Campaign 2 Episode 031

Anthony 0:00
Greetings, adventurers and welcome to the Adventure Incorporated Podcast. I am your Dungeon Master. My name is Anthony Reed, and this is episode 31. And it is the seventh part of the Gathering Darkness story arc. There’s a lot of show to get to today. It’s sort of a bonus sized episode. So, I’m going to burn right through this. I just want to give a big thank you to our Patrons at patreon.com/adventureinc. Each and every month they kick in a little bit of their hard earned money to help the show do really cool things that we couldn’t otherwise do. And if you want to help support the show as well, you want to give it a, you know, your I guess, fiduciary seal of approval, then you can head to adventureincpod.com and find all kinds of ways to support the show including the Patreon, patreon.com/adventureinc, including shirts and stickers available at our store, and including sharing all of the information about the show to all of your social media. These are easy ways to help the show and we superduper appreciate it. All right, like I said, a lot of show to get to today. Big stuff happening, so I’m gonna just put a pin in it and let you guys get started with the show. Let’s get started.

Nobles and farmers, knights and scoundrels, gather round, gather round to hear a tale of excitement and mystery. Brave adventurers facing grave dangers.

Belroth, the Ranger.

Belroth 1:42
She’s a Grimalkin. That’s, uh, but that’s understood. No pets allowed, even though she’s not a pet. I will wait outside. Everyone, if anyone needs anything, I am outside.

Anthony 1:51
Skarpin the Cleric.

Belroth 1:54
Should I just try and snipe them from over here?

Skarpin 1:56
Yeah, okay. I did say there was good as dead. I would hate for my, you know, to break my word on our first contract with Adventure Incorporated.

Anthony 2:05
Ellori, the Bard.

Ellori 2:07
We would want you to leave this warehouse.

Anthony 2:11
He points behind it. Church!

Ellori 2:13
Oh, sorry. We want you to leave this church.

Anthony 2:18
Deeran, the Wizard.

He say, you no worship Shattered Fang.

Deeran 2:23
Yeah, man he’s like, super wrong. We love Broken Tooth- uh, Shattered Fang, man.

Anthony 2:28
Prepare yourselves, for these are the tales of Adventure Incorporated!

The 4 of you are outside a long abandoned temple. Thick moss growing on the outside of this building. You’ve traveled for a little ways through the forest now and it is a sight to behold. It is sort of impressive out here in the woods. It looks like it has been abandoned a long, long time with the amount of growth covering the outside of this stone building.

Belroth 3:07
I’d like to make a bit of a I guess like History Check to see if there is any sort of iconography that I recognize or anything related like- is there anything from the entrance that makes me think it might be related to. Like, who built this temple other than-

Ellori 3:28
~Who built this temple?! Who built this temple?!~

Deeran 3:34
~On rocky ground.~

Ellori 3:37
Soil. Soil. That would have been closer.

Deeran 3:40
Well, you should have said anything.

Skarpin 3:47
Can we play D&D?

Anthony 3:51
Oh, Mike, you know by now this is what we do. This is it. So, give me a History Check, Rob. Okay,

Belroth 4:01
1!

Anthony 4:02
Yeah, nothing. You have no idea about this temple.

Belroth 4:06
I haven’t the faintest clue.

Anthony 4:09
This could be 2000 years old. It could be yesterday that it was built, and you would not be able to tell the difference between the 2 other than I mean, it’s got moss. Unless they built the moss intentionally.

Deeran 4:21
Was that a History Check?

Skarpin 4:24
Belroth’s examining a tree that he’s like, oh this temple, it’s very interesting.

Belroth 4:35
He’s very clear about one tree’s age, but not necessarily-

Deeran 4:38
Anthony, I got a 14 on my History Check, but I want to do it like the ADHD brain that we have, you know what I mean? So like, I want to be looking at the temple, and I want to be thinking about like, a snack that I had recently that was shaped a little bit like the temple that kind of triggers a memory of a class that I was like, eating that snack in.

Anthony 5:08
I think that you look at the temple, right? You look at the temple and then you like, you’re trying to look at maybe the architecture. You see the moss. You feel the moss. The moss is very smooth. It’s like, got this like, great texture to it. You like, pull some of the moss off, and you’re just like, running it between your fingers back and forth, right? Like it’s got this like a papery, but almost like a small fuzz on it, and it’s, it’s very calming like, you kind of feel like you could take this and like, you know, if you got a lot of it, you can make like a pillow out of it, and it’d be a great place to lay down and rest. Like, that’s where you’re at now is like, resting like, well how to make it more comfortable for you on the road while you’re traveling. You’ve forgotten the temple completely.

Deeran 5:48
Okay. So, my 14 History Check didn’t give me anything either?

Anthony 5:52
You know it’s old. You know that looking at this temple, it’s been here a long time probably since like, around the Shadowfall era.

Deeran 6:00
Great.

Skarpin 6:01
So as Deeran starts to salivate looking at the temple, Belroth is examining a tree, Skarpin does a Religion Check with a natural 20?

Anthony 6:14
Wow, finally. Finally someone around here gets some work done. Yeah, you look at this and a lot of the iconography on the outside of the temple has sort of overgrown with vines and moss and things, just the wear of time. But you are able to see that there is a full row of symbols at the top of this temple that seem to be iconography, old iconography for each of the gods. This temple may have been some sort of all of the pantheon in a single location. Additionally, you see on it what appears to be the head of a dragon.

Skarpin 7:03
Oh, very interesting. This temple appears to be for all the gods of old as well as maybe this is Hairix here with the dragon.

Anthony 7:17
You do see a separate symbol that was the symbol of Hairix so like, if this was Hairix’s symbol there would be 2 symbols of Hairix on this temple.

Skarpin 7:29
Does Skarpin know anything about this dragon symbol that’s different than Hairix.

Anthony 7:34
This is the one that stands out to you because it does not match any of what you know of the religions.

Skarpin 7:41
I wonder what this one is, and he pushes it.

Anthony 7:45
Yeah, you push in on it and it doesn’t seem to, move but you do realize that it is dead in the center of the others. It’s like, the others are fanned out from this point in the middle.

Skarpin 8:00
Okay. Okay.

Belroth 8:03
Are we fully rested?

Skarpin 8:05
No. Well, Skarpin isn’t?

Anthony 8:10
Yeah, we settled down for a long rest the night before.

Skarpin 8:15
After the boar?

Belroth 8:16
Yeah.

Deeran 8:21
Belroth had the light a fire plan, and it seemed like it worked.

Anthony 8:26
Oh, actually, yeah, we ended with you being first watch or whatever.

Skarpin 8:30
Right, hunting.

Anthony 8:31
Yeah, it worked. It’s fine.

Belroth 8:33
Everything’s fine. Everyone was panicking, but Belroth was right, good.

Deeran 8:38
Skarpin is hurt anyway.

Skarpin 8:41
He didn’t rest much. Cool.

Belroth 8:48
Well, should we venture in? Does anyone have any preparations that they need to make before we go into the temple?

Ellori 8:59
Oh, I mean, there’s a lot of greenery here that I’m not really used to seeing so I could do with making a little flower crown for myself. Just in case we meet any old gods, and you know, you never want to meet- my grandma always said you never want to meet an old god without a fancy crown.

Belroth 9:18
Okay, that is a good one. That is one that I would never have thought of.

Skarpin 9:22
Ellori, can you make me one too?

Ellori 9:24
Yeah, of course.

Deeran 9:25
Deeran pulls Skarpin aside.

Belroth 9:27
Ellori makes 2 flower crowns.

Ellori 9:29
Belroth, do you want one? Deeran?

Belroth 9:32
Yes.

Deeran 9:33
I mean, if everybody else is gonna have one, I don’t want to be left out. That’s for sure.

Ellori 9:37
I’ll make one for Freya too.

Belroth 9:40
Okay, how long did these flower crowns take? I feel like that’s the most important part.

Ellori 9:44
Oh, I can do each in a couple minutes.

Belroth 9:47
Oh, perfect. Yeah. Flower crowns. Adventure.

Deeran 9:52
Skarpin.

Skarpin 9:53
Mm?

Deeran 9:54
Remember the other night like, we were talking about how like, sometimes Ellori’s like, grandma’s sayings are really oddly specific? This one seems like one, right?

Skarpin 10:05
Oh, yeah, one of those times where it’s like, wow, I wonder if they’ve also been through this type of stuff. Yeah, I remember that? Yeah, maybe. Yeah, we should ask her if she’s had our exact adventures whenever we meet her.

Deeran 10:21
Yeah, we’ll have to ask her a lot of questions about all of Ellori sayings because like, they just, yeah, like-

Skarpin 10:29
Spot on.

Deeran 10:31
Yeah. So specific.

Skarpin 10:34
It’s impressive. Impressive lady.

Ellori 10:39
Okay, they’re done.

Skarpin 10:41
Wow!

Belroth 10:42
Okay, 5 flower crowns. Belroth places one on Freya’s head and one on his own head.

Deeran 10:48
Which one’s mine, Ellori?

Ellori 10:50
This one.

Deeran 10:51
What’s it look like?

Ellori 10:54
So, I imagine there are like, flowers and everything. Right, like-

Belroth 10:58
And are vaguely crowned shaped?

Ellori 11:00
No, I imagine in the area there’s like more than just the mossy-

Anthony 11:05
Yeah, but one of the hardest parts about it though, is that most of them are enormous.

Ellori 11:11
Okay, great. So, Deeran’s is a bunch of the like, tall grass woven together. And she’s put petals into his. So like, let’s see for Deeran blue like, blue flower petals. They’re almost like, like, bluebell type petals all in the thing. Belroth is going to be the like, reeds like, little like, stiffer reeds that are all kind of like, like more like a, like a harvest crown type thing. And they’re like, red flowers all sprinkled in his. Skarpin’s is the moss with just a big fucking flower at the top of it. So like, the moss like, woven around with this giant like, because she knows he likes whole flowers.

Skarpin 12:08
Yeah.

Ellori 12:09
And Freya’s is, is a bunch of little like, purple petals all woven together, and made in a crown. And Ellori’s is every color. It’s the grass woven and then petals of every single color scattered around.

Belroth 12:27
She’s the May Queen.

Ellori 12:28
Yeah, she is. She’s the Midsommar.

Belroth 12:33
You know, every time I’ve watched that movie with someone, someone will always at the end of that go, good for her. Like, it’s the only horror movie that everyone is like, that had a happy ending.

Anthony 12:45
Every time I’ve watched that with someone that has also happened. I’ve never seen it though.

Belroth 12:51
So, then you lied.

Deeran 12:54
What he meant to say is, he’s never watched it and had that not happen.

Anthony 13:00
True.

Belroth 13:01
Very fair. There you go.

