After Dark: Part 1

This transcript is machine-generated and may contain errors in names, terminology, or attribution.

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Hey, this is Alex. I play Brelin, the halfling bard. And Xavier. Hey, this is Xavier and I play Actaronis, the revenant cleric. And Susan. Hey, this is Susan Spinator. I play Erolove Grimnast, the tiefling invoker. And Ian. Hey, this is Ian Duncan and I play Cauldron Halec, a half-elf sorcerer. Last but certainly not least, Mr. James Wilkinson. Hey, it's James and I play Dagon, the eladrin scion. Please don't turn away, we're not going to talk like this the entire session. *Raaah* Welcome to D&R After Dark. I hope you've buckled in and ready for an action half night.

Okay, that sounded more like Hotline you need to call in to. *Nah nah nah* Halfing little. There's a dozen of role-payers here with me. I'm gonna nothing to my character sheet. Okay. You got it. I think you win. I'll have seven to charge more money to the account. I can finish, I can finish. Guys, last time on the show, you made your way up this river, which was flowing in the wrong direction, but we may get to that at some point. And you started to make your way inland through the tip of the Northlands, trying to make your way toward Aubrey. In the midst of all that, there was this earthquake that you all experienced, and it caused a bit of an avalanche, but that's a little further up the way here.

You'll have to worry about that soon. More importantly, you were all attacked by a giant purple worm, which you dispatched pretty easily, I would say. You guys made out really well. It looked like a pretty bad situation. You all worked together, made short work of it, so congratulations. Yep, so did you. We fucked shit up. I don't know about easy. I threw everything I had at it. Don't look at my daily list, but not a lot of dailies left. Well... For anyone? No one died. So guys, let me ask you a question. Let's pick up here. We're at fifth day of Thorim. What would you guys like to do here?

We'll pick up pretty much right after the worm falls. Yeah, I'll just start in the aftermath of the combat. Just replace the armor. Like I said last time, just remove the stinger in my chest. Throw it, toss it in the snow. Clean the blade of my glaive. Leave a green goo streak in the white snow. And look for, basically, the injured around me. Put my hands on my knees and breathe heavily. Can't really loot a worm, right? I mean... Yeah, does it have anything? I mean, it's not like you're gonna run its pockets. I mean, it could run its stomach pockets. Well, here's the thing...

Is there any, like, thing we'd want from it? Like its blood makes a potion or something? Yeah, she's smart. Let her talk. Um, well you know what? How about you guys give me either a nature or arcana check? Hmm, plus three or minus one? So, let's see here... Erolove, Dagon, and Actaronis would know that, yes, the blood of a purple worm can be used in certain spells and certain blood magic rituals. Although, it's really difficult to transport such a thing because the blood of a giant purple worm like this is acidic and it eats through most containers. So usually you have to have some sort of enchanted glass vial, something like that.

So it's really tough. If you were to roll a perception check, I could tell you what it'd be doing right now. Oh yeah, almost a crit. Mmm, nice. So, this huge worm is taking up a big space in this wide open field here and there's a really stark contrast to the color of the worm and just the stark white of the snow. So it's just this huge purple thing gushing this green pool of blood underneath of it and it is definitely eating into the ground. Clean through the snow, actually around the worm it's eaten away at the snow itself so you can see the ground.

And just getting near it, you'd have to be kind of ginger. You'd have to be, you know, sort of, sort of like careful. There have been people who in desperate times have hacked off bits of a worm that are safe to eat. It's not pleasurable, it's not tasty, but you can survive off of that if you were in a pinch. Like if you're stuck up here in the Arctic and needed something to eat. Okay, so xenomorph got it. Do we have food? I would say you have rations, you just stepped off the boat. Yeah, I guess we came prepared. Yeah, I would think that you would pack up before you left the ship.

Yeah, probably like a week's worth or something. Yeah, I imagine you have a lot of dried foods and stuff like that. You did stock up at Ebony Harbor and you knew you were going to be at sea. So you always kind of prepare for the worst. Would it be worth checking its stomach to see if it ate an unlucky traveler that might have had something valuable on it? That is up to you. Does it want to jump into acid, man? No. Yeah, I don't know if there's... maybe if they were eaten and like stuck in that acid there's not a lot left, but it could be worth looking. Maybe cut it open.

From a distance. What about the avalanche or storm or just the Arctic situation? What's the weather like right now? Should we hurry is basically my question. Right now, it's windy. No storm right now, but it is kind of... I mean, it's typical kind of tundra weather. The wind will blow... it's really powdery up here, the snow. So it'll sort of blow it into your eyes and it gets to be a bit much to exposed skin. Again, cauldron will have a better time of things up here than most of you guys, but a lot of you I imagine would have your faces covered, everything but your eyes.

Just enough so you can see where you're going. Ahead, yeah the avalanche situation might make the pass between the mountains a bit difficult. The good news is that once you get past the two mountains that sort of cradle this entire area, that'll let you slip into the valley that leads to Aubrey and the weather and conditions will get a lot better. I just saw something for Braille and Dagon and I. When we get to a city that's full of clerics, we should probably check to make sure that we are actually disease free, that the witch actually got rid of it.

Oh yeah, that's right. We still got bit by the mutant rats. Maybe she just like suppressed it. Wow, that is distrusting. Well, I mean, character-wise, for what reason do we have to trust her? She's just like, "Yeah, you guys go ahead." She let us go because she thought we were going to complete her mission. I was totally joking. No, I know, I know. I'm thinking out loud. Right. Braille would definitely be concerned like, "Oh my god, that crazy old lady, maybe she just..." It's like, maybe it's like a free trial, you know? Like McAfee Antivirus. Like, "Oh, you get a week and then if you don't do it, you're fucked." Then she's sending you emails all the time.

"Can you renew please? Can you update? Oh, malware, no!" Probably a good idea. Sorry, that was kind of out of left field, but I just thought of it. No. That's good, you think it. So, act erroneous, you're going to jump in that acid and go through the stomach, right? Cool. No, sir. I don't know if we're equipped enough to transport whatever remains of that creature we can get our hands on. It seems pretty either volatile or corrosive. Unless someone has the proper measures to bring them, I think we're better off without it. I don't even know if we... I can't use it for sure.

I don't think the payoff's worth the effort we're going to have to put in to get the stuff over there. We're already carrying a lot of other giant creatures remnants, so... That's right. Whoops, I forgot. Yeah, let's leave it. So, continuing on then? Yeah, unless someone has the ability to detect magical trinkets in its belly. Is that a thing in 4th edition? Like Arcana, you can sense magic? It has to be pretty big magical. Okay, okay. That was just a technical question. Alrighty. You guys are going to get ready and continue on trek south eventually, after a couple more hours.

Because traveling's kind of slow. The path is going to narrow a bit and you're going to come up to a portion of the way here that that same river runs through. And sort of dips down. And there are going to be a couple of mountains that sort of frame this entire area. And there will be plenty of space for you to walk through, but it looks... actually give me a perception roll, everyone. Almost a crit. Wow, okay. So, Air Love and Dagon are going to notice that this area is now blanketed in snow. So trudging through this, the good news is that most of this avalanche seems to have done damage a little further up the mountain.

It's spread out. So while the snow is going to be up to your waist or higher in certain areas, you will be able to get through it. It's going to be A) intensely cold and B) you're going to expend a lot more energy going through this area. But you will be able to get through it. It's just going to slow you down. Whose waist are we talking about here? Well, not Braelyn's. It'll be up to Braelyn's neck or above his head in certain areas. I get burned. I thought he was going to be on someone's shoulders. Acronis, please, can I ride on your back? Of course. Thank you very much.

That's going to offer to burn the snow away, but you can do that. Just don't touch my armor with your little fingers. Wouldn't dream of fingering your armor, sir. Oh my god. That's a callback, ladies and gentlemen. Nice. Alright. That's a good show. This is going to be a while. You guys are going to get through here. So the good news is that it looked like this area was due for an avalanche. And it could have been a lot worse if you guys were running a couple of hours ahead of schedule. You could have been in the middle of this when it happened. So that's a really good thing.

So here's what I'm going to ask you guys to do. I'm going to ask you guys to roll a flat D20. And let's see how much effort and energy and time it's going to take you to get through this. Each one of us is just one person. No, no, no. One of you. Because you're doing it as a group. Who would like to be brave? Not me this time. I did it last time. I'll do it. Oh, sweet. Okay. I'm sorry, guys. Oh, what? 19. Working as a team, you guys are going to cut through this relatively quickly. I would say within a period of four hours or so you would be able to make it through this pass.

And things are eventually going to start to clear up for you guys. You're going to get to a portion where you are beyond the avalanche. And then you're going to notice the river dip down. And it's going to start to flow the other way. And you can see where there's an area where the river sort of collapses in on itself and almost forms like some sort of tidal whirlpool. Which is highly unusual. Is the water still flowing in the opposite direction that it should be? Well, that's the thing. It's flowing in the opposite direction, then you meet this little whirlpool thing, then it's flowing in two different directions.

Towards the whirlpool. Yes. Should we do another Arkana check on that? Or do we know already? I would say that you'd know as much about this as you would. So we figure it's magic because it's bizarre. It's got to be. It could be a good geographical feature of the region. Can we roll it like something like that? If we know there is a whirlpool here, like everybody in Aubrey knows about the whirlpool. Whirlpool. Well, what you could do is you can either wait until you're in town and ask about it. You can run some sort of nature check if you like. You already have, though, on the river and you already know that that's pretty bizarre.

That it's flowing in the opposite direction. It should not be flowing inland. It should be flowing out to sea. We could also throw 10 rubies in there and then four of them. And he gives us the flippers. Yeah, he gives us the water temple. And then we can just swim to Talur. I was going to say throw a rock in or something. Do we want to throw something in or leave it alone? Brailen picks up a rock and throws it in the whirlpool. Done. Alright then. Yeah, let's go with that. I like that. This rock is... How big would you say the rock is? As big as Brailen's palm because he cannot pick up big rocks.

Let's say like a small one. Not that big. So it's going to hit the water, just kind of that kerplunk sound. And it's going to disappear immediately. And then nothing's going to happen. It's going to be pretty much what you would expect to happen when you throw a rock into the water. Brailen's going to look at Dagon's shrugs. Let's go. I'm so super curious. I wanted more from that. It's uh... Okay. Onward. Let's ask the town people about it. Sorry. Sorry. No? No problem. Continuing away from the Northlands. You guys are going to reach an area where the snow is starting to taper off.

You are coming down from these mountains and... Everyone do me a favor. Roll a Perception check. What if there was a portal and there's another portal with tons of water flowing in? Like in someone's basement. Now they have a free rock. I don't know why that's so funny to me. The bracelet I imagine is still pulling to the southeast? Yep. As of right now, southeast. I think talking to the town people is probably a good idea. Afterwards. Sorry. Cauldron is going to teach the group how to make snow angels in the... In the low snow, in the soft snow that's not piled waist high.

