Recent Adventures

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A Newb in Kaag aka Meat for the Grinder

December 13, 2025

I’ve griped for a few books now, that the Lone Wolf Grand Master and Magnakai books are not in fact playable as a new character, despite their claims. It’s simply impossible to pick a number that balances +18 in bonuses vs +0 bonuses, when the whole combat table has a range of +11 to -11. […]

Let’s play again – Starship Traveller, part 2

In the last exciting episode of Starship Traveller… We were picked up by population control androids, but it turns out cellphones gum up their works so we walked away. Then we met some primitives in huts, who were nice enough folks but not useful to our endeavor of getting home. And we lost several off-screen […]

Let’s play again – Starship Traveller, part 1

December 12, 2025

Last week I blew the dust off Forest of Doom, which is Fighting Fantasy number 3. That was fun, so why not do a classic again? This time, Starship Traveller. I recall that I didn’t like this one very much, though I don’t recall why not. Other folks seem to have a low opinion, as […]

What dreams are these?

December 11, 2025

Tonight I and a friend played my newest gamebook: Shakespeare vs Cthulhu: What Dreams May Come by Jonathan Green.  I read aloud while she made the choices and rolled the dice. What a fun and weird time. So, you’re Shakespeare and you’re up late writing the final touches to Love’s Labour’s Won. The Earl of […]

Let’s play again – Forest of Doom, Part 2

December 4, 2025

So, I step into the forest, walk a while and find… a talking crow. Huh. Even for a fantasy world, that one caught me by surprise. The crow offers to give me directions if I give it a gold piece, but dang it I spent every coin on this magical loot. He flies off, fortunately […]

Let’s play again – Forest of Doom, Part 1

December 3, 2025

After the months-long “thing” that was moving and playing Ronin 47, I’m finally catching some breath. I could use something easy and familiar for a moment, so let’s use that breath to blow the dust off of… Forest of Doom! Yeah, all the way back to Fighting Fantasy number 3 and the year 1983. The […]

Done roninating, maps coming soon

November 23, 2025

I’ve finished mapping out Ronin 47 today and wrote up my list of bugs and hints for the page. I’ll have the maps in a day or three, as I get some time to do them in between my other work and the Thanksgiving holiday. As I say on the page, I was excited at […]

Back in the pilot’s seat – part 2

November 12, 2025

Continuing on from my disappointing trip to the Gojira research vessel, my next stop is the control station for the Tengu satellite array. If I’m lucky, I’ll find out where Kira is and get my revenge. I arrive on the island, and in come two sentry mechs. These are those badass ones that look like […]

Back in the pilot’s seat – part 1

November 9, 2025

So here we are some five months later. I’m finally moved in and caught up on house work, and have a free evening to sit down with a game book. Still sitting in my book bag is Ronin 47, the mech vs kaiju book my Jonathan Green. So let’s pick that one up. To be […]

Scared to death!

November 6, 2025

‘Twas Halloween night, and our party was cancelled an hour ahead of time. But that’s okay, because we have House of Hell! Why party and get drunk and wild, when you can play a gamebook with your girlfriend? Oh man, getting old is funny. But yeah, that seriously is what we did. So, she rolled […]

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Moved! Back to the books

October 11, 2025

My last post was in April, six months ago? That’s wild. I moved, a dear friend got sick, … It’s been a crazy time. I still have Ronin 47 sitting on my desk, and I’ll be glad to get back to it as the winter sets in and I finish the house and moving work. […]

Oishi the Roninator, roninating the countryside – part 2

April 16, 2025

Continuing with my playthrough of Ronin 47, this time giving my mech some cheats so the game is actually playable instead of just roll 2d6 to find out how quickly I died. I’ve found that Kira is holed up in Tokyo – or rather, the ruins of Tokyo, which was devastated by kaiju attacks decades […]

Oishi the Roninator, roninating the countryside – part 1

April 10, 2025

So we’re finally at the point where I’m bored of dying and re-playing the same two chapters, knowing full well that when I reach the third or maybe fourth fight I’ll be defeated. So, my mech is a 4 in all stats instead of the usual balance of 3. Doesn’t that add up to 8 […]

Eaten by a shark again, then by a turtle

April 9, 2025

I’m still at it, playing Ronin 47 and so far I’m not having a lot of good luck with it. We open again with the starfish tutorial, then the attack on Ako Base. I fought a giant turtle, and it tore me down to 35 integrity out of my initial 55. When I saw a […]

Eaten by kaiju again

April 6, 2025

I’ve been plating Ronin 47 by Jonathan Green for a few days now, as time permits. I dig the setting – I drive a Japanese-style battlemech and fight giant sea monsters on a quest for revenge. That’s awesome – and it’s only the second time I’ve seen anything like it, the other being Fighting Fantasy’s […]

Proofreading a gamebook, then pliloting a mech

March 30, 2025

For the last few weeks, I have been proofreading and testing a new game book that someone in the community is developing. It’s been a part-time job, but I finished up a few days ago. It’s set in the Dragon Realms universe, and has the brave adventurer hunting a cult that has been murdering people. […]

Spellbreaker, the final showdown – Part 6, the spellbreakening

March 11, 2025

Spellbreaker is really annoying me to no end. As I noted before, surviving the witch trial is a whole elaborate affair of secret herbs and a 50/50 roll, then a fight, then having the keyword Raven. I looked it up (thank you champskees https://fightingfantazine.proboards.com/thread/182/53-spellbreaker-solution) and to get Raven, means having started with maximum gold, bought […]

Spellbreaker, the final showdown – Part 5, Tallow witch trial and I die anyway

March 9, 2025

Spellbreaker – I have finally made it to the town of Tallow, which is the furthest I have ever made in in this book, because of an unlikely sequence of required rolls and items. But here I am, ready to explore new ground. With some luck I can survive this awful little village, and move […]

Spellbreaker, the final showdown – Part 4, danger in the fen

March 7, 2025

Ah, Spellbreaker – We are still at it. After twenty failed playthroughs, I think I know what I need to survive the town of Tallow and to finally proceed on my quest. And with only a little bit of cheating, I now have everything I need – at least, everything that I know I will […]

Spellbreaker, the final showdown – Part 3, the tomb of Gwythain

March 5, 2025

Day three. I have survived Aryll. There was a plague, a barn fire, zombies and a minor god of disease. The complimentary breakfast was mid but the service was friendly. All in all, two stars, would not recommend as a tourist destination. But they did tell me where to find Gwythain’s Barrow, where I hope to […]

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Spellbreaker, the final showdown – Part 2, the rats of Aryll

March 4, 2025

With only a little cheating at some required points, I made it through Hallow’s Well with the herbs, the potion, and the animal control devices that I’ll need to get further in my quest. I’m walking down page 300, the road west from Pilgrim’s Hallow. I take a southern fork towards the village of Aryll, […]