[Let's Play] Fighting Fantasy 35 - Daggers of Darkness!

[JourneymanN00b]

I vote to reveal that Qulan Gal is one of Segrek's Select.

[SGamerz]

You select the guard standing next to you to explain your situation to. He looks you up and down, smiles confidentially and tells you to speak to no one else. He cuts through your bonds and tells you to walk behind the cart. You do as he orders. Suddenly he sets upon you from behind, screaming that you have tried to escape. You spin round and attack him.

KAZANID GUARD SKILL 7 STAMINA 8

If you survive (mark off 1 Poison unit on the Adventure Sheet), the other Kazanids have had time to group around you and one prepares to fire an arrow into your heart.

COMBAT LOG:
Kazanid Guard 12, Qulan Gal 17. KG is at 6.
KG 15, QG 16. KG is at 4.
KG 14, QG 17. KG is at 2.
KG 14, QG 20. KG is killed.

Flawlessed the treacherous bastard!

As if from nowhere, a rider appears in the circle and most of the Kazanids bow their heads in deference. He looks at you very carefully, examining your Gorak armour closely. He announces that his name is Zarank and that he is the leader of this group. He dismounts and takes you to one side. Next, he asks you if you are on of Segrek's Select and you decide that you have to trust him. "Tell no one else here," he replies. "Chingiz has bought many souls with his stolen gold. In Korkut, traditions bind me to put you to the test so that you may enter the Maze to seek the Medallion - but there are many in this land who do not wish to see a True Monarch on the throne. Come." He leads you to where a hose stands tethered.

Well, we already found that out the hard way...

As you ride, Zaranj explains that the Korkut are strong believers in luck, chance and good and bad fortune. "The Text and the Maze are like no other, but a strong and brave adventurer attracts good fortune," he declaims. Eventually, after a long ride, you reach the heights above Korkut. You see that the region is a port, with several ships in the harbour. Zaranj leads you through the twisting streets to the fortress; here he informs the Elders and Mages that you aspire to the Throne. There is much fuss and preparation. You are rested and fed (add 4 points to your STAMINA) and finally you are called to the Chamber of Chance.

STAMINA restored to full! (And we're going to need it, as you'd soon see)

You are placed in a chamber the floor of which consists of 49 separate raised blocks. You must get from point A to point B, using the throw of 1 die. You may throw the die as many times as it takes. Several blocks (marked with S) have vicious snakes resting on them, which will bite you if you land on their block (deduct 3 points from your STAMINA if this occurs). Three bites and you are dead.

A throw of 5-6: you may move one block up or down.
A throw of 3-4: you may move one block to the left o right.
A throw of 1-2: no move; stay on your block and deduct 1 point from your STAMINA.



There is only 1 rule: you cannot return to any block you have already stepped on. If you are unable to move, deduct 1 point from your STAMINA and throw the die again. Mark your path lightly in pencil.

Note that this diagram doesn't count as a unlocked life since it's not a full-page illustration.

Another point that wasn't mentioned in the intro text: each of the 6 clans has its own animal "totem" of sorts, although this is something you only kind of figure out as you proceed through each of the regions. (There's may also be a sequence towards the end where the PC has to go through a gauntlet of animals that represent each of the 6 clans.) Anyway, Korkut is represented by snakes, as you can see. Yigenik's was actually less obvious, which is the Fangtigers (something similar to a sabre-tooth, a tiger with protruding long fangs) that were only mentioned very briefly (being released into the Maze just before you were about to enter).

If the diagram doesn't look very clear to you, basically, A is at the bottom left corner and B is on the top right. The other non-empty blocks are all snakes.

