New ground broken yet again in the Fighting Fantasy series as we don our very silliest clothes and commit a variety of crimes against people and property with the enthusiastic support of the local police department. HJDoom plays through this classic Fighting Fantasy book with a distinct lack of enthusiasm for the basic premise. Will he succeed despite his disdain for superheros as a cultural phenomenon? Listen along to find out. There’s also some exciting patron news about a forthcoming project.
Episode 16 - Seas of Blood
Hot on the heels of our last bonus episode comes this playthrough of the pirate themed adventure gamebook Seas of Blood by Andrew Chapman. Join HJDoom for a desperate race against the clock and also another pirate as we rob and pillage our way round the Inland Sea. Ships will fight ships! Ships will fight monsters! Excitement and adventure of all kinds will be had! With plenty of new systems to chew on there’s a lot going on in this adventure gamebook but will our less than intrepid hero by crowned King of the Pirates? Listen along to find out.
Bonus Episode - The Curse of Frankenstein
It’s another bonus episode featuring the work of JH Brennan, author of the Grailquest book we covered in our last bonus episode. This time he’s taking on gothic horror in the form of an ambitious adventure gamebook that you can play either as Baron Frankenstein or his monstrous creation. There’s big ideas everywhere in this one but can he manage to stick the landing and maintain an appropriately gothic tone? Find out by listening! Special thanks to a new patron, Saul Alexander. You can be like him by going to patreon.com/hjdoom and pledging as little as a single english pound.
Episode 13 - Freeway Fighter
Episode 13 sees another attempt to create a science fiction Fighting Fantasy book that isn’t rubbish. This time it’s all gone a bit Mad Max as Ian Livingstone takes us on a gritty journey into a post-apocalyptic landscape where the collapse of civilisation has failed to impact on private car ownership. Gaffa tape some nerf guns to your Lexus because it’s time to take on some weirdly dressed thugs in a Volvo in Freeway Fighter.
Episode 6 - Bonus Deathtrap Dungeon Run
It’s bonus episode time as I reveal my first, far less successful playthrough of Deathtrap Dungeon. I feel like there might be other very difficult gamebooks later where I end up doing the same thing. Regardless I hope you enjoy this little look into a world of abject failure.
Bonus Episode: Knightmare - The Labyrinths of Fear
It’s time for a bonus episde! These are episodes where I step outside of my usual run of Fighting Fantasy books for no better reason than I feel like it. This time we’re looking at an adventure gamebook written by Dave Morris and based on the classic 80s TV show Knightmare, a series I absolutely loved as a child and was partially responsible for me turning out the way I did, not that I hold that against it. The book Labyrinths of Fear has an unusual structure in that there’s a novelette about Treguard of Dunhelm’s adventures which is then followed by a short gamebook. Does short also mean sweet? You’ll have to listen to find out.
City of Thieves
We’re taking an urban turn this episode as we embark on the quest to defeat an evil creature with a very silly name. Along the way we’ll get our pockets picked, nick a selection of broaches, tangle with pirates, and have one of the all time classic fantasy roleplaying encounters as we battle giant rats in the sewers beneath Port Blacksand. Is this the greatest setting in all of Fighting Fantasy? Possibly. Will I record the first ever legitimate win? It’s very unlikely but never say never.
If you’d like to support me as I continue my doomed quest to remember what it was like to have hope and things to look forward to you can do so by going to https://www.patreon.com/Hjdoom and pledging as little as £1 per month.
Starship Traveller
In this, the fourth episode of Fantastic Fights we once again enter uncharted territory as Steve Jackson takes us to the stars as the crew of Starship Traveller. Space battles, poorly described aliens, and mediocre artwork abound as we search a parallel universe for a black hole that will take us home. Does the crew survive this jaunt into another reality? You’ll have to listen to find out.
This episode also sees the launch of my patreon page at patreon.com/hjdoom. No obligation but if you could spare me a copper or two towards the cost of buying Fighting Fantasy books for this podcast I would be eternally grateful. The podcast will alway be free to air regardless. If you’re enjoying this soujorn into the past why not tell a friend or two?