[Let's Play] ACE Gamebook 01 – Alice’s Nightmare in Wonderland

[JourneymanN00b]

Cover


Greetings everyone. I recently acquired a copy of Jonathan Green’s first ACE gamebook, and it seemed to be well-designed, despite being criticized as a ‘famous children's story, but edgelord, man’ innovation. Since my workload finally lightened up after several grueling months, I decided to run a Let’s Play of this adventure to end the month-long silence of no playthrough. As a bonus, this adventure involves attempting to bring down a fascist. Anyone interested in joining this adventure is welcome. I will try to update this thread on a twice per day basis, although this frequency is not guaranteed due to the nature of my work.

Preface

Alice’s Nightmare in Wonderland is a curious sort of a book. In fact, it is a portal to another world, the dream-world of Wonderland. As well as the book itself, you will need two dice (or a standard pack of playing cards), a pencil and an eraser. Using these tools, and a simple set of game rules contained within the book, you will guide the eponymous heroine of Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventure in Wonderland on a new and perilous quest as she finds herself called upon to save the world of playing cards and talking animals from the increasingly deranged Queen of Hearts.

Have you ever wondered what would have happened if Alice had not drunk from the bottle labelled ‘Drink Me’, or if she had not joined the Hatter, the March Hare, and the Dormouse for tea? Well now you can find out. In Alice’s Nightmare in Wonderland, YOU decide which route Alice should take, which perils to risk, and which of Wonderland’s strange denizens to fight. But be warned – whether Alice succeeds in her quest or meets a dire end as the nightmare escalates will be down to the choices YOU make.

Are you ready to go back down the rabbit-hole?

Welcome to Wonderland

“What a strange world we live in.”

Introduction

The book you hold in your hands is a gateway to another world, the dream-world of Wonderland. Once inside its pages and you will find yourself falling down the rabbit-hole to embark upon a thrilling adventure.

You see, this is no ordinary book. Rather than reading it from cover to cover, you will discover that at the end of each narrative section you will be presented with a series of choices which allow you to control the course of the story.

In Alice’s Nightmare in Wonderland you guide the eponymous heroine of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, by Lewis Carroll, through a nightmarish dreamscape to the conclusion of her quest. You decide which path to take, which risks to brave, and even which of the weird inhabitants of Wonderland you will meet along the way to engage in battle.

Success is by no means certain and you may well fail to complete the adventure at your first attempt. However, with experience, skill, and maybe even a little luck, each new attempt should bring you closer to your ultimate goal.

In addition to the book itself, you will need two six-sided dice, or a conventional pack of 52 playing cards, a pencil, an eraser, and a copy of Alice’s Adventure Sheet (you can download them from http://snowbooks.com/alice_adventure_sheet).

For the purposes of this thread, the Alice’s Adventure Sheet will be hand-made and periodically displayed.

“It was a very difficult game indeed.”

Playing the Game

There are three ways to play through Alice’s Nightmare in Wonderland. The first is to use two conventional six-sided dice. The second is to use a conventional pack of 52 playing cards. The third is to ignore the rules altogether and just read through the book, making choices as appropriate, but ignoring any combat or attribute tests, always assuming you win every battle and pass every skill test. (Even if you play the adventure this way, there is still no guarantee that you will complete it at your first attempt.)

If you are opting to play through Alice’s Nightmare in Wonderland using the game rules, you first need to determine Alice’s strengths and weaknesses.

Two six-sided dice will be used to play though this adventure, unless a majority of posters requests otherwise.

“We’re all mad here!”

Alice’s Attributes

Alice has five attributes you will need to keep track of during the course of the adventure, using Alice’s Adventure Sheet. Some of these will change frequently, some less so, but it is important that you keep an accurate record of the current level for all of them.

     Agility – This is a measure of how athletic and agile Alice is. If she needs to leap across a chasm or dodge a deadly projectile, this is the attribute that will be employed.

