[Fighting Fantasy] Bloodsword v2

[Joshua Randall]

"his" and "him"as in "You rush to him and help him to his feet". It's evidence enough. Also, If we allowed the ritual to continue, they'd take the falchion and plunge it into our hero's breast. Which I understand to mean the heart for a guy, but and odd choice for a girl

Haha! Yeah, “breast” is one of those old-timey words that in the singular does mean chest area. It’s in one of my favorite quotes of all time, from a translation of the Iliad:

“Iron in thy breast thy heart is.” - Hektor, to Akhilleus

faced death, and came back, and no longer fear what's behind the Veil. She permanently gains 1 to her fighting prowess

\m/ -_- \m/

METAL!

Several of us can try to help: a Sage, a Trickster or an Enchanter.
"I am back to being useless, I guess" whines Winny while going to sulk in a corner.

Oh, Winny. Console yourself with thoughts of the beyond and how much ass you are going to kick.

the Faltyn's cage and gently removes him from the pins that kept him on that horrible cross made of human bones

How to deal with a Faltyn:

1. Make a reasonable bargain with it and don’t cheat. Requires: honesty.
2. Crucify the Faltyn on human bones. Requires: blasphemy against God and man; bones.

We can then proceed or leave the cathedral altogether and take the other path the pallbearer were coming from.

I am kind of curious what the pallbearer’s green room is like, but if I were playing this book, I’d probably “proceed”.

 

[Jfdlsjfd]

The Faltyn as displayed isn't evil. He's just mischievous. At some point, he can offer help for a mouthful of your blood, that he spits immediately on the ground saying it tastes horribly salty. Or he can make you fail your quest by asking you the scabbard of the Bloodsword, but not because he wants to give it to Team Evil, just because he wants to be able to taunt you about your silliness.

Sure, it doesn't make him popular, but the alternate way to deal with them is quite over the top...

 

[Joshua Randall]

The Faltyn as displayed isn't evil. He's just mischievous. [...] but the alternate way to deal with them is quite over the top...

Exactly! It's so over the top that it becomes a head-scratcher. There are lots of ways to deal with mischievous fairies in stories and books and games. "Crucify them on human bones!" is so far beyond the pale that it's a WTF moment.

 

[Jfdlsjfd]

Forewarned is forearmed and we confidently stroll into the transept of the Cathedral of Doom.

The ghastly decoration on the walls, still made of human bone -- I guess the message is that the enemy is evil somehow, Beldon-level evil even -- that we're overwhelmed by a sense of foreboding. Enough that we have the opportunity to cast Prediction and get a glimpse of the future, provided we have an Enchanter with us.

To be honest, if I had at will precognition, I would be living in a permanent 5-minutes-in-the-future state. Cross the street? Prediction. Choose what to eat at the restaurant? Prediction. Buy a video game? Prediction... But this group of heroes seems to "save" Esmeralda's ability to see the strands of the future only for significant times, despite having NO drawback in the rules. Well, to be honest, there was a point in book 1 where you could lose the ability to see the future for the rest of the book, but it was if you tried to discern a specific thing so forcefully that you get a migraine...
We see through the curtain of time: disease, terror, destruction and forgetfulness.

OK, given the level of detail of the vision, I can understand why they don't hold their breath...

We go forth nonetheless, and we're confronted with a howling wind coming from the other side of the transept. It whistles past, carrying all the evil from the end of the Cathedral... The Wind of Decay also carries evil miasma, that can infect us with deadly disease.

Onward to roling a bucket of dice...
Each character can get malaria, typhoid, soulbite, hemophilia and wasting rot from the wind.

We don't carry the Orb of Disease (which we're told that would have sucked the wind and protected us by granting us a +2 bonus on the roll of a die, since we get the disease on 1 or 2. Since we are wearing makeshift masks, we still get to add +1.

