Episode 19: Proof Of Loyalty Drink The Asbestos

We turn a wiped recording into a multiverse redo, starting with a real-world pizza advertising meltdown and ending with a brutal Daggerheart Chaos Realm run that nearly wipes the party. Along the way we argue about radio, algorithms, and AI hype, then use a prophetic dream to metagame smarter choices and squeeze more lore out of Alora’s Twilight Pathway. 
• replaying a lost Daggerheart session as a vision mechanic that lowers traversal difficulty 
• Alora’s sacred tree carvings and spirit blessings explained as outside-of-time causality 
• handling suspicion, persuasion limits, and the consequences of setting traps 
• betraying the Fainwraith, recruiting mercenaries, and surviving the Twilight Pathway 
• Chaos Realm countdown pressure, fear and hope economy, and ally mechanics like flat advantage 
At some point this adventure will be up on our itch.io, probably over the next couple days, because I should have some time to make that happen. 
support your local radio station, I guess, if you feel like it. 

Transcript

Recording Fail And Quick Reset

Richard 0:00

Hello, and welcome to Richard and Carl PlayDaggerheart. I'm Richard, the person who failed to successfully end the recording last week, scrubbing an entire episode from existence.

Karl 0:11

And I am Carl, the one who managed to play an entire episode that got scrubbed from existence.

Richard 0:18

That's fair. You know, if we were like wise, we could just both be recording. And then that way, if something goes wrong on one recording, we'd have a second recording.

SPEAKER_00 0:27

Hmm.

Richard 0:28

I suppose that would be wise. You know, the funny thing is, like, I'm fully aware of how one could record and polish and edit a podcast, but that's not happening.

Karl 0:44

Well, maybe one day when we actually become famous, we'll start to put in a little more effort.

Richard 0:50

Probably not. See, that's the Sorry about that. One moment. Oh, my technology is fighting me. Okay, so. For those to catch up the audience, last week we recorded a session that simply didn't work. So this week we're just gonna play the same session again and frame it a little bit differently. But before we get into it, what's new in the Carlverse? And if you bring up a certain topic and start complaining about it, I will mute you and fire you and replace you with a different podcast host.

Karl 1:30

Wait, do you actually have different podcast hosts lined up?

Richard 1:33

Yeah.

Karl 1:35

Oh wow.

Richard 1:36

Yeah, I'd absolutely fire you.

Karl 1:38

So what's new in the Carlverse?

Radio Ads Fail Pizza Sale Chaos

Richard 1:40

Tread carefully.

Karl 1:41

That sounds dangerous, holy. Um, um so uh for some reason uh my boss decided that he would try radio advertising. Ooh, this is gonna be fun. Yeah, so uh we we uh tell them what we want to advertise. We wanted to advertise one of five of we have five the five most popular pizzas. We're like, okay, we'll sell them for larges, pick up only one of our five most popular pizzas. $9.99.

unknown 2:16

Alright.

Karl 2:17

So uh this Saturday we're supposed to do our sale, they're supposed to do the advertisement, we make a whole bunch of dough. Uh and the radio just doesn't run our advertisements.

Richard 2:28

That sounds about right. It's not like radio is a dying industry that desperately needs business or anything that should be very serious and trying its best.

Karl 2:37

Right. Uh and so then uh we post on Facebook to be like, yeah, you know, we we're gonna sell large pizzas for $7.99 because our advertising partners failed us.

unknown 2:48

Yep.

Karl 2:48

And it doesn't do anything on the Saturday. Uh but then on the Sunday, uh come in and again, they still haven't run our advertisement, so we post on Facebook. Uh that ended up being what I like to call disastrously successful. Where uh you know, there's just no way uh that you can actually keep up with the level of business that comes in. It's like super successful, but people end up being angry because they there were just too many people.

Richard 3:19

So did you run like a paid Facebook ad? I'm just kind of curious for my own edification here.

Karl 3:24

Oh no, we never pay for Facebook advertising.

Richard 3:27

Alright, so you went to pay a radio to advertise and they didn't, so you just posted on Facebook and it did so well that you simply couldn't match the level of business you got.

Karl 3:37

Well, so on a typical Friday or Saturday on a reasonable Friday, I guess, we're open four um we're open until 4 a.m.

Richard 3:46

I think that's a poor life choice for everybody involved, but that's me being editorial.

Karl 3:52

And uh we hold to get around 350 tickets. Okay. Uh on the Sunday, where we're only open until midnight, uh we still got over 300 tickets.

Richard 4:07

Thank goodness this business has profit sharing, so the harder the staff work, the more money they get. And it's not just that they worked hard so they'd get literally nothing and have to work harder for the same day, right? Like clearly, clearly, when you run a sale, there's some sort of benefit to the employees working that sale.

Karl 4:24

Uh but so um the the $7.99 largest, any largest, was uh successful in some ways. Um like I say, it kind of disasters successful because when you succeed too hard and you can't actually make keep up with what you said you were gonna do, then people get upset and then it actually ends up being not good.

Richard 4:49

But I can safely say I've never succeeded too hard. Actually, I'm gonna say in September, I last September I might have succeeded too hard when I found myself with four jobs. I'm like, you know, it would be good if any of these were over the summer. I'll just write these two books between classes, it's fine.

Karl 5:10

Uh but so then uh two weeks later, uh the radio has uh agreed to give us you know extra advertising. And uh because they screwed up, and uh so we attempt this 999 largest again. Um and my boss is like, you know what, we're not gonna post anywhere else because we want to see how successful radio advertising is. Oh no. And so then he schedules a whole bunch of extra people, uh, and I have to work another Sunday where I, you know, normally have Sundays off. In fact, I had to close because he was expecting it to be busy and there was a new training and all this stuff. And it's just like, uh why, why? Like it it's not entirely the radio's fault uh that the radio advertisement in the city wasn't very successful because it's like we just two weeks ago we just posted on Facebook any large for $7.99. And then this, you know, two weeks later, it's just one of the top five larges for $9.99. And so, you know, uh consumers are don't forget that quickly about specials.

Richard 6:29

Well, not just that, but like if someone's like, oh, I'm gonna get pizza because I haven't had pizza in a while, and then they get pizza, and then the next week, hey, I'm gonna have pizza, it's like I don't know if the sale will work every time.

Karl 6:44

Right, right. Uh so I mean, uh not only did the radio fail to advertise properly for us the first time around, and then we put on this better special. So even if we had posted on Facebook, people would see that a mere two weeks ago we you know had a better special. Uh but in any event, uh this was the it was not a very successful weekend. Um and there was like some extra stuff going on because there's like a little like a mini fair at one of the local malls in the parking lot for some reason. I don't know. Usually they go to the exhibition grounds, but sometimes there's like we'll set up in this parking lot.

unknown 7:25

Yeah.

Karl 7:27

Um and like there's food truck wars. It's like if we had actually advertised on the radio two weeks ago, like we had intended, perhaps that sale might it it would have been a better metric by which to measure how successful radio actually is. Because, like, like you say, radio seems to be a dying industry, and I'm not sure if it's worth it at all to advertise, but it's certainly not worth it to advertise on a weekend filled with other things to do in the city that are food related. Well, it's a good thing. After having a better sale year or two weeks earlier.

Shared Culture Radio And Headphones

Richard 7:59

It's weird because a lot of people switch from radio to Spotify, and I have like full rants I want to give about like the negative cultural implications of everyone creating their own reality marbles or shared viewing and shared listening experiences. Are I mean I don't know if I have the study to back this and the scholar means like I need more citation, but I do kind of feel like humanity has just become shittier people because they stopped doing things together? Hmm.

Karl 8:27

Like Right, right. I mean, because the the radio uh used to be a way to actually share culture and and have things to connect with other people about, even if you know nothing about them.

Richard 8:37

Well, not just that, but part of the reality bubble too is let's use your pizzeria for an example. What do you think is just better for people to like interact with their coworkers? A radio going in the background that no one really has control over, they get a fight over what station, they get the occasional commercial about their area and listen to music they might not, or six people wearing headphones listening to unrelated hate podcasts while glaring at each other silently. Because like we did a little I still don't understand, and this is like the old man in me, when it became socially acceptable to just have headphones in at all times.

Karl 9:17

Hmm. Yeah, it's kind of weird. Like, so I mean, I personally don't really listen to the radio except when I'm at work.

Richard 9:25

That's the best time to radio.

Karl 9:28

And whenever I get into the car and I'm too lazy to plug in my phone. If I had wireless Android audit in my car, I would probably never listen to the radio because it would just connect to my phone automatically. But because I have to plug it in, sometimes I'm just too lazy and I'll just listen to the radio on like a short drive. Um but it's like yeah, I I personally don't listen to the radio, uh, except for in in very specific situations. But even at work, you know, we kind of have the front section where the pieces are actually made, and you have the back section where break is done. Um when I'm closing, I'm always in the front area, so I'm not listening to the radio. And a lot of times I'll walk around into the back, and I mean, to me, not wearing headphones or earbuds or whatever. It's just like, wow, why are they sitting here in silence? Meanwhile, everybody in the back is, like you say, listening to their own music. I mean, most of the people in my workplace are actually fairly competent in in being able to uh listen to whatever they want on their headphones and still interact with the people around and the world around them.

Richard 10:39

But it's just like it's like they all only have one foot in reality, though. It's frustrating. Yeah. Remember though, I'm also like a teacher, so you can see why my level of frustration of someone coming into a lecture of headphones in. Yeah. And I'm just like, I even tell people, I'm like, why are you here then? You could just leave. Like, I don't I don't get it. But the TLDR is I do not think the radio is where people are absorbing information from, therefore, isn't the best avenue. But like, if I ran a business, I'd probably be running radio and like be friends with a local station to try and like bring some humanity back. Cause I don't know if your Facebook's been doing this recently, but mine an algorithm has decided to fill my feed with the worst garbage I've ever seen. Like, it's like, because of your interest in this, do you want ChatGPT to be able to put you in a baseball cap to make it look like you went to a game? And I'm like, I'll click the not interested in this button. It's like, why aren't you interested? I don't need an AI feature to pretend that I went to a sporting event.

Karl 11:55

Like that is an unrelated rant about how much I hate that that AI is. AI is basically telling people to use AI for mundane tasks that that's like you could just pay a person five bucks to do that on Fiverr if you want. You can have Carl can do it in Photoshop. Or you could just do it yourself. Or go to the fucking sports game. Or actually go to the sports game.

Richard 12:24

Like like if you want to sell me in a sports game, just go to a local sports game. Because there's like city level teams, and the tickets are like they give them to you if you ask nicely.

AI Ad Hype And Tech Frustration

Karl 12:39

In any event, um, our radio advertisement was unsuccessful, which made me a little bit unhappy because I had to work extra hours. I do get paid hourly, so it's not like it's all bad. Plus, as a uh added bonus slash coincidence, uh my uh in-laws were in town to help uh do stuff for our wedding. I mean, technically not my in-laws yet, but I had an excuse to just be like, yeah, I have to work all weekend, so well way to be coming down. I definitely actually just like my in-laws, but I did think it was funny uh that I was forced to work for this unsuccessful sale. And it happened to be the weekend that that my uh fiance's parents were coming to town to help us want and stuff.

