Slaves of the Abyss

Background - 

The giant puffin shaped zeppelin powered across the clear blue sky.  From the gondola Ian looked looked out the window at the landscape below.  It was the same as far as the eye could see, a wind blasted Antarctic icescape.  The reflection of the white surface from the sun was actually blinding so he looked away.  Inside there were multiple execs from Puffin, including Phillipa, looking over a map that was spread out on a table.  The rest of the gondola was filled with security forces, armed to the teeth.  

An officer arrived from cockpit and announced to Phillipa that they were nearing their destination.  She gave him a simple nod.

Phillipa "Positions everyone."

With that instruction the security forces cocked their semi automatic weapons and took up positions by the windows.  Ian looked out the window again, and this time he could see it.  Where everything before had been white, he could now see a gaping black chasm in the shape of a massive hole.  It looked very dark and foreboding and not for the first time he wondered if the risk was worth it.

As the puffin zeppelin maneuvered itself over the terrible black hole, it started to descend.  Soon it was surrounded on all sides by rock as they entered the enormous cave.  Ian marveled at how round it was, it could not be natural.

After more than an hour the most amazing change happened.  The dour rock wall was replaced by a stunning vista.  They had emerged into a tropical paradise.  This hidden world underneath the earth was huge in scale.  Ian could see mountains in the distance, rising towards the rock celling.  It was bright, and he had no idea where the light source was coming from.  Strange creatures flew past and Ian took a mental note of their look for inclusion in future books.

The zeppelin motors roared back on and made its way above the jungle canopy.  It was not long until Ian saw their goal, the magnificent city of Agartha!

After they had landed, their entourage had been greeted by a welcoming committee.  Ian was shocked to find how similar they looked to themselves.  Maybe a little bit taller, but their clothing was very different.  More importantly their weapons that they carried looked a lot more advanced.  As they were guided through the city Ian looked around, mouth open in wonderment.  Phillipa leant over.

Phillipa "Stop gawking like a yokel, you are making us look bad!"

Ian shut his mouth.

Phillipa "Remember we are here to negotiate, and we need to appear from a position of strength."

The negotiations had taken a long time.  Ian found it difficult to mark the passage of time.  His new Casio calculator watch had stopped working as soon as they had arrived in the city.  But finally it was over and they were heading back to the zeppelin.  Except not everyone.  Two minor puffin execs were to stay behind and establish an embassy.  In exchange two of the Agarthan's were coming back to the surface world with them.  

As the Zeppelin was making its way back up the cave tunnel Ian was invited over to the table where the Agarthan's sat with Phillipa.

Phillipa "Ian, let me introduce Paul Mason and Steve Williams.  They are coming back to Puffin HQ with us.  Gentleman, this is Ian Livingston."

Paul "A pleasure to meet you Ian.  We can't wait to see your world!"

Ian shook both their hands.

Steve "Yes, there is so much I want to see and learn, this is going to be the start of a new golden era of cooperation for both our worlds!"

Paul "So Ian, what would you say your world could benefit most from?  Our technology?  Our medicine?"

Before Ian can reply, Phillipa cuts him off.

Phillipa "Its funny you should ask.  We at Puffin have done extensive research on the subject.  We have established that what the world needs.....is a gamebook!"

Steve "A what!?"

With Slaves of the Abyss, we get two new writers, Paul Mason and Steve Williams.  This came out in March of 1988 but they had done some work for Fighting Fantasy a few years earlier with the RPG Riddling Reaver.  Now I did read the Riddling Reaver but I was very young and had no idea what was going on as my only RPG experience was traditional fighting fantasy so unfortunately I have forgotten it.  But I do know that the setting of Kallamehr was established there.  As for Slaves itself, I have never played it.  Mainly because of the cover, which interestingly the authors fought for.  I would have loved to see what the alternative is.  New authors are always interesting to see what they bring but two authors at once?  We have not seen that since the excellent Sword of the Samurai I think. 

Covers - 

Well it's only the one cover but what a wild one!  When I saw this as a kid I did not go near it as I thought it was a Sci-Fi one!

It almost looks like the prison General Zod was in during Superman 2!  To me it looks like a bunch of humans in a space prison, maybe the aforementioned slaves.  The Abyss seems to be filled with spectral pterodactyls.

The real strange thing is the cone headed dude in the foreground.  Will be interesting to see who this is, with their fuzzy hair and scars.  

