Lone Wolf: Reborn - Episode 4: Haven in a Treehouse

In case you've missed past episodes, see these links...
Lone Wolf: Reborn - Episodes 1, 2, 3

You find the tree an easy climb. With a few quick motions, you swiftly ascend to the upper reaches, among the woody branches of the great tree. The simple act brings back memories of your childhood with surprising vividness. You used to swarm up trees in the countryside near Toran, where you grew up, to pick fruit and look out at the view that seemed to reach across the world. You can still see that beautiful vista of Sommerlund in your mind's eye.

Glancing out between the branches, you can see Sommerlund now... but the countryside is patched with black, and smoke rises on the horizon. Gritting your teeth, you turn your attention to the matter at hand.

You pull yourself up onto a broad, wooden platform. With a few swift steps, you throw open the door of the treehouse. You hear a strangled cry, and as your eyes adjust, you see the form of an old man cowering in his corner, half hidden under a blanket. Only his trembling and the bright eyes gazing out at you from the depths of his hiding place give his position away.

When he sees your green Kai cloak, the fear seems to drain from him. He drops the blankets, and stands to clasp you hand in friendship. Quickly exchanging news, you discover that he has seen no less than forty Kraan crossing the skies above his tree-hut, going east. The land has been crawling with the forces of the Darklords.

As the sun is now getting low in the sky, you gratefully accept the man's hospitality, sharing his table and the shelter of his hut for the night. You arise before the sun, eager to set out, but despite your soft steps, the old hermit awakens with you.

"Please, take this, for your journey," He presses a pack of food into your hands, enough for a single meal. Knowing how little he has, you attempt to refuse, but he insists. He even offers you his weapon, a long, sturdy warhammer, but you turn that down. You would not deprive the poor man of his only defense, and you already have a perfectly serviceable axe.

You slip the food into your pack and bid a silent farewell to the old man. As you descend the tree, you hope that he will weather the coming storm safely. But something in your heart tells you that he will not.

As your foot touches earth, the sky is just greying with false dawn. You set out on your way over open land.

The sunrise is beautiful, despite the dark tidings, and you reflect upon how the world keeps going, regardless of the efforts of men and monsters.

After several hours of hiking through the wilderness, you are scraped by nettles, exhausted from your efforts this morning and the day before, and beginning to suspect that you might be lost. You are sure you should have reached the road by now. You pause for a breather, leaning heavily on your knees and cursing the thorns that tore at your arms and legs earlier.

As you come to your senses, looking at the world around you, you notice a queer opening between some hanging vines not far away.

Surrounded by thorny briars and closely packed roots, you see the entrance of a tunnel disappearing into the hillside beyond. It is approximately seven feet in height and just over ten feet wide. As you get closer, you can feel a slight breeze coming from the inky blackness. If the other end of this tunnel emerges on the far side of the hill, it could save you many hours of difficult climbing. But it could also harbour unknown danger.

If you wish to enter the tunnel, turn to 170.

If you would prefer to climb the hillside, turn to 280.

[Save point: 331. We have gained a Meal, meaning we are less likely to face imminent starvation, but we may be lost in the woods, and our only hope of finding our way seems to be a mysterious tunnel through darkness. Does this seem queer to anyone else?]

Reviews by Ash: Evil Under the Sun, by Agatha Christie

I just finished my first Agatha Christie book. (Remarkably, I happened to reach the Agatha Christie episode in Doctor Who later the same day that I started the novel.)

I'm not sure if there's much of a call for reviewing Agatha Christie, but I enjoy taking a stern look at things and analyzing what I like and what I don't like. So why not? So, I welcome you to...

Reviews by Ash

Evil Under the Sun, by Agatha Christie

Evil Under the Sun is a murder mystery (of course) set in England of the... what? 1920s? 1930s? It's a strange mix of a comedy of manners and a murder mystery, complete with femme fatale, heroin deals, and evil-hearted swindlers and murderers. Almost incongruous against the high-styled English background.

