Cursebreaker | 37 - The Fernglade
Last time on curse breaker. We made it to the fey trader. It's the last stop before we enter the fern glade and find our way to Tibio's home village. We were greeted kindly by a fey gentleman named Dali, who showed us a great deal of hospitality. Then Holly showed him a great deal of Holly.
Tara / Journey:The rest
Tim / GM:of the party took a bath with Gaspar, then they all met up to go shopping in the curated magic item shop upstairs. It won't be long now before we're into the woods and the fern glade is sounding spookier by the minute. I'm scared. Hold my hand. Last time, we, did some shopping and resting and bathing and bedding.
Tim / GM:Hey. I believe we had just wrapped up, magic item purchasing. What is the plan for the rest of you? Remember, this place has a restaurant. It's got, beds, baths, the magic item shop.
Tim / GM:You need a token to get the luxury version of any of these things. Otherwise, you can just buy regular accommodations for a reasonable price.
Hannah / Eryn:How much gold do we have left?
Speaker 4:Good question.
Thomas / Guy:It's a good question. I think Bert's getting a standard meal and a standard sleep.
Speaker 4:Okay.
Hannah / Eryn:I'm feeling like I'm all shocked out, and I had a really good meal downstairs. And dinner too.
Speaker 6:Yeah. You did.
Hannah / Eryn:Yeah. It was really good. But what what do we have collectively, Tibia, left?
Speaker 7:I'm not sure how much snack is, and I don't think you will tell me. But we do have, 2,206 gold remaining on my person.
Hannah / Eryn:K. That's pretty good.
Speaker 8:You are all quite wealthy, aren't you? Yes. Doing quite well for yourselves. Say, Tibio, I do have a question of, a soon to be destination.
Speaker 7:Yes. What can I answer?
Speaker 8:Is my attire, going to offend your people? Are we dressed well for this journey?
Tara / Journey:Tibio looks down at his own attire and then back up and says,
Speaker 7:I think that we are all fine. My family does not place such a premium on clothing. Yeah.
Hannah / Eryn:But does snack need to be, you know, like, somewhat dressed for
Speaker 6:us to go?
Speaker 7:You should be covered.
Speaker 8:Yes. I have this, this tabard and, the loincloth, which is 2 pieces of clothing.
Speaker 6:Have you considered pants?
Speaker 8:Well, that is that is what I'm getting at, Julie. I I represent a golden dragon now, and I need to
Speaker 6:Yes. Look the part. Hey. I have an old pair of pants we could fix up for you.
Speaker 8:Yes.
Speaker 6:Yeah. Let's do that.
Speaker 8:Alright. Thanks, Uli.
Speaker 6:You're welcome.
Tim / GM:Mark down Uli's old pants in your inventory.
Speaker 6:They are not in the best shape, but they're better than a loincloth. Uli's holy pants.
Thomas / Guy:Are are you worried more about etiquette or sticking out, mister Snack?
Speaker 6:What's sticking out?
Thomas / Guy:You know, being out of
Speaker 6:Okay. What are
Speaker 8:you getting at, Bert? Are you?
Thomas / Guy:I mean, being out of place.
Speaker 8:Yes.
Thomas / Guy:Like, are we gonna be okay having our bones on the inside?
Speaker 8:Oh, I didn't even think about that.
Speaker 7:No one in my village has their bones on the outside. They are just wearing other bones.
Speaker 8:Do I need to find some bones then? Yes.
Speaker 7:No. You do not you do not need to I
Speaker 8:do have some from years ago. Let me just grab them. I don't
Speaker 7:You do not need to have a bone suit like I do. It's not like we have never seen non necromancers.
Hannah / Eryn:I, for 1, love the way you say necromancer, Tibio. And Holly, like, smiles at down at or, I guess, at Tibio. She's not they're at the same height,
Speaker 7:but
Speaker 6:anyway. Did she just rip a hole for your tail?
Speaker 8:Yeah. Well, that was the wrong side. It's fine. It's probably fine.
Speaker 7:Yeah.
Speaker 6:You have a tabard. So
Speaker 8:Yes. Of course. Yes. And it that you know, this is actually quite convenient. I'll be right back.
Speaker 8:The psychos tingle. 5 minutes in, we gotta snort.
Tara / Journey:Yeah. Yes. I wasn't
Speaker 6:expecting that.
Tara / Journey:Shut up.
Speaker 6:I just didn't
Tim / GM:so I think we heard that Bert was gonna do a standard, sleeping arrangement.
Speaker 6:Yep. Yeah. Me me too.
Tim / GM:Do the rest of you, need a standard or luxury meal or luxury beds? No. Can I interest you?
Speaker 8:I will snack, of course, but at least
Tara / Journey:Yeah.
Thomas / Guy:I wanna eat eat dinner.
Speaker 6:A meal would
Thomas / Guy:be nice. Standard dinner.
Speaker 8:Okay. It would be unbecoming of, a dragon such as myself to not treat all my allies with a wonderful luxurious meal.
Speaker 6:That would be so nice.
Thomas / Guy:I like this new snack.
Speaker 8:Yes. Well, we can do this. Who do we speak with? Is it this room?
Thomas / Guy:Just gotta ring the bell.
Speaker 8:I snack shuffles to the lobby and to the bell and, taps it with his fist.
Tim / GM:Just like when Holly did. You tap it and then turn around to, see who's coming. And as you turn turn around, Dolly is already, like, in your face. He says, how can I help you, glorious customer?
Speaker 8:Oh, that's very nice of you to say, to notice that I am glorious. I would like to treat all my allies to a luxurious meal at this establishment.
Tim / GM:Such generosity.
Speaker 4:I'm I'm inclined to give you a discount. How many tokens do you need?
Speaker 8:1. Let's see. Tibio, how many is it?
Speaker 7:It is 5.
Speaker 6:Yes. You gonna eat this food again?
Hannah / Eryn:I mean, I'll come with.
Tim / GM:Very well. 5 for the price of 4. Let's call it a 100 gold even. Or sorry, 200 gold even.
Speaker 8:I like the first number better, but, yes. Dolly, 200 gold. Let's see. Tibia, can you help me count this out?
Speaker 7:Yes.
Speaker 8:I just I'm tipping the lamp until Tibia says what?
Tara / Journey:Oh, oh, stop, stop, stop. Stop.
Speaker 8:Oh, yes. Okay. This many then. There's a
Tim / GM:couple patrons notice the coins, like, rolling across the floor.
Speaker 6:This is weird. Right? What? That he's paying?
Tim / GM:He bought me a desk.
Speaker 8:He's turned over a new leaf.
Speaker 7:It's still our money. It's not just his money.
Speaker 8:That that's not true.
Thomas / Guy:It's
Hannah / Eryn:me. The food is worth it.
Tim / GM:Dolly bows and, deals out the tokens and then, gracefully gestures towards a door about 12 feet away.
Hannah / Eryn:As we walk into the room, Holly gives Dolly, a little pat on the butt as she walks by.
Tim / GM:He, kinda gives you an eyebrow and he says round 2,
Speaker 6:The second course.
Hannah / Eryn:Holly just smiles and walks in.
Tim / GM:Says, I'll give you your privacy. And he looks at Holly and says, this time. And closes the door as he leaves.
Hannah / Eryn:Holly blushes.
Tim / GM:Instead of Dolly serving this time, it is that, chubby elf chef, from the front bar, who walks out with a giant platter, and he says,
Speaker 4:appetizers to get us started. Does anybody need, anything else right away?
Hannah / Eryn:Can I have a drink? Certainly.
Speaker 6:With alcohol? Make that 2.
Speaker 4:2 alcohols. Anything else?
Thomas / Guy:Yeah. I'll have one of them.
Speaker 4:3 alcohols?
Speaker 8:What's the age of drinking here? I'm almost 7.
Speaker 4:Well, you're you're tall enough.
Thomas / Guy:Oh, perfect.
Speaker 8:Perfect. Yes. I would like one as well.
Speaker 4:You, though, I don't know.
Speaker 7:I I am okay. I do not
Hannah / Eryn:Oh, he'll have one too, Holly says, for Tibio.
Tara / Journey:Tibio looks, guilty. Like, he's not sure that he should be drinking. Yeah.
Tim / GM:He says,
Speaker 4:I'm going to assume that's your mother. I'll be right back.
Hannah / Eryn:Tibio, it's gonna be fine.
Speaker 7:Have you drank before? Of course. I have had a drink before. I just I don't know. Close to home, I was feeling a little
Thomas / Guy:Maybe it will help take the edge off.
Speaker 6:Yeah. Yeah. How old are you? Do we know that?
Tara / Journey:Yeah. He blushes, and then he says that he is
Speaker 7:I am, 20.
Speaker 6:Oh. You can drink then.
Speaker 8:I looked it up in gnomes reach adulthood at 40.
Tara / Journey:They age at the same rate as humans, but they're expected to, like, settle down into adulthood at 40. That's what I read.
Speaker 8:Yeah. Yeah. Okay.
Hannah / Eryn:But do what you want. If you don't drink it, I will.
Speaker 7:Okay. If any if everyone else is, I might as well. Yeah.
Tara / Journey:Timmy, like, kicks his little feetsies.
