High Rollers DnD - Altheya: The Dragon Empire #5 | Blood and Fire (Part 1)

Episode Date: December 5, 2023

Alongside a small regiment of soldiers the party leave Burnell to explore Caldra! Support the High Rollers on Patreon and get early access to Podcast episodes, vods and more: www.patreon.com/HighRollers Music courtesy of Epidemic Sound, TCT Adventures (Solasta: Crown of the Magisters) and Jolene Khor! Check out Jolene Khor and all her wonderful work on High Rollers on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/1WX3ICiTmf4GpHwImnQMs6 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Pickaxe. Protect that lead. That's like 2FA on Kraken. A surefire way to keep what you already have safe and sound. Go to kraken.com and see what crypto can be. Not investment advice. Crypto trading involves risk of loss. See kraken.com slash legal slash ca dash pru dash disclaimer for info on Kraken's undertaking to register in Canada. A group of strangers arrived in the village of Burnell, a small homely settlement in the region of Northvale in the province of Caldra. small homely settlement in the region of Northvale in the province of Caldra. As their paths begin to cross, they are thrown together in the search for a trio of criminals which leads them up into the mountains and into Blackrock Mine. Inside, they fought against strange alien creatures called

Belomorphs and encountered a tiefling, also known as a tiefling in Althea, called Caliphras, who told them about a stolen relic and offered to make a deal, which the party rejected. Reaching the bottom of the mine, they found the criminals and the mine's foreman, Marion, who had lost control of the relic, the Hand of the Lightless Pilgrim. After the battle, the relic was whisked away by an invisible Caliphras, but with the creatures defeated and the criminals apprehended, the party returned to Burnell and were rewarded with a bounty and a duke's favour. And that is where we pick up today's episode, in fact.

I believe that at the end of the last episode, there's a very slight rewinding of time almost a little bit here because I believe that we basically were going to start it with you guys sort of heading out of the village but i wanted to give you guys an opportunity if there was any last minute things that you wanted to do um any things like buying supplies and things like that and also set the scene up where you guys are making your way because i believe that you had all agreed to head towards uh the largest settlement the town of ashen's rest uh which is to the south, more in the heartlands of Kaldra.

You are going to be accompanied by Captain Lucas Vecaro, offered to send an escort of some soldiers with you, as well as Authorita Zaron Tekis would be travelling with you back to Ashen Rest as well. But we awake. It is early morning. We can say that you have had things like breakfast and all of that's been taken care of

as part of the celebrations and thanks from the village of Burnell for you being here. But yeah, we kind of start and begin with you guys here, ready to begin on your journey. So the Duke's Favour included 125 smackaroos as well, right? Well, that was the bounty for the Recovering the Criminals. The actual Duke's Favor

is a separate thing. But yeah, the bounty for the captured, you captured two of the criminals alive and one dead and you were paid a bounty of 125 gold but in rubies, basically.

That wasn't our fault. Is the market still about in Burnell? It is, yeah. There's not just a market. There is actually, there are like brick and mortar stores here as well. And you can, you know, Bernal is a kind of small like village,

like an outskirts village, but it's a promising one. It's a growing one, quite prosperous. It's on a made trade road. So there are various merchants and things here as well. So if there were any supplies that you were going to need on your journey, and this is probably a good point.

In fact, actually, no. I've got to get into the habit of this. There's one thing we have to do before anything else. Are you rewinding again? What? Are you rewinding again? No, this is a thing that happens behind the scenes, Thomas. Because it is time to determine the crucible of fate.

This is the thing we have to remember at the beginning of every session. So this is a new mechanic that I've introduced to the campaign, and we introduced it in the last episode. There have been some slight tweaks. Just because this is going to be an evolving mechanic, after speaking with the team, looking at it myself, and taking on some feedback, there have been some slight adjustments.

Nothing too major. More in the way that the Crucible can be used. But the way this works is I need all of you to roll a d6. And I, in fact, too, will also roll a d6. And on a result of a one to three, you will add a dice to my side of the Crucible. On a roll of a four, five, or six, you will add a dice to your side of the Crucible.

