Exploring Titan 11: The Shamutanti Hills

And so, I come to it at last: an in-depth dissection of the setting of the Sorcery! epic. It's taken me a while to get going with this, because let's face it - it's daunting.  The Sorcery! gamebooks are the most complex in the series to date, and there's a lot to unpack.  Sadly for me at this moment, a lot of that unpacking is front-loaded in the first book, The Shamutanti Hills.  This post isn't going to write itself though, no matter how much I wish it would, so there's nothing for it but to roll up my sleeves and get to it.

THE OLD WORLD

Sorcery! is set in the continent known as The Old World, although I don't believe it's ever called that during the series; I suppose that it gets that name in either Out of the Pit or Titan. We learn quite a bit in the Introduction of The Shamutanti Hills.  The empire of Femphrey is the largest in the "eastern world". (East of what? Allansia, perhaps? I'm not sure that there are any concrete connections between this series and the rest of the Fighting Fantasy books.)  Neighbouring Femphrey are the kingdoms of Ruddlestone, Lendleland, Gallantaria, Brice, and Analand.  Together these nation-states make up the Femphrey Alliance. And nearby, separated from these peaceful kingdoms by mountain ranges and a wall, is the lawless land of Kakhabad.

THE FEMPHREY ALLIANCE & THE CROWN OF KINGS

The kingdoms of the Femphrey Alliance are at peace now, but only centuries ago - in a time known as the Dark Ages - whole regions of the world were undiscovered, with mere pockets of civilization that had their own races and cultures. This changed when Chalanna the Reformer discovered the Crown of Kings. The Crown's origin is unknown, but it has magical powers, bestowing upon its bearer supernormal qualities of leadership and justice.  Some have said that those powers are divinely inspired, and others that they are all in the mind.  Regardless, with the crown Chalanna turned Femphrey into a powerful, prosperous empire.  But rather than conquer his neighbours, Chalanna decided to forge alliances, passing the crown from ruler to ruler. Thus the Femphrey Alliance was born, and Ruddlestone, Lendleland, Gallantaria, and Brice all benefitted from their four years in possession of the Crown. Analand was next in line, and had the Crown for two years before it was stolen. (If each of these nations held the Crown for four years, and Analand had it for two before it was stolen, Chalanna found the Crown at least 18 years ago. Add in the time it took him to strengthen Femphrey and it could be 22 years or more.)

ANALAND

What we know about the countries of the Old World is scant, except to say that they seem to be more civilized than Allansia. Analand, being the kingdom that the protagonist hails from, is the one we know the most about. Even the details we get here are pretty thin though. The kingdom was peaceful and prosperous, but since the Crown was stolen law, order and morale had broken down, the King had lost the confidence of his subjects, and the neighbouring kingdoms were looking suspiciously across their borders, to the point that there were rumours of invasions.  Some other nuggets of information:

• It's people give prayers to Libra the goddess of Justice.
• The Shamutanti Wall separates Analand from Kakhabad. There's an Outpost Settlement not far from the Cantopani Gate, which is the only doorway through the wall. The wall is guarded by Sightmaster Warriors, who are chosen for their powers of telescopic vision. The origin of these powers is not revealed, although the illustrations do indicate that their eyes are larger than those of a regular human. They are commanded by a Sightmaster Sergeant.

THE MAGIC OF ANALAND

Those who are learned in magic are called Grand Wizards, and one who knows all 48 spells is an Imperial Sorcerer.  Given the "imperial" moniker I'd say this extends throughout the Femphrey Alliance. It seems likely that if they are friendly enough to pass around an artifact like the Crown of Kings, they'd also be happy to share their magical knowledge.

The magic of Analand doesn't have to be prepared in advance like the spells taught in the Forest of Yore (from The Citadel of Chaos); nor do they rely on spell gems, like those handed out by the wizards of Fenmarge (from Scorpion Swamp). The spells cast in Analand draw directly on the strength of the caster: they can cast their spells as many times as they like, so long as their stamina holds out. Some spells require a special object or material focus, and these spells are not as taxing on the caster as others.

