Deathtrap Dungeon - Attempt 1

With my initial foray into the Sorcery! epic done, it's time to return to the main series.  It's a return I'm happy to make, because Deathtrap Dungeon is a hell of a book.  Written by Ian Livingstone and illustrated by Iain McCaig, this may very well be the quintessential Fighting Fantasy gamebook.  This is FF boiled down to it's essence, and it embodies the sadistic nature of the series perhaps better than any other.  I've been looking forward to it.

BACKGROUND
It doesn't get much more basic than this.  Baron Sukumvit, ruler of the town of Fang, built a giant labyrinth and filled it with monsters and traps.  Every year, in a contest dubbed the Trial of Champions, he offers 10,000 gold pieces to anyone who can enter this dungeon and come out the other side alive.  No-one has yet succeeded.  The reader plays a foolish adventurer who has decided to try his luck with the Trial, and there's not much more to it than that.  No evil wizards, no maidens to rescue, no earth-shattering crises.  Just a dungeon to survive, and treasure to claim.  Sweet.

(I'll get more into this later, when I do the Exploring Titan post for this book, but this is where the series starts to inter-connect.  The hero passes through Port Blacksand on his way to Fang.  It's a brief thing, but it does a lot to give texture to the books, and the feel of a greater world.)

THE RULES
Deathtrap Dungeon reinforces its status as the iconic Fighting Fantasy gamebook by sticking to the core rules.  Skill, Stamina and Luck are determined in the usual manner, and there aren't any new rules to worry about.  You begin with the standard gear: a sword, leather armour, a backpack, ten provisions, and the choice of one of the standard array of potions (Skill, Strength or Fortune).  For a more detailed explanation of the rules, go here.

You should also probably begin with a shield.  There's at least one place that assumes you have one, even though it's not listed in your starting equipment.  It could be considered cheating, because having a shield comes in rather handy at the end of the book, but I always give myself one at the beginning, because there are passages in the book that make no sense otherwise.  Besides, the Wizard reprints list a shield in your starting gear.  I know it's because they just did a lazy cut-and-paste on the instructions from The Warlock of Firetop Mountain, but I still take it as vindication.

The rules section ends with the standard reassurance that any adventurer, regardless of stats, can complete this adventure.  This, as all Fighting Fantasy veterans will know, is bullshit.

CHARACTER CREATION
I did quite well, rolling a Skill of 11, a Stamina of 22 and a Luck of 9.  These are respectable scores, and if the dice roll my way I could complete the book.  I chose the Potion of Fortune, as I usually do.  That was my lowest score, and I knew I'd need to boost it if I was going to survive.


THE ADVENTURE BEGINS
I reached Fang a few days before the beginning of the Trial of Champions (or "The Walk", as it is otherwise known), and found that the town was in a state of great excitement.  I was given a violet scarf to wear, identifying me as a contestant, and for the next three days I was "treated like a demigod".  (I wonder if Fang gets many fake entrants, who just show up for a few awesome days of demigod action, then run away the night before the Trial begins?)

On the morning of the Trial I was led to Deathtrap Dungeon amid cheering crowds and many flowers thrown in my path.  The entrance was a dark tunnel that disappeared into the hillside, with two pillars at either side carved with demons and writhing serpents.  There were five other contestants awaiting the beginning of the Trial: two muscular barbarians, an elven woman, an armour-clad knight, and a ninja.  (Obviously, the ninja is the one to look out for.)

Baron Sukumvit stepped forth, holding six bamboo sticks.  I took one from him, as did the others; mine had the word "fifth" written on it.  I watched as the other entrants made their way inside: first the knight, followed half an hour later by the elf.  One of the barbarians went next, then the ninja.  I went after him, holding my scarf aloft to the crowd as I stepped through the pillars and into the darkness.

I was surprised to see that the tunnel was lit at intervals by glowing crystals in the ceiling.  (Seriously, what was the hero of this book expecting?  He didn't even bring a lantern.)  After about five minutes, I arrived at a table with six boxes.  One of the boxes had my name on the lid, so I decided to open it.  It contained two gold pieces and a note from Sukumvit, telling me that I would need to collect "several items" if I was to pass successfully through the dungeon.  (Thanks for nothing Sukumvit, I know how Ian Livingstone's mind works.)  I tore the note up and continued on.

