[Let's Play] Fighting Fantasy 17 - Appointment with F.E.A.R. (Take 2)

[SGamerz]

(I like how the chainsaw guy is shown chopping the head of a statue, chopping through the bars at a bank (that one is sorta coo) and dramatically posing. But the text says he's a murderer)

Well, I'm not sure they were even allowed to show illustrations of people actually in the process of being murdered. Probably too graphic for kids. The closest they'd come to that is pictures of monsters standing over already-dead victims. I can't even recall any pictures of humans standing over murdered corpses of other humans in FF.

The Cats' Home is not far from the Dairy. As if it senses where it is going, the little animal squirms to get free. It fights and scratches in your grip. It seems to be getting heavier! Suddenly a remarkable transformation takes place. You drop the car to the ground and before your eyes it grows in size and takes on a female human form, until it stands before you as the Tiger Cat! Of course! This wicked she-villain has a record of robbing dairies and fish factories. Her tight, tiger-striped costume has sharp claws at the hands and feet and she springs at you:

TIGER CAT SKILL 9 STAMINA 8

If you have Psi-Powers, turn 413. If you have ETS, turn to 168. You have no time to use an Energy Bolt. If you defeat the Tiger Cat, turn to 124.

So her claws are on her costume. Sounds like she doesn't get cat-powers when she's in human form? And she apparently mainly uses her power to steal food for herself (milk and fish). Am I the only one who thinks that this super-villainess is less of a menace than most mundane criminals?

We have Psi-powers...

You have not time to concentrate; she attacks straight away. Resolve this combat:

TIGER CAT SKILL 9 STAMINA 8

If you win, turn to 217.

...and don't get to use it.

The only reason the power was checked was to redirect us to a different section if we win, because certain encounters only give a clue to a specific Superpower, and this is one of such encounters.

COMBAT LOG:
Tiger Cat 19, Silver Crusader 19. Tie.
TC 14, SC 20. TC is at 6.
TC 16, SC 20. TC is at 4.
TC 19, SC 16. SC is at 19.
TC 15, SC 19. TC is at 2 and gives in.

Before she fell unconscious, your Psi-Powers picked up a strong feeling of fear, The Tiger Cat was thinking about a meeting that she couldn't afford to miss. Of course! F.E.A.R! You concentrate your thoughts, but can only glimpse one piece of information before she blacks out. The meeting will be on 5th Avenue. But this is a long road. However, you can get no more information.

If this is the caliber of super-villains that F.E.A.R. is gathering, maybe this is why they only sent a normal guy with a gun for the assassination. I can't imagine this one doing much better at that task, at least.

Finally, we get a concrete clue about the main mission!

You hand the Tiger Cat in at police headquarters. You may add 2 Hero Points for this arrest. The police sergeant at the desk is puzzling over a piece of paper which has been handed in by a little old lady. She thinks it might be important. He lets you have a look at it, thinking it might be a clue. It reads: 'Watch for the sign of the Mantrapper - a metal slug with a letter M engraved on it.' This is a useful clue and you may add 1 LUCK point for seeing it. If you find evidence of the Mantrapper's activities, add 60 to the reference you are on at the time and turn to this new reference.

You must start thinking about getting back to work. Outside it is starting to rain. Just your luck! Head for work by turning to 111, if you don't know of anywhere else to go.

I don't think we have any clues that points us to anywhere else at the moment, so we head for work...

You change back into street clothes and get a move on. You are late for work again! You turn the corner on to Clark Street and stop as you pass Harrold's Department Store. A thought has crossed your mind: you could stop and buy your boss a present of some kind to apologize for being late. But then this would make you even later. Is it worth it? If you wish to go in and look for a suitable gift, turn to 429. If you want to get to work as quickly as possible, turn to 301.

