Exploring Titan 12: Kharé - Cityport of Traps

The city of Kharé has numerous names and titles, the gateway to the Baklands and the city of chaos among them. Some say that Kharé simply arose around the only ford across the Jabaji River between Lake Lumlé and the sea, but this is dismissed as an unlikely tale (probably because it's far too ordinary). More probable are the tales that say it began as an encampment of river pirates, who set up there to ambush sailing vessels carrying their wares (mostly fish) between Lake Lumlé and the Kakhabad Sea. This camp became a village, then grew into a city, and became a magnet for the ne'er-do-wells of the Baklands and the Shamutanti Hills. Malevolent creatures, many of whom would kill a man for the laces on his boots, drifted into the city, and it became a lawless place. With no-one else to protect them from the criminals that roamed the streets, the citizens of Kharé created an elaborate system of tricks and traps. This is how the city came to possess it's most famous name of all: the Cityport of Traps.

Kharé does indeed sit upon the only ford across the Jabaji: crossing the river elsewhere is said to be impossible. The city is surrounded by a fortified wall, and has two main gates. The south gate opens to the Shamutanti Hills, and the north gate opens into the Baklands. Both gates are guarded, but the north gate is also wizard locked, to protect the city from raiders from the Baklands. Obviously the denizens of that land are much more aggressive and deadly than those of the Shamutantis, because the south gate is simply locked with a key, and can be unlocked from the outside. More on the north gate spell below.

The city is broken into two distinct sections. South of the river is where the poorer residents live, with winding streets, opium dens, taverns, shops and markets. The wealthier citizens and nobles dwell on the north side, where there are elaborate crypts, gambling halls and temples. It also seems to be further sub-divided into racial ghettos: there's an area where dwarves live, another that is home to the gnomes, and just across the river is where the mysterious red-eyes congregate.

It's not entirely clear how Kharé functions economically, but it is a cityport, and has wharves and jetties along the Jabaji in the centre of town. One trade it definitely indulges in is slavery: anyone who's not careful near the river could find themselves kidnapped and thrown into the hold of a slave ship.

It's tempting to compare Kharé to Port Blacksand, the other famously lawless city of Titan. Although the two are similar in concept, they differ greatly in flavour. Blacksand feels much more "European" for want of a better word, the sort of city you could imagine pirates frequenting during their heyday. Kharé is more alien, at least to my sensibilities, more exotic, decadent and unknowable. It's also much more lawless: the only guards present man the walls, and it seems as though anything goes within those walls. Blacksand has guard patrols everywhere, and while it seems like you can get away with a lot there, it's all at the whim of its tyrant, Lord Azzur.  Cross him, or his guards, and you're done.  In Kharé, you're at the mercy of its many bizarre inhabitants, and if you get into trouble there are no guards coming to help you out. (Kharé does have a gaol, complete with a scramble spell that negates magic, but it seems to be run by the Red-Eyes, with no judicial system attached to it; as far as I can tell, people get thrown in for no reason and never let out.)

THE NORTH GATE SPELL

The door to open the north gate of Kharé is as follows:

So tumblers two sealed deep inside

One lock made out of Golem's hide

By Courga's grace and Fourga's pride

I bid you, portals, open wide

Only one person in Kharé knows the entire spell: Sansas, the First Noble. There are four other leading citizens who have been entrusted with one line each. Two of those are nobles, one is a priest, and the other is a well-known scholar.  Presumably this was done in case the First Noble should die an untimely death. Anyone who tries to open the gate without first reciting the spell will be killed by a Sulphur Ghost that is bound inside a wooden box high up on the frame. (Whether the Sulphur Ghost is actually undead, or just a magical creature created out of noxious fumes, is anyone's guess.)

As for who created the spell and locked the gate, that is not known. All we know for sure is that it was done at least a century ago, as it invokes the god Fourga, who has not been worshipped in Kharé for a long time.

THE NOBLES OF KHARÉ

The current ruler is Sansas, the First Noble of Kharé. He is the only person who knows the entire spell to open the city's north gate, but at the time of the book is away, sailing up the Jabaji to Lake Lumlé.  It's not known exactly how much power he has, but it appears as though Kharé has a rigid hierarchy to its nobility. Aside from the First Noble, the protagonist also hears about or meets the Third, FIfth, and Seventh Nobles.

The Third Noble of Kharé does not appear during the book, but they are rumoured to be vampire. All we know for sure is that this noble cursed the Fifth Noble to a "living death".

That Fifth Noble is Shinva, who I suppose would be the former Fifth Noble because he's dead at the time of the adventure. After falling out of favour with the Third Noble, he was cursed to become a Death Wraith, and haunt his crypt for eternity (or until defeated with a silver weapon). Shinva was important enough that he knew one of the lines to the north gate spell. Presumably there's someone else in the city who was given the secret after Shinva's death.  He also knows a couplet about someone called "The Sham", and knows that it will be useful for the protagonist to know. How he knows this is unclear, but it could always be chalked up to the sort of precognition that ghosts and other spirits often possess in fiction.

The Seventh Noble of Kharé is not named, but he currently lives as a blind beggar on the north side of the city, constantly tormented by Harpies who steal his gold.  He was a noble until three years ago, when he was struck by the "black-eyed curse", which might be natural blindness but could also be the result of being zapped by Red-Eyes.  He knows one the lines of the north gate spell, but his memory is going in his old age and he can't remember it exactly.  He's also in possession of a magic ring, fashioned like a serpent, which he presumably had from his time as a noble. I might delve more into that in The Seven Serpents. 

RELIGION IN KHARÉ

The main religion practiced in Kharé - at least in the poorer side of the river - seems to be that of Slangg, the God of Malice.  There is a chapel there, and despite serving a god of malice, the priest appears to heal his followers: one boy is heard remarking that his friend Salen's lame brother was cured at the chapel yesterday. The priest is something of a showman, and appears to enjoy playing tricks on people in front of an audience. He knows one of the lines of the north gate spell, and offers the protagonist a chance to learn it if he can pass the Test of Slangg: a simple mathematical problem. Failure means the protagonist must renounce their own god and worship Slangg, but despite following a god of malice the priest honours his word if the protagonist passes the test.

The other major temple seen in the city of the Shrine of Courga, the God of Grace.  Courga's shrine is a large and richly decorated building, located not far from the north gate, but there is nobody in attendance during the book and no priest to be found, so it's not clear how active the worship of this god is in the present day.  One would think a god of grace's temple would be more pleasant to visit than that of the God of Malice, but this place is one of the deadliest in the game.  There is a portal trap near the main altar, and there are stone gargoyles that will animate should anyone try to steal anything. Deadliest of all, though, is the idol of Courga, and the kissing ritual that accompanies it: "On Courga's face you kiss a cross, and finish with the lips; for answers to your questions you must err not else he spits".  Supplicants may kiss the idol and have any question answered, but kissing it in the wrong place or in the wrong order will result in death from a poisoned dart.  The idol answers those questions truthfully, and does seem to have great knowledge, but the answers given will not always be useful.

Also mentioned is Courga's brother Fourga, the god of pride. Fourga was once worshipped in Kharé, but he fell out of favour with their circle of gods, and hasn't had any followers for close to a century.

The huge bronze statue that stands outside of the Gambling Halls of Vlada is also said to be one of Kharé's gods. Offerings are made to it in the form of gold pieces dropped into a pot at its feet, and it will animate and try to kill anyone who steals that gold. Its only vulnerability is a plate in its knee, which can be prised away; doing so releases the life-giving gas inside the statue and causes to to topple over.  The name of the god this statue represents is unknown, but it's possible that it could be Vlada, given that it stands outside of the gambling halls with that name.

There's at least one occasion where it's made apparent that Libra, the goddess of Justice, is unknown in Kharé, which seems a little odd given that Analand isn't all that far away. I suppose that there's not a lot of traffic going through the Cantopani Gate.

Many other gods are depicted as totems lining the path that leads to the shrine of Courga, but no other details are given.

NOTABLE PERSONAGES

There are quite a few interesting people residing in Kharé. I'll discuss a few of them below.

The One-Armed Sorcerer
This fellow is first encountered in a jail cell near the south gate. He used to be a sorcerer, before he had a run-in with an Ogre from the Schanker Mines (presumably the same one that can be found in the first book).  The implication here is that two arms are needed for spellcasting.  He doesn't know the north gate spell, nor does he know any of the people who hold the spell lines, but he does know how and why the gate was wizard locked.  It's not clear why he's in the cell, but he's not entirely trustworthy and will happily steal from the protagonist if he lets his guard down.  He seemingly lives with the Chainmaker who has a store not far from the jail, and may help him with his work.

The Chainmaker
Not much is revealed about this fellow, except that he is a Svinn from the nearby village of Torrepani, who makes his living by crafting and selling chains.

