The Prince of Wishful Thinking (Wisdom)
As you wander through the violet fog, you find a dais with a giant purple throne on top of it. It’s decorated with pictures of weeping pigeons and animals in poses that pique your curiosity. Sitting on the throne is a small, skinny man holding a giant guitar twisted into an unfathomable shape.
“Greetings, adventurer,” he says. “My name is…” a brief image of a squiggly symbol flashes in your mind, but his name is unpronounceable in (and by) your mortal tongue. “I am the prince of this place.”
“But if you’re the prince,” you say, “where is the king?”
“Some say he is dead, and some say he was abducted by aliens,” the prince says. “Some believe he switched places with an impersonator and still secretly lives among us, but I think those people should act their age, not their shoe size.
Anyway, I wish to offer you some cosmic wisdom. Will you accept my teachings and learn more about the mystical underpinnings of the universe?”
| Accept the training (1) |
You tell the prince that you're willing to learn what he is here to teach you. He seems to understand you, and thus can reach you. He nods and plays a smoking-hot riff on his guitar. As you listen to the riff, an image of a disembodied brain on wheels being pulled by a cocoabo flashes across your mental landscape. You suddenly understand more about the magic underlying the world around you. It all seems so simple, somehow -- though you wish he'd play the riff more slowly, as baby, he's much too fast.
| You gain X Mysteriousness. |
| This way |
| That way |
| The other way |
Occurs in the Violet Fog.
Notes
- Stats gained depend on your primary stat, and the type of trip taken.
- Training during the Bad Trip will yield roughly 37.5% (3/8) of your primary stat (regardless of which stat you train in).
- Training during the Mediocre Trip will yield roughly 44% (4/9) of your primary stat.
- Training during the Great Trip will yield roughly 55% (5/9) of your primary stat.
References
- The small skinny man on the throne is Prince, who changed his name at one point to an unpronounceable symbol. The king he talks about is Elvis. The adventure title spoofs the Go West hit "King of Wishful Thinking".
- This adventure references many of Prince's songs. The Violet Fog and the purple throne refer to his most successful album, Purple Rain. "Weeping pigeons" refers to the song When Doves Cry. "Act your age (not your shoe size)" is a line from Kiss. "You wish he'd play the riff more slowly, as baby, he's much too fast." refers to the song Little Red Corvette.
- "...what he is here to teach you. He seems to understand you, and thus can reach you." refers to the .38 Special song Teacher, Teacher: "Teacher, teacher, can you teach me? Can you tell me all I need to know? Teacher, teacher, can you reach me?"
- The usage of the word "riff", as well as the "disembodied brain on wheels being pulled by a cocoabo", refers to the KoL player and developer Riff, whose custom, and forum avatar is a disembodied brain on wheels being pulled by a cocoabo.
- The reference to Elvis switching bodies with an impersonator is based on the film "Bubba Ho-Tep" starring Bruce Campbell.