     Logic – This is a measure of how clever and knowledgeable Alice is, and will be tested if Alice ever has to think her way out of a tricky situation or solve a mind-bending puzzle.

     Insanity – The deeper Alice plunges into the nightmare that is besetting Wonderland, the more her sanity will be put at risk. Rest assured that you should do all you can to prevent Alice from losing her marbles altogether during the course of the adventure.

     Combat – This is a measure of how skilful Alice is at fighting, whether it be in pugilist fashion with her fists, or wielding a keen-edged blade in battle.

     Endurance – This is a measure of how physically tough Alice is and how much strength she has left. This attribute will vary more than any other during the course of Alice’s adventure.

Unlike some adventure gamebooks, in Alice’s Nightmare in Wonderland Alice’s strengths and weaknesses are not determined randomly. Instead, you get to decide what she is good at and, conversely, what she might not be so good at.

Alice’s Insanity score always starts at zero. Her Endurance score always starts at 20.

Alice’s remaining attributes – Agility, Logic and Combat – start at a base level of 6. You then have a pool of 10 extra points to share out between Agility, Logic, Combat and Endurance as you see fit, but you can only add up to 5 points to each attribute. So the maximum starting score for Agility, Logic, and Combat is 11, and the maximum starting score for Endurance is 25. (You must apportion all 10 points one way or another, and cannot leave any unused.)

For example, you might choose to add 2 points to Alice’s Agility score, 4 to her Logic score, 2 points to her Combat score, and add the remaining 2 points to her Endurance score, which would give Alice the following starting profile for the game:

Agility = 8, Logic = 10, Insanity = 0, Combat = 8,
Endurance = 22.

Alternatively you might want to add 4 points to her Agility score, nothing to her Logic score, add 1 point to her Combat score, and spend the remaining 5 points bolstering Alice’s Endurance score, which would give her this starting profile:

Agility = 10, Logic = 6, Insanity = 0, Combat = 7,
Endurance = 25.

If you wanted to make her more of an all-rounder, you could raise Alice’s Agility, Logic and Combat scores by 3 points each, and use up the last point on her Endurance score, which would give Alice this starting profile:

Agility = 9, Logic = 9, Insanity = 0, Combat = 9,
Endurance = 21.

Having determined where Alice’s strengths and weaknesses lie, record the value of each attribute in the appropriate box on Alice’s Adventure Sheet in pencil, and make sure you have an eraser to hand, as they will doubtless all change at some point as you play through the adventure (and some more than others).

Although there are limits on how high each of Alice’s attributes can be at the start of the adventure, there is no limit as to how high any of Alice’s attributes can be raised during the course of the adventure, dependent upon bonus points Alice may be awarded. However, should Alice’s Endurance score ever drop to zero, or below, then her adventure is over and you should stop reading immediately; if you want to tackle the quest again, you will have to start from the beginning, determining Alice’s attributes anew, and then starting the story from section 1 once more.

“Do you play croquet?”

Testing Alice’s Attributes

At various times during the adventure, you will be asked to test one or other of Alice’s attributes.

If it is Alice’s Agility, Logic or Combat that is being tested, simply roll two dice. If the total rolled is equal to or less than the particular attribute being tested, Alice has passed the test; if the total rolled is greater than the attribute in question, then Alice has failed the test.

If it is Alice’s Endurance score that is being tested, roll four dice in total. If the combined score of all four dice is equal to or less than Alice’s Endurance score, then she has passed the test, but if it is greater, then what is being asked of her is beyond what she is capable of and she has failed the test.

If it is Alice’s Insanity score that is being tested, roll two dice, and in this case, if the total rolled is less than her Insanity score, Alice has failed the test. However, if the total rolled is equal to or greater than her Insanity score, then Alice has passed the test.

“It’s always tea-time.”

Restoring Alice’s Attributes

There are various ways that Alice can restore lost attribute points, or be granted bonuses that take her attributes beyond their starting scores, and these will be described in the text.