Tim / GM:He shows up with another platter of appetizers. It looks like, like a ring of shrimps, but they're not quite shrimps. It's like some kind of, like, fey river crab sort of thing, and a few other smatterings and, of course, all of your, drinks. He, starts taking down orders for what you'd all like to eat. And, also at that time, Rin, enters the room and takes a seat, next to Uli.
Speaker 7:Hey.
Tim / GM:Hey. I no. This is fine. I just I thought I, you know, I thought I had a calm, quiet meal to myself, you know, that I spent almost all my money on, but sure. I'll spend it with you.
Speaker 6:You sat next to me.
Tim / GM:No. I know. I just I'd already bought the token by the time I opened the door. So
Speaker 6:Yeah. There's, tables over there. You don't have? Okay. That's fine.
Tim / GM:Yeah. He orders up a drink and, it's not, like, super chatty, but he is, he you can tell that he's, like, pretending to be, like, annoyed with you and seems to enjoy your company well enough.
Speaker 6:I will pretend to be annoyed back.
Tim / GM:At a point in the night, he does ask about your behavior, your snaps and outbursts, and just how that whole process is going.
Speaker 6:Yeah. It's I mean, it hasn't been my main focus. Still still haven't learned how to spell sculpt.
Tim / GM:Well, I take it that you being here means you're, about to go on the Fernglaid. Yeah?
Speaker 6:That's the plan.
Tim / GM:Okay. He, like, finishes what he's eating and wipes his face with a napkin and pushes his chair back, and he stands up and says, then you're gonna need to learn to spell spell before you go in there. And he's still chewing on something, and he gestures for you to
Speaker 6:stand up.
Tim / GM:Oh, right now? He
Speaker 6:just nods. Do I get to finish my meal?
Tim / GM:No. You're, like, halfway through.
Thomas / Guy:Can we maybe take this outside? I don't wanna say I'm worried. Exactly.
Tim / GM:He's like still chewing, and he motions for all of you to move the table off to one side of the room.
Hannah / Eryn:Oh, no. We paid a lot of money for this.
Tara / Journey:I signed
Hannah / Eryn:a lot of money.
Tim / GM:Yes. He's still shooting and looks at you and he says, exactly. You paid a lot of money to be here. You can do what you want.
Hannah / Eryn:Wren, no. No. No.
Speaker 8:Holly, is this where you and Dolly
Thomas / Guy:are they doing the same thing?
Tim / GM:Or
Hannah / Eryn:Why don't you guys we'll finish dinner, Rin, and then you can do what you will with Uli if Uli consents.
Tim / GM:It's dark out there.
Hannah / Eryn:Well, I'm sorry. A little darkness, is hurting your frail sensibilities.
Tim / GM:He, points at Holly and says, you haven't been in the farnglade yet. You don't know what it's like.
Hannah / Eryn:That's right. I don't.
Speaker 6:We're not going out to the Fernglaid.
Tim / GM:He, gives up with the whole thing in the dining room and says, no. No. No. We're not going into the front glade, especially not this late at night. But, yeah.
Tim / GM:We could do this on the front porch, I suppose.
Speaker 6:Okay. I drain the rest of my drink Okay. And shove a few dinner rolls into my mouth
Thomas / Guy:and follow
Speaker 6:them out.
Tim / GM:Yeah. So they, head out to the front porch. The rest of you are still kind of sitting there.
Thomas / Guy:Bart looks around for the fire exit.
Tim / GM:There actually is only the one, like, entrance. The other the other way goes into the, like, kitchen area.
Thomas / Guy:Okay.
Speaker 8:Yeah. It's okay, Bert. What are you looking for exactly?
Thomas / Guy:Just, in case we need to make a quick exit.
Speaker 8:Oh, I can make holes.
Hannah / Eryn:We will not destroy
Thomas / Guy:You're not gonna ask about that one.
Hannah / Eryn:Okay. Nope. None of that inside, boys.
Speaker 8:Well, if we need to, we it's just good to know for all of us to know.
Hannah / Eryn:Why don't we finish this lovely meal? Tibio, how's your drink?
Tara / Journey:He takes a sip of it, and are these drinks all the same drink or are they, like, personalized to the I
Tim / GM:think they're personalized to what the chef thought you would want.
Tara / Journey:Okay. So mine is purple and is very fruity, and it's got a swirly straw on it. And he takes a couple bites of his food, and he goes, should we go watch Ollie?
Hannah / Eryn:Yeah. We could. You guys all done eating?
Speaker 8:I am. Just a minute. I can take much of this with me.
Tara / Journey:I go I go to the door and I pass the person who's in there.
Tim / GM:The, like, attendant or whatever. Yeah.
Tara / Journey:And I ask,
Speaker 7:excuse me. Can I take my drink outside?
Tim / GM:They say yes. They nod.
Tara / Journey:Yeah. I see. Oh, thank you. And I keep walking along.
Tim / GM:They they see snack, like, loading up a bunch of food.
Speaker 8:I'm using the tablecloth as, like, a sack.
Tim / GM:Oh my god.
Speaker 8:Trying to stuff it into the lamp under the table.
Hannah / Eryn:Holly, quickly follows Tibio, also carrying her, martini. So cultured.
Tim / GM:The attendant looks at you, Snack, and he, like, rolls his eyes and then, like, makes a hand gesture as if, like, hurry it up. I mean, he just says,
Speaker 4:we're not gonna give it to anyone else. You can take it.
Speaker 8:Oh, well, of course, I knew that. So that's why I'm doing this. I was just under the table because it's very bright in here.
Speaker 4:Yes. We're sorry about that. And you
Tim / GM:see his eyes dart over to one of the windows that has heavy curtains drawn over it? I'm gonna have everybody in the room make a perception check and snack take advantage.
Thomas / Guy:15, 18.
Tara / Journey:Oh, thank god. Okay.
Tim / GM:Yeah. So, Bert, actually, on your way out, you take a look at this curtain and see a little sliver of daylight coming through. Getting closer, you realize that this room betrays the actual time of day. When you look outside here, it's actually sort of dusk, and it's well past nighttime in the real world.
Thomas / Guy:Bert kinda does a double take at the window and on his way out. Garcon, do you have the time, please?
Tim / GM:I wanna say he doesn't like that. He, kinda, like, looks into the bar and then looks into the, luxury dining room and, gives you kind of a quizzical glance.
Thomas / Guy:Do you know what time it is?
Speaker 4:It's, just past 10 PM, I believe.
Thomas / Guy:That's the one I thought.
Speaker 8:What are you getting on about, Bert? What is this? What time?
Thomas / Guy:I'll tell you later.
Speaker 8:Okay. So, like, 10:30 or
Thomas / Guy:Let's go watch Uli burn this place down.
Tara / Journey:Yes. Of course.
Tim / GM:Yeah. You all make your way outside. Uli is standing on this, front porch, and Wren is inexplicably taking a shirt off.
Speaker 6:Hey. Why don't we just keep our clothes on?
Tim / GM:Says, I don't wanna risk this shirt if if it does get rough.
Speaker 6:Right.
Hannah / Eryn:It's a very
Speaker 7:nice done to it.
Tim / GM:He he, like, throws it at you, Tibia, and it just, like, hits you in the face.
Tara / Journey:I, like, hold my drink out, like, far away so that it doesn't spill. And then I take the shirt, and I gently fold it and hold it.
Speaker 6:Is there anything in particular you wanted to teach me?
Tim / GM:He, nods emphatically, and he says, stand back there. I'll, show you first, and then No. You give it a try.
Speaker 6:No. I don't like letting you have the first
Tara / Journey:Oh, no. No. No.
Tim / GM:I'm doing it to myself. You you're not gonna interact for this one.
Hannah / Eryn:Did we get any bonuses for eating that meal that we paid for?
Tim / GM:Yes. So anyone, that didn't already have it gets one point of inspiration. You can only have 1 at a time. Okay. And then you also get a 20 point, HP shield
Speaker 4:It just
Tim / GM:goes away after it's expended.
Hannah / Eryn:Do I get, like, a little extra since I got it twice? Like, 5 more?
Tim / GM:I'll give you 5 more for dessert. But anyone that got a bath is also immune to fear for 24 hours.
Speaker 7:Okay.
Thomas / Guy:Is it, too late to write Khan doing something in the dining room?
Speaker 4:Maybe.
Thomas / Guy:I wanna drop something in there, like a quill.
Tim / GM:Okay.
Speaker 8:Can we do that?
Thomas / Guy:Sure. Okay.
Tim / GM:Yeah.
Thomas / Guy:On its way out, Bert slips a quill underneath one of the tables.
Tim / GM:You did it so stealthily that not even the DM noticed. Do give me a stealth check for that, actually.
Thomas / Guy:Okay. I think that's a dirty, he's wanting.
Speaker 4:Okay.
Tim / GM:Ryn is standing at one end of this porch. He gets, like, real philosophical on you real quick. He, like, locks eyes with you, Uli, and says, the weave is a flowing river.
Hannah / Eryn:Ollie's, like, nodding. Like, yeah, man.
Speaker 6:I yawn.