Anthony 13:05
That felt almost more dismissive though as opposed to like coolly coincidental, right? Like, okay, Rob. Cool story. I’ve never watched that and not had that happen.

Belroth 13:17
I liked Anthony’s more than Mike’s. Mike’s felt more dismissive. You’re right.

Deeran 13:22
But it’s also the only way it wasn’t a fucking lie.

Anthony 13:27
No, I said every time I’ve watched it that’s happened.

Belroth 13:29
Which is never. So, it’s never happened, and I was like, haha, fun jape. Mike is like, this has never happened to me and I don’t relate to your story. Fuck you.

Ellori 13:41
Jape is a good word.

Anthony 13:41
This always happens. You’re not special. Okay, yeah. So, I guess the 5 of you enter the temple now that you are bedecked with crowns.

Ellori 13:58
We’re ready for, we’re waiting for some gods.

Skarpin 14:03
Can Skarpin cast something, please?

Anthony 14:06
Yes.

Belroth 14:09
I don’t know. Can he?

Anthony 14:11
What are you looking to cast?

Skarpin 14:12
Well, obviously, you know, Detect Magic’s already going. We got Mage Armor on Deeran. So, he’s gonna cast Spirit Guardians in front of him, and they’re going to be rolling around, and he’s going to take the lead in the temple.

Anthony 14:28
Can we read the text on Spirit Guardians? I feel like we’ve really been boneheading some spells lately, and I just-

Skarpin 14:36
I already asked for permission.

Anthony 14:40
Yeah, you asked if you could cast a spell. You didn’t ask- no, I refuse to be bullied.

Belroth 14:46
So, you call forth spirits to protect you. Casting time-

Skarpin 14:51
Is one minute- no, it’s not. It’s one Action. One Action. So, it’s not like, we didn’t break that rule. You call forth spirits to protect you. They flit around at a distance of 15 feet for up to 10 minutes. It’s Concentration. If you are good or neutral, they appear angelic or Fae. I want them to appear as beautiful colorful parrots. And then the affected creature’s speed is halved in the area. When a creature enters it for the first time or starts its turn there it’s a Wisdom Saving Throw. Failed Save, 3d8 radiant damage.

Anthony 15:26
All right. Yes, you may cast Spirit Guardians. I guess your angelic spirit parrots appear. I’m not gonna, I’m not gonna profess to you your faith. You tell me I guess, but it’s parrots. And I guess they just float nearby you in the air.

Skarpin 15:48
Yeah.

Anthony 15:50
All right.

Skarpin 15:51
Skarpin continues on in a great mood with his flower crown and spirit birds. It’s going to be a good day.

Deeran 15:59
Spirit birds.

Anthony 16:02
You step into the door of the temple, and it opens into a somewhat large chamber, 2 doors off of the back of the chamber. And at the table in front of you is a large, open book that seems to have like, a lot of scrawling in it and then just like, stacks of papers, overflowing down onto the floor. That’s probably about 50 feet away as you walk in this big open area that is impressively large with large marble sculptures. And like, large pillars just running from floor to ceiling. But then also some sculptures of what looks to be like, heroes, though they are not people you recognize looking at them. They are just vaguely heroic looking sculptures. And yeah, the room is large, and despite the disheveled appearance outside, apart from some dust, it’s pretty well kept in here.

Belroth 17:10
Um, since Belroth is probably the only one able to do it, Belroth would like to look for traps.

Anthony 17:17
Okay.

Deeran 17:19
While Belroth is doing that Deeran is gonna look at Skarpin. Hey, man, do you think we’re going to like, get in a fight in here?

Skarpin 17:26
I’m worried because that person, the King of Thieves seemed a little sketchy. And probably if there were no danger around, if there was no danger around here he would have had this orb earlier.

Belroth 17:41
Is it Investigation or Perception?

Anthony 17:45
I think it’s Dungeoneering.

Belroth 17:47
That’s not a skill. That’s 3.5 shit, buddy.

Anthony 17:51
Fuck. Oh, gosh. Investigation.

Belroth 18:05
Okay.

Anthony 18:05
But where are you investigating?

Belroth 18:07
Um, Belroth is looking for- specifically looking for the following things: one, loose tiles that might be depressions that you could push and like, be a button. As well as like, holes- any sort of like, feature in the walls that could indicate either like an arrow slit or some sort of blade coming down or something like that. So, he’s looking at the floors- any issues with the floors and any issues with the walls, anything that looks not like, smooth stone basically.

Anthony 18:42
Okay.

Belroth 18:43
And 15.

Anthony 18:45
Okay, yeah, so you look at the tiles on the floor. Some of them are a different color. There’s like, a scattering of like black tiles and white tiles such that there’s like a black tile surrounded by white tiles and then you know, they’re equally distanced apart and it’s part of the pattern of the floor. And the white tiles are lava, so you can’t step on those. You have to jump from black tile- No, they’re not

Skarpin 19:10
That’s pretty standard.

Belroth 19:10
I have found the trap. The floor is literally lava.

Anthony 19:16
And you search the tiles on the floor. You don’t find anything that concerns you. You search the walls. You don’t see any, you know, obvious traps within the walls either. There are 2 doors out of this room that presumably go deeper into the temple. They are on either side of the table with the book on it.

Skarpin 19:41
Ignore the book everybody. Ignore the book.

Deeran 19:43
Yes, seeing all the caution. Deeran does cast Mage Armor. That is a fact now.

Anthony 19:50
Is that a 10 minute spell?

Deeran 19:51
Nope. That is a one Action spell.

Anthony 19:54
No, no, I mean, how long it lasts.

Deeran 19:56
8 hours.

Anthony 19:57
Oh, great.

Belroth 19:58
That’s a long time.

Ellori 20:00
And if it’s any longer, call a doctor.

Deeran 20:05
Has your Mage Armor persisted more than 8 hours? Call Dr. Lester. Dr. Lester Restoration can cure you.

Skarpin 20:17
I want to see that.

Anthony 20:21
We’ll put it in as an ad break in between bits on Spider Hospital.

Belroth 20:24
Yep, that’s going to happen eventually.

Ellori 20:29
While Belroth is checking and everyone’s doing everything Ellori is going to go up to the table. Does it look like there might be more of a pulpit type place later on in the temple, or does this pretty much look like the altar?

Anthony 20:45
Yeah, no, you would not guess this is the altar of the temple based on what it looks like.

Ellori 20:48
Then, nevermind. Ellori doesn’t do anything.

Anthony 20:51
Okay.

Skarpin 20:51
Skarpin, seeing Ellori bypass the book, he goes and checks out the book.

Anthony 20:57
Okay. Give me an Investigation Check.

Deeran 21:00
Did you tell us not to look at the book so you could look at the book?!

Skarpin 21:03
Yeah. 15.

Anthony 21:11
So, you look down at this book, and the first thing you notice is that there is new dust on this book.

Skarpin 21:19
Good. I hate dust.

Anthony 21:22
It looks as though, you know, despite the thick layer of dust everywhere else in this room, including the papers on either side of the book. The book itself is not dusty.

Skarpin 21:32
Hmm, he keeps looking.

Anthony 21:35
Name?

Skarpin 21:40
He looks around and sees if anybody said that to him.

Anthony 21:47
You don’t see anybody around you. Well, let me rephrase that. You don’t see anyone you don’t expect to see around you.

Skarpin 21:54
Right, and they don’t look like they’re talking to me. Okay. Skarpin looks back at the book and says, hello?

Anthony 22:04
“Hello” is not a name.

Skarpin 22:08
Oh, okay. No, you’re right. My name is Skarpin Nightholder.

Anthony 22:16
You watch as your name appears in the next empty space within the book.

Skarpin 22:21
Hey, everybody this is the, this is the guest book. We can we can write our names in here and tell them about our experiences, I imagine. Tell them your name.

Deeran 22:35
Deeran looks suspiciously up at everyone and like, shakes his head ‘no’ really quickly.

Belroth 22:42
Belroth agrees.

Ellori 22:46
Okay, Skarpin. Ellori goes over and yeah.

Anthony 22:52
As you approach Ellori, it goes, name?

Ellori 22:55
Ellori Realtanam. What’s yours?

Anthony 22:58
Your name appears in the book as well. The spirit says, ah name. Yes, my name. I had one of those ones. Long, long has my name been forgotten to history. It is ironic, as it was my job to record so much, and yet, we failed to record the things most important to us. The book flips to the beginning of the book. And you can see that the weathered pages at the beginning are old and crumbling and are filled- as it flips you just see names as the pages flip by. It goes back- you can see a date at the top that dates back to the Shadowfall.

Skarpin 23:56
Are you just a guestbook to see who visits the temple, or should we bring you with us?

Anthony 24:02
The book begins to glow a bit and then some glowing energy comes off of the book and rests in the seat behind the book and a spectral figure forms of a weathered old man hunched over like, just looks decrepit already, let alone now being a ghost. And he says, no, no, no, I can’t go. It is my job to record those who place their attempts here at the temple.

Ellori 24:39
Ooo, attempts for what?

Anthony 24:41
Oh, attempts to get the Aurora Orb from this place.

Ellori 24:50
Oh, what if we were here for something different?

Anthony 25:00
Like what?

Ellori 25:02
Like we heard there was this book that talked and we came to see it.

Anthony 25:09
You would normally be able to leave, although the 2 of you have already taken the contract. You are now bound to this place to seek the orb.

Skarpin 25:21
Contract you say?

Belroth 25:22
Goddamnit, guys.

Skarpin 25:26
Ellori, it looks like we’re in it. Yeah, yeah, we’re here for the Aurora Orb.

Deeran 25:30
Deeran puts his hands out at them, like, ‘see?!’

Skarpin 25:38
Skarpin waves them over.

Anthony 25:44
You did not come seeking the Orb?

Skarpin 25:49
We did. I think she was being sly.

Ellori 25:52
Yeah, I was just trying to see if, you know, because I guess the thing is that if we are successful, and we take the Aurora Orb, if we take the ARB, then our names will be the last ones in the book. And then everyone will know it is us that has it. So, then I was thinking we would be a target for people to come after for the Orb themselves instead of going through you in the proper system. So, you know, maybe we can set something up that if we are successful, we can just sign a few false names under our own so that it looks like we weren’t successful and nobody’s coming after us.

Anthony 26:31
If you are capable of taking the Orb, then you are already far more of a target than this little old book will leave upon you. For one, who can take the Aurora orb must be woven into the strands of Fate itself. It was an item crafted by the Brass Witch with her own strands of Fate. And she used that Fate to tie it to the future of this great Empire, tie it to ones who would one day need to wield this power, to understand its secrets. But ones who were similarly steeped in the powers of Fate.

Belroth 27:23
Belroth would like to look at the book and flip it back exactly one page, and see if he recognizes anybody’s name, any of his family or anyone from his past.

Anthony 27:33
Like, one page back from the current page?

