The Citadel of Chaos - published on this day 40 years ago!

The Citadel of Chaos by Steve Jackson was published 40 years ago today on 31 March 1983.

"After Warlock had done so well, Puffin wanted to know if we could turn this into a series," recalls Steve Jackson. "And yes, we could. At a meeting in Philippa Dickinson’s office, she wanted to know what we should call this series. Ian came up with ‘Fighting Fantasy’. I think at the time it was just expected to be a working title. But it never got changed!”

Work started immediately on another two titles, with the authors of The Warlock of Firetop Mountain now working on one new book each.

Jackson did not stray that far from the familiar format of The Warlock of Firetop Mountain. Although it was set within a castle, The Citadel of Chaos was effectively another dungeon bash, but with the addition of rules for using magic.

Atop his sinister Black Tower, the dread sorcerer Balthus Dire is making plans of conquest. The hero of the adventure is a student of the Grand Wizard of Yore, charged by King Salamon with penetrating the stronghold of the fell magic-user, and stopping the fiend before he can unleash his army upon the peaceful Vale of Willow.

Before beginning the adventure, the hero has to determine his MAGIC score and then choose a corresponding number of spells from a pool of twelve that includes such enchantments as Creature Copy, Fool’s Gold and Levitation. But where did the inspiration for Balthus Dire and the lethal Ganjees come from?

Jackson: “Creating names for new characters monsters and places was always a brainstorming exercise. I’d write lots of contenders on a sheet of paper and eventually pick one which to my mind sounded evocative... ‘Balthus’ was the name of a French painter. At the time I was constantly on the lookout for inspiration for names for characters, places and creatures. I came across Balthus the artist – his name, not his art, which I have never seen! I thought: ‘Yes. That’s a cool name. Sounds kind of demonic, or like a dark religious pontiff.’ I used to use a thesaurus a lot for inspiration. ‘Dire’ sounded particularly bad. And thus Balthus Dire became the boss of the adventure.”

Internal art was by Russ Nicholson, while the cover was produced by the enigmatically-named Emmanuel.

Gark, by Russ Nicholson. (© Russ Nicholson, 1983 and 2014)

“The only art I really didn’t like was the cover of the original Citadel of Chaos,” reveals Jackson. “As this was the second book in the series, it could have been interpreted as a significant statement of art intent. But it was followed by Iain McCaig’s cover of The Forest of Doom which set a new standard. I asked Penguin many times to have the Citadel cover recommissioned. Eventually they gave in and Ian Miller did a fine job.”

One of the rewards sent out to backers of the Kickstarter to fund production of YOU ARE THE HERO Part 2, the second part of Jonathan Green's history of Fighting Fantasy gamebooks, was an 'album' of music inspired by the Fighting Fantasy gamebooks. One of these was a track inspired by Steve Jackson's first solo gamebook...

Blast from the Past! The Citadel of Chaos

First published this month, 38 years ago, The Citadel of Chaos was the second book in the Fighting Fantasy series and the first to be written just by Steve Jackson.

Jackson did not stray that far from the familiar format of The Warlock of Firetop Mountain. Although it was set within a castle, The Citadel of Chaos was effectively another dungeon bash, but with the addition of rules for using magic.

“I wanted to name my second book in such a way as it served to promote GW’s brand, i.e. Citadel Miniatures,” explains Jackson. “So the adventure had to be set in a Citadel. And some of the illustrations of the Citadel were reminiscent of the Citadel Miniatures logo. It was, if you like, a promotional in-joke.”

Russ NIcholson's illustration of the Black Tower - a.k.a. Balthus Dire's dread Citadel of Chaos - from The Trolltooth Wars, alongside the original Citadel Miniatures logo.

Atop his sinister Black Tower, the dread sorcerer Balthus Dire is making plans of conquest. The hero of the adventure is a student of the Grand Wizard of Yore, charged by King Salamon with penetrating the stronghold of the fell magic-user, and stopping the fiend before he can unleash his army upon the peaceful Vale of Willow.

Before beginning the adventure, the hero has to determine his MAGIC score and then choose a corresponding number of spells from a pool of twelve that includes such enchantments as Creature Copy, Fool’s Gold and Levitation. But where did the inspiration for Balthus Dire and the lethal Ganjees come from?

Ganjee, by Russ Nicholson.

Jackson: “Creating names for new characters monsters and places was always a brainstorming exercise. I’d write lots of contenders on a sheet of paper and eventually pick one which to my mind sounded evocative... ‘Balthus’ was the name of a French painter. At the time I was constantly on the lookout for inspiration for names for characters, places and creatures. I came across Balthus the artist – his name, not his art, which I have never seen! I thought: ‘Yes. That’s a cool name. Sounds kind of demonic, or like a dark religious pontiff.’ I used to use a thesaurus a lot for inspiration. ‘Dire’ sounded particularly bad. And thus Balthus Dire became the boss of the adventure.”

Internal art was by Russ Nicholson again, while the cover was produced by the enigmatically-named Emmanuel.

Emmanuel's original cover for Steve's Jackson's The Citadel of Chaos alongside Ian Miller's revised cover.