I soon came to a junction, with paths heading east and west.  A white arrow on the wall pointed west, and I could see the wet footprints of the contestants who went before me.  It looked like three of them followed the arrow, and one ignored it and went east.  Deciding that I would rather avoid the other contestants at this point, I headed east.  (It's small touches like the arrow and the footprints that make Deathtrap Dungeon great.  So many other gamebooks - many of them written by Ian Livingstone - would present this junction as a simple east-west choice, but this one gives you something to go on.)

In the tunnel ahead I could see a large object blocking the tunnel, and I decided to investigate.  It looked like a boulder, but was soft and spongy to the touch.  I considered cutting it open with my sword, but instead I decided to climb over it.  It was difficult, as my limbs sank into the soft surface of the boulder, but eventually I made it to the other side.

The tunnel turned left, and started to grow hot.  I was becoming thirsty, and in a wall recess I found a section of bamboo filled with clear liquid.  It could have been a trap, but for some reason it seemed that I hadn't brought any water with me, so I decided to drink it.  Not only was it refreshing (it would have restored 1 Stamina if I'd needed any) but it also contained magic that would protect me from extreme heat.  Thus shielded, I was able to pass through the hot tunnel unharmed.

On the left was a closed door, with a sliding iron plate upon it.  I moved the plate to the side, and was able to peer through a hole to the room beyond.  There was a deep pit in the floor, but hanging on a hook on the opposite wall was a coil of rope.  I opened the door, jumped the pit, took the rope and jumped back to the passage.

The tunnel ahead turned to the left, but as I was rounding the corner I bumped into a pair of Orcs.  One of them swung a morningstar at me, and I had to roll a die to determine the effect of this attack.  I rolled a 1, and my sword was knocked from my hand.  I had to fight both Orcs bare-handed, giving me a -4 penalty to Skill.  This left me with Skill 7 for this battle, against Orcs with Skill 5 and 6 respectively.  They hit me twice before I could kill them, reducing my Stamina to 18.

A search of the Orcs' pockets revealed one gold piece and a hollow wooden tube.  I took both, retrieved my sword, and continued west.

I came to an iron door, and the footprints I was following indicated that one of the contestants had gone inside.  I opened the door into a room strewn with trash, and saw a grisly scene: one of the barbarians had been impaled on a spike trap.

Mercifully, it appears his genitals were spared.

The silver goblet in the alcove looked tempting, but first I decided to loot the barbarian's corpse.  I found some meat that looked strange, but when I ate it the herbs it contained increased my strength and restored 3 Stamina (raising me back to 21).  I then walked over to the goblet, and saw that it was filled with a red liquid.  I decided to push my luck by drinking it, and sure enough when I lifted the goblet a dart fired at me.  I succeeded in my Luck test to avoid the dart (reducing my Luck to 8), but I still dropped the goblet and spilled the liquid.  Even so, I'd still found a silver goblet, and I stowed it in my backpack before leaving the room.

Continuing west, I came to a junction with footprints on the floor heading west.  I decided to follow them (more accurately, the book forced me to follow them.  I guess this is where the previous branches meet up).  The passage opened into a wide cavern.  At the far end was a huge idol with emeralds for eyes, flanked by a pair of stuffed birds.

What about the one on his forehead?

Like any self-respecting adventurer, I decided to climb the idol and take the jewels.  The idol was too smooth to climb safely, so I tied my rope into a lasso and threw it around the idol's neck.  This made the climb easier, and soon I was at the top, deciding which of the emeralds to prise out first.  I chose the left eye, but as soon as I touched it with my sword the birds came alive and flew up to attack me.  As I was hanging precariously, I had to reduce my Skill by 2 for the duration of the combat.  The Flying Guardians were Skill 7 and 8 respectively and each had 8 Stamina.  I fought them with a Skill of 9, and they were able to hit me five times before I killed them both (leaving me with a meager 11 Stamina).

With the Flying Guardians dead I was able to pry the emerald loose.  I decided to quit while I was ahead, and left the other emerald behind.  (Obviously because I know it's a trap from previous play-throughs.  It's pretty great how McCaig gives a hint to the correct eye in his illustration.)  I climbed back down, and was luckily able to shake my rope loose from the idol's neck (requiring a successful Luck test, which left me with a Luck of 7.)