Aww. My tail gets in the way. Dagon will teach the group how to write their name in the snow. Aww. I have a trenna gets in the way. Airlove and Dagon. No, actually Airlove, Dagon, Actaeronus. Looking down from the mountains there's this gorgeous valley. There's hills you're going to have to get across, but there's nothing like the terrain you've just had to cross. And the day is fleeting at this point. You're running out of daylight. But down in the valley, you're guessing another hour or two away, maybe? Is the tiny town of Aubrey. Which is... It's actually really quaint looking from here specifically.

Those of you who may have been there before know that it's a pretty nice town. For the most part. They have their problems, but I mean it's a pretty nice town. Now, the walk ahead of you, again, nothing too hard. But you are all, I would say, pretty exhausted from this journey so far. Up to you whether you'd like to make camp now or continue to town. Okay, so that's only a couple hours away, right? About two, two and a half. How close is it to sunset? I would say you have about another hour of any daylight out before it's just, you know, the sunset officially.

And we know about the vampires. Who's been to Aubrey before? Erolove's the one who knew about Artemis, so... Ooh. So I'll tell you what. Susan, do me a favor. Roll a history check. And anything over, I would say, up 15. That's my bonus. Then tell everybody about the vampires. And you've barely made it. Uh, there's vampires? What? I should probably roleplay this. There's vampires, blah. Not a ton. Not three. What is wrong with you? Did you hit your head? I'm not sure if any of you have been to Aubrey before, but this town is known for its vampire attacks. And we're about to come on sunset, and that's usually when the attacks begin.

So I'm not sure if you guys wanted to head into the city now or wait until dawn. Are... would we be safe here from the vampires? They usually just attack the town. But then if they do, we could help. That's true. But at the same time, we'd probably be... We're a few hours away, and sun's about to set. We'd probably be attacked before we got to the town. But I'm... I think we could handle ourselves, but at the same time, it's better to be safe than sorry. That is true, but I don't know if I could forgive myself if we arrived tomorrow in the morning and there was a devastating attack.

Uh... I... I can't let a single undead alive if they cross my path. My powers don't permit it as well, but Dagon, do you want to continue heading to town? Um... you'll just smile at them both and say, "Just when I thought we might get a break." And he'll sort of motion towards going to town. Alright. I just wanted to warn you all beforehand so we know what to expect. Like vampire weaknesses, that sort of thing... Would we have that sort of knowledge? Or if we rolled a history check or something like that? I would say history or nature. Not religion? You could roll religion on that one.

It's not really... it's not the kind of crosses kill vampires type of thing in Tharia, so it's more... Damn. History. Let me pull out my Encyclopedia Britannica real quick. Guess I'll do nature then. I hate them because I'm ignorant. Ignorant. Let's see here. Heirlove, Dagon, Braelyn... They would all know the common ways to dispatch a vampire. Obviously, holy water helps. It's... that's something that they do not enjoy. Other than that, cutting their head off, that's an excellent way. Unlike the common stuff. But yeah, any of the other stuff, wolfsbane, garlic, crosses, none of that.

Stick through the heart? Well yeah, but that's... for the most part, that's what kills anything. That's a very exotic way to kill a vampire, but yeah, that will kill it too. Are they weak to radiant or fire or stuff like that? They are very weak to radiant, yes. Anything radiant, and then of course the sun itself. You can drag one out into the sunlight, you will kill it. I have an attack called Sunburst. What? Okay, sorry. They are not gonna like you. I got a few dailies that if I rest I could get back. So what's the decision? I'm gonna pull out my unicorn horn.

Fearless Leader said let's go to town, so... Before we go, Actarionis is gonna turn to Kaladin and Breland and say, "Your opinion also matters, even though I made my mind. If you have any reasons to convince us to stay, please be heard." It's purple worms out there or vampires here, either way. Everyone's gonna agree. He's gonna look at Actarionis and say, "Well, I'd rather die in a town with walls and a bed than out in the wilds." Actarionis is gonna chuckle and start working for it. A couple hours are gonna pass by, and the sun has dipped in the sky, and it is now nighttime.

So you got your typical crickets, and you hear little bits of wildlife every once in a while, something skittering in a bush, or typical stuff. Eventually, you're all going to make it to the town of Aubrey after a very long journey, so congratulations. Thank you! And vampires. Oh no! Everyone's dead. We're undead. Group 4 is in Aubrey, hiding in an attic. Oh no! Only some of them. Everyone, do me a favor. I was just gonna say, "Where's the town with mummies and Frankensteins?" That's the town with Abbott and Costello. That is... Different continent. Everyone, do me a favor.

Roll a perception check. Now, every one of you are going to notice that the lanterns are lit in the town of Aubrey. Most people are indoors. The exception to that being, as you approach the town itself, it doesn't have a traditional gateway. You just start seeing buildings, and it sort of gradually starts up. It's not like one of the walled cities that you might go to, like Winterhaven or Donhurst, something like that. Standing on the road leading into town is a red-haired woman who is brandishing a longsword and has it sort of planted into the ground, like in front of her.

Not deep, just sort of waiting for people to approach. And you can see her kind of tilt her head just a bit as you all approach. So what would you like to do? I guess Braelyn would start waving. Just waving hi. "Hey!" Yeah, let Braelyn defuse the situation and convince her we're not vampires. Maybe she is. And if I was... Maybe she's the real vampire. I didn't think about that. Julie, no. Alright, I would nudge Braelyn forward. See if she's a vampire. Well, one of the things you're going to notice as you approach is that she has these horizontal claw marks running over her face.

So it looks like something got a hold of her at some point. They're not fresh wounds? Like more scars? You can tell that this happened not too long ago. Okay. Looks painful. I'm going to say hi to myself as I approach. "Hi! Good evening!" Painful taunting. Don't stay. Don't stay. Me and my friends are wandering in from the wreckage of our ship, actually. The Frost Basin. We're looking for a safe place to stay the night. Maybe get some supplies, a few drinks. She's going to look down at little Braelyn here. You came in via ship. He's going to laugh and say, "Yeah, well that wasn't the idea or the plan, but it's kind of what ended up happening." See, me and my friends, we were trying to make sail for a different continent and the route we chose, which we chose very poorly on all of our faults, ended up being very unsafe.

So we had to make anchor and find the nearest town, which happened to be your beautiful, quaint town of Aubrey. Well, actually we do have business here. We came to see a renowned armorsmith of yours. She's going to narrow her eyes. You mean the gnome. I nod. Alright, you can stay the night. It doesn't look like you're going to cause any trouble. The inn is open if you want to check in. I don't believe Artemis is in his shop this time of night. Is everything alright right now? Aren't you just sending guard? You seem very tense. What is the situation in town right now?

And how did you get those wounds? Ohhhh. Smooth move, Bergson. She's going to readjust. You can tell that the last question was enough to put her on edge just a little bit. Just sort of guard herself a bit. Okay, and Cauldin's going to immediately put up his hands when she sees her tense and say, "I mean no offense, of course." We were attacked about a week ago. It's... it was the worst one we've had in quite a while. Luckily we had a group wander through that helped us repel them, but we did lose someone. I would advise you all to stay indoors until sunrise if you can.

Vraalyn's going to step forward. I'm sorry for your loss. It's not too much trouble. Do you mind telling us exactly what happened? What attacked you? Was it the vampires that we've all heard about? She's going to nod her head. Yeah, but this time was different. I chased one down into the caves and I've killed dozens of them before, but I've never seen anything like this. It was some hulking half-orc creature, but it was faster than anything I've ever seen. Do you stand guard alone? I'm pretty much all that's left in terms of those who watch over the city. Vraalyn's going to make that whistle noise.

And look at the floor and rub his feet in the ground. She's going to look down at Vraalyn like... just kind of like, "That's a weird reaction to what I just said." That was inappropriate. Sorry, sorry. I'm just... there's only one guard left in the whole town? There used to be more of us. I was actually trained by a few people and there was a small battalion. We didn't try to hunt them. We just wanted to make sure that people didn't get taken in the night. But, slowly but surely, they picked us off one by one and thanks to this... whatever this new thing is, I am honestly afraid that one day there won't be anyone of us left who can stand against it.

Well, there is more people tonight. And he looks at the rest of the party. If you want to get some rest tonight, I strongly recommend you do. And then he looks back at the woman and I will help you stand guard tonight and rest in the morning. Erlo's going to pull her staff off her back and the symbols glow faintly and she says to Actorna, "I'll stand guard as well." Vraalyn's going to step forward, "And I'll take first sleep watch." Do we know that Aubrey has a lot of clerics and healers? Is that a thing Aubrey is known for? Oh yeah, that's THE thing they're known for.

The vampire thing they try to do, as a tourist thing, that's not mentioned in the pamphlets. Nobody tells you about kidnapping in Cuba. I look at her again and say, "If there's no one to defend the people of this town, this might be... in short term, it's going to be devastating, but in the long term Aubrey might play a greater role in things to come in the next few months." I'll make sure that we see your most holy men and women tomorrow and we'll address the situation, but I think that the world will need a city of people of faith and healers in the near future.

And I'll make sure that we can help you stay alive. Does he chuckle at the end? No, I'm just kidding. That's hilarious. I very much appreciate the offer, but I'm not going to give up my watch. That's not your responsibility. If you want to stand guard with me, I do appreciate it. But I think you should all know what you're getting into. I have fought them before and I gave that thing everything that I had and it flicked me away like it was nothing. So you're all very brave and it's very much appreciated, but if you want to rethink and just go get sleep, there's no shame in that.

If you couldn't fight it alone last time, then you're going to need us. Are there any allies that Aubrey can turn to? Does this town bear this burden on its own? We did receive word from the Overwatch of all places. They are eventually supposed to send people when they sort out their restructuring, but that could be weeks or even months. I'm going to remove my backpack with the scales on it and hand it over to Brelin and say if you want to go to the Inn and have a drink on me, get two drinks. Just make sure the scales are secured and stowed away for the night.

If you want, you can go rest, my friend. Got it. All right, so secure the scales, secure drinks, I'm on it. Then I'll carry your big heavy ass bag with me to the nearest Inn. Am I going by myself or is Cauldin and Dagon following me? Because I don't want to get jumped. Yeah, Cauldin will be with you. He's my regular criminal. Last battle ticket out of him. He's definitely going to need a rest, but he will say to Actaronis, "Should you need us, please, don't not hesitate to call." He puts his hand on your shoulder and nods and says, "You are a valuable, valuable member of this team now, and I value your strength, Cauldin." Thank you.

Valuable and weary though, I'm afraid. Please go get some rest. Do me a favor, Brelin. Make a strength check. I knew this was coming. I just... I didn't want to believe it. Strength based off... where's my strength? Right there. Check. Oh, fuck. That's a 12 total. I can drag it. That's what's going to happen. As Brelin starts to motion away from the party, he's going to realize that carrying his pack, all of his belongings, and Actaronis' pack is not going to be pretty. Brelin is going to be like, "Got it, boss," and walk away. It's going to be more like, "Huuuhh," and drag Actaronis' pack behind him.

