The Court of Hidden Faces

Fabled Lands #5

by Dave Morris, Jamie Thomson

Exotic intrigue in Uttaku and Old Harkuna

Set in the nation of Uttaku (similar to the Byzantine Empire), which is occupying the kingdom of Old Harkuna (similar to the lands of Arthurian legend). If the player frees the king of Old Harkuna from his prison in The Plains of Howling Darkness, the king can reclaim his land, end the Uttaku occupation and restore prosperity. There is also an abandoned castle in Harkuna which the player can rebuild and claim for himself. Most other major quests involve undertaking tasks for the Uttakin government (the titular Court).

The book takes its title from Uttaku's court of ruling nobles, who wear elaborate masks as a status symbol and to hide their faces. The king himself is born without a face at all.

723 sections, ISBN 0-330-34431-5

Genres: Gamebooks, Fantasy, Fiction

96 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 2000

Reviews

[Colton · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this setting - a mountainous region where the locals wear masks at all times. I freed the frozen king, explored the haunted mountain tombs, "defeated" a monster named Grindel who was terrorizing a town, and much more. This region is smaller than some of the others, and more contained to the area, but there is still much to accomplish. Due to a messed up save, I had to create a new character, Melmont the Wayfarer, who I eventually got up to Rank 12.

[Matthew Bane · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed my time playing and reading this.

I wish I had the other books, b/c I always wanted to run off the map.

Also, the limits of a book like this make you sometimes feel railroaded, but it was still a good time.

[SBC · Rating 2 out of 5]

Looked really good, but I got annoyed that I couldn't make all the choices I wanted to because I didn't have all the books.

[Daniel Mayr · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75 / 5