'' is a remake of the 2004 Xbox RPG '' Fable '', developed by Lionhead Studios and published by Microsoft Game Studios for Windows and Xbox in September 2005 . The game is currently being ported to Mac OS X by Feral Interactive . The Xbox version retailed for $19.99 as part of the Platinum Hits line of software. The PC version originally cost $49.99 and had only a few minor differences from the Xbox version. On August 26 , 2005 , the game was released by a Warez group, more than a month prior to its official release date.
This game acts as an expansion to the original '' Fable '' with new monsters, weapons, items, armor, towns, buildings and expressions. The story receives further augmentation in the form of nine new areas and sixteen additional quests. Using the in-game menu systems, you can examine your characters basic details such as romance information (which includes: Sexuality, number of spouses, number of weddings, number of divorces, etc.), or other details such as your title (which you can pay a vendor to change to numerous other things including Deathbringer, Gladiator, Assassin, Piemaster, Chicken Chaser, or even Arseface).
Gameplay is highly detailed, as everything you do has an effect on your future and your appearance. For example, if you do many evil things (such as attacking people for no good reason or breaking laws), your hair will get darker and you will be feared. If you never do anything wrong and always do favours for other people, your hair will become blonde and you will be respected the world over.
The graphics in the PC version have been improved with increased resolution and graphical effects.
The following new features exist in ''Fable: The Lost Chapters'', which weren't present in the original ''Fable'':
- Nine new hats/helmets — Two to match the games good and evil platemail, two to match the good and evil will user's suits, one helmet for the new "Archon's" suit of armor, a "pimp hat", a fisherman's hat, a red head wig, and a chicken hat.
- Five new silver keys, and a few more silver key chests, including one that requires 30 keys to open.
- Two new suits of armor — the "Fire Assassin" armor, which is very similar to the normal assassin armor but with a red cloth and designs (found in Snowspire Village in various cupboards), and the armor of Archon, which is a shinier version of the standard platemail in the game (found in a 25-key chest in Necropolis).
- A new torso armor — The hooded guild apprentice shirt (there is no dark version of this hooded shirt).
- Two new offensive spells — "Divine Fury" and "Infernal Wrath"; area of effect spells which deal large amounts of damage to opponents in the player's radius.
- Briar Rose; a hero who was almost entirely scrapped from the original release, is now included in several main quests and sidequests.
- Scythe; another hero who was cut from the original game, is now a primary character in the new end game, and appears early in the game based on the player's actions.
- A killable dragon who serves as the game's new final boss.
- Several new demon doors.
- The Northern Wastes, which were cut from the original release, are back. There are about six new locations there, which contain a new town, a demon door, some silver key chests, and an extension of the story.
- The Darkwood Bordello, an area cut from the Darkwood portion of the game. Finding it allows access to a couple of sidequests, a new demon door, and of course, a house full of prostitutes.
- Several new weapons, including a sword called Avo's Tear, which acts as an opposite to the devastating Sword of Aeons. Avo's Tear can only be acquired by a good character after destroying the Sword of Aeons in what was the original end of the game. This time, after the sequence the game continues, and if you undertake a sidequest, you can obtain this new sword.
- The player may now solve the mystery surrounding the death of Lady Grey's sister.
- The player can now become the Mayor of Bowerstone. Besides access to the mansion, there are no benefits of becoming mayor.
- Several new sidequests and minigames. Minigames include the new chicken kicking competition in Oakvale, and the fishing competition at Fisherman's Creek. One of the sidequests involves donating books to the Bowerstone school library, as well as curing a local boy of a "terrible illness" which is in fact an intoxicant inspired hallucinogenic journey.
- New monsters — Ice Trolls, Summoners, and Wraiths
- New actions — The player may now do several new dances, many of which are quite humorous, like the Cossack Dance and Air Guitar .
It is also interesting to note that there is now an Oracle in the game which can be asked questions with some of the new actions you can learn. Once you reach the Oracle, it can tell you what has happened to the other characters in the game, which increases the impact of some of your earlier decisions. It can also talk to the hero about a number of other topics, including information about Albion's past and where certain monsters come from, the which adds much more lore to the game. The Oracle even seems to know a little something about the Singing Sword, which it links to the better bard, and the Sandgoose and its origins. In order to seek answers from the Oracle, the player has to perform a series of four actions, which form the characters YMCA.