Tim / GM:You feel this, like, light breeze kind of pass by you, and, it starts to pick up a little bit. And, you see that he is casting a gust of wind. You're you're kind of outside of the spell's range, so you just feel kind of the minuscule breeze instead of the full brunt of it. But he actually casts gust of wind right on himself, to show you how this works. He says, you have to be calm like a stone in the middle of a river, and let the weave flow around you, and have confidence that you are unaffected and permanent.
Tim / GM:And you see the gust of wind go off, and though it is rushing past him and picking up leaves and debris and everything else that was on the porch, his hair doesn't move an inch. He is completely still in the center of it. And then the effect kind of dies down a little bit, and he says, it's all about confidence.
Speaker 6:Yeah. Confidence. I have a lot of that.
Hannah / Eryn:Woo hoo. Yeah. And Holly holds up her drink.
Tim / GM:See? You don't have to have a lot of confidence when you're in a position like yours. He gestures to Holly and says, your confidence is right there.
Hannah / Eryn:Thank you, sir. Cheers to Holly. Hyacinth. And then she cheers his Tibio, who's still holding out the drink away from the shirt.
Speaker 6:He's a
Tara / Journey:little bit embarrassed to be a part of the spectacle.
Speaker 6:What you're saying is that all of my confidence should come from external sources.
Tim / GM:No. No. No. He, walks closer to you too. He walks closer to you so that only the 2 of you can hear this conversation.
Tim / GM:He says, I'm saying that if you need confidence, you've got an endless source around you. I mean, I know you don't feel it, and I know what that feels like. That used to be a little bit like that.
Speaker 6:Yeah.
Tim / GM:Hey. Remember, I I'm the shield mage. I can't do any cool stuff. I'm not, you know, alpha or whatever. I did spend a lot of time humbling myself and sort of living secondary to everybody else.
Speaker 6:I honestly have never seen you be humble, but that's fine.
Tim / GM:Took a lot of work to get here. So how do I do this? Alright. Well, it seems to me that at least for now, you've gotta focus on your friends rather than yourself.
Speaker 6:So I have to keep them from getting hurt?
Tim / GM:I think so. Are there any of them you're, particularly attached to that might trigger you here?
Speaker 6:Hey, Tivio. Why don't you step back a little bit?
Tim / GM:Hold on a sec. He walks up to Tivio and says, hey, we're about to cast magic on you, and it could hurt you. Are you okay with this?
Speaker 6:Oh, no. I thought you meant
Tara / Journey:Tibia looks at Rin with wide eyes
Speaker 6:I don't know.
Tara / Journey:Takes the straw out of his drink, drinks it, and chugs it, and then steps forward like, if it's
Speaker 7:for Olly, of course.
Speaker 6:I don't know how I don't I don't think I feel comfortable.
Speaker 7:Uli, I believe in you. I trust you. You will not hurt me.
Speaker 6:I don't believe in me.
Hannah / Eryn:I believe in you, Uli. You can do it. Okay.
Thomas / Guy:I think what he said is that you don't need to believe in yourself so much as, you care about your friends.
Tim / GM:He points at Burt.
Speaker 6:Yeah. Yeah. I I have strong convictions.
Hannah / Eryn:And then, Holly, puts armor on Tibio and gives him a little shake.
Tim / GM:Oh, staying clear unless this is a package deal. I don't know if we wanna start with 2 targets.
Tara / Journey:Oh, no.
Hannah / Eryn:You can start with just Tibio, and Holly pushes Tibio forward a little bit.
Speaker 6:I kinda thought we were going to be casting magic on me.
Tim / GM:Afraid not. I think I think this is gonna work, though.
Speaker 6:Okay. Hold on a second.
Tim / GM:It really is best just to jump into this.
Speaker 6:I'm just gonna quick open my tankard. Alright. I got this.
Thomas / Guy:I'm ready if you need be.
Tim / GM:Are you trying to hide the tankard?
Speaker 6:Just kind of, like, off to the side.
Tim / GM:Sure. Give me a self.
Speaker 6:8.
Tim / GM:He, looks at you and he says, if that did what I think it did, it's a smart move in some cases. But don't get yourself to a point where you can't go without that thing.
Tara / Journey:So Tibio sees you use the tankard, and he steps forward close to you. He says, Uli,
Speaker 7:you don't need it. You have this. It's okay. I believe in you, and you are going to do just fine, and you will not hurt me.
Speaker 6:What about the, you know, the docks at lamp plate and the tower of magic and
Speaker 7:Holy, I have shield. It is okay.
Speaker 6:I almost blew up my family.
Speaker 7:It is okay. Gwyn is trying to teach you. He is not trying to make you hurt your friend.
Speaker 6:Right. But he's not a very good teacher. That's okay.
Tim / GM:I'm a very good teacher. Uli, get ready.
Speaker 6:Okay. Okay. What do I how do I stop this?
Tim / GM:You kinda have to have confidence that well, I guess, in your case, not confidence. Maybe desperation? Does that work for you? Yeah. Alright.
Tim / GM:I need you to desperately reach out and think of Tibio as impervious, or life would never be the same if anything would happen to him. How's that work?
Speaker 6:I think I think that works.
Thomas / Guy:Good.
Tara / Journey:Good. Tibia gives you 4 thumbs up.
Speaker 4:What have
Thomas / Guy:you got for,
Tim / GM:area magic right now?
Speaker 6:Chatter and fireball. Maybe thunder wave.
Tim / GM:He goes, yeah. That that sounds rough. Let's Yeah. Hear. He, he hands you a, a scroll, and he says, this is just gust of wind.
Tim / GM:It won't kill him.
Speaker 6:Okay. That's what I was worried about. Alright. How do I use this?
Tim / GM:Oh, you just read the text on there and
Speaker 6:Okay.
Tim / GM:It's somewhat familiar to you, this kind of like wizard type casting.
Speaker 6:I'm pretty sure I had gust of wind, actually, and I, like, replaced it with something. Okay.
Speaker 4:Yeah.
Tara / Journey:You cast it on the docks. Yep. That's right.
Speaker 6:Yeah. Yes. It's all coming back to me. Right.
Tim / GM:So we'll, we'll ignore the kind of, like, spell mechanics of whether or not that scroll would actually work, and we'll just get straight to this. When you cast a spell with an area effect, you can make a charisma ability check. If this score is high enough, you can spare one target as if you were spell sculpting. You, finish off the spell, and before you even realize it is it is taking off and you have to aim it, and it feels really bad to aim it at Tibio, which is sort of distracting. You sort of like lose your cool in the moment.
Tim / GM:And, Tibio, you for a second can feel wind rushing all around you, and then you see Uli's face crack and you know what's coming next, and you just get bowled over and you get pushed. Let's have you make a strength save.
Hannah / Eryn:10.
Tim / GM:Yeah. You just see Tibio get toppled and, kind of gets knocked out of his skeleton.
Speaker 7:Woah. Tibio, no. I'm I'm so sorry. It's okay.
Speaker 6:I can't it's a scroll. I can't turn it off.
Tara / Journey:It's okay.
Tim / GM:The skeleton, like, fumbles you like a football and, like, keeps you in the air.
Speaker 6:See, this is this is why I can't do this.
Tara / Journey:Tibio gets up and, brushes off his skeleton and stuff and runs back up like, okay.
Hannah / Eryn:Go again.
Tim / GM:Sounds like he's good. He, hands you another scroll.
Speaker 6:How many do you have?
Tim / GM:He says, well, I've gotta keep a good sock on me, to be honest.
Speaker 6:30 20.
Tim / GM:You lock eyes with Tibia this time, and the spell is a little more familiar to you.
Speaker 6:Ready to go again?
Speaker 8:Yeah.
Speaker 7:Yes. Ready when you are. Alright.
Tim / GM:The the whispers turn into a breeze, and you feel the wind rush all around you. At times, you can feel little streams of air clip you like a pressure washer, and it, like, knocks you off balance a little bit. But you can see that Uli is focused, and she is
Speaker 6:My face is turning purple, and I'm, like, shaking.
Tim / GM:Yeah. She's managing to kind of, keep it under control, and the spell ends, and Tibio is still standing. Whoo.
Speaker 7:Hey. Did I do it?
Speaker 6:You did it. I don't like that. That's a lot of work.
Tim / GM:So, to begin with, Uli, your, spell sculpt DC is, a charisma check of, 17.
Thomas / Guy:Oh, damn.
Tim / GM:It's pretty high.
Thomas / Guy:That's a lot.
Tim / GM:Could save somebody's life someday, and it will get lower over time.
Tara / Journey:And your charisma could get higher over time.
Speaker 6:Okay.
Tim / GM:Yeah. Everybody outside claps. Ryn seems genuinely proud of you for having made this progress, and the bonfire people even give a lazy clap. And then it is time for Betty pie. Is anyone interested in luxury apartments?
Speaker 8:No. No. I will not stand for this. I will not let my allies sleep on common beds. Where is that bell again?
Speaker 8:And I go up to the the the thing to ring it.
Tim / GM:He, like, stops your hand before you even ring it, and he says, need something?
Speaker 8:But I really want to ring it. Is that fine? That's it. Just I reach up to ring it one more time.
Tim / GM:He you see his eyes, like, shut for the entire duration that it's ringing, and then he just, like, looks back.
Hannah / Eryn:I, Holly just mouths, I'm sorry, at Dolly.