Vik
Vik is a man of some reputation and influence in Kharé, although his exact position is not known.  Being his friend is of great help, as many residents of Kharé respect or fear him: even the Red-Eyes are afraid to cross a friend of Vik.  He is a good friend of Glandragor, the retired warrior who runs the tavern in Birritanti, and once upon a time he is said to have saved a slave galley captain from the clutches of the Shield Maidens of Lumlé.  He doesn't know any of the lines to the north gate spell, but he does know who holds at least two of them.  He can be encountered in the book, in the market crowd watching a prize fight.

Vangorn the Murderer
Vangorn lives in a house in the labyrinthine streets south of the Jabaji. Whether he has a job is unknown, but it appears that his great joy in life is to invite people in for a drink and a chat, and then poison them.  He claims to be Vik's brother, and loves him enough that he will give the poison antidote to anyone who claims to a friend of Vik.  He also says that he has no quarrel with sorcerers, perhaps out of fear, and will let anyone who displays magical prowess go free.

Lortag the Elder
Lortag is a scholar who lives south of the Jabaji.  He doesn't like trespassers, and will readily set his pet Bristle Beast upon intruders, but he is quite welcoming to those who approach his house by the front door and surrender their weapons.  He says that he has a good life, and wants to do his part to help civilize the city by teaching the children (some of his students include a gang of Orclings who will happily rob the protagonist; it's also mentioned at one point that nobody knows mathematics in Kharé, so Lortag is doing a bad job). Lortag knows one of the lines of the north gate spell, so he must have some contact with the nobility of Kharé, and be well-respected.  He won't give up the spell line without getting something in return though; in the case of the protagonist he requires the solution to a puzzle that's been vexing him.

Flanker
This assassin could be met during The Shamutanti Hills, where he was way-laying travellers to sharpen his fighting skills. He's currently in Kharé, where he seems to be having a grand old time.  He can first be encountered at the market, where he will greet the protagonist jovially and perhaps lead him to the house of his friend Lortag.  After that he heads to the Vlada Gambling Halls, and has a run of luck. From there he goes to the Wayfarer's Rest inn, where he'll happily give the protagonist some of his winnings and warn him not to drink too much of the ale.  He's last seen leaving the inn, arm in arm with two dubious characters, singing and skipping into the night.  (I'd love to catch up with this merry assassin again, but I don't think he's in any more of the books.)

The Prize Fighters
There's a fight happening at the markets. One of the fighters is billed as Anvar the Barbarian, and is taller than an ogre.  His origin isn't specified, but I'd think it likely that he hails from the Baklands, unless he's a slave shipped over from Allansia or somewhere else. 

The other fighter is billed as the "brawling champion of Kharé: the mighty Ogre, the one they call Skullsplitter - Cagou of Daddu-Ley!".  Daddu-Ley, also known as the Copperstone Caves, lies on the coast of Kakhabad, south-east of the Shamutanti Hills.  In the first book it was mentioned that the priests of Daddu-Ley wore skullcaps.  So far, that's all we know about those caves.

"Slangg"
There's a guy who is encountered south of the Jabaji who is an obvious compulsive liar, to the point where every single thing that he says is a falsehood.  He claims that his name is Slangg, that he lives beyond the north gate, that his mother is a skunkbear, that he eats nothing but rat brains, and is the personal servant to the First Noble of Kharé.  He's actually quite a helpful fellow, and will happily direct the protagonist where he wants to go, he just lies all the time.

TRAPS OF KHARÉ

There are many mundane traps set up by the denizens of Kharé: the Chainmaker's net, the pot of hair remover that the Flayer has perched over his door, the elaborate series of ropes and pulleys that the innkeeper sets up to hover a guillotine over the neck of his sleeping patrons. There are also magical traps: the paintbrush that paints a doppleganger of its victim, and the Firemaster's fire, which is not hot at first but becomes so when exposed to a handful of special powder. Not to mention the sulphur ghost on the north gate. The most common and notorious of these, however, are the portal traps.

These portal traps were set up by the nobles of Kharé who live north of the Jabaji, presumably to protect their wealth from thieves.  They appear as a black, shimmering circle, and can be mistaken for a pool of water.  They are only found on the north side of the river, but are quite numerous: there's one inside a monument, one in a side room in the Vlada Gambling Halls, another guarding the entrance to Shinva's tomb, and others besides.   Anyone who falls in will find themselves floating in a black void before being unceremoniously dumped in the sewers of Kharé.  Although they were originally set up as traps, one suspects that they now double as waste disposal and toilets.

CREATURES OF KHARÉ

There are a number of varied and interesting creatures that can be found within Kharé, which is has a very cosmopolitan population.  A lot of those are creatures that have appeared in Fighting Fantasy before: gnomes, black elves (although these ones are smoking the drugs), orcs (young orclings, in fact), dwarves, a sprite, a pixie, ogres, an elvin (from the valley in the Shamutanti Hills; he's been imprisoned in the gaol for months), harpies, and gargoyles. The new monsters are mentioned below:

Living Corpse
This creature is similar to a zombie, except that when it is struck it splits into six parts which float around and attack their victim. This one is just lying in the street, looking as though it has been run over by a chariot. It seems to have been there a while, as the gnomes are quite happy when you rid their neighbourhood of the creature.

Bristle Beast
This is a lizard-like creature - about the size of a dog - with large spines that acts as a pet and attack animal of Lortag.

Mantis Man
A spindly humanoid creature with the capacity to remain motionless for great lengths of time. Its method of luring in prey is to pretend to be a statue, then to quickly seize whoever investigates and bite their throats with their huge jaws. I'm not sure about the name, but I think it comes from the way the Mantis Man is posed, as though praying, similar to a praying mantis.  The Mantis Man has a locket around its neck, which might be there as a lure in greedy victims. Its house is full of human bones, so its been pretty successful.

Flayer
This creature is a humanoid with a head like a jellyfish. It has no arms, but can manipulate objects with its many tendrils. Some of those tendrils have venomous stingers.  The one encountered in Kharé is a cook, and quite friendly. They're similar to the Brain Slayer from Caverns of the Snow Witch, and both are obviously nicked from D&D's Mind Flayer, but there's no explicit relation between the two.

Mite
This is yet another tiny, winged humanoid, which we've had plenty of variations of in the books so far. This one's been stuck in Hanna's Cabinet of Fortune, where it picks out prizes at random for those who pay a couple of gold pieces. One suspects it's not in there of its own free will.

Red-Eyes
Living on the north bank of the Jabaji, these appear as regular people, but go everywhere with their eyes closed. This is because their eyes, when opened, shoot a powerful beam of energy that can vaporise a target or strike it blind.  Those encountered in Kharé are arrogant, disdainful, and belligerent towards strangers passing through their territory. (This monster is almost certainly adapted from Cyclops of the X-Men; we know for a fact that Steve Jackson was a reader of Marvel, and the similarities are too close.)

Dark Goblins
The protagonist can buy teeth in this book that are apparently from Dark Goblins. Nothing else is said about them.

Slime Eater
A huge sewer-dwelling monster that is blubbery and vaguely humanoid in shape. This one dwells in the muck of Kharé's sewers. It's alone, but Slime Eaters are said to feed in groups. (In fact it can be encountered multiple times, so that line was probably thrown in to cover that possibility.)

SOME OTHER MYSTERIES AND TIDBITS

• The guards on the north gate are from Mauristatia. They're human, and can't look too different from the people of Analand, because they'll quite readily accept that the protagonist is from their homeland. They speak Crolian.
• What's with the silverfish in the fountain that bites you when you try to take the gold piece at the bottom? Is there anything to the word it whispers when you try to listen to it? That word is bwrthhrs. I assume it's a red herring (so to speak), but I'm not completely sure there's not more to it.

NEXT: It's on to my wrap-up posts for The Seven Serpents. I've been trying to post every Saturday, and I'd like to keep that schedule, but dissecting the books takes a while.  If I'm done in time, I'll have a Final Thoughts post up next weekend.

The Sorcery of Sorcery! 2: Khare - Cityport of Traps

This is the second in a series of posts investigating how useful the various spells in the Sorcery! epic actually are, and where the different spell components can be found. I'm covering the second book, Khare - Cityport of Traps in this post, but I've already covered Book 1 previously. As before, this post is chock-full of spoiler, so scroll down at your own risk.

SPELL COMPONENTS

Below are listed the spell components that can be found within the cityport of Khare.

