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Alice’s Nightmare in
Wonderland
Alice’s Nightmare in Wonderland is a curious sort of a book. In fact, it is a portal to another world, the dream-world of Wonderland. As well as the book itself, you will need two dice (or a standard pack of playing cards), a pencil and an eraser. Using these tools, and a simple set of game rules contained within the book, you will guide the eponymous heroine of Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventure in Wonderland on a new and perilous quest as she finds herself called upon to save the world of playing cards and talking animals from the increasingly deranged Queen of Hearts.
Have you ever wondered what would have happened if Alice had not drunk from the bottle labelled ‘Drink Me’, or if she had not joined the Hatter, the March Hare, and the Dormouse for tea? Well now you can find out. In Alice’s Nightmare in Wonderland, YOU decide which route Alice should take, which perils to risk, and which of Wonderland’s strange denizens to fight. But be warned – whether Alice succeeds in her quest or meets a dire end as the nightmare escalates will be down to the choices YOU make.
Are you ready to go back down the rabbit-hole?
Alice’s Nightmare in Wonderland
By Jonathan Green
Proudly Published by Snowbooks in 2015
Copyright © 2015 Jonathan Green
Illustrations © 2015 Kev Crossley
Jonathan Green asserts the moral right to
be identified as the author of this work.
All rights reserved.
Snowbooks Ltd.
email: info@snowbooks.com
www.snowbooks.com
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
Hardcover 9781909679818
Paperback 9781909679597
Ebook 9781909679740
With special thanks to the Dodo play-testers, Amy Winchester, Antony McGarry-Thickitt, Colin Oaten, Don Alsafi, Fabrice Gatille, Flip Espinoza, James A Hirons, James Aukett, Keith Phillips, 林立人 Lin Liren, Mark Myers, Mill Goble, Nicki Gray, Paul Windmill, Raj, Stephen R Dutton, Steve Dean, Steven Pannell, Tiago Vieira Perretto, Xymon “Awesome” Owain.
Also by Jonathan Green
Snowbooks
You Are the Hero – A History of Fighting Fantasy Gamebooks
Christmas Explained – Robins, Kings and Brussel Sprouts
Sharkpunk (short story anthology edited by Jonathan Green)
Game Over (short story anthology edited by Jonathan Green)
Fighting Fantasy Gamebooks
Spellbreaker
Knights of Doom
Curse of the Mummy
Bloodbones
Howl of the Werewolf
Stormslayer
Night of the Necromancer
Sonic the Hedgehog Adventure Gamebooks
Theme Park Panic (with Marc Gascoigne)
Stormin’ Sonic (with Marc Gascoigne)
Doctor Who – Decide Your Destiny
The Horror of Howling Hill
Star Wars: The Clone Wars – Decide Your Destiny
Crisis on Coruscant
Gamebook Adventures
Temple of the Spider God
Warlock’s Bounty
Revenge of the Sorcerer
Path to Victory
Herald of Oblivion
Shadows Over Sylvania
For Clare, Jake and Mattie.
Welcome to Wonderland
“What a strange world we live in.”
Introduction
The book you hold in your hands is a gateway to another world, the dream-world of Wonderland. Once inside its pages and you will find yourself falling down the rabbit-hole to embark upon a thrilling adventure.
You see, this is no ordinary book. Rather than reading it from cover to cover, you will discover that at the end of each narrative section you will be presented with a series of choices which allow you to control the course of the story.
In Alice’s Nightmare in Wonderland you guide the eponymous heroine of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, by Lewis Carroll, through a nightmarish dreamscape to the conclusion of her quest. You decide which path to take, which risks to brave, and even which of the weird inhabitants of Wonderland you will meet along the way to engage in battle.
Success is by no means certain and you may well fail to complete the adventure at your first attempt. However, with experience, skill, and maybe even a little luck, each new attempt should bring you closer to your ultimate goal.
In addition to the book itself, you will need two six-sided dice, or a conventional pack of 52 playing cards, a pencil, an eraser, and a copy of Alice’s Adventure Sheet (you can download them from http://snowbooks.com/ alice_adventure_sheet).
“It was a very difficult game indeed.”
Playing the Game
There are three ways to play through Alice’s Nightmare in Wonderland. The first is to use two conventional six-sided dice. The second is to use a conventional pack of 52 playing cards. The third is to ignore the rules altogether and just read through the book, making choices as appropriate, but ignoring any combat or attribute tests, always assuming you win every battle and pass every skill test. (Even if you play the adventure this way, there is still no guarantee that you will complete it at your first attempt.)
If you are opting to play through Alice’s Nightmare in Wonderland using the game rules, you first need to determine Alice’s strengths and weaknesses.
“We’re all mad here!”
Alice’s Attributes
Alice has five attributes you will need to keep track of during the course of the adventure, using Alice’s Adventure Sheet. Some of these will change frequently, some less so, but it is important that you keep an accurate record of the current level for all of them.
