Let's Play: Challenge of the Magi: Mage3

Stories about games that you run and/or have played in.

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SGamerz
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Post by SGamerz »

Woah.....tough decision. I'm really, really tempted to try that "I wanna avenge my mom" thing. It'll be hilarious one way or another.

I suspect ninja honesty might be the best option, though.....so tell him about wanting to be Duelmaster.
Thaluikhain
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Post by Thaluikhain »

The Black Knight nods and asks you about your opponent. You tell him what little you know and he says he was right. 'You do need a trusty sword at your side." He tells you that he is a mercenary and that you can hire him and his warhorse for just four bags of gold, until your opponent is slain. Alternatively he offers you the loan of his warhorse alone which is both a steed and trained for battle, giving you a strength of +1 in combat while you ride it, for two bags of gold.

The Black Knight is a notorious swordsman. If you can afford to hire him he will add 2 points to your strength in physical combat. If you will not or cannot pay he looks as if he is about to murder you. So you decide to leave the Inn posthaste and Invoke the Portals.

(You don't have 4 or even 2 bags of gold to spend, so you can't hire him. There's another bit in the same section that says he'd lend you a spare horse if you hire him so you'd both be able to ride)

WAIT(31)/STEED

Where will you adventure next: the Sea of Glass, the Forest of Arden, the Silvered Spires, the Citadel of the Skull, or the Palace of Flames?
SGamerz
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Post by SGamerz »

Aww.....well, it was kind of the right option, I just didn't have the required gold.

Hmmm.....I've already been to most the places around.....I guess back to the Palace of Flame so I can rest to get back that 2 LP in my Sanctum.
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Post by Thaluikhain »

The vista which opens up before you as you step from the portal is like a madman's vision of hell. A haze of incredible heat makes everything waver like a mirage but the brass Palace of Flames is so large you would have trouble believing it in any case. Nevertheless, the fifty levels of brazen walkways which circle and intertwine it are as real as the hairs of your head. Two great bulbous domes top the palace. Inside one of them lives the Flame Lord, Caliph of the Efreeti, the beings of flame which inhabit the city-palace.

WAIT(32)

You are allowed to move freely into the palace courtyard. Will you descend into the palace dungeons, or mount one of the wide staircases towards the state rooms or duck through a secret door into your Inner Sanctum and relax in the heat that is comfortable to you? Or you could Invoke the Portals and go to the Sea of Glass, the Garden of Contemplation, the Citadel of the Skull, or the Rainbow Inn?

The narrow spiral staircase that winds downwards in an unsuspected gap between two rooms brings you to a cosy little nook warmed and lit by a pillar of roaring flame that runs from the furnaces beneath the city up great chimneys with cut away sections in every room to the staterooms above. Here you may relax and rejuvenate your powers. For every turn which you WAIT here you may restore one Life Point and one Concentration Point. If this is your first visit to your flame-lit hideaway you may reach into the flames and retrieve an engraved slate from a cranny inside the chimney. It is an Ambuscade scroll and acts as an Ambuscade spell - add an Ambuscade to you list of lesser magics.

WAIT (33)

When you are ready you can go back out into the palace courtyard.

You are allowed to move freely into the palace courtyard. Will you descend into the palace dungeons? Or you could Invoke the Portals and go to the Sea of Glass, the Garden of Contemplation, the Citadel of the Skull, or the Rainbow Inn?

(You have to WAIT at least once whether you want to or not, I think that should count as 1 LP back, rather than just WAITs you choose to use)
SGamerz
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Post by SGamerz »

1 LP per wait? Not really worth it unless I'm really badly injured.

Back to the outer circle: to the Garden. I remember there were quite a lot of options in that zone...
Thaluikhain
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Post by Thaluikhain »

A new panorama opens up before you as you step from the portal into the Garden of Contemplation, so called because the greatest of Sages, Veritegal, found that his finest thoughts and ideas came as he sojourned in these balmy glades. You sense that this is a place where the currents of green magic and blue magic mix and interweave. The rambling gardens have an unobtrusive order, the shrubs and flowers blend and complement each other even tough everything appears to have grown naturally from where the seed fell. The grass has been cropped short by goats and you are looking down a natural avenue of tress towards a cosy-looking bower where a seat festooned with honeysuckle nestles amidst a circle of beech trees. Behind a screen of trees to your left the merry tinkling of a fountain or stream from a background to the birdcalls. Beyond a line of trees to your right is a pretty thatched cottage.