Set against the backdrop of a draughty old hotel on a secluded island once used by pirates and smugglers, Evil Under the Sun presents a convincing portrait of the genteel guests who attend the modern-day resort, when a woman in red comes among their number who draws the eye of every man who sees her, and an unknown, mysterious killer shatters their peaceful retreat.

Good:

I liked the attention to personalities that Agatha Christie brings to the table. I wouldn't necessarily say her characters have the most emotional depth, but she clearly had a keen eye for the mannerisms of people. I can only assume that these thoughtful descriptions were based on observations of real-life characters.

I liked that the morality of the story had a bit of complexity to it. Though titled, "Evil Under the Sun," the character who initially appeared to be the eponymous "Evil" was not it, and even the most heroic characters occasionally slipped up and lied, or worse (usually in misguided attempts to cover for the people they loved.) Gender roles were straight (1930s England, after all), but her judgement of and opinions about the genders were attractively subtle and shaded.

Finally, I was pleased to discover that the mystery was one which could have been solved. Theoretically. By Einstein with a supercomputer. But all the facts were there! Which makes it a welcome break from Sir Doyle, even if I do like my Sherlock once in a while. I suppose when you take a pirate island and throw in a bunch of elderly british people and a crack deal, what you have just isn't going to make much sense, no matter which way you look at it.


Bad:

The opening of the story was a little slow. Aside from the detailed depiction of different characters and their behaviors, speech and mannerisms, there was very little to hook the interest until the murder happened later on.

The events of the murder were a tad far-fetched. I was not convinced the plan could have been pulled off that smoothly. Although it was at least internally consistent with the clues.

The finger pointing became a bit schizophrenic toward the end. In the final reveal speech of Poirot, he clearly and directly states "You did it!" to almost every character in the room, before finally settling on the real killer(s). Really Poirot? Couldn't you just have pointed to the killer first?


I'm the Guy with the Gun:

If you need a book that will hit the ground running and hook you from the start, this isn't it. But if you'd like to take a trip to a secluded hotel in 1930's England, and meet some colorful characters while you're there, you may have fun with this book.

At the end of the day, Agatha's attention to detail in crafting her mystery leaves me keen to read more of her books. Next time, I want to see if I can figure out the answer *before* she tells me. (Yeah, right!)

Lone Wolf: Reborn - Episode 3: The Murky Cave

C'mon, what self-respecting hero is going to pass up the opportunity to explore a nice, dark, scary cave? Into the cave we go!

In case you've missed past episodes, see these links...
Lone Wolf: Reborn - Episodes 1, 2

Feeling your way deeper into the darkness, you feet stir tiny bones and the sick droppings of some beast. The stale odor of rotting flesh wafts from the depths of the cavern. Rather than trip over your death, you pause and wait for your eyes to adjust.

In the half-light, you can make out a shallow cave littered with the bones and fur of small animals. It seems to be the cave of some large animal, perhaps a mountain cat. Against the far wall, you see what looks like human bones. Just as you are about to turn away in disgust, your eye falls on a leather pouch by the side of the long-dead man.

Hurrying to the pouch, you find it still tied. You quickly unlash it, feeling coins jingle inside. The leather all but disintigrates in your hand--the pouch is no good. But from the remains you pull three bright golden coins.

Feeling a small triumph, you decide to take your gains and clear out before the cat comes back.

Blinking into the light of day as you exit the cave, you peer around, but you can find no sign of the servants of the Darklords nearby. You descend the rocky hill and continue your journey. After some time time, you come to an old forest track running north and east. You follow it to the east, hoping to meet up with the main road which will take you south to Holmgard.

Several times during your trek, you see dark wings passing overhead, but each time you duck between the trees and are not spotted. You take your lunch on a pleasant boulder overlooking a small lake--but your repast is spoiled by smoke rising on the horizon.

