ALBA Read online

  22.6

  22.7

  22.8

  22.9

  22.10

  22.11

  22.12

  22.13

  22.14

  22.15

  22.16

  Chapter 23

  The Windmill

  23.1

  23.2

  23.3

  23.4

  23.5

  23.6

  23.6a

  23.7

  23.8

  23.9

  23.10

  23.10a

  23.11

  23.12

  23.13

  23.14

  23.15

  23.16

  23.17

  23.17a

  23.18

  23.19

  23.20

  23.21

  23.22

  23.23

  23.24

  23.25

  Chapter 24

  The Caravans

  24.1

  24.2

  24.3

  24.4

  24.5

  24.6

  24.7

  24.8

  24.9

  24.10

  24.11

  24.12

  24.13

  24.14

  24.15

  24.16

  Chapter 25

  The Radio Tower

  25

  25.0

  25.1

  25.1G

  25.1a

  25.2

  25.3

  25.4

  25.4G

  25.5

  25.6

  25.6G

  25.7

  25.8

  25.9

  25.10

  25.11

  25.12

  25.13

  25.14

  25.15

  Chapter 26

  The Battlefield

  26.1

  26.2

  26.3

  26.4

  26.5

  26.6

  26.7

  26.8

  26.8a

  26.9

  26.10

  26.10a

  26.11

  26.12

  26.13

  26.14

  26.15

  26.16

  26.17

  26.18

  26.18a

  26.19

  26.20

  26.21

  26.22

  26.23

  Chapter 27

  The Aftermath

  27.1

  27.2

  27.3

  27.4

  27.5

  27.6

  27.7

  27.8

  27.9

  27.10

  27.11

  27.12

  27.13

  27.14

  27.15

  Chapter 28

  The Streets

  28.1

  28.2

  28.3

  28.4

  28.5

  28.6

  28.7

  28.8

  28.9

  28.10

  28.11

  28.12

  Chapter 29

  The Reunion

  29.0

  29.1

  29.1G

  29.2

  29.3

  29.4

  29.5

  29.6

  29.7

  29.8

  29.9

  29.10

  S.1

  The Seaside Farm

  S.1.1

  S.1.2

  S.1.3

  S.1.4

  S.1.5

  S.1.5a

  S.1.6

  S.1.7

  S.1.8

  S.1.9

  S.1.10

  S.1.11

  S.1.12

  S.1.13

  S.1.14

  S.1.15

  S.1.16

  S.1.17

  S.1.18

  S.1.19

  S.1.20

  S.1.21

  S.1.21a

  S.2

  The Cult

  S.2.1

  S.2.2

  S.2.3

  S.2.4

  S.2.5

  S.2.5a

  S.2.6

  S.2.7

  S.2.8

  S.2.9

  S.2.10

  S.2.11

  S.2.12

  S.2.13

  S.2.14

  S.2.15

  S.2.16

  S.2.17

  S.2.18

  S.2.19

  S.2.20

  S.2.21

  S.2.22

  S.2.23

  S.2.24

  Chapter 30

  Ending One

  30.0

  30.A

  30.B

  Chapter 31

  Ending Two

  31.0

  31.A

  31.B

  Chapter 32

  Ending Three

  32.0

  32.A

  32.B

  32.C

  Chapter 33

  Ending four

  33.0

  33.A

  33.B

  Chapter 34

  Ending Five

  34.0

  34.A

  34.B

  34.C

  Chapter 35

  Ending Six

  35.0

  35.A

  35.B

  Chapter 36

  Lost Endings

  36.0

  36.A

  36.B

  36.C

  36.D

  36.E

  36.F

  Alba Quickstart Guide

  About the Author

  About Inside the Box

  What is an Open World Adventure Book?

  Gamebooks have been around for a long time; novels where YOU are the protagonist, making choices at points in the narrative where going left or right will make a substantial difference to how the story progresses. Our team grew up exploring castles, dungeons and houses of horror, navigating these little worlds bound up in a single book – nestled into a corner of a library or a classroom or a cluttered bedroom, imagining ourselves as mighty warriors, devious rogues or plucky detectives.

  * * *

  Taking inspiration from those fabulously immersive stories, as well as more recent immersive board games and video games – we wanted to create something more expansive, more immersive and more engaging than what has come before. No dead-ends, no dice rolling – a modern, mature and deep experience you will return to time and time again.

  * * *

  Open World Adventure Books will give you an experience where you make choices at each juncture in the narrative, the effects of which will ripple through your story. Each chapter of the book is an ‘act’ of the narrative, a particular location at a particular time, where you make successive choices to determine what happens in that place, at that time. At the end of each chapter, you’ll then choose where to go next – which chapter to progress to. Depending on your choices, different chapters will be unlocked, and some may even remain a mystery after you’ve completed your journey!

  * * *

  Open World Adventure Books offer a non-linear branching narrative style that allows for an organic, natural journey through these novel worlds.

  How it Works

  Open World Adventure Books aren’t like regular books. Instead of going from paragraph to paragraph, chapter to chapter, until you hit the end of the story, YOU choose how the story ends.