However, an easy way to restore lost Endurance points is to find things for Alice to eat and drink. Sometimes Alice may find enough food that she can make herself some provisions to take with her for later on in the adventure.

Make sure that if Alice does find any supplies of this nature that you record them on Alice’s Adventure Sheet, along with any information about exactly how many attribute points they will restore when consumed.

“Curiouser and Curiouser!”

Alice’s Special Abilities

In addition to her five basic attributes, Alice also has two special abilities that she can employ at critical moments during her journey through the nightmarish Wonderland.

     Curiouser and Curiouser – If Alice finds herself in a tight spot she can use this ability to change the nature of the dream world around her, although this might result in her actually making things worse rather than better.

     The Pen is Mightier – This ability allows Alice to avoid coming to blows with an enemy, by altering the narrative of the encounter and thereby enabling her to get away unscathed.

These very special abilities can only be used three times each during the course of the adventure. Each time Alice’s calls on one of them, you must cross off a box on Alice’s Adventure Sheet under the appropriate special ability.

“Off with her head!”

Combat

Alice will repeatedly be called upon to defend herself against the bizarre and malevolent denizens of the nightmarish realm that Wonderland has become since her last visit. Sometimes she may even choose to attack these horrors herself. After all, as they say, the best form of defence is attack.

When this happens, start by filling in Alice’s opponent’s Combat and Endurance scores in the first available Nightmare Encounter Box on Alice’s Adventure Sheet.

Whenever Alice engages in combat, you will be told in the text whether Alice or her enemy has the initiative; in other words, who has the advantage and gets to attack first.

1. Roll two dice and add Alice’s Combat score. The resulting total is Alice’s Combat Rating.

2. Roll two dice and add Alice’s opponent’s Combat Score. The resulting total is her opponent’s Combat Rating.

3. For each Combat Round, add a temporary 1 point bonus to the Combat Rating of whichever of the combatants has the initiative for the duration of that round.

4. If Alice’s Combat Rating is higher than her opponent’s she has wounded her enemy; deduct 2 points from her opponent’s Endurance score, and move on to step 7.

5. If Alice’s opponent’s Combat Rating is higher, then Alice has been wounded; deduct 2 points from Alice’s Endurance score, and move on to step 8.

6. If Alice’s Combat Rating and her opponent’s Combat Rating are the same, roll one die. If the number rolled is odd, Alice and her opponent deflect each other’s attacks; go to step 10. If the number rolled is even, go to step 9.

7. If Alice’s opponent’s Endurance score has been reduced to zero or below, Alice has won; the battle is over and she can continue on her way through Wonderland. If her opponent is not yet dead, go to step 10.

8. If Alice’s Endurance score has been reduced to zero or below, Alice’s opponent has won the battle. If you want to continue your adventure you will have to start again from the beginning, determining Alice’s attributes all over again, and starting from section 1 once more. If Alice is still alive, go to step 10.

9. Alice and her opponent have both managed to injure each other; deduct 1 point from their respective Endurance scores. If Alice’s Endurance score has been reduced to zero or below, Alice’s adventure is over; if you want to play again you will have to determine Alice’s attributes anew, and start again from section 1. If Alice is still alive but her enemy’s Endurance has been reduced to zero or below, Alice has won; the battle is over and she can continue on her way through Wonderland. If neither Alice nor her opponent are dead, go to step 10.

10. If Alice won the Combat Round, she will have the initiative in the next Combat Round. If her opponent won the Combat Round, they will have the initiative. If neither of them won the Combat Round, neither of them will gain the initiative bonus for the next Combat Round. Go back to step 1 and work through the sequence again until either Alice, or her opponent, is defeated.

Occasionally Alice may find herself having to fight more than one opponent at once. Such battles are conducted in the same way as above, using the ten step process, except that you will have to work out the Combat Ratings of all those involved. As long as Alice has a higher rating than an opponent she will injure them, no matter how many opponents she is taking on at the same time. However, equally, any opponent with a Combat Rating higher than Alice’s will be able to injure her too.