Your appetite souring, you force down the last of your food. With nothing but crumbs remaining, you are not sure where your next meal will come from. You clear the rock of signs of your stay, and continue along the trail, resisting a desire to stop and sleep.

As the afternoon draws on, your forest path opens into a large clearing.

In the centre of the clearing is a tree much taller and wider than any others you have seen in the forest.

Looking up through the massive branches you can see a large treehouse some twenty-five to thirty feet above the ground. There is no ladder, but the gnarled bark of the tree offers many footholds.

If you wish to climb the tree and search the treehouse, turn to 307.

If you would rather press on, turn to 213.

[Save Point: Section 96. {Edit: Save Point 13} We've gained three gold but lost our only meal. Presumably we may need to rest soon, though the book has not required it yet. Curious about this tree house. An intriguing encounter!]

Invitation to the Isles of Mist

Hello comers and goers, prospective players and party makers,

I am hosting an online game which, for some mad reason, I think I have time for, and I need one or two more players!

The Game: One part strategy game, one part RPG, one part writing extravaganza.

The Setting: In a world where there is no solid land, but only a hundred islands and continents floating in the mists, the death of a High King has left twelve great realms vying for power. Using wisdom, negotiation, and might, you must take responsibility for one of these realms and lead your people to glory--or destruction.

The Players: The twelve realms are each controlled by another human being (except for a few NPCs, whose identities are secret). A set of skilled writers and gamers, they bring more to the game than I ever might have dreamed.

The Peoples:

The Eldryn are an immortal race who awoke from collective amnesia just over 800 years ago. Only surviving as long as their passion for life does, they must find causes to strive for, or they slip into silence... forever. Their noble caste, called the Nobilis, are creatures of elegance and arrogance who would drive their peoples to the brink in their struggle for dominance against one another.

The Duor are a race of pacifistic giants who were plunged into war, death, and slavery when their continent emerged from the mists to collide with Alendia, the Eldryn homeland, long ago. Having lost the ensuing war, they have spent the last 300 years as a slave race. Will the current chaos and turmoil bring them freedom, or extinction?

The great and beautiful continent of Alendia was shattered in a titanic magical war for dominance between Eldryn noblility long ago. Now, it is divided into two lands, each of whom hate the other. Celida and Quienenas call themselves High Alendia, claiming they inherited the culture and civilization of Old Alendia. Ardath and Essetia name themselves True Alendia, insisting that they carry on the morals and honor of their forebears. Between them, the high city of Tyrenegarde floats, a relic of an ancient age, now closed with the High King's death until the twelve realms can sort out their differences and come to peace.

The remaining lands, scattered beyond the limits of Alendia, are collectively called the Outlands. Perenor is a land of startling civilization, with great cities and broad boulevards, and their own musical language. Sitokia is home to a race of learned barbarians, savages who will quote poetry as they cut your throat. Rhosyn, called the Enchanted Isle, is a place of knights and princesses, jousting and festivals, where it is said that mysterious creatures emerge from magical glades to dance with the Nobilis after too much wine is had. Tilaria is a stern land of merciless laws and hardened warriors. Khande was once a beautiful land--but the warrior caste, the Bushin, rebelled against the Nobilis and left, taking many of the other castes with them. With too many Nobilis and not enough followers, Khande has spent the generations since then in eternal civil war. Only now has a promising young leader emerged to rally Khande from the fallen glory of her past. Orenspeak is the high, cold land where the Bushin and their allies settled after abandoning Khande. From their high mountain peaks, they rule the skies as traders and pirates. They are widely hated, but the High King's laws granted them immunity. Now that the old order is gone, the martial power of Orenspeak is once again free to sway the world.

Where will you fit in? Which of these great lands will you take leadership of? And what future will you guide your Realm into?


Okay, on to the practical stuff:

To be honest, most of the roles are already taken. We've done one turn of the game so far, but the amount of time and energy it took from me was overwhelming, so I went back to the drawing board to put in some more infrastructure to help the game move more quickly. It's looking good, and almost ready to play again.