Belroth 27:35
Because he figures like, the further back you go the less likely.

Anthony 27:40
Yeah, you open the book. You know, you flip to the page, and the spirits like, excuse me, name?!

Belroth 27:48
Just one moment, please. Yeah, he keeps going.

Anthony 27:52
‘Just one moment’ is not a name. As you’re flipping through you don’t recognize any name before he starts like, shuffling the pages on you. Name?!

Belroth 28:19
Belroth looks at Deeran.

Deeran 28:21
Deeran and shakes his head so hard, ‘no.’

Belroth 28:23
I also feel like I shouldn’t but I don’t feel like we can believe them to do this by their own. They’ve already signed a contract.

Ellori 28:31
I mean, yeah, Skarpin and I are pretty strong. And I think we work really well together.

Skarpin 28:35
We traveled a bit before.

Ellori 28:36
Yeah.

Skarpin 28:37
We were pretty successful without the 2 of you, so.

Ellori 28:38
We were fine before we met you.

Belroth 28:40
Well, I just, I would be heart- well, Belroth Beacon. Oh, my god. What am I doing?

Skarpin 28:50
Yay!

Anthony 28:51
Your name scrawls into the book as well underneath Ellori’s name.

Skarpin 28:54
Welcome to the team. All right, just one left.

Belroth 29:04
I’m sorry, Deeran.

Deeran 29:05
Ugh, man. You used my name!

Skarpin 29:14
Yeah, but only half of it.

Anthony 29:18
It matters not. One must willingly provide their name.

Deeran 29:25
Well, yeah, but like, now I can’t give you a fake name.

Anthony 29:29
A fake name will not work with this book anyway.

Deeran 29:33
I don’t know, man. I’m a pretty good liar. And now I’ll never know.

Anthony 29:39
You’ll never know.

Deeran 29:40
It’s Deeran Lincoln. Thanks. Thanks for giving up my privacy, man. Wow!

Belroth 29:46
I mean, Deeran, you could have given a fake last name and seen what happened.

Skarpin 29:52
Yeah, Mr. Lincoln, you totally could have done that.

Deeran 29:58
Well, it’s too late now, man. My whole vibe got messed up.

Anthony 30:03
None of you are from Europe, right? Because the Right to Forget is not one that we offer to extend here.

Skarpin 30:09
No, no, not not from there, but-

Anthony 30:11
Oh, great.

Skarpin 30:14
We don’t see anybody’s name above ours, but is there anybody attempting the trials right now?

Anthony 30:24
Oh, no. It has been 70 years since someone last attempted this.

Skarpin 30:32
Well, that doesn’t bode well for us.

Ellori 30:36
Or maybe it bodes great.

Skarpin 30:38
Yeah, I like that better.

Ellori 30:40
Yeah. It’s, you know, it’s been getting ready for 70 years. And, you know, it’s, it’s, it’s like, now is our time.

Skarpin 30:49
Yeah… Where do we go?

Anthony 30:58
The Brass Witch commandeered this place as part of her efforts to provide a safe space for objects of power and for organizations like this one. She created our organization, not not to seek information, like the Notatia Collective, but to protect information that it would be around for generations to come. It was meant to ensure that should evil walk this land again, those who would face it would be prepared. And this is why we came to be. She built us, named us for her father and so the Black Scale was born.

Deeran 32:05
Well, sure, man, but like, lots of, lots of companies and stuff, you know, like they’ve got a really noble mission statement or whatever when they start out, but then things get twisted, right, like, as they’re starting to pursue other motives? You know what I mean, man?

Anthony 32:20
Never. That could never happen.

Deeran 32:25
I mean, it could.

Anthony 32:27
I don’t see how.

Deeran 32:28
Belroth was pursuing knowledge, you know, to like, share with people and like, Black Scale didn’t give him money.

Belroth 32:37
I don’t see how that’s relevant-

Deeran 32:38
Or support.

Skarpin 32:39
They didn’t give him a dime.

Belroth 32:42
I mean, that is hurting my feelings in strange ways, but I feel like we should move on. Let’s move on.

Deeran 32:49
Well, I’m just trying to say that like, maybe this ghost doesn’t know everything that’s going on and should just try to like, help us out, man, instead of being so, you know, sanctimonious about his mission statement that isn’t even really happening anymore, you know?

Anthony 33:01
It is. There will always be those who seek to bring that information forward from the past and share it. Though our best teachers are those who lived it, and those who remember it, let them sing forth the things that they recall from the Era of Shadows. And then, when their memories are no longer a part of our world, we will be there to support them with the written accounts. The secrets of old brought back anew. That is what the black scale does. Is preservation of knowledge to pass on from generation to generation.

Deeran 33:45
Oh, man, it doesn’t feel like their passing on now except like, money, you know, all the way up to-

Skarpin 33:55
Just not to Belroth.

Deeran 33:58
Yeah, not to the people who deserve it, you know?

Belroth 34:01
Thank you, Deeran.

Anthony 34:03
Well, it has only been a scant 300 years since my lady built this place. And so I’m certain that there are still many who are sharing their stories of those times now. Let their stories be the guideposts you need most.

Deeran 34:22
And nobody shares stories about those times anymore. Nobody remembers anything.

Anthony 34:30
What?

Ellori 34:32
Yeah, people are forgetting things. We call it The Fading.

Anthony 34:38
No, that’s, that’s not right.

Belroth 34:40
No, it’s true. It’s what’s happening. You know, we have creatures and humanoids that live for very long times and can’t remember their childhood anymore.

Ellori 34:51
Even you yourself. You said you forgot your own name.

Anthony 34:56
Ah, but that is not because of any sort of mortal failing, I am not mortal. I have knowledge unchecked of the things that are within my purview. My identity is no longer among them.

Deeran 35:13
Prove it. How do we get the orb?

Anthony 35:18
Oh, yes. Through these doors, you will find the pathway to the orb. The lady built this place to ensure that only those truly steeped in Fate would find themselves in possession of the object. It is a grow thing of great power, and it cannot simply be passed from person to person or its power would fade for when it was most needed. So, individuals who seek the subject must prove that they are worthy to carry it. If you are steeped in Fate, then there are ways for you to bypass the things you see beyond. But it will lessen your resolve, lessen the power and connection you have to Fate. Or if you pass the challenges ahead and go fully strengthened, it will mean more time with the object, more of your questions answered. If you are ready to begin this challenge, then you need only to pass in the doors beyond begin.

Skarpin 36:33
Question. That dragon symbol above the door in the front of this, was that the Black Scale?

Anthony 36:41
Yes, the symbol of the Black Scale.

Skarpin 36:42
Ah, I knew I recognized it.

Anthony 36:44
One that will stand for eternity.

Belroth 36:45
Haha. I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have laughed.

Deeran 36:50
Yeah, that’s not the same symbol, right?

Anthony 36:52
No, the Black Scale uses like, a balance as their symbol.

Deeran 37:00
Um, Belroth do you still have that like, journal from-

Belroth 37:07
Which one? The one with the Black Scale symbol on it?

Deeran 37:09
Yeah.

Belroth 37:11
Yes, and pulls it out.

Anthony 37:14
What is this?

Deeran 37:15
This is the symbol of the Black Scale, man.

Anthony 37:17
No it’s not.

Deeran 37:20
I got this from Black Scale University, actually as an onboarding gift.

Anthony 37:26
I’m sorry to say I think you’ve been scammed.

Belroth 37:29
Honestly, you know what, I’m not gonna disagree with you.

Deeran 37:32
Yeah, you’re telling us?

Belroth 37:35
Academia is a bit of a scam, I agree.

Deeran 37:38
Yeah, that’s kind of what we’re getting at, man.

Anthony 37:41
Well, this is not the symbol of the Black Scale.

Belroth 37:45
Fascinating.

Ellori 37:47
Is it something that you do recognize?

Anthony 37:51
Well, I mean, okay, it looks like A black scale. Right? Like, I could see where there would be some confusion here, but it is not the symbol of THE Black Scale.

Deeran 38:05
Deeran’s eyes go wide, and he whips out another notebook and starts jotting down stuff inside it and snaps it closed. And then looks at Belroth and he goes, what if the ghost is right, man? What if the Black Scale University system is actually all a con, man? What if it’s all fake? And like, you know, the real Black Scale is still out there somewhere? This symbol that we’ve never seen before, man, what if that’s the real Black Scale in the one that we’re seeing everywhere is just a way to take our money and our power and make us stupid?

Anthony 39:01
Can we not call it the Black Scale University system because that’s, that’s “BSU” and I’m not like, like, BS University feels like maybe a little on the nose.

Deeran 39:15
I only live in this world, Anthony. I didn’t write it. That’s not my fault.

Anthony 39:19
Yeah, that was not a name- you won’t find that name in the rulebook anywhere.

Ellori 39:23
I’m not bullshit. I’m just drawn that way.

Belroth 39:32
Well, well, Deeran I mean, it would confirm several suspicions or counterpoint to your theory: what if we are about to find things that happened before The Fading, more things that happened before The Fading? What if the Black Scale-

Deeran 39:50
Yeah, it sounds like for sure this was like, pre-Fading, right?

Belroth 39:57
And so, what if they’re both correct? In that you are also correct that maybe the current Black Scale University system, as it is colloquially known, is bullshit-

Deeran 40:11
B-SUS… Black Scale University System. It be sus. It is suspect. It’s all coming together, man.

Belroth 40:23
I think we’re about to learn a lot more about their origins and less about how they operate today. So, I think you have a point.

Deeran 40:35
That’s right, man. I know. We’re gonna see. We’re gonna see how they’re connected and where it went wrong and who’s really to blame for all of it?

Belroth 40:48
Sure, anyways.

Skarpin 40:51
Actually not the most ridiculous thing he’s ever-

Belroth 40:53
No, it’s really not. It’s the most grounded conspiracy he’s ever mentioned. Don’t talk about mole-people though. That’s the weird one.

Skarpin 41:04
You said there were 2 doors headed out of this room I thought, or is it just a double door?

Belroth 41:11
2 doors. There is one opening.

Deeran 41:15
2 doors, next to one another that open into the same space.

Ellori 41:21
There are 2 doors. One of them only opens to the truth, and one of them only opens to lies.

Skarpin 41:27
This is the first test!

Anthony 41:30
No, there are 2 doors, one on either side of the desk, basically.

Skarpin 41:36
Mr. Ghost, which, which way do we go?

Anthony 41:39
Oh, you may choose. They both open to the same place.

Skarpin 41:45
That’s convenient. I’ll take the left one.

Deeran 41:51
Oh, man, I always, I always take the right door, you know? You would never want to take the wrong door.

Skarpin 41:58
I’ll meet you on the other side, Deeran.

Belroth 42:01
I’m gonna go in the left door.

Anthony 42:03
Hold on, I gotta stand up. It’s been a long time since I’ve had to stand up.