WAIT(34)

If you are still wondering at the tranquil beauty of the gardens you may decide to sit in the bower to think, to stride out towards the white summerhouse, to go in search of the stream or fountain, or to enter the little thatched cottage on your right.

Or you may wish to Invoke the Portals and leave this place. Where will you follow your quest to become Duelmaster next: the Palace of Flames, the Desolation of Ilexmanan the Aggrieved, or the Shrine of the Martyrs?
SGamerz
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Post by SGamerz »

Let's check out the summerhouse.
Thaluikhain
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Post by Thaluikhain »

282
The summerhouse looks welcoming, glistening white in the warm sun. Its roof and one half of its circular wall are glass and vines intertwine there, heavily laden with fruit. As you approach you can see a large figure in a dark shroud sitting within.

The door to the summerhouse is open so you decide to go in and introduce yourself. The slumped figure is completely hidden in the shroud and seems to be moaning quietly. The dolorous groans are not enough to hide the sound of a twig breaking under your foot, however, and the shroud is jerked to the floor revealing the most revoltingly grotesque visage you will ever have the misfortune to look upon. The monster from beneath the shroud had been lying slumped in an enormous wicker bath chair. Now it stands up and, to your dismay, its greasy mane of hair almost brushes the roof. It looks like a deformed Fire Giant. Before you can flee in terror the monster says, 'Welcome to the house of the beast. That is what they call me at the palace,' in a woebegone voice. It seems to be making a plea for sympathy. You say that it is a horrible name to give anyone and the beasts asks you for help it, to which you gladly agree for it would not be wise to upset him further. 'I'll reward you handsomely,' he says and shows you a heavy grey key. 'This is yours if you can bring me the Book of the Bards from the Forest of Arden.' 'Pardon me.' you ask, 'but what use have you for the Book of the Bards?' 'I am courting the princess of the Rainbow Land but she spurns me for my lack of courtly graces. With the book I can learn to sing and then her heart will melt for I will serenade her. I hope you will undertake this quest.' The beast grimaces in what he hopes is a friendly way, picks his nose and says 'Hurry back'. Record the codeword FIREBIRD as you leave the summer house as fast as you can.

WAIT(35)/STEED

You are still laughing when you Invoke the Portals. Will you journey now to the Desert of Ilexmanan the Aggrieved, the Palace of Flames, or the Shrine of the Martyrs?

There is a picture here
Last edited by Thaluikhain on Sat Jun 17, 2017 2:35 pm, edited 1 time in total.
SGamerz
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Post by SGamerz »

Finally, an actual quest.

Head straight to the Forest of Arden, through Palace of Flame and then Rainbow Inn. No stops along the way.

Once at the forest, head for where the music is.
Last edited by SGamerz on Sun Jun 18, 2017 3:53 am, edited 1 time in total.
Thaluikhain
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Post by Thaluikhain »

The vista which opens up before you as you step from the portal is like a madman's vision of hell. A haze of incredible heat makes everything waver like a mirage but the brass Palace of Flames is so large you would have trouble believing it in any case. Nevertheless, the fifty levels of brazen walkways which circle and intertwine it are as real as the hairs of your head. Two great bulbous domes top the palace. Inside one of them lives the Flame Lord, Caliph of the Efreeti, the beings of flame which inhabit the city-palace.

WAIT(36)

You are allowed to move freely into the palace courtyard. Will you descend into the palace dungeons, or mount one of the wide staircases towards the state rooms or duck through a secret door into your Inner Sanctum and relax in the heat that is comfortable to you? Or you could Invoke the Portals and go to the Sea of Glass, the Garden of Contemplation, the Citadel of the Skull, or the Rainbow Inn?
Thaluikhain
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Post by Thaluikhain »

The portal flickers behind you and you are facing the Rainbow Inn, a brick and wood building with stables attached, standing at a crossroads near the river Weir. There is a well nearby and beyond it a black door hangs in the air, just off the ground, the sign outside the Inn shows not the natural colours of the rainbow but the five colours of magic in the Land, blue, red, green, white and black. You may fill your water bottle in the river if it is empty.

WAIT(37)

Will you go to the well, try the black door in the air, or-

...

Suddenly, to your horror, a huge white dragon appear out of nowhere before you, and attacks you. You must fight it. It has 11 LPs and adds 2 to its combat dice. If you reduce it to 3 or fewer LPs, it flees. If the dragon is beating you, you may throw yourself on is mercy. You may only beg for mercy when reduced to 10 LPs or less.

