andyc
Kai Lord
Posts: 210
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Post by andyc on Dec 19, 2020 23:13:04 GMT
No I haven't finished it yet, so this is a work in progress. So far I have read the prologue and got to the end of the first part of the book (you will know what I mean when you have read it). Utterly epic so far. Vincent and Ben brought together some expected and and a few unexpected returning characters to help face the terrible enemy and what a series of events it was. Stunning work and it bodes very well for the rest of this book. My only concern is the difficulty balance. I gave my Omni Kai a drop of 5CS and still found myself at often a combat ratio of +10 or +11 but for one battle. To be fair, it is the start of the book, but given that they need to factor in a fresh GM Kai rolling a 0 for CS having any chance of succeeding, there is no way they can realistically balance it. It is the age old problem of the Lone Wolf books and one day I might try and work out what is the ideal starting stats that each book needs for the challenge to be perfect. Anyway, the adventure continues now in Southern Magnamund. Feel free to post your thoughts for what you have read so far.
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andyc
Kai Lord
Posts: 210
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Post by andyc on Dec 20, 2020 19:58:24 GMT
So I have reached the end of the second act, and I am now at a point where I decide which of three locations I will visit. As for what happened in this second part, well, without saying any more we have a long overdue encounter and resolution. I could think of a hundred ways of how that plot thread could have been resolved and I wouldn't have come close to how great it is here. Perfection! What with the way the book now splits to allow for different repeat playthroughs I think we may have a winner for one of the best, if not THE best of all the books. Well done Vincent and Ben (and of course Joe for the framework), this is awesome!
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Post by Rune Owl on Dec 21, 2020 14:32:32 GMT
I just rediscovered the series recently, so I won't get to Eternal Night for a while, but I'm glad to hear it's so good. That is something to look forward to.
It sounds like there is more than one straight path through the story. Is that right? The books got pretty linear for a while, where your choices didn't mean anything. Is this one that you could read through several times and discover very different things?
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andyc
Kai Lord
Posts: 210
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Post by andyc on Dec 21, 2020 20:27:51 GMT
Book 29 The Storms of Chai was the most linear of all the books, and it had been steadily getting that way for a while. Having said that, the events and writing in that book made it a great read, so I wasn't personally bothered. Dead in the Deep does have some variation in paths, as does this latest book (I think to an even greater extent). Good choice to work your way back through them. #31 is especially good because it brings together so many threads and lore from the previous books. I would say it is essential to do the Grey Star books also, as the lore from them adds tremendously.
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andyc
Kai Lord
Posts: 210
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Post by andyc on Dec 21, 2020 20:35:54 GMT
Part 3 of my spoiler free (as much as feasibly possible) review and I have just returned from the Golden Pagoda (hopefully not revealing too much there). I chose this route as I was most interested in the backstory of a certain villain of the original New Order books, and this delivered in spades. The battles are getting tougher now as I had a rough time against the 'Boss' of this route. Additionally I love the interludes where you cam choose which ally you chat to. Again, I can't say more without revealing spoilers but there has not been a single weak part to this book yet. Top marks so far!
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andyc
Kai Lord
Posts: 210
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Post by andyc on Dec 22, 2020 20:23:36 GMT
And that is Book 31 complete. Truly great stuff, the last part(s) certainly didn't let up with the epic events, actually somehow surpassing the earlier big book moments. The stage is certainly set for an amazing final book. Also, pleasingly, it should be very well balanced for difficulty (I'm saying no more here)
The cover art, inside map and interior drawings are all top class, as would be expected knowing what those three superb artists have done in the past. Also, I couldn't detect any errors or spelling mistakes on my path. I think there was one missing space between words, so good work on the editing.
It was great providing different paths for variation in different playthroughs, however it perhaps meant that the final battle scenes ended up being a little more linear. Perhaps a 400 section book would have allowed more fleshing out of the battle without compromising on the earlier sections, but then again maybe that would have slowed the pace too much after the BIG event that had occurred before? All in all, it is probably pretty obvious that this is one of the best Lone Wolf books for me. Certainly coming out top of all the New Order books and beating an awful lot of the others too. Bring on Book #32!! (Take your time though, this is it...)