Deeran 42:09
Do ghosts stand up? That’s out of game, Anthony.

Anthony 42:15
Oh, no, they don’t. And so he’s like, all right, here we go. And he like, starts to raise himself up away from the desk, and he’s like, I don’t have what you might consider muscles, joints, ligaments, or bones but when I died, I still feel the things I felt then. And I could feel that decay. So, I am stuck with it.

Deeran 42:50
Tragic. That’s the worst ghost situation like, to die like, less cool than you had been at one point in life. And then be stuck that way forever. That sucks. I hope that’s not how ghosts work.

Anthony 43:10
Well, that’s how they work here.

Ellori 43:13
Well, listen to this month’s Patreon episode at patreon.com/adventureincorporated.

Anthony 43:19
Nope, just adventureinc. Just adventureinc. It’s good.

Ellori 43:22
Yup, patreon.com/adventureinc. That’s what I said.

Deeran 43:24
Nailed it.

Ellori 43:25
You will learn about ghosts, my dudes.

Anthony 43:30
Okay, so the ghost shuffles toward the right door because that was a compelling argument, that you never want to pick the wrong door. He shuffles toward the right door and he’s like, after you. I don’t need the door, but I find it makes me feel better if I walk through one.

Deeran 43:50
Yeah, Deeran opens the door for him then.

Anthony 43:53
Okay. Yeah, it’s pretty, it’s pretty slow going. You’re waiting for him to shuffle by and it takes a while.

Belroth 44:11
All right. Bring on the first challenge, I guess.

Deeran 44:17
See you guys on the other side. Deeran steps through the right door

Skarpin 44:23
Skarpin steps through the left door.

Belroth 44:27
Belroth goes through the correct door.

Anthony 44:30
Huh? I’m going to need a left or a right.

Belroth 44:32
I said the ‘right door.’

Anthony 44:35
Okay, right. Which is the left door. Ellori?

Ellori 44:38
Left.

Anthony 44:39
All right.

Deeran 44:39
Wow.

Anthony 44:41
Freya?

Belroth 44:42
Freya follows me.

Anthony 44:43
Okay.

Skarpin 44:49
He turns back and nobody is behind him.

Deeran 44:51
Yeah, Deeran puts a treat out like, the right door to try to lewer Freya around his door.

Anthony 45:00
Belroth, did you do right or left?

Belroth 45:02
The left door, which is the right door. I said the ‘correct door.’

Skarpin 45:06
Listen, in my job we can’t joke about stuff like that.

Belroth 45:09
That’s fair. The right vein, okay. No!

Skarpin 45:16
We ask people so many times and then where they say, oh, it’s the right leg. So I say, the right leg is the correct leg, yes? We say that loop so many times. It’s good for safety.

Anthony 45:25
The leg on the right hand side of your body, correct?

Belroth 45:30
Yeah, not the wrong hand side.

Deeran 45:38
Mikey’s like, I’ve had too many accidents to joke about it.

Skarpin 45:42
Zero.

Anthony 45:47
Okay, so Deeran you walk alone through the right door, well actually with a ghost. Everyone else goes through the left door. You do arrive in the same place. The room is much smaller this time, and as you enter the room, the sconces on the walls burst alight with a soft orange flame. And in front of you, you see a balance, a scale that is yeah, made out of black metal. And in front of it are 6 metallic orbs. And the spirit says, this, oh I see. Yeah, okay. I- no, I can see where there might be some confusion. Oh, okay, well, this is A black scale, though not a symbol of our organization. For this challenge you must take these orbs that you see placed in front of you. One of them is ever so light compared to the others. There are 6 orbs. You may weigh the orbs twice and twice only. If you attempt to weigh them more, they will reset and they will shuffle around. You will not know which orb is which. If you can correctly identify which orb is lightest, you may move on.

Belroth 47:19
So, we can only measure them 3 times?

Anthony 47:23
Twice.

Belroth 47:24
Hmm.

Skarpin 47:26
Does the scale look like it can fit more than one orb at a time?

Anthony 47:29
Yes.

Skarpin 47:33
I wasn’t going anywhere with that.

Anthony 47:34
If you do not wish to participate in this. If you wish to force your way through, further along it is possible, though your connection to Fate will weaken.

Belroth 47:47
After the second one we have to give our judgment, correct?

Anthony 47:52
Correct.

Deeran 47:53
Well, no. After you weigh it the second time it resets.

Anthony 47:59
After you weigh it the second time, you may provide which ball is lightest.

Belroth 48:03
And if we are wrong-

Deeran 48:06
Then what happens?

Anthony 48:09
It will reset. You will only get 3 tries, total. Like, 2 resets.

Ellori 48:16
And then just a clarification, a clarifying question, do we die?

Anthony 48:21
What?! What kind of place do you think this is?

Ellori 48:25
A lot of the things that we’ve been dealing with lately it’s like, if we don’t get it right, we die. So, I just wanted to be clear that if we don’t get to try it, then maybe we just don’t get to the Aurora Orb and we go home.

Anthony 48:38
This is a challenge for your mind. Maybe in the next room. The next room is may a place where you can die, but not here.

Skarpin 48:48
Well, that’s nice.

Belroth 48:48
I think I have an idea, group. I think I have it. I think we take 3 orbs and 3 orbs, and we weigh them all on the scale. We see which one is lighter. We eliminate the ones that are heavier. And then with our second one, we’ll have 3 orbs left, right? With our second one, we just weigh 2 orbs. If they are equal in weight, then the orb that we didn’t weighs the lightest. If one is lighter, one is lighter. That make sense?

Ellori 49:17
You know, my grandma always said I’ve got a brain for performing and not for puzzling. So, I’m just gonna default to you here because I have no idea what you just said. Like, I know all of the words you used, but it doesn’t make any sense to me.

Belroth 49:33
Does that make sense? Out of game, did that make sense to other people or no? Specifically, I guess Anthony.

Skarpin 49:39
Yes, Rob, it did.

Belroth 49:41
Okay. Thank you, Skarpin.

Skarpin 49:46
You’re welcome.

Belroth 49:48
We have 3 tries. May I try that attempt?

Skarpin 49:52
Deeran, what do you think?

Deeran 49:54
I just um- so we’ll weigh all 6 orbs- all 6 of these balls at once?

Belroth 50:02
So we’ll do, we’ll break them up into 2 groups of 3. On one side we’ll put 3. On the other side we’ll put 3.

Deeran 50:10
Yup, so that’s all 6.

Belroth 50:11
One of those groups will be slightly lighter because only one of those orbs is slightly lighter.

Deeran 50:17
Sure, yeah.

Belroth 50:17
That one will be lighter. We can eliminate the heavier ones.

Ellori 50:21
Oh, 5 of them are the same weight, and one of them is the- listen, instructions really- when things get explained to me, I really only hear like, part of it. If it’s too much explaining I just kind of turn off and stop listening because, you know, the instructions part of the games are never the fun part.

Belroth 50:39
That is true.

Skarpin 50:40
That’s why we never play tabletop games together.

Anthony 50:45
The instructions are most important. It is sacred that you adhere to the rules of any game that you would play. Otherwise why would you bother playing.

Skarpin 50:56
Thank you, Mr. Ghost

Deeran 50:57
That sounds great. That sounds like a-

Anthony 51:00
Otherwise, you’re just sitting around talking for hours with no real point or purpose.

Belroth 51:04
What is this, an improv show? Anyways. Belroth breaks the 6 orbs into 2 groups, and he weighs them against each other.

Anthony 51:17
Yeah, the right side of the balance is a little bit lighter, which is to say the left side.

Belroth 51:24
So, the left side that has the orbs that are lighter. He takes those and he puts them aside. He takes the ones that are heavier, and he kind of puts them aside to like, eliminate them. And then he just takes 2 random ones and puts them on the scale and has one leftover.

Anthony 51:42
Okay. Yeah, the balance tips again to the same side.

Belroth 51:46
Okay, he pulls the one that’s lighter and presents it to the spirit.

Ellori 51:52
Now, before we do that, Belroth. Are you sure that the, maybe the scale just only goes that one way?

Belroth 51:58
I cannot-

Ellori 51:59
Or are you sure that it doesn’t?

Belroth 52:00
I am not sure.

Skarpin 52:02
Well, we do have another attempt, so we could test that theory, Ellori.

Belroth 52:05
If that is the case, we were not given a rule, because that means that the scale is unfair.

Skarpin 52:11
Sure.

Ellori 52:13
I’m just saying a lot of things in life are unfair, and maybe this is really the test.

Deeran 52:16
Maybe this is like the carnival all over again, man.

Belroth 52:21
I’m very confident. And if it is wrong, then there’s an extra rule we are not considering, and we have 2 more attempts.

Ellori 52:27
Okay, I trust you, Belroth.

Skarpin 52:28
We have one attempt.

Belroth 52:30
He presents the-

Skarpin 52:32
Maybe try the third attempt to test Ellori’s theory.

Belroth 52:35
The orb that was lighter in his second test.

Anthony 52:43
You hand that to the spirit? He says yes, yeah, this is the one.

Belroth 52:47
All right, thank you.

Anthony 52:48
He puts it back.

Belroth 52:50
Belroth Beacon, in the house!

Anthony 52:53
For heroes who would face great evil it is important to sharpen the mind to keep it clean. These tasks that are laid before you, they are ones that will test your acuity. You must be prepared to make quick decisions with little information, but to do so in ways that can provide you the best outcomes. Do not ignore your mind. It is a great asset, a powerful tool. On we go. He shuffles into the next room.

Belroth 53:34
Belroth is so happy.

Deeran 53:34
Into the room that might kill us…

Anthony 53:39
Oh yes, this one may kill you. There are 2 doors here as well. One on either side of the balance.

Deeran 53:47
All right, Deeran picks the right door again.

Anthony 53:50
So does the ghost.

Skarpin 53:53
Skarpin follows the ghost.

Belroth 53:54
Belroth follows Skarpin and Freya follows Skarpin.

Anthony 54:01
Ellori?

Ellori 54:02
Yeah, right. Yeah, she goes left.

Anthony 54:06
Oh, okay. All right, great. So, uh, you pass beyond into the next room, again, both doors open to the same area. And the spirit waits for you all to gather. And he says, in addition to your mind, you must be prepared for anything that might strike you to our very core, to that which protects your being, your body. This is a test of your body and the sconces flare to light again and around the room there are 12 metallic automatons. The way that they are structured they look almost like a Slam Man. Essentially, they are humanoid, metallic creatures with gems that glow in their eyes.

Belroth 55:19
Rockem sockem warforged.

Anthony 55:21
Yeah. Some golems that would move around that might do random tasks here or there, but these are like ancient clockwork geared versions of such a thing. And they whir to life as the spirit stands in the center of the room. So, these 12 creatures are now coming at you. Go ahead and roll Initiative.