Agility – This is a measure of how athletic and agile Alice is. If she needs to leap across a chasm or dodge a deadly projectile, this is the attribute that will be employed.
Logic – This is a measure of how clever and knowledgeable Alice is, and will be tested if Alice ever has to think her way out of a tricky situation or solve a mind-bending puzzle.
Insanity – The deeper Alice plunges into the nightmare that is besetting Wonderland, the more her sanity will be put at risk. Rest assured that you should do all you can to prevent Alice from losing her marbles altogether during the course of the adventure.
Combat – This is a measure of how skilful Alice is at fighting, whether it be in pugilist fashion with her fists, or wielding a keen-edged blade in battle.
Endurance – This is a measure of how physically tough Alice is and how much strength she has left. This attribute will vary more than any other during the course of Alice’s adventure.
Unlike some adventure gamebooks, in Alice’s Nightmare in Wonderland Alice’s strengths and weaknesses are not determined randomly. Instead, you get to decide what she is good at and, conversely, what she might not be so good at.
Alice’s Insanity score always starts at zero. Her Endurance score always starts at 20.
Alice’s remaining attributes – Agility, Logic and Combat – start at a base level of 6. You then have a pool of 10 extra points to share out between Agility, Logic, Combat and Endurance as you see fit, but you can only add up to 5 points to each attribute. So the maximum starting score for Agility, Logic, and Combat is 11, and the maximum starting score for Endurance is 25. (You must apportion all 10 points one way or another, and cannot leave any unused.)
For example, you might choose to add 2 po
ints to Alice’s Agility score, 4 to her Logic score, 2 points to her Combat score, and add the remaining 2 points to her Endurance score, which would give Alice the following starting profile for the game:
Agility = 8, Logic = 10, Insanity = 0, Combat = 8,
Endurance = 22.
Alternatively you might want to add 4 points to her Agility score, nothing to her Logic score, add 1 point to her Combat score, and spend the remaining 5 points bolstering Alice’s Endurance score, which would give her this starting profile:
Agility = 10, Logic = 6, Insanity = 0, Combat = 7,
Endurance = 25.
If you wanted to make her more of an all-rounder, you could raise Alice’s Agility, Logic and Combat scores by 3 points each, and use up the last point on her Endurance score, which would give Alice this starting profile:
Agility = 9, Logic = 9, Insanity = 0, Combat = 9,
Endurance = 21.
Having determined where Alice’s strengths and weaknesses lie, record the value of each attribute in the appropriate box on Alice’s Adventure Sheet in pencil, and make sure you have an eraser to hand, as they will doubtless all change at some point as you play through the adventure (and some more than others).
Although there are limits on how high each of Alice’s attributes can be at the start of the adventure, there is no limit as to how high any of Alice’s attributes can be raised during the course of the adventure, dependent upon bonus points Alice may be awarded. However, should Alice’s Endurance score ever drop to zero, or below, then her adventure is over and you should stop reading immediately; if you want to tackle the quest again, you will have to start from the beginning, determining Alice’s attributes anew, and then starting the story from section 1 once more.
“Do you play croquet?”
Testing Alice’s Attributes
At various times during the adventure, you will be asked to test one or other of Alice’s attributes.
If it is Alice’s Agility, Logic or Combat that is being tested, simply roll two dice. If the total rolled is equal to or less than the particular attribute being tested, Alice has passed the test; if the total rolled is greater than the attribute in question, then Alice has failed the test.
If it is Alice’s Endurance score that is being tested, roll four dice in total. If the combined score of all four dice is equal to or less than Alice’s Endurance score, then she has passed the test, but if it is greater, then what is being asked of her is beyond what she is capable of and she has failed the test.
If it is Alice’s Insanity score that is being tested, roll two dice, and in this case, if the total rolled is less than her Insanity score, Alice has failed the test. However, if the total rolled is equal to or greater than her Insanity score, then Alice has passed the test.
“It’s always tea-time.”
Restoring Alice’s Attributes
There are various ways that Alice can restore lost attribute points, or be granted bonuses that take her attributes beyond their starting scores, and these will be described in the text.
However, an easy way to restore lost Endurance points is to find things for Alice to eat and drink. Sometimes Alice may find enough food that she can make herself some provisions to take with her for later on in the adventure.
Make sure that if Alice does find any supplies of this nature that you record them on Alice’s Adventure Sheet, along with any information about exactly how many attribute points they will restore when consumed.
“Curiouser and Curiouser!”
Alice’s Special Abilities
In addition to her five basic attributes, Alice also has two special abilities that she can employ at critical moments during her journey through the nightmarish Wonderland.
Curiouser and Curiouser – If Alice finds herself in a tight spot she can use this ability to change the nature of the dream world around her, although this might result in her actually making things worse rather than better.
The Pen is Mightier – This ability allows Alice to avoid coming to blows with an enemy, by altering the narrative of the encounter and thereby enabling her to get away unscathed.
These very special abilities can only be used three times each during the course of the adventure. Each time Alice’s calls on one of them, you must cross off a box on Alice’s Adventure Sheet under the appropriate special ability.