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hks
Kai Lord
Posts: 2
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Post by hks on Dec 28, 2020 11:16:09 GMT
andyc, is the CS drop a good idea for a veteran player before playing Book 31 or do you think it is balanced enough? (you're saying it's very well balanced vut you also said earlier that you dropped the CS)?
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andyc
Kai Lord
Posts: 210
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Post by andyc on Dec 28, 2020 13:42:15 GMT
andyc, is the CS drop a good idea for a veteran player before playing Book 31 or do you think it is balanced enough? (you're saying it's very well balanced vut you also said earlier that you dropped the CS)? I would recommend a bit of a CS drop for book 31 if you are a veteran. It was still slightly on the easy side, but not a couple push over if I assumed a starting roll of 0, but still added all the bonuses from GM levels and equipment. My comment on being well balanced applies to Book 32. You'll know what I am going on about when you approach the end of this book.
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hks
Kai Lord
Posts: 2
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Post by hks on Dec 29, 2020 11:07:43 GMT
andyc, is the CS drop a good idea for a veteran player before playing Book 31 or do you think it is balanced enough? (you're saying it's very well balanced vut you also said earlier that you dropped the CS)? I would recommend a bit of a CS drop for book 31 if you are a veteran. It was still slightly on the easy side, but not a couple push over if I assumed a starting roll of 0, but still added all the bonuses from GM levels and equipment. My comment on being well balanced applies to Book 32. You'll know what I am going on about when you approach the end of this book. Thank you
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Post by zorkraan on Jan 1, 2021 14:42:16 GMT
Thank you so much for this review andyc, the year couldn't end better when I read such feedback! I'm delighted you enjoyed the plot, the art, and the gamebook structure this way. I admit it is perhaps too much packed with lore and dialogs, but... I couldn't help myself. This book was made by fans for the fans, to celebrate the universe we cherish.
I can't wait to see your feedback on the Kelderwastes and Morn's paths... Actually, I've a question for you: now you've read "Dusk", how do you consider "A Wytch's Nightmare", the BA of Book 22 ?
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andyc
Kai Lord
Posts: 210
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Post by andyc on Jan 1, 2021 17:43:24 GMT
You certainly should be delighted Vincent, Dusk is a book to be very proud of and demonstrates Joe's world has been left in the very best hands. I don't think it was wrong to include all the lore that you did. The original NO books from 20-28 were quite light on connecting lore and it is great to see all those seemingly (at the time) disparate threads draw together in the epic conclusive four books. Like I said earlier, Dusk elevates a lot of the earlier work due to these connections. BA 22 was very good already, but even better now than it was in isolation. I'm thinking the Shadow is Shasarak now, but I haven't worked out where Grey Star was, probably me just being a bit thick - or has it yet to be revealed? I suspect you are better off saying nothing at this stage.
One suggestion that I have is to consider a compilation release, before #32 releases, of some of the most essential to the story BAs that are currently out of print. I paid several hundred pounds for the Collector’s Edition of Buccaneers (worth every penny) but many fans will miss out. You've probably got it all planned anyway, but a compilation of your BAs and another one of August Hahn's Dire series for instance would be very well received I am sure.
As for the last book, I have no doubt that it will be fantastic. Just carry on what you are doing, as it seems to be working rather well. Many thanks and Happy New Year to you and yours!
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Post by Black Cat on Jan 1, 2021 18:41:48 GMT
One suggestion that I have is to consider a compilation release, before #32 releases, of some of the most essential to the story BAs that are currently out of print. I paid several hundred pounds for the Collector’s Edition of Buccaneers (worth every penny) but many fans will miss out. You've probably got it all planned anyway, but a compilation of your BAs and another one of August Hahn's Dire series for instance would be very well received I am sure. I have already suggested the Dire series should be released in a single volume. As for the other BA, I think it is even more important now: I have the whole Collector's Edition series, so I have all the BA made in English. But I know that Swedish and German versions of these same books have different BA... I know French and English but sadly not German and Swedish. I would be very interested in reading these adventures in English (or French). A series of books with 4-5 BA per volume would be more than welcomed!