“The only art I really didn’t like was the cover of the original Citadel of Chaos,” reveals Jackson. “As this was the second book in the series, it could have been interpreted as a significant statement of art intent. But it was followed by Iain McCaig’s cover of The Forest of Doom which set a new standard. I asked Penguin many times to have The Citadel of Chaos cover recommissioned. Eventually they gave in and Ian Miller did a fine job.”

Did you know...?

Jackson once named his favourite character from the Fighting Fantasy books as being Balthus Dire, the villain from The Citadel of Chaos, while his favourite monster is the Jib-Jib, which first appeared in the final instalment of his Sorcery! series, The Crown of Kings.

Balthus Dire, the wizard-warlord, by Russ Nicholson.

When Wizard Books republished The Citadel of Chaos in 2002, Kevin Jenkins was tasked with providing a new cover for the book.

Kevin Jenkins' artwork for the Wizard editions of The Citadel of Chaos.

And of course, The Citadel of Chaos is back in print again, thanks to Scholastic Books, featuring cover art by Robert Ball.

Robert Ball's artwork for the Wizard editions of The Citadel of Chaos.

Since it was first published, back in 1983, The Citadel of Chaos has inspired computer games, and even an audio drama, The Terror of the Ganjees, that is now available from Audible.

The Singalong of Chaos

Today, upon the Earthly Plane, in the realm know as the United Kingdom, it is National Poetry Day.

From time to time poems - usually in the form of rhyming couplets - have appeared in Fighting Fantasy gamebooks, but there has been very little in the way of sonnets, or elegaic epics that have been inspired by the series. However, a number of musicians have been inspired to write FF-themed songs, the lyrics of which are their own form of poetry.

Backers of the Kickstarter to fund production of YOU ARE THE HERO Part 2, the second part of Jonathan Green's history of Fighting Fantasy gamebooks, will no doubt have already sampled the delights of Groan's Citadel of Chaos - a track inspired by Steve Jackson's first solo gamebook - as well as Jaldaboath's Balthus Dire.



But if you prefer your music a little more Gilbert and Sullivan, then you may be interested to hear what composer, orchestrator and baritone Craig M Wood has produced, after being inspired by the self-same adventure gamebook.



What is it about The Citadel of Chaos that makes it so prone to musical reinterpretation? Who knows, but if you've been inspired to write a song based on a Fighting Fantasy gamebook, drop us a line at mail@fightingfantasy.com and maybe we'll feature it on the Fighting Fantasy news page.

What's in your Backpack?

Today is your last chance to pre-order your Fighting Fantasy Fest 2 Adventurer's Backpack. If you haven't grabbed yours already, remember that the Backpack will be a unique memento of the event, containing...

• An event-exclusive t-shirt
• An event-exclusive lanyard and tag
• An A4 art print
• A Balthus Dire miniature

Balthus Dire, as sculpted by Paul Muller for Otherworld Miniatures.

There will be other goodies inside the Backpack too, but you only have until midnight to bag yourself one. (After midnight tonight you will receive an email asking you what size of t-shirt you will require.)

So don't delay, pre-order yours today!

Image courtesy of Steve Britton, whose Fighting Fantasy miniatures appear in YOU ARE THE HERO Part 2, which will also be on sale at Fighting Fantasy Fest 2.

The Legendary Adventurer's Backpack

There are now less than 7 weeks to go until Fighting Fantasy Fest 2, on Saturday 2nd September 2017!

Tickets will remain on sale until 8:00am on the morning of the event, one hour before doors open, but please remember, entry is only with a pre-purchased ticket. There will not be any ticket sales on the door.

The Adventurer's Backpacks, however, will not be on sale so long, because we need to get t-shirts made and for you to choose which size you would like.

As well as the t-shirt and the event-exclusive bag itself, the Adventurer's Backpack also includes an event-exclusive lanyard and tag, an A4 art print, and a Balthus Dire miniature made by Otherworld Miniatures.

Don't forget, if you are in or around Ealing on the night of Friday 1st September, why not come around to You Are The Beer-O: Stout of the Pit, the regular meet-up for FF fans hosted by James Aukett, and join us for the world's first ever Fighting Fantasy pub quiz?

You can buy your ticket for the pub quiz here, through Eventbrite, which is also where you can pre-order your Adventurer's Backpack.

Please note that, while Fighting Fantasy Fest 2 is suitable for all ages, the pub quiz is for over 18s only.

Balthus Dire to attend Fighting Fantasy Fest 2*

* Sort of.

9 weeks today Fighting Fantasy Fest 2 will be taking place at the University of West London in Ealing!

Those Fighting Fantasy fans who attended the first Fighting Fantasy Fest, in 2014, will remember that the  Adventurer's Backpack for that event included a limited edition Zagor figure, produced by Otherworld Miniatures and sculpted by master model-maker Paul Muller.

Well, Otherworld have done it again! As well as an event-exclusive t-shirt, lanyard and tag, and A4 art print, the Adventurer's Backpacks at Fighting Fantasy Fest 2 will also include a Balthus Dire miniature, once again sculpted by Paul Muller (who is interviewed in YOU ARE THE HERO Part 2), and based on Russ Nicholson's classic illustration from Steve Jackson's The Citadel of Chaos.

If you've already grabbed yourself an Adventurer's Backpack you will doubtless be delighted by this news. And if you haven't pre-ordered your Backpack yet, there's still time. (And you could always buy more than one, if you so desire.)