I've finished Lizard King now. I did write it up but I won't post it here yet in case people are still playing Deathtrap Dungeon / don't want spoilers on IotLK / don't want to read another wall of FF-gamebook text.
It's a really hard book, and not in the way DD is where the place is full of lethal traps and then if you don't have all the stuff at the end you die: it's stuffed full of unrelentingly tough fights with Skill 10 or above. Skill 10 or more is pretty essential and even then I was killed a few times just through attrition until I learned how to avoid a couple of them. The path through the book is actually reasonably straightforward and if you can handle the fights then you can probably finish the book.
The final fight can be made significantly easier to the point of pushover with a couple of items, one of which I think is impossible to miss (although you can just not pick it up) and whilst anticlimatic is quite a nice touch although it does lead to the Lizard King himself being a bit of a joke, especially given how derpy he looks in the picture.
I really liked the feel of the book though with the environments changing as you navigate the island and the various hazards feel thematic to each environment. I also liked the story it tells - rather than just being a random thug out killing and looting in the hope of a prize like Warlock and FoD, here you are on a proper errand of mercy to free the prisoners and avenge poor old Mungo (I don't think this is a spoiler given how any adventuring buddies usually wind up in FF books)
The interior art is from Alan Langford who I feel is one of the 'classic' FF artists and draws some lovely creatures although as mentioned his Lizard King is unfortunately not scary or cool at all especially when compared with the one on the cover.
Probably the third best one I've played so far (after CoT and DD).
It's a really hard book, and not in the way DD is where the place is full of lethal traps and then if you don't have all the stuff at the end you die: it's stuffed full of unrelentingly tough fights with Skill 10 or above. Skill 10 or more is pretty essential and even then I was killed a few times just through attrition until I learned how to avoid a couple of them. The path through the book is actually reasonably straightforward and if you can handle the fights then you can probably finish the book.
The final fight can be made significantly easier to the point of pushover with a couple of items, one of which I think is impossible to miss (although you can just not pick it up) and whilst anticlimatic is quite a nice touch although it does lead to the Lizard King himself being a bit of a joke, especially given how derpy he looks in the picture.
I really liked the feel of the book though with the environments changing as you navigate the island and the various hazards feel thematic to each environment. I also liked the story it tells - rather than just being a random thug out killing and looting in the hope of a prize like Warlock and FoD, here you are on a proper errand of mercy to free the prisoners and avenge poor old Mungo (I don't think this is a spoiler given how any adventuring buddies usually wind up in FF books)
The interior art is from Alan Langford who I feel is one of the 'classic' FF artists and draws some lovely creatures although as mentioned his Lizard King is unfortunately not scary or cool at all especially when compared with the one on the cover.
Probably the third best one I've played so far (after CoT and DD).