To give you some context, I someday want to run a roleplaying program for teenagers (like the Roleplay Workshop, where I once worked), and this is the world it will be set in. Half the purpose of this game is to flesh out the setting and backstory for that future roleplaying game. This is your chance to get in on history in the making! Literally!

The goal of bringing in more players is to lessen the burden on me, as storyteller. Managing all the correspondence and turn orders for several NPCs was just too much. I don't want to give up all the NPCs, but I can definitely relinquish at least one, maybe more. This is NOT big enough that the entire internet can join. I've only got space for a few people, but if a world-building game on an epic scale, a strategy game heavy with roleplaying, sounds amazingly awesome to you, then please let me know.

I can link you to the rulebook, character sheets, public book, etc.

(If you want a preview of the map, see the map that's used as the background of my twitter profile: twitter.com/#!/AshtonSaylor.)

Hope to have you on board! Or, if not, hope you've at least enjoyed the read ;)

Lone Wolf: Reborn - Episode 2, A warning comes too late

Eyeing the malicious creature, you judge the timing just right. As you see the Giak climb up on it's haunches, preparing to jump, you leap into action.

You speed from the bushes, rounding the ruined pillar just in time to catch the monster as it falls from the sky toward the unsuspecting back of the young magician--whose eyes widen in surprise as he sees you round the corner, axe raised.

You leap past the magician and intersect the startled Giak in its flight. No sooner has it boggled at your sudden appearance than your axe catches it full in the chest, splitting the startled monster in two. In a spray of blood, the mangled Giak falls to pieces on the ruined floor of the temple.

It was over before it began. (Combat ratio of 10, roll of 7--yeah, it really was over before it began. He didn't even wound us.)

The remaining Giaks scream at you in their horrible language, then flee the field. Given that the dead Giaks you can count amidst the ruins number a dozen at least, and now the mage has backup, you can understand their retreat. Nevertheless, you are glad you don't have to fight further.

The mage approaches and extends his hand in friendship. Just as you take his arm, a spell of fatigue passes over his eyes and he nearly collapses. You help him sit on a fallen block of stone.

‘My eternal thanks, Kai Lord. My powers are nearly drained. Had you not come to my aid, I fear I would have ended my days atop a Giak lance.’

Once he has caught his breath, he explains that he is Banedon, of the Magician's Guild of Toran. He was on his way to warn the Kai Lords of the Darklords' impending attack... but the warning came too late.

He shows you the letter he was to bear to your masters. Your heart sinks as you read that the Darklords gather their strength, and a vast army has mustered just beyond the Durncrag Range.

‘I fear we were betrayed,’ says Banedon, his head bowed in sorrow.

‘One of my order, a brother called Vonotar, had explored the forbidden mysteries of the Black Art. Ten days ago he denounced the Brotherhood and killed one of our Elders. He has since disappeared. It is rumoured that he now aids the Darklords.’

You explain to Banedon your own tale, and he silently slips a gold chain from around his neck and hands it to you. It is a Crystal Star Pendant.

‘It is the symbol of my Brotherhood, and we are both truly brothers in this hour of darkness. It is a talisman of good fortune—may it protect you on your road ahead.’

With promises of goodwill and future friendship, you both return to your respective missions.

You bid him farewell and continue on into the thick woods ahead. Then something tickles your senses: a noise in the underbrush--is that yellow eyes?

You throw yourself to the ground just as a black-tipped arrow speeds past your head! The Giaks! They did not flee--they merely set up an ambush!

You race through the wilderness, picking your path at random as you try to escape the army of small monsters cackling evilly behind you. Bursting clear from the trees, you catch a glimpse of a cave in a hillside.

You glance back; the Giaks are not in sight yet, and the cave would not be easily discovered by one not looking for it.

Without wasting further time to think about it, you throw yourself into the cave and slither deeply in to hide. The Giaks come up around you, and you can make out their outlines searching at the cave mouth for you.

