A Sorcerer War - with a twist!
An event review by Humpy

A Sorcerer War - one of the games great events - simple rules really - you arrive with no points, you mainly leave with no points. Last persona standing wins the glory. All down to the marvel of sorcerization magic, as bestowed by the immortals.

How on earth do you make THAT different, I mean its pretty straight-forward. Isn't it?

Answer - you change all the kit in the Land. Of course everyone is pre-warned, even down to the following commandment from Karya -:

Don't ask me (or any other wiz) for clues as to what the extra items do. You'll have to use your knowledge of the game and your intelligence to work it out!".

 And so, on the word go, 6 brave adventurers set forth into the unknown. Actually it may have been 7. Because apart from yours truly (Humpy), there was Pigdog, Genius, Shadow, Tekken, Crazy, and Crazy. Yes that right Crazy and Crazy - because the lunatic was talking to himself in the tearoom. Which is only disconcerting because he was answering back too, despite Karya turning down his marriage proposal. Oh and Shadow had 1 point, didn't seem to want to give it up - no sorcerization for him then!

Step one find some kit - coincidentally, as I go north, one east to swamp, there's the banshee carrying a mandrake. That's a bit of luck. Except - she NEVER does that - uh oh - this is going to be odd. OK lets find the usual items of good kit - how about a spell.

*wh wf
1 in the place known as "maze of hedges".
1 in the place known as "dense forest".
1 carried by the large rat.
1 carried by the stocky dwarf guard.
1 carried by the skeleton.
1 carried by the pony.
1 in the place known as "pine forest".

Its not getting any better. Still maybe I can find that pine forest wafer - off we go until......

Sundial in pine forest.
This is part of a large pine forest. To the northeast, the forest opens up
onto a magical glade, but in other directions is more forest, some of it too
dense to allow passage. Here, however, the forest is noticeably thinner,
indicating that it was once a clearing upon which the pines are gradually
encroaching. Before you stands an old, stone sundial, overgrown with ivy.
The sundial has no gnomon, so cannot be used to tell the time. A rather thin
wafer biscuit lies here. A gold-edged prophet stone has been left here for
anyone to use.
*g wf
Wafer taken.
*g t
Prophet stone taken.
*read stone
Written on the prophet stone is: "you can't find better".

Prophet stones - oh boy - is there NO semblance of normality to this reset? I find a container for my food and drop it in - its at this point I finally ID the items, a mandrake10 and wafer48. Great, even the so called NORMAL items are messed up. But that's OK, the shout of FIGHT is raised. Don't know who but its not me so time to keep hunting. I know, lets use the pillar. What do you mean there isn't one? Ah well I'll go get the ..... OK I won't get the cape.

Another yell of FIGHT - and stumbling past me goes Pigdog the sorcerised spellbinder. At least I don't have to guess too hard who was part of that. Right then what's this I see before me?

Dense forest.
A silver talisman lies before you. On the ground there is a large stick.
*g t
Talisman taken.
*read t
Written on the talisman is: "To enlighten the mind's eye.".

That sounds kind of familiar, I wonder........

*sn pigdog
You can feel your mind's eye seeking out your chosen subject, trying to
forge magical contact...
You have started to snoop on Pigdog the sorcerised spellbinder.

And such great timing, the fight is on between Pigdog and Genius. A few well placed blows and suddenly Genius is on critical - and flees! Pigdog gives chase, I am trying to follow them around, and eventually have to dump the snoop there's just too much going on. Ooh there's Tekken, and he's stood still for a few seconds. East - attack - a few hits and he's looking covered in wounds - and no wafers, excellent, he's seriously injured, critically injured, close to death and ready to flee. Aw did I cripple you Tekken? Sorry, re-attack time, ask not for whom the bell tolls, we have a victim! Except there's no bell toll so we just have to do the occasional obit and qw. Which leads me to discover that Pigdog has just killed Genius. Two down, three left standing.

I now have a weird coloured gem and another talisman in my collection of interesting artefacts by the way. Can't get Crazy he's got the only seaworthy boat readily available and is on deck, but I can get the dinghy if I can just beat the Goblin10 - it hits me hard, down to 40, so I have to give up snoop on Crazy and get some shuteye - I awaken in time to hear Foddy shout that there's just two of us left, Crazy the Spellbinder may be mad but he's killed Pigdog too!

Oh that's right i had a second talisman, wonder what it does?

read talisman
Written on the talisman is: "To enlighten the mind's eye.".
Written on the talisman is: "To follow those not here.".

No prizes for guessing what that second one is then! It also appears to be permanently raining now. And a quick wh talisman reveals 9 out at sea with Crazy, to my two - I'd love to know what ones he got. Luckily I have used that second talisman to track my foe, because suddenly he's back on land and zooming about - all the way to the ladder shaft. This is excellent news, because he has stopped there. For those of you that don't know it, normal service is suspended if you are sorcerised, and one of the things you cannot rely on is being able to sit in a one man room alone! Down I go - and attack - this guys much better than the previous ones, a flurry of spells is coming at me, keeping me occupied with counters.

On critical he flees - I go for a cripple, damn it backfires, uncripple, lucky I have that track going he's sitting in the small tunnel - same loophole applies mate, attack time again. Close to death and he flees! I forgot the cripple! NO!!!!!!!!!

He resites to the vicious rocks, and its STILL raining - what the hell, unsite him to contain him and - it STOPS raining! I have no idea what talismans he has but I just BET one of them is controlling the weather. And finally I get a break - he goes to draggy isle. Now he can't resite, and I am praying he wont use the fairy ring, in fact no he's coming back out to sea. Thats my cue, go to vicious rocks and KILL KILL KILL - great he's fit again, fast recoverer this boy!

A few hits and - um - that 26 stam, that's not him its ME - better eat a wafer. What do you mean I am too full, its enough to make you sick. Ah that's better that wafer is a good one, I am raring to go and he's on close to death in the meantime. He tries to flee but I have him crippled, re-attacks go in, he HAS to be near death. Hang on what's that noise?

*Crazy the sorcerised sorcerer makes some magical gestures.
You hear the whistling feedback of a failed finger of death spell...
You can fight Crazy the sorcerised sorcerer no longer.

Ooh then that means - I win!!!!! Whoop!

And its all over bar the prizegiving. 5k to third place, 5k and a peak time freebie to 2nd place, and yours truly gets to keep the persona, 17.5k, and a free months subscription. That was definitely worth doing - only next time - I want more talismans!