty keen on collecting them, and maybe we need a silver and bronze to make a gold compass as depicted.

Compass, goggles, star.

SGamerz · Post by **SGamerz** » Wed Jan 30, 2019 11:37 pm

Change my vote to take compass instead of map

Darth Rabbitt · Post by **Darth Rabbitt** » Thu Jan 31, 2019 1:48 am

Thaluikhain wrote:Bier goggles? Oh dear.

Yeah, that's a Bays' Ball level bad pun there.

So that's three votes for goggles, and 2 each for compass and star. On with the adventure:

If you have chosen the boots, you discover that they are bronze-clad swift boots. If you don't already have a pair of swift boots, put them on. If you chose the canteen, whenever you want to drink from it, add 3 STAMINA points and then remove it from your list. If you have chosen the walking staff, add 1 SKILL point. Unfortunately, the map is exactly the same as the picture stitched into the pall.

You help the Imps lift Hikaz's body off the bier and lay him gently on the metal plate. Now you wheel the bier away until it is safely out of reach of any flames.

'Three of my Imps will go with you on the bier,' says the King. 'They can take you to the Plain of Bronze and then return here. Meet Oli, Uli and Eli.'

He snaps his fingers and three Imps step forward, salute their King and clamber up on to the bier.

'Look for three mountains standing close to each other,' the King shouts and the Imps nod and chatter in a language you don't understand. To your ears it sounds like parrots laughing.

You get on behind them and see that they're fiddling with some knobs and levers built into the top of the bier. Presently the structure begins to judder and then rise slightly into the air. You grip hold of the sides as the bier wobbles higher. Oli, Uli and Eli are getting very excited and talking even faster as their fingers dart over the controls. Then there's a lurch and you shoot up out of the top of the stone circle. In a moment the bier is flying through the night sky while the three Imps shriek and laugh. One of them, you think it might be Oli, sticks out his tongue and it flaps in the wind.

You watch the stone circle growing smaller and smaller and then you are flying fast across the countryside. Trolltooth Pass is right below you. You follow its route through the Moonstone Hills and as the sun comes up you see that you are flying over endless, featureless steppes. These must be the Flatlands, home to nomadic barbarians. The bier flies on, ever higher and faster as the Imps adjust the controls. Now you see a vast lake away to the east and the land below gets drier and browner as, at last, the vast Plain of Bronze opens out below you.

The Plain is desolate and dry, covered with dark red sand and ash embedded with glinting lumps of bronze in all shapes and sizes. Here and there are the ruins of ancient settlements that are slowly being swallowed up by the sand. The sun is at its highest by the time you spot the three peaks, which look more like tall pillars of rock than mountains. You head towards them and then circle around them for a while, but can see no signs of any city. The three peaks are all slightly different colors. One is reddish brown, one is a sandy color and the third is ash grey. The top of each rock is only about the size of the roof of a house.

You remember the pictures on the pall. (Colin has the adventurer's bronze star.)

While you've been flying, you've been studying the funeral bier more closely, and have spotted a carved-out shape that matches the shape of the bronze star. You take the star out of your pack and find that it fits perfectly into the carved space. As it slots into place it lights up, glowing bright blue. And as you look down you now see a glowing blue star on top of the grey pillar of rock.

Land on the grey rock?
Land on the red one?
Land on the sandy one?

Adventure Sheet
Colin Hunt
SKILL: 11/11
STAMINA: 10/18
LUCK: 4/11
Equipment: Traveling Clothes, Lucky Anchor Charm, Hero's Medallion (+2 SKILL), Silver Ring, Bier Goggles
Vials of Smoke-Oil: 0
Gold Pieces: 18
Weapons: Lord Azzur's Khopesh (+1 Attack Strength, extra +1 attack/damage vs. demons)
Items: Fishhook, Poison Antidote, Silver Trowel, Map of Trolltooth Pass
Compasses: Brass Compass, Silver Compass, Bronze Compass
Healing Items: Harp of Healing (+8 STAMINA when a combat would be lost), Horn of Plenty (restores STAMINA to Initial level), Healing Ointment (+4 STAMINA), Dates (+3 STAMINA when eaten) 1 meal of Provisions (+4 STAMINA when eaten)
Keys: Icefinger Key
Magic Potions: 'Collywobbles', 'Dragon's Breath,' 'Nostalgia' Perfume, 'Pretty as a Picture,' 'Thick as Thieves'

Thaluikhain · Post by **Thaluikhain** » Thu Jan 31, 2019 3:14 am

Grey rock.

SlyJohnny · Post by **SlyJohnny** » Thu Jan 31, 2019 1:32 pm

Darth Rabbitt · Post by **Darth Rabbitt** » Thu Jan 31, 2019 3:20 pm

The bier lands with a mighty bone-shaking thump on top of the grey rock. For a moment the three Imps are too stunned to even move and, for the first time since you set off, they are silent. And then suddenly they are jumping up and down in triumph and hugging each other. You get off the bier, glad to have your feet on solid rock.