I left the cavern by a passage on the far wall, and soon came to a closed door on the left.  I opened the door and entered, finding the room empty, but the door slammed shut behind me.  A voice boomed out of nowhere, asking me to pay my respects to the master of Deathtrap Dungeon by shouting his name.  I knew that his name was Sukumvit, but I had two options: would I be respectful by shouting "Hail Sukumvit", or contemptuous by shouting "Sukumvit is a worm?"  The latter option was, of course, too intriguing to resist, and I was rewarded for my spirit with a ring that will grant me one wish.  (Seriously, this ring.  It's used in one super-specific place in the book, that's not even on the winning path.  There should be any number of ways it can be used, not least being "I wish I was at the exit of the dungeon".  If not that, then wishing for one of the jewels needed at the finale, or simply wishing certain monsters dead.  It should be the most useful item in the game, but it's virtually worthless.)

I followed the twisting tunnel north, until I was stopped by the sight of a thin shaft of blue light shining from ceiling to floor.  Inside the shaft I could see images of smiling and laughing faces.

Nope.

Despite a firm case of the willies, I stepped inside the beam.  As soon as I entered the faces changed from happy to sad, and I was confronted by the spirit of a young girl.  I listened intently as she recited a poem:

"When corridor doth water meet,

Do not make a quick retreat.

Take a breath and jump deep in,

If your Trial you hope to win."

Despite the mediocre poetry, and the not particularly deep advice, I memorised the rhyme before stepping out of the light and continuing north.  On the right hand wall I came to a stone door, which I opened to investigate.  It opened into a large cavern, which was moist and covered in algae, and filled with a strange humming sound.  In a shallow pit, in the midst of a mass of writhing worms, was a magnificent dagger.

NOPE.

The worms may have been disgusting, but even that wasn't enough to stop me from claiming the dagger; any item in the dungeon could mean the difference between life and death (I'm on to you, Livingstone).  I pulled it free with no trouble, and was about to saunter out of the cavern when the humming increased in intensity.  A Giant Fly swooped down from the ceiling and tried to grab me, but I was able to avoid and kill it with my sword with little trouble.

The tunnel soon came to a T-junction, and I headed east, only to find that the way was blocked by a pit.  I could see that the tunnel continued on the other side, and there was a rope hanging down from the ceiling.  I wasn't sure if I could jump over carrying all of my gear, but rather than toss my shield over first I decided to swing across using the rope.  Alas, it seems that someone had cut halfway through the rope; it broke, and I was sent tumbling down into the darkness.

I landed hard at the bottom of the pit, but my backpack cushioned my fall (I lost 1 Skill, leaving me at 10, and 2 Stamina leaving me at 9).  As I scrabbled around in the dark my hand found a hard, smooth object, and I pocketed it before climbing out of the pit.  (By cutting hand-holds in the stone with my sword, I might add, without blunting it at all.  I can't decide if this is more or less ridiculous than the bit in Caverns of the Snow Witch where you use your sword to carve an igloo.)  Luck was with me, as the object I had found was a magnificent ruby.

The tunnel turned north again, and soon came to a door on the left-hand wall.  Inside was a room filled with surprisingly life-like statues.  A crazy old man stepped forth, and told me that if I couldn't answer his riddle correctly, he would turn me to stone.

I decided to wait for his question rather than attack, and he gestured to one of the statues; it was the knight who had been one of my rivals in the Trial.  The old man asked his question: "This man weighs 100 pounds plus half his weight.  How much does he weigh?"  The answer, of course, was 200 pounds.  The old man rewarded my correct answer by raising my Skill, Stamina and Luck by 1 point each (leaving me with Skill 11, Stamina 10 and Luck 7).  (I was a dumb kid the first time I ever read this book, and naturally I got this riddle wrong.  I've never forgotten it since.  I've always wondered about the bonus the old guy gives you; it feels like the sort of thing that should raise your initial scores, and if ever a gamebook needed such a bonus it's this one.  It's not specifically stated though, so I just play it like a normal bonus.)

Further along the tunnel was a door with an X scratched in the centre.  I went inside, and found a room with an alcove in the west wall and a skeletal figure sitting on a throne.  Clutched in the skeleton's fingers was a roll of parchment.

