|
>>
|
b6178d.jpg
Jade Bud
b6178d
You could use a game the gnoll can think it has an all but certain chance of winning, so it will be confused that you picked it, and surprised when it doesn't win. Surprise and confusion tends to make people more inclined towards doing as they're told, as long as the order is reasonable and the whole thing doesn't make them feel cheated and angry.
Potentially a game that mystifies it, but leads it bemused or distracted enough to let you pass.
If you can pull it off, a game that evidences strength and/or smarts, which the gnoll may then respect, although the former would be difficult at best considering your elegant physique.
If you are to cheat, despite what the orc said, you have to cheat in a way that is not blatant or, strange as it may sound, unfair. Fair cheating may even earn respect. Rules-lawyering may count as such, if the rules being lawyered are simple and lead to a revelation, an insight that makes one go 'oh, fuck me, that's a damn clever way of looking at it'. Smug cheating, 'ah, but you did not consider a trivial detail I mentioned in passing', not so much. Head-ripping ensues.
Znagg is not your, or anybody's, friend, but he seems to desire entertainment, at least a certain twisted kind of such, so if you can keep him amused with this game he will probably allow you to proceed, for now, in the hope of future amusements.
As for loss options, you might be able to turn even this to your advantage if you make it something that will make Znagg, cunning that he is, inclined towards doing something. Like, say, start cooperating with you and the others. F'example:
"If I lose, I will give you a boon, an action I will perform or attempt to perform to the best of my ability in this place as long as it is not suicidal or prevents my escape, or to be traded for my weight in pearls once we are free of here. If pearls aren't of interest, some other substance, hard to get, or take, in the Redstone peaks, of commensurate worth. Have you ever tried whale meat, Znagg? Or do you wish to scrap for fun with some worthy seabeast from my kingdom's menagerie? You seem the type to relish that kind of challenge; bored and violent."
Game options:
-Riddles (bah, kind of boring, but traditional, could spice it up with having the spectators coming up with the riddles so neither of you can be said to have the advantage).
-Game show, with the other people, not counting Gluben since he's clearly on your side, as 'impartial' judges. Each of you do things to impress the others, and at the end they each give their vote in order. Potentially messy, but kind of fair.
-Some generic contest of skill or physical ability (coordination, balance, strength, etc., you're likely to lose, though, unless you have some plan or ace up your sleeve).
-Hey, you already killed one, right? So... first one to next kill a demon wins. You'll even let him have a head start down that hole you wanted to go down... if he wants to be the first to enter dangerous unknown territory. Of course, anything Gluben does counts towards your killing a demon. Having a royal guard is part of a princess' fighting capabilities, after all.
-Debate game: pick a topic with two sides, talk it through, have the others vote on which one presented the better arguments. Bonus: If there's any game Znagg is likely to be poor at, it's interpersonal or diplomatic ones. He might be clever, but he's not likeable.
Also, Orion the dwarf spoke of there being no way to make a map; untrue! You have the back side of the note parchment with the poem and an ample supply of, uh, bodily liquids and bones which can be cracked to make primitive pencils.
|