All in all it this is one of the more peculiar Fighting Fantasy covers I have seen.   

Premise - 

We are in the land of Kallamehr but all is not well.  Lady Carolina is the ruler after the death of her husband and its been nothing but problems.  There has been a sea war against Alkemis which cost many lives and now in the North, the armies of Bei-Han are preparing for an invasion.  Lady Carolina did not mess around and sent every single one of her armies to the mountain passes in the North, as they could be defended, but if the enemy got through to the plains beyond it then there would be trouble.

It is against this troubled backdrop that you arrive in Kallamehr.  The city is deserted with all the warriors missing.  This does mean the criminals are thriving so you bar the door to your room at night and sleep with your sword beside you in bed.  I hope you don't toss and turn in bed or that could be painful.

After a few weeks a wild-eyed messenger arrives in the city yelling to everyone about a new invasion from the East.  Kallamehr can not catch a break!  The messenger heads into the palace and less than hour later a servant arrives with a summons to appear in front of Lady Carolina, apparently your exploits as an adventurer have reached her!  Maybe she has been reading this blog. Well maybe not, if she had I doubt I would be getting a summons.  

Well it turns out that she was desperate as when I turn up there are another ten adventurers already there!  I know some of them, such as Sophia of Blacksand who you have shared danger with before.  Before we can have any banter we are ushered into an audience chamber. Sitting behind a huge black wood table is Lady Carolina herself with her sword of office in front of her.  But she is not alone.  She has her cousin Madhaerios with her who is described as fat with a nervous twitch in his nose.  There is Dunyazad of Ikhityan who is a small women but apparently the richest person in the land.  Sige the Silent is also there, an imposing women of ancient lineage.  I wonder if she is silent or if its an ironic nickname.  And finally Asiah Albudur, a stern faced judge.  So pretty much the five most important people in all of Kallamehr.  

Lady Carolina explains the situation where she fears an army of barbarian raiders from Kulak Isles are advancing from the east and all the armies are away to the North.  And even worse, her champion Ramedes the Invincible, the most feared warrior of all the southern lands, is away looking for a macguffin, erm a fabled relic.  I wonder if Ramedes has had to tattoo a unicorn on his head or find a strange selection of items?  But here is our chance to be heroes, by undertaking the defence of the city.  You may be few but that means greater glory.

Playthrough -

Apparently my sword is made from fangthane steel.  What does this mean, well it gives me a killing blow ability.  If I roll a double 6 in attack its an instant kill!  I have a sturdy backpack!  Not just any backpack.  But it only allows me 5 provisions.  Maybe I did not appreciate the quality of my previous backpacks that could hold 10!

Stats are the same as usual with Skill, Stamina and Luck.

I also start with 5 gold which I have left over from my last adventure.

Time is back!  This adventure is a race against time and you must keep track and tick it off when prompted.  And some of the boxes have paragraphs to turn to when you hit them.  Initially I could not see the time box on the adventure sheet, but that's because its not there, instead its on the inside of the front cover!

A jaunty looking hour glass, with a ruined city at the bottom showing what happens if you fail!

Look how jolly this dude is!

Skill - 10

Stamina - 20

Luck - 8

Well those are below average rolls but not terrible.  No potions for this one either.  Must remember that my sword decapitates on a double 6.

Everyone is up for the task as all the adventurers swear their allegiance.  Just for the reward of being an actual hero rather than a wandering adventurer.  The nobles set up the plan.  Someone needs to go and fetch half the army back, another needs to scout out this new force and the rest are to stay in the city and prepare its defence.  Well someone else can go and fetch the army.  Staying in the city sounds like a good way to find out more about it.  But really we have no idea what you are protecting the city from so I think ill go have a look.

This gets me a seat at the top table and waited on by Carolina's very own servants and page.  Madhaerious talks to me, basically saying don't do anything daft, just find out what we are facing and get back to tell us so we can prepare.  I also get advise from Dunyazad to visit the Temple of Fourga.  I get a light touch from the servant on my shoulder as he walks away and see a folded note that he has dropped on my lap.  Do I want to read it now or later?  I think ill wait until I am away from my present company.

Duyazad continues on and tells me to stick to the roads as even if they are a longer route they will still be quicker than going cross country.  After I leave the table I check the note which says "Beware - you are watched by a thousand eyes."  Thats a lot eyes!