Skeletons are rarely as scary as they look, so I snatched the parchment from its hand.  As expected, the Skeleton Warrior (Skill 8, Stamina 6) lurched forward to attack, but just as quickly I smashed it into fragments.  On the parchment was a map with a drawing of a monster called a Manticore, and a rhyme warning me to shield myself against its tail spikes.  I put the parchment in my backpack and stepped over to the alcove.

Inside the alcove were stairs that led down to a cellar that was overgrown with mushrooms.  I ignored them, and stepped through an archway on the far side of the room.  The tunnel eventually came to some steps leading up to a trapdoor.  I could hear muffled voices from above.  Keeping the element of surprise, I burst through the trapdoor with my sword drawn.  Two Goblins were there sharpening their swords (both had Skill 5, the first had Stamina 4 and the second had Stamina 5), but before they could effectively retaliate I killed them both.  The only thing of interest in the Goblins' room was a cupboard, from which I looted a wooden mallet and ten iron spikes.

There were two doors leading from the room, and I chose the one to the west.  I soon came to a door, which I opened.  Inside was a small room, with a skull sitting on a plinth.  The eyes of the skull were of topaz, but a line of crossbows along the wall deterred me from entering.  There were two wooden balls on the floor.

The solution seemed obvious: I picked up one of the balls and lobbed it at the skull.  This required a successful roll under my Skill with two dice, at which I succeeded, and knocked the skull to the floor.  The crossbows didn't fire, so I picked up the skull, took both topaz eyes, and left without replacing the skull on the plinth.

The tunnel took a sharp right turn into a gallery lined with mirrors.  A grotesque, four-armed female figure emerged from one of the mirrors, barring my way ahead.  It was a Mirror Demon, intent on dragging my spirit to its own dimensional plane.

Sensing extreme danger, I used my Ring of Wishes to send the Mirror Demon back to its own plane, and was able to continue unharmed.

Ahead of me were two flights of stairs separated by a banister of rat skulls.  (Rad.)

I chose the right-hand stairs, but as I was climbing the fourth step gave way and my foot sunk into a deep hole.  Before I could pull myself free, my foot was attacked by hungry rats, and I lost 2 Stamina (leaving me with 8). They were tenacious buggers, and I had to kick them against the banister before they would let go.

At the top of the stairs the tunnel took a sharp right, then came to a junction.  I could see two dead bodies to the north, so I decided to investigate.  (Again, the book made this decision for me.)  The bodies were both Orcs, presumably killed by one of the other contestants in the Trial.  I looted their bodies and found a necklace of teeth.  I had little patience for squeamishness, so I placed it around my own neck, and felt a surge of power.  It was an amulet of strength, and it gave me a bonus of 1 Skill and 1 Stamina (raising my Stamina to 9).  At this point I started to grow concerned about what might lie ahead, so I rested and ate two of my Provisions (further raising my Stamina to 17).

The tunnel ended at a junction, but of more interest was the figure who stood contemplating which direction to take.  It was one of the barbarians, and he stood watching me coldly with his axe at the ready.  I asked which way he was heading, and he warily told me that he was headed west, and that I could go with him if I wished.

I decided to go with the barbarian, who I learned was named Throm; I could always murder him later, when his back was turned.  Eventually we came to a wide pit, and Throm offered to lower me to the bottom.  Rather foolishly I accepted, but he lowered me down with no foul play.  At the bottom of the pit there was a tunnel heading north; I shouted that fact to Throm, and he followed me down.

Further along the tunnel was a stone table with two books upon it.  Throm wanted nothing to do with them, but I was eager to investigate.  I opened the red book, and although it quickly turned to dust in my hands I was able to save a scrap that described the dreaded Bloodbeast, which disguised its real eyes with a number of fake ones on its forehead.  I memorised this information, and turned to the black book.

The pages of the black book were stuck together (oo-er), but a recess was cut inside to hold a vial of clear liquid.  Despite Throm's distaste I drank the liquid, and was delighted to realise that it was a potion that would allow me to detect hidden traps (this gave me a bonus of 2 Luck, raising my total back to my maximum of 9).

The tunnel turned right, and continued for a long way. Throm stopped, warning me that he could hear footsteps ahead.  We hid in wait, and soon a pair of Cave Trolls came into sight.  We ambushed them, but it was still a tough fight (the Cave Troll I fought had Skill 10, Stamina 11).  It hit me six times before I could kill it (reducing my Stamina to 5), and Throm was wounded in his battle as well.  I sat and ate two more Provisions (raising my Stamina to 13) before searching the bodies of the Trolls.