After 20 rolls, we discover that Trixie got haemophilia -- she'll add 1 HP to any wound until the end of the adventure -- Winny comes out unscathed, and Salvia loses one from PA and can no longer carry (until the end of the adventure) more than 8 items, as she's hit by two wasting diseases while Esmeralda slips through any harm.

This is a real problem as we're currently moving at full inventory capacity. We elect to drop two bedroll -- those can probably be bought again in the future, to preserve Named Items and the brazier.

We're offered the choice to leave or proceed. Of course we'll go onward.

We're now reaching a part of the building where the walls are made of clay, something forming deformed mouth that make terrifying sounds. We're in the Groan of Doom (tm). We're terrified. We hear those chilling howls and we're troubled as they resound deep in our souls.

But suddenly, since we're carrying an Iron Bell, it starts ringing loudly of its own accord and drown the frightful noises so we can keep going forward unscathed. If it hadn't, we would have to listen to the macabre sound and lose half of our Fighting Prowess for the rest of the adventure because our arms are shaking with fear, which isn't conclusive to swordplay or archery.
We're offered the choice to leave or proceed. Of course we'll go onward.

As we progress in the dark heart of the Cathedral, in a place where the only light comes from the glowing figures ahead, we meet the Handmaiden of Oblivion. Their spectral lips are ready to give us a kiss, that will make us forget our toils... as we disappear from this world, along with any remembrance of us.

We can try to resist their enticing faces with Psychic Ability... or just draw a circle of silver dust to protect us from their assault. Which we do.

We're offered the choice to leave or proceed. Of course we'll go onward.


We're at the end of the Cathedral of Doom (527). The way is blocked by a giant warrior.

A strange armour of violet jewels and ebony metal plaques hangs about his huge frame. He stands with his hands, enclosed in black metal gauntlets, resting on the hilt of his jagged-edged sword. The blade's point rests on the cracked flagstone at his feet, where we can see the dust accumulated through the centuries he has stood guard.


"I am Thanatos", he bellows.

 

[Joshua Randall]

To be honest, if I had at will precognition, I would be living in a permanent 5-minutes-in-the-future state.

At which point you might drive yourself insane. And/or create some kind of temporal paradox where you cannot see the future, because you are looking at the future and not taking action in the present, which means that future doesn't come to pass, which means you could not have seen that future, which means that you would have taken action in the present, which means that the future you originally foresaw will come to pass, etc.

Salvia loses one from PA

Is that permanent? If so, OUCH.

the Cathedral of Doom (527).

Wow, this book really delivers your money's worth with > 527 numbered passages!

The way is blocked by a giant warrior.

View attachment 396047

Artist: draws imposing black-armored warrior in a spooky cathedral

Art Director: "Can you add more detail to his armor? And also more bones in the background."

"I am Thanatos", he bellows.

And I'm Iron Man.

 

[Jfdlsjfd]

Thanatos shouts a challenge, offering an honorable duel, adding though that he can prevail against countless foes.

We're preparing to jump all at once from four direction when... Well, you know who can't decline a formal challenge? Who can't stand to be called a coward and who don't condone dishonourable tactics?

Winny accepts the challenge.


However, accepting a challenge doesn't mean coming unprepared for the challenge. Since we're allowed to switch inventory whenever we want outside of a fight, and a fight isn't started before the first die is rolled, there is still time to arm our champion properly, by equipping them with Blutgetranker since Thanatos is the first foe we fight explicitely described as a Giant, so the sword will deal 2d6+2 damage. We've been hauling that sword around for nearly two books, it was given to us by Balhazar for saving him from the Assassin. Also, Winny should wear the +1 brooch of defense usually worn by Esmeralda. And she should wear the skull amulet, which we are informed by the fight section that as Thanatos is undead, the Amulet grants a hefty +7 AR and +7 damage against undead. It's the Sommermulet! Not sure we'll meet a lot of undead going further but hey...