Please tell me the bottom doesn't rip open. I'm doing it the way you said it, Jason. I'm like, "Got it, boss," and just carry it over my shoulder. You made me look like a goddamn fool. Brelin's going to look at Cauldin. A little help here, chief? Cauldin will give a little smile and grab the other end and they'll sort of shuffle it down the street. Could you take my pack, too? Sure. Just pile it on. I can't hear you now, bye. Dagon will look at Actaronis and Aralav and say, "Keep your wits about you. Come get me in two hours." Aralav will hand her pack to Dagon.

He'll take it and he'll follow the other guys. I was going to say "bumbling idiots," but that's mean, so... First you start shouting some drow racial slurs, which you can hear if you get on the Patreon. You'll hear it on the bonus content. They are real juicy slurs, too. Now you're calling us "bumbling idiots," I mean? Any of you drow out there are going to want to hear this, man. It's a bad. There's some controversial stuff out here. Shots fired. Bang bang. As they walk away, this red-haired paladin is going to lean in. I don't mean to pry, but are your packs full of dragon scales?

You have a keen eye. I'm rolling perception. Oh, is that what that 11 was? She crit it. Holy crap. She knew what kind of underwear I was wearing. Thongs. Yes, we did bring a fair amount of them, with the intention of having them fashioned in two armors for us. Aha. And she's going to... there's a smile that's going to cross her face. Artemis is going to love you. Well, this is great to hear. Already making friends. I kind of like to think that Airlove's under the assumption, like, she heard of this great, like, smith in Aubrey. Like, she doesn't really know anything about him, she just heard about him.

So she's actually like, "Wow, this guy's probably going to be super amazing. Like, I've heard great stories." How about we stay out here with the three of you? We're staying out here with Alexandra, Actaronis, and Airlove. What we're going to do is we're going to roll a flat d20 to see what kind of knight the town of Aubrey is about to have. I did it last time. Don't be gross. I do believe that Airlove did it last time. I could do it because I'm there. I could. I'm going to do it for you. I would have taken the, like, hit dice back or healing surges. Just want to say.

Yeah, I'm kind of, I already... I'm not saying I'm expecting a fight right now, I'm just... Right, of course. Okay, and... here we go. It's not middle of the bad. Before everything goes to shit, I'd just like to say all the A names stayed outside. AAA threat. AAA threat. Yeah. No vampire wants to mess with them. Yeah. I would say that Dagon, Brelin, and Kaldin probably found a room for the knight, or a couple of them, and they're settling in, getting some rest. Definitely, for sure. Let's say an hour, let's say an hour goes by, and Actor Onis, Airlove, and Alexandra are going to be just outside of town here.

I would say that, after a while, the very fact that you volunteered to risk your life after being told extensively what the dangers are, would be enough for Alexandra to kind of want to get to know you better, just sort of reach out and offer an olive branch. She would have formally introduced herself and sort of tell you what has been going on recently in town. So, she would have told you about the most recent attack, the one where two villagers got dragged away. One of them was rescued with the help of a group that was traveling through. One of them sadly had their neck snapped by that vampire as he bit into them like a fresh apple.

So, I don't know if there's anything like small talky type of stuff? Yeah, I keep my eyes peeled too. Oh yeah, yeah. If it helps, I do have low light vision. Me too. Oh, well, there we go. Five! Snap! And then you break my hand. Well, you might break a few fingers too. Any details you may give us about these vampires will be of use in combat. I appreciate you sharing and trusting us right away. We really mean it when we say that we want to see this undead threat through. Well, I can tell you that you have the right idea, being armored head to toe. Have you ever fought a vampire before?

No vampires, no. And she's going to look over to her, love. What about you? No, I have not. Well, they're fast first and foremost and stronger than you'd expect them to be. No matter how spindly they might look, they pack more of a punch than you're probably used to. Try not to let them get too close. If you can keep something in between you and them like a shield, that would be an excellent idea. After a beat, she's going to kind of lean in toward Actaronis. I still think that you are right on track with being armored head to toe, but if you're going to stay here for a day or two, I think you might want to have it cleaned.

Because you... and I'm sorry for being so blunt, you smell. I guess it's the getting accustomed to the life of a sailor. I will do something about it. Thank you. Thank you for your bluntness. Erolove's going to look at her and be like, "Yes, thank you." She's going to look at our love. When it was cold you couldn't really notice, but now that we're in town, you know. I must be sweating a lot. He's just going to turn around a little bit. Do one side step away and slightly raise his left arm and get his helmet closer to his armpit. I can't smell it. I don't know what you're talking about.

Do me a favor, roll a perception check, you two. What? Good thing I'm here. That's a lot of perception right there. There's a lot of perception. Erolove's going to spot something in the darkness. A good distance away. Approaching the road that leads to town, but not on the road. This would be a figure that is sidling the road and ducking in and out of bushes. It's something that takes a few times for her to really get a good look at it. At first it's like, "Oh, that's probably, you know, maybe a wolf out there in the darkness." Something like that. And then she's going to get a decent look at it and realize it looks like a man out there just far enough away that none of the light from town is touching it.

But this person appears to be watching the three of you. Erolove will put a hand on... she doesn't want to talk. She'll put a hand on Actaronis and make a head motion, like a nod, like look that way. I'll peel my eyes even more. And then she'll whisper, "I see a man and it looks like he's looking at us." He's going to relay the information over to Alexandra. Erolove spotted a man aware of our presence. She's going to have trouble spotting it because she doesn't have low light vision. She's just a human. About how far away? Just outside of town on the edge of the road.

She's going to... you can tell it clearly frustrates her that she can't see the thing that you see. And she's going to walk forward a bit, just slowly, as if that was the thing that she was going to do anyway, like a patrol or something like that. But not necessarily making a beeline for where you're pointing at. She'll say to her, whispering, "What did this vampire that attacked you look like?" Are you going to be walking with her? Yeah, just like trying to look casual. Okay. It was this hulking half-orc. It was probably six and a half feet tall. What does this man look like, Lucien?

That I can see. As you get closer, this is a really dark figure. It looks to be so dark because it's completely covered, almost, head to toe. But there's a bit of his face that's visible. And as you start to get closer, Erolove's going to see that it looks like a drow man. Like a very pale drow man. I'll relay that. The man outside of town looks like a very pale drow. I'll just, if they keep walking, I'll keep a little distance, maybe ten feet behind them, and really keep my eyes peeled around the man or the side of the roads, just to see if I could spot an ambush or something.

Oh, roofs and stuff too. Yeah. Everything but directly at the guy. Do me a favor, roll a perception check. Both of us are just... I think I'm intently watching the man. Yeah, so I'd say Actoronus is maybe checking your rear. That was something he mentioned. Okay. As you guys keep walking, eventually this figure is going to step out onto the road. And his hands are going to be raised. Do me a favor, roll a perception check for me. Both of us? Yes. He doesn't appear to be carrying any weapons. And Actoronus is going to notice that there's this big, kind of billowy hooded cape that's sort of draped over him.

Do me a favor and either roll... Give me a history check, actually. Do I get a bonus because I used to hang out with a bit of drow and onikal? Give me a plus one. Awesome. I didn't add it. I just added ourselves. Okay. 25. Okay. Traditionally, that is not uncommon when you see drow to see them cover up, especially if they're pale like that because that's sort of a badge of honor for a lot of drow that live underground. That they have that pale white skin and once they've adapted to the surface, like after a period of months, they sort of lose that and they darken up.

So some drow kind of take that as a point of pride that they're able to live underground and deal with all the hardship of that. And yeah, there's sort of a division between the drow when it comes to that. That is not crazy uncommon. Okay. Alexandra's gonna raise her blade and just sort of a defensive, like waiting to see what this guy's gonna do. Yeah. I'm just gonna say in the back, like not too loud, might not be a vampire, but might also be a good idea to remain wary on our guard. Did Actaeron's previous perception check yield anything from our surroundings?

He's not gonna see anything. There's nothing. It doesn't appear as though anything's trying to get the drop on you or ambush you in any way. I trust my senses. I trust you. Eroliv already had her weapon out, so. This man is going to continue to have his arms raised. I mean you no harm. You don't need to attack me. Not gonna put my weapon away. And Alexandra's going to, again, keep her blade leveled at this figure. Why are you hiding? I was actually hoping to speak to you. Is there a place where we can talk in private? Show us your teeth first. Feels so clever.

He is going to sort of lower his head a bit and level his gaze at Actaeronas. There's no need for tests. I am one of them, if that's what you're asking. Hmm. Actaeronas probably isn't the greatest person to meet a friendly vampire. I'm gonna hold my glaive tighter. I'm just gonna wait for Alexandra to say something. She's gonna look over to Actaeronas just to see if he's going to react to that in any way because you're the one who asked. And before she speaks, again, I mean no harm to any of you. Insight. Go right ahead. And I hate doing that. There's some prime air love right there, guys.

From what air love can tell, that seems to be on the level. That seems to be this vampire's intentions. Although, there's a tinge of something there. That that's not the whole story or something like that. And air love's not sure if that's because you now know that this is a vampire. Or there's a tone that all drow seem to have. That it feels like they're leaving something out. It's a very slippery line of half-truths. Why not talk here? Honestly, I don't feel as though it's safe. Which is exactly why we're out here to keep the town safe. If we go somewhere private that leaves the town open for an attack.

Are you telling me you're afraid of vampires? Only one. And he is going to look over to Alexandra. I think you know who I'm talking about. She's going to give this some thought, you can tell. Are you honestly expecting us to take you into town? This vampire's gonna mull that over. Honestly... I didn't think you would. Although getting a little closer to town wouldn't hurt. I don't need to go into any buildings. If that's alright with you. She's going to look over to you too. Unless air love says something. Right away I would say something. No, go ahead. The simple fact that we're talking with you right now is... ...enough of a sign of good faith.

Let's talk now. And appreciate that I don't run my... ...and he's just going to bite his lip. Let's just talk now. See if we can find a way to... ...save the people of this town from this other vampire of yours. He clearly doesn't want to make a deal with a vampire. This guy's going to narrow his eyes at Actaronis. Fine. I've actually been sent here to barter. We wish to strike a deal. We want you to help us kill the orc. In exchange, we promise to let the town be. Alexandra's going to speak up after this. Why should we believe you? I kind of want to roll another insight.

But I don't want to. I want to. It's all going to be worth it. The bit he said about... ...he's been sent here to barter, that seems on the level. The part where you can tell there's a definite catch is the "leave the town be." Erelove's going to let her staff fill with radiant energy. She has runes on it so it actually glows white for a second. She's going to be like, "I don't believe it leaves the town alone." Alexandra would say, "Neither do I." And this vampire's going to take a step back when he sees the staff start to light up. Just sort of like, "Oh, oh, put your gun down!" Like that kind of, "I can understand your apprehension." But we can't live side by side with that beast.