1st Test Attempt:
Die roll = 6! Qulan moves up 1 block.
Die roll = 2! STAMINA is at 16.
Die roll = 3! Qulan moves 1 block to the right.
Die roll = 5! There's a snake above, so Qulan moves down 1 block,
Die roll = 3! Qulan moves 1 block to the right.
Die roll = 4! Qulan moves 1 block to the right.
Die roll = 5! Qulan moves up and gets bitten by a snake! STAMINA is now at 13.
Die roll = 4! Qulan moves 1 block to the right.
Die roll = 2! STAMINA is at 11.
Die roll = 5! Qulan moves right (he can't move back left...and there's also a snake there anyway) and gets bitten by a snake! STAMINA is now at 8. At least there shouldn't be anymore snakes for the remainder to the path.
Die roll = 2! STAMINA is at 7.
Die roll = 3! Qulan moves 1 block to the right.
Die roll = 4! Qulan can't move! STAMINA down to 6.
Die roll = 4! Qulan can't move! STAMINA down to 5.
Die roll = 2! STAMINA is at 4.
Die roll = 1! STAMINA is at 3.
Die roll = 1! STAMINA is at 2. Qulan eats a meal and restores it to 6.
Die roll = 1! STAMINA is at 5.
Die roll = 6! Qulan moves up 1 block.
Die roll = 2! STAMINA is at 4.
Die roll = 2! STAMINA is at 3.
Die roll = 1! STAMINA is at 2. Qulan eats a meal and restores it to 6.
Die roll = 3! Qulan moves 1 block to the left.
Die roll = 3! Qulan moves 1 block to the left.
Die roll = 3! Qulan moves 1 block to the left.
Die roll = 3! Qulan moves 1 block to the left.
Die roll = 5! Qulan moves up 1 block.
Die roll = 2! STAMINA is at 5.
Die roll = 1! STAMINA is at 4.
Die roll = 5! Qulan moves up 1 block and gets bitten for the 3rd time! Qulan is dead!

Man, that was brutal! Fortunately, we've been building up extra lives, and now the first of them kicks it and revives us to try again!

2nd Test Attempt:
Die roll = 3! Qulan moves 1 block to the right.
Die roll = 3! Qulan moves 1 block to the right.
Die roll = 6! Qulan moves up 1 block.
Die roll = 4!

Pausing here since this has taken quite a while. I'm leaving the next move to player votes: we are currently on the second row from bottom (horizontal) and third column from left (vertical). We need to move left or right. Do we move right to get bitten by a snake or move left away from our destination for the time being?

Adventure Sheet:
[spoiler]Name: Qulan Gal
SKILL 10/10
STAMINA 18/18
LUCK 10/11
Poison: 11/24
Equipment: Sword, Leather Armor, Potion of Fortune (+1 to Initial LUCK, restores LUCK to new Initial value)
Provisions: 7
Gold: 6 (1 sewn into boot, lucky piece)
Abilities: Darkfight
Medallions:
Extra Lives unlocked: 3/4 remaining
No. of deaths/failures: 1
[/spoiler]

[Queen of Swords]

Left, though this maze sucks big-time.

[SGamerz]

Left, though this maze sucks big-time.

It's not even the real Maze yet, this is just the pre-Maze test, similar to the run through the hot coals while avoiding getting stabbed by the Yigeniks.

[Darth Rabbitt]

Left, since I can't imagine getting bitten by a snake will interact well with the poison already in our system.

[Queen of Swords]

From the front page of the Korkut Times...

"The last of Segrek's Select died yesterday after being bitten by a poisonous snake in the Test. This final claimant to the throne reached the third row from the top and the second column from the left, but was then unfortunate enough to throw a four. Comfort measures were duly provided. The snake is reported to be in good condition and has been returned to its enclosure. Upon being informed, the vizier Chingiz reportedly offered thoughts and prayers before breaking into laughter."

[SGamerz]

Good news: we just managed to pass the Test on the second try.

Bad news: The nature of the Korkut Maze means that there's a loooooong sequence of dice-rolling and going to different sections/encounters with zero options (you'll see what I mean when I finally post it), so it will be a while before my next update comes up. :/

[SGamerz]

Left, since I can't imagine getting bitten by a snake will interact well with the poison already in our system.

Surprisingly, getting bitten up to twice doesn't increase our Poison unit in the slightest. But getting bitten 3 times still kills us.