“You’re nothing but a pack of cards!”

An Alternative to Dice

Since Alice’s Nightmare in Wonderland is inspired by Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, rather than dice rolls you may prefer to determine random numbers during the game using a pack of playing cards.

To do this, when you are called upon to roll dice, simply shuffle a standard 52-card deck (having removed the jokers) and draw a single card. (If you are asked to roll four dice, draw two cards.) Number cards are worth the number shown on the card. Jacks, Queens and Kings are all worth 11, and if you draw an Ace, it counts as being worth 12 (for example, if Alice is engaged in Combat), and is an automatic pass if she is testing an attribute – any attribute.

“Shoes, and ships, and sealing wax.”

Equipment

Alice starts her adventure with nothing but the clothes she stands up in, including a pinafore she wears over her dress which, fortunately, comes with a deep pocket at the front. This is where Alice stores anything she picks up during the course of her adventure.

Anything that she collects should be recorded on Alice’s Adventure Sheet, including any clues or passwords, as well as weapons, provisions, and other miscellaneous unusual items.

“Begin at the Beginning.”

Hints on Play

There is more than one path that Alice can follow through Wonderland to reach her ultimate goal, but it may take you several attempts to actually complete the adventure. Make notes and draw a map as you explore. This map will doubtless prove invaluable during future attempts at completing the quest, and will allow you to progress more speedily in order to reach unexplored regions of the nightmarish realm.

Keep a careful eye on all of Alice’s attributes and her Insanity score in particular. Beware of traps and of sending Alice on too many wild goose chases. However, it would be wise to collect useful items along the way that may aid her further on in her quest.

“Go on till you come to the end: then stop.”

Ending the Game

There are several ways that Alice’s adventure can end. If her Endurance score ever drops to zero or below, her trials in Wonderland have exhausted and overcome her. If this happens, stop reading at once. There may also be occasions where Alice is prevented from progressing any further through the adventure thanks to the choices you have made for her, or she meets a sudden and untimely end. In all of these cases, if you want to have another crack at completing the adventure you will have to start again with a new Alice’s Adventure Sheet and begin the story afresh from section 1.

There is of course one other reason for Alice’s adventure coming to an end, and that is if she successfully completes her quest, the very same quest that awaits her now…

Please keep all spoilers covered out of respect to those who want a blind experience. I will use personal instinct to break any ties.

Down the Rabbit-Hole

“You’re late! Wake up!”

Alice wakes with a start and sits up, blinking in surprise and looking about her in bewilderment. It is a balmy summer’s afternoon and she is sitting beside a river, the long grass that has formed her bed dotted with daisies. The waters gurgle softly as they pass by on their way downstream.

Something about the scene seems very familiar.

“Don’t just sit there! Get up! You’re late!” comes the shrill voice again.

The hot weather making her feel sleepy and dull-witted, Alice follows the sound to its source. There, standing in the shade of a chestnut tree, is a white rabbit.

But this isn’t just any white rabbit. This particular rabbit is dressed in the manner of an English gentleman – jacket, waistcoat and all. The rabbit’s ears are a little threadbare, the stuffing poking out through holes worn in the skin, and as it tilts its head to one side to observe her with its glassy pink eyes, Alice thinks she hears a grating of gears.

Alice jumps to her feet as it flashes through her mind that, once upon a time, on some previous occasion, she saw something like this rabbit wearing a waistcoat and carrying a pocket-watch. But there is no timepiece clutched in the rabbit’s paws this time.

“Who are you to say I’m late when you are not even carrying a pocket-watch?” Alice asks, not one to be outdone by an animal that looks like nothing more than a taxidermist’s test subject.

