The Gaming Den

Upon entering the stables you are met by the earthly smell of the horses tethered inside. The animals whinny and stomp their hooves in agitation as you pass by them. You notice that one animal is saddled and then, as you look closer, you are amazed to see that it is the horse you were riding back to the castle. You had forgotten about it until now but it makes tou wonder......if your horse has made it back here, then what has happened to your corpse?

As you ponder the fate of your own dead body, the stables become bathed in an eerie green light opposite you, As you watch, a phantom horse materializes there. Its eyes are blazing witch-lights while ectoplasm drips from its foaming lips. The horse appears to be wild and it has you completely trapped. If you want to get out of the stables you are going to have to get past this phantom creature first.

As the horse rears up on its hind-legs, ready to bring its hooves crashing down on your head you hastily decide how to react. If you want to draw your sword to defend yourself, turn to 96. If you would rather try to calm to horse-ghost, turn to 143.

Surely a will as strong as yours can bring a horse under control. Roll two dice and subtract 1 from the total rolled. If the new total is less than or equal to your WILL score, turn to 116; if it is greater, turn to 96.

Staring into the phantom steed's baleful eyes, exerting your will against it, you manage to calm it down and bring it under your control. The horse ceases its unearthly whinnying and stands patiently within its stall instead. It does not look like it's going anywhere and knowing where there is a horse that is a ghost like yourself, could prove useful - you never know! (Add the codword Steed to your Adventure Sheet.) Searching the stables further doesn't uncover anything else that might be of use to you so you leave to look elsewhere.

Do you have any of the codewords Bell, Barking, Barracks, Battlements or Blacksmith recorded on your Adventure Sheet? If so, make a careful note of how many and turn to 347. If you have none of these words written down, turn to 366.

An unnerving hissing sound, coming from behind you, stops you in your tracks. You turn to see a hideous apparition rising from the very ground behind you. It looks like a human brain trailing tentacles, not unlike those of a jellyfish. It is this creature that is making the horrible hissing noise as it floats towards you, writhing tentacles reaching for you. And it is not alone.

You have perhaps been rash in how you have conducted yourself since entering the castle, perhaps not, but whatever the case, the Spirit Hunters are on to you now. Take the number you wrote down regarding the 'B' codewords before turning to this paragraph and add one. This is the number of Spirit Hunters you must fight. Each one has the following stats:

SPIRIT HUNTER SKILL 6 STAMNA 6

You must fight these phantasms two at a time as they try to ensnare you with their stinging tendrils. If the Spirit Hunters finish you off, write the number 366 on your Adventure Sheet and turn to 100. If you defeat your spectral stalkers, turn to 366.

If you are going to gain access to the Inner Ward of Valsinore Castle, you are going to have to go past the Barbican. As you approach the tower two dark figures melt from out of the moon-cast shadows and materialize before its imposing gates, blocking your way. They wear long black cloaks over plate mail armour of archaic, and slightly sinister, design and are an intimidating presence.

However, having grown up in the castle and having explored practically every one of its hidey-holes and secret passageways, you also know of a tunnel that passes under the wall and into the Inner Wall beyond. Unfortunately it starts in a guard privy under the battlements in the east wall. If you want to approach the gatehouse and its sinister guardians directly, turn to 443. If you would rather make use of the secret tunnel, turn to 393. Alternatively, if you have the Spirit special ability and would prefer to fly over the gatehouse and into the Inner Ward beyond, turn to 5.

As you approach the gatehouse and its guardians, your ghostly blue-white glow giving your location away, you hear the clatter of swords being unsheathed as the silent warriors prepare to repel your advance. Will you:

Prepare to meet the knights in battle?
Use the Spectre special ability (if you have it)?
Use the Shade special ability (if you have it)?
Give up on this approach and look for the secret tunnel instead?

In the blink of an eye you are gone......Invisible as a shadow you creep past the gate's guardians towards the portcullis-barred entrance to the Inner Ward. Only, it would appear that the knights can see you, somehow, as they move to engage you, their heavy two-handed swords raised, ready to strike. The truth of the matter is that even in your Shade form, you are still visible to those with the Second Sight and other undead, and these Dread Knights are already like you! You have no choice but to fight them.