You look out across the endless Plain of Bronze, baking under a hot sun. There is no sign of any city. You hear a noise above you like chattering birds and look up to see that the Imps have taken off. You watch helplessly as they fly off home, madly gabbling away to each other.

You remember the picture stitched into the pall. The man standing on one of these rocks was wearing goggles. (Colin has the bier goggles.)

You slip on the bier goggles and immediately everything looks different. You feel as if you are looking at a vision. The plain is no longer a desert of ash and bronze. It's covered in lush green grass, and trees, and rivers. There are farms and villages, crops growing in the fields, animals grazing...it looks like a perfect wonderland. And there, standing in the middle of all this bounty, is a beautiful city, rising up, the buildings all whitewashed, with blue tiled roofs. You see fountains and gardens and walkways and at the top, a great silver dome.

And as you look at your feet, you see steps spiraling down the grey rock towards a road that leads to the city. You climb down the steps to the bottom and walk along the road. The only thing missing from the idyllic scenes all around you are people.

In no time at all you arrive at the city, which has no walls or gates. You enter a small square, take off the bier goggles and look back at the way you came. The green fields and rivers and villages have disappeared. You are sure now that you were seeing an image of how this land was a very long time ago, before some awful catastrophe befell it. Now all is barren desert. You turn away and walk deeper into the city.

Even though you are inside the city and walking its streets, the buildings appear to shimmer and wobble like a mirage, occasionally becoming transparent as if the whole place might disappear again at any moment. The city has no outer walls. Its defense is its invisibility. Far above you, you can see the silver dome of the Great Temple of Throff that dominates the place. Clustered around the main temple are the domes and spires of lesser temples and religious buildings. You can also see several tall columns with statues on them, looking out across the plains, and long banners flapping from poles, orange and red and yellow.

All the roads in the city lead up to the temple, winding around the rock, climbing ever steeper to the summit through hanging gardens. There are bridges, archways and viaducts all the way up, roads on top of roads, so that the city resembles a giant tower. Down here on the lower levels you can see public buildings, shops and taverns and houses, but the temple dominates. The population can't be very large. It would be hard to sustain too many people in such a barren place, and most of the inhabitants presumably serve the temple, but even so—where is everybody? The streets are deserted. It is as if you've wandered into a ghost town.

Explore the lower levels?
Climb immediately to the Great Temple?

SlyJohnny · Post by **SlyJohnny** » Thu Jan 31, 2019 6:35 pm

Explore the lower levels.

I guess we're screwed now anyway, because it doesn't look like we're picking up another cure, so might as well map the place for next time.

Thaluikhain · Post by **Thaluikhain** » Fri Feb 01, 2019 3:46 am

Explore

Darth Rabbitt · Post by **Darth Rabbitt** » Fri Feb 01, 2019 4:11 am

The longer you spend in the city, the more solid it seems to become. Among the houses on the lower slopes you find a clothworks, with weaving equipment, dyeing vats, and cutting and sewing rooms. Next door to it is a maker of scientific equipment and then a pottery. On the next street you find a tavern. Most of the buildings have blue-tiled roofs, but many have gardens growing on them where food crops are mixed in among the flowers. You see some bushes heavy with bean pods on top of a two-story house opposite the tavern.

Climb up on to the roof?
Enter the tavern?
Carry on up towards the temple? (leads to the same section that the previous choice to "climb immediately to the temple" would have)

SGamerz · Post by **SGamerz** » Fri Feb 01, 2019 11:49 am

Tavern

Thaluikhain · Post by **Thaluikhain** » Fri Feb 01, 2019 1:22 pm

A man with bier goggles went to the pub and...

Darth Rabbitt · Post by **Darth Rabbitt** » Sat Feb 02, 2019 1:21 am

You push through the doors into the tavern. It is gloomy in here after the bright sunlight outside and it takes a few moments for your eyes to adjust. You see a tray of pies on a shelf behind the counter and head over to them. Halfway there, however, the door in the back room opens and a huge, DRUNKEN OGRE barges in. This one has been warped by the taint of Chaos and has three eyes, one on the side of his head where his ear should be. He looks surprised to see you and grunts like a hog.

Run away?
Stand and fight?

SGamerz · Post by **SGamerz** » Sat Feb 02, 2019 1:44 am

Fight!

Thaluikhain · Post by **Thaluikhain** » Sat Feb 02, 2019 3:39 am

Fight the DRUNKEN OGRE.

Darth Rabbitt · Post by **Darth Rabbitt** » Sun Feb 03, 2019 3:41 am

The Drunken Ogre squints at you, his eyes unfocused, and takes a swig from his huge tankard of ale. He then bellows, grabs a club, and swings it at you. The fight is on.