Skarpin 55:50
We’re surrounded like, in a-

Anthony 55:53
You guys have your backs to the wall to the entrance you came from, right? And so the 4 of you are together and sort of turtled out around you are the 12. They’re like, semi circled, surrounding you.

Ellori 56:12

12. Deeran 56:13
    Also 12.

Belroth 56:15
5.

Skarpin 56:17

2. Belroth 56:18
   Whoops. Oh, no.

Deeran 56:21
When Deeran and Ellori are the highest for our initiative, that’s usually bad news.

Anthony 56:29
This may come as a shock, but they go firt. They immediately word of life and 6 of them throw their arms to the side and blades shoot out of their arms, so basically they now have sword hands, and the 6 behind raise their arms up and you can see that crossbow bolts are rising up out of their arm holes. So, they are in mounted with crossbows. So, first of all the 6 that are physically attacking come charging forward. We’ll say that one comes through to attack each of you and then one of you will get an additional one. I’m including Freya in this. So, let’s see, the one that is attacking Ellori. One hit on Ellori for 5 damage. There is one that is attacking Skarpin. Does not hit Skarpin. One that is attacking Deeran. One hit on Deeran.

Deeran 57:47
With my 14?

Anthony 57:49
Yes. That one is for 7 damage. One on Belroth. That is one hit on Belroth for 3 damage. And one on Freya. That is a miss on Freya.

Belroth 58:09
Yeah, it is.

Anthony 58:10
The last one strikes Skarpin. That is a hit on Skarpin for 6 damage. And then the crossbow bolts begin to fly through the air. The bolts, none of them hit you guys. They just clatter into the wall behind you as you dodge out of the way. And they prepare like, you can watch them raise one arm after they fire it like, and you can see the mechanisms of it reloading while they prep the second one. So, it is your turn.

Deeran 58:57
How big is the room?

Anthony 58:59
About 60 feet from this wall to the back wall and then probably 80 feet wide.

Deeran 59:06
Great. Stay back you guys and Deeran like, points the end of his staff into the center of the room. His eyes flash red really quickly for half a second, and a little orb shoots out of his necklace, flies into the like, the back part of the room before exploding out in a 40 foot sphere of fire.

Skarpin 59:36
Yeah.

Deeran 59:40
A 40 foot radius, yeah. Or a 40 foot diameter. 20 foot radius.

Anthony 59:47
Oh, I thought it was bigger than that. A lot bigger.

Deeran 59:50
That’s why I asked.

Anthony 59:54
Okay, in that space, you catch 2 of the melee ones and 3 of the shooting ones.

Belroth 1:00:02
I thought the shooting ones were behind us.

Anthony 1:00:05
No, they’re behind them.

Belroth 1:00:06
Oh, okay, sure, sure.

Anthony 1:00:08
There’s like 2 ranks.

Belroth 1:00:09
Got it. For some reason thought they were shooting the-

Deeran 1:00:11
The most I can get in 2 thirds of this room is 5?

Skarpin 1:00:17
Without hitting us.

Anthony 1:00:18
Yes.

Deeran 1:00:19
Okay. Feels like trash, Anthony.

Anthony 1:00:27
Okay. But if you want to center it on yourself you can hit more, but by the way that they’re fanned out you’re cutting a semi circle out of an opposite direction semi circle.

Deeran 1:00:38
I’m cutting a full circle, right?

Anthony 1:00:40
Well, sure you’re cutting a circle out of like, you’re cutting against the grain of this other circle. What I’m trying to say is look at a Venn diagram, okay?

Deeran 1:00:51

31. Anthony 1:00:52
    The diagram of guys you hit is within this fireball. So, they need Dex Saves?

Deeran 1:00:59
Yeah.

Belroth 1:01:00
I hope those robots are very nimble.

Anthony 1:01:03
What’s the DC?

Deeran 1:01:06
15.

Anthony 1:01:08
One of the ones in the back row manages to dive to the side. The rest of them do not.

Deeran 1:01:15
Great. What happens to these Mr Slam Mans? 31 damage.

Anthony 1:01:27
The ball of fire erupts. You can feel the rush of heat and wind as dust is blown all over the room. One of them you watch dive to the side. He is singed, but he is mostly okay. The others look badly damaged like some of the metal has started to melt off of the creatures and a couple of places you can see into the interior of some of these. The more hardened steel of the interior clockworks are not affected, but some of the outer metal casings where you can see like, whirring gears and a couple of like, glowing crystals along with etched sigils along the inside. They look like they’re in very bad shape. They’re not dead. Well, they’re not living, but they’re not destroyed. But they are definitely worse for wear after your explosive fireball.

Deeran 1:02:23
Yeah, it makes sense that the stuff on the inside is unharmed. Everyone knows that fireballs can’t melt steel beams.

Ellori 1:02:37
Can Ellori do like, I don’t know, a technology check to see like, how these are running? Like, you say they look like clockwork, but is it literal- like, are their insides clockwork? Are they run by-

Deeran 1:02:53
Winding?

Ellori 1:02:54
Like, yeah, are they run by gears?

Anthony 1:02:57
Give me an Arcana Check.

Ellori 1:03:01
Good. 6.

Anthony 1:03:06
Okay, looking into it, you do see gears. So, there are gears spinning and gears that are moving. You don’t know what those things affect necessarily, and what aspects of these creatures would not rely on those things. You also see crystals and runes. So, presumably it is some combination of the 3.

Ellori 1:03:26
Okay? Um, all right Ellori is gonna put her hands kind of up to the sky. ~I’ve got a prickin’ in the tips of my fingers. I’ve got an image in the back of my brain. Where there was nothing, let there be something. Show me a new stick of gum!~ And so it’s just gonna get a medium sized stick of gum. Like gum. Like a big old block of gum.

Skarpin 1:03:54
How big is medium?

Ellori 1:03:56
5 by 5 feet.

Anthony 1:04:03
Okay, gum. So, you just get this big block of gum. Yep, and you’re just gonna jam it into one of the open robots?

Ellori 1:04:14
Like, I was gonna use it as a ranged attack I think.

Skarpin 1:04:20
It’s gotta get wet.

Deeran 1:04:23
You gota chew it.

Ellori 1:04:24
Do you have to for gum to work?

Deeran 1:04:28
That’s how gum works.

Skarpin 1:04:29
That’s how you activate it.

Ellori 1:04:30
No, like if you put dry gum in the middle of gears it’ll still-

Belroth 1:04:32
Gears it’s gonna bend, yeah.

Skarpin 1:04:35
Eventually it could get wet.

Deeran 1:04:39
I feel like yeah, I feel like the wet makes it sticky, right?

Belroth 1:04:42
But it will still be gum like, a big block of gum can still be crushed by like, mixers.

Skarpin 1:04:49
Ellori, you do you.

Ellori 1:04:50
~Show me pre-chewed gum!~

That solves my problem though.

555-gloopy globby pre-chewed gum.

Anthony 1:05:05
Wow.

Belroth 1:05:06
Already been conjured.

Anthony 1:05:07
Okay, uh, so you’re gonna throw it?

Belroth 1:05:11
You could probably rip off chucks of it and throw it.

Ellori 1:05:13
What a good question. That was my plan was to have it as like, an arsenal of balls to like incapacitate them. Listen, Ellori is not like, her attack spells- like I have to get a little creative sometimes.

Deeran 1:05:35
I love it.

Belroth 1:05:38
I think it’s a great idea.

Anthony 1:05:39
I guess, roll a ranged Attack Roll then.

Ellori 1:05:43
Yeah, that’s kind of what I was thinking. 15 plus, probably nothing. Plus nothing, I think. Yeah, unarmed strike I get a plus 3. Not that.

Anthony 1:05:59
Uh, okay. You take a wad of this gum like, a fairly decent sized one. Like, you know like, a sixth or so of your total block and you just huck it at this creature.

Ellori 1:06:18
An 8 inch wad of gum.

Anthony 1:06:22
And it passes into the cavity and starts to- the gears start mashing at this thing like teeth would. And you watch as the robots arms start to like, waggling around and then after they waggle they just fall limp. The creature is still marching forward, but its arms are waggly, limp things. Waggly, limp things like noodles. They got noodle arms.

Ellori 1:06:53
All right.

Deeran 1:06:55
No bones arms.

Belroth 1:07:01
Ellori, can I put some of those on my arrows?

Ellori 1:07:04
Oh, for sure. Yeah, that would be great. Get some gum tipped arrows.

Belroth 1:07:07
Would it?

Anthony 1:07:08
Gum tipped arrows.

Skarpin 1:07:09
We’re gonna find out!

Belroth 1:07:12
Belroth takes a little bit of gum, puts it on an arrow. He casts on one of the automatons in the back that got hit by the fireball, casts Hunter’s Mark on it with this bonus action. He makes a ranged attack at it with his gum-based arrow. I should probably roll it.

Anthony 1:07:36
I would like you to. Yeah, that’d be great.

Belroth 1:07:43
15.

Anthony 1:07:45
A 15 will hit. We’ve established a 15 hits with gum.

Belroth 1:07:54
You know, it’s the hard hitting podcast that does the thing people want. Almost max damage. 16.

Anthony 1:08:08
Okay. Yeah-

Belroth 1:08:10
Plus gum damage, plus gum- how much extra damage do I roll for gum.

Anthony 1:08:13
None. You don’t roll any extra damage for gum. You fire the arrow with the gum into the creature, and it as you slam the arrow into the gearworks of the chest with the gum. Everything gets all crunched up and together, and the creature like, convulses standing there for a few seconds and then it falls down, still convulsing on the floor for a few more minutes before it shuts off completely.

Ellori 1:08:40
The power of gum.

Belroth 1:08:41
And then with my other, with my other attack Freya is gonna attack the automaton in front of it. That is a 24.

Anthony 1:08:51
That’s a hit.

Belroth 1:08:53
Yeah! 12 damage.

Anthony 1:09:01
Okay.

Skarpin 1:09:04
Ellori, gum me! And he reaches out and puts out a hand.

Ellori 1:09:08
She plopped some gum in that hand.

Skarpin 1:09:10
And Skarpin’s not great at ranged attacks so he runs up and tries to shove the gum inside the mechanisms as an attack

Belroth 1:09:19
I love our problem solving this episode.

Skarpin 1:09:24
Natural one.

Belroth 1:09:33
There’s gonna be some OSHA violations this episode.

Anthony 1:09:35
Give me a Dex Saving throw.

Skarpin 1:09:38
I said he wasn’t great at ranged attack so that- 10.