The rabbit says nothing, but simply unbuttons its waistcoat, and Alice gasps as her former cockiness is consumed by gut-wrenching terror. Where the rabbit’s stomach should be, a huge watch ticks – a clock large enough to fill the cavity from ribcage to pelvis – raw and ragged scrags of meat poking between the wire stitches that bind watch and rabbit together.

“How can I be late,” Alice asks the rabbit, “when I don’t even know what it is I’m late for?”

She is suddenly aware of the wind having picked up, as scuds of cloud race each other across the sky, a sky which has changed from sapphire blue to a seething, bloody claret.

“You are needed in Wonderland,” the White Rabbit informs her, the twitching of its nose accompanied by a mechanical whirring sound.

“Wonderland?” There is something familiar about that name, Alice is sure of it, but she can’t quite put her finger on what it is.

“It’s the Queen of Hearts. The whole realm has suffered the ravages of her tyrannical reign, and if you thought things were bad before, they are considerably worse now. It’s a miracle I managed to escape her Tick-Tock Men.”

“Before?” Alice whispers in a daze. “Tick-Tock Men?”

“Yes, Tick-Tock Men! How else do you think I ended up like this?” the rabbit says, looking down at his stomach and the ticking timepiece embedded within what little flesh remains there.

Alice stares at the creature in dumbfounded amazement before finally finding her voice again. “Why are you telling me this? What do you expect me to do about it?”

“Why?” gasps the rabbit, in incredulity. “We need you, Alice. Wonderland needs you.”

“But what do you need me to do?”

“We need you to kill the Queen, of course.”

“Kill the Queen?” Alice echoes. “But why me?”

The White Rabbit gives an exasperated sigh and takes a deep breath, in an attempt to compose itself, before speaking again.

“Because it’s your nightmare!”

Now turn to 1.

1

Alice stares at the rabbit unsure what to say, a dozen questions crowding her mind. Who is the Queen of Hearts? Who turned the White Rabbit into a walking timepiece? And how does he expect her to kill anyone? After all, she’s only eleven years-old. But before she can give voice to even one of the questions, the White Rabbit speaks again.

“Come on, there’s not a moment to lose. The clock is ticking!” he says, looks pointedly at his clock-filled stomach cavity. And with that, he turns tail and scampers off across the meadow, through the long, wind-tugged grass.

If you think Alice should set off in pursuit, turn to 20. If you think that following half-clockwork talking rabbits could never be considered wise, turn to 39.

In addition to voting on the above choice, please also vote on whether we should follow the gamebook’s rules and if so, whether to use dice or a pack of playing cards as well as how to use the 10 extra points towards Alice's Agility, Logic, Combat, and Endurance. Please make your decisions before 9:00 AM PDT to guarantee that they will be counted.

[Thaluikhain]

Playing cards change the odds of number generation a lot, don't know if that's a good or bad thing.

I vote 3 points each on Agility, Logic and Combat, and the remaining one on Endurance.

I vote to pursue the rabbit.

[deaddmwalking]

Agree on the even spread - 3/3/3 with the last one going to Endurance.

For consistency I think we should use dice. Cards result in higher rolls more often, but that works for both opponents and for Alice. On 2d6 the odds of a 12 are less than 3%; with 4 aces it's almost 8%. On 2d6 the odds of an 11 are about 8%, the odds of a Jack/Queen/King are about 23%. For Test your (Attribute) rolls, we're probably better off with dice so it's probably a net positive. It would be interesting to see 'what would have happened' if we had drawn cards, but that'd be more work for JourneymanN00b, so probably not worth the experiment. I might draw some cards at some point just to compare, though.

Yes, follow the rabbit.

[JourneymanN00b]

Alright everyone. I have registered the decision to follow the rules using 2 six-sided dice and your votes to assign 3 points each to Alice’s Agility, Insanity, and Combat, and to assign 1 point to Endurance. It looks like we are starting this adventure by having Alice go the classical path by setting off in pursuit.