He can't be rationalized or reasoned with. It's become a nuisance. If you help us deal with it, then I'm sure we can work out some sort of coexistence between our peoples. To be honest, we've lost quite a few in the last month or so. Is there some sort of wizard's oath or something that binds him to a promise? Like an arcane contract? As long as he doesn't cross his fingers and his back. Yeah. I don't know. There's no guarantee. I guess really, really strong magics. I'm... I can't believe I'm saying this, but I'm willing to consider it. As you seem to have reason with you, unlike the other undead I've encountered before.

But if you're telling me there is a brute vampire, another undead abomination that needs to be put down, then I will put my blade to use. I think this decision is up to Alexandra, because this is her town. The entire time you can see her just staring at this thing, like waiting for it to make a false move or charge or anything. I'd be willing to discuss it further. And she's going to turn to the two of you. Are you saying you'd be willing to fight that thing? Yes. With my life. In quotation marks. Again, I think this town is very important in the months to come.

And he looks at the vampire. And even a vampire like you, your very existence might be threatened by something bigger than all this in three months. If you break that deal we're making right now, you will regret this in three months to come. Give us your word that you will leave this town alone. He is going to step forward. He's going to close the gap between him and Acheronus by half. So they're just feet away now. And Alexandra would tense up and again just have her sword level. Just like ready. She would kind of pull it back, just getting ready to swing.

Make no mistake, Cleric. I am a man of my word. If I promise something, I will deliver. But we will need to feed. We can figure that part of the bargain out a little later. If you want to hold my weapons while we speak, I would be more than happy to allow you. If it would make you feel... safer. He's going to reply with the best onychol drow accent he can from back home. He's going to try to say... not try to say what he's going to say. Then yes, I think these terms are agreeable. Let's try to make this work. Excellent. Is there somewhere we should sit down?

Oh yeah, there's a great inn. It has a lovely buffet. Alexandra is going to lower her weapon, but still, you can tell she's still very tense. I can arrange a place for us to sit down, but we will be holding all of your weapons. And if you make one false move, I will kill you. Do you understand? The vampire is going to nod, and he's going to sort of brush back this cloak, and there are two drow short swords that he carries with him. And he's going to remove them, and he is going to very gingerly extend them out toward Actoronus. I will gingerly take them.

And he'll kind of give a smile to Actoronus as he does it. I won't. [laughter] Yeah, I'll take them and tuck them under my arm. Alexandria is going to... She is going to open one of these shops up that is empty right now. And it's pretty much just a place for them to sit down for now. But this place is going to be empty. And she would ask, "Do you want the rest of the party here for this, or do you just want to..." Let them rest for now. I just don't want to make any decisions. Yeah, I guess that's true. How much time does it take? It's only been about an hour, a little over an hour since you all left.

He said two hours, so they wouldn't be expecting anything right now. I don't want to leave Alexandria alone with the Empire. I don't think the decisions for this town necessarily concerned them. They can join us or not, as they wish. I feel like an asshole. We can do a cut to the inn where they're all having a roleplay good time. Sleeping? I just don't want to exclude you guys. Roleplay sleeping. That's what I was going to say, because unless they're doing anything, my understanding was they were sleeping. Definitely asleep, for sure. We're having the most amazing dream.

It's incredible. Getting my dailies back. I really don't want to wake you guys up then. I got a drow vampire to kill. If we wake you up, then you're going to need to start sleeping again to get everything back. You need your full rest. It's cool, man. I'd rather have them learn in the morning that we struck a deal with the vampire. Is he a tradesman? Can he fix our ship? Are you making a deal here that benefits us? What is your profession? You could say butcher, I guess? She would usher the three of you into this place and then shut the door and lock it behind them.

Just in case he tries to make some sort of mad dash or do something desperate. There's going to be a table here. She's going to offer everyone a seat. This vampire would have no problem. He'd be slightly apprehensive. He's kind of coming to you hat in hand anyway, so he's going to take a seat. He's already weaponless. I would gesture to Erelove to take a seat and I'll stay standing in my trademark crouched bad back position leaning on my glaive. Erelove will sit down and rest her staff across her knees with a hand on it. Just in case. Alexandra would take a seat and then, completely uncomfortable with the situation, "Alright, start talking." And this vampire would take a deep breath.

The orc appeared about three weeks ago. At first it was just sightings. Some members of the clan expressed some interest in it. And eventually one of us made contact with it. It didn't speak. We're not even sure if it understood us. He slaughtered two of our kind. There was very little fight. We aren't exactly sure how old it is, but there is a legend that seems to fit. We did keep tabs on the group that traveled through this town about a week ago. One of us witnessed the fight that took place in the caverns. You seem to be having some trouble with it yourself, Alexandra.

Two things are going to happen. Go ahead and roll a perception for me. One, she is going to tense up immediately after this thing says her name. Oh yeah. Two, the fact that they were watching that fight and they know what's going on with this vampire and that they can't take it either is unsettling. You can tell that that's even more calls for alarm. How do you know my name? Oh, we know so much about you. You've killed a great many of us. Honestly, it would be a massive feather in my cap if something were to happen to you tonight. I'm just going to slam the bottom of my clave on the ground.

He is going to straighten up in his chair. You can tell for one brief second, she was the only person in the room to this guy. And he's just going to sort of sit back in his chair a bit. I'm sorry. Please forgive me. The bottom line is we can't deal with this on our own and he's an equal menace to you if I'm not mistaken. So, I propose a limited partnership. Your people and our people take on the mistake. We deal with it and then we can work out some sort of feeding system. Most of us can survive on wild animals, but we so prefer people. We would promise, of course, not to kill anyone in town.

Some of us have gotten carried away over the years. We apologize for that. And he's just sort of gauging, like he's waiting, like he's gauging your response. Can I roll like a history check on this guy to see if maybe like he's a well-known vampire? Go ahead, but it would have to be a really high roll. Nope. Okay. I just wanted to scare him with his name or something. Oh, okay. I'm actually considering the whole giving blood thing. I'm just looking at my own forearms like, "How much blood do people need anyway?" I don't remember how important it is. Did you say that out loud?

No, no, no. That's what's going on in my house. And there would be no risk of having the people of this town turn? We wouldn't bite you if that's the concern. Honestly, there's been an overpopulation in the caverns recently. Thinning our ranks wasn't the worst thing that happened. Although, we did lose a very high profile leader about a month ago. I could give you some time to think it over if you like. We definitely need time to prepare. Aralef, do you want to go over this with the group? Yes. And I also believe that this isn't a decision for just us to make as well.

This affects the entire town. Yes. What say I return tomorrow night? Would that give you enough time? I was about to suggest that very same idea. He's going to stand up rather abruptly. Excellent. I'll take my leave then. There's no use in me staying in town for the night. I doubt there's room in your inn. And he's going to sort of level a gaze at Alexandra. I'll see you tomorrow night. No surprises. Meet us at the same entrance. Of course. And he's going to give this very deep bow. I'm sure we can come to some arrangement. And he is going to sort of wait by the door realizing it's locked.

Alexandra's going to stand up. I'm going to escort him out of town. If you want to talk to your party, go right ahead. I'm going to go back and wait at the road. I'll come with you. None of us should be alone so I will go with you. She would unlock the door and escort the vampire to the edge of town. And he is going to get ready to leave and then stop. I almost forgot. And he's going to hold his hand out to Actoronus. Ah damn it, I really wished he would have forgotten. Oh, is he...are we still in the building or are we on the edge of town? Oh no, you'd be at the edge of town.

Ok cool, then yes. Ok. And he's going to take his weapons back and put them back where they were. I appreciate your time. I'll see you all tomorrow night. And there's going to be a smile that creeps across his face again. Fucking unsettling. And he is going to raise his hood and then sort of disappear back down the road. There is not a single thing I like about this plan. Nope. But it might be the only plan we have. What do you think? Do you think they plan to get a jump on us at any point? Do you think they're...well obviously they're going to use us to get rid of that thing but...

I have a suspicion that as soon as this orc vampire dies they will use...they will turn against us in our weakened state. Then let's make sure that the weakened state is spread all around. Let's not do all the fighting. And let's go prepared. We need a contingency plan. Something that they won't see coming. Alexandra would speak up. We might have something. We can speak with Father White in the morning if you like. We've been holding onto an artifact. You guys ok? Sorry. Sorry. I couldn't hold it in. Go on. Tomorrow afternoon I'll take you by the temple and we can talk it over with him.

It's not my decision to make. Yes. Yes I would very much like to meet him. Because we have...I do have some more dire news I would like to discuss with him. But I think it's been enough for tonight. There's no need to talk about this right now. How's about we pick things up in the morning? Acta Ronis and I both have a bunch of undead powers against undead. Oh my god. For us to get a hold of that? Get a hold of what guys? What are you talking about? We're gonna be pulling on it. Each of us like "You're gonna break it. No it's fine." Oh man. Alright so I assume we went to bed as well and I don't know what to do about this smell situation though.

Car air fresheners. Oh no I got it. Ok. I would say that you guys have taken turns and you would have gotten some sleep so I'm gonna give you all an extended rest. Everyone's gonna get your dailies back. Oh that's great. Feels so good. What would you guys like to do in the morning here? Not tell the group anything. Never bacon. Obviously. Hey you guys wanna take a walk to the cave? It's nothing. It's great. I heard it's a really great tourist destination. Is Dagon having breakfast or something? Or meditating after you woke up? Well I probably would have spent the whole night meditating in my trance-like state.

I suppose yeah. Going for the continental breakfast. Alright. Braelyn's right behind you. I'm gonna go over to Dagon and discreetly say, cause I'm still in my full armor I don't know if there's other patrons in the place, but I'm gonna go discreetly to Dagon and say, Mr. Page I urgently need your help. Meet me in my room as soon as possible please. Your presence is ruined. It sounds serious. He's gonna look at you like, come on not this again. Not this again? Oh then Mr. Page thinks he is. Yeah. And look at Braelyn and just kinda roll his eyes a little. And he'll put down his bread roll and get up and follow you.

Braelyn will quickly swipe the bread roll and eat it. Jason last time another group came here you like described the bath room or something. Is it the same inn? Oh it's the same inn. This is Silver Flagon. This is a really nice place. It's just... you're in a really difficult situation. Cause it's not your armor that smells so much. It's you? Yeah. I mean there's not an incredible amount you can do about that. I mean there's perfumes and stuff you could buy. Yeah that's what I was going for. Like if there's some bath essential oils or whatever. Or like rose petals.

Like a bath bomb that gets rid of... Yeah just like stuff, tons of things that smell good in my armor. I don't know. That's why I needed my Mr. Page with me. Cause I can't do it myself. I don't know what I'm doing. Oh do I get to see actor Onus without his armor on? No that's the thing though. If you come in or whatever he's going to say. I've been told that, and I apologize for this, but I've been told that I'm not as fresh as I may have been in the past. And I need you to help me do something about the smell apparently. He's kind of going to talk to you in a different way than he normally does.

A little bit more familiar when he does that. Okay. Dagon will kind of choke on the last bit of bread roll he's eating and just like "um, okay, what did you have in mind?" I don't know. You've probably done this before. Your clothes are always nice and you probably smell good too. My sense of smell is not as sharp as it used to be, but I don't know, do just work your magic. I don't know what you want me to do. Are you going to take off your armor? No, of course I couldn't do that. We don't know what's inside. Can you just give a quick wash of my armor? Maybe a quick polish if you have time?