I go to the stables to get a horse where I am approached by Sige the Silent who is described as very tall but with a quite voice, which is where the nickname comes from.  She wants to give me a magical item that will help on my journey, its a pomander of rare herbs.  If I wear it around my neck it will remove the need for sleep!  Well that is useful when we are against time.  It is handed over by a her servant who is described as a poor deformed creature who wears a hood and you guess to hide its piteously ugly face!  Now in 2025 I think that's terrible.  Putting my 1988 hat on though, something is not right and that normally means evil.  With no time to waste I mount up and and make my way to the grand gate.

I ride until nightfall and despite my magic item meaning I do not have to sleep, unfortunately my horse does...ah.  So I tether the horse and spend the night just milling around.  Luckily as I spot some approaching shadows as I feign sleep.  Do I want to wait till they are close and jump up now?

Deciding not to let them get close and I jump up and kick the embers of the fire at them.  Turns out its three black elves who decided to flee instead of fight.

Nothing happens for the rest of the night and the next day the journey continues.  I go through several different villages and get surly reactions from the villagers.  Even when I stop to refill my water they ignore me.  Maybe they do not like city folk out in the country.  I arrive at Hasrah and get the option to press on and spend a night in the open or visit the Temple of Fourga.  I also have to tick off a time box.  Well I got advised to visit the temple so lets check it out.

The wrinkly priests are not pleased to see me.

So it turns out Fourga is the god of pride.  I am admitted by a priest who is very cold towards me and takes me to the high priest.  He is even more unhappy.  "So, the lone dog dares to darken our portals once more with its presence!"  Not sure what my reputation is but someone has been talking smack about me.  The priest then asks me to empty my backpack.  Fair enough, nothing in there but cheese sandwiches.  

I am asked if I have a Golden Fist, which I do not.  The priests have a good rake through my stuff, clearly looking for the fist.  They demand to know what I did with it but I protest my innocence and tell them I am on an important mission and Dunyazad herself told me to visit the temple.  They decide to test my story.

The High Priest to me.

I am imprisoned in a cell and left to pace up and down for an hour wondering what has gone wrong.  Eventually he comes back and says he has spoken to Dunyazad and she has instructed for them to let me go.  He really, really despises having to let me go.  But they do return my possessions and I am on my way.

My next choice is to cut across country or stick to the roads.  Well the advice to go to the temple did not go well but they can't have all given bad advice?  Could they?  Ill stick to the roads.

What is going on here?!

The road is well used and I am surrounded by thick woodland.  All of a sudden an Ox runs past in the opposite direction.  We soon find out why as an upturned cart with a dead Ox is on the road further up.  My horse is not happy and a black swathed figure looks up but I can not penetrate the darkness to see beneath the hood.  With a shriek it runs off into the undergrowth.  Do I wish to chase it or examine the cart.  Well I do not fancy going after the strange shadow monster so lets check out the cart.

The Ox has been horribly mutilated with a grey slime eating into its flesh.  It is quite the foul sight but I notice something pink in the grass nearby so go and have a look.  It turns out to be a mask, of my own face!  Its made of wax so I destroy it.  This explains why everyone has been cold to me, someone has been pretending to be me!  Should have chased whatever it was down.

I have to tick off another time box so already up to 3.  I keep to the road alongside a fast flowing river before arriving at a stockade.  Curious villagers come out to greet me and this lot are friendly!  They even treat me to a meal to restore stamina but I have not lost any yet, or even been in a battle!  Everything is going well until I hear a commotion outside and some of the villagers go to investigate.  Do I want to follow them or stay in the hut?

I decide to go out for a look and it is twilight outside.  An old wise women is speaking to the villagers and then points right at me and says "The prophecy of the winged messenger is fulfilled!  Our Protector has come to save us from the creeping horde!  Tell us that you will stay with us and deliver us from evil."  Do I want to agree or tell her she is mistaken.  This is tough, I feel like I cant stay but they are the only people that have been nice to me so far.  

So I agree and everyone cheers.  Apparently there is a test to prepare for but the old women gives zero clue to what it is and the more I feel she is a bit mad (my in game character says so) .  I rest staring through the smoke-hole of the bright moon (since I cant sleep).

It is not a pleasant night.  The sound of the night is all river insects but eventually an unnatural rasping noise takes over.  Followed by screaming villagers.  Trying to leave by the door does not work as it wont budge, then a serpentine shape makes its way done the smoke hole.

 

Its only the Riddling Reaver himself!