And so we will determine that. Five. I've got a five. I've got a one. All right, keep in mind. Keep in mind. So, Katie, a one from you. A two from me.

A two from you. So two so far in the pool for me. So far so good. Kim? Five. Five. Yeah. Three.

A five, a three. So another one in my pool. And then Rhiannon? A one. A one. Luckily, I rolled a four. So that is two to you. Two on our side, four. They call up late. I rolled a four, so that is two to you. Two on our side, four on your side.

Okay, okay. Now, I will go over briefly, just because people at home might be interested. So the way that it's changed ever so slightly is just how the Crucible dice are spent, basically. So now, basically, at various points, you guys can add a d6 to certain things. I can add a d6 to certain things, but they are different because of the way that game balance works

and the mechanics and the maths of 5e works. You guys as players can spend a crucible or fate dice in one of the following ways. You can add a d6 to an attack roll, an ability check, or a saving throw, except death saving throws. It's the one thing you can't do. But the die must be added before the result of the roll is made. So before I tell you whether it succeeds or fails,

you have to choose to add it before you roll. That's different. So that's slightly different. You can only do that once. You can't spend three to add three d6 either. You spend one, you get one d6, right? You can use a crucible point to re-roll the result of a random event or other similar roll requested by the DM.

So, for example, on a journey, and you guys trigger an event, and you roll low, and you think, well, that might be bad, you can spend a Fate Point to re-roll that dice and see if you get a different result, right? Out of interest, do we know the result of the journey before we roll it? No. Or is it like we see the result and then we're like, okay. See the result and be like, nah, that's probably gonna be bad.

It could be bad. Yeah, exactly, that kind of thing. You can also spend a Crucible Dice to add a minor beneficial element to a scene or an environment. For example, to add a piece of cover to a battlefield, establish a positive connection with a non-hostile NPC, or to create a timely distraction

or find a simple common item when searching an area. So this is your way of almost having a bit of control over a scene and being like oh well this merchant i actually have met him before and like we've got a good relationship i want to spend a point so that we've got a positive connection to this npc right or oh can i search this area to see if there's a key to this door you might spend a point and maybe a lot of things you can throw like we did last night exactly right uh and then a couple of interesting ones uh the next way that you can throw, like we did last night. Exactly. And then a couple of interesting ones. The next way that you can spend a point is to activate something called a destiny ability or power.

I'm not going to tell you any more about that because that might be something that you find later on. But there might be items or special boons that you guys might acquire that will have something called a destiny ability and they require crucible or Fate Points to activate them. Like a limit break, yeah. Kind of, or like, you know,

imagine like a mini legendary action, but for you guys or something similar. Very cool. And then the last one, I think this is kind of inspired by how we've played the game in the past. The last way that you can do it is to request a Devil's Bargain from the DM. The Devil's Bargain is-

Calm down. I know. Devil's Bargain is an instance where a player wants way that you can do it is to request a devil's bargain from the DM. A devil's bargain is... A devil's bargain is an instance where a player wants to bend the rules or the narrative of a situation to attempt something unusual. Trot and Rhi have often and Kim as well have often done a lot of this. I'm sweet DM. Exactly.

Sweet DM, could I do this thing which isn't quite in the rules but is something a bit unusual? You can spend a point and that will be like like is something a bit unusual you can spend a point and that will be like yep if you spend a fake point you can try and do something that doesn't guarantee you a success it's just the attempt right amazing so those are the ways you can do it but you get to choose when you want to make that call and request it from me right cool now the way to that can i do that now i want to do it now you probably will need a situation for it

but just for reference the way that i can spend them is a little bit differently I want to do it now. You probably will need a situation for it. Do a backflip. Aww. But just for reference, the way that I can spend them is a little bit differently. So I can spend a Crucible Die to add a d6 to a damage roll or an ability check, so I don't ever boost my attacks or saving throws, but I can boost my damage rolls. And there's a reason for that. That's all connected to the maths and the scaling of 5e.

