Mikl posted:

HAY TANITH WHAT ARE YOU DOING UP SO LATE?

Mikl posted:

HAY TANITH WHAT ARE YOU DOING UP SO LATE?

hey girl you up posted:

Mikl posted:

HAY TANITH WHAT ARE YOU DOING UP SO LATE?

Grey Star the Wizard posted:

You get up and walk over to Tanith, who looks up with a startled expression.

‘Grey Star,’ she gasps, ‘I … I could not resist. I am sorry … ’

The campfire bursts into vivid flame, flaring high into the air. Wreathed in the lurid light is the figure of Mother Magri, who intones the words of a spell in a strange, guttural tongue.

‘Grey Star,’ says Tanith, ‘beware!’

nelson posted:

Sorcery sounds like a better option than attacking fire. 🔥

nelson posted:

Sorcery sounds like a better option than attacking fire. 🔥

nelson posted:

Sorcery sounds like a better option than attacking fire. 🔥

Comstar posted:

Sorcery

Grey Star the Wizard posted:

You concentrate the power of your thought and, at the cost of 2 WILLPOWER points, a shimmering field of energy encircles you. The form of Mother Magri disappears from the heart of the fire to be replaced by a far more sinister vision. A great shadow of impenetrable darkness appears in the flames of the fire. You see two blank eye-slits and a gaping mouth as the shadow creature lunges towards you.

Willpower: 2.

‘A Kleasá!’ Tanith screams. ‘A Soul-eater!’



You must fight the Kleasá to the death¹. For every round of combat, subtract 1 WILLPOWER point and 2 ENDURANCE points from your total. If you have erected a magical shield of Sorcery, subtract 1 WILLPOWER point and 1 ENDURANCE point for every round of combat as the Kleasá tries to claw at your soul.

Runcible Cat posted:

Let's try for a one-shot. If it works we'll look like the ultimate badass!

Grey Star the Wizard posted:

‘A Kleasá!’ Tanith screams. ‘A Soul-eater!’



You must fight the Kleasá to the death¹. For every round of combat, subtract 1 WILLPOWER point and 2 ENDURANCE points from your total. If you have erected a magical shield of Sorcery, subtract 1 WILLPOWER point and 1 ENDURANCE point for every round of combat as the Kleasá tries to claw at your soul.

Grey Star the Wizard posted:

The Kleasá seems to be growing stronger as it erodes your will. No matter how badly you damage the fabric of the creature, you cannot alter the phantom’s ability to feed on your spirit.

Suddenly the creature grows, wrapping its whole body around you, engulfing you in a terrible darkness. You lose 5 WILLPOWER points and 5 ENDURANCE points.

Endurance: 13/23.
Willpower: -3.

You are too weak to resist and your soul is devoured by the dark phantom. You fall to the ground, a lifeless shell; you are another victim of the malice of Mother Magri and the dark servants of the Shadakine Empire.

Your life and your quest end here.

Grey Star the Wizard posted:

You must fight the Kleasá to the death¹. For every round of combat, subtract 1 WILLPOWER point and 2 ENDURANCE points from your total. If you have erected a magical shield of Sorcery, subtract 1 WILLPOWER point and 1 ENDURANCE point for every round of combat as the Kleasá tries to claw at your soul.

Grey Star the Wizard posted:

The Kleasá seems to be growing stronger as it erodes your will. No matter how badly you damage the fabric of the creature, you cannot alter the phantom’s ability to feed on your spirit.

Suddenly the creature grows, wrapping its whole body around you, engulfing you in a terrible darkness. You lose 5 WILLPOWER points and 5 ENDURANCE points.

Endurance: 9/23.
Willpower: 2.

You are smothered in an all-consuming darkness. Somewhere, seemingly far off, a muffled cry reaches your ears. It is Shan. ‘Tanith, you must save him,’ he cries. Then you hear Tanith’s clear and brave voice for the last time … 

‘Kleasá Tanith, Mundi Gudro,’ chants Tanith, repeating the words over and over.