Turns out the "serpent" is actually a rope.  The reaver gives me an expansive bow before introducing himself.  He tells me I have made a complete pigs ear of my mission so he is to here to save my bacon.  Apparently I should not waste my time on every peasant who needs help.  He points to the top saying it is the end of the line and disappears back up, just as the bar of my door scrapes back.  I decide to follow him.

I do not even have to climb and the rope fires up into the sky and I am whisked away from the angry villagers with their flaming torches.  Is the angry buzzing sound coming from the reaver?  We fly for some distance before he sets me down.  He gives me a bottle that is shaped like an ugly fish which he says he stole in his impetuous youth.  He advises to return it to its owner as I will meet him soon.  Apparently there is nothing so soft as a villain with a sense of humour.  With a wink he shoots back up the rope and drifts off.  I am now alone without my horse so I settle in for the rest of the night.  Wait how come, it was the horse that was holding me back since I do not need to sleep?  Maybe I still get tired. 

When morning comes I realise I am by the roadside and my horse is here.  There is a note that says - 

Ah a riddle from the reaver.  I do not have to answer it but I do get 2 luck points.  But I do have to tick off a time box.  I feel I should try and answer it though, in case it matters at some point.  This took me quite some time and even then I am not sure if I got it.  But vanquished by a word makes me think it could be silence.  Maybe.

I still have not rolled a dice in anger.  The wind from the east is bringing a sickly-sweet stench, no coincidence I guess that I am heading that way.  I find a settlement that appears deserted, the road littered with objects which makes me think they left in a panic.  I enter cautiously and hear a faint knocking sound on the right.  Do I investigate, go left or hurry out of the village.

Lets start by searching the buildings away from the knocking.  Should be the safer option.  

Puppets, nothing good can come from puppets!

I decide to ignore the puppets for the evil creatures they are and look for the other stuff instead.  I find a note - 

The brush bearers gloves, ok.  Do I want to look at the puppets?  Nope!  There are three potions I can have now or take for later.  They are all cloudy brown and are called Ghulsh, Arahl, Zazzaz.  So no idea how to differentiate them, but one will be good, one will be ok and one will be a disaster.  And since I am doing ok so far I decide not to risk it and leave them.  

I then leave the village, I was kind of hoping to get the opportunity to investigate the knocking but ok.  The next village is the same, signs of fighting but no sign of bloodshed or people.  I get the option to head back or keep going east.  Well I think they have passed me now, as heading east I keep finding empty villages, so they must be past my present location.  So I head back to try and find them.  

As I gallop back the horse rears up.  Something is amiss.  But I can smell something sour and musty,  We follow a steep path and I get asked if I have marked off more than 10 time units.  Just the 5 so far.

That black splodge in the distance is a massive invading army.

Yep I have found the army.  From a distance it appears as black lava but it is people.  More than the entire Kallamehr army.  Do I want to go in for a close look or make for the village on the left?  I really feel I need to know more about the army before I can report back, but I decide to head to the village to see if I can save them in time.

I am asked if Mema is with me, nope!  I make it to the village stockade and can no longer see the army.  The gates are shut so I hammer at them.  A face briefly appears before disappearing and tells me to leave.  I try and tell them that they need to flee now, but they hide instead.  The black horde appear in the distance so I abandon the villagers and ride off. 

The Black horde are left behind me, still many miles from Kallamehr but engulfing everything in its path.  I do not know any weakness but I decide to forewarn Kallamehr so they can evacuate.  I need to tick another time box (up to 7).  I can ride for Kallamehr or try and find out more about the enemy.  Or search for an enchanter if I recognize the name Enthymesis....which I do not.

I decide to head back to where I started.  I push the horse hard through the countryside of Kallamehr.  My horse is really struggling now and must rest as I get to the market town of Kamadan.  An Ostler helps me off my horse and I struggle to the inn and collapse into a rickety bed.  

But no matter how tired I am I still have Sige's pomander keeping me up.  The book suggests this is more a hinderance than a help as my body needs true rest, squirming in tortured agony.  Do I want to remove it?  Yes I love sleep so it has to go.  Plus that evil grotesque thing that gave it to me is suspicious.

I manage to lower my head and take it off.  I get hit by a wave of exhaustion and fall unconscious on the bed.  Adding another time tick.