Richard 13:33

Unset up lab experiment though, because I'm just like my brand's like, oh, the variables that are missing, like people who did the sale the first time and waited too long so simply didn't bother the second time. Like oh, the incomplete data hurts me.

Karl 13:49

Yeah, I I know. And there's it's just not not a very scientific approach uh to figuring out whether or not radio is a successful way to advertise, because there's just so many variables that weren't accounted for.

Richard 14:04

But yeah, my DLDR rant is that like I will part of me wants to use the radio because it's objectively less awful than using Facebook.

Karl 14:20

Like I ironically, uh the the AI advertisements that I've been getting, uh I mean mostly have been on YouTube. Uh WebTube is actually surprisingly doesn't advertise very many AI products yet. Well, yeah, they they will, I suppose. AI won't be a good idea.

Richard 14:39

I don't think they will, because I do think a lot of this is just you know hype and scam and FOMO. Because, like I said, if it's a unit it's if it's a magic tool that does what it says, they wouldn't have to be selling mundane crap for it. Right? Like I keep looping around to this idea. It's like make a game with AI. Alright, I typed make me a bleach JRPG and it didn't. It doesn't do what it says. Like I'm like, yo, no, you don't need graphics or things. I wanted to make a bleach text-based adventure running an Inform 7. It's like eh, I can't do it. I'm like, really? Because this commercial just said, Lena, build an app! You can build an app instantly, build an app! Yet somehow you can't manage to make something from the 1930s. I should just be able to type make neopets into this machine.

Karl 15:26

I I have seen that advertisement where everyone's like, oh, she just made an app. It's like did she?

Richard 15:33

No. The answer is no.

Karl 15:35

Like And like, why is everyone all surprised about this? Like, with Are they advertising to boomers who don't realize that AI is a thing yet?

Richard 15:45

It's just so many layers of incompetence. Anyways. And like, I literally every time I see an AI ad, I click not interested, type in stop selling me AI crap. Every single time I scroll and I see one, I click the report false advertising button. Report false advertising button. False advertising. You don't make an app in 30 seconds by typing a prompt. That is not what's happening. An application, by definition, has to run in a standalone window. Like you're telling me no. I I use these tools daily. I promise you. The only people who can use it to make an app are people who can already make an app. That's the joke. The people who can use it to write a book can already write a book, and the people who use it to make an app can already make an app. That's kind of the point. It types faster than you. That's it. That's all it does. And that's fine. That is a very good product. However, they're not selling the hey, you can use this to fix your typos faster, although it will just change your words at random if you do it. They're selling it like, hey, you can set this up to make a business where you give us money and then you make infinite money. I'm like, wait, but if everyone everywhere has the tool, then how would you have a product? Like if you gave everyone a chicken that laid golden eggs, then the value of gold would just plummet.

Karl 17:08

Yeah, so but anyway, the the TLDR for me is that.

Richard 17:12

Yeah, I got off the rails there. That shared it shared experiences through radio or television uh have greatly diminished, and uh that means that these legacy medias are just they have to advertise more to be able to make the money to pay for their costs, but their advertising is becoming less and less effective because we're like looking at some trends and things, thanks to the power of inshidification and fake information, I think radio might not be a bad place to park your ticket and wait a bit. Because I was going somewhere with this. So the more Facebook becomes deep fake nonsense, right? Right, right. Isn't the higher value a radio station with a person who tells you real advertisements become?

Karl 17:58

Okay, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait. Uh, I was listening to the radio actually this morning. Because I was too lazy to plug in my my phone while I was driving my fiance to work. Yeah. Um and uh they claim to have had Sidney Crosby on on the radio. Oh no. Like that they were doing an advertising with them. And uh I don't know if it was a joke, if it was serious, if it was deepfake or what. Uh, but they claim that one of the radio house hosts made out with Sydney Crosby. And I'm like, I'm not sure if they just like if they deepfaked it, if they like cut in different parts of an of a of an uh unrelated interview to make it sound like that's what happened, or if this is actually a real story. Uh it's just like, huh. Did did Sydney Crosby make out with a local radio host?

Richard 18:50

Yeah, but here's the difference between the social platforms and the radio. Okay. So if you post that on Facebook with a deep fake video, the platform owner Facebook is not responsible for you lying. A radio station can be sued by Sidney Crosby.

Karl 19:08

Well, this probably did happen for legal purposes.

Richard 19:12

Or if it didn't, they'd have to pick, oh, it was a clear parody and get fought in court, get in shit, and then if they get in shit, they'll stop doing it. So that's the thing, right? Facebook has no reason to stop lying to me. It can just tell me to mix bleach and then drink it. And then I'll click report, and they're like, we have no evidence to prove that you couldn't treat your wounds with bleach.

Karl 19:36

Okay, but so when you when you uh prompted it to make your your uh bleach text-based game. It fails so bad.

Richard 19:43

It also told me I wasn't allowed to use the script verbatim line for line, which is funny because that means the script verbatim has been strained in the machine so it could know that I was using it and it wasn't allowed to.

Karl 19:54

But um, did it at least like try to uh make you uh a game that was like Florox Bleach instead of uh No, it knew it was Bleach the anime.

Richard 20:06

Okay, knew what I wanted, told me it knew what I wanted, said I actually can't do that because I uh you're not allowed to steal bleach's script. You'd have to rewrite the script and then compile it as unworking code. With full of placeholders that said this is where the code would go to make the game work. And I cannot stress enough that for it to tell me that I couldn't use the script for bleach on a transformative work, which I can do to Fair Dailing Laws, by the way. Because if a work is sufficiently transformative, i.e., a text-based adventure game, it falls under parody protection. But also, how would it know what the script of Bleach was?

Karl 20:46

Unless it stole it line for line. Um one one more unrelated AI uh tangent. I've talked about this a little bit before uh on one of our early episodes or on our other podcasts. I don't know which. Who cares? There's no way for me to possibly know.

Richard 21:03

Correct. Could you imagine if you read the episode descriptions? I put so many insults about you in them.

SPEAKER_02 21:10

But the point of the matter is um that they updated my Android auto to use Google Gemini instead of it just being the built-in voice recognition.

Karl 21:22

And uh when I attempt to call or text my uh fiance whose name in my phone is SexyButt.

Richard 21:31

Yes, that is literally the name of one of our other podcast episode titles. Is Google has a problem with sexy butt.

Karl 21:38

They don't have a problem with the word butt. They have a problem with the word sexy. If I say you know, but but the more to the point, I thought I had a workaround where I'd be like, okay, call sexy butt from my contacts, and then it would search through my contacts and find sexy butt. Uh but on whatever whim the AI feels like. Sometimes it's just designs that that's not specific enough. It's like call tell sexy butt from my context. I do not respond to harmful language. I can help you find a contact. Okay, then call sexy butt from my contacts. I cannot process your request right now.

SPEAKER_02 22:15

Why why not? I gave you the context that makes it non-offensive.

Richard 22:20

I think the funniest part we've done this before. Here's the funniest part to me about this entire scenario. I s I it was summed up so nicely at a panel. Because they gave it away for free at the start, and now they care about token throttling because they can't give it away at that price and they have to bill you for it. Imagine an editor that charges you more when the editor fucks up. Because that's the situation we created, is if it does it wrong, you get billed twice. That's the actual service. Every time it does it wrong, it bills you. And when it does it right, it doesn't. So wouldn't it be incentivized to do it wrong? Wouldn't you specifically want to make it that it messes up your prompts the first couple tries every time?

Karl 23:06

Mmm. And AI is theoretically smart enough that it might actually learn that loophole and and uh start exploiting it.

Richard 23:14

Or even on a like lazier level, if you're a tech guy and you're like, oh, we have different AI models, first prom the free mop prompt will always be slightly worse. Haha. I don't know. I don't feel like being an AI technician today. My oh yeah, what's new with me is I've had too much time off complete, clearly. Like between my research project and starting and stopping a half dozen casual projects, I'm just kind of in like an ADHD spiral. It's not great. I know full well that I have a month, and in a month I can complete a book or a game from start to finish. I've done this. I do this relatively frequently. But have to like lock in, pick one thing, and actually do it without changing what I feel like doing every 30 minutes.

Karl 24:00

That is the challenge.

Richard 24:03

So instead I've just dropped a stupid amount of time into PowerWorld.

Karl 24:08

Why PowerWorld specifically?

Richard 24:11

Well, my roommate started playing PowerWorld, and it's like, when I can play Power World on my PowerWorld server. I'm like, yeah, sure, I'll play Minecraft of Pokemon in it, why not? Also, I kinda love the company. They like literally just throw shade at large companies as their like full-time job, and I love it. Like, literally, we ordered some PowerWorld card game starter decks for the bit. Because I want to see if their card game's any good, but also I enjoy the bit of my classmates being like, I'm into Pokemon cards, and being like, actually, I play PowerWorld. It's just funny fundamentally. But they're like, oh, by the way, if you get terrorfed, it's because the president's a dick. They're like, we're not responsible, I think it was something like we're not responsible for increases in shipping costs due to the emotionally unstable child ruler of a certain country. Yeah. And that's just amusing to me. It's like, yeah, it's not our fault that America decided to elect an infant. Our bad. Wish we could do something about it, but we can't. And it's funny, because like the Pow World incident just amuses me, and we'll probably be worth a full episode of our other podcasts later. But TLDR, people were on Nintendo's side for copyright infringement until Nintendo started retroactively claiming trademarks to try and like like the moment they start using like pure sleazy legalese to win every like the internet's opinion shifted instantly. It's like, okay, listen, Nintendo, with your third most profitable franchise of all time. Shut up. Your game shouldn't be worse. Like, instead of suing the knockoff, I don't know, make a better game. Like, we were watching them come up with flat untextured walls and Pokemon Legends ZA, and I'm like, yeah, no, your game is actually kind of worse than this one. That's sad, because you had a little bit of a bigger budget. Yeah. Infinite, infinite more money. But yes, let's dagger some hearts.

A Dream Recap Becomes A Vision

Karl 26:18

Yeah. I didn't realize my what's new to you would cost such a tangent, but I enjoyed that. So that was more meaningful. But daggering hearts is what I've come for.

Richard 26:27

So, how we're gonna begin is because we failed the recording last time. This is the night before you arrived in the town of Alora. As you rested and slept, tell me five things you dreamt about. Taken from the last session. For each thing you tell me that accurately happened, I will lower the DC on the traversal difficulty if you choose to go through the chaos realm again. So you tell me, what was your character's dream last night?

Karl 27:03

Uh well, my character's dream uh was that they were um running as fast as they could to follow the Feinraith. Uh but could barely keep up. Uh and then poor Zippo, poor, poor Zippo, was just so, so uh tired from running and chasing after me, chasing after the Feinraith. But he did manage to successfully come along, and we eventually did, in fact, make it to the village of Alora.