Adventure Sheet:
[spoiler]Name: Jean Lafayette
SKILL 11/11
STAMINA 19/23
LUCK 6/7
Super Power: Psi-Powers
Hero Points: 16
Clues:
1) A young boy, Timothy Grant, known as the Brain Child, has extremely vivid dreams which seem to come true In certain instances. He lives on 100th Street.
2) Daddy Rich, an eccentric millionaire who has everything money could buy, gets his kicks by murdering innocent victims and revels in their fear. He has very expensive tastes and lives in a penthouse apartment at 113, 58th Street.
3) Man wearing gold watch is trying to keep some dark secret from the Silver Crusader that involves a pawnbroker's shop that is next to a diner.
4) The F.E.A.R. meeting will be on 5th Avenue.
5) Watch for the sign of the Mantrapper - a metal slug with a letter M engraved on it. Add 60 to the reference you are on at the time and turn to this new reference when we find evidence of the Mantrapper's activities.
No. of failures thus far: 1
[/spoiler]

[Queen of Swords]

Sure, get the boss a gift. Something appropriately random might happen while we do so - an encounter with Wrapping Paper Man, maybe.

[Thaluikhain]

Yeah, lets look for a hypothetical Wrapping Paper Man. I'm going to be really unimpressed if we do find a villain that's worse than that, though.

(I like how the chainsaw guy is shown chopping the head of a statue, chopping through the bars at a bank (that one is sorta coo) and dramatically posing. But the text says he's a murderer)

Well, I'm not sure they were even allowed to show illustrations of people actually in the process of being murdered. Probably too graphic for kids. The closest they'd come to that is pictures of monsters standing over already-dead victims. I can't even recall any pictures of humans standing over murdered corpses of other humans in FF.

Oh sure, it's just that the made him cut through the bars at a back and scare a teller, which, fair enough, but the other two pics are...par for the course for FEAR villains, actually.

(I just checked the cover for Arena of Death, which features one gladiator standing over the dead bodies of two others, but they might be intended to represent an elf and a dwarf)

[Darth Rabbitt]

We need to find Wrapping Paper Man.

[SGamerz]

What can you get him? An apple? A bottle of whisky? A new tie? You decide to go for something a little more imaginative. Do you want to head downstairs to the Book Department or upstairs to the Games Department?

The fact that we even considered a single apple for a gift makes me think we're not going to last long at this job in any case...

[JourneymanN00b]

I vote to go to the Games Department.

[Queen of Swords]

An apple? Are we getting a gift for our boss or for our kindergarten teacher?

Might as well try the games department, see if they have Snakes and Ladders.

[Thaluikhain]

Eh, don't see any reason not to. Maybe Snakes and Ladders Woman will be more interesting than Captain Cookbook.

[SGamerz]

There must be something he'd like. No doubt he's already got Monopoly. What about this: Trivial Pursuits? Looks interesting. Or how about Dungeons & Dragons? Hmm. He pro0bably hasn't got the imagination. As you are perusing the games, four bikers walk in ripped jeans and dirty leather jackets. Trouble. You watch them from the corner of your eye. They are in the women's underwear department and are holding bras up to their chests and laughing. A middle-aged woman comes over to stop them and an assistant manager steps in to help. Tempers rise. Just when you are wondering whether or not to join in, one of the bikers throws his jacket to the floor. He clasps his hands together and to the horror of the unsuspecting floor staff, he bursts into flames! The others do likewise and four flaming bodies stomp about the shop, setting fire to everything they touch. The Fire Warriors! Of course! Why did you not recognize those no-good delinquents earlier? You had better act quickly. If you have Super Strength, turn to 133. If you have Psi-Powers, turn to 178. If you have ETS, turn to 156. If you have Energy Blast, turn to 283.

"Fire Warriors?" How boring. Can't those delinquents think of cooler names?

You concentrate hard, trying to force droplets of water out of the air to extinguish the flames. But it is no use. One of them puts his hand on a counter of socks and flames begin to rise. You had better act quickly.