Do I get a good nights sleep though finally?  No of course not.  I awake with a start gagging violently on acrid smoke.  The room is full of it and there is a red glow by the door.  I cover my face with the bedsheet and get to the windows and open them.  Outside the window is a hovering a black-clad figure.  I can not see the dark beneath the hood but there is a reflection of the red glow from the fire.  There is a loud buzzing as well.  I take a swing at it but it flies upwards.  Do I run for the door, go out the window or look for another way out.  Well I am at the window already so lets jump.

I grab my possessions and lob them out the window before I go to follow.  Lowering myself and dangling from the window by my fingertips, I sense a presence above me.  Do I want to look up?  No not really lets go right now!

I feel this was the right decision as when I land I feel my back being spattered with viscous liquid (not sure how I know that).  Ah its bubbling and hissing, a dead giveaway of viscous liquid.  I tear off my jerkin and throw it in a water trough and steam rises as it hits the water.  Looking up finally I see a black winged creature as it flies off into the night and disappears.

  

Myself and a growing crowd of locals watch as the roof of the inn collapses from the fire.  With no inn I start to wonder where I will stay.  It is then I feel metal against my neck and a gruff voice says "One move and you're a cut of beef, stranger."  Do I want to stay still, shout for help or try and disarm him?  Well ill just wait and see where this goes and I do as he wishes.

Apparently I recognize the voice.  Its my old blade master Barolo!  Of course it is.  We have a good laugh but I do notice a wooden stump in the place of his left leg.  He notices me looking and says he traded the old one in with a dragon.  He invites me to stay the night at his house.  Its flea ridden but I don't care.  Do I want to wear Sige's pomander?  No that can get in the bin.

I sleep well and get 2 stamina back, which I do not need as I still have not rolled a dice yet!  I go and pick up the horse which costs me 1 gold but it is in good condition.  Barolo gives me a nice buckler shield so I get +1 skill when in combat.  That will be excellent if I ever get in a fight!  Do I want to give Barolo a gift back, yes have this pomander.  I tick another time box.  

In the very next passage I make it back to Kallamehr and have to tick off another time box!  When I try and get to the palace though the guards call me a peasant and they have no need of kitchen hands.  Do I talk them down, or draw my sword?  Well I have got this far without throwing a dice so now its becoming a thing.  So I try and talk to them.

One goes off to check but it appears they are too busy with Lady Carolina's funeral arrangements.  WAIT WHAT!?  I did not see that coming.  They tell me to come back tomorrow and have a bath.  I can try and bribe, get the sword out or do as they say.  

I still have plenty time on the chart so I head back into town.  My character is very annoyed that I have gone from a life and death mission to being ignored.  Yep, another time box as I stay in a rooming house.  When I go back to the palace the next day there is a fair amount of citizens going through the gates.  There are rumors that she died from grief of her husband or demise to dark powers.  The body is lying in state and I see Madhaerios, Dunyazad, Asiah and Sige sitting there.

The Gangs all here!

I am in line to kiss the hand of the departed ruler.  I get to overhear a hilarious conversation in front of me where a wife is refusing to let her husband kiss her hand since he poached her swans and his guilt would turn her skin black.  The husband is like, don't be daft the tale is if the murderer kisses victim on the lips the body turns black as burnt parchment.  It comes to my turn and I kiss the hand, luckily it does not go black.  I see Luthaur who was one of the adventurer that stayed behind to get the city right and he is fidgeting with his sword and does not recognize me which is odd. Do I want to mount the platform and confront the nobles, hold up a scarlet locket (do not have one) or slip into the crowd and watch?  Something is clearly up here so I will hold back and see what is going on.

I watch for several hour until Madhaerios addresses the crowd by reading the service.  He says they will be executing traitors and the army had done well against Bei-Han.  Most interestingly he says as she had no heir, he is taking over as Baron.  Do I want to leave Kallamehr or do I stay and investigate.  Well at the moment I want to find out more.  I suspect all the nobles, with their dodgy advice about temples, funky pomander's and now taking over the city.

I notice that none of the other heroes who stayed to defend the city are to be found.  I go to the Parrot-in-a-Cage Inn and make inquires.  It turns out they have all met with unfortunate accidents.  One mysteriously vanished while walking the ramparts at night, another shot himself with a crossbow.  Another was found impaled on one of the swords carried by the statue of justice.  Mine is particularly bizarre as I am walking down an empty street when..... dam it!

Not one dice rolled.

Notable Encounters - 

There are plenty of notable encounter in this book, including some in my playthrough like the attack and fire at the inn, so apologies if I do not cover them all.

