Fighting Fantasy Amateur Adventures

THE WICKER HAMPER by SEAN LOFTIS

AMATEUR ADVENTURE DESCRIPTION:

We are proud to present this exclusive and original amateur adventure on the Official Fighting Fantasy™ Gamebook's web site, written by Sean Loftis.

BACKGROUND

You're on vacation in the big city. Your room at the Wayfaring Stranger has been paid for in advance for the next two weeks, but your cash reserves have dwindled down to almost nothing. In an effort to cut back on expenses, you decide to set out on foot and explore your surroundings. There should be plenty of things to see and do in a big city without costing you an arm and a leg (yeah, right!). If you can't find a museum or art gallery, then perhaps you can find some local street performers or a flea market to while away the hours.

With this thought in mind, you're attracted to a large crowd of people on an otherwise vacant lot. You can hear a voice mumbling over a loudspeaker, but you can't make out anything it's saying or where it's coming from. A picket sign at the edge of the assemblage reads:

ESTATE AUCTION
of "The Amazing Mumsford"
All proceeds to pay child support in arrears

You can't recall ever hearing of anyone by that name (at least, not anyone real, anyhow), but from their title, you decide they must have been in showbiz. You decide that there's a good chance something of interest might be auctioned off, and you press forward through the throng to see what's for sale.

However, when you finally catch sight of the auction block, you're disappointed to discover that the auction is nearly over and most of the items have already been claimed. From the looks of things, the "Amazing" Mumsford must have been a two-bit, amateur magician. Everything that's left is either cheap, gaudy, or broken — or some combination of all three — and the only thing that remains to be sold is a lichen covered wicker hamper, like the kind you put in the closet to keep your dirty underwear in.

And then, it happens. You get a tickling deep in your nasal cavity that will not be denied. And one sneeze later, and the auctioneer pounds his gavel and announces that you're the proud owner of a rotting wickerwork. And despite your pleas and declarations that you weren't really bidding at all, you're quickly parted from what little cash still remains you. Your only consolation is that they offer free delivery to your hotel room. With a heavy heart, you head back to the Wayfaring Stranger in the hopes of catching something decent on TV.

AUTHORS NOTES

WEAPONS

An important note is that you start this adventure without a weapon of any kind! To reflect this, you start out with a penalty to your Attack Strength. Whenever you enter a combat without a weapon, you must deduct 3 from your Attack Strength before comparing the result to your opponents. That is, when you roll two dice to add to your skill, deduct three and then compare it to your opponents Attack Strength. Should you find a weapon during the course of your adventure, you may remove this penalty. Remember, a weapon could mean the difference between life and death.

ADDITIONAL STATS

In addition to your attributes, there are two other values you need to keep track of as well. These are DAYS PASSED and SCORE, and you must keep a track of these on your Adventure Sheet. These both begin at zero and only change when the text instructs you to modify them.

There will be times during your adventure when you will come across an unusually dangerous situation and your SKILL, STAMINA or LUCK will be tested to the full; for example you may be instructed to Test your Skill, ‘adding 2 to the number rolled’. This simply means that when you roll two dice you must add 2 to the total; if you had rolled a 1 and a 3, for example, your modified total would be 6 (1 + 3 + 2 = 6). You then compare this outcome with your current SKILL score to discover whether you have succeeded in the test.

Since this is only a micro adventure, many of the standard Fighting Fantasy rules aren't used — and thus aren't included. You begin this adventure with no possessions or equipment, and you can only restore attributes when specifically told to do so by the text. However, unlike most other Fighting Fantasy Gamebooks, you'll be free to return to previous sections to pick up an item you might need or to catch up on your rest. Also, unlike most of the other Fighting Fantasy Gamebooks, this adventure has more than one possible solution, and your performance will be rated on a point system (hence the SCORE box on the Adventure Sheet).

You can restore lost STAMINA by drinking Healing Potions. You start the game with ten of these potions. You must keep track of how many potions you have left by filling in the details in the Healing Potions box of your Adventure Sheet. Each time you drink a potion you may restore up to 4 points of STAMINA, but remember to deduct 1 potion from your Healing Potions box. You may stop and drink any number of Healing Potions (as many as you have left in fact) at any time except when engaged in a battle or, of course, when you have run out. Your STAMINA score may never exceed its initial value unless specifically instructed on a page. Drinking the Potion of Strength (see later) will restore your STAMINA to its initial level at ant time; except when engaged in a battle.

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This item has been published here with permission from the author(s) and may not be reproduced without permission. This is a fan submission and its contents are completely unofficial. Some characters, places, likenesses and other names may be copyright Fighting Fantasy™ - Wizard Books®.