Okay. I'm going to help you out because I know you've got my back. But don't tell anybody about this. Oh, no, no, no. Of course not. Thank you. Describe what you do. This is not management's job. I'm just going to... What's around us? Where are like... This would pretty much be the same room that Yenward got a bath in, so there's a large basin and scrub brushes, things like that. I suppose water's out of the question. Oh, no, water's... No, there's water in the basin and stuff. But for him. Oh, I don't know. That's up to you. I don't know. Does armor rust? Like is it...

No, no, no, no. It's meant to be out in the rain and stuff like that. I wouldn't submerge it in water and keep it there, but I mean, like, no, there's a finish on it. I could use some water. Okay, so is there a bath full, drawn? Yes. Okay, is the water transparent right now? Oh, yeah. Like it's clean. I just want to know what it looks like after. Is there perfumes like on the shelves or something like that? There is an assortment of like potion bottle type things where there's men's and women's like fragrances, that type of thing. That's compliments of the trusty blade, like Artemis kind of supplies it to the bed and breakfast.

Okay, Dagon will go over to these items and sort of poke through them and grab a couple of the ones he thinks are more pleasant fragrances. Maybe some floral type smelling ones and just dump them right into the water. And then shove me in. And he's going to point at them and then point to the water. Get in. Alright, without missing a beat, he's just going to take one slow step in, second step in, and just like slowly lower himself as he can, if he can't fit the whole, like his whole body with armor inside the bath. I'd really be extra careful not to like break the bath.

Right, yes. If it's large enough to hold a Minotaur, it's going to be large enough. Actarotus isn't crazy big. Okay, is Dagon getting some scrub brush action involved? Like is he putting a little elbow grease into it? And then is there like a, it's got to be like one of those giant ladles or something for like dumping water on the back sort of thing. You want to baste him. I'll just start basting him. Okay. So over the course of this, because this is, it's not crazy hot water obviously, but it's warm. They try and heat it and they draw a bath for people. Over the course of this, each time Dagon sort of dumps water over Actarotus, the water is going to get a little more cloudy.

It got a little cloudy when Dagon dumped this, the colon in the perfume. And that's a good thing because there's going to be bits, little chunks falling into the water. Little bits. Little bits. Like bits and pieces of skin. So these brown dried up pieces of flecks of skin are going to start to cloud up the water and fall out. Like each time he ladles a bit in there through the slits of Actarotus' armor, every once in a while something will just sort of like, just kind of like filter out. It's funny that's the sound Dagon's probably making. See that showing up.

Picture it like a really bad colander and spaghetti is kind of leaking out of it, out of the bottom. The holes are a little too big. So like little bits and pieces of it are going to be floating atop the water as that's in. There's a really, it's a really good thing there's a fragrant mixture in here. Otherwise the smell might not be so pleasant. Just a thought like this. You thought we were joking earlier when we made the bit about DNR at night, but it's happening right now. Hey, we both have our clothes on. There's going to be smooth jazz playing during this scene, right?

Is the door locked? I'm sure I would have made sure it was. You guys have been in there a long time. Well, you know what Mr. Page, you can take solace in the fact that this is not the worst thing that's going to happen to you today. You sound like you know something. Aranov and I would like to speak with the group, with Alexandra and the, I guess the high cleric of the town. Are you seeing this in the tub? Hey, this is casual conversation. Right, no, okay, I'm just trying to paint a picture. So like while, okay, so while Acheron is stooped down in the tub and Dagon is bathing him, this discussion is taking place.

Okay, I just need to know. Otherwise it would be awkward. This isn't happening. Okay, first of all, does this hurt? No, it actually feels very pleasant. There's pieces of you floating in the water. Oh, well, yeah, I guess they were already gone. Let's not mourn them. They were, I guess they were extra baggage. Okay. I also appreciate you and the whole group keeping this a secret for now. Considering what this town is, the problem this town is having, I really appreciate that this is our little, that this is our little secret. Clearly I would do anything for you.

Have you, are you really that attached to, are you attached to this armor? Well, we could get you something, something better and maybe wrap you up under there. He's gonna get one of his arms out of the water and sort of try to show you one of the linings, but like since it's all crushed, the lining's not like straight anymore or anything. It's just like hard to read, but you can see like tiny, like carved elven scriptures in it. He's gonna point at it and you can actually like, now that you have your face in it, you can see that pretty much the whole armor has those, like on, like all the edges of all the pieces.

These are all the names of the Athanasios that were part of the Rashobar order before me. All of our armors have all of these written on them. It's, it is a matter of great pride for us to wear it. It's tradition of course, but it's also for me right now, the only thing that helps me remember their names. I don't know if I would be able to remember their names ever since I got out of Onakal. You may know my memory hasn't been as good as it was before, and so I, it is very comforting to have these names with me all the time. Would it be apparent why it's written in elven?

I don't know. Okay, I guess I'll... I don't know yet. It's fancy. These writings are elven. You aren't yourself elven, are you? No, no. There is a fair amount of drow population in Onakal and... No cringe. And some of the Rashawar, the founders of the Rashawar order traveled far, and some of them were also of elven descent. We also think it's a very, it's an older language, and we think it looks better as well. You were close with some drow? Not personally, but I've worked close enough with them on the battlefield, and outside of the battlefield, and the arena, and they've proven their worth in combat.

And they are very strong people, and I have a fondness for every citizen of Onakal, regardless of their race, regardless of their status, be they slaves, gladiators, scholars, merchants. So yes, I would say I grew close to some of them. Well, that's very noble, but if you know a lot of history, you would know that historically, we don't get along with drow. Hmm. There is someone you should meet later. Well, it's all part of this meeting we're going to have with Aralav and the clergy. I assume something happened during your watch last night. Yes, and it will be up to you to decide if you are in or not on this, and you can pitch in if you have any good ideas as well.

But while our armors are being fashioned, we may have a task on our hands. Alright, well. I just won't tell you now because I don't want to break your focus. You're doing a great job. I guess the whole time you'd probably have a little cloth and sort of be like rubbing smudges off your armor. I'm going to have so much fun with the foley work. Like I want this serious conversation and in the background just like... Water noises? Yeah, just, ugh. Like ringing out the cloth, water dripping, taking care of business. Yeah, so would you guys like to meet up with the rest of the party?

Yes, I'm Aral dry. So, everyone else, I would imagine you had some sort of breakfast, you kind of collected yourselves? Definitely. Can I make a perception check to see if I notice that he's like cleaner? You sure can. And as a matter of fact... He must smell like a new puppy. Oh yeah, dude. As a matter of fact, everyone do me a favor and roll a perception check as Actaronis and Dagon rejoin the party. Yes! Well, first of all, Erolove and Brelin are going to notice that Dagon and Actaronis went away for a while. They just sort of disappeared for a bit. And when they rejoin the party, Erolove and Brelin are going to notice that Actaronis looks...

I mean, besides still being crushed, his armor is almost gleaming. There was a lot of gunk and grime and wear and tear and just dirt and mud sort of kicked up on it. And not only does he look like his armor's been polished and cleaned, he's going to smell much better. Maybe a little strong with the perfume, but... It'll last longer? Yeah, I mean, like, the alternative is Corpstink, so I mean, perfume isn't that bad. Erolove's gonna look at him, like, take it all in, like squint her eyes, like, "Huh, something's different. Wait, he looks cleaner. Huh, that's awesome.

Wait a second. He was gone." Then she's gonna look back and forth between Dagon and him, and then her eyes will get big, and then she'll look down at the table. There, I got it. I got it. That's the scene where, like, I slowly, like, walk down the stairs with cameras just filming my feet and, like, you as you slowly turn and watch, like, my slow reveal. Oh, it's a "She's all that" moment. Yeah, exactly. I didn't want to admit to that scene in that movie more than once. But I just did. I'll just be like, "What? Nothing happened? How was breakfast?" Dagon's hands are, like, black and red.

What is that beautiful smell? Nothing happened. We were both clothed, I swear to God. Nothing above the waist. Get used to that wonderful smell, because it's not going away. Would we want to discuss this with Alexandra and the head cleric? We might want to inform the rest of the group beforehand, just so that they don't learn everything as a surprise. Yeah. So, sit down, please, all of you. Aralef, do you want to take this? She's still looking at the table. Last night. And her face is a little redder than usual, as well. No, Acuarona, you should explain it. She's still processing.

Alright. I don't know. For some reason, Acuarona seems like he's standing a little more straight than he's in a hands-on-his-hips power pose. He has some confidence back. Obviously, you all know that this town has vampire problems. We encountered the proof firsthand yesterday night, after an hour of patrol, of keeping watch. A vampire of drow origins, and he's going to look at Dagon, came to us. Is it on the floor? No, I don't know. Just because I mentioned something earlier. That's a callback. He's expecting something to do with the drow, so he's going to take it.

In my opinion, he's probably part of the leaders, or former leaders of the vampires of the region. Maybe not THE leader, but he seems to have some grasp on what's going on. He and his people have also suffered great loss against that new monstrous vampire that's been rampaging in the area. He came to town to strike a deal with Alexandra, and the town to put an end to this new, extremely dangerous vampire. In exchange, he promised that it's still to be verified, but he promised that he would leave the town alone. In exchange for blood. That would not require them to kidnap people anymore.

Neither of us trust him, but this other vampire is a very large threat to this town, and actor Onis and I would like to help the town. We will be here for a few days because of the armor. We just wanted to let you know that this is what we were going to do. Is this important to you? It is to me. I find it extremely difficult to let the first vampire live, but I find it even more important to slay the second one. As well as, I think this town has a strong potential to help whatever is to come in three months. If there's going to be a war, then the people of Theria need prepared healers.

And what is to come in three months? Oh... Brelin's literally going to look at Cauldron and then back at the group and go "Whoops!" Are you serious? We never told you? We never told Cauldron. And Cauldron's going to be looking back and forth just between all of you, furrowed brow. Oh... There is a reason we are in a hurry to get to Talor. We need information and answers to be able to respond to... Just going to look around and see if there's not like townsfolk in the room. Like in Ir. No. A large army is coming to Theria in three months time if we don't do anything to stop it.

Just want to make sure that if we can't stop it, or if some other people let it happen, I want to make sure that we are prepared for what's to come. Brelin's going to interrupt. It's an army of demons. Welcome aboard. I see. And will this be the first battleground? Ah... The whole world, I think, is going to be the first battleground here, champ. Yeah, I don't think we know where the tear in the fabric of space and time will be, but we need to find it. There is a seal somewhere in the world, apparently. It's all timey-wimey, wimbly-wombly type stuff. You are a unique crew indeed.

