History Literature / CityOfThieves1983

You are a traveler who entered the city of Silverton, where at night the terrified inhabitants gather together in the barricated Inn. You're soon told that the reason are the terrible minions of the demonic Zanbar Bone, a terryfing undead sorcerer who has set his sights on Mirelle Carralif, daughter of the wealthy Owen Carralif, merchant and mayor of Silverton. The people are quaking in fear, and some even suggests giving Zanbar the girl. That's where you come into play: Owen begs you to travel to the infamous town of Port Blacksand, the most wretched and corrupted town in Allansia, to seek the advice of Nicodemus, a reclusive sage who may know a way to permanently destroy the undead warlock. And thus, you'll face a perilous journey through the fetid streets of Port Blacksand, gathering items that will allow you to face the perils of the tower of Zanbar Bone and end its reign of terror once and for all.

''City of Thieves'' follows the traditional Livingstone pattern, having the player looking for several MacGuffin items as he navigates through the city, often facing dangerous and powerful enemies on his way through. This book also introduces for the first time the city of Port Blacksand, which will be used again in many other books, sometimes as a minor background.

Would later receive a SpiritualSuccessor in ''Literature/MidnightRogue'', another adventure set in Port Blacksand, as well as a sequel, ''Literature/ThePortOfPeril''. Do not confuse with the novel ''Literature/{{City of Thieves|2008}}''.

* AllThereInTheManual: The guide ''Titan – The Fighting Fantasy World'' states that the Serpent Queen was cursed into the current form by the Snake People.
* BarBrawl: In a crowded tavern, you can try sitting near some goblins, who will react to humans with hostility and draw weapons on you forcing you into a fight.

* {{Butterface}}: The Serpent Queen has a gorgeous, scantly-clad body tipped with the head and long neck of a massive, venomous snake.
* {{Cloudcuckoolander}}: Nicodemus is a hermit mage like Yaztromo, but more absent-minded than him, [[spoiler:to the point that he forgot to tell you which two of the three ingredients you looked for are required to kill Zanbar Bone, much to the player's frustration.]]
* ClimaxBoss: At the peak of your adventure - after leaving Port Blacksand, but ''before'' infiltrating Zanbar's Tower - you will need to battle two Moon Dogs, one at a time. The second one is the strongest compulsory opponent in the book, having a SKILL of 11.

* DontWakeTheSleeper: While in the pirate's quarters, you'll need to steal a pouch of black pearls hanging on the neck of a sleeping pirate with a LUCK test. If you're unlucky, the pirate wakes up and calls for help, dragging you into a fight.

* EverythingIsTryingToKillYou: Who needs Darkwood or a monster-infested dungeon to fight when a simple walk across Port Blacksand can provide you all the fighting you're looking for? Even shopkeepers are ready to fight you to death if you mess with them.

* ExtremelyShortTimespan: You reach Port Blacksand in the morning, got out and begin your journey to Zanbar's tower by dusk, and confront Zanbar by night. The whole story from reference 1 to 400 took place all within 12 hours or so.
* FakeDifficulty: The fact that only two ingredients out of the three you have collected [[spoiler:are required to defeate Bone]] and that you have to choose at random without any clue [[spoiler:which of the two you will use]] is one of the most well-known instances of this trope in the ''Fighting Fantasy'' series.

* TheGhost: Lord Azzur, dreaded master of Port Blacksand, doesn't directly makes an appearence, though it's mentioned and his personal carriage can nearly run you over at one point.
* GottaCatchThemAll: You will need a bow with relative Silver Arrow, the three ingredients needed to kill Zanbar (a black pearl, hag's hair and a lotus flower) and a special unicorn tattoo. [[spoiler: Out of the three ingredients though, one is superfluous.]]
* {{Hellhound}}: Zanbar's ferocious Moondogs, which guards his tower and are sent each night to torment Silverton. You fight a couple of them outside Zanbar's tower in a rather cheap and difficult boss battle.
* IAmAHumanitarian: The Hag will make a stew out of you if you're killed by her.
* LuckBasedMission: After you find everything you need to take on Zanbar Bone, you suddenly get a follow up message from Nicodemus. Seems he misremembered the formula he gave you; you actually only need two of the alchemical ingredients he told you about to kill Bone, but he doesn't remember which two, only that it's one of three possibilities. You have to lock in your random decision with no guidance, go through a final dungeon and confront Zanbar Bone... and then probably have to start the book over from the beginning because of the 66% chance of making the wrong random guess. At least the player's avatar is frustrated when he gets this message too.
* LuckilyMyShieldWillProtectMe: You can find and equip a shield, which grants you a SKILL bonus.