We therefore have two titanic foes:

Thanatos, Death Incarnate, FP 8, PA 8, AR 2, HP 45, Damage 4d6, Awareness 7
Winny, Death Survivor, FP 10, PA 6, AR 11 (3 chainmail, +1 brooch, + 7 amulet), Damage 2d6+9, Awareness 6

Round 1:

Thanatos rolls 8, and deals 20 damage -- reduced to 9. Still, Winny is only 10 HP left.
Winny rolls 11, and misses. She use on dose of her salve of healing -- it's never wasted to pay the old woman at section 1 (+10 HP).

Round 2:

Thanatos rolls a 6 and inflicts 15 HP with his mighty sword, reduced to 6 by the glowing amulet of Death and the layered armour.
Winny rolls a 4, and hits Thanatos soundly for 10+9 = 19 damage, reduced to 17.

Round 3:

Thatanos rolls a 7 and inflicts a measly 10 damage, barely scraping Winny after armour. Still, she's down to 12 HP.
She rolls another 4, and inflicts 7+9-2= 14 damage. Thanatos is now near half-dead at 14 HP.

Round 4:

Thanatos rolls a 7 and inflicts a deep wound (9 HP... after armour), reducing Winny to 3 HP.
Winny quaffs a dose of healing salve (is this how you're supposed to use a salve?) and gets back to 6 HP -- hum.
Winny attacks, rolls a 12, and miss.

Round 5:

Thatanos rolls a 9 and misses.
Winny rolls a 12 again and misses.

The fighters circles themselves, looking carefully at the slightest opening in their defense. The next strike might be the last...

Round 6:

Thanatos rolls a 9 and misses.
Winny rolls a 11 and misses -- damn frostbite. It would have been a solid hit if she had worn gloves during the trek to Wyrd.

The circling continues, tension heigthens.

Round 7:

Thanatos rolls a 10 and misses.
Winny rolls a 3! Her sword inflicts 14 damage, but the Giant's armour turns this deadly wound into a deep slash... but not a fatal one. The Giant stands, with 2 HP. Winny applies some more salve (back to 12 HP).

Round 8:

Thanatos rolls a 6 and hits Winny, inflicting 13-9 = 4 HP.
Winny rolls a 5 and barely graze the giant's skin for 2+9-2= 9 HP.

While the blow itself would have glanced on Thanatos' armour, the bright light of the Sommermulet shines and turn the Deathlord into a fine dust.

Winny emerges, as victorious as honourable, from this duel.

It may have been our longest fight in this series. Also, it was tense. I wasn't sure if we would emerge victorious despite our greatly improved stats.

 

[Joshua Randall]

Winny, more like WinnING, amirite?

 

[Jfdlsjfd]

Yep. If we had tried the all-in attack, even with the traditional defend tactics, Trixie would probably have died.

Anyway, time of using the lore that has been dripping from the book. Remember when we heard about the local law enforcement/military caste, Armiger, far back near the beginning of the book? And the Sage commenting that they must be out of shape since there is no recorded attempt to invade Wyrd for centuries since the last attempt made by the Selentine Empire?

Yes, Thanatos was there, and fought the invaders. In the crypt behind him rests the skeletons of the first selentine legion that failed to kill the Warlock-King back in the day, as Thanatos did a "You shall not pass" stand. Of course, we loot their body and find their battle standard, an archeological relic of immense value.

We continue onward.

Salvia loses 5 HP trying desperately to heal Winny over the next few sections, ina series of rolls averaging 2.

We climb up the stair in the main dungeon of the castle, and our Sage recognize that our way is barred by the summoning of a shadow demon. Which can be dispelled by pouring milk on the summoning circle.

Remember that starving woman with the baby we saved earlier? Yes, accepting some goat milk and a cloak was a the only way to make sure she kept starving and got frozen on top of it acquire some milk.

If we didn't, to be honest, there was another option, involving Shadowcleaver, which conventiently has the power to cleave shadows.

If we hadn't one or the other, tough luck: every party member would have had to roll under psychic ability with 3d6 or die, defenseless against the Shadow Demon. On a successful save, they would steal be forever diminished by their encounter with the Shadow, losing one in each stat permanently, before the Demon, sated, takes its leave.