One of the Trolls had a bone ring hanging from a cord around its neck.  Throm recognised the symbol as belonging to the druids of the north, and explained that the ring would grant increased power if my body could accept it.  Again Throm was wary, but I put it on anyway.  My body started shaking, and I had to roll under my Skill with two dice.  I was successful, and the ring restored 3 Stamina (raising my total to 16).  Throm seemed worried about me; what a swell guy.

The tunnel led to a large cavern, with many stalactites and an archway carved into the shape of a demon's mouth.  I decided to search the chamber, but found nothing more than a mouse.  Throm laughed as the mouse slipped through his fingers, causing the stalactites to fall from the ceiling.  Stupid Throm.  I successfully tested my Luck (reducing my total to 8), and was able to escape the cavern without being impaled.  Throm escaped as well, and we laughed about the whole affair (had we learned nothing?).  What a beautiful friendship we were developing!  I hoped it would never end.

The tunnel ended in a door, and Throm wasted no time in opening it.  Inside was a Dwarf, waiting for us on his throne.  He congratulated us on our progress, but explained that we weren't allowed to team up, and so would have to compete in a number of tests to determine who was the most able.  There were no apparent exits from the room, and the Dwarf told us that only he knew the way forward.  Throm was ready to split the Dwarf's head open, but I persuaded him that we should go through with the tests, and kill the Dwarf once we knew the way onward.

 

Throm reluctantly agreed, and I was led away through a secret door.  The Dwarf told me to roll a pair of dice, and a got a result of 8.  He then told me to roll again, but this time to predict whether I would roll higher, lower or the same as my previous total.  I decided to play the odds, and predicted that I would roll lower.  I scored a 7, so my prediction was correct.

For the second stage of the test, the Dwarf grabbed a wicker basket and tipped out a cobra.  My task was to grab the cobra with my bare hands, which I did by rolling less than my Skill on two dice.  (The way my character waves the cobra in the Dwarf's face never fails to amuse me.)

I was then led through a series of secret doors (passing an impatient Throm), and into an arena.  The Dwarf climbed up to a balcony overhead and threw me down two sheets of paper: on one was written NO CROP IS and on the other RUIN MOAT.  I was told to rearrange the letters to get the names of two creatures, and choose which one I would like to fight.  The answers, of course, were SCORPION and MINOTAUR.  I decided against the Scorpion, because I don't mess with venomous monsters.  I called out that I wanted to fight the Minotaur.  (It's interesting that the book doesn't really require you to solve the puzzle.  If you choose an option, it automatically has you giving the answer, so you can take a guess if you want and hope you picked the right one.  It's technically cheating, but on the lower end of the scale.)

The Minotaur (Skill 9, Stamina 9) stepped into the arena and attacked me with an axe.  It hit me once before I was able to kill it (dropping my Stamina to 14).  The Dwarf congratulated me on my victory and threw down a chicken and some wine, which I ate (raising my Stamina back to 16).  He left me to wait for my final test, and when he returned some time later he told me that I had one final opponent to battle: Throm!  (Oh well, I never did trust him anyway.)

Throm was wounded and delirious; apparently he had not done so well in catching the cobra.  He staggered forward to attack me (Skill 10, Stamina 12).  It was a tough battle, and he managed to take me down to 6 Stamina before I killed him.  There was little time to mourn, however, or loot Throm's corpse.  The Dwarf appeared, with a crossbow leveled at my chest, and guided me to the secret exit that led onwards.  I considered turning to punch the Dwarf in the face (so tempting), but with my many wounds I didn't want to risk it, and I stepped through the door and into the tunnel.  I sat and ate two provisions (leaving me with 4 meals, and raising my Stamina to 14).

The tunnel soon branched west and north, and I could hear a buzzing from the west.  I investigated the noise and saw - through a large pane of glass - a room swarming with insects.  There was also a crown with a large diamond on top.  I probably really needed it, but I decided against breaking the glass.  Insects give me the willies.

