FF24: Talisman of Death

Here we enter another unique Fighting Fantasy gamebook; Talisman of Death. This is the twenty fourth book in the successful Fighting Fantasy gamebook series, this time written co-operatively by Jamie Thomson & Mark Smith. It is set in the world of Orb rather than the popular world of Titan and introduces us to the dangerous volcanic Fire Island.

Book Description: The once peaceful world of Orb is in terrible danger. Dark forces are at work to unleash the awesome might of the Evil One - and only YOU can stop them. YOUR mission is to destroy the Talisman of Death before the dark lord's minions reach you. But beware! Time is running out!

This book is set in the world of Orb, and is one of the two Fighting Fantasy books written by the team of Jamie Thomson and Mark Smith, who went on to have fame with another series of adventure books in the 1980s and 1990s, known as Fabled Land and The Crystal Maze.

The adventure sees you visit towns and caverns in order to reach the ultimate destination of your quest. On your way you will have to dispose of some very tough characters and solve some nasty puzzles. There are many tricks put in place by thieves and deities alike, and only the toughest may overcome them. The dark side creatures you will come across have all sorts of extra features that will leave the unwary adventurer dead in a heap in no time at all.

Unique to this adventure is the fact that on certain occasions when you die, there will be the opportunity of a resurrection. This means that once you get halfway though you can sometimes go back if you make a mistake without having to negotiate the town again.

There are plenty of interesting characters that you will meet on more than one occasion on your journey. These pop up constantly to try and thwart you, and this is not an adventure in which low skill scores will take you to your goal. Keeping the talisman is also a trying experience, and it is not long before you will find that you lose it, and recovering it can be the toughest part.

This is a hugely different adventure to most other Fighting Fantasy books. Although the general exploration is the same, the fact that someone is after you instead of you chasing them makes an interesting change.

About the Authors: Jamie Thomson and Mark Smith

Cover:
Martin McKenna

Illustrations:
Bob Harvey