- - The main character of the game. His appearance varies on the player and is customisable. He is to become the strongest Hero in Albion because of his ancient bloodline connected to Archon, one of the greatest Heroes to live.
- - One of the oldest Heroes alive. He is head of the Guild of Heroes and trains Hero apprentices. The player can kill the Guildmaster in a choice that they must face near the end of the game.
- - The old wizard who rescues Hero from bandits in the Oakvale raid. Maze becomes a father figure to the Hero until it is discovered that Maze was working with Jack of Blades. The Hero and Maze later had a confrontation that ended with Maze being killed.
- - The Hero's greatest rival. She trained with him as a boy, and battled against him in a few quests. She can either be killed or spared in the Arena, depending on the player's choice in the game. If she is spared, she will realize you are a much greater hero and leave the game.
- - One of the few Heroes honored as Champion of the Arena. Thunder is huge and very powerful. If the player chooses to kill Whisper in the Arena, Thunder then holds a grudge against him. If the player doesn't kill Whisper, Thunder still holds a grudge if the Hero marries Lady Grey. The player can kill Thunder in a choice towards the end of the game.
- - An ex-Hero who left the Guild of Heroes and united a dozen bandit factions and became the King of Bandits. He can either be killed or spared by the player: either way, he or his loyal followers will hire assassins to try and kill the Hero.
- - A very swift, powerful, and smart female Hero. She is more of a scholar than a fighter, and uses mainly will powers than physical strength. She first villifies the Hero until they fight in a quest together. She then earns more respect for the Hero when they join up to face Jack of Blades. The player can kill Briar and take her soul instead of taking his own mother's soul in a choice at the end of the game.
- - The mayor of Bowerstone. If the player chooses to, they can remove Lady Grey from the position of Mayor by solving the murder of her sister, or the player can marry her.
- - The Hero's mother. She was once known as the Slayer of Balverines, and was respected as Champion of the Arena and the greatest female Hero. This was until age took her and she was ambushed by Balverines. She was killed by Jack of Blades so he could use the Sword of Aeons. Later the Hero can take his mother's soul, which she is more than happy to allow.
- - The Hero's elder sister. During the Oakvale raid, Jack of Blades cut out her eyes. She became the Blind Seeress of Twinblade's bandit clan up until his defeat at the hand of her brother. In the aftermath of the Hero's battle with Jack of Blades, she offers a choice; "Strike me down now with the Sword of Aeons and gain the power Jack dreamed of, or cast it into the vortex..." If the Hero chooses to kill Theresa, he becomes a mighty sorcerer, whereas if he spares her, the Hero receives little benefit save the life (and presumably the companionship) of Theresa herself.
- - A dead ex-Hero. He lives as a shell. He left the Heroes Guild long ago to go to the Northern Wastes to cheat death. He returns after the Hero defeats Jack of Blades. He was once one of Maze's friends.
- - An extremely old and powerful character. Not a man, not a Hero, and according to the game, "When the world was a blur of fire and demons, when its soil had felt not the tread of humans and was filled with creatures only your worst nightmares could begin to suggest,even then was Jack old." His main goal is to get the Sword of Aeons to use it to control the world of Albion. Once he uses Maze to gain the key to unlock the sword, he lays siege to the Guild of Heroes and nearly kills the Guildmaster. After Jack takes the Sword of Aeons, he kills Scarlet Robe and engages in an epic battle against the Hero. After Jack was defeated his soul continued to live and a year later he returns to use the Hero to help him gain a new body. He tricks the Hero into using his mask to take 3 souls so he can take the form of a dragon. After the main player kills him the second time, the player has a choice to either wear the mask or throw it in a pit of lava. If the player wears the mask Jack of Blades takes control over the Hero's body helping Jack to live on forever. If the player destroys the mask, Jack's spirit is destroyed with it.
- - The weakest enemy in Albion. You meet somewhat stronger, flying, red versions later.
- - Slightly stronger than Beetles, They are nimbler and can fly but are still very easy to defeat.