So those monks that did not like me on my playthrough.  If I did have the Golden Fist (picked up if you fight and defeat the black elves), it can get you in even more bother.  Even if you bypass the temple they will hunt you down in a later village if you have it.  They are so desperate for it back as if it opens up they get their youth back.  All in all, not a very nice priesthood.

You even become a responsible adult for a child.

Mema here is hiding where those spooky puppets are.  She is the apprentice to the enchanter Enthymesis.  She gives you vital information and a blowpipe.  You do have to get her back to her parents though in another village.  Also she is covered in green slime if you want to clean her up first.

The Forest of Illusion is interesting.  You have three paths which each correspond to a number (1,2,3) and when you have been in each one you have to use the numbers to go to the next paragraph, and then make your way through the rest of it.

The incompetent Goblins are very entertaining.

One of the encounters in the forest injects some comedy into an otherwise dark book.  Some goblins have set up an ambush but the first one who jumps out and fires his crossbow at you misses and hits his mate who is creeping up behind you.  As he advances to make up for it another goblin activates a noose trap that sends him flying into the air.  This third goblin then flees and just as you think you are in for an easy time an Ogre shows up to give you a tough battle.

Murkurons need your help.

So you stumble across these silver skinned guys desperately holding a door closed.  Now of course in most Fighting Fantasy they would be bad guys and you have plenty opportunity to attack them.  But they are holding the door against the real bad guys and if you help them hold the door it gives their wizard a chance to incinerate them with the fire spell.  They do mysteriously disappear straight away though.  

Hey Barlow!  How come you never taught me that?

So I did meet Barlow in my playthrough but if I had successfully disarmed him we would have stayed up all night being taught the Spitting Fly.  This technique allows you to throw your sword and instant kill your foe.  You can only do it when you get offered but there is the chance that if you do not kill then you have to fight without a sword at -2 skill.  So its a gamble.  But it worked on that poor rat. 

One of the best parts of the book is when you go back to Kallamehr and its clear things are not right.  I should have forced or bribed my way in as it was much more exciting.  As you are staying there you hear the buzzing and see the mysterious cloud leaving one of the rooms, indicating that someone in the castle is a traitor.  Like a peeping tom you sneak around looking through all their windows.

Asiah is having a conversation with the dead Carolina who is clearly not there.  Dunyazad is packing up looking to leave in a hurry.  Sige is meditating in front of a map of the land with pieces, almost like a war map.   Madhaerios is hiding under the bed and then throws away his food in suspicion.  It basically manages to point doubt on everyone.

Madhaerios just before the aforementioned chicken is thrown.  Not sure how he does not see you, I mean he is looking straight at you!

We find the hero Ramedes drugged and in prison, dangling above a horror.  If you do manage to defeat the monster, and kill the jailer you can bust him out.  Awesome we might have another hero to work with.  But when you tell him of Lady Carolina's death he gives you the talisman he found on his quest and proceeds to charge off and fight the entire castle in revenge.  Erm wait their Ramedes, the guards did not kill her.  I think Ramedes might be a bit of a nutter.  Very similar to the hero in Warlock of Firetop Mountain.  Maybe its just what happens to adventurers eventually. 

I also should not have slinked away at the funeral.  If I had made a scene I would have been able to accuse one of the nobles.  Now I did not have any of the information to make a decision and Sige only gives herself away really if you have the amulet from Ramedes.  But if you make them do the old mans ritual and kiss the corpse you can prove the traitor.  If you get it wrong though its all over.  What follows is a pretty easy battle with Sige.

That's for not letting me sleep!  

Sige story does not end there though.  In the Abyss itself you can find her as a crystal statue.  If you free her she thanks you and gives you some duff information.  Then when you get to the climax of the final battle she show up behind you and slits your throat.  Of course she can also get a victory by you beating Bythos but not unmasking her as the traitor and she ends up ruling Kallamehr.

And then there is this crazy lady and her snake!

Artwork - 

Bob Harvey is back for the fourth time!  Previous entries have been mixed (Talisman, Seas, Demons) where I have seen some excellent art but also some that was less so.  Here I would say it is average, we have seen a lot better from him but overall its not bad, just ok.  

From my playthrough, nothing really stands out as amazing.  I like the puppet scene and the army in the distance.  But the bar has been set high.

But there is an absolute beauty in here - 

The Hornet Assassin who is dogging your steps for most of the adventure looks amazing!