Tim / GM:He gives you a little head shake and says,
Speaker 4:more tokens.
Speaker 8:I want everyone to be able to sleep in beautiful, luxurious quarters. Yes. Tokens for that.
Tim / GM:I'd be lying if I said this wasn't the time of night where I usually raise the price, but you're a charming bunch. Standard price, 50 gold. 50 gold? Per person.
Speaker 8:Snack Snack takes a while to count it out. He wants to do it himself this time. Oof. And he passes it in piles of 10. 10, 20, 30.
Tim / GM:Is there a
Speaker 7:math check?
Tara / Journey:I'm I'm the math check. I'm a fan. I'm, like, hovering over him like Yeah.
Tim / GM:Dolly doesn't have a ton of patience for it. He's, like, chatting with other patrons kinda while it's going on. But the chef is very proud of you. He's, like, watching you and he says he's, like, nope.
Speaker 4:That was 70 again.
Speaker 8:Oh, yes. Of course.
Tara / Journey:Thank you, chef.
Speaker 8:Yes. Here you go, Dolly. Here's 200 gold pieces.
Tim / GM:The chef taps Dolly on the shoulder and says, he's done. Says, very good. And your tokens, and the door is upstairs where you know to find it. Good evening to all
Speaker 4:of you.
Hannah / Eryn:Mhmm. Have a good night, Dolly.
Tim / GM:I think he actually leaves the money with the chef and just walks away. Yeah. Luxury sleep gives you things.
Thomas / Guy:Bert Bert wants to perform a little investigation before bed.
Speaker 4:Okay.
Thomas / Guy:So outside his room, he's gonna cast locate object.
Tim / GM:Okay.
Thomas / Guy:And he closes his eyes and holds up a finger and says, show me my beautiful riding quail left in the dining room. The range on that is a 1000 feet.
Tim / GM:Oh, okay. Does it give you any, like, vagaries beyond a 1000 feet?
Thomas / Guy:I think it just doesn't work if it's not a 1000 feet away.
Tim / GM:Okay. It doesn't work then.
Tara / Journey:Okay. Oh, damn.
Thomas / Guy:And then he's going to step inside of his room and cast it again.
Tim / GM:Yeah. It's, like, 8 or 900 feet away.
Thomas / Guy:Oh, interesting. Interesting. Well, good night.
Hannah / Eryn:What do we get for sleeping?
Speaker 4:For luxury beds. Each of you,
Tim / GM:would get an inspiration if you didn't already have it. You also get advantage to dexterity and constitution saving throws for a whole day. Oh. The next morning is dark and stormy.
Speaker 7:What? Oh, it's bulky.
Tim / GM:You wake up to overcast skies. It looks like it could rain at any moment. The wind keeps picking up as if it's gonna pour, and then it'll just die down a little bit.
Speaker 6:I quick check and make sure all of my tokens are intact.
Tim / GM:Your rain tokens? Yeah. Yeah. You snap them all in your sleep.
Tara / Journey:Oh, no.
Tim / GM:No. They're all intact.
Speaker 6:Okay.
Hannah / Eryn:Holly doesn't like thunderstorms. And every time it booms loud, she's like and, like, tenses up.
Tim / GM:For all the threatening weather, it has not quite yet rained, at all around this place. So it seems like for better or for worse, travel is on for today. This place is not quite as festive in the morning time as it is, during their evenings. Dolly has greeted you at some point. You all get a free breakfast here.
Hannah / Eryn:Woah. Bed and breakfast. Continental.
Tim / GM:And I think, actually, without much more ado, you all find yourselves ready to, venture into the Fernglade.
Hannah / Eryn:Yeah. I summon Carl, as we load up the wagon.
Tim / GM:Yeah. You approach the edge of the woods, in your wagon. Back in travel mode, you're all packed up and, you know, armored up as much as you all really get armored up, which is to say you wear street clothes all the time.
Hannah / Eryn:Holly has a shroud on now.
Thomas / Guy:That's right. You are you are shrouded in the air. Cloak. Yeah.
Tim / GM:Oh, that's right. You got an AC from
Thomas / Guy:that too.
Hannah / Eryn:A robe. Snack has pants. A robe.
Tim / GM:You guys are all kitted out now.
Tara / Journey:Rope. I have
Speaker 6:total useless tokens And keys. At the moment.
Thomas / Guy:Jingle jingle jangle. Jingle
Tara / Journey:jangle. I got keys that jingle jangle.
Tim / GM:Tibio, just as you crest the first kind of wall of trees and this open path, you can tell that something is wrong here, and you knew that coming in. You had heard it from other people Mhmm. But now you feel it. The way that you can always feel the Fernglaid and the way that you're attached to your home and your home village, you can feel that this place is in pain. The atmosphere is the opposite of what you remember through your entire life.
Tim / GM:It's usually bright and full of critters that talk to you and, you know, essentially like a a kids TV show of a wonderland in here. But today, it is dark under this canopy and damp and cold, and the air is heavy. The grass is yellowed and wilted, and the plants look choked and withered. There's even this thorny type of vine that seems to have taken a stranglehold over large trees, and there are no animals in sight at all.
Tara / Journey:Tibio looks around and is feeling a little ill, and he walks up to a tree and, like, puts a hand on it and just keeps looking around and there's something so wrong. What is what has happened?
Speaker 7:It is so wrong.
Hannah / Eryn:What do you mean, Thabio?
Speaker 7:It this is not how my home should be. It is supposed to be so alive, and right now it is I don't know. There is something very sick here. It's everywhere. It has suffused through the trees.
Speaker 7:Look at the ground. I don't where are the animals?
Tara / Journey:And he's, like, getting a little panicky.
Speaker 6:It's so, it's okay. We'll figure it out. We always do.
Thomas / Guy:Yeah. If anyone can fix it, it's the curse breakers.
Speaker 7:Yes. Yes.
Speaker 6:I don't wanna say it feels like a curse, but
Speaker 7:maybe the curses have made their way to my home as well.
Thomas / Guy:Everybody be alert.
Tim / GM:With every passing step, Tibia, your agony your agony. Your your anxiety is compounding, and you can feel this sickness is getting worse the closer you get to home. You know that there are a number of landmarks, and things and trials and tribulations that you're gonna have to pass through to get back home. First up is your good friend, Dimitri.
Hannah / Eryn:Mhmm.
Tim / GM:Dimitri is, the sort of meter and greeter and fareweller of your culture. Dimitri is a skull that lives on a small stump,
Tara / Journey:at
Tim / GM:the first crossroads in the Fernglaide. The Fernglade is not beholden to static pathways. They tend to change from time to time.
Tara / Journey:Mhmm.
Tim / GM:Also, the fog moves around, and as you know, Tibia, there are rules.
Speaker 7:Yes.
Tim / GM:You know that you're about to come up on Dimitri's crossroad here and that things are about to get serious.
Tara / Journey:So as we're walking, I know where we're heading toward. I stop everybody. And, come come here. Come close, everyone.
Speaker 7:I just want to tell you just a couple of things before we go any further. Yeah. As we are going on our journey, do not get do not go into the fog. You will get lost, and you could die. So don't go into the fog.
Thomas / Guy:Killer fog. Alright?
Speaker 7:Well, the fog is not it's not important, but don't go into it.
Speaker 6:Should we hold hands?
Speaker 7:No. Just don't wander off. Mhmm. Just stay stay together.
Thomas / Guy:You got that snack? Yeah.
Hannah / Eryn:I was gonna say, hey. A snack?
Speaker 8:Fine. I was I won't go in the fog. I've been very curious, though.
Speaker 7:Yes. Thank you. Also, at night, don't turn off for the lights. Leave leave a light on at night just in case.
Thomas / Guy:Just in case of
Speaker 8:the fog?
Speaker 7:Yeah. Danger. It's a precaution. You just make sure to leave one one light on at night.
Speaker 6:It's funny you asked us to come with you, but you didn't tell us any of this.
Hannah / Eryn:I
Speaker 6:It's fine. We're here.
Speaker 7:Not think about it until we were here. And now that it is so dire and so and he
Tara / Journey:gestures all around to the general malaise of the area.
Tim / GM:There's also never been this much fog before.
Tara / Journey:Yeah.
Speaker 7:It is not usually such a present danger.
Speaker 8:Is this the fog over here, Tibia?
Speaker 7:Please come back, snack. Please come back.
Tara / Journey:In it.
Speaker 8:I'm just close. I'm just
Speaker 7:No. Don't get close either.
Speaker 8:Very musty.
Tim / GM:I will be
Speaker 8:back. I'm back. I'm back.
Thomas / Guy:Yes. Sorry.
Speaker 6:Do we have to keep you on a leash?
Speaker 8:Are you talking to me or Tibia?
Tara / Journey:You. I
Speaker 8:I will stay close.
Speaker 6:Okay.
Speaker 7:And then there is one more rule. If we should meet any fey, as we are out and about, do not give your name to them. I'm sure you guys have heard that rule before.
Hannah / Eryn:Like Gabrielle?
Speaker 7:Right. Yes.
Thomas / Guy:That means not addressing each other by each other's names either.
Tim / GM:It is like wonky fae magic where
Speaker 8:you give them
Tim / GM:giving them your name is a significant gesture. Mhmm. Overhearing your name gives them nothing. Okay.