And so you clash swords with the Dread Knights of the Order of the Black Shroud, a company that calls its number from amongst the ranks of the Undead. They will not be easy to defeat and you will have to fight the broadsword-wielding warriors at the same time.

First DREAD KNIGHT SKILL 9 STAMNA 9
Second DREAD KNIGHT SKILL 8 STAMNA 9

The undead knights' blades smoulder with dark energy, runes cast into them glowing like red-hot coals. If a knight wounds you, roll one die; on a roll of 5-6 the knight's cursed blade will cause you 3 STAMINA points of damage, rather than the usual 2. If the Dread Knights dispatch you, sending you over to the Other Side, write the number 20 on your Adventure Sheet and turn to 100. However, if you manage to defeat them, turn to 323.

With the dread knights disposed of, you approach the heavy portcullis that separates the Outer Ward of the castle from the Inner. Either side of the portcullis - which is down - an arched entrance leads to a spiral staircase that in turn leads up into the Barbican itself. If you think you have the means to get past the portcullis you could do so now. If not, you will have to enter the Barbican to find a way to get through. Alternatively you may simply be curious to discover what secrets the gatehouse might hold. Will you:

Use the Poltergeist special ability (if you have it)?
Use the Apparition special ability (if you have it)?
Climb the staircase beyond the left archway?
Climb the staircase through the right archway?
Find another way into the Inner Ward?

Climbing the twisting stone staircase, you soon find yourself at the entrance to the chamber that contains the winding gear used to raise or lower the portcullis. Slumped against one wall, an earthenware bottle held loosely in one hand, is Falstaff the castle Porter. You remember that he always liked a drink - cider mainly - but now he just looks like an utter wreck. A scraggly grey beard covers half his face, his skin is blotched with the spider-web patterns of purple veins and he is having trouble focusing on you. 'Halt!' he slurs. 'Who goes there?'

As he struggles to his feet, you consider the scene before you again. Looking at the captain and considering the considerable weight of the portcullis you doubt that even with your strong will you would be able to raise it. And yet standing right before you is a man who, although drunk, has the physical strength needed to operate the mechanism successfully.

If you have the Spectre special ability and want to terrify the porter into helping you, turn to 247. If you want to try to dominate his drink-addled will to make him do as you command, turn to 225. If you would prefer to cross this chamber and continue up into the tower using the new staircase that starts at an archway to the other side of the chamber, turn to 160. But if you would rather re-trace your steps, going back downstairs and looking elsewhere, turn to 20.

As you draw closer to the man he burps loudly in surprise and the stench of stale cider wafts over you, making even your ethereal form recoil. But press on you must, if you are to ever manage to open the portcullis. "Ere, wot are yoo doin'?' he challenges as you loom over him, your spectral brow knotted in concentration as you pit your will against his. Roll two dice. If the total is less than or equal to your WILL score, turn to 206; if it is greater, turn to 247.

As you exert your will against the old man, a curious thing happens. You steadily find yourself probing further and further into the porter's mind until suddenly you are looking out at the world through his eyes. You have actually managed to possess the body of the porter. He's still inside there with you too, scared and confused, but his body is your to command - at least for the time being. Add 1 to your WILL and, having made a note of this paragraph first, turn to 343.

Sinister as it may sound, thanks to your incredible strength of will your are able to dominate the mind of another and possess them, using their body as if it were your own for a limited time. Record the Spook special ability on your Adventure Sheet and turn to the paragraph with the same number as the one that you were just instructed to write down.

Looking down at the porter's callused hands and lice-ridden rags you are possessed of an unbelievable thirst and almost overwhelmed by the need to empty your bladder. It is a weird sensation, controlling another's body. While you are still in control of the porter's body, you stumble over to the capstan and, putting all of Falstaff's strength into it, set to turning it.

Slowly, via a series of trundling gears, the portcullis rises through a slot and into the roof. Once you think it is high enough you lock off the capstan so that it can't be lowered again. You are only just in time. You feel your mental grip slipping and with a shudder your spirit-form is expelled from the porter's body. You can't say you're sorry to say goodbye to his body; and to think that you thought being dead was bad! (Add the codeword Gateway to your Adventure Sheet and regain 1 LUCK point.)

As the porter stumbles down the stairs yelling in nerve-shredding terror, you decide what you want to do next. Will you continue up into the gatehouse through the archway opposite, or will you return to the ground floor again and re-assess your options there?