Richard 27:36

Uh correct. Now DC has been lowered by one.

Karl 27:43

Now, Elyra happens to have a uh fishing rod. And thus uh really enjoys fishing, and it turns out that catfolk also really enjoy fish. Um and so I mean uh not necessarily exactly what her intent was to to thrive the cards with fish so that they would be nicer to her as she enters the village. Objectively successful. Then uh well in in the village of Alorna. Here we go. The Fainwraith and uh Lyra went to the tavern, uh had a little discussion, and then the Fainwraith was like, yeah, we're gonna go through this Twilight Nexus.

Richard 28:30

Close. I don't think I called it I said Twilight Nexus. I think it was the Twilight Pathway. But all of that's not wrong. Um The intent is absolutely still there, so I'll absolutely allow that.

Karl 28:48

Uh but then um gave Lyra some free time because uh she needed the Fainrape needed to uh go and collect some minions, I guess. I'm not really sure what they were doing in that downtime. But uh gave Lyra some free time, and so Lyra went around the town uh trying to investigate uh this uh twilight path. Um and discovered that it is a uh connected to uh several um sacred? I mean divine and sacred are slightly different, and I'm pretty sure they're more sacred than divine. I agree with anyways trees uh around the the world of uh what what even is this like the we're in Haven and we're in the Witherwild. We'll just say the Wither Wild.

Richard 29:51

Yeah, we'll just go with the Wither Wild. I mean it's the name of the frame, and I'm not certain if the continent from the frame got a name. So I'm just gonna call it Wither Wild for the time being.

Karl 30:01

Yeah, okay, okay. Anyway, there are several trees around uh the Wither Wild, uh, which this Twilight Path can connect. One of which uh is in Alora, one of which is in the lightning volcano. Uh, and the other ones, uh I didn't really find a much oh, much of the thing.

Richard 30:19

So there was effectively seven kingdoms that Haven has conquered, and most of the kingdoms they've conquered have a tree in them. Aha. And there's one sad dead tree to the north where the capital was. Mm-hmm.

Karl 30:36

Um but after uh Zippo and Lyra had successfully climbed up the uh the uh the caveman carving tree of knowledge. I shouldn't call it that because the people of Allura were offended by the fact that uh the Lyra suggested they were just carving on a wall. But um that's that's part of the dream. You know, the dream was that this you know viewing all these weird carvings on the wall and discovering that the twilight path connects all these trees.

unknown 31:15

Yes.

Karl 31:16

Uh but after doing her research, she returned to the tavern to uh join the Fein Wraith again. And uh the Feign Wraith brought some catfolk, which makes sense, and one non-catfolk wizard.

Richard 31:35

Who you hated in particular the moment you saw him.

Karl 31:40

Well, see, um the catfolk uh you know hired mercenaries have no loyalty to the Feinwraith. I would assume I'm not my assumption. But this guy, being a non-catfolk in the village of Allura, which is a catfolk village, a Kitari, if you prefer the uh dagger heart racial name.

Richard 32:01

Um legally distinct from Tabaxis.

Karl 32:05

Right, right, right. Legally distinct from Tabaxis, uh, but um the catfolk village of Allura. Uh obviously you would find catfolk to to join you on your mission, but this one guy, uh, a wizard came off as very suspicious because he was not a catfolk. And so uh Zippo suggested poisoning this guy with um some flame retardant uh self.

Richard 32:39

Do you pour asbestos down his throat?

Karl 32:45

Um in order to uh assess uh loyalty, uh whether or not that whether or not uh they would betray Lyra. Lyra basically demanded that this wizard, who was clearly suspicious, uh drink the asbestos.

Richard 33:07

On a metagaming note here, this is the moment where I even took a moment to be like, from a metagaming note, persuasion is not mind control, and present roles cannot convince someone to drink poison to prove loyalty.

Karl 33:21

Well, and even uh even going back uh to like DD logic, uh like command, the spell, uh, and suggestion, and even key as uh they they all say uh that even with mind control, you cannot convince someone to kill or hurt themselves.

Richard 33:41

And I do believe drinking asbestos is pretty obviously bad for you.

Karl 33:48

A non non-magical uh persuasion is definitely not going to persuade uh the fane wraith to have her minion drink this asbestos.

Richard 33:56

Uh but I don't want to think you could have convinced me to drink a mysterious liquor with that method. Because like to set the stage right a table, it's like prove your loyalty, Vlad, drink this. I'd be like, no. Absolutely not. But best case it's only mild, best case it's poisoned.

Karl 34:18

But, uh Lyra decided to just pour the asbestos down the uh the mage's throat. Um thereby at least incapacitating him.

Richard 34:33

For context, I think that's the consistency of quick dry cement.

Karl 34:38

Then uh obviously the pain rates was uh understandably upset. And so uh Lyra just decided to run with Zippo and ran straight for uh the entrance to the Twilight Pathway.

Richard 34:55

And lit a couple small pieces of the tree nation on fire.

Karl 34:59

Well, yeah, I mean you gotta do what you can do to uh distract the obviously far more powerful Fein rates from uh actually catching up. And indeed, it was a close call. Uh, and Lyra was battered and bloody as she reached out for the tree. Uh but the tree seemed to respond to Lyra's blood and opened up and let her into the Twilight Path. Uh and then closed behind her, leaving the Fingray trapped in well not trapped, but stuck in Allure. Uh but then the weirdest part of the dream, uh the Twilight Path itself uh is a strange realm where uh direction is meaningless and uh strange beings, uh strange toothy beings uh try to consume your very very soul. Um and uh Lyra actually uh passed out uh from exhaustion and fear and everything uh due to the attacks of these strange beings. Meanwhile, uh Zippo uh seems to have uh kept Lyra safe while she was passed out. Uh but the Twilight Path was not kind to Zippo and he came back battered and scarred. Uh even still uh Lyra decided to carry the battered and scarred Zippo that it kept her safe, and they made their way just barely uh to the exit and found themselves in the uh lightning volcano, where they decided to uh rest by sleeping with some of the fire TVs.

Richard 36:52

And with that, the difficulty of the Chaos Realm traversal has dropped from a 20 to a 17. However, what you saw, was it a dream, perhaps a vision? Maybe it was real. Maybe it was a version of you who had made this journey through this place outside time and space and came back. Maybe you have regrets, maybe you don't. However, the scar that took from you your transformation ability seems to still be in effect. You did not regain that. You do not have a scar, but you do no longer have that transformation.

SPEAKER_00 37:29

Ooh, I no longer have a scar.

Richard 37:32

The scar is healed, but the transformation is still gone. Pieces of you that you lost may not come back. But the day is yours, and by the day I mean the night. You're taking a short, a long rest, fully recovered, and about and you recall from this vision, following the Feignrace through the woods. But fate is not written in stone, at least threads of the tapestry of reality can unroll and be woven as you see fit. So I ask you, before any of this has transpired, Zippo nearby, what would you like to do with this information in mind? And to remind you, mechanically, if you retrace parts of your steps, the difficulty will be easier, as this timeline showed you in a vision. But you could, and if you choose to, ignore all of this cause and effect. And simply go a unique route.

Karl 38:30

Right, right. Uh, okay, but so sorry. Um I've rested.

Richard 38:37

Um full long rest, everything healed up. A nice healthy three hope in inventory.

Karl 38:44

Yeah, okay, okay. Um, but more to the point, uh, the end of the previous session.

Richard 38:52

Um You had followed the Fainra into the woods to make a tentative alliance to the town of Alora. After the small haven outposts you're in framed the massacre there on you. Which would make it more difficult to convince yourself you're innocent to Haven. But not impossible. As as far as I'm aware, other than the several murders you're never caught for, you've been an upstanding citizen. It is kind of funny though they think you cause these murders and they look into your history, other murders might turn up.

Karl 39:29

Mm-hmm. Well, I mean, I'm hoping that they'll think that I I I do recall uh trying my hardest to uh work with the army to fight off the Feinraith army.

Richard 39:42

You did. And you also gassed a city for Nerve Agent.

Karl 39:46

Well, I mean, that that that's alleged. Plus that was that was some was definitely, most definitely, was uh uh an ally of the Feinwraith that was doing the illegal research in the sewers, for sure.

Richard 40:02

Well, what would you like to do? You see the Feenwraith beckoning you?

Back On The Trail To Alora

Richard 40:08

We need to go. And then jumps off to a tree.

Karl 40:12

Jumps off to a tree.

Richard 40:15

Just like in your dream.

Karl 40:18

Oh, just like in my dream. Um I do need to go to the I still do need to go to the town of Laura. Uh, so I'm gonna turn to Zeppo.

Richard 40:34

Like, uh Zeppo. Do you need me to carry you? Ah, I got I got this.

Karl 40:44

Alright, well then uh we're just gonna start following the pain rings. Alright, go ahead and roll an agility check.

Richard 40:54

Roll! 12 of fear. So you begin, and you remember from the dream the night before, even though you recall where you jumped in the steps you took. This is exhausting. This is hard work. I'm gonna spend that fear immediately for you to mark a stress. Oh no. But for the sake of brevity, you have arrived in the city of Alura. What would you like to repeat? Any action, if you choose to do it exactly the way you saw in your vision, there will be no dice roll required, and it will play out the exact same way. At any point you have to diverge the timeline. You can.

SPEAKER_02 41:32

Hmm.

Richard 41:35

Um. Well, okay, so. So if you so chose, you could let the events play out exactly as you've described, wake up at the base of the volcano with a scar and an injured zippo. You're allowed to follow the reign of fate exactly as it played out before. Or you can try and change things. Because we're in a weird circumstance of me running the same session twice. But from a metagaming point of view, your recap was pretty thorough. So I don't think I'd make you replay too much scene for scene if you felt like doing it the same way. Because I think that our viewers are pretty caught up. But this is a unique opportunity to play with the multiverse a bit.

Karl 42:22

Uh I I am going to uh I mean once again, I will go to um the tree of knowledge?

Tree Museum Lore And Spirit Blessings

unknown 42:30

Yep.

Karl 42:30

I don't know, they didn't really give it a name. Um, and uh is there are there any um people are any are there any people there that are like uh maintaining the tree?

Richard 42:43

Like oh, go ahead and roll a instinct roll. Instinct 13 with fear. 13 with fear. So the village is primarily catfolk, as you're aware, but it's not entirely catfolk. There is the occasional fairy, the occasional fawn, you even see a gnome or two. But what you do notice for maintaining this tree is flying up above the scratches of a little bucket and a like a basically a bucket and a brush of lacquer, someone sort of like wood glazing and wood staining over the most recent carvings. It looks kinda like it's a fairy, but it's a more insectile fairy. They kinda look like they're a large ladybug. Ah, who just seems to like doing literal maintenance.

unknown 43:42

Hmm.

Richard 43:43

Oh, in this timeline, did you offend them by calling them scratches? You had an option to let it play out or diverge?

Karl 43:50

Oh no, I I I don't want to offend them. I I I want to see if I can gather more information because I'm gonna do that. I roll Dang it.