Tara / Journey:I think
Hannah / Eryn:we should all come up with secret names.
Speaker 7:There are many people that, when they travel through the far and into the wilds, they, they will adopt a, nom de plume to
Hannah / Eryn:What does that mean?
Speaker 7:Tepecneem. Nomb de plume. Is this for no?
Tara / Journey:No. Nom de Plume?
Thomas / Guy:No Plume.
Speaker 7:No. It is for anyone.
Thomas / Guy:It's like a pen name, Holly.
Speaker 7:Okay. And it can be anything. It can be just a nickname.
Thomas / Guy:I'll be wolf.
Speaker 6:Okay. Well I
Thomas / Guy:didn't want anyone else to take wolf.
Tara / Journey:I'm trying to think of a cute name that Tivia would have already had.
Speaker 7:Pinky toe.
Tim / GM:Nimble sprout.
Tara / Journey:Yeah. Nimble sprout is fine. Yeah. That works.
Speaker 6:You guys can call me Fireball. Stitch.
Hannah / Eryn:Stitch. Yeah. Holly.
Speaker 6:Oh, wait. We already have nicknames. We have fame and fortune and and Scaly and Bones.
Tara / Journey:Oh, yes. Oh, yeah.
Hannah / Eryn:Uli, you're right. We should just use those.
Tim / GM:You all have nicknames. Nicknames.
Speaker 8:We also have Bertolli.
Thomas / Guy:Bertolli. Yeah. Okay. That works. If you guys ever wanna call me wolf though, that's fine.
Speaker 6:You got 3 Yeah.
Hannah / Eryn:I feel like fame and fortune are bad. Let's rebrand ourselves right now. Wolf and Honey.
Thomas / Guy:Honey. Wolf and Honey.
Speaker 6:You can call
Hannah / Eryn:me miss Honey.
Speaker 6:Miss Honey. It's from Matilda.
Speaker 8:Well, the fog is getting closer now, I I suppose.
Hannah / Eryn:Snack, your new name can be Blart.
Speaker 6:I'm gonna stick with Scaly for you.
Tim / GM:I'll say you're all still kind of mulling over nicknames. Yeah. At the point where you This
Thomas / Guy:could be the whole episode. Yeah.
Tim / GM:At the point where you, run into Dimitri and, Tibeo, you kind of forgot to tell everybody that they were about to meet a skull on a stump. But when you get there, you see, it just kind of, like, rattles and, like, turns to look at you, as it's kind of sitting on this stump stick thing. And then its eyes light up little red lights, and it just says, Tibia, it's so good to see you.
Speaker 7:Hello, Dimitri.
Hannah / Eryn:Wow. How are you?
Tim / GM:And so many friends. There's so many more than what you left with.
Hannah / Eryn:Man, if we hadn't been used to Tibeo's bones, this would have really freaked us out.
Speaker 7:Yes. Everyone, this is Dimitri, and this is Dimitri's, crossroads. Cool. Cool.
Speaker 6:Nice to meet you.
Tim / GM:He says, what will it be? And he kind of, like, leans a little bit left and then a little bit right. And he says, that's all I got. Headed home, Tibeo?
Speaker 7:Yes. I am headed home. I was summoned, and I've heard that there has been some danger lately.
Tim / GM:Indeed, there has Tibio. In fact and, he leans in as much as a stationary skull can. Tibio, you may have noticed the forest has rather turned to despair.
Speaker 7:Yes. I felt it immediately, and I am starting to feel a little crushed by it myself.
Tim / GM:Are you feeling just a little crushed when you're still able to move around and leave this place? I wonder how crushed would you feel if you were doomed to stay in one place for your entire existence while the world around you rots and the underworld rebels?
Tara / Journey:Tibio is doing that thing where he's looking down and he's got his hands clasped in front of him, and one of his legs is twisting back and forth in shame.
Thomas / Guy:Would you like us to take you with us, mister Dimitri?
Tim / GM:No. Thanks, friend. I'm fine right where I am. In fact, I've got everything I want right here. Tibio, you know this is all your fault.
Hannah / Eryn:Woah. That is a big accusation. Hey, no.
Speaker 7:Ollie. Ollie. He is not wrong.
Speaker 6:No. You're not gonna let a skull talk to you like this.
Speaker 7:It is kind of my fault.
Speaker 6:What? For living your life?
Tim / GM:That my eternal soul will burn in agony for the rest of my existence. The post has been abandoned, Tibiaufemur. Your family has failed the fern glade and you will pay. And it explodes into green flame
Tara / Journey:and
Tim / GM:begins to hover above the stump.
Tara / Journey:Oh, it's so exciting.
Tim / GM:Everyone in the party to make a dexterity save as a fireball erupts between all of you.
Speaker 6:We all have advantage on this.
Speaker 4:Yeah. You
Tara / Journey:do. That's good, though. Oh, not with me.
Speaker 8:Nope. You rolled 2 natural ones?
Speaker 6:Yes. What the fuck? Fuck.
Speaker 8:Two nines.
Hannah / Eryn:I rolled 13. I don't know if
Speaker 4:Did I get higher than that?
Tim / GM:Nope. Nobody succeeded.
Tara / Journey:Fucking Christ. You're not ready.
Thomas / Guy:I hate Dimitri.
Speaker 6:This is your friend? It was?
Tim / GM:Alright. I'm glad y'all ate. That is 22 fire damage, that explodes and rolls rolls over all of you, coating you, in flames, singeing your clothes, you smell burnt hair.
Thomas / Guy:Go on.
Tara / Journey:Go on.
Tim / GM:Momentarily blinded and suffocated, and some of the withered grass has caught fire. Wait.
Speaker 8:It's fire damage? Yes.
Speaker 6:I don't oh, wait. I I'm resistant to that.
Speaker 8:I'm resistant too.
Tim / GM:And then I'll have Everybody roll initiative.
Speaker 6:18, bitch. Sorry.
Speaker 8:15. Tib?
Tara / Journey:8. Rolling well this time, guys.
Speaker 4:Bert, 17. Polly.
Thomas / Guy:6.
Tim / GM:Alright. First up is Uli.
Speaker 6:And it's just a flaming skull.
Tim / GM:It is in fact a flame skull, and it is,
Tara / Journey:Just a flaming skull.
Speaker 6:Is is he moving?
Tim / GM:He is moving. You can see this thing has the power of flight. Great. Yeah.
Speaker 6:Tibs, I just need to know if it's okay to kill your friend.
Tara / Journey:I don't know. Tibio is, on the ground. He is in shock. He is upset.
Speaker 6:Well, that's enough permission for me. And I will meta magic, protection from energy, Tibio from fire.
Thomas / Guy:Okay. Aw.
Speaker 7:And then
Speaker 6:I will pick up a log and smack it.
Tara / Journey:Okay.
Tim / GM:Okay. Improvised weapon? Yeah. Nice.
Speaker 6:Nat 20.
Thomas / Guy:There you go. Nice. Log.
Tim / GM:Yeah. Roll another, d 20. See how high that goes.
Tara / Journey:Here we go. It was
Speaker 6:a 3. Okay. 4 damage.
Tim / GM:Crit twice.
Speaker 6:Oh, yeah. 8 damage. Alright. 8 bonk. Yep.
Speaker 6:That's my turn.
Tim / GM:Okay.
Speaker 6:And I'll say, leave him alone.
Tim / GM:Uli picks up a log and knocks the skull, and it just goes like spinning like 5 feet away and then kind of like regains itself a little bit. And then it does, like, some, like, rapid clacking and comes after you, Uli. Next up is Bert, and then snack, and then Dimitri.
Thomas / Guy:Nice one, Uli.
Speaker 6:Yeah. Kick his ass.
Thomas / Guy:Tibia didn't come all the way here for a guilt trip, buddy. And Bert, unsheathes brain gore from beneath his robe and, kinda cracks his neck a little bit and
Tim / GM:He looks at you and goes, what the hell is that?
Thomas / Guy:Gives it a gives it the first swing. 16.
Tim / GM:Yeah. That hits. Yeah.
Thomas / Guy:Am I also adding my spell modifier? Mhmm.
Tim / GM:Okay.
Thomas / Guy:So 16 damage.
Tim / GM:Jesus. So so Bert, unsheathes his axe and winds up and takes a swing with it, but he doesn't come near hitting the skull, nor does he even release the axe at all. A spectral axe head flies out of this thing and, chops into the flame skull.
Speaker 7:Cool.
Tim / GM:Burt, as this thing impacts the skull, you can feel, this thing's surface thoughts flooding into your brain. You also all see the skull kind of make this face where its jaw goes slack for a second, and
Speaker 4:you all hear it go.
Speaker 6:Does it have a brain tumor?
Thomas / Guy:Any good surface thoughts?
Tim / GM:Yes. So, this thing is in fact in agony. It thinks the forest is doomed and is dying, and it wants to kill Tibeo for forsaking the entire forest and abandoning his family. Yay. It's a snack's turn, anyway.
Speaker 8:How dare you, Skal? I will hex you. And then cast Eldritch Blast. Without hexing him? Hexing first.
Speaker 8:Okay. Then Eldritch Blast.
Tim / GM:And what's the disadvantage stat?
