We had a discussion during our 4th edition gaming weekend about losing the Talisman in the Valley of Fire during the 2 ed era. We always played that if you lost the Talisman (and didn´t have an extra or two) you were killed instantly and all followers, gold and objects were lost in the Fire.

Was this the original rules? The memory is a little bit fuzzy, so I´m turning to you, old-timers for some insight.

I'm not sure if I could put my hands on the rules for the 2nd ED, but I distinctly do NOT recall that being the case.

If you don't have a Talisman, when you're on the Valley of Fire, you have to Turn Back the way you came on your next turn. When you're going back, you don't encounter the spaces in your path, but you still can only travel one space per turn.

You're basically free to Turn Back any time you want when you're traversing the Inner Region, but once you've decided to Turn Back, you cannot reverse your movement, and must go all the way back to the Plain of Peril before choosing to advance again.

I found something really odd in the swedish rules for Talisman 2 ed: The same paragraph (11:6) is worded same as the english, but with an addendum which says (I´m paraphrashing) " Characters that loses their Talisman while in the Valley of Fire loses 1 life point and must return. Followers and objects are lost"

The line of reasoning here is that the Talisman protects the wearer from the fire in the Valley. It´s only functional if you wearing it. If it´s lost..well you burn with everything you carry.

Hmm, I don't think there's anything in the rules about losing a life on the Valley of Fire if you don't have a Talisman.

There's however an Adventure card in the Blood Moon expansion of the revised 4th edition which is a Place that resembles the Valley of Fire space in the Inner region.

It reads that you must end your movement on a space with this card, and lose 1 life, if you don't have a Talisman. If you do have a Talisman, the Place is discarded and you're rewarded with 1 Strength and 1 Craft.

This card shows that the above penalty may have been considered for the Valley of Fire, and it makes sense thematically as well, but the official rules say nothing of the sort.

Yad Reklaw said:

From 2ed Rule book Rule 11:6

Crown of Command

The Crown of Command can only be reached from the valley of fire.

The Valley of fire can only be entered by a character possessing a talisman. If a character does not have one they must turn back (11:5)

From the 2ed board

VALLEY OF FIRE YOU MUST HAVE A TALISMAN TO ENTER

Only if you have a talisman can you enter this space. If youdo not have one you must turn back.

The crown of command can only be reached from this space.

hope this helps

OsoSober