  * * *

  You’ll start at Chapter 1, Section 0.

  * * *

  At the end of that section, it’ll tell you what to do next. You’ll go from section to section, not necessarily in numerical order, following instructions and making choices until you reach the end of a chapter. Then, you’ll choose which chapter to read next, based on what you’ve unlocked.

  * * *

  See Locations for more on chapter selection.

  Choices
<
br />   Some sections will end by telling you to read the next section by saying something like:

  * * *

  Turn to 10.

  * * *

  Others might give you a couple of options on how to respond. This is how you choose how you want the story to proceed. At the end of a section where there’s a choice, it’ll look something like this:

  * * *

  Go left – Turn to 5.

  Go right – Turn to 6.

  * * *

  Depending on which option you choose, you’ll have a different section to read, and possibly different options again from the other path you didn’t choose. Sometimes, these options may only have a small impact on the overall story, others are pivotal moments that radically alter your character’s experience.

  * * *

  Choose wisely.

  * * *

  Although different choices will lead you down different paths, you cannot ‘lose’ an Open World Adventure Book. There is no point where you get told your character died or suddenly got lost – you will always progress. Don’t underestimate how differently, though...

  Traits

  In Alba, one way you track your experience of different events, encounters and other aspects of your adventure is through traits. These are Compassion, Cruelty, Resolve, and Instability. As you make your choices, sections may instruct you to amend one of these traits like:

  * * *

  Add Resolve to your character sheet.

  * * *

  To do this, turn to your character sheet in the back of the book and circle one of the pips next to that trait.

  * * *

  If you’re asked to remove one, cross one out that’s already been circled.

  * * *

  Sometimes an option may be restricted based on your traits, for example:

  * * *

  Go left – Turn to 5.

  Go right – Turn to 6.

  Go straight ahead – Turn to 7,

  Needs Resolve >=3

  * * *

  In this case, you need to have at least 3 Resolve (circled pips, not including crossed out ones) to choose the third option. You can still choose the other ones if you like, but if you meet the criteria where it says ‘Needs x’ that option is also open to you, otherwise, you must pick from the ones that don’t have a requirement. There will usually be more than one option available to you, but occasionally there may only be one available option.

  * * *

  These traits have a lasting impact on your character, and can ultimately determine your fate.

  Locations

  In Alba, each chapter represents a particular location at a particular time. As you progress, you’ll be instructed to add some locations to your map, like this:

  * * *

  Add The House (CH 10) to map.

  * * *

  To do this, find the location sticker with the matching number. Add the sticker to the map so that the chapter number lines up with the outline of the number printed on the map. This sticker will add a visual reference for that chapter, as well as the number of the chapter, to that position on the map.

  * * *

  When you complete a chapter, place one of the black circle markers from the sticker sheet around the number on the map, to show that you’ve completed that section. You can no longer choose that chapter when progressing to the next one. If you’re ever instructed to ‘remove’ a location, you also do this by covering the number with a black circle sticker.

  * * *

  If you are in a situation where you must choose a new chapter and you do not have any unexplored chapters to choose from, from those that have been revealed, go directly to Chapter 36. This is a fairly unlikely outcome!

  Specialities

  You start your journey into Alba on a boat, entering the Old World and talking to other members of your expedition. This is where you determine what skills and expertise you have accumulated before your adventure. You’ll pick your first by choosing a narrative option, reading the appropriate section, and then following the instruction to add that speciality sticker to your character sheet, like this:

  * * *

  Add Engineering to your character sheet.

  * * *

  To add your speciality to your character sheet, select the matching sticker from the sticker sheet and place it in the area marked ‘Specialities’.

  * * *

  Specialities, like traits, may be necessary to progress through certain paths, like this:

  * * *

  Go left – Turn to 5.

  Go right – Turn to 6.

  Build a shelter – Turn to 7, Needs Engineering.

  * * *

  By the end of Chapter 1, you’ll have two of these specialities. In rare cases, you may be able to add additional specialities during the course of your adventure.

  * * *

  The different specialities you can get for your character are:

  * * *

  • Engineering

  • Old World Language

  • Hand-to-Hand Combat

  • Knowledge, Chemistry

  • Medicine

  • Survival

  • Sharpshooter

  Encounters

  Encounters are Alba’s way of tracking specific interactions or events within the narrative that come to have greater meaning later, based on your choices. These encounters, like traits and specialities, may be needed to progress down particular paths. At the end of a section, you may be instructed to add an encounter to your character sheet like this:

  * * *

  Add Encounter with Bob to your character sheet.

  * * *

  Like the other stickers, encounters could be needed for options, for example:

  * * *

  Go left – Turn to 5.

  Go right – Turn to 6.

  Call Bob – Turn to 7, Needs Encounter

  with Bob.

  * * *

  Generally speaking, encounters are added to your character sheet for interactions with named characters or particularly pivotal moments that don’t result in you picking up a ‘thing’. Not all of them will be useful for the plot.