20

Burning with curiosity, Alice runs off across the field after the rabbit. Just as she is starting to feel that she might actually be catching up with it, the creature disappears down a large rabbit-hole under a hedge.

Stumbling to a halt, Alice peers down into the earthy darkness. This is all looking very familiar, but she can’t quite remember why.

If she pulls away some of the turf from around the entrance, she should be able to squeeze inside the burrow, but such activity will doubtless make a mess of her dress, and what would Nurse say? At her back, the wind continues to rise.

If you think Alice should follow the White Rabbit underground, turn to 57. If you think that crawling down rabbit-holes is not behaviour befitting a young lady, turn to 64.

Please make your decisions before 7:00 PM PDT to guarantee that they will be counted.

Alice’s Adventure Sheet
AGILITY: 9
LOGIC: 9
INSANITY: 0
COMBAT: 9
THE PEN IS MIGHTIER: 3 uses
CURIOUSER AND CURIOUSER: 3 uses
ENDURANCE: 21
EQUIPMENT:
(None)

[Thaluikhain]

An "Are you sure?" section already.

Follow Underground.

[JourneymanN00b]

Vote recognized; following the White Rabbit underground.

57

Squeezing along the tunnel, Alice drags herself through the loamy dark, unable to see more than a foot in front of her face. There is no sign of the White Rabbit now.

The further Alice wriggles along the tunnel, between probing roots and writhing worms, dangling from the roof of the burrow, the more opaque the gloom becomes.

Without any warning the tunnel dips suddenly downwards, so suddenly, in fact, that Alice doesn’t have a moment to think about stopping herself before she is plunging headfirst down the damp throat of what is clearly a very deep well.

But as she falls, and her eyes become accustomed to the darkness, Alice realises that the sides of the well are lined with cupboards and bookshelves. Looking down she can see no end to the well-shaft in sight.

However, she is coming up on another cupboard. If you think Alice should try to find out what it holds as she passes, turn to 109. If not, turn to 156.

Please make your decisions before 9:00 AM PDT to guarantee that they will be counted.

[Thaluikhain]

Examine random cupboards.

[Dogopolis]

Check out the cupboards.

A bit late to the party, I'd have gone for cards.

[deaddmwalking]

Edit - Yes, loot cupboards for useful equipment.

Check out the cupboards.

A bit late to the party, I'd have gone for cards.

Out of curiosity, why? I assume we're going to have to 'roll under our attribute' which is easier on dice. Does this book not use that mechanic?

[Dogopolis]

I don't know, haven't read it. Cards just seemed novel.

[JourneymanN00b]

Votes acknowledged; attempting to find out what the cupboard holds as Alice falls.

109

Taking something from the cupboard whilst falling down the well isn’t going to be as easy as perhaps it sounds.

Take an Agility test. If Alice passes the test, turn to 133. If she fails the test, turn to 156.

Rolling the dice yielded a 4, so Alice passed the Agility test.

133

Alice manages to open the cupboard door with one hand and reach inside with the other, pulling out a large pair of scissors.

Add the Scissors to Alice’s Adventure Sheet. If she ever finds herself in combat with one of the strange denizens that inhabit Wonderland she may use the Scissors as a weapon, causing 3 points of damage to her opponent’s Endurance score with every successful strike, rather than the usual 2.

Now turn to 156.

156

As Alice continues to tumble down the well she sees a dresser racing up to meet her. If you want Alice to grab whatever she can from the dresser, turn to 178. If not, turn to 12.

Please make your votes before 7:00 PM PDT to guarantee that they will be counted.

Alice’s Adventure Sheet
AGILITY: 9
LOGIC: 9
INSANITY: 0
COMBAT: 9
THE PEN IS MIGHTIER: 3 uses
CURIOUSER AND CURIOUSER: 3 uses
ENDURANCE: 21
EQUIPMENT:
Scissors (Deals 3 damage in combat)

[Dogopolis]

Search everything.