2nd Test Attempt (continued):
Qulan moves 1 block to the left.
Die roll = 1! STAMINA is at 17.
Die roll = 6! Qulan moves up 1 block and gets bitten. STAMINA is at 14.
Die roll = 2! STAMINA is at 13.
Die roll = 6! Qulan moves up 1 block.
Die roll = 4! Qulan moves 1 block to the right.
Die roll = 2! STAMINA is at 12.
Die roll = 2! STAMINA is at 11.
Die roll = 5! Qulan moves down 1 block.
Die roll = 1! STAMINA is at 10.
Die roll = 6! Qulan can't move (he's been to both blocks above and below before)! STAMINA down to 9.
Die roll = 3! Qulan moves 1 block to the right.
Die roll = 3! Qulan moves 1 block to the right.
Die roll = 1! STAMINA is at 8.
Die roll = 4! Qulan moves 1 block to the right.
Die roll = 3! Qulan moves 1 block to the right.
Die roll = 6! Qulan moves up 1 block.
Die roll = 6! Qulan moves up 1 block.
Die roll = 4! Qulan moves 1 block to the left.
Die roll = 4! Qulan moves 1 block to the left.
Die roll = 1! STAMINA is at 7.
Die roll = 1! STAMINA is at 6.
Die roll = 6! Qulan moves up 1 block and gets bitten. STAMINA is at 3. He eats a meal and restores it to 7.
Die roll = 4! Qulan moves 1 block to the right.
Die roll = 1! STAMINA is at 6.
Die roll = 4! Qulan moves 1 block to the right.
Die roll = 4! Qulan can't move! STAMINA down to 5.
Die roll = 4! Qulan can't move! STAMINA down to 4.
Die roll = 4! Qulan can't move! STAMINA down to 3. He eats a meal and restores it to 7.
Die roll = 6! Qulan moves up 1 block and finally reaches Point B!

Eating another meal to restore STAMINA to 11 before continuing...

You are escorted to the next chamber. "The Maze has around 24 chambers," you are told, "and you move around it by throwing the magical die and moving the number of squares indicated by the throw. Mark your position on the chart below. There are many dangers and you will probably experience them again and again."

Make a note of the number of this paragraph. You are at Start. Throw the die and move in the direction indicated by the arrows. (For example, if you first throw a 4, vcount 4 squares and move on to 73. Turn to that paragraph and, when instructed, return here, throw the magic die again, and continue your progress through the Maze.) If you encounter a Serpent's head or a Stairway, you will be told to move straight away into another chamber. Mark your new position on the chart before throwing the next die. If you throw a die that would take you beyond 398, go to 398.

So...yes, this is basically a life-sized Snakes-and-Ladders board game. While it doesn't says so specifically here, encountering a Stairway will lead you to a "higher" level chamber (which isn't necessarily a good thing, unlike a real S&L game), and a Serpent's head will take you down to a lower level.

Let's begin now, and I think this might take a while...

Die roll = 3. We move to section 35:

You are in a room with a large curved snake in the middle. Suddenly a stairway appears and you feel compelled to climb it. Turn to 157 and mark your new position on the chart.

And immediately we skip several chambers and move to a higher level!

You are in a room with a long table in the middle. Scrawled on the table is the legend, 'The Fiend Loves Flowers'. Return to 160 and throw the magic die for your next position.

...k.

Die roll = 2. We move to 193.

You are in a smoke-filled room. Through the haze, you dimly make out a fully-armed warrior. You step forward and he springs to life.

MAZE WARRIOR SKILL 7 STAMINA 9

If you win, return to 160 and throw the magic die to continue.

At least we don't gain Poison units for this fight...

COMBAT LOG:
Maze Warrior 10, Qulan Gal 16. MW is at 7.
MW 16, QG 6. Tie.
MW 17, QG 18. MW is at 5.
MW 15, QG 21. MW is at 3.
MW 13, QG 21. MW is at 1.
MW 16, QG 16. Tie.
MW 10, QG 17. MW is defeated.

Moving on...die roll = 4. We move to 262.

You stand in a room which contains the corpse of a Mamlik Assassin. His neck is encircled by a large snake. Even in death he clutches his deadly dagger in a grip of iron. Add 1 point to your LUCK. Return to 160 and throw the magic die for your next position.

Well, at least it's nice to see that Chingiz's agents aren't faring so well in the Korkut Maze, unlike the Yigenik Maze. LUCK is back to full.

Die roll = 2. We move to 302.

You enter a room that has a huge beam suspended in the middle of it. Above the beam is a glass bowl containing 10 gold coins. You walk under it. Check your STAMINA. If it is an odd number, you upset the balance and get the coins (add them to your Adventure Sheet). If it is an even number, nothing happens. Return to 160 and throw the magic die.

Our STAMINA is 11, and so we get the coins! We're 10 gold richer!

Die roll = 1. We move to 316.

You are in a room of ice. The ice is increasing all the time and you have to hack at it to keep yourself from being enveloped. Throw 2 dice for the speed at which the ice grows and 2 dice for your speed and hacking it down. If the speed of ice-build-up is greater than the speed of your hacking, you are suffocated and frozen. Your quest is over. Otherwise, deduct 2 points from your STAMINA, return to 160 and throw the magic die.