It's much more narratively exciting for me to do damage to you rather than never miss. I think that that's more exciting for you to be like oh fuck, I just took loads of damage. Whereas for you guys, it's less fun to miss so boosting your attacks is better, right? It's that kind of mentality. I like it. I can also spend them to add a minor

complication to a scene or an environment. For example, to destroy a piece of cover or terrain. Establish a negative connection between an npc and a pc oh this is your former boyfriend or former girlfriend like this is somebody you've had a romantic relationship with or this is somebody who you fucked over in a deal or like something like that absolutely um or i can use it to create an instant of bad luck so for example you guys might be like well can we spend a fate point to distract this guard oh yeah great he like turns away at the right moment you scoot past make a stealth check that kind of thing but i might be like yeah as you guys are creeping through the manor uh i'm going

to spend a fate point to have a butler burst into like come into the room you know to do something and like you weren't expecting them to be there like add a complication basically sure um and then finally i can also activate destiny abilities and powers because maybe monsters and NPCs might happen as well. And for every one that's spent, it goes to the other side. Exactly, so it's going to keep that one, so you spend one, it comes to me, I spend one, it comes to you guys. So in our current instance of two on our side, four on your side, we're not going to...

Maybe, but it's also the other point thing is that in the last episode we used it a lot because it was a brand new exciting thing. There are probably going to be episodes where this probably doesn't get touched much at all just because of the nature of a scenario. But there might be ones where it's constantly changing, like in a battle or something like that, we might constantly be spending them.

But this is the way that we're going to run it for now, moving forward. Looking forward to the narrative implications. Yeah, exactly. And again, keep in mind as well, this is not a democracy as an individual player. You can just be like, I want a devil's bargain mark and you just spend a point as long as you've got them to spend.

You don't need the rest to vote on it. You can just choose to do it. Really cool. Cool. All right. So with that out of the way, we've got the crucible established. So we kind of jump back into the scene. You can look over and the escort of soldiers

that's been assembled for you, Captain Lucas Vaccaro has set aside young Cade, the young half-elf man who I think you guys had interacted with a little bit in Burnell, is accompanied by two other young-looking soldiers, a young female Tiefling and a young male Wildheart with wolf-like traits. So they've got a little bit more, they've got like wolf ears and sort of a wolf tail

and some like patches of fur on their arms and things like that. And then there is an older soldier-looking fellow, a human, who has like a sergeant's lapel, like a kind of insignia that shows they are of a higher rank, who's just a human, bald head, kind of a bit of stubble on his chin, that kind of thing. Looks a little bit like Commander Shepard. Oh! Kind of looking for that. And they're being assembled as your escort and Zarantekis,

and they look like they're preparing things like camping supplies and rations and basically preparing themselves for this journey ahead. But this isn't like they're not covering our travel. No, no, no, no. They are literally just there to provide you with an armed escort. So if we were to restock basically what we had before, not up to 10 torches,

because again, fucking ridiculous. Right. If we were to restock our supplies and bits, what sort of cost would that be? Well, I mean, well, I think I would play this out as like, what do you want? Like you've got the market here in Burnell is mainly focused on like local artisans.

There's lots of like produce and farmers. There are people that are selling like clothing and items like that. But you do notice that there is at least one major kind of general store in the town. It's just off the market square, but it's a two-story building. It's got like a foundation level and a first floor, wooden first floor with a lovely kind of slate roof. The slate roof is done in these beautiful kind of red and pink tiles. And it looks not too wealthy. It's not upper like, you know, very fancy. It looks very comfortable and well-furbished. And there is a sign out front that says uh sterling and sons supplies um but the

market as well has independent traders like very small little tents and little market stalls or or like uh dear sweet uh dwarven lady with a little blanket and a little stone statues um so it really depends what you're looking for like uh you tell me what you want to buy or where you want to go and we can play out like see what you guys want um because i don't think so because i think some of you have been travelling on the road for a while but I don't think any of you really have supplies for it. Yeah, you've kind of just got the basics, right?

