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{{Infobox Fighting Fantasy book 2covers|
{{Infobox book
| name = City of Thieves
|image1=[[Image:Ff5puffin.jpg|150px]]
| image = File:Ff5puffin.jpg
|caption1=The original cover of ''City of Thieves'' illustrated by Ian McCaig
| caption = Cover of the first edition, featuring art by Iain McCaig
|image2=[[Image:Ff5wizard.jpg|150px]]
⚫
| author = [[Ian Livingstone]]<ref name="HW"/>
|caption2=The Wizard cover of ''City of Thieves'' illustrated by Martin McKenna
⚫
| illustrator = [[Iain McCaig]]
⚫
|location=Port Blacksand, Allansia, Titan
| cover_artist = {{unbulleted list
|references=400
| {{nowrap|Puffin: Iain McCaig}}
⚫
|authors=[[Ian Livingstone]]
⚫
| {{nowrap|Wizard: Martin McKenna}}
⚫
|illustrator=Ian McCaig
}}
|coverillustrator=Ian McCaig
⚫
| genre = Fantasy<br />Location: Port Blacksand, Allansia, Titan
|year=1983
⚫
| series = [[List of Fighting Fantasy gamebooks|Fighting Fantasy]]<br />{{unbulleted list
|number=5
| Puffin number: 5
⚫
|ISBN=ISBN 0-14-031645-0
| Wizard number: 5
⚫
|wcoverillustrator=Martin McKenna
}}
|wyear=2002
| pub_date = {{unbulleted list
|wnumber=5
| Puffin: 1983<ref name="HW"/>
|wISBN=ISBN 1-84046-397-X
| Dell/Laurel-Leaf: 1984<ref name="HW"/>
| Wizard: 2002
}}
| media_type = Print ([[Paperback]])
⚫
| isbn = 0-14-031645-0
| isbn_note= (Puffin)<br>{{ISBN|1-84046-397-X}} (Wizard)
| preceded_by = [[Starship Traveller]]
| followed_by = [[Deathtrap Dungeon]]
}}
}}
'''''City of Thieves''''' is a single-player [[Gamebook#Adventures|adventure gamebook]] written by [[Ian Livingstone]] and illustrated by [[Iain McCaig]]. Originally published by [[Puffin Books]] in 1983, the title is the fifth gamebook in the ''[[Fighting Fantasy]]'' series. It was later republished by Wizard Books in 2002.


⚫
== Plot ==
'''''City of Thieves''''' is a single-player roleplaying gamebook written by Ian Livingstone, illustrated by Iain McCaig and originally published in 1983 by Puffin Books. It was later republished by Wizard Books in 2002. It forms part of [[Steve Jackson (UK)|Steve Jackson]] and [[Ian Livingstone]]'s [[Fighting Fantasy]] series. It is the 5th in the series in both the original Puffin series (ISBN 0-14-031645-0) and the modern Wizard series (ISBN 1-84046-397-X).
''City of Thieves'' is a fantasy adventure scenario for a single character who the village of Silverton hires to defeat Zanbar Bone, lord of the undead; the character will need to go to Port Blacksand to get help the magician Nicodemus to succeed in saving the village.<ref name="HW">{{cite book|last=Schick |first=Lawrence|authorlink=Lawrence Schick|title=Heroic Worlds: A History and Guide to Role-Playing Games|publisher=Prometheus Books |year=1991|isbn=0-87975-653-5|page=366}}</ref>


The player takes the role of an adventurer on a quest to find and stop the powerful Night Prince Zanbar Bone, a being whose minions are terrorizing a local town. Hired by a desperate mayor, the player must as the adventurer journey to the dangerous [[city-state]] of Port Blacksand (the titular "City of Thieves"), and find the wizard Nicodemus, who apparently knows of Bone's one weakness. What follows is a series of challenges as the player must locate certain key items, escape Port Blacksand and eventually confront Bone.
⚫
== Story ==
{{Quote|''Terror stalks the night as Zanbar Bone and his bloodthirsty Moon Dogs hold the prosperous town of Silverton to ransom. YOU are an adventurer, and the merchants of Silverton turn to you in their hour of need.''<br><br>''Your mission takes you along dark, twisting streets where thieves, vagabonds and creatures of the night lie in wait to trap the unwary traveller. And beyond lies the most fearsome adventure of them all – the tower stronghold of the infamous Zanbar Bone!''}}
[[Image:cityofthieves.jpg|thumb|left|125px|City of Thieves map]]
The book introduced the corrupt and dangerous [[city-state]] of Port Blacksand (the "City of Thieves") which would feature in many further Fighting Fantasy books.

The prosperous town of Silverton is being held [[ransom]] by the evil Night Prince Zanbar Bone. Every night, Bone releases his vicious Moon Dogs to stalk the streets of the town and kill anyone they find, until the mayor agrees to hand over his daughter. Instead, the mayor hires the player to kill the sorcerer.

In order to kill him, however, the player needs to seek advice from the wizard Nicodemus, who resides in Port Blacksand, a crime-ridden coastal city-state. The player therefore has to gain entrance to the city and find the wizard while avoiding the thieves, traps and corrupt City Guard. The player will also need to wander into the streets of Port Blacksand and acquire a certain number of items before leaving Port Blacksand for the Night Prince's tower to destroy the undead Zanbar Bone and save the town of Silverton.

== Wizard rule errors ==
Some of the rules are incorrectly printed in the Wizard version of the book due to text being copied from ''[[The Warlock of Firetop Mountain]]''. The rules state that Provisions can only be eaten when instructed by the text, which is not the case. The book incorrectly states that the player has two doses of their chosen Potion at the beginning of the book, when in fact they have only one. The rules also incorrectly suggest you begin the adventure with a lantern, when in fact you must obtain one during the adventure.