Ive looked better!

Tasbadh enacts a phishing scam Fighting Fantasy style.
 

He does draw a good Hornet!

This was one of my favorite moments.  But I feel its let down by the art.

How hard did you throw that sword!?

To be fair to Bob, trying to draw a battle between two creatures that have never been seen before is a tough challenge!

Big Bad - 

I don't recall any other Big Bads standing 50 feet tall!

So Bythos is the master of the Abyss.  He does appear on the mortal world as the slave master, being carried on his palanquin at the head of the army.  Bizarrely though he finds ugly fish bottles so funny he can not defend himself.  But that is just the prequel.  The real battle is in the Abyss itself where he is his massive self.

Bythos is no fool either, you can not go straight up against him or he will just laugh at you and dismantle you.  If you knock over his goblet, your dead.  If you spike his drink, your dead.  If you do not eat the herbs in your pomander he will turn you into crystal with his breath.  You need to play it coy and sneak a drink and not give him any indication that you are the hero.  

If you do that then you also grow to the same giant size.  It mentions your cloak tears but no mention of your other clothes, I imagine you are in the nude.  And then a chase ensues.  It can end in a straight fight and he is Skill 10 Stamina 10 which is quite reasonable for the end boss.  But you can also breathe on him and turn him to crystal to instant kill him since he has not eaten the protective herbs!  

Its quite an adventure of a battle which I like a lot.  But what about Bythos himself?  You start with knowing nothing, you do not even know what the threat is.  However, as the story unfolds we learn more.  Bythos is using the hornets whose sting send the soul of the victims to be imprisoned in the Abyss.  There bodies are still in our world though but they are zombie like slaves at the command of Bythos.  

So he is using them as an army to take over the world?  Well not really, it is more nuanced than that.  He is defeating places and taking their magic items.  Those magic items are sent back to the abyss where they are broken up into a liquid which is gathered and drunk by Bythos, and that is where he gets his power.  

Its really a lot more than the normal bad guy wants to take over the world. 

Menagerie - 

As you can see from my playthrough there is not a lot of enemies to fight here.  The ones that they do  have though have a large variety with a lot of unique monsters.

We get some Black Elves, Goblins and Ogre but they are rare and single entries.  Some guards as well as you would expect but the majority are a bit odd, especially when you get to the Abyss which as you would imagine are very fanciful.

There is an odd encounter in a wine cellar where a wretch is trapped in a wine flooded basement.  It does not say its a zombie but it certainly behaves like one.  If you escape you hear it still tapping at the cellar door.  A nice touch.

Better save this poor soul that's trapped in the ant nest.  Oh wait no its an Ant Symbiote made up of ants!

Kokomokoa are described as squat green lizards with evil yellow eyes.  They seem to be in a war against the Murkurons.  They are pretty low skill and you do not see them depicted but they sound like fancy named Lizardmen.

Look in the bottom left!

Yep that is the hero Ramedes just dangling up there.  The monster he is avoiding is the Quagrant!  It has one big eye, grey flesh and a great big gaping maw.  Its got a lot of stamina but only skill 8.  However if it wins an attack round you get sucked in the mouth and every attack round after you automatically lose 2 stamina.  Still I thought the god level hero Ramedes is meant to be he would just beat it up.  Well to be fair, he has no weapon and is drugged, so I will let him off!

The Maijem Nosoth is pretty much a Chaos Spawn.

He is skill 10, stamina 10, making him one of the toughest creatures to fight.  It really does not like a whistle though!

The gatherer is pretty much in charge of feeding Bythos and throw spears at you.

The Crystal Warriors are the most normal creature to fight in the Abyss.

The more fantastical are the spirit pterodactyl like, treasure hunting, spirit birds called Ectovults and the octopus like Anemorus help make the Abyss a more unique location compared to Allansia.

Entertaining Deaths -

Oh my, there is a lot of ways to die here.  Which makes my job a lot easier in this section!

You decide to stay and protect the city.  Next thing you know its the future and someone is trying to buy your sword from a merchant who pulled it from the ruins of Kallamehr.  My remains lie unmourned amongst the rubble.  

Dithering about in the wilderness and running out of time.  You flee Allansia in shame.

Drowning in wine.

Drowning in oily black water.

Drowning trying to retrieve a nice looking sword.   A lot of drowning in this book.

Getting trapped in the Abyss jail with everyone else.

