Flight from the Dark (3 page)

There will be occasions on your adventure when you have to fight an enemy. The enemy's
COMBAT SKILL
and
ENDURANCE
points are given in the text. Lone Wolf's aim in the combat is to kill the enemy by reducing his
ENDURANCE
points to zero while losing as few
ENDURANCE
points as possible himself.

At the start of a combat, enter Lone Wolf's and the enemy's
ENDURANCE
points in the appropriate boxes on the Combat Record section of your
Action Chart
.

The sequence for combat is as follows.

1. Add any extra points gained through your Kai Disciplines to your current
   COMBAT SKILL
   total.
   
2. Subtract the
   COMBAT SKILL
   of your enemy from this total. The result is your Combat Ratio. Enter it on the
   Action Chart
   .
   Example
   Lone Wolf (
   COMBAT SKILL
   15) is ambushed by a Winged Devil (
   COMBAT SKILL
   20). He is not given the opportunity to evade combat, but must stand and fight as the creature swoops down on him. Lone Wolf has the Kai Discipline of Mindblast, so he adds 2 points to his
   COMBAT SKILL
   , giving a total
   COMBAT SKILL
   of 17.
   He subtracts the Winged Devil's
   COMBAT SKILL
   from his own, giving a Combat Ratio of −3 (17 − 20 = −3). −3 is noted on the
   Action Chart
   as the Combat Ratio.
   
3. When you have your Combat Ratio
   , pick a number from the
   Random Number Table
   .
   
4. Turn to the
   Combat Results Table
   . Along the top of the chart are shown the Combat Ratio numbers. Find the number that is the same as your Combat Ratio and cross-reference it with the random number that you have picked (the random numbers appear on the side of the chart). You now have the number of
   ENDURANCE
   points lost by both Lone Wolf and his enemy in this round of combat. (E represents points lost by the enemy; LW represents points lost by Lone Wolf.)
   Example
   The Combat Ratio between Lone Wolf and Winged Devil has been established as -3. If the number taken from the
   Random Number Table
   is a 6, then the result of the first round of combat is:
   
   • Lone Wolf loses 3
     ENDURANCE
     points
     
   • Winged Devil loses 6
     ENDURANCE
     points
     
5. On the
   Action Chart
   , mark the changes in
   ENDURANCE
   points to the participants in the combat.
   
6. Unless otherwise instructed, or unless you have an option to evade, the next round of combat now starts.
   
7. Repeat the sequence from
   Stage 3
   .
   

This process of combat continues until the
ENDURANCE
points of either the enemy or Lone Wolf are reduced to zero or below, at which point that combatant is declared dead. If Lone Wolf is dead, the adventure is over. If the enemy is dead, Lone Wolf proceeds but with his
ENDURANCE
points possibly reduced.

A
summary of Combat Rules
appears in the back of this book.

During your adventure you may be given the chance to evade combat. If you have already engaged in a round of combat and decide to evade, calculate the combat for that round in the usual manner. All points lost by the enemy as a result of that round are ignored, and you make your escape. Only Lone Wolf may lose
ENDURANCE
points during that round, but then that is the risk of running away! You may only evade if the text of the particular section allows you to do so.

The following table is a guide to the ranks and titles that are bestowed upon Kai Lords at each stage of their training. As you successfully complete each adventure in the
Lone Wolf
series, you will gain an additional Kai Discipline and gradually progress towards mastery of the ten basic Kai Disciplines.

1. Novice
   
2. Intuite
   
3. Doan
   
4. Acolyte
   
5. Initiate — You begin the
   Lone Wolf
   adventures with this level of Kai training
   
6. Aspirant
   
7. Guardian
   
8. Warmarn or Journeyman
   
9. Savant
   
10. Master
    

Beyond the ten basic skills of the Kai Master await the secrets of the higher Kai Disciplines or ‘Magnakai’. By acquiring the wisdom of the Magnakai, a Kai Lord can progress towards the ultimate achievement and become a Kai Grand Master.

Your mission will be one of great danger, for the Darklords and their servants are a cruel and fierce enemy who give and expect no mercy. Use the
map
to help you steer a correct course for the capital. Make notes as you progress through the story, for they will be of great help in future adventures.

Many things that you find will aid you during the adventure. Some Special Items will be of use in future
Lone Wolf
adventures and others may be red herrings of no real use at all, so be selective in what you decide to keep.

There are many routes to the King, but only one involves a minimum of danger. With a wise choice of Kai Disciplines and a great deal of courage, any player should be able to complete the mission, no matter how weak their initial
COMBAT SKILL
or
ENDURANCE
points score.

The honour and memory of the Kai Lords will go with you on your perilous journey.

Good luck!