I'm not 100% sure if we still lose 2 STAMINA if we try to use our power but it fails to work. I'm going to assume that it does, since it makes more sense that the drain is due to the effort, not the result.

Come to think about it, our power hasn't really worked once in helping us subdue criminals, except that kid who stole candy. So far its only value has been mind-reading, although it's supposed to do more than that.

You jump over the counter and change quickly change into the Silver Crusader. You will have to be careful not to stay too close to the Fire Warriors, as their flames will burn you. Perhaps just your presence will be enough to frighten them away. You spring out and order them to stop their foolishness and leave the store. They merely laugh at you. That didn't work. There is only one thing left for it. You will have to fight them:

First FIRE WARRIOR SKILL 7 STAMINA 6
Second FIRE WARRIOR SKILL 6 STAMINA 6
Third FIRE WARRIOR SKILL 7 STAMINA 5
Fourth FIRE WARRIOR SKILL 7 STAMINA 5

Fight them one at a time. Each time you are hit, roll one die. A roll of 1 or 2 indicates that you have been burned and must deduct an extra STAMINA point. If you defeat them all, turn to 380

COMBAT LOG:
Fire Warrior#1 16, Silver Crusader 15. SC is at 15.
FW1 16, SC 13. SC is at 13.
FW1 16, SC 17. FW1 is at 4.
FW1 14, SC 15. FW1 is at 2 and gives in.
Fire Warrior#2 13, SC 18. FW2 is at 4.
FW2 12, SC 15. FW2 is at 2 and gives in.
Fire Warrior#3 12, SC 17. FW3 is at 3.
FW3 12, SC 20. FW3 is at 1 and gives in.
Fire Warrior#4 17 SC 18. FW4 is at 3.
FW4 15, SC 14. SC is at 11.
FW4 16, SC 20. FW4 is at 1 and gives in.

The Silver Crusader took quite a bit of burnt against delinquents despite the SKILL advantage. Thank goodness they each only had to be hit twice to be subdued.

You bind the Fire Warriors with rope and help the staff clear the damage until the police arrive. You may claim as many Hero Points as the number of Fire Warriors you captured. Then you had better change back to Jean Lafayette and make your way to work. If you want to run to work, turn to 301. If you feel it would be quicker to take the subway train, turn to 409.

Why do we feel obligated to stop and play janitor and help them clean up after the emergency is over if we're supposedly in a hurry to go to work? No wonder there are no other Superheroes in this city. The jobscope sucks.

Adventure Sheet:
[spoiler]Name: Jean Lafayette
SKILL 11/11
STAMINA 11/23
LUCK 6/7
Super Power: Psi-Powers
Hero Points: 20
Clues:
1) A young boy, Timothy Grant, known as the Brain Child, has extremely vivid dreams which seem to come true In certain instances. He lives on 100th Street.
2) Daddy Rich, an eccentric millionaire who has everything money could buy, gets his kicks by murdering innocent victims and revels in their fear. He has very expensive tastes and lives in a penthouse apartment at 113, 58th Street.
3) Man wearing gold watch is trying to keep some dark secret from the Silver Crusader that involves a pawnbroker's shop that is next to a diner.
4) The F.E.A.R. meeting will be on 5th Avenue.
5) Watch for the sign of the Mantrapper - a metal slug with a letter M engraved on it. Add 60 to the reference you are on at the time and turn to this new reference when we find evidence of the Mantrapper's activities.
No. of failures thus far: 1
[/spoiler]

[Thaluikhain]

The subway, maybe there will be molemen.

(I hope the rope we used is fireproof. Or the villains just don't/can't burn rope for some reason which I think I'd accept for this book)

[Queen of Swords]

The subway, for yet another random encounter.

[SGamerz]

Btw, I'm disappointed that:

By choosing to not go to the Book Department, you guys missed the author's shameless plug of his own FF gamebook in the store.