Trailing the army and watching it burn village after village.

Calling the sage Aletheia Albudur by mistake, in a complete overaction she summons a giant snake to constrict you.  

Prioritising protecting a small village instead of the city.

Realising the pomander is slowing you down after fighting guards, taking it off and falling asleep and waking up in a cell.

Using your blow pipe to shoot up at a jailer, the powder floats down and covers you instead.

Following Ramedes when he decides to take on the entire castle.

Holding up a golden fist at Bythos who says most kind, throws it away and then uses his crystal breath on you.

Becoming lord of the abyss but Sige becomes the ruler of Kallamehr as an evil Tyrant.

My favorite for this one though is - 

Defeating Bythos but using the blue crystal potion to send yourself back from the Abyss.  You survive but at the cost of thousands of innocent people, you are no hero.

Pete's Corner -

Turns out it is best not to stay behind and protect the city.

Final Thoughts - 

I did not have high expectations here.  The cover does not impress me and I thought it sounded dull.  I was very wrong.

I will start with the general writing style.  You never know what you are going to get with new authors.  Paul and Steve (from now I will just say the authors as I do not know who does what) do a fantastic job with the information in their paragraphs.  They get the level of description just right and I never felt I has a bland left or right choice.  I felt I was able to make educated decisions based on the information given.  Do not get me wrong, some decisions are difficult but its better than previous installments.

And continuing the theme of the writing, is the story.  You do not get much information on what is going on, there is no massive info dump of history and an evil villain to go after.  But instead the story unfolds during the adventure.  There could be a threat to the east, might be nothing, lets go and have a look.  It starts with everyone not liking to you for no reason because one of the hornet assassins is pretending to be you and dragging your name through the mud.  Then you start finding the empty villages, leading to finding the mystery army.  But instead of answers its more questions, its an army of villagers.  Normally this would be the lead in to the end of the book but instead you are going back to the start to report back and the person who sent you is dead!  

I love the encounter at the inn before returning to find Kallamer in the state that its in and the great twist.  Plus I really love the traitor mechanic.  It is far from obvious as well with who it is and they do a very good job of creating doubt.  Another great job is building a world that has a lot of moving parts.  It feels alive with lots of characters in it, and they are doing their own thing independent of your actions.  Then you get through that and you are back in the world heading to the forest and finding out more information and piecing together Bythos's plan all the way to getting to through the Abyss.  Which takes me to the ending.

I have read that originally the authors wanted to have you sacrifice yourself by leaving you alone in the Abyss.  But Steve Jackson overruled them as people should be rewarded with lots of gold and treasure.  What they have done is allow you to get everyone back and you are stuck in the Abyss but instead the big snake teaches you and eventually you become a god that can time travel between the cosmos and planes of existence.  But that is another tale for another time.  Its a very different type of ending and I love it.

A fantastic story with great pacing.  But what about the technical part?  Well I like the instant kill mechanic, even though I never got the chance to use it.  There are no crazy impossible battles, a lower skilled person does have a chance.  And no crazy item hunt either although some are necessary.  The difficulty is in the specific set of things you need to do and the order to do them.  It can be quite difficult with a lot of instant deaths but with enough playthroughs the correct path can be found.  I was worried that the Forest of Illusions was going to be a dreaded maze but it was ok, and perfectible mappable.  

The herb puzzle near the end is odd though, it is a good anti cheat device but I am confused why Sige would give you the very thing you need to protect you from Bythos. It does not make sense.  Unless its just a quirk of fate that the thing she gives you to hinder you accidently helps you.

I also liked the idea of the time mechanic, especially with it triggering events.  But in reality it appears it would be very difficult to run out of time so the threat is not really there.  If the events were moved up earlier it would be better.

Bythos does not appear to get much love in the community but I really like him.  You do not get his motivations spelled out obviously but if you make it through the story it becomes clear.  And come on, he is a 50 foot super giant!  And his use of the Hornet Assassin to dog your steps is a nice touch.  The rest of the menagerie is suitably unique but some of them are a bit wild.  One random disgusting creature is enough but we get a few.

The only negative I have is the artwork.  I do not think its Bob Harvey's best work.  Do not get me wrong, it is by no means bad but this story deserved better.  And I really do not like the cover either.

But overall, this was superb.  It was different and felt a little less Fighting Fantasy during my playthrough but the story and atmosphere more than made up for it!  Looking forward to more from these guys.

Score - 8 out of 10.