* MysticalLotus: Lotus flowers are one of three magical ingredients used to create a paste that can destroy even the strongest of demons, alongside hag's hair and black pearls, where a concoction from combining the three materials can cause even the Great Demon Prince, Zanbar Bone, to wither and dissolve into nothingness. Later on [[spoiler:turns out to be two -- the black pearls are actually useless]].
* NintendoHard: As noted in many reviews, the fights in Port Blacksand can be rather difficult, finding the ingredients isn't a walk in the park and the final section of the game opens with a rather difficult fight [[spoiler: and forces the player to guess which of the three possible combinations is correct.]]
* OurLichesAreDifferent: Zanbar Bone is an undead sorcerer who's NighInvulnerable, commands undead and other monsters and even lacks a SoulJar. Furthermore, the method for destroying him is complicated and obscure.
* {{Pirate}}: You can sneak aboard a pirate ship in the harbor, and it's actually required to progress, as this is where you'll find the Black Pearls. They're in a pouch hanging around the neck of a sleeping pirate in a cabin below deck. If you're stealthy, you dont have to fight him, but if you screw up, you have to kill him AND his two crewmates.

* RandomEncounters: On your way to Zanbar's tower, you must roll a dice to see which creature stumbles into you on the way.

* SickCaptiveScam: If you get thrown into a dungeon by the city guards early in the adventure, you can feign sickness and lure the guards to investigate. You can then choose to attack them (where you fight unarmed, therefore with your skills at a malus) or claim you have the plague, [[YouDontWantToCatchThis at which point the guards will react with horror and quickly leave]].

* SmokingIsNotCool: You can buy a pipe and some tobacco but it only saps your Stamina.

* StalkerWithACrush: Zanbar kicks off the plot by lusting after Mirelle Carralif from Silverton, and will send his Moon Dogs to kill the citizens unless his request is granted.
* SwallowTheKey: Choosing to rob Ben the silversmith will have Ben responding by swallowing the key to his silver cabinet before he attacks you.
* ThrowingYourSwordAlwaysWorks: At one point, a sorcerer floors you with a lightning bolt. You're given the chance to throw the sword at him from the floor, though you'll miss if you fail a Luck roll.
* TrialAndErrorGameplay: [[spoiler: You have absolutely 0 clues on how to combine the three ingredients to kill Zanbar Bone, forcing you to guess at random.]]

* UnwinnableByDesign: The encounter with Bignose and Sourbelly, the troll city guards, leads to you being forced to flee Port Blacksand, either using a magic rope or being assisted by one of the citizens as thanks for killing the hated trolls. However, this means that you cant go back inside as you'll now be hunted by the entire city guard, and if you havent found all three ingredients and the silver arrow, it's a NonStandardGameOver.

** If you attack the blacksmith in the market, the book goes out of its way to make you feel like a dick for killing one of the few good people in Blacksand, and punishes you with a permanent loss of 2 LUCK points. You really should just pay for the chainmail armor he offers.
** If you join the crowd in throwing produce on the prisoner mentioned above, the old woman giving out the produce picks your pocket and steals a bunch of your gold.
* WeaksauceWeakness: Zanbar Bone has probably the oddest one yet: first, you must shoot him with a silver arrow to paralyze him, then you have to rub a special compound in his open eyes to permanently kill him. [[spoiler: Except that Nicodemus forgot to tell you which two elements out of three must be combined to do so. Namely, Hag's Hair and Lotus Flower.]]

* BalefulPolymorph: Nicodemus' preferred way to deal with pesky or hostile adventurers.