The office is only two stops away. Surprisingly, you don't have to wait long for a train to arrive. You sit and contemplate a good excuse to give to Mr Whyte, who is bound to be in a foul mood when you arrive, but a cry interrupts your thoughts. "Help!" you hear, from a voice at the other end of the carriage. Oh no! What is it this time? As if in answer, the voice cries: "PICKPOCKET!" You had better see if you can help - but there will be no opportunity to change into the Silver Crusader. Will you go and help the man, or will you ignore him and concern yourself with getting to work on time for once?

And not surprisingly, we don't have to wait long for a crime to show up either.

This'd better not be another kid swiping a chewing gum from the guy's pocket...

[Queen of Swords]

Go and help the man.

[Thaluikhain]

May as well help

[SGamerz]

You rush up to a puny-looking bespectacled ma who is shaking with fright. "There!" he cries, pointing to a man running up through the next carriage. "He...he's stolen my wallet!" You race after him. No one else moves; they don't want to get involved. If only you could change into the Silver Crusader. Roll two dice and compare the total with your SKILL score. If the total is less than or equal to your SKILL, turn to 166. If the total is greater than your SKILL, turn to 106.

Well, at least this one is an adult, and he stole actual money...

How does one know that a city needs vigilante heroes? By witnessing a robbery happen in public view which nobody can be bothered to try and stop it.

Dice roll = 9 (Success).

You gain ground and catch up with the pickpocket. As you grab him, he spins round to face you and draws out a knife! You will have to fight him with your bare hands, and you cannot risk revealing yourself as the Silver Crusader:

PICKPOCKET SKILL 7 STAMINA 6

If you defeat him, turn to 296.

COMBAT LOG:
Pickpocket 16, Silver Crusader 13. SC is at 9.
Pickpocket 13, SC 20. Pickpocket is at 4.
Pickpocket 15, SC 20. Pickpocket is at 2 and gives in.

We just not having luck with the dice, and got nicked again.

You go through the man's pockets to retrieve the wallet. He is carrying some peculiar things, no doubt the pickings of his trade. Along with the wallet, you find a cigarette packet which contains a crumpled piece of paper, a tape cassette and a map. Before handing the pickpocket over to a security guard on the train, you manage to take one of these from him. Which did you take? The cigarette packet, the cassette tape or the map?

You know a book is old when it references cassette tapes. These things are actually rarer than the ancient phonograph records (which is making a sort of revival in certain parts of the world) these days.

Ok, I know at least one of these stuff is likely to turn up important information, but how exactly did we (who appear to be just a common citizen atm) manage to justify nicking the pickpocket's possession, even if he's criminal? This isn't the classic fantasy world where it's apparently accepted practice for heroes to freely loot whatever monster they kill! For that matter, why would the Silver Crusader decide to randomly loot the possessions of a random pickpocket??

Adventure Sheet:
[spoiler]Name: Jean Lafayette
SKILL 11/11
STAMINA 9/23
LUCK 6/7
Super Power: Psi-Powers
Hero Points: 20
Clues:
1) A young boy, Timothy Grant, known as the Brain Child, has extremely vivid dreams which seem to come true In certain instances. He lives on 100th Street.
2) Daddy Rich, an eccentric millionaire who has everything money could buy, gets his kicks by murdering innocent victims and revels in their fear. He has very expensive tastes and lives in a penthouse apartment at 113, 58th Street.
3) Man wearing gold watch is trying to keep some dark secret from the Silver Crusader that involves a pawnbroker's shop that is next to a diner.
4) The F.E.A.R. meeting will be on 5th Avenue.
5) Watch for the sign of the Mantrapper - a metal slug with a letter M engraved on it. Add 60 to the reference you are on at the time and turn to this new reference when we find evidence of the Mantrapper's activities.
No. of failures thus far: 1
[/spoiler]

[Queen of Swords]

Before handing the pickpocket over to a security guard on the train, you manage to take one of these from him.