Like rations and things like that. Actually, I only had one day of rations. So that would be gone because you would have been travelling here and stuff like that. Also keep in mind, things like rations, if you buy them, we're talking like trail mix. We're talking like like trail mix like we're talking like cereal bar it is not the most yeah jerky it's not the most appetizing food sure um

it will it will provide you the most the bare minimum of you know nourishment okay um and rations can go bad rations and like they can be damaged and stuff and journeys and things like that as well so i had five right And we went to the cave and back, the mines and back. Mm-hmm. How many rations do you have? Well, I think that that wouldn't have been too bad

because you can do that journey in about a day, but I think that your travel to get here to Burnell probably would have cost you like two or three, I think. Xanthius, you probably would be nearly out of rations

because you basically spent it all getting there. Yeah. You were in a bad way when you left. Gruff, I think, would be a bit more prepared for it because he's a bit more of a worn traveller and he's used to foraging and stuff.

So I think any rations you have in your catch sheet, you can keep those. Those would probably be there. But again, we're talking like dried mackerel. You are living off lard biscuits and proper ice heart rations. A lot of dried fish, I think. Yeah, dried fish or those kind of really stale, flat oat cakes,

stuff that can preserve for a long time. There's a pasty that he's had, and it's quite flat and smushed and probably a bit mouldy, but he can't bring himself to let it go because he just can't find pasties down here. Nice, there you go. Ice heart pasties, famous. Tremoro pasties. They're the good pasty they are.

Tremoro, famous for its pasties, in fact. If you go to a station in Kelskaris, you can get Tremoro pasties. In a little stand. That's what we're famous for. Ophelia, I think the same for you. You've been travelling, you would have been prepared

for a little bit of a journey, but you've spent like... You've probably spent like... Bottles. Two of your rations, you would have been prepared for a little bit of a journey, but you've spent like... You've probably spent like two of your rations, like if you have any, I don't know if you do. Get you a little blood boy. Yeah. And then Daisy, you're used to travelling around, so for you, you'd probably have a maximum amount

of whatever you've currently got. A capricin. Yeah, and I imagine I would probably forage along the way as well. Yeah, yeah. Get some pieces. That can be a thing that can be done. Yeah, and I imagine I would probably forage along the way as well. Yeah, yeah. Get some pieces and... That can be a thing that can be done. So, Xanthias has a history of trading and being a trader from Rust End.

So, I mean, would I know the cost of rations? Like, how much can they really be? You would know a vague price, but like you said, like, every merchant's going to change it. Generally, in this setting, I am going to be charging more for items just because the the base player you know handbook prices are a little low um yeah there's a bit of inflation just wait until the um which but yeah like it depends right like carry on you know like in days like the kind of trail rations that you guys have like this hard tack like these like nuts and berries you know things

that can be preserved well jerky. It's not too pricey. You're probably looking at, I think it's one gold per day normally. Oh, okay. Yeah. I think that's roughly what it is. Well, it is an expensive land. Yes.

Yeah. And just in general, prices of everything are increased in general. Honestly, I think it's- Money is a weird thing. Gold dragonborns, they're really making a mess of the economy. Everything's more expensive in the south. It's your fault.

How do you go? Yep. Yep. It's your fault. No. But one thing you might want to consider, this is going to be our first sort of in-campaign journey. I am going to do things like, when you guys take a long rest,

if you are outside and camping, I want to know what that camp's going to look like. Do you have tents? What kind of protections against the elements do you have? Do you take time to like cook a meal? What do you do? Like, you know, I'm going to kind of go more into it a little bit with that. So you might want to consider that.

