The Gaming Den

You are walking through the land of the Flintskins, a primitive tribe which has survived for many centuries in these parts. A party of about twenty of these sturdy, pale-skinned hunters ambushes you. They are well-armed with spears and bows. Will you fight or not?

They approach cautiously, glancing warily at your sheathed sword. You think to yourself that there must come a time when the odds will be in your favour, so you let them blindfold you, truss you up and haul you off to their village, some kilometres away. This cluster of about thirty huts occupies the end of a ravine which is accessible only through a narrow pass and so is easy to defend. As soon as you enter the village, your blindfold is removed and you are surrounded by a crowd of curious women and children. They chatter away in a nasal language you haven ever heard before. The men drag you to a stout pole in the middle of the village square and tie you to it. Although you are still fully equipped, you are very securely tied up. As day gives way to night, a large bonfire is lit near you. People disperse to their evening meals, leaving only two men to stand guard over you, and you see the elders of the village go off into a large hut near by. Will you take this opportunity to try lo escape or will you wait?

An hour or more passes. Then a message comes from the elders' hut for you to be brought before them. The guards untie you. Your hands are numb from the tight ropes, so you decide not to try to fight your way free just yet.

You are taken into the elders' hut. The guards pin your hands roughly behind your back and hold a dagger to your throat while your belongings are searched. If they find an A-medallion among your possessions, turn to 400; otherwise, turn lo 105.

If you have among your possessions either a moon symbol or a sun symbol or both, turn to 180; otherwise, turn to 45.

This causes considerable consternation. The elders murmur and talk among themselves for a long Lime. If you were brought here affer trying to escape, turn to 46; if you stayed tied to the post, turn to 322.

The Flintskins don't quite know what to make of you; they are not servants of Evil and they sense that you aren't either. Luckily for you, the opinion prevails among the elders thal you must be on a mission against their arch-enemy, Arachnos. They solemnly present you with one of the tribe's most precious totems: it is a branch from an ancient ebony tree, about thirty centimetres long, with a silver hexagram protruding slightly from one end. The branch also has the number 158 inscribed on it (make a note of this). The Flintskins then escort you out of their safe gorge and see you on your way Add 1 LUCK point, then turn to 16.

When there is no certainty about which way you should turn, how do you decide? Some crows are wheeling in the air in the distance to the east, so you head in that direction because at least something is happening there. It turns out that the crows are circling in anticipation of a feast - a feast of human flesh, which is the kind Khulian crows prefer. Standing at the rise of a low hill, you look down on a man slumped against a solitary, lightning-blasted tree. He is terribly wounded but is still alive. Where are his assailants? This could be a trap. Will you look for his attacker or go down straight away to see if you can help?

You are about halfway down the slope when a savage Troll-Orc sprints out from cover and races down the hill towards you, a spear tucked under his arm, ready to impale you. If you have some sallow seed oil, turn to 328; otherwise, turn to 223.

Thinking quickly, you smash the phial of slippery oil on the ground in the Troll-Orc's path. He loses his footing and crashes heavily to the ground, where you dispatch him easily. Cross the oil off your Adventure Sheet, then turn to 181.

The man is still alive when you reach him. "It's you," he gasps. "King Jonthane sent me...new information...find...north of here..." He breathes his last. You leave his body for the crows: it is as clean a way to dispose of it as any other. You head north with your incomplete new information.

In the livid glow of a Deathmoor sunset, you come to an ancient door set in the hillside. Although it clearly originates in the lost civilization which once populated this land, you are certain that it is now the entrance to Arachnos' hide-out. You study in particular the three depressions in the door. If you have the three keys necessary to get in through the door, you can work out where to turn to next. Otherwise, you leave to look for another way in.

You struggle on as best you can as deep night falls and the mists come down, but to no avail. Half-seen, half-recognized shapes loom, eerily glowing, out of the darkness, while fine moisture soaks you to the skin. The ghosts of Deathmoor lure you to your death over a cliff.

Darth Rabbitt wrote: ↑

Mon Jan 23, 2023 2:30 pm

Mostly curious as to what questioning the baron would have gotten us, and if there was any more interesting things in his house.