[deaddmwalking]

Agree to grab something from the dresser. I don't think we're likely to find anything antithetical to our continued living.

[JourneymanN00b]

Votes registered; grabbing whatever she can from the dresser.

178

Flinging out a hand, Alice snatches a jar from the dresser shelf. Written on a label stuck to the glass in a spidery hand are the words ‘Orange Marmalade’, and the jar is full.

Add the Jar of Marmalade to Alice’s Adventure Sheet and make a note that it contains enough for four portions. Alice may choose to eat a portion of the Marmalade at any time, apart from when she is in the middle of combat, and will replenish up to 4 Endurance points by doing so.

Now turn to 12.

12

As the dresser disappears again above her, Alice reaches a section of the well shaft adorned with framed maps and pictures hanging from hooks. If you want Alice to try to grab one of these, turn to 33. If not, turn to 82.

Please make your votes before 9:00 AM PDT to guarantee that they will be counted.

Alice’s Adventure Sheet
AGILITY: 9
LOGIC: 9
INSANITY: 0
COMBAT: 9
THE PEN IS MIGHTIER: 3 uses
CURIOUSER AND CURIOUSER: 3 uses
ENDURANCE: 21
EQUIPMENT:
Scissors (Deals 3 damage in combat)
Jar of Marmalade (4 portions, +4 Endurance per portion)

[Dogopolis]

Ok we all know if you're given 2 good things the next one will be bad. Decline.

[Thaluikhain]

Half vote to check it out anyway, to see what bad thing it is.

[deaddmwalking]

In Cthulu, books are bad. That's how you get knowledge of things that will drive you mad. Since we want to avoid insanity here, too, we shouldn't bother with the book. Vote to turn to page 82.

[JourneymanN00b]

Votes counted; not attempting to grab a map or a picture won by a 2-0.5 vote.

82

Tumbling head over heels, Alice sees that she is fast approaching a rickety bookcase. If you want her to grab a book from a shelf as she falls past, turn to 102. If you think she should leave her hands free, just in case, turn to 62.

Please make your votes before 7:00 PM PDT to guarantee that they will be counted.

[deaddmwalking]

Another chance at a book? I do remember her reading one in the Disney version, but I think we're fine to keep our hands free. Vote turning to 62.

[Dogopolis]

With 4 things, one of them is probably bad. I'm going to hope we already skipped the bad thing and half vote to grab a book.

[JourneymanN00b]

Votes tallied; leaving her hands free won by a 1-0.5 vote.

62

Just when Alice thinks she can’t possibly fall any further, ground appears at the bottom of the well and she lands in a pile of dry leaves which, miraculously, break her fall. Unhurt, she is on her feet in a moment.

Turn to 114.

114

Before her is another long passage. There is no sign of the White Rabbit but she can hear the tick and rattle of clockwork coming from somewhere up ahead.

There’s not a moment to lose. Chasing off down the passage Alice turns a corner and finds herself in a long, low hall, lit by lamps hanging from the roof. There are doors all around the hall but what has really attracted her attention are the two stick-like figures stalking towards her on pin-like legs.

Although they are shaped like men, they most definitely are not men, since they are quite clearly made from pieces of metal, and their visible innards look like the workings of a clock.

Tick-tock, tick-tock, go the clock mechanisms as the metal men stalk towards her, a sinister glint in their watch-case eyes. Tick-tock, tick-tock.

The horrid vision of these clockwork creations, their brass body parts glinting in the lamplight, fills Alice with dread. (Add 1 to Alice’s Insanity score.) Quaking in fear, her face as white as a sheet, what should Alice do now?

To try to dodge past the advancing Tick-Tock Men, turn to 5. To try talking to the clockwork creations, turn to 226. To attack the Tick-Tock Men, before they can attack Alice, turn to 169. For Alice to try to think her way out of such a dangerous situation, turn to 246. To use Alice’s Curiouser and Curiouser ability, turn to 130.