Like I have things like weather might be a factor. Like if you guys suddenly catch yourselves out and you're in a downpour of rain and you don't have suitable ways of protecting or you've not found a good campsite where you can shelter yourself from the rain might make your journey more exhausting or harder to finish and things like that so oh yeah yeah we're gonna add a little bit more of the survival kind of element to this like try and i'm not gonna like nickel and dime you over arrows and rations and things like that but you know as they're known to say in ice heart there's no such thing as bad weather

just bad clothing yeah exactly it's got it in scotland almost like there's a little bit of scottish influence uh from uh my good friend steve who helped me write some of the ice heart stuff so yeah yeah um well so steve we also know how long of a journey it's going to be to... I would say you and Daisy, Xanthius, would have a vague idea because you are from this region and you have a little bit of knowledge. I think that for Rowan might also, because Rowan's kind of a traveller, right? Rowan kind of wanders around and is a bit of a nomad and has travelled around a fair bit. Ophelia and Gruff probably wouldn't have

anywhere close to an idea. This is foreign land. This is so far from home for Gruff. So I'd say that the three of you, Rowan, Zan, and Daisy, can make a nature check. This is just almost like a geography, kind of like roughly how long do you think this journey would be.

A what check, sorry? Nature. Nature. Watch this. Watch this. Watch this drive. Eight. Not really used to it. You've probably never...

You remember... Natural 20. Natural 20, that's perfect. Wasted. So I think for Xanthius, yeah, like you probably never made your way to Ashenrest. It was a bit too populated. You knew that there might be, you know,

difficulties with that and stuff like that. So, yeah, not really one that you're familiar with. Out of interest, what did Rowan get on a nature? Didn't even roll. Didn't roll, yeah. What are you doing? I rolled a three. Okay.

Probably this is an unfamiliar region. You're used to travelling around, but you just don't know the land around here. It's not one you've, like, come to learn yet. Yeah, that's fine. For Daisy, I think that this is... You know, you're kind of thinking about that and Nim is in your head

and is already kind of thinking about this journey and Nim would probably say to you, I suspect it will be four to five days, little one, on the journey. Make sure you have enough provisions. And now that we are travelling with others, we might want to invest in some equipment. We're a little more fragile than when I was travelling, so make sure you're protected.

OK, well, what sort of things do you think I should get? Because I was thinking that it's probably going to be cold, so I should definitely get a giant, giant blanket. Yes, a warm blanket. A really big one, so that I can just, like, roll in it, and it would be all around me like a little cocoon. Yes, that would work, but we may also want to find things to make a shelter.

A large blanket might work. We can use some poles and things to erect a tent. It is spring so I don't think it will be too cold but rain could be a problem. So one cocoon blanket and one tent blanket got it. Taking notes. You just kind of hear that in your head but yeah Daisy knows that it's about a four to five day journey

I wish we could have heard that conversation Cocoon! But yeah, so what's everyone thinking? Let's, Ophelia and Rowan and Gruff,

what about you guys? Like, any thoughts, anywhere you want to go, anything you want to do just before we set out from Burnell? I think Ophelia

might do a little bit of, well, shopping, browsing, pitying. Okay. In that order? Wow.

Who are you pitying? Who are you pitying? Just everyone Just the people who have to work at the stores Oh right I see Yeah Wow Yeah well I think it's that distinction of like

It's the people like you know Ouch There probably wouldn't be an issue with like In Osseous the idea of like running a shop would be okay Because you're managing it and you're supervising it But it's the people who have to do things like stocking shelves or like carting

heavy goods around. You probably see like a farmer's like son and he's got like a big wagon loaded with like turnips and cabbage and he's dragging it

into like his dad's stall and you're just oh your heart bleeds you know. Terribly hot day for lugging around such huge burdens. It's not too bad, miss.

It's spring. It will be worse in the summer. That's why we try and do as much as we can now. But it's not too bad. I'm used to it. He's quite a strapping young man. It's sad you have to get used to it. It's sad that you can't just do what you enjoy.

He kind of is like, oh, no, no, I'm happy to do it. I'm happy to help Daddy, but there's now a doubt of like, well, it doesn't matter. I would like to do something else. He just ruined his day. He's like, well, it would be nice to go. If I could get a break to go to the tavern and have a drink, that would

be quite nice. Well, the Greyfather would smile fondly upon you if you were to do that. The who? Oh, the Gravefather. Trebendagh, you get over here with him! I need him to do it now! Oh, sorry, miss, I gotta go.

Like, trails off as he stands. Think of what I said! As he kind of gets pulled away by his dad. You're just stood there with Percival, just, you know, You're gonna start a cult by the end. Oh, yeah. Yeah. Yeah.