Here are some other tidbits gleaned from the spell descriptions:

• The ZIP spell requires a ring of green metal. This green metal is said to be mined from the Craggen Rock. Craggen Rock is the highest peak in the Craggen Heights, and the site of Balthus Dire's Black Tower (where The Citadel of Chaos happens). This is the only direct reference I've found that indicates Sorcery! is set in the same world as the other Fighting Fantasy books. (I've noticed in maps of the Old World that there's a mountain range called the Cragrock Peaks. These apparently come from Steve Jackson's Tasks of Tantalon, so it's possible he was thinking of these mountains for the location of this green metal.)
• The ZED spell is mysterious, and beyond the powers of concentration available to most minor conjurers. It's only ever been cast once, by a Necromancer from Throben. (Where Throben is isn't clear, but given some references in the final book it's probably not far from Mampang.) The Necromancer was never seen again, but his notes on the spell were later found. To this day, no wizard knows what the spell does. Book 4 reveals that this spell allows the caster to travel backwards in their own timeline, with the ability to change things from that point forward.

KAKHABAD

Kakhabad, also described as the Verminpit at Earth End, is a haven for all manner of lawless creatures and evil men. It's sheltered from the civilised lands by various mountain ranges (the Zanzunus and Mauristatia, also known as the Cloudcap Mountains) as well as the Shamutanti Wall.

Several warlords have tried to rule Kakhabad over the centuries, but none have succeeded. While a dangerous land, it poses little threat to the kingdoms surrounding it. With no ruler it had no army, and the lawless inhabitants were prone to internal struggles. The closest thing it has to a ruler is the Archmage of Mampang Fortress, and now with the Crown of Kings at his command he has the power he needs to unite Kakhabad and become a major threat to the Femphrey Alliance.

What other knowledge the protagonist learns about Kakhabad is told to him by the Sightmaster Sergeant:

• Beyond the Shamutanti Hills is Khare, a cityport on the Jabaji River.
• Beyond Khare are the Baklands, which are unknown to the people of Analand. It is said that day and night are controlled not by the sun but by supernatural forces. (I'm not entirely sure this pans out. As far as I can recall, day and night pass in a fairly standard manner during The Seven Serpents, but I could be wrong.)

Finally, we have this map which is probably much more useful than anything the Sightmasters have to say:

THE ARCHMAGE

The major villain of the series, the Archmage, is something of a blank slate at this point. We know that he lives in Mampang Fortress high in the Zanzunu Peaks, and that he has a number of subjects, including the Birdmen of Xamen. We know that he has an ambition to rule over Kakhabad, and that he has stolen the Crown of Kings to give him the power to do so. Otherwise, he's not described. We're in generic evil wizard territory for now.

THE SHAMUTANTI HILLS

These hills, in the southern regions of Kakhabad, extend from the Shamutanti Wall north to the Jabaji River and the Cloudcap Mountains. They are far less dangerous than the other areas of Kakhabad, and are inhabited by relatively peaceful folk. The protagonist can pass through six villages on his way to Khare:

• Cantopani: Situated about an hour's walk from the Cantopani Gate, this is a settlement of traders. According to the Sightmaster Sergeant most of them are thieves, and sure enough there are bandits who try to rob the protagonist on the village's outskirts.
• Kristatanti: This village has an ale-house, and little else to speak of, except to note that the villagers all wear their hair long and piled up on their heads.
• Dhumpus: Again, there's nothing out of the ordinary about this village, which has little more than a market and an inn. (I almost forgot, the protagonist can get a job digging cesspits here.)
• Plague Village: In this unnamed village, everyone has the plague, and they try their best to hide from travellers so as not to pass it on. I'm tempted to name this village Gorretanti; it's one of the wrong options given when the hunchback Vancas asks you about villages you've passed through. There's no other place with that name, so I'll happily apply it to the one nameless village in the book.
• Birritanti: This seems to be the biggest village in the Shamutanti Hills (although I think that's more of a gut feeling on my part than anything that's confirmed in the book). When the protagonist visits, it's in the middle of the festival of the young, a time when the village's children are allowed free reign. Not far from Birritanti is a Crystal Waterfall that will heal all wounds and ailments. (The people from the plague village really ought to visit this place, it's only a couple of hours away at most.)
• Torrepani: This is the village of the Svinns, a race of half-orcs, situated not far from Khare.

Monsters of the Shamutanti Hills

This book has a decent selection of standard fantasy creatures and animals (a wolfhound, giant bats, werewolves, goblins, ogres, hill giants, a troll and a manticore), but it also provides quite a few new types which I'll discuss below.

• There are some green squirrel-like creatures that eat the protagonist's provisions. They're not really notable outside of their colouring though.
• Elvins - a race of mischievous imps - are new, but I'll talk about them in their own section below.
• Skunkbears are a hybrid creature, with the size and strength of a bear and the spraying stench of a skunk. At least one tavern serves them up as food, so it seems they are edible.
• Pilfer Grass grows in the Shamutanti Hills. The grass is mobile and seems to be at least somewhat sentient, having an inexplicable habit of stealing artifacts from passing travellers.
• The Spirit of Mananka is a malevolent being that is found trapped in a chest in the Elvin village. It will curse anyone who releases it, unless they can defend themselves with magic. It's pretty similar in appearance and behaviour to the Nanka, a creature that will appear later in Out of the Pit, so there's probably some sort of relation there.
• Red-Eyes are mentioned in this book, by a blind beggar who implies that they were the cause of his blindness. More on them when I cover Book 2.
• The Bird-Men of Xamen are also mentioned, as servants of the Archmage who made off with the Crown of Kings. They'll be dealt with in more detail when I cover Book 4.
• The Svinns are a breed of Man-Orc, that live in the village of Torrepani. More on them below.
• Minimites are a small, fairy-like creatures who negate magic in their immediate vicinity. A Minimite named Jann attaches himself to the protagonist, making things quite difficult if they happen to be a wizard. (I get why a wizard would get rid of Jann, but why can't you keep him if you're a warrior? Especially since you're planning to go up against the Archmage, a portable anti-magic pet seems like a pretty good thing to have.) Jann is quite cheerful, and also quite annoying, but he seems to mean no harm. More on Jann in Book 4.
• Finally, there's a mysterious two-tailed serpent that can turn invisible, who will guide you through the wilderness, and give you a cheeky wink when he's done. Nothing else is said about the creature's nature, and it's never met again in the series. The encounter has some of the dream-like strangeness of the Seven Serpents confrontations from Book 3, but given its general benevolence it's probably not connected. Given that it's encountered in the Vale of the Elvin, I'm inclined to say that it's an Elvin giving you a bit of help.

The Headhunters

There's a tribe of headhunters that lives in the hills between Cantopani and Kristatanti, not far from the Schanker Mines. The borders of their territory are marked with heads on spikes, and the lands within are full of pits and spike traps to catch or kill unwary travellers. The headhunters are a small, black-skinned people that do not speak the same language as the people of Analand (and the rest of Kakhabad). They are, as genre tropes demand, cannibals.

It's something of a staple of Fighting Fantasy to have primitive tribesmen living in areas otherwise inhabited by typical fantasy villagers. A lot of this comes from the need to provide a large number of threats, and the way FF mashes up genre tropes, but it's interesting to speculate how these people got there. I'm thinking that they are probably the original human inhabitants of Kakhabad, or at least the Shamutanti Hills. The rest of the humans encountered in this series are conversant with the protagonist, and are probably outlaws and immigrants from the countries of the Femphrey Alliance.