Please make your votes before 9:00 AM PDT to guarantee that they will be counted.

Alice’s Adventure Sheet
AGILITY: 9
LOGIC: 9
INSANITY: 1
COMBAT: 9
THE PEN IS MIGHTIER: 3 uses
CURIOUSER AND CURIOUSER: 3 uses
ENDURANCE: 21
EQUIPMENT:
Scissors (Deals 3 damage in combat)
Jar of Marmalade (4 portions, +4 Endurance per portion)

[Dogopolis]

Alice should think her way out. it's probably not what it seems.

[Thaluikhain]

I can agree with that logic.

[deaddmwalking]

Agility and Logic are equally good (or bad) but I can see how dodging past them would lead to success but not how carefully analyzing the situation would (but of course they're withholding critical NEED TO KNOW information. My vote is for dodging past.

[JourneymanN00b]

Votes counted; trying to think her way out won over trying to dodge past the advancing Tick-Tock Men by a 2-1 vote.

246

As Alice tries to think of a way out of her dire situation, the Tick-Tock Men continue to advance with lurching movements that are strangely out of time with the ceaseless ticking of their internal clockwork mechanisms.

Take a Logic test. If Alice passes the test, turn to 263. If she fails the test, turn to 278.

Rolling the dice yielded a 7, so Alice passed the Logic test.

263

An idea suddenly comes to her. Rather than running away from the menacing mechanical men, Alice runs towards them. Metal claws unsheathed, they swing at her, just as she throws herself onto the tiled floor and slides past between them.

There is a metallic shearing sound followed by a crash as something hits the floor. Alice is on her feet in seconds and looks back over her shoulder to see the head of one of the clanking horrors lying in pieces on the floor.

Alice has no choice but to defend herself as the remaining automaton bears down on her with long, scissoring strides. (As Alice is still struggling to get up, the Tick-Tock Man has the initiative in this battle.)

TICK-TOCK MAN COMBAT 7 ENDURANCE 7

If Alice manages to overcome the automaton assassin, turn to 314.

The fight:
Round 1: Alice’s Combat Rating: 9+12 = 21, Tick Tock Man’s Combat Rating: 7+7+1 = 15;
Alice’s Endurance: 21, Tick-Tock Man’s Endurance: 4
Round 2: Alice’s Combat Rating: 9+8+1 = 18, Tick Tock Man’s Combat Rating: 7+9 = 16;
Alice’s Endurance: 21, Tick-Tock Man’s Endurance: 1
Round 1: Alice’s Combat Rating: 9+10+1 = 20, Tick Tock Man’s Combat Rating: 7+8 = 15;
Alice’s Endurance: 21, Tick-Tock Man’s Endurance: -2

As somewhat expected, Alice flawlessly destroys the Tick-Tock Man.

314

The mechanical killers dealt with, Alice starts to explore the Hall of Doors. There are tall doors and small doors, some with golden handles, others half hidden behind drapes, but they all have one thing in common; they are all locked.

The child can’t help feeling that she has found herself in a situation very similar to this once before, but she can’t quite remember when. It is as she is struggling to recover the memory, lost in her ruminations, that she notices the three-legged table standing in the middle of the hall. It is made of solid glass which must be why she didn’t see it before now.

On top of the table are two objects, a tiny golden key and a bottle. The key appears far too small to open any of the doors around the hall. The bottle, on the other hand, is much more interesting. It is full of a strangely fluorescing liquid that changes colour before Alice’s very eyes; one moment it’s cherry red, then next a custard yellow. A label tied round the bottle’s neck reads ‘DRINK ME’.

It is as Alice is studying the objects on top of the table that she spies something through the glass, sitting on the floor beneath it. It is a little glass box.

What should Alice do now?

Take the tiny golden key? Turn to 329.
Drink the contents of the bottle? Turn to 387.
Open the glass box? Turn to 3.
Keep trying the doors around the hall? Turn to 339.

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