Anthony 1:09:45
Okay, you go to jam a wad of gum into this creature, and I think like, you just sort of misjudge the distance. You drop the wad of gum, and it falls just to the bottom of the torso like, inside. You go to reach into grab it instinctively like, oh, I dropped it, shoot. And you go to grab it, and you get caught by some gears that crunch your hands. So, I’m going to say that you take 4 damage, but you will have Disadvantage when using your left hand for this fight until you can get a chance to like, you know, it’s just the pain is just unbearable.

Deeran 1:10:30
Stuck his hand in the box. It’s what happens.

Skarpin 1:10:33
Yeah, he’s way too distracted to cast Spiritual Weapon here so he’s ending his turn.

Deeran 1:10:47
That’s everybody, right?

Anthony 1:10:49
Great. So, the creatures take their attacks. The gum creature, the noodle-arm-

Belroth 1:10:57
Which one? There’s now 2, right?

Anthony 1:10:58
There’s only one noodle-arm.

Deeran 1:10:58
You killed the other one.

Belroth 1:11:03
Oh, the arrow killed it.

Anthony 1:11:05
So, noodle-arm moves toward Ellori and whips its noodle-arm forward at you, Ellori. It just, it bounces like, it just effortlessly like, hits you, but it does nothing. It just like, slaps you with its arm and falls away. And you’re like, okay. The other robots step forward to do their melee attacks. One on Skarpin. The other on Skarpin since he became aggressive. One on Freya. One on Belroth. And one on Deeran. No hits. There are shots that fire from the ones in the back that are still alive, which is 5 of them. And then they, they do the same thing where they’re gonna fire a bolt and then they’re gonna start to reload that bolt while they prepare the second bolt. Wow, wow, terrible shots all around.

Skarpin 1:12:22
They’re all pulling Skarpins.

Anthony 1:12:24
They’re pulling some, they’re definitely pulling a Skarpin. So, yeah, no, no hits that round for the automatons, and it’s back to you guys.

Deeran 1:12:34
There are 3 very damaged automatons left, right? And one semi-damaged from my fireball?

Anthony 1:12:46
Yes, 3 very damaged. One semi-damaged from your fireball and one semi damaged from Freya.

Deeran 1:12:53
Great. Deeran looks at the 3 that are most damaged and kind of snaps his fingers really quickly. And when that happens 3 force starts shoot out at them. Magic Missile to hit them. And the first one gets 5 damage, the second one is 4 damage, and the third one is 3 damage.

Anthony 1:13:21
Okay, they are still up.

Deeran 1:13:23
Fuck. I was hoping that would. I was hoping they were close.

Anthony 1:13:28
You wanted a 3 for one there, I know.

Deeran 1:13:30
Yeah.

Skarpin 1:13:33
All right. Skarpin’s inside one of the robots. So, he would like to reach around to try and grab the gum and then shove it upwards to gum it up as he originally intended. So, I’m not sure- what is the Strength? This is a dexterity?

Anthony 1:13:49
It’s Dexterity.

Belroth 1:13:52

14. It’s definitely Dexterity.

Anthony 1:13:54
Okay, 14. Yeah, well, with a 14 you grab the gum safely, and you rip it up out of there and go to jam it into the gears and it like, flops back down. Like, it got dirty inside and just like, it didn’t catch. Yeah, yeah, it didn’t catch when you went to go jam it in, and it flopped back down.

Skarpin 1:14:18
He like, pumps his shield upwards a little bit to cast Spiritual Weapon and the amorphous rectangle, yellow comes out and smacks this robot in the face.

Anthony 1:14:32
Okay.

Skarpin 1:14:35
For a 17 to hit. 6 damage.

Anthony 1:14:45
You take your Spiritual Weapon, and it just like, floats down and just jams itself onto the face of this robot who struggles against it like, trying to pull it away and he can’t and eventually the robot, I guess, suffocates and is dead.

Skarpin 1:15:06
The gum worked, Ellori!

Ellori 1:15:12
And then Ellori holds her hands out to one and things ~Glow. Heat it up, heat it up, glow. Iron, silver, copper, or gold. All of it is going to glow.~

Anthony 1:15:27
Are you targeting noodle-arm?

Ellori 1:15:30
Yeah, fuck noodle-arm.

Anthony 1:15:33
Noodle-arm begins to glow red hot. You can feel the heat radiating off of noodle-arm. Don’t roll any damage yet because it won’t be for him. So, he is now highly heated, superheated and more powerful. Well, it’s not holding the thing. It is the thing.

Ellori 1:16:01
I was a little worried about it, but I wanted to try it.

Skarpin 1:16:05
Yeah. So much metal around.

Belroth 1:16:12
It’s fair. Jeez Louise. Um, Belroth Bonus Action moves his Hunter’s Mark to another one in the back, another one of the shooters. And takes a shot. There are no automatons in the back that are undamaged?

Anthony 1:16:33
There are 3 undamaged in the back.

Belroth 1:16:36
Sorry, there is none left that are dead.

Anthony 1:16:38
There are 2 that are damaged in the back. I’m going to assume most of the time, unless you tell me otherwise, you’re aiming for the most damaged one.

Belroth 1:16:50
That’s what I wanted to make clear. Okay. I was thinking about Sharpshootering one, but like, whatever I might as well pick them off. And he does that.

Anthony 1:16:58
Yeah, this one’s got real issues with both of his parents. He’s had some real bad relationships. He’s super damaged.

Belroth 1:17:07
Um, that would be a 19, so that hits. For a 15.

Anthony 1:17:20
Good news. He’s not the most damaged anymore.

Belroth 1:17:23
Okay, he’s now the most dead, the second most dead. And then Freya attacks the one in front of her.

Anthony 1:17:32
The one that she already attacked?

Belroth 1:17:33
Yeah. Yep. For a 19.

Anthony 1:17:37
That’ll hit.

Belroth 1:17:42

9. Anthony 1:17:44
   Okay. It’s not dead.

Belroth 1:17:47
Oh my god. She doesn’t get her damage potential when she can’t charge.

Anthony 1:17:56
The creatures now make their attacks, flaming noodle-arm attacks Ellori. You can feel these like, heat whips as they come barreling in towards you, you feel like if you get hit with it this time, it’s not going to be anywhere near as ineffective. So, this time you do a very fancy like, as the whip comes in. You do a fancy dodge out of the way. It’s like it travels like, right over you as you lean backwards and you avoid getting hit by this noodle-arm. For the rest of you, one of the melee ones is dead that was on Skarpin, so the other one still does attack Skarpin. That’s not a hit. The one on Freya. The one on Belroth. And the one on Deeran. Hey, that’s a crit. So, it slams a blade directly into your belly, just straight through. Like, you can feel that it has torn your shirt on the back. Like, it has popped out the back of you, and it deals you 12 damage as the blade pierces through to the other side and slides back out.

Deeran 1:19:21
Yeah, as the blade comes out a healthy gout of blood pours out of the wound and comes out of Darren’s mouth at the same time. He is looking bad.

Anthony 1:19:39
The spirit goes like, yes, yes.

Skarpin 1:19:45
Seeing Deeran just get womped he runs over and attacks that one that was attacking Deeran knowing that one’s gonna get an Attack of Opportunity on Skarpin.

Anthony 1:20:00
It misses.

Skarpin 1:20:01
Great. So, he then casts Inflict Wounds at level 3 on this mofo. Nice, 22 to hit.

Anthony 1:20:18
Yeah, hits.

Skarpin 1:20:21
So that’s 4d8. I’ve never rode 4d8 before. 17 damage.

Anthony 1:20:35
Okay, yeah, you step up and flood this creature with the energy from your spell and you watch as it seems to interact with the magic that is already a part of the creature and like, its eyes flicker for a moment that you are definitely like inflicting damage upon it with this spell even though it’s like, an automaton, right? So, yeah, it’s hurt.

Skarpin 1:20:59
And a Bonus Action attack it with the Spiritual Weapon. 6 to hit.

Anthony 1:21:07
That’s not going to hit.

Skarpin 1:21:10
The pillow just kind of nestles next to its head.

Anthony 1:21:18
Okay. Is that everybody? I think that’s everybody? Great. The creature, once again with the- wait, no. Ellori, have you gone because you already got attacked by the flaming noodle-arm? So, you get another turn.

Ellori 1:21:37
Oh, that’s right, yeah. I’m just gonna throw some more gum. I was so disheartened, so disheartened and very, very hot. So, that’s going to be a 3.

Anthony 1:21:56
Oh, but not enough. Yeah, and there is only- aside from the one with noodle arms in front of you there was only one other creature that has any like, open cavity anyway in the back row. And so that avenue is closing. All right the creatures now make their attacks. Flaming noodle-arm first at Ellori no hits with the flaming noodle arms barely like you just barely a dodge these the fire dropped nothing Freya? Freya is hit. She takes 8 damage from one of the blades. Skarpin, you have run up and once again drawn the ire of another of these creatures as you’ve attacked it directly and pulled it from Deeran. It misses you, and the one that was already attacking you steps into you as well. That one misses as well.

Skarpin 1:23:01
Excellent.

Anthony 1:23:02
Yeah, ranged attacks. Okay, Skarpin, one of these bolts fires in and just finds the perfect spot to sink into your neck, the soft exposed bits of your neck. You take 15 damage from the bolt as it buries deep inside of you. The other one hits Belroth for 15 as well. Both of these were Critical Hits as they struck. Yours lands right in your chest next to your demon spike.

Belroth 1:23:53
Belroth, getting hit so hard instinctively points his finger out at that automaton that used it on him and uses Hellish Rebuke.

Anthony 1:24:05
Okay, it is, it is rebuked.

Belroth 1:24:09
Makes a Dex Saving Throw.

Anthony 1:24:12
Failure.

Belroth 1:24:13
Ooo, take 2d10 damage. Here we go. 8 plus 4. 12 fire damage.

Anthony 1:24:23
Great. Your turns.

Skarpin 1:24:28
Skarpin, he attacks the one that had attacked Deeran, the one that he attacked last time with an Inflict Wounds again. And this time he really concentrates on the spell and makes sure that he- fuck, 14.

Anthony 1:24:52
14 hits.

Skarpin 1:24:53
Oh, okay. So, he’s gonna roll 3d10s.

Anthony 1:25:00
You pumped it up!

Skarpin 1:25:02
Yep.

Anthony 1:25:03
Or did you just roll the wrong thing last time?

Skarpin 1:25:05
The wrong things last time.

Anthony 1:25:12
4d8 and 3d10 are close to similar.

Skarpin 1:25:17
I mean, it could be.

Anthony 1:25:18
I think it’s actually in your favor a bit, but that’s fine.

Skarpin 1:25:25
Well, I would have been 4d10, yeah. 18 damage.

Anthony 1:25:31
Okay, that one’s enough. You flood this creature with energy, and its eyes flicker again until they just burn out. And then it’s just like, limply slung standing there.

Skarpin 1:25:43
Nice and Skarpin swings his shield pointing the Spiritual Weapon back from that one who died to the one that just attacked him Critically.