- - Bandits come in many kinds and are amongst the most common foe in Albion. The strongest kind wield weapons much like the Bereaver and the Avenger, though slightly weaker.
- - Usually work with bandits, but are much stronger. They usually wield katanas.
- - Town Guards usually are only your foes if you provoke them by attacking them or committing a crime in town and not paying the fine. The ones guarding Bargate Prison attack unprovoked, however. There are several kinds: Blue Guards, Red Guards, Black Guards and Snowspire Guards. The blue and snowspire kinds are the weakest and strongest respectively. Blue Guards defend Bowerstone and Oakvale, red guards defend Knothole Glade and Bargate Prison, black guards defend Hook Coast and snowspire guards defend Snowspire and the Necropolis. In Oakvale, Bowerstone and Knothole Glade, if one begins to kill the town guards they will send in stronger Town guards.
- - Hobbes are weak, goblin-like creatures that will attack or capture anyone that provokes them or tresspasses in their cave. There are many kinds, some that cast magical orbs at you, for instance, and some that are huge, red and are much harder to defeat than others.
- - Balverines are powerful, wolf-like beasts that are native to Darkwood and Witchwood. They evolved from an ancient and even more powerful creature known as the Balvern. The Balvern killed many humans, but only one survived to become the first Balverine. When other humans are bit by a Balverine, they too evolve into a Balverine. Scarlet Robe, the Hero's mother was renown for being a powerful Balverine slayer.
- - Much larger and much more powerful than other Balverines. They are native to Witchwood. A White Balverine, along with many standard balverines attack Knothole Glade at one point and the Hero is to defeat it using weapons augmented with silver. On defeat, he gains entrance to the arena, where more are met. These beasts can also be located in Oakvale, after defeating many Town Guards.
- - Could easily be confused with a White Balverine, because of its white fur. It is however smaller than a White Balverine, is a different shade of white (more blue in hue) and is native to the Necropolis in the Northern Wastes.
- - Trolls are very powerful enemies. They attack mainly by throwing rocks at you or sending shockwaves, if you get too close for too long. There are three kinds; Earth Trolls, Rock Trolls and Ice Trolls. Earth Trolls are native to Greatwood, Darkwood and Witchwood and are the weakest kind. Rock Trolls are native to Witchwood and are much stronger than Earth Trolls. Ice Trolls are the most powerful and appear in the Northern Wastes, and apparently in Hook Coast according to one of the three quest cards at the beginning that you are unable to take. The best way to defeat trolls is with the "Slow Time" spell, which is most useful at full power.
- - Undead are slow but defensive undead soldiers, most of which serve Nostro. They will attack unprovoked and appear in the Grey House, Lychfield Graveyard, the underground passage to Bargate Prison, Cliffside Path, The Arena and Windmill Hill. They can also appear in Witchwood, if summoned by a Nymph first.
- - Also known as Hoar Skeletons. These are basically frozen Undead soldiers that live in the Northern Wastes, mostly the Necropolis. They can take many hits and defend well, but are extremely slow.
- - Found in Greatwood and the Arena. Slightly stronger than Beetles, but still very weak.
- - Nymphs are flying enemies that can summon obstacles and enemies. There are 3 kinds. The Wood Nymph (green), the lake Nymph (blue) and the Succubus Nymph (red), the Succubus Nymph being the most powerful.
- - A more powerful version of the Nymph. They are purple and rare. Unless you have moderately low renown, these enemies will not appear often. They are found in the northern wastes.
- - Minions are very powerful enemies that appear in the Bowerstone Jail area and the Northern Wastes. During the battle against the human Jack of Blades, they appear all over Albion and they also apparantly can appear in Witchwood according to an inaquirable quest card. There are two kinds of minion; a Wardog, which wields a double-bladed sword and a Dreadwing with wields a double ended staff which they use for both melee and ranged attacks by shooting magical orbs at the player.
- - Screamers are odd enemies that appear in Hook Coast and the Oakvale Cemetary. Screamers were once men who had dared to oppose Jack of Blades. They are fairly easy to defeat but can take away a lot of health. Some screamers can cause particularly large amounts of damage and must be defeated quickly.