Speed of ice build-up = 9. Speed of hacking =4!

Oh dear, Qulan isn't fast enough and has been frozen!

For this death (partly to take a break from all the rolling and typing), I'm letting the players vote on whether to redo this roll, or rewind to the last chamber and see if we land in a different location from there (there's no reason to rewind further than that, none of the other rooms have done us any harm this far).

Adventure Sheet:
[spoiler]Name: Qulan Gal
SKILL 10/10
STAMINA 11/18
LUCK 11/11
Poison: 11/24
Equipment: Sword, Leather Armor, Potion of Fortune (+1 to Initial LUCK, restores LUCK to new Initial value)
Provisions: 4
Gold: 16 (1 sewn into boot, lucky piece)
Abilities: Darkfight
Medallions:
Extra Lives unlocked: 2/4 remaining
No. of deaths/failures: 2
[/spoiler]

[Beroli]

Rewind.

[JourneymanN00b]

Hang on. When you rolled a 4 after you went to 157, Qulan Gal should have gone to 231, not 193. Does that change anything?

[SGamerz]

Hang on. When you rolled a 4 after you went to 157, Qulan Gal should have gone to 231, not 193. Does that change anything?

Typo error, the section is correct. We actually rolled 2.

[JourneymanN00b]

Typo error, the section is correct. We actually rolled 2.

Okay. I will vote to rewind to the last chamber then.

[Queen of Swords]

Rewind to the last chamber.

[SGamerz]

Rewinding back to 302, Qulan rolls the magic die again...

Die roll = 5. Qulan moves to 367.

You are in a room with jewel-encrusted walls. Before you can move to examine them, a giant Serpent's head appears and you are sucked down into its mouth (deduct 2 points from your STAMINA). Turn to 17 and mark your new position on the chart.

STAMINA down to 9...

You are in a well-lit chamber. Torches blaze on the walls and in the middle of the room is a forge with several small Medallion mounds. Sparks shoot out and some hit you. Deduct 1 point from your STAMINA. Return to 160 and throw the magic die for your next position.

...and now it's down to 8.

Die roll = 5 again! Qulan moves to 132.

You are in a gloomy chamber. You cannot move and your hands are Spellbound. Suddenly, a Mamlik Assassin appears, raises a Dagger of Darkness and plunges it into your chest. The illusion fades (deduct 2 points from your STAMINA). Return to 160 and throw the magic die for your next position.

And now it's down to 6!

Die roll = 3. Moving to 173...

You are in a room full of flowers which gives off no smell and are protected by cruel thorns. You may choose whether to pick a flower and place it in your backpack (mark a flower on your Adventure Sheet). If you do so, then the thorns prick you badly (deduct 2 p9oints from your STAMINA). Return to 160 and throw another die to carry on.

Do we want to pick a flower despite the thorns?

Adventure Sheet:
[spoiler]Name: Qulan Gal
SKILL 10/10
STAMINA 6/18
LUCK 11/11
Poison: 11/24
Equipment: Sword, Leather Armor, Potion of Fortune (+1 to Initial LUCK, restores LUCK to new Initial value)
Provisions: 4
Gold: 16 (1 sewn into boot, lucky piece)
Abilities: Darkfight
Medallions:
Extra Lives unlocked: 2/4 remaining
No. of deaths/failures: 2
[/spoiler]

[Thaluikhain]

Take a flower and eat 1 provisions. Or maybe more, but at least 1.

[Darth Rabbitt]

Gobble up 2 meals and then pick the flower.

[Queen of Swords]

Good Lord, this is random. Pick the flower.

[JourneymanN00b]

My vote is to pick the flower and eat 3 Provisions.

[Beroli]

Pick a flower and eat 3 Meals. Not in that order.

And of course it's random; this maze was literally designed by those who think chance is the ultimate power.

[SGamerz]

Qulan Gal consumes a meal (STAMINA up to 10) before picking a flower (gets pricked, down to 8). He then returns to 160, consumes another meal (up to 12) before rolling the die again.

Die roll = 2. He moves to 219.

You are in an empty room. Before you stands a Fiend who at once begins to rush toward you. If you have any flowers in your backpack, you can present one of them to the Fiend (make the appropriate adjustment on your Adventure Sheet). If you have no flowers, you will have to fight.

MAZE FIEND SKILL 6 STAMINA 8

If you win, or if you have bribed the Fiend with flowers, return to 160 nd throw the magic die for your next position.