15 to hit.

Anthony 1:25:59
Okay, 15 hits.

Skarpin 1:26:01
Fuck. 4 damage.

Anthony 1:26:05
Cool.

Deeran 1:26:07
Deeran puts his hand on Skarpin’s shell and like, lifts himself back up off one knee. He says, thanks so much, man. Thanks for, thanks for stepping in there.

Skarpin 1:26:16
Got your, buddy.

Deeran 1:26:19
And then he points a finger out like a finger gun and fires off the first of 3 Scorching Rays from his necklace to hit the most damaged automaton that’s out there. That is a 21 to hit.

Anthony 1:26:41
Hits.

Deeran 1:26:42
Great. And it does 3 damage.

Anthony 1:26:50
Okay.

Deeran 1:26:51
The next ray is a 26 to hit.

Anthony 1:26:55
Hits.

Deeran 1:26:56
And it does 4 damage.

Anthony 1:26:59
You fire off 2 rays in quick succession at the flaming robot in front of Ellori. Both blasts are on target and land right through a crystal right in the center of the chest, and as the second blast of magic hits that crystal, the crystal cracks and the automaton goes dark.

Deeran 1:27:22
Nice. Deeran redirects his third shot and that is a 24 to hit.

Anthony 1:27:30
Okay, hit.

Deeran 1:27:32
And that one does 8 damage.

Skarpin 1:27:33
Nice.

Anthony 1:27:34
Okay, that’s the one that is attacking Skarpin.

Deeran 1:27:37
Perfect.

Ellori 1:27:40
Ellori runs towards Deeran. Thank you so much for taking care of that. And she puts her hand on his shoulder. ~Fights aren’t easy. Wounds can kill, but I can help it none of them will.~ And she’s going to cast Cure Wounds, but she’s going to cast it at second level.

Anthony 1:28:02
All right.

Ellori 1:28:09
Oh, 11. Plus 3. So, 14.

Deeran 1:28:17
So, yeah, Deeran looks much healthier.

Anthony 1:28:20
The spirit’s like, ugh.

Deeran 1:28:27
As the hole closes up in Deeran’s stomach like, he stands a bit straighter. Still not good posture, but definitely not bleeding out posture.

Belroth 1:28:42
Hunched over, but not like, HUNCHED over.

Deeran 1:28:44
Yeah, yeah. Like, oh, maybe he has scoliosis kind of situation. You know?

Anthony 1:28:51
Weird.

Belroth 1:28:53
So, there is still an automaton in front of Freya?

Anthony 1:28:57
Uh, that automaton is- yes, there’s still an automaton in front of Freya.

Belroth 1:29:02
And an automaton next to me as well.

Anthony 1:29:05
Yeah.

Belroth 1:29:05
That’s fighting me. Okay. Belroth is- would I be able to Sharpshooter it?

Anthony 1:29:11
Not close range, I don’t think.

Belroth 1:29:14
Okay, um, that’s why I’ve been like, shooting things in the back.

Anthony 1:29:17
Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Belroth 1:29:18
Figured. Okay, so then I’m not using a Bonus Action to move my Hunter’s Mark. He’s gonna make an attack at a damaged automaton in the back with Sharpshooter. So, less to hit, more damage if I hit. 14. Nope, 13.

Anthony 1:29:42
13 will not hit. Well, your arrow just misses the automaton and slams into the wall, burying deep into the stone.

Belroth 1:29:51
A second shot. Also, with a Sharpshooter. And that one’s a dirty 20.

Anthony 1:29:58
That will hit.

Belroth 1:29:59
Okay. So, it takes a d6 plus 13. So, 18.

Anthony 1:30:08
Okay, yeah the creature- you fire an arrow through, and it looks like it pierces through some of the runes on the inside, and the creature falls down like, just falls apart basically, all the pieces come apart.

Belroth 1:30:26
Cool. And then Bonus Action Freya is going to attack the one in front of it. I got so many attacks now it’s great. That would be a 14.

Anthony 1:30:37
That’ll hit.

Belroth 1:30:39
You know, I believe in her. I think this is the one that she’ll finally take this thing down. You know, a cat versus a robot. Not really- I’ve seen them destroy things in my house. Yeah, let’s go. Max damage! 8 plus 5. 13.

Anthony 1:30:53
Yeah, she takes it down. Just tears into it and brings it to the ground.

Skarpin 1:30:57
She’s a beast!

Belroth 1:30:59
Well, that’s my girl.

Anthony 1:31:02
Technically, yes.

Belroth 1:31:03
She is a beast.

Anthony 1:31:05
Okay, the automatons that are left, one attacks Skarpin. No hit. The other one attacks Belroth. That-

Belroth 1:31:17
Did we skip Ellori again?

Deeran 1:31:20
No, she healed me.

Belroth 1:31:22
Oh right, right, right.

Anthony 1:31:24
Belroth, that’s a hit.

Belroth 1:31:26
Ouch.

Anthony 1:31:27
You take 7 damage.

Belroth 1:31:30
Oh, Belroth is definitely bleeding.

Anthony 1:31:32
The shootie ones begin shooting. We have one hit that slams into Deeran for- oops, wrong die. Wrong die, who dis? For 6 damage.

Deeran 1:31:54
All right.

Anthony 1:31:57
And it is now your turns. There are 2 melee bots and 3 shootie bots.

Ellori 1:32:06
Ellori’s gonna run to Belroth. ~Fights aren’t easy. Wounds can kill, but if I can help it none of them will.~ And she’s gonna cast that at second level as well.

Belroth 1:32:18
Excellent, thank you. Well I see who Ellori likes more.

Ellori 1:32:24
7.

Belroth 1:32:27
Jesus. That’s cool. I got all those hit points back. He’s now technically not bleeding, but not by much.

Deeran 1:32:36
Man, second level and only at 7.

Ellori 1:32:39
I rolled 2 2s.

Deeran 1:32:40
Sucks.

Belroth 1:32:41
It’s okay.

Ellori 1:32:43
So she’s going to keep her hand on Belroth’s shoulder, and as a Bonus Action, ~Believe in all the strength inside you. Let my song support and guide you.~ That’s the Bardic Inspiration.

Belroth 1:33:01
Excellent. I’m looking up what those things do again. Perfect. Okay, then Belroth feeling rejuvenated Sharpshooters something in the back. He wants to hit one that’s maybe in between 2 others in case he uses that Mote and it explodes just in case. He’s gonna use that Mote immediately. It’s not very good. Is it a d6 or a d4?

Ellori 1:33:34
It’s a d8.

Belroth 1:33:35
That’s much nicer.

Deeran 1:33:36
Yeah, fifth level, baby.

Belroth 1:33:39
Come on. It is still a 14.

Anthony 1:33:43
A 14 hits.

Belroth 1:33:45
Cool, and he had used his Mote of Inspiration for his Attack Roll so the Mote explodes.

Anthony 1:33:53
Okay, so they make a Con Save. How much damage do you do?

Belroth 1:34:02
17 damage.

Anthony 1:34:02
Both Con Saves pass.

Belroth 1:34:05
Okay, so they don’t take it?

Anthony 1:34:07
Yeah.

Belroth 1:34:07
Yeah, they don’t take 2 damage. Oh, well. He’s gonna make another Sharpshooter attack.

Anthony 1:34:15
At the same one?

Belroth 1:34:17
Well the one- didn’t that one that took 17 damage die?

Anthony 1:34:21
Did not die?

Belroth 1:34:24
Um, actually, no. He’s gonna make a Sharpshooter and another one. Soften up the crew.

Anthony 1:34:29
Okay, so the least a damaged one?

Belroth 1:34:32
Yeah.

Anthony 1:34:33
Okay.

Belroth 1:34:33
Um, and that will be a 19.

Anthony 1:34:38
That’ll hit.

Belroth 1:34:39
Cool, that one takes 14.

Anthony 1:34:43
Okay.

Belroth 1:34:44
And then a Freya- if Freya charges the backline is she going to get attacks of opportunity?

Anthony 1:34:52
No, no attacks of opportunity.

Belroth 1:34:54
Okay, does she have enough space to like, pivot around?

Anthony 1:34:59
I think she could get a little bit of distance and charge over. That’s fine.

Belroth 1:35:07
Okay, does she have enough distance to like, pivot around and like, charge the one right next to me?

Anthony 1:35:14
Oh, no. She can’t get over that one without attacks of opportunity.

Belroth 1:35:17
Okay, so then she’s gonna charge the backline.

Anthony 1:35:19
Okay.

Belroth 1:35:20
Make an attack. That’ll be 18 plus 5. 23.

Anthony 1:35:25
Hits.

Belroth 1:35:26
It has to make a Strength Saving Throw or get knocked down.

Anthony 1:35:31
It gets knocked down.

Belroth 1:35:36
Well, it’s prone. She’s like, knocks it over completely, and it takes extra damage. That is not a d10. Not a d8, sorry. 12 damage.

Anthony 1:35:54
Great. Anyone else?

Deeran 1:35:59
Yeah. So, there’s one in front of Belroth?

Anthony 1:36:06
There’s 2. There’s 2 melee and 3 ranged remaining.

Deeran 1:36:10
Yeah, there’s one in front of Belroth and one in front of Skarpin. Is that correct?

Anthony 1:36:15
Correct.

Deeran 1:36:16
Great. Deeran points his staff at the like, the closest automaton near him, and lifts the head of one off the ground. It flies toward the one in front of Belroth to hit. That is a 21 to hit.

Anthony 1:36:45
21 hits.

Deeran 1:36:46
And then when it collides with him, the thing explodes dealing 3d8 bludgeoning damage to the one in front of Belroth. 8 damage.

Anthony 1:37:06
Okay. Skarpin?

Skarpin 1:37:09
Nice. Skarpin is going to cast Inflict Wounds at level 2.

Anthony 1:37:17
On the one in front of you?

Skarpin 1:37:18
On the one in front of me, yeah. 18 to hit.

Anthony 1:37:26
Hits.

Skarpin 1:37:28
I can’t roll a d20 for that.

Anthony 1:37:32
I’d rather you didn’t.

Deeran 1:37:33
Oh, no. Anthony, I read the spell wrong. It was a Dex Save that the monster makes, not an Attack Roll from me. Is it too late?

Anthony 1:37:43
I thought you had it roll a Dex Save anyway.

Deeran 1:37:46
No.

Anthony 1:37:47
It failed.

Deeran 1:37:48
Okay, great. We don’t have to go back in time. Sorry, listeners. I fucked it up.

Anthony 1:37:55
Sorry, listeners. We aren’t going back in time again. We already did that. Go back a few episodes, you’ll see.

Ellori 1:38:00
Wow, spoilers.

Anthony 1:38:01
Well, we’re just not gonna right now, I should say.

Deeran 1:38:04
We don’t know.