Richard 44:03

A 19 with fear. So I'll take the fear. So you start seeing the conversation as it was before. The can I see your artwork? And you're about to sneeze, but you hold it in. And you successfully get your point across that I would like to see your beautiful art gallery. And they let you in this time, giving you a bit more breath to look around. Not giving you hostile glares. And that's part of how you notice this fairy this time. Is you seem to be there longer. It's almost like last time they're almost like staring condescendingly at what a watch would be and giving pressure on you. This time you seem to be much more welcome in the space.

Karl 44:48

Well, so I uh I I'm going to uh approach the the fairy.

SPEAKER_00 44:52

Um excuse me. Uh I I noticed uh that that you have uh depictions of of uh the twilight pass. Um but I I haven't seen uh how does how does one open the twilight pass?

Richard 45:10

Oh Chadolchanal! One of the ones blessed by the spirits lets you in and out.

SPEAKER_00 45:20

Only someone blessed by the spirits, hmm?

Richard 45:25

I wanna I wish I was so lucky to take a look.

SPEAKER_00 45:32

How how does someone gain the blessing of the spirits?

Richard 45:37

And they sit down, grow cross-legged, adjust their monocle a little bit, and be like Well, the spirits know more about you than you know about yourself. You can't really gain the blessings of the spirits. The spirits will bless you because they know more than you know, don't you know?

SPEAKER_00 46:00

Hmm. Well, so then uh it's not a not a matter of of character, it's it's it's just simply the whims of the universe.

Richard 46:16

It is a matter of character, like they're not gonna let you in if you're a dick. And you could definitely lose the blessing and gain the blessings as they see fit. Just imagine if you will. We're looking, and at this point they have like a little slate chalkboard and they're starting drawing you a diagram. We view things as a progression of cause to effect, effect to cause. You do a thing, a thing happens. But the spirits are outside all that, and they can see many of the endings, and then look back at the beginnings to try and mess around with things before they happen to make them happen so they don't happen the way they're not supposed to happen.

Karl 46:58

I I see this. Zippo, did you get all that?

Richard 47:02

Zippo absolutely is like clocked and locked in. He's taking notes. He is like, uh-huh. Physics. I see. You see Zippo's right writing little equations.

Karl 47:21

Um so how much time do I have left before I'm supposed to meet with the fane range?

Richard 47:27

Oh 20 minutes ago.

Karl 47:30

I was supposed to meet about 20 minutes ago.

Richard 47:32

Yep, you specifically spent longer here than you did last time.

Karl 47:36

That is true. I did spend longer here than last time.

SPEAKER_00 47:41

Uh well so uh I've I've noticed that that the Feynrink likes to uh like the use of this town as a as a base of operations.

Richard 47:53

Well, who'd you hear any of that about? Oh no, and like like trying to be like You basically walked up like yo, I hear an Al Capone lives here. It's like no.

SPEAKER_00 48:04

Well, I mean, if if the Feynrink were uh living here, they'd do you suppose they have the the spirits blessings?

Richard 48:13

Roll a presence check the DCs that were very high, because you did just walk up and be like, so I hear Walter White lives here. Um is he blessed by God?

Karl 48:25

I don't think I succeeded. That is a 13 was beer. I'm very fearful today.

Richard 48:30

They look at you and be like. The blessings can come in many forms. And sometimes the best way to prevent a forest fire is to let small pieces of brush burn. We might not like what they're doing, but we understand the purpose of it. And they might be blessed in some ways, and not blessed in others, and that might not be going over good for them, don't you know?

Karl 49:03

Thank you, thank you. I I I apologize for taking so much of your time. You are a very busy person. I thank you for for indulging my questions.

Richard 49:11

They gesture to the donation box at the front of the museum.

Karl 49:15

Um Do I have a fish to donate?

Richard 49:24

You just put a fish in the museum donation box?

Karl 49:28

Well, I certainly don't have any gold.

Richard 49:30

As you place just like a nice wrapped piece of fish just next to the donation box, the guards like eyes light up and it's like you see the kernel corner of their lips curl up into a smile. I I kind of wonder how well that'd work in reality. If you went to like the ROM and you go to the tip box, look to it, and just put like a box of donuts on the desk next to the front desk. Like that may actually go over better than the cash donation depending who's working that day. Like, imagine you're working your job and there's a tip jar and they give you like a sealed box of cupcakes.

Karl 50:09

That would be that would be pretty good. I do like cupcakes. But uh I am just going to uh saunter casually over to the tavern.

The Wizard Tails You

Richard 50:26

As you arrive within the tavern, you see the enraith at her table with her three mercenaries. Wait.

Karl 50:38

Is it's the wizard there too?

Richard 50:39

You do not see the wizard from your dream.

SPEAKER_02 50:46

Uh it's hello, hello.

Richard 50:50

They take a sip of their whiskey, staring at you.

Karl 50:56

Have you made all the necessary preparations?

Richard 51:02

Yes. Shall we then? As they get up and start just sauntering out of the bar at a slow pace.

SPEAKER_00 51:16

Uh I uh I'm gonna staff all of this them this time.

unknown 51:24

Alright.

Richard 51:25

Go ahead and roll an instinct reaction roll for me, please. Ooh, instinct reaction roll of 17. You do see at another table to back a tall elven man glaring at you, who's very clearly the wizard from your dream. That seems to have be following enough steps behind and trying to look like they're incognito.

SPEAKER_00 51:50

Right, right. That's suspicious.

unknown 51:57

Yes.

Karl 52:00

I knew I shouldn't trust this guy. But I'm not gonna I'm not gonna do anything about that, the wizard.

Richard 52:12

So Zippo sees you look over behind she looks back and just whispers quietly. I can throw a mall-top cocktail out right.

Karl 52:24

Um how how far behind, like, um within farmers. Do you think that's do you think that um Zippo could create some sort of uh time-delay Moltop cocktail so that it would uh ignite uh as the wizard is near approaching it?

Richard 52:49

So Zippo absolutely can make a mine or a time-delayed explosive. But like as you're walk walking with the fanwreek, this person is walking paces behind. So like you could try and have her set up a bomb to hit this person as you approach. I would say Zippo won't have to roll for it, he's a pretty good alchemist. Right, right. However, you would have to roll presents if you're trying to like make this happen without being seen by your four mercenaries and Bainwraith you're casually walking behind.

Karl 53:22

Um the four mercenaries are uh Tatari, yes no? Yes.

Richard 53:31

And for the context, remember that scene in Bleach where Uriu set up a series of bombs on every floor to make someone fall forever? If given sufficient time, Zippo would be capable of such a feat. Right, right. Okay. He could, and would, and would be thrilled to do so.

Karl 53:51

Uh that's definitely what I want to do, but uh do I have any fish left? Yes. Yes. Um, so I mean uh I uh I'm gonna approach the four mercenaries like uh you gentlemen must be hungry. It's best to eat before a journey. Uh and I'm going to offer offer them fish uh as a uh a distraction. Press chat for me, please. Okay. The helps epo, hopefully. Uh oh, 23 with fear.

Richard 54:36

So I'm gonna spend that fear immediately for you to mark a stress. So the first one immediately is like goes for the second one, like grabs stress like just a sec. Unwraps it, like takes a knife and like stabs it a couple times, like to make sure there's like nothing in it, sniffs it a bit, and then slices it into four even pieces, and they just didn't stop eating, and the framework looks so annoyed. Just like they don't say I paid you good money, but their face is I paid you good money, are you kidding me right now? And they're just like our but like they made sure to check it with poison first. They're trained professionals, but they're also right. So Zippo, while this is going on, has basically set up a mechanism of so it's a glass file with a stopper half removed that's slowly pouring out oil with a chunk of lithium in the core. That once all the oil goes, it'll connect with the air and ignite. Blowing up the air. And that lithium seems to be attached to a packet of some sort of mix of black powder, coffee creamer, and sawdust. And I don't know if you saw the Mythbusters where they made the coffee creamer cannon.

Karl 55:58

No, I don't think I did.

Richard 56:00

Yeah. That bridge is gone once this goes off. And it's set on a timer, estimating based on the speed uh walking speed of this elf wizard. Who let me roll to see if he notices this. Alright, do you want to continue along then? Uh, yeah, we're gonna continue along. One second, five, about a minute, and you hear boosh behind you is a ball of flames, ignites two nearby trees. You hear as someone just seems to be plummeting from the bridge. The Fainwraith stops, turns around, summons a staff from the Aether, the Katari all pull their weapons and spin around, all looking at you, but kind of behind you. What do you do?

Karl 56:48

Uh, I am I am gonna act as surprised as they are about the suppl- explosion.

Richard 56:54

Um so roll a presence check. If you get below a 20, you don't pull it off. We know you saw parts of this in a dream. If you get below a 17, you don't pull it off.

Karl 57:06

Okay, okay. Let's see. Um can I apply my bioterrorist?

Richard 57:18

I'll allow it.

Karl 57:20

It's a bit of a stretch here. No, it's not exactly biological terrorism, but good thing I did, because that's only an 18 with fear.

Richard 57:30

I'm gonna take that fear. Save it. So what do you say? Now we're gonna go into RP a bit. The dice roll is allowing you to plead your case as to why this wasn't obviously you.

Karl 57:44

Uh as to why it wasn't obviously me.

Richard 57:48

So they turn around, they see an explosion, and are looking right at you. What would you say if say me and you were walking down the street, and then the bridge behind us blew up?

Karl 58:00

Uh well, so I heard the the screams of of the person, right? Yep. Full on Wilhelm's scream.

Richard 58:16

Um Okay.

SPEAKER_00 58:21

Uh I'm not I I don't know if I'd be very good acting, but but like, um We have to help put out this fire. The village could burn down.

Karl 58:39

Uh and I'm I'm just gonna rush to like try and help uh any of the Qatari that are trying to put out the fire.

Richard 58:46

Ooh. Alright, alright. Go ahead and roll finesse to put out fire.

Karl 58:53

Alright, let's roll for finesse to put out some fires. Man, I am so fearful. Um 14 with fear.

Richard 59:00

Excellent. So as you start putting out the fire, Fainrith grabs your wrist and is like, we need to move. And you start walking, and the Feenwrith's getting a really dirty look from Miko the Bard cat who's currently putting out this fire. With a couple of his whiskers melted from the flames going off near him. Oh dear. Not Miko. Miko actually did melt a couple of his whiskers jumping on a stove that was on. An idiot.

Karl 59:33

Um am I close enough to the to the disaster site to see whether or not it was in fact the wizard that fell?

Richard 59:42

Uh go ahead and roll an instinct roll. Instinct. 16 with hope. As you faced a war wizard in combat before, in theory, this wizard could teleport. In theory. However, they're a little distracted by being on fire. Hmm. So because they got lit on fire and then fell. I'm gonna have if you manage to roll above 46 damage, they will have died on impact. I'll show you what dice to roll in a second. Okay, okay. Falling in collision. And this is very far range, so roll one d100 plus fifteen.