Spreading the good word. Yeah. So we see Ophelia kind of like, you're pitying the poor people of Burnell. What about Rowan and Gruff? Anything from either of you guys? Rowan wants to get some food for the road. Oh, yeah?

What kind of stuff? Well, he's got a ruby. He's worth 125 gold. 125 gold's worth of food. Sure. And supplies. Yeah. Well, you'ves worth of food. Sure. And supplies. Yeah. Well, you've got the right idea.

Yeah. So what you can do for Rowan, like you can go around, there's various market stores, they have different things. Like you have baker with fresh breads and things like that. There is a butcher like doing cuts of meat

and like wrapping it. Some of them are salted to be preserved on the road. There are people selling like fruits and things like that as well. And it's all very local stuff. Mainly in culture, you'd be people selling like fruits and things like that as well. And it's all very local stuff. Mainly in culture, you'd be looking at like grapes and berries are quite common here. Oranges, a few like, you know, kind of trees like that. I mean, this spring, so it's kind of a good season for some stuff. Strawberries, that kind of stuff is quite common here. There is also people

that do like dairy products, like cheeses and milks and stuff are all in this thing. And the more of this stuff you buy, the more gold you spend on raw ingredients. Now, you will potentially have to either, you can eat some stuff raw, like bread and cheese and things like that, but you can also try and use this stuff to cook, and when you make camp,

you can try and give your team a boost. Yeah, great. Is there anything that Rowan thinks of, that you think Rowan would be drawn to? Like everyone. An instance. Somebody have a spare pen, I forgot. Oh no, I've got it here think Rowan would be drawn to. Everyone. An instance. Somebody have a spare pen. I forgot.

Oh, no, I've got it here. It's clipped to my DM screen. He'd get the basics in. He's working on a 40-40-20 macro right now. Protein carb. So, probably some fish freshly caught you'd ask for off actually

if you caught any fish recently for our journey out of character I do actually have a thing where I can fish and contribute like there's a background feature yeah where I can do that so but I'm guessing

I probably you probably haven't had time to do it yet but it is something you can do on the road like I'll say that like if you are near a body of water like a river or a lake or something like that you can certainly try and fish for it um but I don't think you would have any on you right now but you could certainly help row and pick out like there is a fishmonger here there's a river nearby and they're selling like uh you know fish, like trouts and salmons. Where's the voice? Where's the voice? Hello. Hello, my name is Grefg.

My name is Grefg. I know your name. The eye on this one, too cloudy. You want gills that are blood red. Right. Yes, fresh, really fresh. All my fish are fresh, I'll have you know. The eye on this one's a bit cloudy. That's a special cauldron fish, the cloudy-eyed kipper, really fresh. All my fish are fresh, I'll have you know. The eye on this one's a bit cloudy.

That's a special cauldron fish. The cloudy-eyed kipper, that is. You, sir, you are mocking me. I am, you're right, sir. I am. It's a bit of a... I'll tell you what, I'll do a discount on that fish. Half price.

Take it off me hands. Pretty good deal. If we cook it tonight, I guess, we could make a nice broth out of it. Oh, yes. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. I'll do a deal. If we cook it tonight, I guess, we could make a nice broth out of it. Oh, yes. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I'll do a deal.

I'll do a deal on that one. So how much would that be? He will, it will be like, I like five fish. Five, yeah, I could do five fish for you, including that one.

I'll do you a special deal. Fresher one. Yeah, yeah, I'll get some fresher ones in there as well. I've got a lovely, caught this morning. My boy caught him this morning.

He brings out a, kind of like a, like a, a trout, like a kind of river trout nice fresh kind of one um are you so for this i would say really this is down to you like so the way rather me saying a specific price you can say i want to spend 10 gold on fish right and then that was the gold equivalent that you're going to have to use in your pot of cooking and the more you spend the better ingredients you get but i'll say five five gold a gold a fish five gp fish lovely noted so yeah he like packages up his quite fresh lovely fish he you probably get like a little bit more than five for five gold he like

packages up some nice cuts of fish some of them are salted so they'll last like longer in a journey like they're kind of pressed in salt and wrapped up and things like that. Provides it to you. I whack them all in my little bag. Little bag, yeah. Do you want to have anything to go with your fish? Any veggies or?

