Heh Zork is the greatest. I haven't beat any of them, having only recently discovered them, but I could see myself spending a lot of time with them.
Monkey Island is great too. Yeah, it's graphical, but it's too great to not include. And talk about imagination. This game could give Ben-Stein-in-a-coma an imagination to rival Walter Mitty.
Wow, obscure references abound!
Also, can't Adepts possibly lose Magic or Essence from taking serious wounds, like mages and shamans? Chromers can take the licks, and if they survive, have no other worries. . . If I'm right.