You start with 19 LPs and have a +1 shield

Lavan rolls 5(+1), dragon rolls 1(+2), dragon takes 6(+1)
Laven rolls 6(+1), dragon rolls 6(+2), Lavan takes 6(+2)
Lavan rolls 3(+1), dragon rolls 4(+2), Lavan takes 2(+2)

Lavan is now on 7 LPs.
Last edited by Thaluikhain on Mon Jun 19, 2017 5:21 am, edited 1 time in total.
SGamerz
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Post by SGamerz »

Wait....don't I get 2 free hits thanks to the Witch King's blessing? That should be enough to kill it in addition to the one hit I got from normal combat.
Thaluikhain
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Post by Thaluikhain »

Oops, totally forgot about that. Good time for that to be used, as well.

First free hit is 2(+1), second free hit is also 2(+1). So the dragon begins normal combat with 5 LPs and is killed by your first hit.

The book has instructions for it fleeing, but doesn't mention anything if you kill it outright, so I guess nothing much happens and you go back about your business as normal.
SGamerz
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Post by SGamerz »

I'm assuming we're waiting for my opponent's next move, but just in case, no changes to my course, on to the Forest.

Oh, and should I have the option to summon my Fire Imp Familiar if I get attacked again in future physical combats? I think if I used one in that dragon fight I would have avoided its first hit (although it turns out that I don't need it now).

Btw, I know I was in a non-magic zone......but would there have been an option to use spells against the dragon if I wasn't?
Thaluikhain
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Post by Thaluikhain »

The wording could have been a bit better:

"These spells cost nothing to cast and may be used in any colour area - some may even be used in areas without colour magic."

"Fire Imp Familiar
Can only be cast in physical combat"

I think they meant only in physical combat in colour magic areas. Though it would have been much better if they specified for each lesser magic whether they could or could not be used. For Teleport, they explicitly state it can only be used in colour magic areas.

I also think things that give bonuses in physical combat might have been intended to only give bonuses to hit not to damage, but as written it seems to be both so I'd been going with that.

As for fighting the dragon using magic, there wasn't an option. I guess because you could be in any colour magic, they'd need to stick rules for all the different spells, so they didn't worry about that.
Thaluikhain
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Post by Thaluikhain »

The portal disappears behind you and you find yourself surrounded by trees at the centre of a small clearing. The sun beats down but within the trees is a dark gloom. It is silent in the clearing and you feel alone, far from the security of your fellow men and their dwellings. Although you can hear nothing the Forest feels full of lie, full of unseen eyes spying on you. This is a place enchanted with green magic, a place where nature is untouched by man.

The tinkling of bells and piping of flutes reaches you, strangely bright and clear through the trees. Two muddy tracks leave the clearing. One leads off in the direction from which you think the music is coming from, the other disappears into the gloom in the opposite direction.

WAIT(38)

Will you take the path towards the sound of music, the gloomier path, or Invoke the Portals and go to the Citadel of the Skull, the Rainbow Inn, the Silvered Spires or the Phoenix Crags?
SGamerz
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Post by SGamerz »

Its time to play the music!
Its time to light the lights!
Its time to steal the Bards' Book
And then set their hair alight!

Follow the music!
Thaluikhain
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Post by Thaluikhain »

Heh...but it seems you opponent isn't a fan of the muppets. All of a sudden:

526
You are standing on a wide ledge in the Phoenix Crags. At the other end, stands your enemy. (You may describe yourself to your opponent, exchange insults such as 'Ugly One! Are you ready to be spread like butter before my feet!' In any case, you must tell him you class of mage and what you are carrying.) You can use red and blue spells here. Prepare for a battle of sorcery.

Your opponent is Boner, a Necromancer. They are accompanied by a zombie. They carry the Sceptre of Doom and a scroll

They will go first, chosen randomly.

You carry the Eye of Flame ruby, the Diadem of Rulership, the Bones of the Earth, the gem of the fabled Ring of Summoning, a bag of gold, a sturdy shield, a scroll with the spells Holy Fires of Judgement, Phantasm and Tanglevines. You have 19Lps.
Last edited by Thaluikhain on Tue Jun 20, 2017 3:28 pm, edited 2 times in total.
SGamerz
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Post by SGamerz »

Huh, Necromancer? Didn't expect that.

And I guess this mostly confirms that he sent the dragon after me....he must have thought it would have weakened me (and in a way it did....it removed my advantage of the blessing).