• Beeswax for the RAZ spell - bought from the shop in the dwarven quarter, and the back-alley gnome shop. Both are enough wax to last the entire quest.
• A Bamboo Flute for the JIG spell - bought from the back-alley gnome shop
• Goblin Teeth for the GOB spell - 6 can be bought from the back-alley gnome shop
• Giant Teeth for the YOB spell - 1 can be bought from the back-alley gnome shop
• A Vial of Glue for the GUM spell - found in the chainmaker's shop
• A Medicinal Potion for the DOC spell - gifted by gnomes, and found in the chainmaker's shop
• Pebbles for the POP spell - 3 may be gifted to you by gnomes
• Sand for the MUD spell - A bag may be gifted to you by gnomes, or bought at the shop in the dwarven quarter
• A Cloth Skullcap for the TEL spell - found in the chainmaker's shop
• A Black Facemask for the GAK spell - may be gifted to you by Vangorn the murderer, or found after killing some Black Elves
• A Gold-Backed Mirror for the KIN spell - found in the Flayer's house, or stolen from the Firemaster's tent
• A Sun Jewel for the SUN spell - found in the Mantis Man's locket
• A Bracelet of Bone for the KID spell - found in the Mantis Man's hut, and the Cabinet of Fortune)
• A Green-Haired Wig for the RAP and YAP spells - gifted to you by Lortag the Elder

The components above duplicate nine of those found in The Shamutanti Hills - those for RAZ, JIG, GOB, YOB, GUM, DOC, POP, MUD and TEL. The nose-plugs needed to make NIF safe to cast are so far only found in The Shamutanti Hills. The spells GAK, KIN, SUN, KID, RAP and YAP are made available with components found in Khare. Including those spells that don't require a component, this means that 36 spells may be cast out of a possible 48. Given how you can loop around in the early stages of Khare, I do believe it's possible to pick up most of the components in that book. The major exceptions are the items gifted by the gnomes, who give you a choice of one out of three, but those are all items you can pick up in book 1.

The spells that still can't be cast are: GOD, PEP, ROK, NIP, HUF, FIX, NAP, ZEN, YAZ, ZIP, FAR and RES.

SPELL USES:

There are a dozen spells unusable due to lack of material components, which leaves 36 at the player's disposal. Below I've grouped these spells by the number of times they are useful during Khare - Cityport of Traps.

Spells Used 6 Times:

• DOC
• Restores your Stamina to its initial level at the crypt entrance.
• Restores your Stamina to its initial level in the Shrine of Courga.
• Restores your Stamina to its initial level before fighting the Barbarian.
• Cures Vangorn's poison.
• Restores your Stamina to its initial level in the Gnome's shop.
• Restores your Stamina to its initial level inside the crypt.

Spells Used 5 Times:

• TEL
• Reveals that Vangorn is trying to poison you.
• Reveals that the Mantis Man is not a statue.
• Reveals that the Firemaster's hut is trapped.
• Allows you to recover your most valuable possession from the Orclings.
• Warns you of the nature of the Red-Eyes.

Spells Used 4 Times:

• MUD
• Allows you to flee from the Bronze Statue
• Kills the Red-Eyes but also makes your stolen gold irretrievable.
• Kills the Chainmaker.
• Lets you safely take the gold piece from the fish fountain.
• SUS
• Allows you to safely escape the home of Vangorn the Murderer.
• Gets you safely past the trap at the entrance to the crypt.
• Warns you of a trap in the Shrine of Courga (but given that you can't fall into this trap it probably shouldn't count),
• Warns you that the Mantis Man is dangerous.
• YOB
• Summons a Giant to fight the Bronze Statue
• Gets destroyed by pursuing Red-Eyes, but still allows you to escape them
• Summons a Giant to fight the Barbarian in your place.
• Summons a Giant to free you from  the Chainmaker's net.

Spells Used 3 Times:

• DIM
• Reduces the Skill of the Bristle Beast.
• Allows you to steal from the Flayer.
• Has a chance to take one Harpy out of the fight.
• DUD
• Gets you past the guards at Khare's north gate.
• Can be used to trade with the Gnome shopkeeper.
• Frees you from the slave ship.
• GAK
• Causes the Bristle Beast to faint from fright.
• Allows you to get any stolen gold back from the Red-Eyes and escape.
• Allows you to escape the Red-Eyes.
• HOW
• Warns you to run from the Mantis Man.
• Gets you safely past the trap at the entrance to the crypt.
• Lets you know that the fish fountain is not dangerous.
• WOK
• Reduces the Living Corpse's Attack Strength by 2.
• Reduces the Flayer's Attack Strength by 2.
• Reduces a Harpy's Attack Strength by 2.

Spells Used 2 Times:

• DOP
• Opens Khare's south gate
• Frees you from the south gate prison.
• GOB
• Summons a Goblin who will investigate the Mantis Man or his hut.
• Summons Goblins to help you fight the Harpies.
• GUM
• Allows you to easily kill the Bristle Beast.
• Lets you escape from Vangorn the Murderer.
• JIG
• Allows you to escape from pursuing Red-Eyes.
• Allows you to escape from the Slime Eater.
• KIN
• Allows you to get any stolen gold back from the Red-Eyes and escape.
• Allows you to escape the Red-Eyes.
• NIF
• Allows you to escape from pursuing Red-Eyes.
• Breaks up the fight between the Sprite and the Pixie (which probably shouldn't count because it's pointless).
• POP
• Damages the Living Corpse
• Frees you from the south gate prison.
• RAZ
• Increases damage dealt when fighting your painted double.
• Increases damage dealt when fighting the Chainmaker.
• SAP
• Reduces the Skill of your painted double.
• Reduces the Skill of the Chainmaker.
• SIX
• Distract's the Living Corpse's head.
• Allows you to recover up to six stolen possession from the Orclings.
• ZAP
• Frees you from the south gate prison.
• Frees you from the slave ship.

Spells Used 1 Time:

• DOZ
• Reduces the Skill of the Slime Eater.

• DUM
• Reduces the Attack Strength of your chosen fighter in the fight at the festival, but there's a chance you might cast it on the wrong one.
• HOT
• Gets you through Khare's south gate.
• KID
• Gives your chosen fighter a free attack in the fight at the festival.
• LAW
• Allows you to get the Mantis Man's locket and safely escape.
• MAG
• Protects against the Firemaster's trap and allows you to steal his treasure.
• SUN
• Reduces damage dealt to your chosen fighter in the fight at the festival.
• WAL
• Lets you escape from Vangorn the Murderer.
• YAP
• Gets you past the guards at Khare's north gate.

Spells Used 0 Times:

• FOF
• Can be cast numerous times, but is never useful.
• BIG
• Can be cast numerous times, but is never useful.
• FAL
• I don't think this is ever given as an option.
• FOG
• I don't think this is ever given as an option.
• RAP
• Never used, although there aren't a lot of places it would come up after you obtain the green-haired wig.
• ZED
• Doesn't come into play until the very end of the series.

Looking at the six spells that the book calls out as the best to memorise, it's pretty obvious that this is a load of hokum. ZAP gets used twice, FOF isn't useful at all, and the other four are all useful in exactly one situation. Steve is somewhat redeemed though, as he remembers the existence of SAP this time around: it wasn't given as an option at all in The Shamutanti Hills, but here it's used twice.

Spell Usage Across All Four Books:

Below I've added the amounts of times that spells are useful in both books 1 and 2. I'll be keeping a tally for the whole series.

• HOW - 7 times
• DOC - 7 times
• SUS - 7 times
• WOK - 7 times
• ZAP - 6 times
• YOB - 6 times
• FOF - 5 times
• LAW - 5 times
• DOP - 5 times
• RAZ - 5 times
• GOB - 5 times
• TEL - 5 times
• HOT - 4 times
• BIG - 4 times
• SIX - 4 times
• JIG - 4 times
• GUM - 4 times
• MUD - 4 times
• DIM - 4 times
• DUD - 4 times
• WAL - 3 times
• DUM - 3 times
• DOZ - 3 times
• POP - 3 times
• GAK - 3 times
• MAG - 2 times
• NIF - 2 times
• SAP - 2 times
• KIN - 2 times
• FAL - 1 time
• FOG - 1 time
• SUN - 1 time
• KID - 1 time
• YAP - 1 time
• GOD - 0 times
• PEP - 0 times
• ROK - 0 times
• NIP - 0 times
• HUF - 0 times
• FIX - 0 times
• NAP - 0 times
• ZEN - 0 times
• YAZ - 0 times
• RAP - 0 times
• ZIP - 0 times
• FAR - 0 times
• RES - 0 times
• ZED - 0 times

NEXT: My next post will be an Exploring Titan on Khare, then it's on to the wrap-up posts for The Seven Serpents.

Kharé - Cityport of Traps: Final Thoughts

Kharé - Cityport of Traps, written by Steve Jackson and illustrated by John Blanche, is the second installment in the Sorcery! epic. As such, it's kind of difficult to know what to say about it that I didn't already get to in my look at The Shamutanti Hills. Yes, the magic system is fun and innovative. John Blanche's illustrations provide exactly the right tone and feel. The ability to take the same character through all of the books gives it an added dimension over the regular Fighting Fantasy series. All of that was true for The Shamutanti Hills, and it's still true here.

I guess the thing to do is focus on what makes Kharé different to its predecessor. The most obvious thing is the setting: whereas the first book was a travelogue taking the protagonist through hills and villages, this book is set in a city that's full of thieves, murderers and traps. The plot is similar, in that the hero is just trying to get through to the other side of the city, but this time there's more to it than just walking: Kharé's north gate is wizard-locked, and only by finding all four lines of the spell are you able to pass through.