Karl 1:00:33

One D100 plus 15. Oh my. Uh, so for some reason the dice roller on the Alright, five D20 plus 15, which is technically a larger number. You're welcome. Well no, I I I do have physical dice. I was I was just gonna roll my D100s physically. I was just making a comment about the lack of D100s on this uh on my portal. Fair enough.

Richard 1:00:57

Yeah.

Karl 1:01:00

That is 67 plus 15. That makes uh 82.

Richard 1:01:06

So you look down and you just kind of see where the tree branches sticking out through their heart. They're just impaled on the ground below. They're very dead. They're very, very dead. Like I said, they had spells, like they can teleport, but like during the explosion, it just they were like you could kind of see their fingers out like they were going to teleport and were just a little too slow. Yeah, they're real dead.

Karl 1:01:43

Um I will I will continue with the fadewraith.

Richard 1:01:51

Um as like the fadewraith pulls you away, you do hear one of the Qataris speak in their native tongue. Do you speak a Qatari language? Um this game really handles languages, but let's find out. Let's see how this goes.

Karl 1:02:11

Yeah, I don't I don't think there is actually any anywhere on my character sheet for languages spoken.

Richard 1:02:19

So in Daggerart, you're not asked to pick specific languages. The game assumes everyone speaks a common language, and the sign language is widely understood. If you'd like to have specific regional languages, discuss with your table. Alright, we're discussing. So what I'm gonna say is this is less about what languages you know, and more a knowledge check to see if you picked up this language whilst being a doctor.

Karl 1:02:41

Alright, let's see if I am knowledgeable enough to have picked up a language. 18 whiskey here.

Richard 1:02:50

So they basically said in their cat foot language about the Feinroath, can you believe this bitch? They don't like this idea that an explosion happened and the solution was to walk faster. They're loyalty seems to be wavering a bit. Hmm.

Karl 1:03:10

Wait, so that's the uh Qatari of the village, or the four mercenaries.

Richard 1:03:15

One of the mercenaries said to another one, Can you believe this bitch? Hmm. Yeah, yeah, okay. And with that, you have arrived at the tree.

Blood Opens The Door Betrayal

Richard 1:03:31

At this point, she gestures to you, hands you a small knife, and basically says, Listen. Your blood will open the door. If we want to get there first, this is what you have to do.

Karl 1:03:57

And we're trying to beat the other archmage to the volcano.

Richard 1:04:01

Yes. Because the other archmage has the eye that kills everything it looks at and is on their way to fight the dragon. In theory, the goal being to take this eye back from him, to give it back to the owl, to return the world to balance.

unknown 1:04:16

Right.

Richard 1:04:17

That was the pitch the Bainwraith gave you. Whether or not the research you've done independently shows they'd have an ulterior plan or motive, that's on your memory to come up with.

SPEAKER_01 1:04:26

Right.

Richard 1:04:28

Um, hmm. But you do remember inside this tree is an MC Esher painting.

Karl 1:04:40

MC Esher, like the melting clock guy?

unknown 1:04:43

Yeah.

Richard 1:04:44

The infinite staircase guy.

Karl 1:04:46

Yeah, yeah. Funny, it's just as a random side note. Um I've been watching a show called Lord of Mysteries, which is kind of a trippy show. Uh, and one of my friends was like, oh yeah, I wouldn't be surprised if there was some like MC Esher with inspiration for how they uh drew all these things. I was like, wow, that's odd that this artist came up twice in in one week. Anyways. Uh so I'm not exactly shot I'm not exactly sure that I want to go through the the Twilight Path alone again. I mean me and Silva did barely make it through, but like It will be a little easier this time. Uh I well I am I am going to uh cut my hand and put my hand on the tree. Um But uh can I attempt to uh da da da let's see mark one hit point for cutting your hand. Ooh, mark a hit point for cutting my hand. Oh, but that means I get a clear stress. Very funny. You mark one of our hit points for clear stress.

Richard 1:06:25

I absolutely forgot about that.

Karl 1:06:32

Um as as the cut on my hand clears my mind. But um I think after I open the door, I want to um I want to uh just punch the Feenwreath in the face and uh use my overwhelm ability to throw them uh within close range.

unknown 1:07:05

Ha ha ha ha!

Karl 1:07:06

Go ahead and make your roll. Uh roll for my attack. Uh eighteen with fear. Uh but I am going to mark a hope uh and uh throw them within close range.

Richard 1:07:26

Okay, so.

Karl 1:07:28

If I get them, I guess.

Richard 1:07:31

Do you have any experiences you'd like to add to this role?

Karl 1:07:37

Uh I feel like perhaps uh medical training could help me uh find her center of gravity to um more effectively hip check her. Or hip check the family.

Richard 1:07:54

Because their DC is a 19.

Karl 1:07:58

Oh! So with my medical training, I would in fact be able to uh change it from a success failure to a success.

Richard 1:08:08

Yes, because we enjoy metagaming on this channel. So, you have two options, because you said within close range, right?

Karl 1:08:15

That is what it says.

Richard 1:08:17

So, as I described, you're on a series of really high up walkways. Your options are shove them back, but not off the walkway, or shove them off the walkway.

Karl 1:08:30

I would like to attempt to shove them off the walkway.

Richard 1:08:33

So, as you just like now open the tree and you just punch them in the gut, and you just watch them coast over the side of the bridge. Hmm. Go ahead. Huh. Do you choose to deal damage or just shove them?

SPEAKER_02 1:08:53

Uh I think I just want to shove them.

Richard 1:08:56

Interesting. Alright, so since they're now plummeting to their doom, and their teleport requires them to take damage. Go ahead and roll 1D hundred plus fifteen. Oh no.

Karl 1:09:20

I mean, this is great for me, but oh no. That is uh 77.

Richard 1:09:26

That was not enough to double their major threshold. So they take three points of damage as you just watch them and hit the ground with a thud. You like saw like a magic shield around them like absorb some of the impact and crack the ground. And at this exact moment, was that with hope or with fear?

Karl 1:09:52

Oh, that was with fear.

Richard 1:09:57

Alright, so play is mine. So you shoved her off the top of a building. Did not kill her. Right. But did send her to very far range because knocked off a building. There are four mercenaries around you, specifically paid to escort this person you shoved off a tree. Right. I'm just gonna grab a nice friendly stat block for these four mercenaries. And they're very much trying to decide what they want to do in this moment. So I'm actually going to do nothing for this GM move and hand this back to you. There's four people, weapons drawn, turning around slowly towards you. The Faye and Wraith has just been shoved off a cliff. And you're not sure how long it'll take them to get back to you. The tree portal is open in front of you. I am going to um ironically, you're kind of in the exact situation you were before you entered last time.

Karl 1:11:20

I would like to uh make a presence check uh to um see if I can play on their uh wavering loyalty loyalty uh to be something along the lines of uh I feel like you know that the Fainrae does not have the best intent the the good of Allure in her heart. If you truly want to help Allure thrive and grow, join me. Otherwise I shall leave you behind and take the twilight path myself. Alright, roll. And then I'm gonna turn and start walking in.

Richard 1:11:55

So, the DC for this would originally be a 21. However, you have done many things to try and win over the favor of the catfolk. How many catfolk have you bribed today?

Karl 1:12:07

Uh well, I would say I still bribed the uh I bribed the catfolk at the um elevator, uh, and I bribed the catfolk in the library. Um I bribed the uh the mercenaries themselves.

Richard 1:12:27

Alright, so for each bribe, I'm gonna drop the DC by one. So you have to roll an 18 or higher on this presence check to convince them to come with you.

Karl 1:12:36

Um, critical success! Which is which is good because they lose two ones.

Richard 1:12:46

So they look at you, we're like, She's gonna be real pissed at us either way, uh fuck it, and then they just go with you in.

Karl 1:12:55

Uh sorry, when I roll a critical success, I clear a stress and gain a hope. Correct.

Richard 1:13:01

Okay. Alright. So as you enter the pilot path and they close behind you, an injured fade wraith probably punching on the other side. You re-enter the chaos realm, this time with four catfolk mercenaries who are like, what the fuck did we just do? Like they're looking at each other like, did we just make the hugest mistake of our lives? And they look and see like this clear water reflection. And you can see the fade wraith like blasting the tree with a blast of fire magic. And they're like, one of them looks to you. Uh not what? Uh well.

Karl 1:13:44

This uh this place is is rather dangerous and and difficult to traverse alone. Uh so we'll have to stick together and and and pool our resources to to make it through. We'll get to the volcano and hopefully be able to uh restore balance to the Wither Plan.

Richard 1:14:03

They look at each other like, oh man. Mistakes have been made.

SPEAKER_00 1:14:11

Mistakes have been made.

Chaos Realm Ambush And Mask Thralls

Richard 1:14:14

Alright, what would you like to do?

Karl 1:14:18

Um, okay, so uh do I do I see any of the um Eldridge abominations of the Twilight Path?

Richard 1:14:30

Looks fine right now.

Karl 1:14:33

Alright.

SPEAKER_02 1:14:34

Um then uh let's try to move slowly and quietly.

Karl 1:14:40

And uh I I want to try and kind of like sneak forward to see before I get spawned by something else.

Richard 1:14:46

Alright, roll a finesse check.

Karl 1:14:51

I am not stealthy. That is a four with fear.

Richard 1:14:55

Alright, so I'm gonna go ahead and spend that fear.

Karl 1:14:58

Mm-hmm.

Richard 1:14:59

And you see, like, as you try and like creep, you steck on a branch, and you just see twelve of these masks floating around you. Uh-oh. And there seems to be twelve Elder Realm Thralls circling your camp.

SPEAKER_01 1:15:20

Oh dear.

Richard 1:15:22

They're going to go ahead and I'm going to spend a fear to use their group attack feature. Okay, okay. Choose a target and spotlight all Elder Realm Thralls within close range. They move into melee range of the target and make one shared attack on success, they deal 11 damage each.

Karl 1:15:39

Okay, that seems like a lot.

Richard 1:15:42

Uh I got uh natural 20. Okay. Um So that would be 220 damage. Wait, I cannot be right. Give me a second to pull up the calculator. Alright, so just for to go metagame a bit, so the features called Outer Realms Predator, action spend if you're to summon an Elder Realms Abomination, Corruptor, or 2d6 Elder Realms Thralls. Who appear within close range of the PC in defiance of logic and canology, immediately spotlight one of these adversaries. You can spend additional fear to automatically succeed on that adversary's standard attack.

unknown 1:16:20

Okay.

Richard 1:16:20

The Thralls themselves, which have been scaled down by the way, deal 11 damage each. So it would actually be 11 times 12.

Karl 1:16:32

132.

Richard 1:16:34

Then doubled because of the critical.

Karl 1:16:36

So 264.

Richard 1:16:39

So the way I see it, what is your upper threshold? Uh my upper threshold is a measly 28. So if we divide that by 28, that would deal nine hit points by the doubling rules we've been using as written. However, each of these mercenaries has three hit points. How would you like to distribute this damage across your squad? Um each of the mercenaries has three hit points. And there's ten hit points of damage coming towards you and your squad.

Karl 1:17:17

Um that is not good.