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andyc
Kai Lord
Posts: 210
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Post by andyc on Jan 1, 2021 18:57:10 GMT
One suggestion that I have is to consider a compilation release, before #32 releases, of some of the most essential to the story BAs that are currently out of print. I paid several hundred pounds for the Collector’s Edition of Buccaneers (worth every penny) but many fans will miss out. You've probably got it all planned anyway, but a compilation of your BAs and another one of August Hahn's Dire series for instance would be very well received I am sure. I have already suggested the Dire series should be released in a single volume. As for the other BA, I think it is even more important now: I have the whole Collector's Edition series, so I have all the BA made in English. But I know that Swedish and German versions of these same books have different BA... I know French and English but sadly not German and Swedish. I would be very interested in reading these adventures in English (or French). A series of books with 4-5 BA per volume would be more than welcomed! Yes definitely, I would love to read those BAs. The Slavers of Xanar looked great from the couple of pictures that have been released. I always wanted to find out how Warlord Zegron was beaten after Jungle of Horrors. What with the last two Collector's Editions to go as well, there is certainly plenty of material that can be released in the gap before Light of the Kai drops.
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Post by zorkraan on Jan 1, 2021 23:28:05 GMT
You certainly should be delighted Vincent, Dusk is a book to be very proud of and demonstrates Joe's world has been left in the very best hands. I don't think it was wrong to include all the lore that you did. The original NO books from 20-28 were quite light on connecting lore and it is great to see all those seemingly (at the time) disparate threads draw together in the epic conclusive four books. Like I said earlier, Dusk elevates a lot of the earlier work due to these connections. It's like christmas again reading those words. Thank you ! Actually lore is what I prefer and Joe left behind such an amount of unused information that I feel compelled to share it via the new books, considering there's so much more in store. In any case I'm delighted you saw the great scheme connecting all the NO books, Joe started something very big with that series, building the return of the Prince of the Darkness... BA 22 was very good already, but even better now than it was in isolation. I'm thinking the Shadow is Shasarak now, but I haven't worked out where Grey Star was, probably me just being a bit thick - or has it yet to be revealed? I suspect you are better off saying nothing at this stage. I'd say you're correct regarding the "Shadow", LW22BA was just a sort of "practice" for the Wytch-king, before his great move in book 31. And sorry no, BA22 didn't reveal where Grey Star was - but perhaps LW31 does
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Post by zorkraan on Jan 1, 2021 23:45:58 GMT
I have already suggested the Dire series should be released in a single volume. As for the other BA, I think it is even more important now: I have the whole Collector's Edition series, so I have all the BA made in English. But I know that Swedish and German versions of these same books have different BA... I know French and English but sadly not German and Swedish. I would be very interested in reading these adventures in English (or French). A series of books with 4-5 BA per volume would be more than welcomed! Yes definitely, I would love to read those BAs. The Slavers of Xanar looked great from the couple of pictures that have been released. I always wanted to find out how Warlord Zegron was beaten after Jungle of Horrors. What with the last two Collector's Editions to go as well, there is certainly plenty of material that can be released in the gap before Light of the Kai drops. Actually, the German LW CEs have the same BAs as the English versions. They are however lucky to have the CEs of all Grey Star books, including thus the Bonus adventures not released yet in English. The BA of GS3 ("The Chains of Ghol-Tabras") that I cowrote with Alexander Kühnert, features some characters of LW31 in their youth, notably...
Only the Swedish have different LW BAs, but from Book 8 only (LW2-7 have the same as Mongoose CE versions): Slavers of Xanar (book 8, by myself, you play Vagel during the War vs Zegron; that one may also contain information related to the last books...), The Lost and the Damned (book 9, by my friends Gavyn Duthie and Andreas Andreou, you play a Crocaryx shaman centuries before the coming of Lone Wolf and explore the Underworld around Zaaryx - some ties between that one and LW31!) and The Partisan (book 10, to be released; written by the Swedish LW expert Erik Zetterberg; you play Sebb Jarel and gives hard time to the Drakkarim) for the moment. Moreover, the Swedish were gifted by August Hahn with several Noodnic short adventures which are really exciting.
Now, we (Ben and I) are aware we have to help you to wait patiently for LW32, and so we want to release a lot of supplementary material while we're writing the latter. BAs compilations are considered among many other things (already in prep), and I couldn't agree more that amon them, the Dire series must be published first, in a single book, as it is the fans' great favourite (mine too) !!
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