Speaker 8:Constitution. K. So, 26 to hit.
Tim / GM:Yeah. That hits.
Speaker 8:K. Who is 16 to hit. Also hits. Okay. 29 plus hex is 32.
Speaker 8:Damage? Yeah. Yeah.
Thomas / Guy:How? 32?
Speaker 8:My Christmas mod's 5. So 2 d 10 plus 10 plus 4 for the Genie's Wrath, which is once per turn, plus 4 to attack, plus 1 d 6.
Tim / GM:What's the last d 6 for?
Speaker 8:X.
Tim / GM:Oh, that's right. Jeez. Yeah.
Speaker 7:I mean,
Tim / GM:it checks out. Anyway, so I suppose the second Aldrich blast, knocks off its lower jaw and scatters some of its teeth, cracks the skull, and this thing falls to the ground and goes dormant. Sorry.
Speaker 8:Was that vengeful? I I feel like that was well deserved.
Speaker 6:Is it dead? I mean, it was a skull.
Tara / Journey:Tibio starts crawling over. Are we out of combat? Yep. Okay. Tibio, crawls over to the pieces of the skull Mhmm.
Tara / Journey:And, like, picks them up and is, like, crying
Speaker 6:a little bit.
Speaker 8:Mhmm.
Tara / Journey:He tries to, like, put them together a little bit and, like, set them back up on the stump. He's shaking and keeps dropping the pieces. Yeah. He looks around and he says, is
Speaker 7:this is this my fault too?
Speaker 6:No. Did did I
Speaker 7:do this too?
Hannah / Eryn:Holly gently, like, takes the skull pieces away from Tibio's hands and sets them on the stump herself. And then she, like, puts her arm around Tibio. And she's like, no. It's okay, Tibio.
Speaker 4:What have
Speaker 7:I what have I done?
Speaker 6:You didn't do this.
Hannah / Eryn:You didn't know.
Speaker 6:We did this for you. Wait. That's not better.
Tim / GM:But, Tivia, you can't escape the thought that, like, somebody in your family is gonna see this at some point and ask what happened to Dimitri.
Speaker 7:I I have to take him with. I have to show them. I know that they are going to know
Speaker 8:Tibio. Tibio, it's just a skull. It's literally just a skull
Speaker 7:we have. Well, it is now.
Speaker 6:Yes. We we can try and figure out a way to fix it, but I think you need to focus on writing the world first.
Hannah / Eryn:We need to get back to your home as soon as possible, I think.
Thomas / Guy:Yes. And we're here to support you. I know this is a lot.
Speaker 6:I'm sorry we hit first and ask questions later.
Hannah / Eryn:Well, technically, he hit first.
Speaker 6:And I did ask for permission.
Tara / Journey:Tibia just kinda, like, nods to himself and wipes his tears and, gets up and we should go.
Speaker 4:And can
Tim / GM:I take the pieces with you?
Hannah / Eryn:Yes. Okay.
Tara / Journey:I'm gonna gather them and, like, fold them into pieces of cloth.
Speaker 6:Was it a special kind of head magic?
Speaker 7:He's, he's he's special. I will have to I should take him home.
Speaker 6:Sorry. You put
Hannah / Eryn:him in your intimate wash bag.
Tara / Journey:I just My mesh bag.
Speaker 6:Are we gonna have to kill a lot more skulls?
Speaker 7:I hope not. We should hurry, though.
Tim / GM:You, continue through the woods here. You notice the path you're walking on is, turning into much more of a rut with these high dirt walls on either side. And those dirt walls eventually give way to these stony walls. Eventually, you come to realize that you're in something of a natural labyrinth. This area is made up of all these winding canyons, only about 10 feet tall or so, built in this, almost ornate sort of rocky hedge maze, where you're all trying to just find your way through, Tibio.
Tim / GM:You know this as, one of the well, you know this as the point where most normal people turn back. This is the owl tree. Wandering through this, stony labyrinth, it does take you a while to kind of like find the right way, even with Tibio, showing you through. There's even a couple cases where you come into a fog wall, and you don't dare pass through that passage and take a different route instead. But, eventually, you do come out into this clearing.
Tim / GM:There is a stump in the middle of it. And, Tibio, this is the stump.
Thomas / Guy:The stump? The stump.
Tim / GM:Sorry. It's all very canonical to you. Mhmm. You know what all this is, but it's rather insignificant to the rest of everybody here.
Speaker 4:You have
Tim / GM:not seen any trees that have been cut down in the faranglade, although this one is. When you stand on this stump, you can look through this archway and just the way that you're facing this tree, at this very specific angle, looking under this archway, the way that these vines hang off of this distant tree, makes the perfect shape of an incredibly detailed owl, feathers and all. But only when you see it from this exact perspective underneath the archway. Tibio. This owl usually is a good judge of who should be allowed into the front glide further.
Speaker 7:Mhmm.
Tim / GM:After this, it's faith territory. It's guarded. It's a protected place. You don't know what to expect now.
Tara / Journey:I explained the owl tree to everyone kind of sadly and distractedly.
Speaker 7:I I don't know what we will find on the other side. I'm sorry. This is not the this is not the way I would have introduced you to my home. Well, we'll fix it.
Speaker 6:Yeah. You'll get your home back.
Speaker 4:Okay.
Hannah / Eryn:Can I try to see it?
Speaker 7:Yes. Yes. Each of you can
Hannah / Eryn:Can we take turns on the stump, like, looking and trying to be like, I think I see it. Oh, no. There it is. There it is. Right when you get the right angle.
Speaker 6:Yeah. Do you have to be gnome height?
Tim / GM:Holly, you're standing on the stump, and everybody here hears this creaking, this falling of debris and a shaking of leaves, as those of you outside can see this tree kind of weirdly distort like a dryad yawning or something and sort of spreads out. Holly, you can see from your perspective, this owl has gone full, spread wings and kind of like closes them back in, and it looks down at you. And then it, abruptly cocks its head to one side much faster than you think anything that big should be able to move. And the tree speaks to you, Holly. Holly Hyacinth.
Speaker 7:Yes?
Tim / GM:It, folds its wings back in and glares at you and says, you share adoration for the Fae.
Hannah / Eryn:You guys are pretty great. So so far, the ones I've met, anyway.
Tim / GM:The Fae are not to be trusted.
Hannah / Eryn:Oh, I mean, a general mistrust of strangers is okay.
Tim / GM:It, looks at you again. And you can feel, like, a sort of vulnerable, a sort of vulnerability with this thing. It's it's looking at more than what it's seeing. It says, you are a stranger to adventure and have much to experience.
Hannah / Eryn:I haven't experienced as much as some, but I've experienced a great deal more than others.
Tim / GM:You hesitate to save others when their sacrifice benefits you.
Hannah / Eryn:Everything's not black and white in reality.
Tim / GM:You all can see the tree kind of shake and drop a bunch of sticks and leaves. You act with wrath when others are made to pay the price.
Tara / Journey:Can you give
Hannah / Eryn:me an example?
Tim / GM:I'll say your mind wanders to, to Dave getting branded and punching Joe out of frustration.
Hannah / Eryn:Oh, yeah. I'll punch a bad guy. That's fine.
Tim / GM:You can see that this thing has gone, stationary again. It seems it has finished judging you.
Thomas / Guy:Bert's gonna pull Uli aside while Holly's on the stump.
Tim / GM:Got it.
Thomas / Guy:Yeah. I was hoping my debut of Dorzak's would be a little more triumphant, but I just feel terrible.
Speaker 6:I mean, it was pretty cool though.
Thomas / Guy:Oh, thanks. Means a lot, Uli. Yeah. Anyway, this thing I mean, I got a little read of Dimitri's brain when I hit him.
Speaker 6:It can do that? Oh, yeah. That's pretty cool.
Thomas / Guy:He really hates Tibio. He really thinks everything here is his fault. Can you imagine?
Speaker 6:Tibia's so, like, soft spoken and sweet.
Thomas / Guy:It has to be a misunderstanding.
Speaker 6:Right.
Thomas / Guy:But anyway, we have to be really careful about his feelings. This is this is a huge weight.
Speaker 6:Let's not tell Tibio that information just yet, maybe.
Thomas / Guy:Yeah. I think that's the plan.
Speaker 6:Okay. But let's,
Thomas / Guy:Let's go get judged by this tree.
Speaker 6:Yeah. I was just gonna say, I think we should probably keep an eye on Tibia. Like, stand guard a little bit. Yeah. He's pretty fragile right now.
Speaker 6:So
Tara / Journey:Tibia is walking
Tim / GM:You can see the way forward is perfectly clear to all of you. You would just walk through this giant hollowed out stump to continue on to the face dreams.
Thomas / Guy:So do we all have to talk to this owl tree?
Speaker 6:Do they check
Thomas / Guy:Is that
Speaker 8:how it works?
Tara / Journey:Do it, or do they all just get judged?
Tim / GM:Typically, if you are judged unworthy or not judged at all, the tree will kind of, fae path you, which is the tree. It will send you back either way.
Speaker 4:Yeah. Yeah.
Speaker 7:Yes. You should all do this so that you can pass safely.
Speaker 6:Alright. I guess I feel pretty confident in my self, my worthiness.
Thomas / Guy:Alright, really?