Richard 1:17:33

That is by far the most damage I ever rolled. By a wide margin. Not only did I roll the highest number of thralls I could spawn, I got a critical hit on their attack.

Karl 1:17:46

Yeah, I mean, I I guess I have to distribute um.

Richard 1:17:52

And this is there normally isn't a rule that normally you can only do a maximum of four damage per roll. But we've been like, I've been letting you double and double and double and double. Right, right. And I mean it's what I let you do, I then can do myself.

Karl 1:18:07

You gotta you gotta be fair. Um but so I mean three of the mercenaries have to take one, one of the mercenaries has to take two, uh, and then I take the remaining five.

Richard 1:18:19

Okay. So one took one and two of them took two?

Karl 1:18:25

Although, actually, okay, so I I am gonna mark an armor slot to reduce that to only four for me? Is that how yes? How is that yes?

Richard 1:18:39

So you just see them like form in and start ripping your little squadron apart as one of them takes a cut across the face, one of them gets punched really hard in the chest, and you just see one of them start scratching at their own face screaming. Oh my. Alright, turn over zero, there's twelve of these things around you.

Karl 1:19:00

There are twelve of them.

Richard 1:19:01

Apparently.

Karl 1:19:08

Um, I mean. Okay, wait. You cause it. Ah, adversary. Okay, okay. Uh I guess I just have to start attacking. I'm gonna attack the closest one to me, I guess. Alright, go ahead and make your attack. This is gonna go worse than last time, probably. Let's see. Oh critical success again. There you go. Well, that'll hit. Uh so then I roll for damage.

unknown 1:19:48

Yeah.

Karl 1:19:48

Uh on a critical hit, I can deal double damage.

Richard 1:19:51

That's uh you deal the maximum amount you can roll and then add that to the roll.

Karl 1:19:57

Yeah, okay. So that would be That would be 48? Holy. Okay, so 48 damage plus my roll.

Richard 1:20:06

So every 10 damage kills one of these thralls. Uh so that's 68 damage? So you just start wailing and you manage to smash half of them to death.

Karl 1:20:20

Well, okay, but so um I feel like I my combo die was higher than a d4. I don't know why it got read. Well, okay, so they did an update to demiplane, and there were some things. Like, it reset my uh on arm strike, I had to set that to be presence again. And it seems to have reset my combo die, but I'm like 99% sure I upgraded it because it's an awesome ability. That sounds like you would have. Um I'll have to double check now um what what my combo die should actually be because it's uh that that I'll just go with the d4 for now, because I shouldn't be able to I'll definitely be able to kill at least one more guy. Because if I roll my d4, that is a three plus one. Okay, so I get a roll again, so that's uh so that I deal additional six damage, so that's 74 altogether.

Richard 1:21:24

Okay, so you manage to take out seven of them. And turn order is still yours, as there's five of these masked creatures remaining.

Karl 1:21:35

Uh I mean I guess I gotta try and try and punch the little remaining few. Uh roll over my attack. 23 with fear.

Richard 1:21:59

Okay, 23 will hit.

SPEAKER_00 1:22:02

Alright. So I roll my dice.

Karl 1:22:08

That's 29 damage. Uh I'm gonna mark a stress to try and combo off again.

SPEAKER_00 1:22:13

Combo die. Oh. That was a four.

Karl 1:22:23

Uh so that's an additional nine damage, which makes that uh 38?

Richard 1:22:30

38. Okay, that means that there is currently two of them remaining.

Karl 1:22:37

Okay, um, and then I have this ferocity ability whenever you cause an adversary to mark one or more hit points. Am I actually causing them to mark hit points? Yes.

Richard 1:22:47

How many hit points did I cause them to mark? I guess three across three people.

Karl 1:22:54

So then I can uh spend two hope uh to increase my division by three.

Richard 1:23:03

Okay. So I'm going to spend a fear to use disorienting reality on you. Okay. Describe one of your fears this environment invokes as a vision of reality. As reality unmakes and reconstitutes itself to be your fear.

Karl 1:23:25

Oh dear, oh dear. Um I think one of my fears is uh that uh I mean I can't transform anymore, but transforming always ends with it generally ends with the frenzy, and I have a fear that I might actually frenzy and kill poor Zeppo. Lose a hope.

Richard 1:23:54

Alright, and now I'm going to spend a fear. Make a strength reaction roll, please. A strength reaction roll? Uh-oh, that's not very good. A 14 with Oh no, it's a reaction roll. 14. 14. So you take 20 magic damage. Okay.

Karl 1:24:17

Um are I allowed to mark an armor slot to reduce the threshold?

Richard 1:24:22

Okay. Alright. And then lastly, make a presence reaction roll. Presence reaction roll sixteen. Sixteen. So you need seventeen in this place. Yeah. So your highest stat is now reduced by three. Unless you mark a number of stress equal to its value. I will just mark the stress equal to its value. As you feel this place try and steal something from you that makes you legendary. You feel like a piece of your power, your strength, your force of will has been taken from you. Oh dear. Now I will let my creatures attack. Huh. Alright. Okay. Does a rolling real good today. Does a 20 hit you? Uh yes, yes, it does. That is 22 physical damage as I jump on you. Huh. And if you like, you can redirect that damage to your squad.

Karl 1:25:33

Well, I need to mark another armor slot, and I do need to redirect one damage to one of the mercenaries that only taken one damage. Probably the guy that was scratching his own face, though.

Richard 1:25:43

Okay. So now three of your mercenaries have each taken two damage. Right. As it's like, as one of them just kind of he the guy scratching his face holds his hands down, sees you're about to get hit, and tackles you out of the way and gets stabbed in the shoulder. Torn orders back to you. I still have three fear left.

Karl 1:26:08

Uh well, I mean, I I gotta keep I gotta beat up these masks. Alright. Let's see. Oof. That is a nine with fear. I feel like I'm not gonna make it through this. You lose a hope. Ah, I'm already at zero hope.

Richard 1:26:24

Oh, then I gain a fear.

Karl 1:26:26

Ooh. That's bad news.

Richard 1:26:30

Alright, so turn ours back to me. I'm gonna have them attack you again. Okay. Natural one. They're just kind of floating around you, turning themselves inside out and screaming at you. Oh dear. What would you like to do?

Karl 1:26:48

Uh I mean. Just keep punching at them.

Richard 1:26:56

Okay.

Karl 1:26:56

For now. There's only there's only two left, right? Correct. Alright, let's see if we can make a better, more Yeah! 22 with hope! That'll hit. And then oh come on. Ah, that is only 16 damage, so I need to combo off to turn in actually kill this last guy. Yep.

SPEAKER_00 1:27:23

Ooh, that's a four.

Karl 1:27:25

So then three. And another three. So they take an additional ten damage. So as 26 altogether.

Richard 1:27:35

A spin kicking, knock out the last two. You see, three out of four catfolk are just demolished. One looks kind of fine. And one of the demolished ones is looking at that portal that you guys came out of. It's like you've made it. The countdown to get out of here has went from an eight to a seven.

Karl 1:27:56

That is That is not good.

Richard 1:27:59

No. They look terrified.

Karl 1:28:05

Um well so despite looking rather battered and bruised myself, uh I think I want to um emit a commanding aura uh and uh reassure this guy and says I know the pathway. Like I know the pathway, just follow me. Um and I I want to try and navigate using presence to get through this.

Richard 1:28:33

Alright, go roll the presence check. Just need to be to 17. That is a 12 with hope. Oh god. So Alrighty then. As you begin walking along, you see it just kind of looks like floating in front of you. It looks like you looking directly at you.

SPEAKER_02 1:29:08

Oh Zip, how do you do you see that ahead of us?

Karl 1:29:17

I see. Um I think I have a health potion, so I'm gonna drink a health potion real quick. Drink a health potion. Um then uh just uh Shadow of me seems to be looking at us.

Richard 1:29:51

Yep. It's walking up to you casually.

Karl 1:30:08

I'm gonna swap out my signature move. I'm gonna swap to my signature move, because apparently I didn't have it prepared. Um my signature move is precise pressure points, uh, which I'm just going to uh use my signature move and uh try to punch my clone in his in a solar flex.

Richard 1:30:41

Alright, go ahead and make your attack.

SPEAKER_00 1:30:45

And okay. See, I see.

Karl 1:30:54

So when you get attacked, I'll die, and that's added P I'm trying to work with this uh thing as it doesn't seem to be uh so that makes a 27 with help. 27 will hit. And then I get to roll.

Richard 1:31:19

30 damage. 30 damage. So as you smack it real good, and it marks a couple hit points. You see where you punched it, the face kind of turns to stone and spikes, and you watch it slowly shift as the rocks jut out of the fingertips and the hands. The body quivers a bit as spikes come out. And as you're looking face to face with something similar to your lost, missing transform state, it's gonna go ahead and punch you in the solar plexus. Oh no. Does a 17 hit you?

SPEAKER_02 1:32:04

Does hit.

Richard 1:32:05

Okay, so you take 25 points of damage as it punches you back. Oh boy. And you lose a hope. Oh my. What would you like to do? You walked up and punched it, and then made eye contact, transformed, and punched you back.

Karl 1:32:29

Uh okay, I'm going to use my eye for an eye. Um, whenever you mark one more than one hit point from an attack in melee range, the attacker must make a reaction roll 13 on a failure once per rest and mark the same number of hit points. Oh, so they mark two hit points.

Richard 1:32:48

Oh damn. So as you punch it, it punches, you punch it, it punches you, you punch it a third time straight through it, and it collapses. But it's way out the door, make a knowledge reaction roll.

Karl 1:33:05

Knowledge reaction roll? Nine.

Richard 1:33:10

So as you begin to collapse, you see this timeline, like infinite numbers of this fight playing out. Some you win, some you lose, some you murder Zippo, some the catfolk murder you. Mark 2 stress. Uh. But you have progressed another tick through this realm. Six to go.

Karl 1:33:35

Six to go, okay. Uh I mean, I guess. I'm gonna turn to the the uh mercenaries who be like, follow me, and I'm gonna just attempt to sprint through here.

Richard 1:33:48

Alright, go ahead and make an agility roll.

Karl 1:33:51

Agility roll. 21 with here.

Richard 1:33:55

You're running. You're running. The route ground shifting below you, they're sprinting full speed. Zippo is running as fast as he can, different masks in the distance shaping and forming, pillars of light above you and below you. At one time you're both running along and you look up and you see them running on the ceiling. Which is now the ground. And if you've made some progress. Now that you've made it through the twisting paths, you see a w three waterfalls coming from different parts that are all converging into a vortex in the center, forming kind of like a river through the trees.

Reflections Fears And River Guidance

Richard 1:34:32

What would you like to do?

Karl 1:34:35

Uh there are there any boats or anything? You don't see any. Well does the water look pure?

SPEAKER_00 1:34:52

It does. It does, it does.

Karl 1:34:56

Um, I think I need to stop for a moment and I'm just gonna try and take a sip of the water, see what happens.

Richard 1:35:04

Okay. Go ahead and make a strength reaction roll for me.