Suddenly, the darkness is lifted, and you see Tanith throw herself onto the raging fire. The black shadow of the Kleasá flies towards her. As the Kleasá engulfs her burning body, she gives one last, agonized cry, ‘Grey Star, do not fail!’

The fire erupts, and in a blinding flash, both Tanith and the Kleasá disappear. All that remains is a splash of smoking embers. You swoon and lapse into unconsciousness where you lie.

You wake the following morning, drained and depressed. Your traumatic experience has caused you to lose 1 WILLPOWER point during your sleep.

‘We must go on,’ insists Shan, ‘to make her sacrifice worthwhile.’

You know he is right, and wearily, you get to your feet and pull on your Backpack to continue your journey. ‘We will reach the Azagad Gorge this afternoon if we set a good pace,’ says Shan.

As the sun reaches its zenith, you notice how hot and humid the atmosphere has become. The plains of the Wilderwastes are now barren: a dry desert of ugly rocks and boulders stretches before you. You have many more days of travelling ahead of you and your food supplies are running low. The Azan River begins to narrow as you draw nearer to Lake Shenwu, the source of the river, lying beneath the Wall of Azakawa and the Shenwu Falls. Beyond that, lies the Azanam, home of the Lost Tribe of Lara.

Shan draws your attention to a wooden shack to the east. It is a strange sight so far from civilization.

Willpower: 1.

nelson posted:

Wow, what a way to die, and die again, and die again.

Let’s investigate! 🕵️‍♂️

nelson posted:

Let’s investigate! 🕵️‍♂️

Deptfordx posted:

I've been waiting for this. That boss fight is total bullshit and the author clearly put no thought into balancing the encounter, even by the standards of an 80's CYOA book.

Deptfordx posted:

I've been waiting for this. That boss fight is total bullshit and the author clearly put no thought into balancing the encounter, even by the standards of an 80's CYOA book.

Tiggum posted:

It's not great, but it's got nothing on some of the fights in Lone Wolf. Zakhan Kimah, for example. Or the Chaos Master. Or, like, everything in The Deathlord of Ixia. You can beat the Kleasá. It's not a fair fight and having it kill you even if you win if your EP or WP are too low is a real dick move, but compared with the Grand Master series it's nothing.

nelson posted:

Let’s investigate! 🕵️‍♂️

Grey Star the Wizard posted:

You make your way to the shack. It looks deserted. The door hangs half open, and the windows are overgrown with an innocuous, yellow/brown weed called Ogosho, indigenous to this area. You hear a rustling sound coming from within.

TooMuchAbstraction posted:

It's time for Shan to start pulling his weight here.

Mister Perky posted:

Cast Meatshield and have Shan investigate

TooMuchAbstraction posted:

It's time for Shan to start pulling his weight here.

moosecow333 posted:

Shan, we just fought a hell daemon, you can take the lead on this one

Grey Star the Wizard posted:

Shan casts a sheepish glance at you and nervously enters the shack. After a brief pause, he returns with a relieved look on his face. ‘It’s all right,’ he says, ‘the place is deserted.’

You enter the shack and see dust-laden furniture and a clutter of spades, picks, and sieves stacked in one corner. Suddenly a yellow-spotted lizard scuttles out from under the table and dashes towards you.

‘It’s all right,’ says Shan. ‘It’s a Jerbokan—they’re harmless.’ The frightened lizard scampers past you and out through the door.

Shan begins to rummage around while telling you that the former occupants were probably jade prospectors, since the Azan River is said to carry deposits of jade, the precious stone used to make Noble pieces. He finds some appetising smoked meat and shares it equally, offering you enough food for 5 Meals. (Remember to mark these on your Action Chart.) A further search reveals nothing else of value, and you leave the shack.

Automatically took 2 Meals.

You head south across the desolate plain, but after a few minutes Shan stops, shielding his eyes with his hand as he peers eastwards. ‘Can you feel it?’ he asks.

At first you are not sure what he means, but then you notice that the atmosphere has changed. A wind has started up, and tumbleweeds and pools of fine brown dust eddy in busy spirals. Shan points towards the horizon and you spot a great cloud of dust rolling towards you.

‘Dust storm,’ says Shan. ‘Looks like a mean one.’