But, rejoice, you heartlessly took the milk, so we can pour it on the summoning circle and cross unscathed.

Or we could have used our magic carpet to fly over the danger?
Finally, we complete our ascension of the keep's stair and reach the throneroom of the Warlock-King.


At this point, reality dissolves and we find ourselves in an arena, with a ghoulish crowd chanting with glee as they'll witness our destruction.

The Warlock-King of Wyrd.

He engages into a long evil monologue, reminding us that for century he has ruled this land and defended it against evil invaders who comes to assassinate a rightful ruler of the land, and how he'll show us how all the former would-be assassins ended.

He then cast Mass Raise Dead and countless skeletons wearing rusty armour starts to raise, as all the people who died here are turned into undead until a countless horde stands before us, one we have no hope to survive alone.

 

[Jfdlsjfd]

However, the plan of tearing the veil between the living and the dead did backfire a little. While we were resolved to make the horde of skeleton pay dearly their inevitable victory over us... we realize that we're surrounded by ghosts. The fallen selentine legion, whose standard we're conveniently carrying in our backpack (and yes, it cost us our last bedroll), had failed to uphold its order to conquer Wyrd, and their restless dead have been waiting every since for their revenge, shamed by their defeat. What kind of soldiers let their battle standard fall into enemy hands? And now, they are free to cross again into the realm of the living, trying to be worthy of their eagle.

Nice.

We diplomatically avoid to tell them that they were already defeated once, and therefore there is little reason to think they'll prevail now, because we don't want to irritate our new-found reinforcements.

Should you have missed the battle standard, you die.

Since we need reinforcement, it's now time to use a boatload of items we didn't encounter, probably gained on other paths. But there are some that we do have collected.

First, we get to use our censer to summon mist-phantoms to help us, and the chequer pieces enchanted by the elf lord turns to actual military units, as he promised help in our final battle.

Our motley crew totals of military strength of 8 (out 19, so we missed a lot of things, even if the best possible result is 13 or above).

Things look bleak as our troops face the King of Wyrd's army. They have key advantages like being tireless, immune to fear, pain, fatigue, arrows... but we have the advantage of having... a superior military commander to boss them all around, so we get a bonus on the die roll that will determine the outcome of this fateful battle...

3+1=4. We barely avoid the worst outcome.

We use our troops to cut a path among the skeletons to reach the Warlock-King. When he notices that we going for him, he hastes a pair of skeleton.

FP 9, PA 9, AR 3, Damage 2d6, Awareness 9, HP 21 each.

Round 1:

The first skeleton strikes Winny with unparalleled speed (we need that haste spell) for 6 damage. Since they are 100% undead, it's safe to assume that no damage passes through.
The second skeleton hits Trixie for 1 damage after armour.
Winny strikes (7), hits and does.... 12 on the roll. That's 21. To bad the skeleton have rusty, yet efficient armour, so she doesn't one-shot her adversary.
Trixie defends, in her tried and true way.
Salvia uses her +1 bow, hits for 1 damage on Trixie's skeleton.
Esmeralda casts Sword Thrust -- remember? She never mentionned she got back to a more useful spell to have in mind, inflicting 10 damage to Trixie's skeleton.

Round 2:

Both skeleton misses (11 and 17).
Winny hits (6) and inflicts an overkill cleaving attack of 15 damage on the poor 3 HP skeleton.
Trixie attacks her skeleton, twice in a row (6 and 7) and inflicts a measly 2 HP to her skeleton. It's less impressive.
Salvia fires an arrow (7) and hits for minimal damage after armour (1 HP). The skeleton facing Trixie is reduced to 7 HP.
Esmeralda cast Sword Thrust (10+3= 14) again for 10 damage, ending the fight.

 

[Joshua Randall]

I’m curious — does the book suggest an official way to keep track of which spell you have prepared? Or you’re on your own? (And how DO you keep track?)