Speaker 6:Yeah. You
Tim / GM:stand on the stump?
Speaker 6:I stand on the stump.
Tim / GM:You cause wanton destruction wherever you go. Well
Speaker 6:actually, I'm working on that, and it's not really something I could control. See, I'm I'm a sorcerer. I was born with this. I didn't ask to be. So
Tim / GM:It, folds its wings in and extends its neck, like, super far out to get closer to you. And it says, it does the, like, full, like, 180 upside down head thing. It's like, do you believe you do more harm than good?
Speaker 6:Well, that's kind of how I used to see myself, but I'm I'm learning that I'm not always about destruction. I have more worth than that. I I can make friends now and save them.
Tara / Journey:Friends.
Tim / GM:You solve your loneliness by endangering others with your presence. How do you repay them for their risk?
Speaker 6:Well, actually, I'm I just learned how to not hurt them. And I I think I do a pretty good job at taking their feelings into account. I'm learning a little bit about emotional intelligence. I think I'm making great strides.
Tim / GM:As you continue to talk, you all realize that for a little while now, the tree has not moved.
Thomas / Guy:Hey. We're all hearing everybody's. Yes. Okay.
Tim / GM:Yeah. And judgment.
Speaker 6:And I made amends with my family, and I even had a good conversation with with a brother that
Tim / GM:doesn't like me. One branch do the shoe motion?
Speaker 7:Uli Uli, I think you're done.
Speaker 6:Oh, okay. Sorry. I'll just go over here.
Thomas / Guy:Good job, though, Uli.
Speaker 6:Thanks. I think it's fine.
Thomas / Guy:Alright. I'm next, I guess.
Hannah / Eryn:This is like reverse confession.
Thomas / Guy:Lay it on me, tree bird.
Tim / GM:You step onto the stump. You see this thing kind of regain its composure, and then it, like, sinks its head, like, into its own neck and just becomes like a little ball of a tree. It says, your anger is mitigated only by your hesitation to act. Do you consider yourself a kind person?
Thomas / Guy:Usually, when the situation calls for it, sure.
Tim / GM:Barum. No. It doesn't say that. Your obsession for your journalistic endeavors pushes you to ignore what's best for yourself and others. What say you?
Thomas / Guy:I don't doubt that I can ignore some of my needs sometimes and what's best for me, but I like to think I do what I do to help other people.
Tim / GM:And yet, you are filled with doubt for yourself, for your role, and for your significance.
Speaker 8:It's
Thomas / Guy:yeah. Some of the others, they're curse breakers. They have abilities I don't, but part of this journey is trying to figure out the best way to help people, protect people, whether it's passive with the stuff that I write or taking a more active approach.
Tim / GM:You can see that this tree is still enchanted, still moving, and it just kind of hovers there for a while without asking you another question, bird. It seems to be struggling with you. And then you see it kind of reset into its default position with its wings tucked in and releases you from its judgment.
Thomas / Guy:I think I did
Speaker 6:it. Snack.
Speaker 8:I don't want to do this. I'm just walking through. Screw you, bird tree. I care not. What do you say?
Speaker 8:Snack tries to walk through.
Tim / GM:Yeah. Snack, you walk into this log, and starts to get dark in there. And there's, of course, light at the end of the tunnel. And, when you pop out, you're staring at your party.
Speaker 8:How did you guys get over? Yo. Oh, wait a second.
Tara / Journey:Nick, you have to.
Speaker 6:I will put a leash on you.
Speaker 8:I don't I don't need that.
Thomas / Guy:I don't think he's going to be any meaner than your dragon friend was.
Speaker 6:Yeah. That was embarrassing.
Speaker 8:I hesitantly float up on top of the log, and I am, like, not looking directly at him, flicking off to the side. As soon
Tim / GM:as you as soon as you touch down on the stump, you all hear this, like as the tree drops an entire branch.
Speaker 8:Oh, jeez.
Speaker 6:He just killed the owl tree.
Speaker 8:That was
Hannah / Eryn:a good branch dropping sound effect.
Tim / GM:The tree looks down at you and kind of rumbles this area and says, you are no stranger to evil. Yes. You have wrath and destruction on your hands.
Speaker 8:Yes. Yes.
Speaker 6:This is not going
Tim / GM:You bear the mark of the golden flight, and their judgment is respected here.
Speaker 8:Thank thank you.
Tim / GM:You will cause no harm in these lands.
Speaker 8:Is that prophetic or is that something I should take to heart? I assume both.
Tim / GM:That was better than any response I could.
Speaker 8:Well, you are the nicest crew I've ever met.
Speaker 6:Alright. On fire.
Tara / Journey:Oh, man.
Speaker 8:Snack floats down and
Tara / Journey:yeah. Tibio gets up on the stump.
Tim / GM:Tibio, I think you're you're anxious, and you're getting ready to just get onto the stump. Mhmm. And before even getting there, it begins to talk to you. You have eluded your duties.
Speaker 7:I I have. I know.
Tim / GM:The forest is suffering.
Speaker 7:I see it.
Tim / GM:The dead have rebelled. The fey have become ruthless. Tibio, There must always be a warden of the dead. For this reason, I will grant you passage, but I will not guarantee your safety.
Speaker 7:I understand.
Tim / GM:The underworld is furious with you. You must seek to make amends.
Speaker 7:I will do I will do anything.
Tim / GM:You hear a deep groaning of wood, as you know the roots and passageways are churning underneath the owl tree, and it sets you on the right path to enter the fey streams.
Tara / Journey:Tibio, like, kinda stumbles off the stump.
Tim / GM:Are you alright, Tibbs?
Speaker 7:I've I've done something horrible here. I did not I did not think it would be so bad. It is it is my responsibility to fix it.
Thomas / Guy:But whenever you're ready to talk about it, we'll listen, and we won't judge you.
Speaker 7:Thank you, Bear.
Speaker 6:Snack might judge you.
Tara / Journey:Perhaps. I
Thomas / Guy:think he will have to understand it.
Tim / GM:You pass over into the face dreams.
Thomas / Guy:Face dreams.
Tim / GM:Tibio, you know that there are 6 rivers here. One of them is a dry riverbed these days. 2 of them are shallow streams, and nothing to really worry about at all. The first one, that's a real river, can be a bit of a challenge. On your way there, the only real event of note, was a, a lonely squirrel, that you had seen on the road.
Tim / GM:It looked up to speak with you, and instead, it just screamed for about 30 seconds. Oh my god.
Speaker 8:And then ran away. What was it saying?
Tim / GM:I think it's just shouting the word darkness over and over again.
Thomas / Guy:To be honest,
Speaker 8:to be honest, it was shouting darkness a lot over and over again.
Speaker 7:Snug, I know.
Speaker 8:Oh, I well, you speak squirrel.
Speaker 7:I Squidhelm. Yes.
Tim / GM:You all take a dip through the dry riverbed and then splash across the shallow streams. And before you know it, you're at this, kind of a an inexplicably rapid river, with, water kind of crashing over the stones here. There is an elfish man. You would think by any assumption, Faye. He has a, sort of black mohawk.
Tim / GM:It's kind of a long hairdo that's shaved on the sides of his head. Is he in a band? He might be. He's got a lot of these, like, wooden earrings, clamped
Speaker 4:to him. He's got
Tim / GM:some, like, tattooed markings, and he's leaning on a staff. And next to him are these large, large, like, boat sized, leaves. They almost look like bean pods with these big crescents.
Thomas / Guy:Holly, maybe you should handle this one.
Speaker 7:She gets all both.
Speaker 6:Oh, no.
Speaker 7:Holly, everyone be very careful. Do not give your name.
Speaker 6:Right. Alright.
Hannah / Eryn:Honey. Alright.
Speaker 6:Barnes.
Speaker 7:Okay.
Hannah / Eryn:Holly walks up to the boatman and says, hello? I'm Honey. What's your name?
Speaker 6:Just out trick the elf guy.
Speaker 4:Out fucks. Nothing.
Thomas / Guy:Oh, so they probably know when you give them a fake name. Right?
Tim / GM:I mean, they won't know until they try it. They don't, like, feel anything. Yeah. So the yeah. The dry bed was not a problem.
Tim / GM:The cart didn't have to get judged, nor did Carl. He seemed to be fine. But this is the point at which it is no longer feasible to keep the cart with you. There's 2 more rivers after this. The ferryman, ferryman, I guess.
Tim / GM:Faye
Thomas / Guy:Raymond. Faye
Tim / GM:turns to Holly and says,
Speaker 4:greeting. The name is Winder.
Hannah / Eryn:Winder. Lovely to meet you.
Speaker 4:Lovely to meet you. Honey.
Hannah / Eryn:Yes. He he he frowns
Tim / GM:when he sees that, like, nothing has happened with the word honey.
Hannah / Eryn:Me and my companions are looking to cross the river here. How much for a ride?
Speaker 4:Honey. Oh,
Hannah / Eryn:honey. Honey, honey.
Speaker 4:It seemed to me you are quite new to these lens.
Hannah / Eryn:Yeah. It's my first time, but my friend Bones over here, is from this area.
Tim / GM:He kind of like, turns on his staff to look up at Bones, the aforementioned Mhmm. And, kind of grimaces. And he says,
Speaker 4:I'm not feeling especially motivated to help anyone today.