This isn't even like the police removing all of a suspect's belongings as he's booked. This sounds more like us nabbing a trophy just in time.

Still, take the cassette tape just because that's so retro.

[Thaluikhain]

There's that, but half vote for the map.

[Darth Rabbitt]

I'd go for the cigarette packet since it seems the least likely to offer any clue, and therefore probably does offer a clue.

[SGamerz]

This isn't even like the police removing all of a suspect's belongings as he's booked. This sounds more like us nabbing a trophy just in time.

I guess that's our personal application of justice: an eye for an eye, a picked pocket for a picked pocket?

[Thaluikhain]

Change my vote for half vote for cassette to avoid a tie.

[SGamerz]

You sit down next to a kid listening to a Walkman and borrow it to listen to the tape. It seems to be a recording of a telephone conversation between a man and a woman. The conversation ends: "Don't worry. The treasures are being collected and replaced by our agent, Mustapha Kareem. We will have them all soon. Remember, we meet the day after tomorrow on board the yacht. Okay. Bye." Interesting stuff. This Mustapha Kareem sounds like a dubious character. If you come across him, you may question him about his activities by doubling the reference number you are on at the time and turning to this new reference. Add 1 LUCK point for discovering this message, and turn to 86.

LUCK is back to max, though it'll never be at a reliable level.

The train stops at Grimm Street station and you get off to go to work. You try to settle into your desk discreetly. No such luck. "Lafayette! Get in here at once!" No sooner had you stepped through the office door than Jonah Whyte’s booming voice summoned you. You creep into his office, mumbling scanty excuses for being late yet again. ‘Enough!’ he hells. ‘What do you think we are running here? A charity? Do you suppose I should be grateful that you even grace us with your presence? Very noble of you indeed to even bother coming in at all! Well, I tell you what. I’m feeling kind today. You can have the rest of the day off. Without pay! And if you’re not in first thing tomorrow morning, you can start looking for another job!’ You slink out of his office with your tail between your legs. How can you tell him what you’ve been doing? And now you’ve been suspended for a day. Where will you go? Will you spend the day at Wisneyland, the amusement park, or will you go downtown to do some shopping?

The section may be different, but the text and choices are just about the same as last time....

Adventure Sheet:
[spoiler]Name: Jean Lafayette
SKILL 11/11
STAMINA 9/23
LUCK 7/7
Super Power: Psi-Powers
Hero Points: 20
Clues:
1) A young boy, Timothy Grant, known as the Brain Child, has extremely vivid dreams which seem to come true In certain instances. He lives on 100th Street.
2) Daddy Rich, an eccentric millionaire who has everything money could buy, gets his kicks by murdering innocent victims and revels in their fear. He has very expensive tastes and lives in a penthouse apartment at 113, 58th Street.
3) Man wearing gold watch is trying to keep some dark secret from the Silver Crusader that involves a pawnbroker's shop that is next to a diner.
4) The F.E.A.R. meeting will be on 5th Avenue.
5) Watch for the sign of the Mantrapper - a metal slug with a letter M engraved on it. Add 60 to the reference you are on at the time and turn to this new reference when we find evidence of the Mantrapper's activities.
6) If we come across Mustapha Kareem, we may question him about his activities by doubling the reference number we are on at the time and turning to this new reference.
No. of failures thus far: 1
[/spoiler]

[Darth Rabbitt]

Technically I think cigarette packet won out against the others (1 vote vs. 1/2 vote vs 1/2 vote.) But I’m fine with this outcome.

Anyhow, go shopping.

[SGamerz]

Technically I think cigarette packet won out against the others (1 vote vs. 1/2 vote vs 1/2 vote.)

Queen of Sword's vote wasn't stated to be a half-vote, so it was 1 vs 1 vs 1/2.

[Darth Rabbitt]

Oh, my bad.

[JourneymanN00b]

Sure, let’s go shopping.