* GottaCatchThemAll: You will need a bow with relative Silver Arrow, the three ingrediends needed to kill Zanbar (a black pearl, hag's hair and a lotus flower) and a special unicorn tattoo. [[spoiler: Out of the three ingredients though, one is superfluous.]]

* ShrunkenHead: Zanbar Bone wears one like a talisman around his neck, presumambly tied to his sorcery.

* ThoseTwoBadGuys: The two Troll guards met near the exit of the town, Sourbelly and Fatnose.

* LuckBasedMission: After you find everything you need to take on Zanbar Bone, you suddenly get a follow up message from Nicodemus. Seems he misremembered the formula he gave you; you actually only need two of the alchemical ingredients he told you about to kill Bone, but he doesn't remember which two, only that it's one of three possibilities. You have to lock in your random decision with no guidance, go through a final dungeon and confront Zanbar Bone...and then probably have to start the book over from the beginning because of the 66% chance of making the wrong random guess. At least the player's avatar is frustrated when he gets this message too.

You are a traveler who entered the city of Silverton, where at night the terrified inhabitants gather together in the barricated Inn. You're soon told that the reason are the terrible minions of the demonic Zanbar Bone, a terryfing undead sorcerer who has set his sights on Mirelle Carralif, daughter of the wealthy Owen Carralif, merchant and mayor of Silverton. The people are quaking in fear, and some even suggests to give Zanbar the girl, and that's where you come into play: Owen begs you to travel to the infamous town of Port Blacksand, the most wretched and corrupted town of Allansia, to seek the advice of Nicodemus, a reclusive sage who may know a way to permanently destroy the undead warlock. And thus, you'll face a perilous journey through the fetid streets of Port Blacksand, gathering items that will allow you to face the perils of the tower of Zanbar Bone and end its reign of terror once and for all.

* BowAndSwordInAccord: As usual you're armed with a sword. You will also need a bow with silver arrows.

* StalkerWithACrush: Zanbar kicks the plot by lusting after Mirelle Carralif from Silverton, and will send his Moon Dogs to kill the citizens unless his request is granted.

* WeaksauceWeakness: Zanbar Bone has probably the oddest one yet: first, you must shoot him with a silver arrow to paralyze him, then you have to rub a special compount in his open eyes to permanently kill him. [[spoiler: Except that Nicodemus forgot to tell you which two elements out of three must be combined to do so. Namely, Hag's Hair and Lotus Flower.]]

* NintendoHard: As noted in many reviews, the fights in Port Blacksand can be rather difficult, finding the ingredients isn't a walk in the park and the final section of the game opens with a rather difficult fight [[spoiler: and forces the player to guess which of the three possible combination is correct.]]

* ProducePelting: In the market square, a man in the stocks is being pelted with fruit and vegetables by the crowd. A poster on the stocks proclaim the man as a "Ye Goody-Too Shoes", implying he's being punished for being too ''nice''. Considering the Crapsack nature of Port Blacksand, this is likely a light punishment, as an actual criminal would probably have been executed.

''City of Thieves'' follows the traditional Livingstone pattern, having the player looking for several MacGuffin as he navigates through the city, often facing dangerous and powerful enemies on his way through. This book also introduces for the first time the city of Port Blacksand, which will be used again in many other books, sometimes as a minor background.

* SickCaptiveScam: If you get thrown into a dungeon by the city guards early in the adventure, you can feign sickness and lure the guards to investigate. Yoi can then choose to attack them (where you fight unarmed, therefore with your skills at a malus) or claim you have the plague, [[YouDontWantToCatchThis at which point the guards will react with horror and quickly leave]].

* DraconicHumanoid: The Lizardine is a humanoid dragon (who can even breath fire) you can run afoul of, especially if you stole one of his brooches.

* SickCaptiveScam: If you get thrown into a dungeon by the city guards early in the adventure, you can feign sickness and lure the guards to investigate. Yoi can then choose to attack them (where you fight unarmed, therefore with your skills at a malus) or claim you have the plague, [[YouDonttWantToCatchThis at which point the guards will react with horror and quickly leave]].

Would later receive a SpiritualSuccessor in ''Literature/MidnightRogue'', another adventure set in Port Blacksand, as well as a sequel, ''The Port of Peril''. Do not confuse with the novel ''Literature/{{City of Thieves|2008}}''.