NOPE NOPE NOPE

Rather than continue west, I returned to the junction and went north.  It led to a dark chamber covered in cobwebs, where I found A wooden casket.  Inside was a large pearl, and finding it restored 1 Luck point (raising my total to 9).  There were two doors at the far end of the chamber.  I went through the door to the right and continued north.  There were two fountains shaped like cherubs on ether side of the tunnel.  The first one I drank from had been cursed by a Hag; while it was refreshing (and restored my Stamina to 15) it also caused my Luck to drop by 2 (leaving me with 7).  I tried the other fountain with greater success: it had been sprinkle with pixie dust, and not only did it raise my Stamina to 16, it would have restored 2 Skill points if I had needed any.

Further on I found a pair of stilts, securely chained and padlocked.  A sign said that the stilts were 1 Gold Piece to purchase, so I placed a coin in the padlock (leaving me with two) and took the stilts.  It was lucky that I did, because the tunnel ahead was completely covered in acidic green slime.  I walked across the slime on my stilts, and although the slime ate away at them I was able to make it to the other side.

The tunnel on the far side came to a junction, where I headed north.  At a door in the left hand wall I peered through, and saw a warrior lying face down on the floor in a small chamber.  A large diamond lay near his hand.  I was about to enter the room and take the jewel, but a premonition of danger warned me against it: the potion that I had drank earlier was warning me of a trap.  I continued north instead.

The tunnel soon came to a dead end, with a chute in the western wall the only way on.  With no other option (aside from the impossible-in-Fighting-Fantasy option of turning back) I slid down the chute.  The room I emerged in was filled with a noxious vapour.  Wallowing in a pool of fetid slime was a bloated creature that I recognised as a Bloodbeast from the book I had read earlier (it's pictured on the cover of Deathtrap Dungeon, at the top of this post).  Armed with this knowledge, I covered my mouth to protect myself from the vapours, and drew my sword.  I was expecting the Bloodbeast to attack with its tongue, and when it did so I cut it off.  It was a tough opponent (Skill 12, Stamina 10).  It was able to bite me once (reducing my Stamina to 14), but on my second blow I pierced its true eyes, and fled while it thrashed around in pain.

The tunnel led into a large columned room.  A strange creature prowled forward, with the body of a lion, bat wings, a scorpion's tail, and the head of a  man.  It was a Manticore, and I recognised it's description from the parchment I had pried from the Skeleton Warrior's hand.  I watched for it's tail spikes, and when it fired them I deflected them with my shield.  (This is the contentious bit with the shield that I mentioned earlier.  Should I have one here?  It's difficult to say.  The rules say no, but at least one encounter in the book assumes yes.  To be honest, I'm not even sure that you can find a shield anywhere in the book.)

The Manticore was very strong (Skill 11, Stamina 11), and the battle was a close one.  I used up 2 Luck points trying to minimise the wounds that the Manticore was inflicting on me, and it still took me down to 3 Stamina.  I killed it in the end, but it took almost every resource I had.

A gnome jumped out from behind a pillar, and introduced himself as Igbut, the Trialmaster for my final test.  He gestured to an iron door - the exit of Deathtrap Dungeon.  My quest was almost at an end!

 Unfortunately, I was told that I would need three gems to unlock the door.  Igbut asked if I had an emerald, and I was pleased to say that I did.  Then he asked if I had a sapphire, and alas I did not.  The gnome shook his head, informed me that I had failed, and that I would have to spend the rest of my days as his servant, preparing the dungeon for future contestants.  Ah well, at least I wasn't dead, and I did have job security.  But unfortunately, I had failed in my quest to defeat Deathtrap Dungeon.

THE POST-GAME
So close, but I really did screw up.  I was sure that I had the exact path through Deathtrap Dungeon memorised, but it seems that I was wrong.  I took pretty much every wrong turn, and paid for it by missing the sapphire.  I didn't find the diamond either, and I know that's the final one that's required.

So next time I know: go north after fighting the Goblins, and keep going west from the insects.  I knew as soon as I met the Mirror Demon that I'd gone the wrong way, and was doomed to failure, but I pressed on anyway because I was enjoying the book.  It made for a longer post, but that just means I can skim over certain bits later on.  It's a trade-off.  Anyway, I should be able to win next time, provided that I roll high enough stats.  I must remember to drink my Potion of Fortune as well; it could have saved me a lot of angst in the final battle.