The Schanker Mines

These mines are situated in the hills between Cantopani and Kristatanti.  It seems to be a gemstone mine, although the exact type of gem is never specified. The mines are currently being worked by some goblins and an ogre, led by an old blind goblin. It's never made clear who these goblins are working for. It's possible that they're mining for their own gain. The blind goblin has a key on his person that unlocks the door to the torture chamber in Mampang Fortress, so it seems likely at the very least that this group has come from that place. If they're working for anyone, the Archmage seems like the best bet.

The Elvins

These creatures live in the Vale of the Elvin, between Cantopani and Kristatanti. They are small, winged, impish creatures that delight in mischief and practical jokes. Although they will fight with short swords when pressed (or even when their hospitality is refused), they also have a number of innate magical powers: they can make their bodies glow, move objects via telekinesis, and become invisible at will.

The nature of the Elvins' mischief ranges from harmless to somewhat cruel. When they meet the protagonist they might try to give him a fright by vanishing and appearing suddenly in front of him, or pelt him with acorns (which admittedly is capable of killing him). At worst, they will steal some of his items and then release him. They did the same thing to the old man in the tree outside of Cantopani, and they left the witch Alianna locked in a cramped cage for two days (I suspect they weren't going to return to set her free). Generally, though, if their victim keeps good humour or amuses the Elvins with some music or magic tricks, no harm will befall them.

The Elvin village is a cluster of thatched huts made of twigs and branches, with brightly coloured drapes over the doors. It's found along a river. When strangers approach, it seems as though their defense is to become invisible and lull the invaders to sleep either with enchanted music or smoke from the village's central fire.

Elvins are known to keep at least one pet or guard animal, a wolfhound.

The Lea-Ki

This is the Lea-ki, the domain of the great ones, otherwise known as Hill Giants. It's entrance is through a gate many times larger than a regular man-made gate. Otherwise, the Lea-ki consists of two large caves, one of which houses a giant and the other of which is empty when the protagonist arrives. There are signs that it's inhabitant is simply elsewhere at the time, so it seems that at least two Hill Giants make this place their home.

Glandragor the Protector

In Cantopani, the protagonist can buy an axe marked with the following writing: "This axe was crafted in the Year of the Ox for Glandragor the Protector. It's powers may be realized only by its owner.".  It also has the number 233 carved upon it. The axe is well-used, and looks as though it will not survive too many more battles. True to the writing on the axe, it's nothing special when used by the protagonist in battle.

Glandragor currently resides in Birritanti, living with his wife and running 'Glandragor's Tavern'. He is friendly and happy to talk to strangers. If presented with his old axe, he is overjoyed. Little else is revealed about Glandragor, but the state of his axe suggests that he used it a great deal, and probably earned his nickname of "The Protector". He has many connections in the city of Khare, including an influential man named Vik. 

Gaza Moon and the Old Man

Gaza Moon is a witch who lives in a hut between Birritanti and Torrepani. She is hospitable, but may become murderously angry if that hospitality is refused. For those who accept, she will test their trustworthiness with drugged tea, and steal from those who try to trick her. She has a justifiable hatred of Minimites.

Four days ago Gaza Moon was visited by a traveller who stole a page from her spell book. The traveller took off at great speed when caught, fast enough that Moon suspects him of being a powerful wizard. She cast an Ageing spell upon him as he fled, which eventually transformed him into an old man. Later in his travels the old man was robbed by Minimites, who left him stuck in a tree. The identity of this man is a mystery, and it is odd that he seems to retain no magic to help him get down from the tree. The d20 RPG adaptation names him Alias Gumar, but I'm not sure if those products count as canon.

The Old Man's Rhyme

The old man will tell the protagonist a rhyme, which goes as follows:

'See him though he sees you not;

The black-eyed creature creeps.

A guardian once, but now his lot:

The key to freedom keeps.'