What sets it above The Shamutanti Hills is that Steve Jackson starts to let loose with his more bizarre sensibilities. Strange characters and situations abound, and there's a palpable sense that everyone in this book is perhaps just a little bit mad, like living in Kharé has warped their minds. John Blanche joins in with the fun here as well, letting loose with some illustrations that are full of fun background details. He's not quite operating on the same level as Iain McCaig was in City of Thieves, but there's not a huge gulf between them.

The book is well-balanced, and finding the right path through shouldn't take too many tries. Lortag's puzzle is perhaps a bit too obscure, and the kissing ritual of Courga perhaps too deadly, but it shouldn't take more than a few tries to get through this one, especially with a character who has already been through book 1.

Overall, Kharé displays all of the strengths of The Shamutanti Hills and turns them up. The magic system is just as good, but applied to more interesting situations. The setting and characters and more flavourful. The illustrations have a little more inspiration. It's a bit more of a challenge to get through. The Shamutanti Hills was a really solid gamebook, and Kharé is that little bit better in just about every way.

COOL STUFF I MISSED
Despite passing through this book in excess of a dozen times, I didn't do all that much exploration, because I was deathly afraid of missing the lines to the North Gate spell. So I missed quite a bit, especially in the first part of the book: the Mantis Man, all of the activities at the market, Honest Hanna's Mystery Box. The sad thing is that I could have done all of this stuff, because the book is designed so you can loop around and catch most of it. But like I said, my focus was on getting through, so much of what the book has to offer was missed.

MISTAKES AND RED HERRINGS
There don't seem to be any major errors in this book. I found a few items that seemingly have no use: a vial of poison, some essence of bark, a golden locket (which is worth 8gp, so it at least has some value), a piece of moldy goat's cheese, a tinderbox, a snake-bite antidote, and a serpent ring. Those last three I know for certain are useful in the next book.

As for the unused items from the last book, I found a use for the gaoler's key and the key to  Kharé's south gate.

BEST DEATH

Surprisingly, this book only has 13 instant death passages, and most of those are from saying the spell wrong at the end; I had thought it was much deadlier than that. This here is my favourite.

S.T.A.M.I.N.A. RATING

Story & Setting: Let's get this one out of the way: the premise of this book is kind of ridiculous. A city whose north gate only opens to a spell known to one person? But there are four prominent citizens who know one line each? I dunno, it's kind of far-fetched and impractical, but it is a pretty good set up for a city adventure. It's dumb, but I like it, what can I say. The setting is where this book really shines, leaving behind the more grounded elements of The Shamutanti Hills and diving into that Steve Jackson weirdness that I love. Kharé is a crazy place, full of cults and murderers and odd monsters, and I find it a bit more flavourful than Port Blacksand. Rating: 5 out of 7.

Toughness: Survival in this book is less a matter of statistics, and more one of finding the correct path. At first I was going to ping it for being a bit too linear, but having discovered how many paths you can take at the start and still win, I can't really do that. For the most part the book takes you past the places you need to go, and for those it doesn't it gives you some extra chances (particularly for those who've finished book 1). My main issue with the book is Lortag's puzzle, which to me just seems to come down to guesswork. Maybe there is someone out there who figured it out from the illustrations, but I've never met them. Rating: 5 out of 7.

Aesthetics: The book shines here, with John Blanche's depictions of the splendour and squalor of Kharé being particularly vivid, and Jackson's prose an able companion to those. If I have one complaint, it's that I don't really love the cover; it's not all that representative of the tone or contents of the book. Rating: 5 out of 7.

Mechanics: Sorcery! continues to push the envelop in this category, with the magic system still being employed to great effect, and some items with unique combat rules being introduced. Sometimes those items can get a little over-complicated, but they're still mechanically sound, and on the whole the basic FF system is used in this book to good effect. Rating: 6 out of 7.

Innovation & Influence: The systems being used in this book are innovative, particularly the magic, but it's nothing that wasn't already brought in by The Shamutanti Hills. Rating: 4 out of 7.

NPCs & Monsters: This being a city adventure, it's full of memorable characters: Flanker the assassin, Vangorn the murderer, Slangg, that one innkeeper who tries to chop you up for stew. It even manages to bring in some fun new monsters: the Mantis Man and the Red Eyes are particular standouts. If it's missing on thing, though, it's an antagonist; I know the plot doesn't really call for one, but it still feels like the book is missing a character or force to work against. Rating: 5 out of 7.

Amusement: Kharé is full of interesting encounters, and all of them provide plenty of options; there's nothing less fun than an encounter that leaves you with no choices beyond combat. It's also much less linear than I had thought, meaning that a player can actually experience most of them as they go through the city. I look forward to tackling this one again one day, now that I know I'm not locked into a single path. Rating: 6 out of 7.

Kharé gets the bonus point. The above scores total 37, which doubled gives a STAMINA Rating of 74. That puts it even with City of Thieves, sitting equal 5th, a pretty good showing.

NEXT: My current plan is to update on Sundays, so next week I should have the next installment of The Sorcery of Sorcery. Hopefully if I can keep things up I'll have an Exploring Titan up the week after that.

Sorcery! Attempt 15 and 16 - Books 1-4

On my last attempt, I made it all the way to book 4, and did quite well I thought. Of the four Throben Doors I had to penetrate to make it to the Archmage, I got through two. That's seems pretty good to me for my first serious foray into Mampang Fortress, especially in a book that's renowned for being pretty tough. I'm feeling confident about this one.

For attempt 15, I rolled a Skill of 6, a Stamina of 19, and a Luck of 9. I played this ages ago, and I don't know why I never wrote about it. My memories are vague, but looking at my notes I can see that I died in Book 3 to an illusionary Deathwraith. Normally I would have dispelled this thing with a MAG spell, but I only had 2 Stamina left and no recourse but to fight it. Obviously, I lost. Perhaps I was so demoralised by my failure that I couldn't bear to post about it, but it's long ago enough that I don't remember.

For attempt 16, I rolled a Skill of 8, a Stamina of 20 and a Luck of 8. It doesn't get any more average than that. Stats aren't as important in Sorcery! as they can be in the main series, but I was still a little nervous about this guy.

I got through the first three books with no problems, and started The Crown of Kings with the following scores: Skill 10; Stamina 20; Luck 9; 0 gold pieces; 5 provisions; a sword, a backpack, a broadsword (+1 attack strength), a bamboo pipe, a silver key numbered 111, an Armband of Swordmastery (+2 AS with swords), a skullcap, a magic chain, a mirror, a green wig, a lucky talisman (no Luck lost when unlucky), a bow and silver arrows, another broadsword (-1 AS, +1 damage), a tinderbox, a serpent ring, a galehorn, a chakram, a crystal orb, a suit of chainmail (+1 Skill, -1 damage on  a roll of 5-6), a hewing axe, a pearl ring (worth 10gp), a brass pendulum, Sham's vial, a serpent staff, some sand, a whistle numbered 199, and a cure disease potion. I had also lost the sight in my right eye while fighting a Baddu-Beetle, which hasn't had any negative effect on me so far. Finally, I defeated all seven serpents during book 3, so I could be confident that I was entering Mampang in secret (I could deduct 40 from the current paragraph whenever someone called me the Analander).

Climbing up the Zanzunus towards Mampang Fortress, I had the choice of three caves in which to take shelter for the night. One of those had hoof-prints leading inside. Despite the potential danger, I decided to enter that cavern and see who the hoof-prints belonged to.

Inside, I saw a human-like figure leaning against the cavern wall. It's legs were like those of a goat, and it was unmoving.

This one's for the furries AND the necrophiliacs.

I called out to attract its attention, but got no reaction. Warily I reached out to touch it, and to my shock I found that it was dead. I probably should have found another cave to sleep in, but I was already here, and what could possibly go wrong for me if I bedded down next to the fresh corpse of a goat-man? I ate a meal (leaving me with 4) and went to sleep.

In the morning I left the cave, taking some pebbles and a handful of stone dust with me. There were two paths onward: one via a rope bridge over a gully, and another winding up the mountainside. I chose to go up.

Further along the path I encountered a pair of goat-women, who got my attention by hurling spears at me. They were obviously of the same race as my sleeping companion from the night before, so I told them about their dead friend. They were grateful, and explained that Sh'himbli had disappeared from the village days before, presumably to die of fever in peace. They offered to take me to their village, and I accepted.

At the village I was taken to the leader, who I told about Sh'himbli. She nodded gravely, and informed me that Sh'himbli's disease was contagious, and that by sleeping with the corpse the night before I had almost certainly contracted it. Luckily, they had recently learned that Colletus the Holy Man was able to cure the disease, and that by whistling in a certain way at the right place (and by subtracting 30 from that paragraph) I'd be able to call him. I was also offered a selection of items that I could trade for, but I opted not to trade anything. (It looks like, by getting infected with the disease, I missed out on getting the blessed spear. Hopefully it's not too important.)