And Cauldron is going to look at Acta Ronis and see his reflection in your shiny armor. No. And fall in love. For real here. I don't have it queued up anymore. I closed it. Sorry. And he's going to say, "But you all trusted me without ever knowing anything about me. If this is important to you, then it is my turn to trust you. And I will help you in any way I can." My priority would be to keep you all safe. If I can't slay the beast, then I must keep you all alive. That is my main focus. Brelim is going to raise his hand and then speak up. So, what's the problem that the vampires, the "good" vampires, he's going to have quotes, "good" vampires, what's the problem they have with this orc vampire?

What's their beef? I don't remember. According to that vampire, the orc vampire kills humans and vampires. He just kills indiscriminately. And he's in the caves with them, right? I don't think we live together. I don't know. He's in their area, is what I'm trying to say. Is there maybe a way we can contain him to stay where they are and then he finishes them all off for the town and us and we only deal with one vampire overall? Well, if we have an extensive knowledge of the caverns, maybe there's a way to trap them in. But they only have one entrance. And they're a week during the daylight, correct?

Yes. Everybody looks at Aralov. Oh yeah, she knows. Then I think it's most advantageous if we attack during that time. Hold on. Let's suppose this team up goes well and this orc vampire is slain. Do you not expect this drow vampire to then turn on you? I do. This is why we asked for him to give us a day to take a decision. I want us to come with a plan to either strike first or at least catch them off guard because they cannot be trusted. I'm not fooling myself. Good. In my opinion, to actor Onus last night, I believe that probably as soon as we kill this orc vampire, the other vampires will turn on us in our weakened state.

We don't trust him. Have we discussed talking about discussing this with whoever's in charge of Aubrey? I mean, they're all healers, right? Yes. Alexandra will appoint meeting in the afternoon. I think that's what she said. Okay. We just wanted to discuss this with you before we went. Do we have any idea of how many vampires are out there? Did he say a number? Nope. Okay. He did mention that their numbers were considerably reduced recently, but maybe Alexandra knows more about this. She definitely would. Well, are you ready to take on all the vampires? I was born ready.

Because that's potentially what we're walking into here. Alexandra did mention that they might have a weapon. Oh yeah. So we were going to meet up with her and see what they can bring and then formulate a plan. Yes. And you... Well, I'm sorry, go ahead. Take on my apologies. It's okay. He'll just look at Actuaronas and Irelia. You two are set on this. I'm afraid so, yes. Yes. Okay. Well, I've got your back. So let's go find out what this weapon is. I think we still have a few hours before meeting them. So in the meantime, why don't we go pay a visit to this extraordinary craftsman?

No, that's right. Yeah, let's find this badass blacksmith. That's what Brelin will say. And then he'll get his own bag of scales. Not Actuaronas' because that hurt his shoulder last time. Aww. But you won't tell me. No, I will not tell you. No. Keep it all in. Okay, I'll pick up my bag and yeah, I guess I'm ready to go. You guys suddenly had a lot to do in Aubrey. So we're going to the trusty blade, I take it? Yes. Making our way over to the trusty blade. You are going to see the sign of what would appear to be the big general goods type store in town. As you cross the threshold of this building, I would like everyone to do me a favor and roll a perception check.

It was almost a 20 and then it turned into an 8. Nothing. I walk into a door. Brelin was like, "Calvin, did we not tell you about doors? Sorry, you gotta turn them out." I walked right into the door. We have no doors in the mountains. It's cool, man. It's cool. Well, crossing... Okay. Nobody sees anything, really. No, wow. I'm trying to get... Arilov, I guess, is going to be doing the scene for the group. Thank you. Looking around, I would say most of you, except for maybe Kaladin. Kaladin wouldn't even pick most of this up, but everyone else would sort of look around and see that there are general weapons on the walls and stuff like that.

Behind the counter, there are actually really nice sets of armor and things like that. Some of them are spread out or hanging from the walls. Some of them are bits and pieces that it looks like are being assembled currently. Behind the counter, you are going to see a gnome with kind of long, scraggly hair. He's got this beard that's very neatly trimmed, almost sharply. And the second Arilov comes into view, he is going to lean over the counter. "Well, hey." And he is very clearly talking to Arilov. Like, the rest of the group, it's like, "Yeah, that's whatever." But he is very clearly talking to Arilov.

She's going to look confused and look behind her. And then look back at him and say, "I was told there's a great armorsmith here?" He is going to hop down from the little stool behind the counter and you're going to hear his little feet kind of hit the ground. And he is going to walk around. There is a, well, there is a kind of a hatch that's the, like a bar, where you can raise it so that the counter is, you know, you can walk behind it. He doesn't need to raise it, he can just kind of walk under it. So he is going to walk around the counter and approach Arilov.

"Well, you heard correct, darlin'." And he is going to reach out and try to kind of paw at Arilov's hand. Braillein will step forward, grab his hand, "Ah, ah, ah, ah!" "Easy there, tiger." He is, he is going to look a little annoyed. "I didn't mean any offense, there's no need to get all in an uproar, but hey, it's nice to see a fellow gnome." And he's going to, Braillein is going to look back at him and like, kind of close his eyes a little bit. "I'm not a gnome." He's going to look down at his own body, "What? What?" "I mean, you're a little short for a halfling, ain't ya?

I mean..." He will growl audibly, very loudly. He's going to take a step back and then let Arilov continue talking. He's going to look very confused. "I am, I am real sorry for that interruption, darling. What's your name?" "I'm just debating if she would say her full name. No, uh, Arilov and... we came to have armor and weapons, Smith?" He is going to reach out and take Arilov's hand in his, unless she were to pull away. It's confused, so she has no idea what's happening. He's going to lean forward and gently kiss Arilov's hand. She's going to pull it away quickly.

She's not angry, she's just like, "What is happening?" Would Dagon be like, in her view right now? Oh yeah, all of you. All of you would be able to see what's going on. This is not that large a shot. Dagon's going to look at Arilov and if she's looking, he's going to sort of like, raise his eyebrows and just mouth, "It's your turn." She has wide eyes, a look of fear in her face. She's looking at all of you like, "Oh my god, someone." Dagon is smiling, the biggest smile he possibly could muster. He's going to enjoy this. Arilov still looks confused and insulted, he's going to call the gnome.

He's going to keep looking at his hands, "Why would he think I'm a gnome?" He's going to, after you pull away, he's just going to give a little bow. "My name is Artemis Pakdarlin and I am the greatest armorsmith that you will ever meet." Like, he is laying it on thick. Like, this is, like, thick. She's, okay, so Arilov's not used to any attention, so she's going to take her pack off her back and, like, shove it into his arms. "We need armor out of this." She's just trying to get out of the situation as quickly as possible. Okay, Dagon, I can take a look at what you got.

And he is going to undo the flap on your pack and then take his, he's got these little reading glasses in his pocket and he's going to, he's going to put them on. And then he's going to go silent. Where did you get these? We came across them. Where? South. Listen, Dagon, you, you, you look real smart, so I think you know what I'm trying to ask you. I mean, where did you get them? She would look to the party and then say, "We did not kill the beast that these were once part of, if that's what you're looking for." Have you heard the name Strahd before? Let's just come out and see it.

These, these are from Strahd. Now see, normally if someone came into my shop and said that I'd call him a damn liar, but these look awfully old, so I really don't think you'd lie to me, Precious. So I believe you. Now I'm not going to ask how you got them. My question is, what do you want done with them? Uh... I know I want armor. I don't think I've thought this through yet. Oh god. We've only had like six months. We're like at the front of the line at Costco like, "Oh shit, I forgot everything!" I will have one of your... Oh no, I only got orange juice. We need armor to fit our individual needs and fighting styles.

Well, I'm gonna need a bit more of a specific order than that, but let me just say that, and he's going to turn back to air love, it would be my absolute pleasure to craft anything you might desire, darlin'. And on top of that, this would be the most exotic material I've ever been able to work with, so you're actually doing me two favors. One, give me these dragon scales, and two, gracing me with your presence. So air love's actually starting to like, get herself together, and she's starting to realize that, "Hmm, this might cost a lot." So, she's gonna say, "Any smith would be honored to work on Strahd's scales.

I'm sure that alone will rake in business. To be able to say that you crafted armor out of the oldest dragon in the land." He's gonna give this, he's gonna actually think about that. Well, I don't think you're lying about that. I could actually bring in some business. We can get these damn vampires to stop attacking. I might even get some new customers. We might also take care of that problem as well. Do tell. We might this evening be taking care of the vampire problem with your local cleric. So, not only will you rake in the business, we will take care of that problem.

So maybe we could work out a very good deal with these scales, with this armor and weapon requisition. Here's the thing, darlin'. I've kinda heard this pitch before, and it didn't exactly go as well as that group told me, so... Well, maybe we'll take these scales somewhere else. Well, now come on. There's no need to be like that. I'm sure we can work out something. And at that last line, he's gonna kind of sidle up just a little bit closer, Airlove. [Laughter] Starting to look panicky again. I need an adult. [Laughter] I'll tell you what. This is gonna take a while.

I'm not gonna lie. If I'm gonna make armor for all five of you out of these scales, I'm not gonna want to rush it. So, I'd say three weeks or so, and I'd have you all exactly what you're looking for. [Laughter] I guess that makes sense. Holy crap, three weeks. Sorry. Xavier, are you getting our mermaid? No, I think I'm just gonna get something smaller, something I can put over it. Something complimenting. I'm supposed to only wear lighter stuff, because what I'm wearing right now is giving me disadvantage on a lot of things. Actually, the thing is, the lighter stuff is gonna cause more of a trouble.

Because if he's making plate armor out of the dragon scales, it's a lot easier. What he's got to do with the smaller stuff is cut it into much smaller pieces and make an almost chainmail type of thing. Yeah, I figured it's a little more intricate. Yeah. "Ugh, more problems! Sorry, I'm causing them!" Could he ship it to us if we sent a raven to tell him where we are? Well, the town doesn't use ravens, but they do have a mail system. Just so we don't have to wait here for it. But then it'd be in good faith, obviously. Well, he is a reputable business gnome.

And if we end up in Talur in three weeks, which I hope we do, does the mail reach Talur? There are ships that go out to Talur. It gets exponentially harder. As if it wouldn't get stolen. Or destroyed. I mean, there's fucking hydras, there's ice storms. See, the thing is, you can find a good deal, but it's gonna kill you with the shipping. This is like real life. We're playing real life right now. Where's our Prime Account? What's it gonna take to expedite this process? Well, I do suppose that if I had something to look forward to... And he's going to reach over and begin stroking Erolove's leg?

Okay, Dagon's gonna reach out and put his hand on his chest and just say, "Stop. That's not happening." Aw, I have big brothers in my group. I tried. He confused the shit out of me. He made me think about my own existence. I actually think he talks pretty smooth. I'm taking notes. Ooh, it is DNR after the... [Laughter] What if there was a tiny amount of extra scales that you could use for your own and sell at the price you want? Of these scales? The very same. Okay, I'm listening. When we go back to... Oh no, the ship. Do you also dabble in both repairs? Do you know boat repairsmen?