Karl 1:35:08

A strength reaction roll, that's not good. 15!

Richard 1:35:13

You clear a stress.

unknown 1:35:16

Oh.

Richard 1:35:17

Tastes like water. Um and as you learn your reflection in the water, you see a small child looking back at you on the bank of a river covered in mud.

Karl 1:35:32

Oh. Does this remind me of when um Leroy found found uh I would like to uh so so what I wanna what I wanna do is uh I want to apply my abandonment issue here, uh using Leroy as my north star and be like, no, I can't believe he abandoned me kind of thing, and uh pray to him to actually guide me through so I can find him again. Oh I know he's dead.

Richard 1:36:17

Go ahead and roll an instinct roll, I believe. But you may spend that hope to add that to it.

Karl 1:36:24

I am going to uh okay, so instinct, abandonment issues. 22 with hope.

Richard 1:36:35

Alright. To continue through, you see that like branches and leaves have kind of formed you a path, like almost like lily pads across the stream of water. And as you continue walking, and the branches get redder and redder, you see like golden feathers falling in the distance like snow.

Karl 1:36:56

Golden feathers, huh? Uh so they're they're still in the distance though?

Richard 1:37:07

Yes. Um space is hard to judge here, but you feel like you're about halfway through this adventure.

Karl 1:37:20

Uh well, so I mean, I guess uh I'm gonna try and reassume my my commanding presence to uh guide these uh mercenaries through here.

unknown 1:37:35

Okay.

Karl 1:37:35

Um and head towards the the feathers.

SPEAKER_00 1:37:40

To roll my presence check.

Karl 1:37:45

Ooh, nine with fear.

Richard 1:37:47

Alright, so I'm gonna go ahead and spend that fear.

Raccoon Horror Fight And Near Death

Richard 1:37:51

So as you're walking along with your troop in Motto, you see what looks like three raccoons, no six, no nine, no a hundred, all swarm one of the catfolk and kind of like start tearing him to shreds.

Karl 1:38:05

Oh no. Um. Well, I mean, I gotta try and rescue him. I'm gonna like it.

Richard 1:38:13

You don't have to, you can just keep going.

Karl 1:38:16

No, no, I gotta try and rescue this guy.

Richard 1:38:18

Alright. What you doing? Um He's currently restrained and vulnerable, being devoured by the Outer Realms Abomination.

Karl 1:38:29

Yeah, yeah. Um it's probably not possible for me to just like uh try and intimidate them and command them to leave. Oh, you can certainly try. I can certainly try. Alright. I don't like the sound of that, Matt Mercer. 14 with hope.

Richard 1:38:51

So as you're like, hey, quit it. I'm gonna go ahead and spend a fear here. And all these raccoons become flying towards you. Uh oh. Oh I rolled a twenty. So that's uh twenty-four plus thirteen thirty-two. So that's thirty-two points of damage hitting you. Okay. Make an instinct reaction roll.

Karl 1:39:31

Instinct reaction roll? I am instinctively nineteen.

Richard 1:39:36

Nineteen. So nothing extra special bad happened. But you are just getting bludgeoned by hundreds of spectral raccoons right now.

Karl 1:39:46

Uh so um I can when I Okay, so I I've taken two counters of your damage list session so far? Okay. Um no, these guys are these guys withered? Yes. Huh.

Richard 1:40:12

Actually, that's a very good question. You tell me. What do you think? Do you think this would weather you? I don't think it would.

Karl 1:40:21

Okay. Um, well, I mean, yeah, I I don't really think it would either, but I was like, oh, severe damage. I don't know.

Richard 1:40:28

As much as I love to roll the weather table, I think you're fine for that.

Karl 1:40:33

I am going to uh use my homunculous ancestry of scales uh to mark a stress to mark one fewer hit points.

unknown 1:40:41

Alright.

Richard 1:40:42

And as always, you could distribute these hit points across your four catfolk companions or Zippo. Three of those catfolk have one hit point left, and the one that was being mauled to shit only has one hit point left as well.

Karl 1:40:56

So they all have one hit point left.

Richard 1:40:57

Yeah. And Zippo's fine. You don't know how many hits he can take.

Karl 1:41:01

Right, right. Um well I feel like I just need to punch some raccoons in the face. These poor cuddly raccoons. That are not so cuddly. Raccoons are actually kind of vicious. But.

Richard 1:41:16

And go ahead and add an extra d6 advantage as your mercenaries are trying to help fight this thing.

Karl 1:41:23

Alright, D6 advantage. Oh. That's a 20 with beer.

Richard 1:41:31

20 will hit. Alright. Go ahead and roll damage. And this thing is brutal, this chaotic mackery of life constantly in flux.

Karl 1:41:42

Uh 33, but I am going to uh oh, I should have cleared a stress for marking a hit point. But I'm gonna spend that stress right away uh to try and combo off.

Richard 1:41:54

Go ahead.

SPEAKER_00 1:41:59

Spend the stress combo. Oof, that's only one, so I only get one more dull.

Karl 1:42:07

Additional five damage, less 38 altogether.

Richard 1:42:10

That was enough to meet its uh beat its first threshold. Huh. Alright. Okay, then it's gonna look at you. And then you're gonna see the raccoons like kind of break down and fuse and twists as it turns into a giant Leroy who goes down and shoots a tongue out at you.

SPEAKER_01 1:42:36

Oh my.

Richard 1:42:39

Does a Wait what? Does a 17 hit you?

Karl 1:42:48

Ooh, 17 does hit me. That's not good.

Richard 1:42:52

That is coming at you for 27 damage.

Karl 1:42:57

I'm going to mark an armor slot and make that only one hit point. Um. But I am going to spend two hope to up my invasion by one for next. Alright.

Richard 1:43:13

Toner goes back to you. I'm sitting here with a mighty five fear. This thing looks only ever so slightly injured. Like two out of seven's injured.

Karl 1:43:23

Okay. Actually, so I have a question for you. Um the eye for eye says whenever you mark more than one hit point, so obviously I can't find right now. But uh it says on a failure once per rest, they immediately mark the same number of hit points in return. Is that like I can only use the feature once per rest, or is I can use it once per rest per creature? Once per rest. Once per rest. Okay, so I've already used that to kill my shadow. Alright. Just double checking.

unknown 1:43:55

Yeah.

Karl 1:43:56

Um. I mean, these frickin' raccoons gotta need to go. Are these are my mercenaries still helping me? Yes. Alright, mercenaries. Let's do this. 31.

Richard 1:44:12

30 with what fear with fear. 31 will hit.

SPEAKER_00 1:44:18

Alright. 20 damage.

Richard 1:44:24

20 damage total?

SPEAKER_00 1:44:27

Yeah.

Richard 1:44:28

Alright. It marks one more hit point. Uh-oh. It's looking mostly it's taking some blue it's taking some bludgeoning. Right, right. I'm going to have it at this point. I will spend a fear. Make a knowledge reaction roll?

Karl 1:44:52

A knowledge reaction roll? 17.

Richard 1:44:57

17. If it meets, it beats. So you remember the flashback last time this reality quake hit you? That made you take double hope when you spend hope or mark armor slots HP or stress that amount is doubled. And you're like, nope, absolutely not. You manage to roll out of the way. Back to you.

Karl 1:45:18

Uh me and these mercenaries are just gonna keep fighting these freaking raccoons.

Richard 1:45:24

Go for it.

Karl 1:45:26

Raccoons. Twenty with hope.

Richard 1:45:32

Twenty with hope. Go ahead and roll damage.

Karl 1:45:35

Rolling for damage.

Richard 1:45:39

Ooh, 37. 37. It marks two more hit points. It's starting to take some wear and tear.

Karl 1:45:48

Sheesh.

Richard 1:45:51

As you punch it and punch it and punch it, you see it just kind of shifts and shrinks down. And it shrinked down all the way to looking a little bit like your cobalt friend. Like a pretty good alchemist. And then it's gonna pull a screwdriver and stab in your eye. Uh-oh. Does it six hit you?

Karl 1:46:13

It does not.

Richard 1:46:14

Turn order back to you, as you just see it turn into a cobalt and lunge at you and try and stab you in the eye.

Karl 1:46:21

Um. Well now, now that it's just a little cobalt, I can definitely like I want to try and uppercut this bad boy. Alright. Hopefully I can uppercut him right into the sword of one of my companions. We're actually being helpful for once.

Richard 1:46:40

For once! 22 with hope. They've soaked up eight hit points of damage. How dare you!

Karl 1:46:46

You're right, you're right. My companions have been very helpful. And what da sorry, what'd you roll? 22 with hope.

Richard 1:46:53

That'll hit. Go ahead and roll damage. I'm offended on their behalf. They've been putting in hustle. You'd be dead.

SPEAKER_02 1:47:01

That's 24 more damage.

Richard 1:47:04

Alright. 24 damage has dropped it down to a singular hit point.

Karl 1:47:10

Ooh. Uh is it is it worthwhile to try and combo on? No, probably not. No, that's um. So I try to uppercut it. Boom! Uh, and then is turn order still mine?

Richard 1:47:29

Uh no, now it's mine. As you uppercut it, its body reforms into rows and rows of teeth that begin to wrap themselves down around your arm. Uh-oh. Does a fifteen hit you?

Karl 1:47:47

Ooh, my evasion is fifteen.

Richard 1:47:49

Alrighty then. That'll be 21 points of damage. Okay.

Karl 1:48:02

I don't think there's anything I can do about this. I think I uh that's that's my last hit point.

Richard 1:48:08

So as you go and about to go down, your good, reliable friend Zippo stabs it in the eye with a screwdriver, and then the teeth wrap around Zippo and clamp down on him. No! No, it's turn order is your Zippo's looking pretty rough.

Karl 1:48:25

Uh, I I've gotta rip this thing off of him. I'm gonna I'm gonna like just savagely try and punch this thing.

Richard 1:48:30

Roll ahead. Go ahead and roll your attack. Uh 18 with fear. 18 with fear. 18 will hit only because you've been here once before. Go ahead and roll damage. Uh 36 damage. So as you plug and and plummet this thing and it finally collapses, you take a breath. You're looking pretty woven and wary. And then give me one second here. Alright, I don't. Go ahead and roll me uh three D twenty for me, please. Three D twenty. Thirty-six. Thirty-six. You see where the puzzle body has broken down and collapsed. Well looks like a pair of gloves just sitting on the ground.

SPEAKER_01 1:49:50

Uh yeah, okay, well I mean uh I'll pick them up and inspect them.

Richard 1:50:00

You can go ahead and add ghoul skin gloves to your inventory if they're in Nexus, and if they're not, we'll worry about it later. When you attack with a physical weapon while wearing these gloves, the damage is considered both physical and magic.

Karl 1:50:16

Okay, so ghoul skin gloves are not um ghoul skin.

SPEAKER_00 1:50:26

Ghoul skin gloves. Gloves made from the skin of ghoul.

Karl 1:50:31

Uh and I can wear them with my fists to deal magical or physical damage? Correct.