We immediately get the chance to put that flower to use! Do we use it now, or save it in case we meet some tougher Fiends later?

Adventure Sheet:
[spoiler]Name: Qulan Gal
SKILL 10/10
STAMINA 12/18
LUCK 11/11
Poison: 11/24
Equipment: Sword, Leather Armor, Potion of Fortune (+1 to Initial LUCK, restores LUCK to new Initial value), Flower
Provisions: 2
Gold: 16 (1 sewn into boot, lucky piece)
Abilities: Darkfight
Medallions:
Extra Lives unlocked: 2/4 remaining
No. of deaths/failures: 2
[/spoiler]

[Queen of Swords]

We use it now. Happy Mother's Day, fiend.

[Beroli]

A single fiend with 6 Skill? I think it'll be more useful later. Fight.

[JourneymanN00b]

I vote to fight the Maze Fiend, as it only has 6 Skill.

[Darth Rabbitt]

I'd save the flower for later, I think we can take on a SKILL 6 opponent.

[SGamerz]

COMBAT LOG:
Maze Fiend 13, Qulan Gal 15. MF is at 6.
MF 9, QG 17. MF is at 4.
MF 10, QG 17. MF is at 2.
MF 10, QG 15. MF is killed.

Qulan rolls the die again...

Die roll = 2. We move to 247.

You stand in a room that has stone walls full of small niches. The floor is covered with little darts and the skeletons of three human beings are lying on the ground. Suddenly little poisoned darts shoot out through the holes in the walls. Test your Luck. If you are Lucky, you are hit only once (deduct 1 point from your STAMINA). If you are Unlucky, throw 2 dice and deduct the resulting total from your STAMINA. Mark off 1 Poison unit. If you are still alive, return to 160 and throw the magic die to determine where you go next.

Luck Test roll = 4 (Lucky). We lose 1 STAMINA, and it's down to 11 again.

Die roll = 1. We enter 262 again.

You stand in a room which contains the corpse of a Mamlik Assassin. His neck is encircled by a large snake. Even in death he clutches his deadly dagger in a grip of iron. Add 1 point to your LUCK. Return to 160 and throw the magic die for your next position.

In the absence of rules regarding repeated entries into chambers we'd already visited, I'm ruling that we still get whatever bonus, penalty or tests that we got the last time, so Qulan just regained the LUCK point he just spent!

Die roll = 5. We move to 340.

You are in a room with a giant Grypvulture. It flutters about crashing into the walls. Test your Luck. If you are Lucky, it does you no damage. If you are Unlucky, throw 1 die and reduce your STAMINA by that number. Return to 160 and throw the magic die to continue through the Maze.

Luck Test = 7 (Lucky). We avoid damage and pass through safely.

Die roll = 3. We move to 382.

You are in a room containing jars full of herbs. All are impossible to open except the one marked 'Treffilli'. You have time to take only 2 sprigs before the jar seals itself again. If you want them, take the sprigs and mark them on your Adventure Sheet. Turn to 398.

Unlike the flower, there are no immediate penalties for taking these herbs, so I'd add them to the Adventure Sheet straightaway. You can, of course, still vote not to take them, in which case I will remove them later.

We are now directed right to the last chamber....

Zaranj stands before you. "You are brave and have passed successfully through the Maze, but fortunate has not favoured you with the Medallion. You must try elsewhere." Your mind goes blank.

Bummer. We still missed the chamber with the Medallion after all that we went through!

(Unfortunately, the Korkut Maze is probably the most difficult one to navigate in this book due to the randomness, so it's bad luck that this is the one we came upon.)

A door open in your mind. You blink as you find yourself standing outside the fortress of Korkut. In front of you is a cobbled lane that leads down to the harbour. You stand there, dazed. Do you walk down to the port or would you prefer to enter a tavern that you see across the street?

Where do we go next?

Adventure Sheet:
[spoiler]Name: Qulan Gal
SKILL 10/10
STAMINA 11/18
LUCK 10/11
Poison: 11/24
Equipment: Sword, Leather Armor, Potion of Fortune (+1 to Initial LUCK, restores LUCK to new Initial value), Flower, Treffilli (2 sprigs)
Provisions: 2
Gold: 16 (1 sewn into boot, lucky piece)
Abilities: Darkfight
Medallions:
Extra Lives unlocked: 2/4 remaining
No. of deaths/failures: 2
[/spoiler]