* PowerTattoo: In order to win against Zanbar, you must wear a tattoo of a unicorn on your forehead. Quite embarassing...

Would later receive a SpiritualSuccessor in ''Literature/MidnightRogue'', another adventure set in Port Blacksand, as well as a sequel, ''The Port of Perils''. Do not confuse with the novel ''Literature/{{City of Thieves|2008}}''.

* AllThereInTheManual: The guide ''Titan - The Fighting Fantasy World'' states that the Serpent Queen was cursed into the current form by the Snake People.

* BowAndSwordInAccord: As usual you're armed with a sword and you will need a bow with silver arrows.

* CloudCuckooLander: Nicodemus is a hermit mage like Yaztromo, but more absent-minded than him, [[spoiler: to the point that he forgot to tell you which two of the three ingredients you looked for are required to kill Zanbar Bone, much to the player's frustration.]]
* TheDeadHaveEyes: Zanbar Bone, despite being a skeleton, still has green eyeballs in his skull. [[spoiler: Good thing too, since there's where you're going to rub the ingredients to kill him.]]

* OurLichesAreDifferent: Zanbar Bone is an undead sorcerer who's NighInvulnerable, commands undeads and other monsters and even lacks a SoulJar. Furthermore, the method for destroying him is complicated and obscure.

* {{Pun}}: You can run into a group of small, goblin-like creatures called Bays playing a sport with a leather ball and a stick. They call it [[UsefulNotes/BaseBall Bays-Ball]].

* VideoGameCrueltyPunishment: If you attack the blacksmith in the market, the book goes out of it's way to make you feel like a dick for killing one of the few good people in Blacksand, and punishes you with a permanent loss of 2 LUCK points. You really should just pay for the chainmail armor he offers.

* WretchedHive: This novel introduces Port Blacksand as the greatest one in Titan, with other cities such as [[Literature/{{Sorcery}} Kharé]] and [[Literature/SeasOfBlood Tak]] coming second.

* {{Planimal}}: One of the enemies in town is a massive beast made of leaves.

Would later receive a SpiritualSuccessor in ''Literature/MidnightRogue'', another adventure set in Port Blacksand, as well as a sequel, ''The Port of Perils''. Do not confuse with the novel ''Literature/CityOfThieves''.

!!''City of Thieves (the gamebook)'' contains examples of:

You are a traveler who entered the city of Silverton, where at night the terrified inhabitants gather together in the barricated Inn. You're soon told that the reason are the terrible minions of the demonic Zanbar Bone, a terryfing undead sorcerer who has set his sights on Mirelle Carralif, daughter of the wealthy Owen Carralif, merchant and mayor of Silverton. The people are quacking in fear, and some even suggests to give Zanbar the girl, and that's where you come into play: Owen begs you to travel to the infamous town of Port Blacksand, the most wretched and corrupted town of Allansia, to seek the advice of Nicodemus, a reclusive sage who may know a way to permanently destroy the undead warlock. And thus, you'll face a perilous journey through the fetid streets of Port Blacksand, gathering items that will allow you to face the perils of the tower of Zanbar Bone and end its reign of terror once and for all.

[[caption-width-right:350:What happens in the City of Thieves stays in the City of Thieves.]]]]

Would later receive a SpiritualSuccessor in ''Literature/MidnightRogue'', another adventure set in Port Blacksand, as well as a "remake" of sorts, ''The Port of Perils''. Do not confuse with the novel ''Literature/CityOfThieves''.

Would later receive a SpiritualSuccessor in ''Midnight Rogue'', another adventure set in Port Blacksand, as well as a "remake" of sorts, ''The Port of Perils''. Do not confuse with the novel ''Literature/CityOfThieves''.

* WeaksauceWeakness: Zanbar Bone has probably the oddest one yet: first, you must shoot him with a silver arrow to paralyze him, then you have to rub a special compount in his open eyes to permanently kill him. [[spoiler: Except that Nicodemus forgot to tell you which two elements out of three must be combined to do so. Namely, Hag's Hair and Black Pearl.]]