He didn't get the sword? But the zombie probably gives him enough combat advantage.

EDIT: Don't I have the Bones of the Earth too?
Last edited by SGamerz on Tue Jun 20, 2017 2:54 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Thaluikhain
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Post by Thaluikhain »

Ah, yes, you do. I'd been thinking of another player who'd come across them but chosen not to pick them up.

'Suddenly, a terrible rush of mental power assaults your mind, trying to drain you of your psychic reserves. I stand before you, brow furrowed in concentration.

You are powerless to resist as the mental assault breaches your defences. It leaches you of part of your psychic reservoir, before dissipating. Lose 4 CPs. Read this out to your opponent:

You see me reel back, clutching my head in agony - I am powerless to resist as the Feeblemind leaches me of some of my inner force.'

DECISIONS

You may try to escape by fleeing and Invoking the Portals

Or you may cast Spirit of Flame (1CP), Firestorm (2CP), Immolation (3CP), or Domination (2CP)

Or use Phantasm (2CP) from your scroll.
SGamerz
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Post by SGamerz »

"So, Boney, still playing with dead bodies, I see! Guess those are the only kind of friends you can ever make, huh?"

I'd use the Phantasm spell from my scroll.
Thaluikhain
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Post by Thaluikhain »

Cross off 2 CPs. You concentrate hard and decide to create the illusion of a rockfall from the crags above. Read this out to your enemy:

'There is a rumbling sound above you. Looking up you see many large boulders falling from the towering crags right on top of you. You have not seen my cast any visible spell, so you guess this rockfall is the result of a Phantasm. Or is it? Can you stand beneath it and really disbelieve, or will you try to dodge aside.'

50/50 chance. (Shame you can't make a Phantasm of a Spirit of Flame spell or something to trick your opponent)

'You stand resolutely beneath the falling boulders, denying their existence. At the last moment, they disappear, leaving you standing intact and triumphant.'
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Post by Thaluikhain »

Boner's face crumples into incoherent rage. "After I'll kill you, it will be YOUR corpse I shall 'play' with! ...wait. no. I mean that my relationship with corpses is strictly... argh! Just DIE!"

"My hands flash through the air in a complicated arcane gesture. A few feet in front of me, a flaring fireball begins to coalesce. Two black shifting spots at its centre seem to denote eyes. The Spirit of Flame, for that is what it is, rushes towards you intent on engulfing you."

The great living fireball is rushing towards you, burning across the rocky crags. Cross off 1 CP for the Extinguish spell. Read this out to your opponent:

'Uttering a Word of Power, I blow hard towards the Spirit. A great blast of wind buffets the living fireball. Suddenly it goes out, like a candle in a hurricane.'

You may laugh gloatingly at this point (and you may quip 'Such are the pitiful spells of charlatans before the might of a true, mage, worm.' if you wish)

DECISIONS

You may try to escape by fleeing and Invoking the Portals

Or you may cast Spirit of Flame (1CP), Firestorm (2CP), Immolation (3CP), or Domination (2CP)

(Dammit, I have "Candle in the Wind" stuck in my head now)
SGamerz
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Post by SGamerz »

He can see that I have the Diadem and the Ruby, right? The fact that he still hasn't run away makes me suspect that he has the counterspell to both of my insta-kill spells....maybe I should flee and choose a new battleground? At the very least he can probably counter Firestorm, since he'd know Pyromancers definitely have this spell.

I'll just stick around a bit and check what other tricks he has....unless that scroll has something suitable he should only have one red spell left.

---

"Whoa now, touchy, aren't you? Why so serious? Can't take a joke? You need to lighten up a little.....wait, did I say lighten up? Why, I believe I did! In fact, here's a better idea: why don't I lighten you up......IN A BLAZE OF FIRE! MUAHAHAHAHAHAH.....!

I cast Immolation at him.
Thaluikhain
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Post by Thaluikhain »

SGamerz wrote:He can see that I have the Diadem and the Ruby, right?
He can see all your gear, yes. Not how many or which spells you have on your scroll, though.

...

You cross off 3 CPs. (Leaving you with 4) Read this out to your opponent:

'My finger points at you and, suddenly, you are bathed in flames. It is as if you had spontaneously caught fire. The agony is unbearable as the fire rages for several seconds. All your body hair has been burnt away but, oddly, your clothes and equipment remain untouched. Lose 3 LPs.' You may also add such lines as 'Take that, pustulant scab!'
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