Speaker 8:Could we just have your leaves and be on our way?
Speaker 6:Can I take take my leaves?
Speaker 4:No. No. No. These are my leaves to trade. You must trade me.
Speaker 8:What is it you'd like?
Speaker 4:Parts of you.
Speaker 6:Oh.
Thomas / Guy:Tough sell.
Speaker 7:Yeah. That's
Thomas / Guy:Oh, I'll bite. Which parts?
Tim / GM:He, walks up to you and says,
Speaker 4:you have much to offer, do you not? You have so many secrets, so much knowledge.
Thomas / Guy:Thanks for noticing.
Speaker 4:Perhaps you could part with some of it. Some knowledge? Indeed.
Thomas / Guy:I'm always happy to share knowledge.
Speaker 4:Unfortunately, it's not share, it's give to me forever. Do you understand now?
Thomas / Guy:I think I do. I don't I don't love it.
Hannah / Eryn:Bones, how do you usually get over this river?
Tim / GM:In the past, he's usually done it for free.
Speaker 7:Something has changed. Usually, there is less of a transaction.
Thomas / Guy:What if we had our own boat?
Hannah / Eryn:I have a boat.
Speaker 6:How rapid is this river?
Tim / GM:It's pretty choppy.
Hannah / Eryn:I have a paper dinghy.
Speaker 4:He says, fine. Take your own boat. I suppose he's pretty hungry.
Hannah / Eryn:Who's who's hungry?
Speaker 4:Oh, you know. And he
Tim / GM:nods his head towards the river.
Speaker 6:Bones, what's in the river?
Tim / GM:Give me a knowledge history check. Yeah. You might know.
Hannah / Eryn:How far across is the
Tara / Journey:river? 23.
Speaker 4:Oh, shit. Okay. You do know.
Tara / Journey:I do know.
Tim / GM:Yeah. There is a, giant koi fish that lives in this river.
Speaker 7:Ollie, there is, it is very large. It is fish like, gold and orange, and it has very big fins. A goldfish.
Hannah / Eryn:A giant fish?
Speaker 7:Oui. It is a particular kind. I do not know it in common.
Thomas / Guy:It got teeth?
Speaker 7:Yes. Some people have them small in pond ponds in their home.
Thomas / Guy:Oh, like, koi.
Speaker 7:Koi?
Thomas / Guy:Koi.
Speaker 7:Koi.
Speaker 4:Great bargains to be had here. Tell me, fancy scaled one. What is your name?
Speaker 8:Yes. My name is Snatch.
Speaker 7:No. Snatch.
Speaker 6:No. No. Snatch?
Tim / GM:Awesome. Ah, sorry. Snatch. Yeah. Again, fella.
Tim / GM:That is
Thomas / Guy:that's our snatch.
Tara / Journey:Scaly snap.
Speaker 4:You have some unique feature. Yes.
Tim / GM:I like.
Speaker 4:Yes. Mhmm. Yep. This, I like it.
Tim / GM:And he points to your tail. He says, I would have that.
Speaker 8:No. Well, I prefer to keep it.
Speaker 4:How about these lovely scales?
Speaker 8:I don't know what it's like to not have them. I guess, do we I look to the group. Do we need, these boats?
Thomas / Guy:I'm starting to think I
Speaker 6:mean, I don't.
Thomas / Guy:Be our only way across. I
Speaker 4:By all mean, don't make a deal with me. See where that gets you.
Thomas / Guy:What what is the return policy on these boat payments?
Speaker 4:All sales are final.
Thomas / Guy:Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
Speaker 6:S a I l s.
Hannah / Eryn:I have another idea of how to get across. But, have you ever heard of the Fae Trader?
Speaker 4:Yeah. Yes. I have heard of it.
Hannah / Eryn:Okay. Well, did you know on the 3rd level, there is an illustrious trading shop where many trades can be made?
Tim / GM:Yes. Stolen relics from the Feywild. Yes.
Hannah / Eryn:Well, if you ever make your way there God.
Thomas / Guy:Okay. I didn't notice that.
Hannah / Eryn:Please tell them Holly sent you before you buy. Can Holly, like, try to roll or, like, try to convince him?
Tara / Journey:You've already offended him a little bit.
Tim / GM:Yeah. Yeah. You can. You have disadvantage with this one.
Hannah / Eryn:14. Okay.
Tim / GM:It dawns on you now that, that the fey here and the fey at the fey trader are probably not aligned.
Speaker 4:Mhmm.
Tim / GM:He
Speaker 4:says, I have no interest in buying back that which was stolen from my people, nor do I have interest in seeing anyone who resides in the faith trader. However, if you do make it back to the Feitrader and you find my sword, I would have it back.
Hannah / Eryn:Your sword?
Speaker 4:Indeed.
Hannah / Eryn:What did it look like?
Speaker 4:A short blade of fae make, of course, but he's good with magic.
Hannah / Eryn:I'll have to keep an eye out for it. I don't remember it.
Speaker 4:As for you, I think
Tim / GM:I want this. And he points to the, weave thread.
Hannah / Eryn:No. That's okay. We're gonna make our own way. And Holly gestures to the group to kind of take some steps away from
Speaker 6:What would you trade me?
Speaker 4:The overalls are good.
Speaker 6:Mhmm.
Speaker 4:I suppose I could take some of your, some of your endurance.
Hannah / Eryn:Nah.
Speaker 4:I suppose I could take some of your strength.
Speaker 6:Why would I trade any of that?
Speaker 4:To survive. Survive. To get where you need to be, alive.
Speaker 6:Right. But I could jump across, and I don't need you.
Tim / GM:Please? He gestures to the open river.
Speaker 6:Does anyone else wanna come with me?
Hannah / Eryn:You guys just need to trust me a little bit, and we may have to fend off this giant fish, but we'll be fine. We can do that. And Holly casts water walk on everybody.
Speaker 6:I have dimension door, and I can take one person, so I was just gonna do that.
Tara / Journey:Okay. I'll
Thomas / Guy:take the door if you don't mind.
Speaker 6:Yeah. I'm just gonna hop across this bird.
Tara / Journey:How far across is it?
Tim / GM:Probably 50 feet across.
Speaker 6:Okay. Dimension door goes 5 100. 501 feet. Yeah. Well, then I'd take a running leap Yeah.
Speaker 6:Yeah. And then Do it
Tim / GM:in the air. Yeah. Yeah. Dimension door gets you there.
Hannah / Eryn:Holly starts walking across the water.
Thomas / Guy:I'm gonna have my accent ready in case that fish shows up.
Speaker 4:K.
Tara / Journey:I look at the fae individual, and I say,
Speaker 7:your time of, swindling travelers will be coming to an end soon. I've come home to fix everything.
Tara / Journey:I put my little hands on my little hips.
Speaker 4:That's good of you to say, but things have changed. It's different now. Oh, look, your friend's about to die.
Tim / GM:And, you see Holly, almost half way across the river at this point just walking. And, Holly, it's difficult. The the water the these waves, you know, in the river keep kind of lapping up and springing you a couple feet in the air, and you, like, come down hard and have to keep running. I need you to make a dexterity save with advantage.
Hannah / Eryn:I rolled 2 fives.
Speaker 6:Oh, my God. Holly is this
Hannah / Eryn:food. I can't use luck because it was already had advantage.
Tim / GM:I think you can actually still use luck because I I don't think luck is advantage. I think you just roll another d 20.
Hannah / Eryn:Oh, thank god. Hey. 19.
Speaker 4:K. Alright.
Tim / GM:So I'm gonna say you just take half damage from this.
Speaker 4:Oh. Okay. Not too bad.
Tim / GM:That is 11 bludgeoning damage as a tentacle reaches out of the river and slaps you.
Tara / Journey:A tentacle?
Speaker 6:That doesn't look like a koi tibial. Oh, bones.
Hannah / Eryn:Holly feels the tentacle grab her leg, and she her ring of revenge that she's wearing, I almost imagine it as, like, a spectral hand almost over her own hand with the ring on.
Tim / GM:Oh, yeah.
Hannah / Eryn:And then it moves her hand and, like, hits it, like, almost, you know, like, for it's like a reaction. Yep.
Tim / GM:Yeah. Maybe a 1 d 4.
Speaker 7:Plus 1.
Tim / GM:Plus 1.
Speaker 8:Don't forget that plus 1.
Hannah / Eryn:2.
Tara / Journey:Smack back.
Tim / GM:Is it
Thomas / Guy:is it blurry?
Tim / GM:You see the tentacle just kind of like jiggle a little bit as it gets slapped back. This thing, rises from the river, shows you all of its teeth, outstretches its tentacles, and ends the session.
Speaker 6:Damn it. Holy.
Thomas / Guy:Wow. He's incredibly powerful.
Tim / GM:So much for listening. I'm Tim, your DM and your genie.
Hannah / Eryn:I'm Hannah playing Holly Hyacinth.
Thomas / Guy:I'm Thomas. I play Engelbert FF Wisherspoon.
Tara / Journey:I'm Tara, and I play Tibio Femur.
Speaker 8:I'm John. I play Snack the Cobalt.
Speaker 6:And I'm Maggie playing Uli.