Anthony 1:38:05
Right. We don’t know what the future holds. Or the past.

Deeran 1:38:09
Time is a plateau.

Anthony 1:38:11
Yeah.

Ellori 1:38:11
Jeremy Bearimy, baby.

Skarpin 1:38:14
26 damages to this automaton in the current, present.

Anthony 1:38:19
Yeah, perfect. Okay, so the automaton in front of Belroth turns abruptly away from Belroth and Deeran, it looks like it’s charging directly for you. So, Belroth go ahead and take an Attack of Opportunity if you so choose.

Belroth 1:38:38
I won’t because we’ve been fucking up the rules in a different way. Since something isn’t close combat with me I should have been at Disadvantage.

Anthony 1:38:47
Okay. It charges forward toward Deeran, but stops all of a sudden and starts slamming its fists into the corpse of one of the creatures on the ground. Attacking viciously at the downed automaton.

Deeran 1:39:08
Awesome.

Skarpin 1:39:09
Oh, that’s great.

Anthony 1:39:12
The other one attacks Skarpin. They roll great against Skarpin, but not good enough. They’re like, 16, baby! And I’m like, yeah, anyone else that would be fine. Not Skarpin.

Skarpin 1:39:27
Thanks, grandma!

Anthony 1:39:31
And the ranged attacks start to pour in. That’s 3 misses. Thet load up their next round. It’s you guys again. Deeran there is a robot in front of you. It seems distracted.

Deeran 1:39:48
Yeah, Deeran picks up- he points his staff again at the leg of the automaton that he had just dismantled the head of and flings it to one of the backline archers doing the same thing. So, they’ll have to make a Dex Save.

Anthony 1:40:10
They succeed.

Deeran 1:40:11
Fuck. All right, it smashes into the back of the wall and explodes for 3d8 damage to the wall. 11 damage.

Anthony 1:40:21
The building trembles as you slam that into the back wall. You can feel the dust like, falling from the ceiling around you as the shake in the building was felt.

Deeran 1:40:34
Sorry.

Belroth 1:40:39
Belroth, now knowing the proper way to play this game eventually is going to use his Action to Disengage from the-

Deeran 1:40:49
Oh, it Disengaged with you.

Belroth 1:40:52
Well, perfect.

Anthony 1:40:54
Yeah, it ran away. They ran away.

Belroth 1:40:56
That’s true. Okay, I thought it was a different one. Um, well, okay. Well, Belroth is gonna make it attack at that one that Disengaged with me. He’ll use his Bonus Action to move Hunter’s Mark at it.

Anthony 1:41:13
Okay.

Belroth 1:41:16
Nat 20! Oh, so I get max damage plus I roll the dice. Excellent. I like that. That is fun.

Deeran 1:41:30
Yeah, it feels great with stuff like Hunter’s Mark or Sneak Attack or whatever.

Belroth 1:41:33
Is it max damage with the Hunter’s Mark as well?

Deeran 1:41:36
Uh, huh.

Belroth 1:41:37
Oh my god. So that’s 17 for the max damage with Hunter’s Mark and then I rolled a 6 and a one. So, 17 plus 7. 24 damage.

Anthony 1:41:57
All right. Yeah. The creature, the automaton, you sink an arrow into its back and suddenly its vision- it was like, punching down at this robot in front of it. Suddenly, it snaps its vision back around to you, and it looks like it’s going to charge you

Belroth 1:42:16
Exciting, and then Freya is going to make an attack at the backline.

Anthony 1:42:20
Okay.

Belroth 1:42:22
She rolls 17

Anthony 1:42:24
That’s it.

Belroth 1:42:25
Against the one she’s been attacking. That’s 11 damage.

Anthony 1:42:29
All right, that takes it down.

Belroth 1:42:31
Whoo!

Anthony 1:42:35
All right.

Ellori 1:42:37
All right. Ellori is going to twist off her chakram, and she’s gonna take the head off of one of the ranged ones. She’s gonna take its head off.

Anthony 1:42:49
I believe you.

Ellori 1:42:52
So, that is a 9.

Anthony 1:43:01
You miss.

Ellori 1:43:03
Well, it misses and hits the one next to it, right? And take that one’s head off?

Anthony 1:43:12
Uhhhh, Skarpin, did you still have stuff to do this round?

Skarpin 1:43:16
Yeah, Skarpin is going to cast Inflict Wounds at this mofo in front of him. 22 To hit.

Anthony 1:43:28
That’s a hit.

Skarpin 1:43:35
15 damage.

Anthony 1:43:36
That’ll do it. This one blinks out its eyes as well, going dull.

Skarpin 1:43:43
And sending that pillow to one of the range attackers, just trying to plop it right on the face. 25 to hit.

Anthony 1:43:56
Hits.

Deeran 1:43:59
Hell yeah. Let’s go.

Skarpin 1:44:01
And 6 damage.

Anthony 1:44:04
Okay, but it does not kill. They get their attacks. The one that was attacking the corpse is now attacking Belroth as it charges forward to make 2 swings at him.

Hits with both, one of which is Critical. The blades sink into you as it dives forward. The first blade that pierces you does 5 damage. The second one does 14 damage.

Belroth 1:44:40
Belroth is at 2.

Anthony 1:44:45
Yeah, one of them was just like, nicked you on the side. The other one sunk deep, right under your ribs.

Belroth 1:44:52
That’s for not rolling at Disadvantage.

Anthony 1:44:59
And the shots come from the backline. One hits Belroth for 5 damage.

Belroth 1:45:15
Who is now down.

Anthony 1:45:20
Okay, it’s your turns.

Belroth 1:45:26
Saving Throw?

Ellori 1:45:27
Can I go first?

Anthony 1:45:30
I think we said for Death Saving Throws we’re going to do those before round.

Ellori 1:45:34
Okay.

Anthony 1:45:34
So, his Action will be to do a Death Saving Throw this round.

Skarpin 1:45:37
So, a 5% chance.

Belroth 1:45:38
And my Action is a failure.

Anthony 1:45:41
Great, now you may Ellori.

Ellori 1:45:44
Great. Running to Belroth, ~Fights aren’t easy. Wounds can kill, but if I can help it none of them will.~

Belroth 1:45:54
Like, the blades are still in him. There’s like, arrows in his head. Oh, God. Thank you.

Ellori 1:46:02
Well, you’re healed for 5. I rolled another fucking 2. I used a different dice and everything.

Belroth 1:46:12
Oh, that’s so funny.

Ellori 1:46:13
I’m so sorry.

Belroth 1:46:14
No, it’s okay. It’s okay. He’s now at 5 then.

Anthony 1:46:17
So, Belroth your turn is over, but you can still do Freya’s action.

Belroth 1:46:20
Yeah, Freya still- even if I was down she still gets to operate. So, she’s gonna- seeing me go down- sensing me go down, turn around, and assuming that these ranged attackers won’t attack her, and charges at the one that has blades in me.

Anthony 1:46:37
Okay, that was a poor assumption. So, it does try to swipe down at her. It just misses.

Belroth 1:46:43
Cool. Well, it seems like it was a good assumption then.

Anthony 1:46:45
I mean, it was a bad assumption. It just worked out in the end.

Belroth 1:46:47
Well, it worked out fine. It’s totally fine.

Deeran 1:46:50
I refuse to learn anything. You can’t make me, Dad.

Belroth 1:46:56
Freya hits it for 17.

Anthony 1:46:59
That’s a hit.

Belroth 1:47:00
And it has to make a DC 13 Strength Saving Throw.

Anthony 1:47:05
It succeeds.

Belroth 1:47:06
Okay, well it doesn’t get the extra damage then. Come on, honey. You needed to roll better than that. 6.

Anthony 1:47:15
Well, it’s enough.

Belroth 1:47:17
Well, good. You rolled exactly enough which was the minimum damage she can do.

Deeran 1:47:21
I refuse to learn anything.

Belroth 1:47:23
She did everything right! My cat is perfect!

Anthony 1:47:30
Only 2 ranged creatures remain.

Deeran 1:47:35
Yeah, Deeran points a finger at one and a finger at the other at the same time and cast Scorching Ray on both of them. He casts Scorching Ray and shoots one each. And one is a 15 to hit and the other is an 11.

Anthony 1:47:54
The 15 hits.

Deeran 1:47:57
It does 5 damage.

Anthony 1:48:02
Okay, that takes out one of the automatons, and only one remains.

Deeran 1:48:07
Yeah, Deeran keeps his finger up at the other one then and fires past it into the wall as a burning hole- 2 burning holes now are left behind it. I don’t know, man. There’s something special about this one. I just can’t hit it.

Skarpin 1:48:25
Steeped in Fate. Don’t worry, Deeran. I got them. And he bounds over, and even though it doesn’t need to he casts Guiding Bolt at the one that looks the most damaged.

Anthony 1:48:36
Bounds is so true.

Deeran 1:48:44
He runs super close and then casts a ranged spell.

Skarpin 1:48:49
Natural one.

Anthony 1:48:58
The creature- I mean the ghost leans in, and he’s like, good thing that’s not in the next room. And then I guess it’s now the creature’s turn, the automaton’s turn. It fires a shot at you, Skarpin, directly in front of him. It just bounces off your shell.

Skarpin 1:49:16
I’m so close.

Anthony 1:49:18
Yeah, but it doesn’t, it doesn’t matter. And now it’s your turn again.

Skarpin 1:49:26
He turns around and looks at the group.

Deeran 1:49:29
Do it. Come on, man.

Ellori 1:49:31
Can you just kill this one? I’m clearly not much of a help.

Skarpin 1:49:34
All right.

Belroth 1:49:36
Belroth is coughing up blood.

Skarpin 1:49:37
Skarpin rolls his shoulders a bit and then shoots his shell out a bit and fires out another Guiding Bolt for a 24.

Anthony 1:49:53
24 hits.

Deeran 1:49:54
Yeah!

Belroth 1:49:55
I swear to God, if it’s still up.

Skarpin 1:50:03
17 to hit- I mean 17 damage.

Anthony 1:50:05
All right, that’s enough. The creature falls to the ground.

Ellori 1:50:08
Oh my God.

Anthony 1:50:10
The spirit looks at Belroth and goes, yes, yes, this has been a good test of your body.

Belroth 1:50:18
Ugh, okay.

Anthony 1:50:43
Hey, everyone. DM Anthony here just reminding you that if you’re enjoying the show, tell your friends, tell your family, let people know word of mouth. And you can support the show at patreon.com/adventureinc, or you can check out the shop at adventureincpod.com/shop. Make sure you check the show notes on the website for all our social media including our Discord where you can come and hang out with some great people. We’ll see you there, and until next week, I wish you nothing but Critical Success.

Adventure Incorporated 1:51:17
Serious Business.

We’re super serious!

Transcribed by https://otter.ai