Just a side question. Okay, let me see if I understand what you're asking. You have a boat docked? We came by boat from the Frost Basin? Yes. And you walked here? Yes, sir. You know there's a road, right? You could have just took the road. The road that leads to the Frost Basin? No, but... Oh yeah, well, we couldn't bring our ship on land so we had to make a detour. The point is, we have little amount of extra scales. If you came with us when we go back with some squire of yours, you could bring those back with you. Okay, how extensive are the repairs we talking?

More than three weeks. Patchwork. Should we all blowcheck them? Not that bad at all. It's severe. Huh. Alright, I'll tell you what. I want to work on these scales and you got extra. And I want them too. So, I might have some people who can work on your boat. It's gonna take me a while to get this done anyway. So I have my boy Rusty take them up, work on the boat, bring back the scales, and we can work on some kind of discount for this armor. Hmm. So I just don't want to say that there's more scales than I let on. Yeah. I give you my personal guarantee. And he's gonna pan back to air level one more time.

You will never, ever find someone who can work on this armor better than me. You will not live to regret it. And he's staring very intently at her, just kind of like smoldering eyes. Okay, so huddle up. Give up all our scales or do we try to lie or split or say? I don't mind giving up some of mine obviously, because my armor is gonna take longer and I don't really feel that I would require too much armor. Like maybe I need like... We didn't bring them all with us, right? Yeah, there's some extra on the boat. We only brought what we could make, like one armor each.

Not to mention all the shit that's frozen to the side of the wall of the boat. Oh, that's right. I mean, if we said he could take as much as he could carry, that's not very many. Him personally, not his group, because if he brings Rusty and Rusty, it turns out to be a fucking elephant. I don't want him to be able to carry a lot. Rusty's been on the show before. I don't remember Rusty. I'm drawing a blank. Is he a gnome too? No, he's the wagon driver with diabetes. That's right. The clerk just took my foot. Yeah, I remember. Oh, how could I forget? Oh, man. My vote is to give him...

My vote is... What do we... What do we... We can lie to him. We can lie and tell him we don't have a whole lot, and then that's... The extra we give him is maybe like a small percentage. I have a really good bluff. I could lie to him. Oh, we could tell... We could offer that he... In exchange for repairs, he can take the ones that are being used to repair the ship at the moment. Yes. I like that. Okay. What do we really need the other scales for, though? Just one of our bartering ships. That thing really... Yeah, it's just like it's worth... If one of us dies and the next cast member comes on and wants to get our armor, we have a surplus.

Fair enough. So what's the plan here, guys? I mean, my vote is to give him the ones he replaces our boat with, like when he replaces the pieces on the boat. Okay. It should be a lot, right? Like, it was a gash. It was a huge gash. It's a huge gash. It sounds like those scales are paying for the repair on the ship, but we actually still have to pay for the armor with maybe a discount. Is that what it is? But these scales are worth so much that that big slab would probably pay for his rent for the next billion years. I like how you thought it was on rent, though.

I don't know. I like that. Oh, that's good. That's good. We have an anchor in reality. That's good. It'll pay for his hookers, too. Yes. Whoa, whoa, whoa. I don't know why you think C. Dudamus needs to pay for it. Allegedly. He's charming as shit. He really charms those hookers. If the amount that the scales cost, if she's right, then I think that we could finagle it to say, like, "Yeah, the scales on the side of the boat are yours if you repair them and we can get a discount on the armor." Well, who's going to pitch it? I don't... Yeah, because... Erlo, you seem to be only dealing with one person here.

Please, Erlo. Hold on. Wait, wait. I have an idea. Are we saying all the scales or not? Just the frozen ones? Just the ones frozen on the ship as well. We also need to trust them. Erlo, I'm going to sing you a song. I'm going to inspire competence in you. You're going to get plus two to your next check using the skill, and I'm going to assume you're going to use diplomacy next to talk to this little asshole. I'm going to do a six. I'm humming Careless Whisper under my breath. I never got this again. And then I'll put my hand on your shoulder. You don't think that song's going to play underneath this entire thing?

It starts off when the episode starts. People are going to be like, "Why are they playing that song?" Before I say this to him, I just want to make sure I have it right. So I'm going to say we have a large swath of scales that are currently repairing our boat. They're on the side of our boat that you are free to take for the repairs. Yes, and to give us a discount on the armors. Because you should convince him that the amount he's getting is worth way more than what we're getting. Because it probably is, like you said. One skill pays his rent for a million years.

A billion years, that is so precise. And you have plus two to diplomacy. I'm sure we won't regret this. If you repair our boat, we currently have a large swath of scales filling a hole on the side of our boat that you are more than welcome to take. As payment for the repairs. And maybe as a discount for armor. Should I roll something? One second. Or is he still taken with me? [Laughter] So, just so I understand, you want to pay me in those scales? These priceless scales, yes. How many are we talking here? About the size of a side of a boat. We also have money.

Yeah. Thank you, Hector Lewis. [Laughter] Do you say that? Yeah. Do me a favor, roll a diplomacy check. Yes! And you're getting a plus two. Okay, I have that modified. God damn it. And show him your ankle. I have to untuck my pants for my boots. Hot! One second, let me un-lace my boot. [Laughter] Well, I tried. Why am I doing this? [Laughter] It's just one date. [Laughter] Hey, Izzy already owes him a date. That's true. This poor guy keeps getting stood up, it's unfair. [Laughter] Well, as much as I would love to just flat out barter with you, I do believe I'm going to have to take some sort of cash deposit as well.

And it's nothing personal, darling, I assure you. Because, my God, you have smoldering eyes. But, I do have to pay rent. And tourism's been on the light side, so just in case you don't take care of the vampires, some gold would be nice. I'll tell you what, though. Because you are so pretty. How about you pay half what I would normally charge? So, in the area of... And he's going to look, he's going to sort of pan back. That one's pretty small. And he's going to point at Brelyn. God damn it, stop pointing at me. [Laughter] I'm going to say $15,000. Plus the scales, and we'll call it even.

I'm going to do a Ulan Roll insight check to see if this price is accurate. Sure. I've never done this one before. [Laughter] And that's why. Sounds accurate to Brelyn. Of course, I'm more concerned with my own existence. Am I halfling? Is this real? [Laughter] Do we even halve that amount? We all look at day gone. I gave most of my money to Ulan. Collectively, yeah, you guys would be able to cover that. Can I roll an insight? Since I'm just rolling them all night tonight. Go right ahead. A little better. Can we barter another 20% off if we kill the vampires?

I completely forgot about that part of our deal. Or more? That's going to sound like it's really tough to put a stamp on this because of the material you're handing him. It's not like there's anybody else who's going to be able to say, "Oh, I made something with Strahd's armor and I only charged 8,000." It's not like you can find someone else, but it does seem a tiny bit high, Tarilove. Considering you're handing him that many dragon scales too. And they're worth their weight in gold. What about if we ask him to... outfit us with some weapons for killing the vampires?

Hey, my diplomacy sucks, so go ahead. He can come back and get them if we die. Oh hey, my diplomacy's not too bad. I would mention the vampires, maybe. My diplomacy is very bad, so... It's just the fact that he's not responsive to the male gender. That's a pretty good diplomacy. He's not going to want to talk to us, man. He's already made that abundantly clear. I could give it a try. Yeah, but my feminine wiles have done nothing. I've just kind of threatened him so far, so... There are things you can do to get pluses. That's all I'm going to say. Nope. Alright.

Does anyone have a sister? I was waiting for good reason to remove my armor, but I take it all off. I think Aralov's attempt at seduction would be laughable too. I'm going to roll up my sleeves. Maybe bring up the vampire thing and ask him if that can help out a little bit. Knock down that price. That's probably a good idea. Who? Aralov? -Acarona? -Yeah. Aralov. You're already in conversation with him, right? Or was it Dagon? I thought you two were in conversation with him. Well, I wasn't. He doesn't know Acarona. He might be a woman under there. He smells wonderful now, doesn't he?

Well, he does. -Mmm. Roses of Lavin. -Mmm. Roses of Lavin. Jasmine? Definitely. That's his name. Would you step up and try to diplomasize a deal? Anybody with better diplomacy, like, it would still be better. What appeals to this guy? Cauldron is going to walk up, take a step up, and say, "These are legendary scales, and this would be a legendary task. You're not thinking in the long term. If you were to make this at the price that we have set out, this would set your reputation far beyond the walls of Opry. You would be set for life, vampires or no, which we will be taking care of.

People will come flocking to you for your skills, and for the things that can be done, with any material." And can I roll diplomacy? You absolutely can. Go right ahead. I'd also like to add, Brailen jumps in and says, "Not just people from across the world, but women from across the world." And women, of course. Oh yeah. Do me a favor, Brailen, roll an assist. With diplomacy? For diplomacy? Does he need it? Oh, your diplomacy is much higher than mine. Yeah, okay. When you said, "My diplomacy isn't too bad," that's not what you meant to say. Yeah. I was like, "I got a 13.

I'm great." What you meant to say is, "Everyone shut the fuck up." Yeah, why was I talking? Because you were making great headwave. I feel like after Kaladin says that, we all look at him and be like, "Oh my god, you talk for us forever." Yeah. You speak the words very nice. Okay, so after Kaladin kind of lays this out, alright. I'll shake my head at the woman part. Be like, "Yeah." I'll do it for 10,000 and the dragon scales, but I can't go any lower than that. But if y'all survive the vampires, you got to promise to tell everyone that comes across seeing you in that nice armor where you got it from.

It will be done. We will make your name well known across these lands. That price... Nope, that price seems fair. If there's anything else you can put in to maybe help us assist with the vampires to secure your livelihood here and the lives of everyone in the town. Yeah... You're gonna have to talk to the folks at the temple about that one. I used to have a stash of stuff, but had to get rid of it. And he is going to hold his hand out to shake. Is he holding it out to Kaladin? Yes. Okay, and Kaladin will spit in his hand and shake it. Careful, he might kiss it.

Why'd you do that? It seals our deal. It makes it real. No, it gets my hand wet. Oh, I'm sorry. And then he'll wipe it off on his clothes. And he's gonna wipe it over his pants. And why the hell are your hands so cold? We just came from the Frost Basin. And he's just gonna kinda stare at you like you're weird and then just kind of move on. Alright, look. Leave the scales here, I'll get started. I might need to take some measurements at some point, but... Yeah. Give me a list of the stuff you want and I'll get it to you. We thank you for your time. It is good to do business with you.

Hmm. I'll rally Rusty and the boys and send them up to the Frost Basin, you said, right? You got an exact location? Where the river meets the Frost Basin. The only ship out there. The broken ship out there. You'll see our ship. You can't miss it. There's a hidden dinghy somewhere in the snow. It's like ice and stuff. Just don't touch it. We're gonna need to get to the ship. Bring your own dinghy. No, I'm just kidding. Also, tell him to be wary of giant worms. Don't tell him about the worms. Let him find out. Alright. I'll take care of it. And he's just gonna nod at you guys.

