Out of the Pit

infobox book
name=Out Of The Pit


image_caption=1985 edition (front cover) & 1989 edition (back cover)
author=Steve Jackson & Ian Livingstone
illustrator=cover by Christos Achilleos
publisher=Puffin
genre=gamebooks
release_date=26 September (1985 edition) & 2 November (1989 edition)
isbn=0-14-031999-9 (1985 edition) & 0-14-034131-5 (1989 edition)
pages=128 (1985 edition) & 336 (1989 edition)

Out Of The Pit is a black and white illustrated bestiary of 250 monsters featured in the Fighting Fantasy and Sorcery! game book series by Steve Jackson and Ian Livingstone. Published by Puffin books it was edited by Marc Gascoigne and has a wrap-around cover illustration by Christos Achilleos. (It collects articles printed in the Warlock magazine's regular 'Out Of The Pit' feature.) The format of the book is an introduction, a synopsis of the world of Titan where the books are set, a map of Allansia, a map of Kakhabad, The Creatures Of Allansia And Beyond (the 250 monster entries), Treasure and Encounter Tables. The monsters' artwork is a combination of illustrations culled from the game books plus original material. There is no index.

Blurbs

"250 monsters from the wild and dangerous worlds of Fighting Fantasy." (Front cover blurb.)

"From the darkest corners, from the deepest pools and from the dungeons thought only to exist in nightmares come the Fighting Fantasy monsters - the downfall of many a brave warrior. Two hundred and fifty of these loathsome creatures from the wild and dangerous worlds of Fighting Fantasy are collected here - some are old adversaries, many you have yet to meet - each of them described in minute detail. An indispensable guide for Fighting Fantasy adventurers!" (Back cover blurb.)

1985 edition

The 1985 edition was released on 26 September. It has 128 pages including 8 colour plates in the middle. Its dimensions are 29.5 x 21 x 0.8 cm. It retailed at £3.95 (U.K)/ $9.95 (Australia)/ $7.95 (Canada)/ $11.95 (N. Z.). (ISBN 0-14-031999-9)

1989 edition

The 1989 edition was released on 2 November. It has 336 pages but does not have the 8 colour plates featured in the first edition. Its dimensions are 20 x 13 x 2 cm. It retailed at £4.50 (U.K.)/ $15.95 (N.Z.)/ $9.99 (Canada). (ISBN 0-14-034131-5)

Colour plates

Below is a list of the monsters featured in the 1985 edition's coloured plates, with their illustrators in parenthesis.

* Doragar (Christos Achilleos).
* Night Demon (Julek Heller).
* Brain Slayer (Terry Oakes).
* Fog Devil (Alan Craddock).
* Life-Stealer (Ian Miller).
* Dracon (Julek Heller).
* Dark Elf (Mark Bromley).
* Shapechanger (Iain McCaig's cover to The Forest Of Doom).

Monster index

Aakor, aardwolf (giant), ape (great), ape man, Baddu-beetle, banshee, basilisk, bat, bear, bhorket, bird man, black lion, bloodbeast, boar (wild), boulder beast, brain slayer, bristle beast, caarth, calacorm, cat people, caveman, centaur, centipede (giant), champaque, changeling, chestrap beast, clawbeast, clone, cockatrice, crab (giant), crocodile, crypt stalker, crystal warrior, Cyclops, death spider, death wraith, decayer, demon bat, demon (earth), demonic servant, demonspawn, devlin, dinosaur, dog, doragar, dracon, dragon, dragonfly (giant), dripper plant, dwarf, eagle, eel, elemental, elf, elvin, eye stinger, felinaur, fetch, fiend, fire demon, firefox, fire sprite, fishman, flayer, flesh grub, fly (giant), flying fish, flying guardian, fog devil, ganjee, gargoyle, gark, genie, ghoul, giant, gnome, goblin, golem, gonchong, grannit, gremlin, gretch, hamakei, harpy, harrun, hawk, head-hunter, hell demon, hellhound, hill man (wild), hobgoblin, horned demon, howl cat, hydra, ice demon, imitator, iron-eater, jaguar, jib-jib, kokomokoa, krell, leaf beat, leech (giant), leprechaun, life-stealer, living corpse, lizard (giant), lizardine, lizard king, lizard man, mammoth, man-orc, manticore, mantis man, marsh hopper, marsh wraith, Medusa, merman, messenger of death, mik, Minotaur, mirror demon, mist vampire, mucalyctic, mudclaw, mummy, mungie, nandibear, nanka, Neanderthal, night demon, night stalker, n'yadach, octopus (giant), ogre, orc, owl (giant), pegasus, phantom, piranha, pit fiend, pitcher plant (giant), pixie, poltergeist, pygmy, rat (giant), rat man, razorjaw, red-eye, rhino-man, rock demon, rock grub, sabre-toothed tiger, sand devil, sandworm (giant), scorpion (giant), sentinel, serpent guard, serpent queen, shapechanger, shark, skeleton, skorn, skunkbear, sleeping grass, slime eater, slime sucker, slug (giant), snake, snake demon, snapperfish, snattacat, spider (giant), spider man, spirit stalker, spit toad, sprite, stingworm, stranglebush, strangle weed, suma, tangleweed, tarator, tentacled thing, toa-suo, toad (giant), tree man, troglodyte, troll, vampire, Venus fly-trap (giant), wasp (giant), were-creature, wheelie, wight, will-o'-the-wisp, wolf, woodling, wraith ape, wrapper, wrym, wyvern, xoroa, yeti, zombie.

External links

* [http://www.chrisachilleos.co.uk/ Christos Achilleos's site]
* [http://www.julekheller.com/ Julek Heller's site]
* [http://www.iainmccaig.com/ Iain McCaig's site.]
* [http://fightingfantasy.wikia.com/wiki/List_of_Creature_Entries_from_Out_of_the_Pit List of creature entries from "Out of the Pit"]