Luck is with you, and the Giak voices eventually move farther away, the harsh notes of their language barking with frustration.

For a moment, you simply lay back and let yourself relax. After a few deep breaths (and once the sound of the Giaks has moved beyond hearing) you pull yourself together and begin to plan your next move.

You shimmy up the cave entrance to look around. It looks clear. But just then a sudden curiousity strikes you. You look back, deeper into the cave, and only then do you realize how deeply it runs. You have not found the depths of it, and you have no idea what dangers or treasures might be hidden in the darkness.

Section 96:

If you wish to explore the cave further, turn to 33.

If you wish to leave the cave and descend the hill in case the Giaks return, turn to 248.

(P.S. Thanks to Joe Dever, for writing this amazing story in the first place! And to Gary Chalk for these wonderful, evocative old fantasy images!)

Fighting Fantazine Issue #8 Review

Review of Fighting Fantazine Issue #8

The Fighting Fantazine has been running since September of 2009, and it is the ezine to go to for all things Fighting Fantasy and gamebook related. Low production value and slightly amateur art is offset by an extremely high level of care and attention that's gone into creating a quality product, and the sheer amount of content is staggering--including two complete, original gamebook adventures!

[This is also my chance to field my new, "Reviews by Ash," review scheme: "Good, Bad, I'm the Guy with the Gun." Seeing as how my name is actually Ash... it seemed appropriate.]


Good:

This is the first time I've ever opened a Fighting Fantazine, and I was blown away by simply how much is inside. You're looking at multiple interviews with people in the gamebook industry, recent news of new releases and exciting products to look out for, nostalgic articles about gamebook lore and history, as well 70+ pages of original gamebooks, adventures, fiction and comics. Wow!

For myself, having already plowed through most gamebook material that is available today, it was an unexpected treat to find two new original pieces of gamebook fiction inside the Fighting Fantazine. That itself might win my loyalty as a reader. In brief, I found Vengeance at Midnight to be a delightful and action-packed sequel to superhero-themed Fighting Fantasy books, such as Appointment with F.E.A.R. I think the pacing could have used some work; I frequently found myself struggling a little to slog through the story, but I found the investigation system to be innovative and engaging. It provided a satisfying puzzle-solving kick.

The other thing that I found extremely useful was the news and updates on new interactive fiction coming out. I saw some titles that I hadn't known existed before, including the full line of Capstone educational interactive fiction, which is something I'm very interested in. What I thought was a second gamebook turned out to be an Advanced Fighting Fantasy adventure for 2-4 heroes, presumably to be run by a gamemaster. The comic was a little hard to get into without having read the previous issues, but had excellent art (random gargantuan boobs aside...) and an amusing premise of gaining power by defeating Fighting Fantasy books. There was also original fiction, yet more interviews, reviews... it goes on and on.

Overall, I would say the best thing about this ezine is the depth. Clearly a lot of work and love goes into producing it, and the amount of content it has to offer is prodigious.


Bad:

As in many things, the greatest strength of the Fighting Fantazine is also it's greatest weakness: content. There's just so much of it. Don't get me wrong, too much is definitely better than too little, but a little more selectivity could have improved the final product, IMNSHO. Three interviews with gamebook industry insiders? That's great... but maybe they could have been spaced out, one in each of three different ezines. Just an example. I don't want to start pointing fingers at what should be in and what shouldn't. The fact is, almost all of it is good content, but part of the job of the editor is not just to rustle up lots of content, but also to make hard choices so that what remains is the best of the best--in an attractive, meal-sized package.

I also have to mention, for the sake of completeness, the art. While the back cover looked really very nice (if not work-safe), the front cover definitely had an amateur quality to the artwork. I haven't seen enough of FF yet to know if this is normal, but it gave the front cover a "home-brewn" feel that might turn off some readers. If there's a budget, it might be worth splurging on art for the front page, if anything.