You must make haste for you sense it is not safe to linger by the smoking remains of the ruined monastery. The black-winged beasts could return at any moment. You must set out for the Sommlending capital of Holmgard and tell the King the terrible news of the massacre: that the whole élite of Kai warriors, save yourself, have been slaughtered. Without the Kai Lords to lead her armies, Sommerlund will be at the mercy of their ancient enemy, the Darklords.

Fighting back tears, you bid farewell to your dead kinsmen. Silently, you promise that their deaths will be avenged. You turn away from the ruins and carefully descend the steep track.

At the foot of the hill, the path splits into two directions, both leading into a large wood.

If you wish to use your Kai Discipline of Sixth Sense,
turn to 141
.

If you wish to take the right path into the wood,
turn to 85
.

If you wish to follow the left track,
turn to 275
.

As you dash through the thickening trees, the shouts of the Giaks begin to fade behind you. You have nearly outdistanced them completely, when you crash headlong into a tangle of low branches.

Pick a number from the
Random Number Table
.

If you have picked a number 0–4,
turn to 343
.

If you have picked a number 5–9,
turn to 276
.

Staying close to the officer, you follow him through an arched portal and up a short flight of stairs to a long hall. Soldiers run back and forth bearing orders on ornate scrolls to officers stationed around the city wall.

A haggard and scar-faced man dressed in the white and purple robes of the King's court approaches you and bids you follow him to the citadel.

If you wish to follow this man,
turn to 196
.

If you wish to decline his offer and return to the crowded streets,
turn to 144
.

It is a small one-man canoe in very poor condition. The wood has split and warped, and the craft appears to be leaking in several places. You quickly patch up the worst of the holes with some clay and bail out the water. This seems to stop the leaking for the moment. Stowing your equipment at the bow, you set off downstream, using a piece of driftwood as a paddle.

After a short while, you hear the sound of horses galloping towards you along the left bank.

If you wish to use the Kai Discipline of Sixth Sense,
turn to 218
.

If you wish to hide in the bottom of the canoe,
turn to 75
.

If you wish to try to attract their attention,
turn to 175
.

After about an hour of walking, the track slowly bears round to the east. You reach a shallow ford where a fast-flowing brook runs on a steep rocky course towards the south. Just beyond the ford is a junction where the track meets a wider path running north to south. Realizing that the north path will take you away from the capital, you turn right at the junction and head south.

Turn to 111
.

In the distance you can hear the sound of horses galloping nearer. You crouch behind a tree and wait as the riders come closer. They are the cavalry of the King's Guard wearing the white uniforms of His Majesty's army.

If you wish to call them,
turn to 183
.

If you wish to let them pass and then continue on your way through the forest,
turn to 200
.

For what seems an eternity, the rush of the crowd carries you along like a leaf on a fast-flowing stream. You desperately fight to stay on your feet, but you feel weak and dizzy from your ordeal, and your legs are as heavy as lead. Suddenly, you catch a glimpse of a long, narrow stone stairway that leads up to the roof of an inn.

Gathering the last reserves of your strength, you dive for the stairs and climb slowly up to the top. From here you can see the magnificent view of the rooftops and spires of Holmgard, with the high stone walls of the citadel gleaming in the sun.

Illustration I
—From here you can see the magnificent view of the rooftops and spires of Holmgard.

The houses and buildings of the capital are built very close to each other, and it is possible to jump from one roof to the next. In fact many of the citizens of Holmgard used to use the ‘Roofways’ (as they are known) when the heavy autumn rains made the unpaved parts of the streets too muddy for walking. But after many accidents, a royal decree forbade their use.

After careful thought, you decide to use the ‘Roofways’, as they are your only chance of reaching the King. You have hopped, skipped, and jumped across several streets and you are only one street away from the citadel when you come to the end of a row of rooftops.

The jump to the next row is much further than anything you have tried before, and your stomach begins to feel as if it were full of butterflies. Determined to reach the citadel, you turn and take a long run-up to the jump. With blood pounding in your ears, you sprint to the edge of the roof and leap into space, your eyes fixed on the opposite rooftop.

Pick a number from the
Random Number Table
.

If you have picked a number that is 0–2,
turn to 108
.

If the number is 3–9,
turn to 25
.

Your Kai Sixth Sense warns there is a fierce battle raging in the south. Your common sense tells you that the south is also the quickest route to the capital.

Turn to 70
and choose your route.

You cannot move: you are being held rigid by some powerful force. Your eyes are drawn towards the mouth of the skeleton. From deep in the earth you hear a low humming, like the sound of millions of angry bees. A dull red glow appears in the empty eye sockets of the dead King and the humming increases until your ears are filled with the deafening roar. You are in the presence of an ancient evil, far older and stronger than the Darklords themselves.

If you possess a Vordak Gem,
turn to 236
.

If you do not,
turn to 292
.

You are sweating and your legs ache. In the middle distance you can see a group of cottages.

If you wish to enter a cottage and rest for a while,
turn to 115
.

If you wish to press on,
turn to 83
.