Not far out of the village I found an alcove where I stopped to eat (leaving me with 3 provisions). Inside I saw a message written on the wall, telling me that Colletus could be found at the Groaning Bridge.

Further along the path I saw a narrow crevasse, and a rope that could be used to swing across, but I thought better of it. Continuing along the path, I came to another crevasse blocking my way. There was a bridge spanning the crevasse, but when I stepped upon it, it let out a series of disturbing groans. This was obviously the Groaning Bridge, so I whistled to summon Colletus.

The blind holy man appeared, and I ask about his powers of healing. He was more than happy to cure me, and did so with a simple palm on my forehead (or at least so he claimed; it's not like I'd had any negative effects, so how would I know if he's legit?). I questioned him further about Mampang, and he revealed that the Groaning Bridge was an illusion, which would have disappeared once I was halfway across. He summoned the real bridge, and I was soon on my way. Before I left, he gave me three items to help me: a skullcap, some holy water, and a medicinal potion. He also gave me a blessing of good luck (that increased my initial Luck score to 10).

I crossed the real bridge and entered a pass leading to Mampang Fortress. The sight was imposing (lowering my Skill by 1 until I was inside). I crept cautiously, looking out for guards, and was able to sneak past a pair that were asleep (with a successful Luck test that reduced me score to 9).

I found a sheltered spot to sleep in, but during the night I was contacted by my goddess, Libra. She informed me that the netherworld deities that ruled Mampang were strong, and that she could not aid me once I was inside. She also told me of another follower of hers, who had escaped from the fortress via a secret door. She told me the password, and I took note of it before going back to sleep. (When I wanted to use the password, I could subtract 92 from the passage I was on.)

(At this point, Libra also told me about the effects of the trembling disease. Apparently, I wouldn't be able to regain any Stamina, and when choosing spells I'd have to roll a die, and only have the option of casting the spell that was randomly selected. Nothing's said here about being cured by Colletus, so I could interpret this as meaning that the old charlatan hoodwinked me. He's on the level about everything else, though, so I'm choosing to believe that I've already been cured.)

In the pre-dawn gloom I approached the fortress and made my way to the front gate. I gave it a knock, then climbed to a perch above. A guard came out to investigate, but didn't spot me hiding. I decided to wait, and a second guard appeared. Still I waited, until a third and a fourth guard appeared. Then I dropped to the ground, and slipped inside the gate while they were preoccupied.

Ahead of me were two double doors, and there were also doors leading left and right. I took the left-hand door, opening it as silently as possible (with a Luck test that reduced my score to 8). It opened into a short passage, with a door at the end and another to the right. I opened the door to the right, despite the horrid smell coming forth.

That Gandalf rune cracks me up.
What was he even doing here? Nobody in
Lord of the Rings poops.

It was a latrine, and I had to resist the urge to vomit (reducing my Stamina to 19). I decided to search the room anyway, and although I was able to once more resist vomiting (with a Luck test that reduced my score to 7), the flies buzzing around had given me an unpleasant illness. (I immediately lost another point of Stamina, reducing me to 18. I also lost 1 Skill point for battles only. The disease would progress further by the time I first encountered the Archmage, and would seemingly be fatal. It was all pretty moot, because I cured it immediately with a cure disease potion that I had found during book 3.)

Ignoring the door at the end of the passage, I went back to the entrance and chose the left door. I could hear gruff voices beyond, so I kicked the door down to murder whoever lay beyond. It was another pair of Guards (Skill 8, Stamina 6 and Skill 7, Stamina 7). I was able to kill them with the element of surprise, but not before one of them was able to wound me twice (reducing my Stamina to 14). In a drawer I found some keys, which I used to unlock the double doors and progress further into the fortress.

I was in a courtyard, milling with inhabitants of the fortress. I tried to cross as inconspicuously as possible, but a group noticed me and headed in my direction. Trying to avoid them I veered to the left, heading towards a pillory.

Stock image.

A pitiful man was held captive in the pillory, He asked for some food, and I gave him one of my provisions (leaving me with 2). I stopped to chat, and he revealed that he had been placed in the stocks because of his wagging tongue. He then asked if I was another of the Archmage's warmongers, before stopping himself, afraid that he might have gone too far. I threatened him unless he told me more, but he refused to get himself into more trouble. Figuring that I didn't want to be caught freeing prisoners, I left him to his fate.

There were some guards ahead, but I instead turned aside to investigate a ragged shape on the ground. It was a toothless old woman, who held out a hand and begged me for a copper piece.

That's some very chill, casual begging.

I wanted to give her a gold piece, but I didn't have any. Instead, I reluctantly parted with my pearl ring, which was worth 10 gold pieces. She gave me words of thanks, then went to shuffle off, muttering something about her friends from Schinn. I questioned her about them, but she was reluctant to reveal anything until she had touched my face to discern whether I was trustworthy. I let her do so, and she told me that the Samaritans of Schinn were a faction among the Archmage's Birdman allies that were plotting his overthrow. I was told that I could identify the Schinns by asking about their parents; loyalists would only talk of their fathers, while the Schinns would honour their mothers. (My Luck was restored to 9 by learning this information.) I asked her how to get through the doors ahead, and she told me a little about the Throben Doors, but nothing of use. I bid her farewell.

To my left were some guards, and to my right another group who looked vaguely familiar. I ignored them both and went straight ahead, where I saw some double doors. There was also a door in the corner of the wall, and I investigated this. Inside, a short stocky man asked if I was here to torment the Mucalytics. There were two doors onwards, and the left led to the Mucalytics, so I chose that one.

Inside was a room covered in filth. A strange, elephantine creature was slumped in the corner. I decided to ignore it and leave through another door, but it got to its feet and swiped at me with a blubbery arm. I slowed it down with a DOZ spell (reducing my Stamina to 12), but I still had to fight the Mucalytic (Skill 4, Stamina 9). I made short work of it with my broadsword, and searched through the filth. I found a rusty sword, which I left behind, a bracelet made of bones, two goblin teeth and 5 gold pieces.

Going through the door opposite, I entered a passage with a small chamber off to the side. Seeing a raised portcullis over the entrance, I decided not to enter, and continued up the passage. Passing through another door, I entered a plush chamber. A man in a turban with a pet jaguar under his table greeted me. He said that I had to give him a gold piece to enter. Instead I asked him his name, and learned that he was Valignya, First Assistant to the Lord Treasurer of Mampang.

I had been warned about Valignya by one of the seven serpents, so I continued to refuse to give him any gold. Instead, I gave him my serpent ring, which I no longer had a use for. In return he gave me the password for the next Throben Door: "alaralatanalara". I thanked him and left, swiping a pouch containing 10 gold pieces on my way out (raising my total to 15, and restoring my Luck to 10).

I was able to return to the courtyard and the double doors without incident, where I used the password to get through. (I would have been accosted by guards here, but because I'd slain all seven serpents I was able to avoid this encounter.)

Beyond there were two doors leading into the inner keep. The main entrance looked to be guarded by Birdmen, two of which nipped inside while I was watching. The other appeared to be unguarded, but I decided that I wanted to contact the Samaritans of Schinn, so I headed for the main gate.

The door was unlocked, so I slipped inside. I was in a wide hallway, and I could hear Birdman voices approaching. Without much time to think, I had a choice of doors to the left and right. I nipped through the right door. The room was uninhabited, but the Birdmen outside had heard me, and a trio of them entered. I asked them about their mothers, but this only angered them further, as they told me that they had been taught to hunt and kill by their fathers. These were obviously not Samaritans, so I drew my sword and attacked the three Birdmen (Skill 8, Stamina 10; Skill 9, Stamina 8; and Skill 8, Stamina 9). Luckily they could only attack me one at a time, and they only managed to wound me once before I killed them all (reducing my Stamina to 10).

Looting their corpses, I found 6 gold pieces, (raising my total to 21), some worms, and enough bread for two meals. I ate some of the bread right away (restoring my Stamina to 12, and leaving me with 3 provisions).

Leaving quickly, I came to a T-junction. One of the passages ended in a metal door, with a noose hanging over it. This path looked more interesting than the other, so I tried to metal door. It was locked, so I tried the silver key that I had found all the way back in the Shamutanti Hills. To my surprise, it fit, and I was able to enter, avoiding a spiked mace that had been set up as a trap (weirdly, there were no rolls to avoid this, it just happened automatically).  The room beyond was a torture chamber. The torturer was an Ogre, with an eyepatch and a whip.

Naggamanteh does not care for leg day.

He didn't recognise me (because I'd killed all of the seven serpents), so he made me an offer: he would give me what help I asked for, then he would ask me a question. If I couldn't answer, I would be his "amusement" for the rest of the day.

I agreed to his offer. Earlier, one of the seven serpents had given me a clue: "pay your respects to Naggamanteh the torture-master". With this in mind, I complimented him on his torture chamber before asking what he knew of the Throben Doors. Naggamanteh was quite touched by my compliment, and told me that the next Throben Door would be open, but when I entered I would be seemingly plunged into a pit of hell-fire. This would be an illusion, and I would be best to ignore it. (I was told to turn to paragraph 399 when stepping through the door, rather than the paragraph indicated.) Naggamanteh had forgotten about his own question, so I slipped away while he was distracted.