DRUNKEN OGRE SKILL 6 STAMINA 10

Combat Log:

Ogre 17, Colin 24. Ogre is at 8.
Ogre 15, Colin 21. Ogre is at 6.
Ogre 13, Colin 17. Ogre is at 4.
Ogre 12, Colin 18. Ogre is at 2.
Ogre 14, Colin 17. Ogre is dead.

Another Flawless.

You have slain the Ogre. You vault over the counter and grab a pie. As you are stuffing your face, you hear grunts and voices from the back room. It sounds like there are more Ogres here. (Regain up to 4 STAMINA points.)

Eat another pie?
Leave the tavern and carry on up to the temple complex?

Adventure Sheet
Colin Hunt
SKILL: 11/11
STAMINA: 14/18
LUCK: 4/11
Equipment: Traveling Clothes, Lucky Anchor Charm, Hero's Medallion (+2 SKILL), Silver Ring, Bier Goggles
Vials of Smoke-Oil: 0
Gold Pieces: 18
Weapons: Lord Azzur's Khopesh (+1 Attack Strength, extra +1 attack/damage vs. demons)
Items: Fishhook, Poison Antidote, Silver Trowel, Map of Trolltooth Pass
Compasses: Brass Compass, Silver Compass, Bronze Compass
Healing Items: Harp of Healing (+8 STAMINA when a combat would be lost), Horn of Plenty (restores STAMINA to Initial level), Healing Ointment (+4 STAMINA), Dates (+3 STAMINA when eaten) 1 meal of Provisions (+4 STAMINA when eaten)
Keys: Icefinger Key
Magic Potions: 'Collywobbles', 'Dragon's Breath,' 'Nostalgia' Perfume, 'Pretty as a Picture,' 'Thick as Thieves'

Thaluikhain · Post by **Thaluikhain** » Sun Feb 03, 2019 3:52 am

Io the temple!

SlyJohnny · Post by **SlyJohnny** » Sun Feb 03, 2019 6:39 am

Leave.

Darth Rabbitt · Post by **Darth Rabbitt** » Sun Feb 03, 2019 7:07 pm

Staying to eat another pie is a game over where those other Ogres from the back room jump you while you're trying to eat. I think the beggar wizard outside Port Blacksand saying "don't eat too many pies" is supposed to be a hint here.

With every step you take, the city appears to grow more solid around you. You hurry up through streets that curve and twist and climb around the rock, every so often crossing bridges built on arches that span the lower levels and look down on the blue-tiled rooftops and gardens that are ingeniously growing everywhere. You pass fountains and pools and channels of water flowing down from the top of the city. Several times, you have to go up a flight of steps or a steep ramp to get to the next level, and halfway up you come to a small terrace built high on the edge of the city. This is where you see your first people, lying dead, showing all the signs of having been attacked by demons. It's a beautiful day and, if it wasn't for the dead bodies and the ever-present sense of danger, you'd stop to admire the view out across the plains, spread out below you in the morning light.

Instead, you pass on until at last you come to the summit, where you find a street of small buildings and two big iron gates opening into a fine garden that looks very peaceful. Peaceful and deserted. On the other side of the garden are wide steps leading up to the Great Temple.

Go through the gates into the Temple Gardens?
Explore the street?

MisterDee · Post by **MisterDee** » Mon Feb 04, 2019 10:09 pm

explore the streets

Darth Rabbitt · Post by **Darth Rabbitt** » Thu Feb 07, 2019 5:27 am

The buildings outside the Temple Gardens appear to be stalls set up for the selling of religious artifacts. You see small plaster statues of Throff, various offerings to leave in the temple, candles, bracelets, medallions, prayer beads and necklaces, as well as leather-bound books, and pottery. But the stalls all seem deserted and most of the stock is lying scattered and broken.

You are about to go back to the garden when you hear a noise. You peer inside one of the stalls. There in the darkness is a monkey. Its teeth look sharp and it is holding what looks like a ceremonial dagger.

Approach the monkey?
Carry on into the Temple Gardens?

Thaluikhain · Post by **Thaluikhain** » Thu Feb 07, 2019 1:32 pm

Approach the monkey

Darth Rabbitt · Post by **Darth Rabbitt** » Fri Feb 08, 2019 5:24 am

You select a weapon and go inside the stall. The monkey shrieks and leaps up on to the window ledge at the rear of the building. It doesn't look so dangerous close-up.

'Who are you?' it asks. 'You don't look like an accursed demon.'

Tell the monkey who you are and why you are here?
Ask the monkey who he is?
Ignore the monkey and go into the Temple Gardens?

SGamerz · Post by **SGamerz** » Sun Feb 10, 2019 9:23 am

Introduce ourselves to the monkey.