“Off with her head!”
Combat
Alice will repeatedly be called upon to defend herself against the bizarre and malevolent denizens of the nightmarish realm that Wonderland has become since her last visit. Sometimes she may even choose to attack these horrors herself. After all, as they say, the best form of defence is attack.
When this happens, start by filling in Alice’s opponent’s Combat and Endurance scores in the first available Nightmare Encounter Box on Alice’s Adventure Sheet.
Whenever Alice engages in combat, you will be told in the text whether Alice or her enemy has the initiative; in other words, who has the advantage and gets to attack first.
1.Roll two dice and add Alice’s Combat score. The resulting total is Alice’s Combat Rating.
2.Roll two dice and add Alice’s opponent’s Combat Score. The resulting total is her opponent’s Combat Rating.
3.For each Combat Round, add a temporary 1 point bonus to the Combat Rating of whichever of the combatants has the initiative for the duration of that round.
4.If Alice’s Combat Rating is higher than her opponent’s she has wounded her enemy; deduct 2 points from her opponent’s Endurance score, and move on to step 7.
5.If Alice’s opponent’s Combat Rating is higher, then Alice has been wounded; deduct 2 points from Alice’s Endurance score, and move on to step 8.
6.If Alice’s Combat Rating and her opponent’s Combat Rating are the same, roll one die. If the number rolled is odd, Alice and her opponent deflect each other’s attacks; go to step 10. If the number rolled is even, go to step 9.
7.If Alice’s opponent’s Endurance score has been reduced to zero or below, Alice has won; the battle is over and she can continue on her way through Wonderland. If her opponent is not yet dead, go to step 10.
8.If Alice’s Endurance score has been reduced to zero or below, Alice’s opponent has won the battle. If you want to continue your adventure you will have to start again from the beginning, determining Alice’s attributes all over again, and starting from section 1 once more. If Alice is still alive, go to step 10.
9.Alice and her opponent have both managed to injure each other; deduct 1 point from their respective Endurance scores. If Alice’s Endurance score has been reduced to zero or below, Alice’s adventure is over; if you want to play again you will have to determine Alice’s attributes anew, and start again from section 1. If Alice is still alive but her enemy’s Endurance has been reduced to zero or below, Alice has won; the battle is over and she can continue on her way through Wonderland. If neither Alice nor her opponent are dead, go to step 10.
10.If Alice won the Combat Round, she will have the initiative in the next Combat Round. If her opponent won the Combat Round, they will have the initiative. If neither of them won the Combat Round, neither of them will gain the initiative bonus for the next Combat Round. Go back to step 1 and work through the sequence again until either Alice, or her opponent, is defeated.
Occasionally Alice may find herself having to fight more than one opponent at once. Such battles are conducted in the same way as above, using the ten step process, except that you will have to work out the Combat Ratings of all those involved. As long as Alice has a higher rating than an opponent she will injure them, no matter how many opponents she is taking on at the same time. However, equally, any opponent with a Combat Rating higher than Alice’s will be able to injure her too.
“You’re nothing but a pack of cards!”
An Alternative to Dice
To do this, when you are called upon to roll dice, simply shuffle a standard 52-card deck (having removed the jokers) and draw a single card. (If you are asked to roll four dice, draw two cards.) Number cards are worth the number shown on the card. Jacks, Queens and Kings are all worth 11, and if you draw an Ace, it counts as being worth 12 (for example, if Alice is engaged in Combat), and is an automatic pass if she is testing an attribute – any attribute.
“Shoes, and ships, and sealing wax.”
Equipment
Alice starts her adventure with nothing but the clothes she stands up in, including a pinafore she wears over her dress which, fortunately, comes with a deep pocket at the front. This is where Alice stores anything she picks up during the course of her adventure.
Anything that she collects should be recorded on Alice’s Adventure Sheet, including any clues or passwords, as well as weapons, provisions, and other miscellaneous unusual items.
“Begin at the Beginning.”
Hints on Play
There is more than one path that Alice can follow through Wonderland to reach her ultimate goal, but it may take you several attempts to actually complete the adventure. Make notes and draw a map as you explore. This map will doubtless prove invaluable during future attempts at completing the quest, and will allow you to progress more speedily in order to reach unexplored regions of the nightmarish realm.
Keep a careful eye on all of Alice’s attributes and her Insanity score in particular. Beware of traps and of sending Alice on too many wild goose chases. However, it would be wise to collect useful items along the way that may aid her further on in her quest.
“Go on till you come to the end: then stop.”
Ending the Game
There are several ways that Alice’s adventure can end. If her Endurance score ever drops to zero or below, her trials in Wonderland have exhausted and overcome her. If this happens, stop reading at once. There may also be occasions where Alice is prevented from progressing any further through the adventure thanks to the choices you have made for her, or she meets a sudden and untimely end. In all of these cases, if you want to have another crack at completing the adventure you will have to start again with a new Alice’s Adventure Sheet and begin the story afresh from section 1.