I left through a door to the left, and soon came to a small courtyard. There was a passage onward, with a door to the left, and another to the right. The right door had a sign that said "Nylock - Merchant", so I walked up to investigate. The room was lined with shelves filled with objects, and Nylock eyed me suspiciously from behind his table.

Check out the pictures of Ian and Steve.

I bought the following from Nylock: a rusty cutlass, two candles, a nest containing a golden egg, and a pouch containing four ancient silver pieces. These cost me 11 gold pieces (leaving me with 10). The cutlass was not enchanted, and would reduce my Skill by 1 if I used it in battle. The candles were normal, one made of wax and the other made of blood from a Firefox. The egg was a mystery. The coins were cursed; a short time after placing them in my pack, they burned a hole in the bottom and fell out. This also caused me to lose my silver key. (I was told to cross off the third item on my equipment list.)

I followed the passage around through a door. Ahead of me were two double doors, probably the next of the Throben Doors for me to confront. Off to the side was another door, but I decided to ignore this and make my way through the double doors. As soon as I stepped through I was confronted by a fiery inferno, but armed with knowledge I had gleaned from Naggamanteh I was able to step through safely.

The next chamber had a sign that said "Chamber of Night". I opened the door and stepped through into a pitch-black room. One of the Seven Serpents had warned me about this room, and that I should not light the blood candle. Instead I lit the regular candle, revealing that there were many spikes protruding through the wooden floorboards. I slowly and carefully picked my way across the room, and was able to get through without injury.

No sooner had I left the room than a pair of guards seized me by the wrists. They bundled me into another room, where I met Cartoum, Captain of the Guards. I decided to hear what he had to say.

There's meant to be a clue in this picture,
but I don't see it. It's probably the portrait
on the wall?

I was not recognised (again, because I'd killed all of the serpents), and the captain asked what my business was in the fortress. I decided to bluff, telling him that I had a message for the Archmage. He believed me (which required a successful Skill test), and offered to escort me to the Archmage personally. Along the way another guard appeared to tell him that some mutants had gotten out of hand. The captain had to rush off, but before he did he gave me a key (numbered 17) that he said would open the next Throben Door.

I continued on, and the next chamber I entered was large, with an enormous carving of a ram in the centre.

BAA RAM EWE

As I stepped carefully across the room, the stone ram came to life, to absolutely nobody's surprise. It charged at me, but I was able to avoid it (with a Luck test the reduced my score to 9). It smashed into the wall behind, giving me a few moments to think. I remembered the Sham, who I had encountered in the Baklands, and the vial she had given me to counter the "Sleepless Ram". I still had the vial, so I threw it at the ram. The liquid inside gave off an acidic smell, and caused the stone ram to steam. It toppled over, and I raced for the far doors. Before the ram could recover, I opened the doors with the key the captain had given me, and escaped.

I was at the foot of a spiral staircase, and I climbed up, anticipating my imminent meeting with the Archmage. I stepped through the door at the top, expecting an elegant study, but what I found was quite different.

Maybe the most legitimately frightening thing
I've ever encountered in a gamebook.

Instead, I was in a squalid cell. I was confronted by a man in long undergarments, wielding a brass pot. He was obviously reluctant to attack me, so I spoke to him to calm him down. He introduced himself as Farren Whyde, a renowned inventor of weapons from Ruddlestone. The Archmage had kidnapped him for his knowledge, and imprisoned him in the tower. I asked him where I might find the Archmage, and his reply filled me with dismay. Apparently the Archmage rarely visited Mampang, and had a secret fortress elsewhere in the Zanzunus. Farren Whyde shouted some magic words out of his window, revealing the fortress to me. I asked how I might get there quickly, and he told me of a secret passage that could be opened with a password. Unfortunately, Farren Whyde did not know the password.

I took my leave of him and investigated the wall where the secret passage was said to be. Remembering the password I had been told of by Libra, I tried it. It worked, and the door opened into a dark tunnel that zig-zagged down to a door that led outside. Ready to confront the Archmage, I raced over to the second tower and bashed it down with my shoulder (and a successful Skill test).

Inside was a simple, bare room, with two doors leading on. I took the right door, and entered another room with a staircase at the far end. I started to ascend the staircase, but was startled by a sudden rumbling: the floor beneath me was rising! There was no escape as floor slowly raised, threatening to crush me against the ceiling. I tried to wedge it with my rusty cutlass, but it snapped. I tried searching in the straw for anything that could help, but found nothing. All I could do was wait for death.  My adventure was over.

THE POST-GAME

Well, that was disappointing, to come so far and fail at the final hurdle. I'm not sure how I could have avoided it, unless I was supposed to take a different path. There were no other options offered. Maybe there's an item I missed that might have given me a secret way out?

Hang on.

Wait.

I'm not dead?

No, this was not a deathtrap, but rather the Archmage's Floortrap Chamber, which he used to frighten potential enemies into surrender. A crack opened in the ceiling, and I found myself in a chamber lined with star-charts and a telescope. A scrawny fellow stood across from me, perhaps the Archmage himself. He knew who I was (even though I had killed the serpents), and he offered to give me the Crown of Kings, saying that he would be glad to be rid of it. I was suspicious, so I cast a MAG spell (reducing my Stamina to 10), and he was shocked to find that I was a magician. He tried to capture me with an animated rope, but my anti-magic spell protected me. Instead, the Archmage summoned some guards to take me away.

I was in a cell at the top of the tower. A squeaky voice greeted me, and to my horror I was face-to-face with Jann, the Minimite who had accompanied me in the Shamutanti Hills. With him around, I would be unable to use my magic to escape. Apparently Jann had followed me all the way on my journey, but had been captured by Red-Eyes and had his wings cut off. He also explained that I was in a prison tower, and I had been tricked into thinking that the Archmage lived here.  I told Jann about Farren Whyde, and he informed me that Whyde was actually the Archmage in disguise. (I was told that should I encounter him again, I could deduct 111 from the paragraph to expose him.)

I asked Jann for his opinion about how we should try to escape. He said that maybe I could ambush the guard when he brought me some food, or wait until the Archmage called for me. There was also the possibility of using magic, but only the very strongest of spells would work in Jann's presence. We went through my spells, and as I had "strength to waste" (my Stamina was greater than 8), Jann was happy to hear me out. He was shocked to learn that I knew the ZED spell, even though I had no idea what this spell was for. He explained that the purpose of the spell was to travel through space and time. With proper concentration, I would be able to arrive at the desired time and place. (I was told that I could turn to paragraph 631 after casting the spell.)

I prepared to cast the spell, ignoring my weaker options and going for the ZED spell. The strain was enormous (reducing my Stamina to 3), and Jann was killed by the power of the magic. (Good riddance.) I could feel myself hurtling backwards in time, so I mustered all of my concentration. Past adventures flashed before my eyes, but with the knowledge given to me by Jann I was able to fix the destination in my mind rather than stopping at random.

I was back at the bottom of the staircase leading up to Farren Whyde's chamber. I climbed up, but this time when he confronted me I exposed him as the Archmage. Whyde's expression changed, and he offered me his admiration. He stepped across to a drawer, and pulled out the Crown of Kings. While I was distracted by the crown, he stepped out of my sight. By the time I turned around, the form of Farren Whyde was lying on the ground, and a horrible demon stood before me.

I'm so tired. Why did I commit myself to
putting captions on every image in this
stupidly long post?

With precious little strength left (my Stamina score was 3), I couldn't risk a spell, so I stepped forward with my sword at the ready. The Netherworld Demon was still transforming, and was still weak (Skill 7, Stamina 7). Even so, it managed to hit me once; luckily my chainmail armour softened the blow (leaving me with 2 Stamina points). I killed the demon quickly, and took the Crown of Kings. I had almost reached my goal.

The only thing left was for me to escape the fortress and return to Analand. I didn't fancy my chances of making my way back through Mampang, but I didn't have anything useful in my backpack. I considered the spells I had at my disposal. ROK would turn someone to stone, which didn't seem all that useful. NAP would put someone to sleep, which again seemed useless. LAW, to command someone? SIX, to create duplicates of myself? Neither seemed applicable, and LAW would definitely kill me in my weakened state. The only spell left was RES.  I cast it (surprisingly with no reduction in Stamina).

I sprinkled some holy water on Farren Whyde's body while casting the spell. He woke up, and I explained the situation. Whyde (the actual person, not the Archmage), offered to get the Samaritans to help me. Pulling forth a crystal ball, he summoned an image of Peewit Croo, birdman leader of the Samaritans. He then gave me a silver whistle, and said that I could use it to summon the birdman.

I blew the whistle, and Croo appeared. He gripped me in his claws, and we flew away from Mampang. The fortress was powerless now without the Crown of Kings, and I had succeeded in my mission. And best of all, Jann the Minimite was dead forever.