- - The most powerful 'standard' enemy. They are huge undead creatures reanimated through dark magic. There are two kinds: some have a skull shaped head and others have a head covered by a hood. Both have identical strength though. The best way to deal with these is to use a light weapon and any weapon-imbuing spells such as ghost sword and multi-strike/arrow. Using the Avo's Tear, one can take a Summoner down in a matter of seconds; and using Skorm's Bow and multi-arrow can take nearly any foe down easily..
- - This is fought in the Picnic Area after you accept the first gold scroll quest and defeat a certain number of standard wasps. You must use ranged weapons to defeat it.
- - A former hero who worked his way up of the bandits. He is fought in Twinblade's Tent. You fight him in a circle of jeering Bandits who will attack you if you get too close. The only way to harm Twinblade is with Flourishes and attacking his back whilst his swords are stuck in the ground. You can spare him if you wish, or you can kill him.
- - It is advised you fight this beast with weapons with Silver Augmentations. During the fight they occasionally howl to send standard Balverines to help you. It is fought in the White Balverine gold scroll quest in Knothole Glade and Witchwood Lake.
- - The gargantuan scorpion king. It is fought in the arena on the 8th round. It occasionally buries itself underground and sends small scorpions to fight you. Its weakspot is its face.
- - Fought after Arachanox in the arena. Whisper defends a lot and is quite powerful. Like Twinblade you can spare her by walking into the anteroom or kill her.
- - An optional boss. You get the opportunity to fight Thunder twice: once while doing the quest for Lady Grey's hand (the alternate is to expose her as a murderer or simply not do the quest.) The other is in the Soul of Heroes quest where you can kill him. The alternate to that is to go to the arena and collect the souls of a dead arena king.
- - The Kraken is huge and lives in a small body of water in the tunnels between Lychfield Graveyard and Bargate Prison. It appears once you have your mother and almost have her out of the prison. It usually doesn't harm your mother too much, so you should focus on defending yourself. For the first part of the battle you'll have to deal with the several tentacles, after which it exposes itself. It will shoot beams of energy at you. You will have to use ranged attacks to defeat it, though you can use melee attacks to destroy the tentacle. After half its health is gone whilst its body is exposed you will have to destroy the tenacles again and then you may finish it off.
- - Maze is fought in Hook Coast. He does many powerful will attacks and wields a staff which allows him a physical shield. He will teleport throughout the town so you will have to chase him from place to place. You will also have many Screamers to deal with.
- - This is Jack's human form. For the first part of the battle, you will have to fight him using flourishes. Naturally, the Sword of Aeons gives him much strength, but once you have hit him with enough flourishes, he will rise to the air, and shoot beams of energy from the sword. While this happens, you must stay behind the rocks he summons and shoot him with your bow whilst you have the chance.
- - Briar Rose may be fought during the Soul of Heroes quest. The alternate to fighting Briar is claiming your mothers soul by going to the Oakvale Cemetary. Briar is weak, but makes mirror images of herself, so you must find the true Briar.
- - May be fought in the Soul of Heroes quest. The Guildmaster does not fight you himself, rather he sends huge factions of guards to fight you off. He sometimes casts physical shield of some of them as well. Once you kill all the guards, you can kill him, though he does give you the oppotunity to warp to Lychfield Graveyard to take Nostro's soul instead, which is the initial alternate.
- - The alternate to fighting the Guildmaster. He sends Undead soldiers to serve him. You must before you can harm Nostro. Nostro openly allows you to take his soul unlike the Guildmaster, but not without a battle.
- - The Final Boss . This is Jack of Blades, but more powerful upon taking on a dragon as a host. He waits behind the Bronze Gate, and you must collect three heroes soul to open the gate. Unfortunately this is also what he requires to take on the form of a dragon. He has various attacks, including breathing a huge burst of fire or 3 large fireballs at you, and flying into the air, and coming down with extreme force to damage you. He will also summon Minions and Summoners to damage you.
Demon Doors are locked portals which lead to new areas and often hold prized weapons or items. They will not just open for anyone and each has its own special requirements for entry. They often speak comically when demanding a fee; one will ask what the act of mating feels like, while another declares, "Here's the deal. You perform an act of great evil in my sight, and I'll pop open". All of them resemble bearded human faces carved into the stone, and all speak with the same hollow-sounding voice.
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