I'm the Guy with the Gun:

I didn't expect to say this, but I absolutely recommend the Fighting Fantazine for any gamebook enthusiast. This definitely has a "by fans, for fans" feel to it, but if you don't mind the low production values, it's a great place to get news of the industry and even some awesome, original material. Your only challenge might be sorting through the voluminous content to find the bits you're most interested in. Go check it out! You won't regret it =)

Lone Wolf: Reborn - Episode 1

Hello All! Time for the first proper entry in "Lone Wolf: Reborn," a Let's Play Lone Wolf series.

After getting comments and insight from a number of readers, we have wound up with our Lone Wolf setting out with the following five Kai Disciplines: Healing, Sixth Sense, Animal Kinship, Mindshield and (my personal addition) Weaponskill: Sword. (I cheated a bit and rolled the weapon before deciding whether to pick Weaponskill or not. Since it rolled sword, I really wanted to grab it now for use with the Sommerswerd later.) The other four were all chosen by reader-suggestion.

The Story So Far

While out gathering wood as punishment for not paying attention in class, you see a cloud of dark, leather-winged shapes fly overhead, so many of them as to blot out the sun. I quote,

"Suddenly a great black cloud comes from out of the western skies. So many are the numbers of the black-winged beasts that fill the sky, that the sun is completely hidden. "

Quickly realizing their target is the Kai Monastery, you drop your wood and race to the aid of your school! But it is to no avail. You trip and strike your head on a low-hanging branch (what kind of hero are you anyway?)

You awaken to the complete destruction of the Kai Monastery. Here and there amidst the rubble you see the broken bodies of your teachers and fellow students. Wiping away tears with a grime encrusted hand, you realize that you must journey to warn the King...

...for you are now the last of the Kai Lords.

Able to scrounge nothing from the ruins, you depart with only the supplies you had with you: a woodsman's axe, backpack, an emergency healing potion and enough food for one meal. As you leave, you find a single gold coin gleaming in the rubble. You take it for good luck.

Luck that you will sorely need.

Despite your fatigue, you leave the ruins immediately--before the black-winged beasts decide to return and finish the job. A sixth sense seems to warn you that the paths will be watched, so you strike out into the undergrowth at random.

The shriek of some terrible animal above alerts you that you made the right choice in getting off the path. You remain motionless while the sound of great wings beats above you. When all is still again, you press onward.

The sound of shouting and a clap of thunder alerts you to a commotion ahead, through the forest. Staying swift but silent, you approach the noise.

You come upon a forest clearing. In the middle of the clearing stands an ancient ruin, tumble-down walls green with moss. A full war-party of Mountain Giaks (vicious, goblin-like creatures) lays siege to the ruins. Here and there amid the stones lies a broken body of a fallen Giak.

But you cannot see any defenders. The Giaks seem to wave their blades at the inanimate stones themselves. Then a slim, blue-clad figure steps from behind a pillar. As you watch, he mutters arcane words and magical power crackles between his fingertips. He releases the energy in a bolt of lightning into the heart of the enemy, and a half-dozen Giaks fall to the ground in charred husks!

To your amazement, the ruins are being defended by a young man no older than yourself. You recognize his sky-blue robes, embroidered with stars. He is a young theurgist of the Magicians' Guild of Toran: an apprentice in magic.

The remaining Giaks of that group flee from the young mage's position to re-group under the trees. But even as they do so, another bunch move from the cover of forest to attack from another direction, led by one of the tallest and meanest looking Giaks you have ever seen.

While you watch, a small Giak creeps up, hidden from the mage by a wall of rubble. The Giak climbs one of the ruined pillars, a dagger clenched between his teeth. The young magician does not see him!

What will you do?

If you wish to shout a warning to the wizard, turn to 241.

If you wish to run forward and attack the Giak when he jumps, turn to 55.

If you wish to pick up a chunk of temple marble and throw it at the Giak's head, turn to 302.

Or if you would rather turn and leave the battle area, and run back into the woods, turn to 101.