THE ACTUAL POST-GAME

What a relief. Especially so, given how dangerously low my Stamina was. I had a little bit of confusion at the end; when looking for items I could use to escape the fortress, I was asked if I had a silver whistle or holy water from the Tinpang River. I had a whistle, and I had holy water, but I suspect that these weren't the items I was being asked for. Also, I should have lost a Stamina point while casting RES; at least that's what it says in the spell book. I'm a little annoyed by it, to be honest, because I'd really like to have finished with only 1 Stamina point.

Regardless, finishing at all feels pretty great, especially having done so by treating Sorcery! as one huge gamebook. It feels like an achievement, albeit a fairly pointless one. Ah well, pointless achievements are about all I have in me these days.

NEXT: With one daunting task behind me, I have another one ahead of me. First, I need to give my Final Thoughts on each of the four books in the series, and to prep for that I have to thoroughly read through every path in each book. Then, I have four Exploring Titan posts lined up to cover the series. So for the next eight weeks, at least, the blog will still be stuck in Sorcery! mode. After that, it's back to the main series for Freeway Fighter.

Sorcery! Attempt 14 - Books 1-4

My regular readers will be aware that I've been having all sorts of trouble reaching book 4 of the Sorcery! epic.  Despite these failures, I don't feel like that time has been wasted. I'm now very familiar with Books 1-3, and am pretty sure that I've found the optimum path through all of them. Now, dice willing, I shouldn't have too much hassle getting to The Crown of Kings, and taking a real crack at finishing this series up once and for all.

For my 14th attempt, I rolled Skill 10, Stamina 18 and Luck 10. The dice gods were starting out by showing some kindness.

I know I'd said that I thought I'd found the optimum path, but sometimes it's hard not to go exploring. I realised that I'd never been into the dark passageway behind the blind goblin in the Schanker Mines, so I decided to risk it and take a look; if I failed, at least it I wouldn't have lost much time. The tunnel collapsed as I entered, and I decided to throw myself forward rather than retreat. Groping in the dark, I found a pair of Borrinskin Boots, which I know will get some sort of reaction out of the snake charmer in Book 3. The tunnel soon emerged into daylight, and I was able to resume my quest and finish book 1 with no trouble. (In the end, I didn't follow the path to the snake charmer, and I traded the boots in somewhere along the way. I'm not sure you can visit him and defeat all of the Archmage's serpents.)

Book 2 was similarly easy, although I did have a ridiculous battle at the end that featured myself, two harpies, two summoned goblins, and a blind beggar. It resulted in an excessive amount of dice rolling, so I won't be casting GOB during that battle again any time soon.

In Book 3 I followed the same path as my last attempt, except this time I turned right instead of left after fighting the Fire Serpent in the Forest of Snatta. I found Fenestra, so I was able to summon the ferryman and make it across Lake Ilklala to the end of the book. Along the way I killed all seven of the Archmage's serpents, which grants loads of benefits: not just the seven clues from the serpent ring, but a +2 bonus to initial Skill, a +1 bonus to initial Luck, and the option to start Book 4 at reference 237 instead of reference 1.

As I started Book 4, I had a Skill of 12, a Stamina of 18, and a Luck of 12. I had no gold, 1 provision, and I was carrying the following: a backpack, a bamboo pipe, a broadsword (+1 attack strength), a silver key with the number 111, an Armband of Swordmastery (+2 attack strength with swords), a green wig, a mirror, a lucky talisman, 4 goblin teeth, a giant's tooth, a bow and silver arrows, some snake-bite antidote, a tinderbox, another broadsword (-1 attack strength, but +1 damage), a galehorn, a chakram, a crystal orb, a brass pendulum, a hewing axe, a suit of chainmail (+1 Skill, -1 damage on a roll of 5-6), and Sham's Vial. Using my best items, I could have an effective Skill of 16.  Using my second broadsword, I would have an effective Skill of 14, but deal 3 point of damage per blow. The foes in Sorcery! rarely have a high skill, so I was using this one more often than not.

The seven clues I had garnered from the serpents were as follows:

1. Four guards protect the entrance to the Fortress of Mampang.
2. Offer no gold to Valignya if you value your life.
3. Eat not from the larder of Throg if your journey should cause you to meet her.
4. Beware the breath of the Mucalytics.
5. In the dark chamber of night, do not light your way with the blood candle.
6. Pay respect to Naggamanteh the torture master should you meet him.
7. The Archmage is not as he seems. He may be disguised in Mampang.

Before starting out, I had a look at reference 237. As I had defeated all of the serpents, the Archmage had no idea I was coming. If at any point during The Crown of Kings someone referred to me as "Analander", I could subtract 40 from the reference and turn there instead. Hopefully the element of surprise will help me win through.

My quest resumed at the base of the Zanzunu Peaks; I climbed up through the foothills until evening. I had the option of three caves to take shelter in: one was small, one had hoof-prints outside, and the other had no markings to distinguish it. I chose the latter of these, feeling my way into the darkness. It seemed to be uninhabited, but there were still some dark recesses at the back that I hadn't checked. Not wanting to take any risks, I double-checked the shadows. My foot kicked something soft, and a large animal reared up and knocked me sprawling (reducing my Stamina to 16). It was a Skunkbear (Skill 7, Stamina 6), and I decided to draw my sword and take some revenge on the vile thing.

SKUNKBEAR!!!!

Before the battle, I cast a DOZ spell (reducing its Skill to 4, and my Stamina to 14) . I killed the Skunkbear in just two quick blows, but not before it could spray the cave with its foul stench. (This happens after two rounds of combat. The thing is, I killed it in the second round, so it shouldn't have been able to spray its stench at all. Had it still been alive my Skill would have been reduced by 2 for the rest of the battle.) I left the cave, returning to sleep only when the smell had dissipated. I was refreshed by my sleep, but quite hungry as I had not eaten at all the day before (reducing my Stamina to 13).

Further up the mountains, the trail split in two. The left path led to a bridge (where you may recall I died in Attempt 10 while investigating a nest), but I ignored it and went right. As I climbed, a spear whizzed past my head and shattered on the rocks. I took cover, but before I did I caught a glimpse of my attackers and their disturbing boobs.

One for the furries

They were she-satyrs, which explained the hoof-prints I had seen on the path earlier. (Apparently I could have met one earlier in the book. I suspect it's in one of the caves.)  I cast a SUS spell (reducing my Stamina to 11), but there was no trap to warn me about aside from the obvious. They told me to step forward, calling me a "weak-bowelled cur", and explain my business.  Being rather proud of my bowel-strength, I fired back with some equally choice insults. This amused their leader, and they decided that I should accompany them back to their village. I agreed to go with them.

At the village I was taken to see Sh'houri, their leader. Rather than wait to see what she would do with me, I started regaling her with tales of my great exploits. Other she-satyrs gathered, enraptured by my tale, but saddened by the death of the boatman of Ilklala (did I leave out the part where I totally murdered him?). Once my tale was finished, Sh'houri told me what she knew of Mampang. Four "Throben Doors" blocked passage to the inner keep, each one deadly to those who didn't know how to open it. She also gave me a hardwood spear, saying that I should find Colletus the Holy Man and get him to bless it. (When I found the place I thought Colletus to be, I was instructed to subtract 30 from that paragraph to summon him.) Finally, I was shown a collection of artefacts that would help me with my spells, and told me that I could take any so long as I left behind an item from my own pack. I didn't want to get rid of anything, so I didn't take any of Sh'houri's items.

I continued on, getting closer to Mampang, and came to an alcove where I stopped to eat. Written on the wall of the alcove was a message from Colletus, warning travellers to turn back from Mampang. It said I could meet him at the Groaning Bridge. I finished my meal (restoring my Stamina to 13) and marched on.

Soon the path split in two. One path continued on, and the other stopped at a crevasse. There was a rope for travellers to swing across, but I thought better of it took the path. It curved around, and the crevasse was blocking my way to Mampang, but I soon came to a bridge. As soon as I stepped on it, the boards gave a low moan. Every step produced a moan, and although the bridge was sturdy enough I was loathe to cross it. Besides, this was obviously the place where I might find Colletus, so I called out to summon him (subtracting 30 from the current paragraph).

Colletus appeared, and with his eyes painted black it was obvious that he was blind. I asked for his services as a holy man, deciding to steer clear of the subject of Mampang for now. He blessed my spear when I asked, and I then told him about my quest. He explained that the destruction of Mampang had once been his own mission in life, but the cursed gods of the fortress had struck him blind. He also explained the the Groaning Bridge was an illusion, and that halfway across I would have been dropped into the crevasse. The true bridge was invisible, and he summoned it with a wave of the hand. Finally, he gifted me with a medicinal potion and a vial of holy water, before wishing me "the luck of Cheelah". (This raised my initial Luck to 13. At this point, I had probably the strongest character I'd ever played in any Fighting Fantasy, with the possible exception of the Silver Crusader.)

