A magically good time via a CYOA novel with rustic art and drawings provided throughout. Part 1 is mostly a linear tutorial to the three sequels, but is still a strong story with some good characters sprinkled in. The game gives you the ability to try out whatever goofy spell you want (why can I ZAP random civilians? To gleefully watch an npc disintegrate) for wanton chaos, while also letting you cure plagues and solve disputes. A personal favorite of mine is NIF, which basically is a powerful fart that solves a surprising amount of enemy encounters.

Part 2 opens up into a festering boil of a city, that truly has a broad range of paths and choices to pick from. After two runs through it, I think I still had various underground stories that I had missed (Tip: purchase a rope ladder). Slowly learning what has transpired in Khare and what happened to its leaders was a well done dripfeed of lore. It's a juicy city to explore, and frankly makes me feel lackluster in comparison when I think of cities I've created in D&D.

I would be remiss if I didn't mention the sparse, but beautiful soundtrack in the game. There are several main themes composed by Laurence Chapman that evoke a nostalgic, heroic medieval time, and the inventory screen uses Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis by Ralph Vaughan Williams - I've never lingered so long on an inventory screen just soaking it in. Aside from those, there are only a few authentic free sound snippets of violin playing and tribalistic singing that show up as you encounter settled areas.

Can't wait for the next two parts!

P.S. Flanker my beloved