He mentions that the Elvins are searching for the key in question, so presumably he learned this rhyme from them as well.

There are two potential candidates for the solution to this rhyme in The Shamutanti Hills. The first is the blind goblin in the Schanker Mines. He can't see, and he does have a key in his possession. That key unlocks the door to Mampang's torture chamber, which is definitely a place from which to be seeking freedom. The only problem here is that it has no connection to the Elvins.

A better candidate is the blind beggar outside of Kristatanti. His eyes are painted with a dark dye, which definitely marks him as a "black-eyed creature". Years ago this beggar lived in Khare, and watched over prisoners in the gaol, which covers him being a guardian. In his possession he has a key to said gaol, which currently contains an Elvin prisoner. All of these clues add up to the solution to this rhyme.

Vancass and the Troll

Vancass is a hunch-backed old man who lives in a hut near a bridge between Dhumpus and Birritanti. He will only allow passage over the bridge to those who can answer his rhyming questions, which tend to be general knowledge questions about the places and inhabitants of the Shamutanti Hills. He is not physically powerful, but possesses magical powers, and can cause pain with a wave of his hand. If the protagonist answers these questions, Vancass rewards him with a rhyme that gives hints about the future dangers he might encounters in the Manticore's lair. It's likely that he has some powers of prophecy or foretelling. As to why he's here guarding a bridge, I have no idea (except that Steve Jackson put him there).

In the same forest nearby is a Troll, who I normally wouldn't comment upon except that he is described as being a sentry, which implies that he's guarding something. With no other obvious candidates, I'd say that he's a servant of Vancass put there to guard other paths through the woods. It's as good an explanation as any.

Flanker

Flanker is an assassin and thief from Khare, who likes to attack wayfarers for combat practice. He seemingly has no compunctions about killing these victims, but if he is beaten and his life is spared he becomes a loyal friend.

Flanker is on his way to Khare, but will not accompany the protagonist along the way. The obvious question is, what exactly is Flanker up to out here? Is he really just hanging around for travellers to fight? Or has somebody hired him?

In Torrepani, one of the Svinns mentions that his friend was killed by an assassin's blade. Flanker is the obvious culprit, but random Svinns don't really seem worthy of being assassinated. I suspect that this was a case of Flanker harassing someone on the road for sport.

One possibility is that Flanker is working for the marauders who kidnapped the Svinn chief's daughter. Maybe he's being paid to kill Svinns, or maybe he did the kidnapping himself. It's all pure speculation, but I do like to fit this stuff together sometimes.

The Svinns

The Svinns live in the village of Torrepani, not far from Khare. They are said to be an "aggressive-looking race of Man-Orcs", but to be honest they seem no more aggressive than the other villagers in the area. In fact they seem a little depressed, as the village chief's daughter has been taken by marauders and offered as a sacrifice to a powerful cave demon (actually a Manticore). Apparently there is a prophecy that says that a dreadful scourge will overrun the village should the chief's line end. (It's never said where this prophecy comes from, but one suspects that it's been put out there by the chief's family to stop them being deposed. I also wonder why the chief can't just have another child to forestall the prophecy, but perhaps he is too old. As for the identity of the marauders, they remain a mystery.)

The chief's name is Proseus, and he has sent several of his own men into the caves; none have returned. Despite his general friendliness, he's more than willing to force the protagonist into rescuing his daughter. The only other notable inhabitant of Torrepani is a healing-priest, who is capable of healing all of the protagonist's wounds, curing any disease he may have caught, and banishing Minimites.

Lastly, I should note that a traveller passed through Torrepani from Khare two years ago, vowing that he would never return. This traveller left Proseus with his key to the city gates. It's probable that this traveller isn't meant to be anyone specific, but if I had to put an identity on them I would go for either Glandragor or the blind beggar. Both have definitely been to Khare, and neither seems all that likely to go back there.