I crossed the real bridge, and followed the path around into the mountain pass leading to Mampang. The sight of the fortress was unnerving (resulting in the temporary loss of 1 Skill point). I crept forward cautiously, looking for guards. I passed a guard post where two drunken sentries were asleep, and I was able to slip quietly past them (with a successful Luck test that reduced my score to 12.)

They love a horned skull in Mampang.

Further on I found a place to hide and rest before my ordeal in Mampang. As I slept, I was contacted in a dream by my goddess Libra. She said that she was proud of my progress, and informed me that I would not be able to call on her help with the fortress. She also told me of a secret door that one of her followers had once used to escape Mampang, and gave me the password. (When I wanted to try this password, I could subtract 92 from the current paragraph.)

I woke up hungry (reducing my Stamina to 12). Reasoning that I should use my prayer to Libra now while I still could, I had her restore me to full strength.

In the darkness before sunrise I crept up to the main gate. I didn't think a spell would be helpful so I knocked on the gate, then hid on the ledge above. A guard came out to investigate, and I decided to nip inside while he was distracted.

Do I have a torso? Or are my eyes in my groin?

Unfortunately there was another guard there, and I soon found myself surrounded. I took one of them out with a DIM spell (reducing my Stamina to 16), which caused him to rave like a beast, but I still had to fight the remaining three.

Even with superior numbers the guards were no match for me, and I killed all three without them wounding me at all. Only the fourth one caused me any trouble, striking me from behind in his beast-like frenzy (and reducing my Stamina to 14).

Nipping inside, I saw doors to the left and right, and some double doors ahead. The latter of these was probably the first of the Throben Doors I'd been warned of, so I went left instead. The door wasn't locked but its hinges were squeaky. I tried my best to open it quietly, and luckily the noise did not alert anyone (this required a Luck test that reduced my score to 12). Beyond was a short passage, with a door at the end and a door on the right. I investigated the door ahead.

I could hear voices from inside, and stopped to listen, but before I could react the door opened and I was dragged inside by a trio of Black Elves. They insulted me and the paleness of my skin, and I decided to laugh and play along by quipping that at least it meant I would not lose myself in the dark. They found this amusing, and I pushed ahead with another racist joke. Luckily, I was able to calm them down (with a Luck test that reduced my score to 11).

Just a couple of friendly racists.

I asked them how to get further into the fortress. They explained that I'd need a key to get through the Throben Door, saying that I might try being charming to the guards across the way. I went back to the double doors, and this time took the door on the right.

There were voices behind this door as well, and listening I overheard a conversation about Birdmen, and a group known as the Samaritans of Schinn. One of the guards got up to check on the front gate guards, so I hid behind the door as it opened. It was a poor hiding place, and I was soon spotted by the guard (Skill 8, Stamina 6). He managed to wound me (reducing my Stamina to 12) before I could kill him. A second guard stepped out behind him (Skill 7, Stamina 7) but I made short work of him.

Inside a drawer in the guard room I found a key, and I was able to use it to unlock the double doors. I had passed through the first of the Throben Doors!

Beyond was a courtyard, with inhabitants of the fortress milling about in small groups. I tried to cross without being noticed, but one group pointed me out and headed in my direction. Changing course, I moved around closer to another group, hoping to avoid them. The second group had a familiar look about them, and as I drew closer I saw that they were Red-Eyes, a people that I had encountered in Khare.

Are these three all wearing one cloak?

They beckoned me over, and I approached and told them I was from Khare. They were delighted that I hailed from their home, and asked me if I remembered the name of the high priest of Slangg. I was aware that I was being tested, so I replied truthfully that I had no idea. This was apparently the right thing to say, as they let me go peacefully on my way.

Moving on I saw a bundle of rags, but I also saw a group that looked familiar to me. My curiosity was piqued, so I went over the the group. They were Sightmasters, an order that used their special eyesight in service of Analand. I approached them quickly, wondering what purpose they had in Mampang.

Why did I ever trust these creepy motherfuckers?

They had recognised me as an outsider, and offered to give me advice for 3 gold pieces. I had no gold, so I had to refuse them. The Sightmasters were incensed, and drew their swords. Acting on a strange impulse, I pulled out my blessed spear. With ease I stabbed one through the eye, the other through the chest, and the other in the back as he was fleeing. (This isn't me embellishing things, it's just a rad moment straight from the text.) Nobody paid any attention to the battle I looted the corpses of the Sightmasters, finding 20 gold pieces, some sand, a vial of glue, a ring of green metal, and three provisions.

I came to two large wooden doors, which I suspected were the second Throben doors. In front of them was a metal pole, carved with faces and symbols, with axes and swords melded into the base. I decided to ignore this for now, and turn back to the doors. As I watched, a bulky creature approached the door and put his mouth close to the handle. They opened and he went through. I was still wary of the doors, so I decided to take a look at where the creature had come from.

In the right-hand corner of the courtyard I found a door, and went inside. I was greeted by a short stocky man, who asked if I was there to torment the Mucalytics. When I said that I wasn't, he exclaimed that surely I wasn't there to meet the spiny ones. There were two doors onwards, and I chose the one on the left, where the man had gestured when talking about the Mucalytics.

Beyond was a disgusting room covered in debris and thick slime. Slumped in a corner was a bulky creature with a trunk-like snout: a Mucalytic!

I'm not even touching this one.

It looked like it was trying to listen to me, so I stopped to talk to it. No matter how loudly I shouted, it seemed the creature couldn't hear me. It's own reply was little more than a croak. Remembering the serpent's warning about it's breath, I decided not to let it whisper in my ear, but when I tried to exit the room it attacked me. The Mucalytic (Skill 8, Stamina 9) was strong, but I was able to kill it without being harmed.  In the muck I found a rusty sword (which I didn't bother to take), a bracelet of bones, and 5 gold pieces.

There were two doors leading on, and I chose the one opposite where I had entered from. Inside I saw an alcove where I could rest and eat, but I decided to ignore it and enter another door with a sign: "Enter Only Those Who Will Pay the Price". Inside I saw a large man wearing a turban, with a jaguar lounging under his table.

Someone needs to cosplay this guy at FF Fest.

The man told me that I could not enter without paying him a gold piece. I countered by saying that he looked like he could use a bodyguard, and that I was offering my services. He decided to test me by making me fight his Jaguar (Skill 8, Stamina 7). I wounded the beast and allowed it to retreat. The man was impressed, but he still would not let me enter without payment. I learned that his name was Valignya, and my caution had paid off: I had been warned about giving gold to this man by the serpents. I continued to refuse payment, but he insisted that I give him something valuable from my pack. I gave him the Serpent Ring, and he informed me that I would need a password to get through the Throben Door: alaralatanalara. On the way out I snatched a pouch with 10 gold pieces from his desk (and restored my Luck to 13).

Heading back to the courtyard (and avoiding an encounter due to having arrived at Mampang in secrecy), I walked up to the Throben Door and said the password. It opened and I was able to pass through. (At this point I restored the Skill point I had lost due to fear at seeing the fortress. I'm not sure that there's a specific place that tells you to restore it, but I don't think there is. I figure that this counts as being inside.)

The path branched in two beyond the doors. One led to the keep's main gate, which looked to be guarded by Birdmen. The other led to a smaller door, with steam and voices coming from within. I entered the smaller door, into a kitchen.

She probably pays better than George Calombaris.

I tried to sneak through, but the kitchen mistress spotted me. Mistaking me for one of the Archmage's officers, she introduced herself as Throg and insisted that I have something to eat. I was led down into her larder, but once again I had been warned against this by the serpents. I refused to eat her food, until she became murderously angry. She attacked me (Skill 7, Stamina 7), but fled after I had wounded her a couple of times.

I left the kitchen through another exit. I could hear guards ahead, so I hid in an alcove where I accidentally opened a secret passage. The passage led beneath the ground level, eventually coming back up and ending in a door, which I opened. I was in a yard, beneath a cloister. Edging around I came to a short passage, where there were three doors. The one on the left had a sign that said "NYLOCK - Merchant - Open". I decided to ignore this door, and chose to go through the unmarked door on the right.

The passage beyond was dark, but I was forced to enter by the sound of approaching guards. Eventually it ended at another door, which I opened. Inside was a dirty living quarters.

I've lived in worse.

I decided to check the walls for secret passages. While I was searching a heavy portcullis dropped, barring my exit. I had wandered into a cell, and now I was captive. My adventure was over.

THE POST-GAME

Aaaaahhhhhhhh! Done in by the absolute worst trick in the Steve Jackson playbook. Ian likes to get you for not having the correct items, but Steve likes to throw in a path somewhere that leads to inescapable death. For the most part he's a great designer, and his books are fair, but these moments are the biggest black mark on his record. It sucks to lose this way, and I've never been more tempted during the course of this blog to flip back and keep going from an earlier point. (And yes, I tried Libra's password here. No luck.) Still, I feel like I made some pretty good progress for my first proper venture into Mampang. If there aren't any more stupid moments like this one, I should be able to make it even further next time.