Richard 1:50:37

They'll allow you effectively to punch a ghost if needed.

Karl 1:50:43

Magical or physical damage. Alright. So. But they they don't do any like um any additional damage or anything, just a choice between the two. Correct. Okay. Works for me, works for me.

Richard 1:50:58

Alright, so the countdown is down to two to get out of here. Your squad is looking pretty ravaged. I think you're all down to one hit point. Like literally all of you. Um and the f you see those feathers that were the size of snow have actually gotten big, like about you see them drifting down above you, and each feather is about the size of a short sword. Directly above you drifting down like snow around you.

Golden Feather Offering And Exit

Richard 1:51:23

And you see a single unblinking eye peering out from the fiery tree across from you.

Karl 1:51:29

A single unblinking eye. Okay. Um can I use my fishing rod to try and uh capture one of these flood feathers?

Richard 1:51:48

Yes, you can. You tell me what stat that'd be though.

Karl 1:51:52

Uh I I do feel like that'll just be finesse.

Richard 1:51:55

Alright, I'm gonna say finesse with advantage.

Karl 1:51:58

Finesse with advantage.

Richard 1:52:00

Alright. 19 with hope. 19 with hope. Yeah, as you are holding this feather that you've successfully fished out of the air and caught to yourself. It is a brilliant gold color. Reminds you of like the golden hour between the day and night cycle. It's warm to the touch.

Karl 1:52:24

Ah, alright, alright. Um. Do I feel like this feather like a like could I try and use it as a as a sort of compass to guide myself towards the exit?

Richard 1:52:39

Go ahead and make a knowledge check with advantage.

SPEAKER_00 1:52:43

Knowledge with advantage.

Richard 1:52:46

Oh, only a 15 with fear. 15 with fear. Okay. So I'm gonna go ahead and spin that beer. And I'm rolling 2d6 to see how many thralls appear on you for your final leg of the journey. Two of the masked thralls form up. Staring directly at you.

unknown 1:53:08

Huh.

Richard 1:53:09

Okay. Doesn't hit you. An eighth does not hit. They both lunge towards you, daggers in hand. One to the front, one to the back of you, and they miss ever so slightly as you manage to barely move out of the way. What would you like to do?

Karl 1:53:28

I mean. I feel like I just need to do like a uh flipping drop kick on these bad boys. Like jump up there, flip over, it's all. Go ahead and roll your attack. Uh do I still have advantage from my uh mercenaries? I'll allow it.

Richard 1:53:46

Yeah. 21 with fear. 21 will hit. Go ahead and roll damage. Rolling 25 damage. You manage to knock them both out of way. And you see what looks like a clear blue puddle reflected. You see a cat foot licking at it. Uh sorry, you see a fire cat licking at it. That it could be your exit if you choose. And holding the feather and looking above, you see that single eye staring down upon you.

Karl 1:54:15

Um I am going to uh offer the feather back up to the eye, bow graciously, and then go through the portal.

Richard 1:54:25

And as you exit through the portal into the chamber surrounded by fire cats, that will wrap up today's session. This time you have four cat folk with you. Zippo with you, and did not take a permanent scar. You do not level up again. So, how'd you feel about the retrofacta remake session?

Debrief On Replay And NPC Rules

Karl 1:54:49

Hmm. I I like that. Um like I said, I the doing the recap of the session, um it gave me some ideas of what lore I might want to actually look for. Uh like because I already have an idea of what I what I might find. Um I uh I actually had more of an idea of what what to look for, which was nice. Uh, and then I was able to like gain a little bit more lore. Okay. I don't know if I gained anything particularly useful, but I rather enjoyed uh being able to kind of metagame it and be like, okay, this is where it was kind of going last time, and now this time I can search a little bit more and then act a little bit differently.

Richard 1:55:36

Alright. Because yeah, what I did was there's like a card creator on the Daggerheart website that has like an auto-tier down function. So I dropped all the things from being tier 4 to tier 3, including the environment itself. So it was objectively less mean, but it's still so mean. The Chaos Realm traversal is so mean.

Karl 1:55:58

Uh yeah, I mean, maybe I shouldn't have killed the Archimage this time. But I still don't trust that wizard. I just don't trust him.

Richard 1:56:10

It's a good thing to not trust. I just find it funny for her to be like, and we walk up politely, and I shuffle off a cliff again. I always wonder though, so how do you feel about this idea that every time you double it, it ticks up one where the damage can go to a truly high where like game is written, it caps at three damage, maybe four. So it's it's weird. So I like being able to instantly kill things for the narrative. But like rules is written, that guy should have lived. Yeah.

Karl 1:56:49

Um I I do think it's definitely a DM's discretion. Like you say, rules has written that that guy should have lived. Uh but for the narrative, it was much more impactful for him to actually die. Uh even though there was some risk that he might have survived, uh, because it was still down to a dice roll. Um I I think that maintaining that narrative freedom is is important. Um the flip side where I can actually like take the same amount of damage is like I mean, I guess I'm gonna take the double-edged sword where it's like if I'm gonna let you kill people for the narrative, then I should expect that I might get hit back with it.

Richard 1:57:42

Um I mean with the way the game's written, too, it's like you could also choose to like take a scar and exit the scene when you do. So even though you can be one-shot under these rules, it's extremely unlikely. And if you were to, just to metagame a bit, you would have woken up down a catfolk.

Karl 1:58:02

I I am super happy that I managed to actually save all the catfolk. That was that was I uh they were quite helpful when they were doing the advantage.

Richard 1:58:13

I felt like so. Like we talked about NPCs and allies and countdowns and features and timers. And even in like the recent episode of like the critical role Age of Umbra, Matt Mercer's like, okay, here's the trigger and the timer. I gotta say, flat advantage is easily the efficient way to do it. Because, like, had I had like timers going for each catfolk for my four catfolk, so each time every four rolls they got an effect, or whenever X happened, they did Y. Just applied advantage is such a cleaner way to do it.

Karl 1:58:46

I definitely agree.

Richard 1:58:47

And then I gave them hit point sponging mechanics, which I don't even know if NPCs normally get hit points in Dieger Heart, but I'm like, eh. Three feels right.

Karl 1:58:56

Uh well, so the the rules as written for the NPC uh kind of suggest that they that they might not have like if your NPC is an actual adversary, then um the adversary has stress and hit points on it. But if your NPC is just like a random villager, they might not have hit points.

Richard 1:59:21

And I think the implication is that you wouldn't be normally attacking or killing NPCs. Where it's like because these were already pre-existing staff blocks, I just gave them the amount of HP they had.

Karl 1:59:33

Right. Uh and I I think that was perfectly fine for these characters as NPCs. Um and I do agree, the the vagueness of the uh create and effect in the trigger. Um I mean, you could definitely do some very cool and thematic things with that setup. Um, but I don't think it's very good for on the fly creating an NPC. I I think the straight advantage is just so much cleaner and easier for you to like you have an NPC, they give you advantage.

Richard 2:00:06

Yeah, because it's like they talk about the important NPC doing things like when very close range marks two hit points, roll a d4, move into range, mark a hit point instead one of the mark one hit point instead, reduce dice size. Like this, like their examples would require me to know which NPCs were gonna be there in advan in advance. Like, for example, oh, this one's a mentor, chooses a protese, when they fail, move into range and give them advice or guidance. I'm like, that's just too specific. So the thing about Daggerheart, I like a lot of mechanics. I want I would rather the stat blocks be synchronous rather than asynchronous. I would love it if NPCs, players, and enemies all function mechanically the same. And it's like even DD, 5e is a little better for that, where like if I have a stat block of a dragon and I give it to a player, like enemy stat blocks and player stat blocks are extremely similar in construction. Right. Like there's a lot I like about the system, but I really wish there was just NPC cards that were set up more clearly.

Karl 2:01:15

Yeah. And so then you'd be able to like choose, oh, I have a singular NPC, so I can find the singular card, and it'll give you a uh relevantly themed ability that you could use as per the rules that they have written.

Richard 2:01:30

Cause yeah, like there was more like examples rather than like actually rules for them.

Karl 2:01:39

But like I say, the uh just giving advantage when I have my my dudes. Um I mean another good thing, another potential um easy fix easy way to use NPCs would be if in this case they were mercenaries. Uh so you could have also even say like um added extra damage or make made enemies mark extra hit points or make them marks extra stress. Um but it's definitely much easier to incorporate the NPCs into existing mechanics that you're already taking advantage of advantage of rather than on the fly trying to give them an ability and it's triggerizing.

Richard 2:02:21

Yeah, like even for the text I posted in our chat about where it literally says put a spotlight on what they do showing how the fiction changes are involved, and when they act out the PC, and the PC capitalizes on it, give the PC advantage on that rule. So it's not like I changed any rules for doing it. It's more like I gave them hit points in stress, even though like they don't technically need it, but I mostly did that so they could absorb damage in this fight. Where it's like if they had an NPC feature, it would be something more along the lines of when the ally takes damage, trigger, take a hit point instead instead kind of thing. Yeah. But I suppose that's yeah.

Karl 2:03:09

No. Sorry, go ahead.

Richard 2:03:11

I was just gonna say, any other questions, comments, and thoughts before we wrap up the session?

Karl 2:03:19

No. Um I I rather enjoy the and it's too bad that our uh previous recording uh did get uh scuffed. Not properly saved, scuffed. If only we had enjoyed. But I really I did enjoy, like I said, the having that meta-knowledge so that I could uh investigate specific aspects even further um was was enjoyable. Um and then being able to do things slightly differently. I mean it all worked out basically the same. I I killed the wizard and I and I ran away from Fainra. Uh but then just like this time I have allies. Um which I don't know how helpful they're actually gonna be.

Richard 2:04:04

Oh, it's gonna be so funny when all four of them die to a single blast of fire dragon breath. I mean they're they're definitely not gonna It's gonna be rough. As you really like all of To be fair though, if they do end up saving the day, then the narrative becomes really interesting. But with that, thank you for playing. Thank

Real Talk Community Radio Dream

Richard 2:04:24

you for listening. At some point this adventure will be up on our itch.io, probably over the next couple days, because I should have some time to make that happen. And thank you all for playing. I don't know, support your local radio station, I guess, if you feel like it. Okay, thanks, bye. Bye. Uh but real talk, how funny would it be to have a local radio station where we just did like DD live plays and things like just to strike up Dutch and Dragons actual radio station? It would be so funny. And I mean that as like TTRPGs in general, because Wizards of the Coast don't pay me.

Karl 2:04:58

You know, uh I wonder if you could actually like because there is a community radio station where you can just go on there and uh like I don't know what it takes to get on the community radio station, but they just like people host their own shows and they probably an email.

Richard 2:05:15

Um it's probably if you write an email or a letter to the radio station, it's probably all you have to do.

Karl 2:05:22

I I I yeah, my wonder is like, hey, can we uh stream our podcast on on your radio station as long as we just you know have commercial breaks, I guess?

Richard 2:05:31

That'd actually be amazing. That'd be good stuff.

Karl 2:05:36

Maybe I'll look into that. I I I don't know.