He'll get started. I will let you know the details of what I want when we come back from this whole expedition. And you know what? If I don't make it back, you can do what you please with my bunch of the scales. Alright. As you guys are getting ready to leave, he's gonna look at her, love. I'll see you later, darling. I'm sure. And she will hurriedly exit. Let's pick things up a little bit later in the afternoon. You're supposed to have a meeting at the temple of a monitor in town here, which is the largest building in town and wouldn't be hard for any of you to spot.

So are you just gonna head over there? Yeah. Let's stroll. Do me a favor, everyone, and walking into this temple, I'd like you to roll a perception check. Those have gone great all night. Picking my nose. Oh, that's fair. Yeah, that's not too bad. Let's see, Eroluff, Dagon, and Khaldun are gonna walk in here and this place is immaculate, firstly. It's clean and there are all kinds of statues and little knick-knacks and such hanging about the place. And the place is relatively empty. This is normally a place where people might bring their injured or something like that, but right now the place is relatively empty.

There is an older man standing in the place and he is making his way toward the entrance where you guys are. Sort of dressed all in white and right next to him would be Alexandra. He would approach the party and sort of give this kind of half bow. And he would kind of motion in with his hand. Please, everyone come in. Khaldun comes in. Yeah, we walk in. As you're walking in, he's sort of walking next to the party. Alex has told me a great deal about the vampire last night. Have you discussed it as a group? Yes, I think we've come to a consensus and we will follow the same course of action that we've discussed with Alexandra last night.

And do you trust this creature? We do not. So we intend to go there prepared, as well equipped as we can, with a contingency plan. Because I expect the worst as soon as we slay the beast. He is going to lean over and whisper something in Alex's ear. And she is going to quickly walk to the back of the temple and disappear behind this door. You understand that you are doing us a great service by even attempting to take on this vicious killing machine. If I may, sir, some of us are doing it also for personal reasons. But I do want to say that one of the motivations for me to want to help Aubrey is because you have so many healers, so many people of faith.

And I know this is not the best time to hear more bad news, but you need to be prepared, you and your whole town and your whole clergy need to be prepared for something that's coming in three months. And I know I've said that a lot during this episode, so I don't know if I'm going to do the whole spiel again. No, I think Breland would try to stop, like, at the run-ins and be like "woah, woah, woah, woah, woah" and kind of shake his head left to right. Like, no, don't, don't do this right now. I will let you know more if we return, but know that the Theria will need healers in the future, so if you have young recruits, train them well with the time you have.

And of course, I do believe that it is by a monitor's grace this town has not slipped completely into darkness over the years, and I once again want to thank each of you for risking your lives to fight a threat that even the vampires fear. You will not be going into this completely unarmed, though. And about this time, Alex is going to be walking back up the aisle holding one small chest, and there would be two more clerics walking behind her with a much longer chest. And they're going to place the objects right next to Father White. We recently received two shipments.

One from the city of Brightport. It is a long lost artifact recovered from the city of Overwatch. And he is going to kind of motion for them to crack open this chest. Everyone do me a favor and roll a perception check. Yes. I'm so excited. 18 is good enough. We finally get legendary stuff. Oh yeah, wait a minute. We don't have anything legendary. Dagon is our legendary item. Yeah. And his ship. Oh, we'll talk about that. And the scales. So let's see here. Erolove. Erolove, Dagon, Brailin is going to see this gorgeous polished white staff lying in a chest that seems to be built for just this staff.

It seems to gather in all of the light that would be in this temple. And there's these gorgeous stained glass windows that kind of capture the light outside. This thing is just brilliant. It's beautiful. I would like the party to do me a favor and roll a history check. Fuck yeah, this is going to be good. God dammit. Oh no. 11 is good enough. So we have 11 is good enough. 17 is good enough. Dagon would actually recognize this item as the Staff of Unwavering Light. It is supposedly blessed by the gods, specifically a monitor. And what it does is take a pretty good healer and turn them into a fantastic healer.

The healer is supposed to be granted with the power of the sun itself and is supposed to light the user's darkest hour. Supposedly. That's all Dagon tells us? Well as soon as he sees it he'd probably just be like "this is tough". You just see it's low under his breath. Kind of like pretty impressed that he's seeing it. And then, well who would want? I'm trying to figure that out. Actoronus. I think Actoronus is our healer, but you don't use staff. I don't think I can use staff as an implement. Maybe. Let me see. There's Erelith. Yeah, go ahead. The other shipment from the city of the Overwatch itself returned to us after their new queen was appointed.

And he's going to motion for them to open the smaller chest. Do me a favor and roll Perception. Actoronus, Erelove, Dagon. The entire party really is going to take in this, this seemingly is a slightly less impressive item. Whereas that staff is obviously useful as a weapon and you may not get the full significance of it, but it's obviously an implement. This second item appears to just be a polished silver ball. There it is. In this small chest. History? Everyone do me a favor and roll a History. Come on, come on. Oops. Yes! That's a crit. Erelove, tell them what they've won! *Laughter* What is Orb of Light?

The Orb of Light. Jeeeee-sus. She will gasp. Like, loudly. I see you recognize the item. Is, is that the Orb of Light? The very same. Is it a well known fact that it drives people crazy? Uh, it is. It, it, I'd say with your History check, oh yeah, you know all about it. What you'd know is that it enhances the power of, of people who, um, healers and things like that to a pretty crazy degree. The problem with the Orb is that it sort of has a mind of its own and it will seek out and destroy the undead. That's what it wants anyway. And it takes some, it takes a pretty unique will to be able to deal with that.

How does it feel to be a criminal? I really, really, really, really want to know what it does to an undead. *Laughter* Either way it's going to be fun to have it in the party, just because. Okay, for all of us dumb-dumbs with no perception, uh, Kaladin's going to ask, What power do these relics have? Th-thanks Kaladin. These might just give you the leg up that you need in fighting the vampires. Of course, we wouldn't send you in completely empty handed and these relics are more than priceless to the temple. We would of course allow you to use them indefinitely if you were to promise to do everything in your power to take care of the menace.

Without a doubt. And if I can help it, no undead will, no undead shall stand after I'm done with them. Sorry, Slate. Does the Orb do anything but enhance healing powers? Does an enhanced attack? No, it comes with its own set of attacks. I feel like she'd be instantly worried for Actaonus. Like she'd know it enhances healing, but... Well, it doesn't necessarily make acts on its own, it just tries to influence the user. Actaonus, kill yourself. That would be amazing! I want Actaonus to just go pick it up out of blind curiosity. Like, hmm, what is this? This all seemed very dangerous.

I'm not a fan. I think that's a good time for us to stop for the night. Yeah, we can think about it. We'll have time. That was great. You guys did amazing. We have legendary items! Wait, I thought there were three chests or just two? Two. Okay, Brailin. I'll find you a toy. I mean, he could take the Orb too. He has healing powers. I don't want to touch that thing. Crazy. So is the Orb considered a holy symbol? It's considered a cursed item, I guess. I don't know. Well, it depends on who you ask. But I mean, like, in the technicality of classes, as an implement, is it a holy symbol?

Oh, it could be used as a holy symbol, yeah. Because yeah, staff? I don't think clerics can wield staffs. Any character can use the Orb of Light, technically. It's just considered... but it really... it's like... You remember when Kelsey snatched up that staff? Any character can technically use it if they can use a staff, but it's not going to do much for... It'll give her a slight bump to her offense and stuff like that, but she wasn't a healer, so it wasn't going to... So do these affect divine powers, or like... any kind? Anything that would... firstly, anything that would give healing.

If it's tagged "radiant" or "divine", you're going to see some... yeah. You could probably act alone with some eye then. I have proficiency with quarterstaff. You could, yeah, you could hit people with it. And wrist razors? Or am I looking at this wrong? No, no, no. Me too. I got wrist razors too. Widow's knife. I mean, technically, Breland has healing powers. But I don't want to touch anything, are you kidding? All those fucking things... I know the staff is like "oh cool, it's the staff takes them to the light and blah blah blah" and Carter had it, that's great, but the Orb is like...

I remember hearing about that as a listener and being like "oh my god, I never want to see that thing". And now it's here, and like... I've always wanted to see it. And I've always wanted to see it. And I've always wanted to see it. And I've always wanted to see it. And I've always wanted to see it. And the second you touch Xavier, you're gonna melt. Maybe, yeah, maybe. Susan's concerns are, in fact, the power. But I don't want it at the same time. Does it amplify psionic power? See, that would be something that would be largely untested, right? Oh, that's true.

Maybe I could use it and open the gate. Oh, oh shit. I remember how that went last time. What's everybody's will at? Practice makes perfect. I got 27. What's the what? Your will. Where's will? Someone else has to be the highest, because there's no way I'm the highest of will. It's tied between actor Ernest and Errolith. Hey, you guys are gonna have to... Why don't you share it? Yeah! Is it your 27, you say? Yeah, I'm will, 27. I'm 25. Yeah, I'm 25 too. So we are tied. Well, I feel like that's something you guys should discuss on the page. Yeah. And with that, we should probably wrap things up tonight.

Ah, yeah. I'm grinning so hard. Yeah, that was great. Thank you so much. And thank you guys for kicking it a little later. Sorry for your pain. It's fun. I'm gonna go play some Fallout New Vegas in preparation for Fallout 4. Oh, yeah. Thanks, Jason. That was a super fun session. Yeah, that was awesome. I'm really glad we got a chance to play a longer session. I'm really glad that you all enjoyed it. And I'm sure listeners will like it too. Everybody did a great job today. Everybody kicked ass today. It's awesome. I'm okay to not play for a little while. Like, it's fine.

The itch has been scratched for a little bit. Yeah, I kinda felt like we're not gonna be able to get to sit down for a little bit. So like, I wanted to make it worthwhile. So we're gonna do this next week, right? God, yeah, we have to see what those things do. We have to see what they do. Yeah, we're gonna see who takes them. In one episode, you guys went from, like, wilderness, wilderness, wilderness, so it's like you have a wealth of things to do in Aubrey. You actually have ties to this town now. There's lots of stuff going on. Our quest log is so full.

Oh yeah, we need to ask about the whirlpool next time. Yeah, but we missed the check mark. Side quest check mark, not check mark. And the rats? Stash? Yeah, if we survive, we'll ask about the rats. Oh yeah, they're running away, right? The thing that you suggested. Oh, we have to make sure we don't have STDs, right? Yeah. Oh shit, that's right. I am clean as the new fallen snow. By the way, Ian, sorry we forgot to tell... Oh yeah, you know what's funny? I didn't realize that until that moment. I was like, "Oh shit, I have no idea what they're talking about yet." Yeah, it's true.

But I would have Dagon go check for tetanus. Yeah, I gotta go with you too. We both gotta go to the health clinic, Dagon. Alright, I'm out guys. Yeah, thanks so much. Talk to you soon. Bye! Hey DNR listeners, this is James from Group 2, just here to remind you that you can support everything we do here by kindly going to patreon.com/dandr and donating as little as $1 to access some first-rate bonus content. Also, please check out Dungeons & Randomness on Facebook and on our website, dnrpodcast.com, where you can access the forums and get involved with our great listenership, sharing your thoughts on the episodes, all things D&D, and pretty much whatever you want.

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