== Later references ==
Port Blacksand featured in many further Fighting Fantasy books, the most obvious being ''[[Blacksand!]]'', one of the Advanced Fighting Fantasy books, which included a lot of detail about the city.

One of the characters, a troll guard whose name is Sourbelly, had a brief mention by the troll Ivy in ''[[Deathtrap Dungeon]]''. Ivy and Sourbelly are brother and sister.


==Reception==
==Reception==
[[Marcus Rowland (author)|Marcus L. Rowland]] reviewed ''City of Thieves'' for the January 1984 issue of ''[[White Dwarf (magazine)|White Dwarf]]'', who gave the book a rating of 8 out of a possible 10.<ref name="WD">{{cite journal |last=Rowland |first=Marcus |authorlink=Marcus Rowland (author) |title=Open Box |journal=[[White Dwarf (magazine)|White Dwarf]] |issue=49 |pages=14-15 |publisher =[[Games Workshop]] |year=1984 |month = January}}</ref>
[[Marcus Rowland (author)|Marcus L. Rowland]] reviewed ''City of Thieves'' for the January 1984 issue of ''[[White Dwarf (magazine)|White Dwarf]]'', rating the title 8 out of a possible 10. According to Rowland, "Most encounters in the city are potentially lethal, several being no-win situations where the best outcome involves injury or loss of money."<ref name="WD">{{cite journal |last=Rowland |first=Marcus |authorlink=Marcus Rowland (author) |title=Open Box |journal=[[White Dwarf (magazine)|White Dwarf]] |issue=49 |pages=14–15 |publisher =[[Games Workshop]] |date=January 1984}}</ref>

==See also==
⚫
*[[Fighting Fantasy]]
⚫
*[[List of Fighting Fantasy gamebooks]]


==Reviews==
*Review by Don D'Ammassa (1984) in [[Science Fiction Chronicle]], #61 October 1984
==References==
==References==
{{reflist}}
{{reflist}}


⚫
{{Fighting Fantasy}}
<div class="references-small">
* {{cite web
| title=Fighting Fantasy Gamebooks on gamebooks.org
| url=http://www.gamebooks.org/show_series.php?id=11}}
* {{cite web
| title=City of Thieves on gamebooks.org
| url=http://www.gamebooks.org/show_item.php?id=41}}
* {{cite web
| title=City of Thieves on the Internet Archive record of the old fightingfantasy.com site
| url=http://web.archive.org/web/20051127132124/www.fightingfantasy.com/ffb5.htm}}
Official sites:
* {{cite web
| title=City of Thieves on the official Fighting Fantasy website
| url=http://www.fightingfantasygamebooks.com/ff5.htm}}
* {{cite web
| title=City of Thieves on the Wizard Books website
| url=http://www.iconbooks.co.uk/wizard/wbook.cfm?isbn=1-84046-397-X}}


{{Authority control}}
⚫
[[Category:1983 books|City of Thieves]]

⚫
[[Category:1983 fiction books|City of Thieves]]
[[Category:Books by Ian Livingstone]]
[[Category:Books by Ian Livingstone]]
[[Category:Fighting Fantasy|City of Thieves]]
[[Category:Fighting Fantasy gamebooks|City of Thieves]]

[[pt:A Cidade dos Ladrões]]

Latest revision as of 22:18, 15 September 2024

City of Thieves
Cover of the first edition, featuring art by Iain McCaig
AuthorIan Livingstone[1]
IllustratorIain McCaig
Cover artist
  • Puffin: Iain McCaig
  • Wizard: Martin McKenna
SeriesFighting Fantasy
  • Puffin number: 5
  • Wizard number: 5
GenreFantasy
Location: Port Blacksand, Allansia, Titan
Publication date
  • Puffin: 1983[1]
  • Dell/Laurel-Leaf: 1984[1]
  • Wizard: 2002
Media typePrint (Paperback)
ISBN0-14-031645-0 (Puffin)
ISBN 1-84046-397-X (Wizard)
Preceded byStarship Traveller 
Followed byDeathtrap Dungeon 

City of Thieves is a single-player adventure gamebook written by Ian Livingstone and illustrated by Iain McCaig. Originally published by Puffin Books in 1983, the title is the fifth gamebook in the Fighting Fantasy series. It was later republished by Wizard Books in 2002.

Plot

[edit]

City of Thieves is a fantasy adventure scenario for a single character who the village of Silverton hires to defeat Zanbar Bone, lord of the undead; the character will need to go to Port Blacksand to get help the magician Nicodemus to succeed in saving the village.[1]

The player takes the role of an adventurer on a quest to find and stop the powerful Night Prince Zanbar Bone, a being whose minions are terrorizing a local town. Hired by a desperate mayor, the player must as the adventurer journey to the dangerous city-state of Port Blacksand (the titular "City of Thieves"), and find the wizard Nicodemus, who apparently knows of Bone's one weakness. What follows is a series of challenges as the player must locate certain key items, escape Port Blacksand and eventually confront Bone.

Reception

[edit]

Marcus L. Rowland reviewed City of Thieves for the January 1984 issue of White Dwarf, rating the title 8 out of a possible 10. According to Rowland, "Most encounters in the city are potentially lethal, several being no-win situations where the best outcome involves injury or loss of money."[2]

Reviews

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c d Schick, Lawrence (1991). Heroic Worlds: A History and Guide to Role-Playing Games. Prometheus Books. p. 366. ISBN 0-87975-653-5.
  2. ^ Rowland, Marcus (January 1984). "Open Box". White Dwarf (49). Games Workshop: 14–15.
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