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Doesn't look like anyone else is answering, so let fate decide! Odd we run, even we drink it. 5. Run away in fear and never come back! Whew. We'd have had an instant death, if we'd drunk that. So, do we gamble? Or shall we talk? Or make ourselves into a mysterious stranger sitting by himself with a hooded green cloak? If a group of hobbits come in, we aren't talking to them...

Activate creepy music! Oh, dear. Well, are we going to drink this?

We're getting asked again? This is beginning to get rather ominous...

Well, do we continue to enter the taxidermy shop?

Well, necromancy apparently worked! Sorry for the extended pause. Real life/burnout got in the way severely. Let's see if we can keep going this time! We walk off down Flute Street. Don't see any flutes yet, but do we enter the taxidermist?

We have room for as many as we want, up to the maximum of 3, so how many do we buy? No sign of Brass Street, so where do we go?

Well, do we buy?

I averaged the two votes giving amounts of money to bet, so we're betting ten gc. We gain 10GC = 47/50GC We were right. We spend 3GC=44/50GC I'm assuming we buy food, as we don't have any of our own. Not that it would have made any difference if we had... What could Curing be useful for, I wonder?

I got back to discover that my internet provider had cut my internet due to a 'server error', and it took several days for it to come back. I then had a bunch of other things come up, so am only now able to post this. Well, we need to decide how much to wager. We currently have 37GC, so there's no point in betting more than 13GC or our winnings wouldn't fit in the belt pouch. We also need to work out the answer, and I'll say that it is possible to work out from the information we were given. Remember that the showman told us that at least one of them lied.

By the way, I'll be away from tomorrow until Friday, so don't expect any more updates until then.

Aah! Why did none of these posts show up when I refreshed? Hello, magic user in a tavern. You remind me of the last magic user we met in a tavern, who just died a horrible death after agreeing to help us. Where are you going? Well, are we feeling intelligent today?

Richi, I think your vote was for 20. I hope so, anyway, as that's what we're doing! Ah. Erm. Yes, our arrow. Well, the book didn't specify we needed an arrow to fire at the bandits, only a bow, so... We lose an arrow = -1/0 Note that to carry arrows, we need to have a quiver (which will let us carry up to 6). Hello again! Yeah...not sure that was a good idea. Combat Ratio = 24-18 = 6 Our E total = 25/25 Undead Summonation's E total = 35/35 Round 1 Random number = We take 2 damage = 23/25 Undead Summonation takes 9*2 damage = 17/35 Round 2 Random number = 7 We take 0 damage = 23/25 Undead Summonation takes 12*2 damage = Dead! Our E total = 23/25 We don't. Let's heal some of our scratches with Healing instead! H+1 24/25 Sigh. Another valiant death. H+1 25/25 No ice cream in this tavern, sadly, but maybe the magician has some? Or there's some in the rooms?

Interesting, no consensus whatsoever. I guess it's down to Richi to decide our fate.

Thanks for the info, Lucas, that'll be useful for me! I just had the first page bookmarked. ...What? What just happened? I guess we should have guessed from it having the same reference as the failure to dodge the arrows when we stole the horse. Anyway, Death Count + 1 = 6 Initial E -1 = 25 There goes our no death run of this book... Isn't it amazing how that passage seemed to almost be written specially for our game? Well, we have a bow.

Oh dear... Here goes: Random number = 6. We just made it. Whew. Well, a discipline we have for a change! Can't fool us! Well, do we go and say hello, or arrange a nice surprise for them?

CR = 24-28 = -4 (Using Weaponskill would be taking things a bit too far, but there's no rule against Mindblasting your opponent!) Our TP = 50/50 Altan's TP = 50/50 Round 1 Random number = 5 We lose 4 TP = 46/50 Altan loses 5 TP = 45/50 Round 2 Random number = 6 We lose 3 TP = 43/50 Altan loses 6 TP = 39/50 Round 3 Random number = 8 We lose 1 TP = 42/50 Altan loses 8 TP = 31/50 Round 4 Random number = 0 We lose 0 TP = 42/50 Altan loses 10 TP = 21/50 Round 5 Random number = 8 We lose 1 TP = 41/50 Altan loses 8 TP = 13/50 Round 6 Random number = 0 We lose 0 TP = 41/50 Altan loses 10 TP = 3/50 Round 7 Random number = 7 We lose 2 TP = 39/50 Altan loses 10 TP = Out! Huh. I carried on rolling to see how the competition would have ended had we not used the Sommerswerd. We'd have won with 4TP remaining! We won! Now we need to drop a special item, because the ancient and powerful Kai magics which have existed since book 5 prevent us from carrying more than 12. Which do we drop? Oh dear. Do we have time to find the owner, or will we - regretfully - have to gallop after him without - sadly - having time to arrange things more legally? It wouldn't be the first time we've stolen a horse...

Well, we chose the right bow. The Jakan (used for hunting fish in the coasts, Richi) might have broken, and the bone bow would have given severe penalties. Random Number 1 = 5 Random Number 2 = 6 Random Number 3 = 7 Total = 18 Personally, I've always interpreted the Sommerswerd's bonus as being due to enhancing your abilities mentally, given the mental onslaught we got when we claimed it back in book 2, and so when I played I thought it was perfectly reasonable to use its bonus (especially given Altan's combat skill: you'd need CS 19 and weaponskill in a bow to have a better than 1/2 chance of beating him, and then not by much). Should we do this and (arguably) cheat, or run it with our normal CS of 16?

We lose 2GC = 35/50 Guess what we don't have? Well, we don't have Huntmastery either. Which bow should we take? To remind anyone who's forgotten/wasn't there for that part, Vassagonia (Jakan) is the desert country we were in last book, Kalte (bone) is the icy wasteland to the North, and Durenor is Sommerlund's ally and where we recovered the Sommerswerd from.

You know, Αμφίονας, had you made different decisions you could have revealed your identity to the mercenaries back there, and would have pretty much got that response (after which they'd have given the info they gave us the way we went). Also, yes, I have all those characters on my keyboard. I don't really. So, a chance to show off our skills! Do we take it?

Well, we didn't get any useful information for saving his life, should we reveal our identity as well?

We lose 2+3GC = 37/50 Ah. We don't have a bow. Someone remind me why again? Oh, yes: Combat Ratio = 26-24 = 2 Our E total = 26/26 Roark's E total = 30/30 Round 1 Random Number = 8 We take no damage = 26/26 Roark takes 11 damage = 19/30 Round 2 Random Number = 0 We take no damage = 26/26 Roark takes 14 damage = 5/30 Ok, I admit it, we didn't need a bow there. Yeah, good luck with that. Well, we can get some more information, perhaps?

Right, following on from an accidental archiving of this topic, we pay 8GC for the drinks. We have 42/50GC. Well, we've gained information, and the name of a street. Now what? Are we hungry?

Well, do we pay?

We lose a meal. We lose a meal of larnuma. So, what do we do? Oh, by the way, I'll be on holiday for the next week or so, without access to a computer, so don't expect any updates for a bit.

Random number = 6 Good, 0-1 would have been an instant death, which would have been...embarrassing. Ok. Our backpack items are: Which two items do we lose? I think the 3GC would have been cheaper... We have Pathmanship! What do we do? And which items do we lose? Remember it's the Lorestone of Varetta we're seeking.