We need vegetables and potatoes. Teddies. Yeah. We call them Teddies. Okay. That's a lovely name. Teddies. I love that. Teddies? Teddies. Apparently. That's a lovely name. Teddies. I love that. Teddies?

Teddies. Apparently it's Cornish for Teddies. Teddies. Let's go get some Teddies. And veggies. Yeah, you can find a local grocer.

How much gold of vegetables do you want to buy? I'll do for potatoes and veg. Yeah, it's the same thing. Let's do five and five again. So about ten gold of veg.

Even though the meat should be more expensive. Let's do five and five again. So about 10 gold of veg. Even though the meat should be more expensive. I like my tats. Sure. Yeah, you get like a sack of veggies. Like it's kind of like a bunch of potatoes, carrots, root vegetables, some parsnips, that kind of stuff.

Traveling stuff. Traveling stuff. And the vegetables will probably like, potatoes will last you a long time. Like they're not going to go bad very quickly. The fish, the non-salted stuff will go bad pretty quickly. Fresh vegetables and fruits will go bad pretty quickly, but they're delicacies as well, right?

So, okay, review done. That will give you... So that will be like 15 golds worth of cooking materials, basically. Done. Also, I want to get some condiments, so some herbs, salt. Herbs and spices? Herbs, spices, pepper. So things like that.

So I'll spend five gold on little pouches of these things. Yeah. Absolutely. Yep. Yep. Absolutely. Rowan wants to be Saltbow. So you have...

I need a skillet. So you'll have about 20 gold. Now, that's the next question. Are you proficient with cook's utensils? No. Do you have any cook's utensils? No. Well, you're going to have to 20 gold. Now, that's the next question. Are you proficient with cook's utensils? No. Do you have any cook's utensils? Well, you're going to have to buy some. Gruff, do you have any cooking things?

No. No. No, I do. Do you have, like, a mess kit or something? I thought you did. Oh, I might have a mess kit. A mess kit is like fork and knife and plates. It's not, like, cooking skillets and, like, fork and knife and plate. It's not like cooking skillets and pots and pans and stuff. We're talking like full Samwise Gamgee,

like, you know, laid light, slung the frying pan, we're talking like, you know, that kind of stuff. Yeah, I'm going to see if I can buy, or I might go back to our peony inn and ask if they've got any spare. As peonies! Can I take your frying pan with me? Can I borrow a frying pan? You go back and Adriana's like, no, Rowan, we haven't got my spare. I was hating it! Can I take your frying pan with me? Can I borrow a frying pan?

You go back and Adriana's like, no Rowan, we haven't got any spare, I haven't got a spare pan. I'm sorry for asking. No, well I mean, I could maybe, we've got some, I could go and buy new things and you can have the ones we have but... Where would you buy them from though? Well probably from Janya Sterling's, the big shop in town. Okay. They have plenty of things like that.

I'm sorry for... I'm really sorry. I mean, you don't have to apologize, but I just can't swear it. No, I didn't... I didn't think it through. You'd be put out with your kitchen and... You apologize too much. Yes. Don't worry about it. I'm sorry for that.

Anyway. She just, like, pats you on the arm. It's been lovely staying here, by the way. It's been lovely to have your music. I must thank you. It's been wonderful to have you performing here. I'll come back. I hope so. I hope that you do, yes.

But, you know, you've got a new exciting life. I hear that you have the favor of a duke and the money that you got from the bounty. You can go and enjoy yourself, enjoy your life. I'm going places. Yes. Maybe, I mean, not that you've got a fabulous style, but, you know, maybe accessorize a little bit,

some, like, nice things. You know, you're in culture. How you are perceived is very important here. Any recommendations? I think with your skin tone, you know, like a jet or an onyx and black gemstones would look very nice. Gemstones. I think silver, if you're going to go for jewellery,

more silver than gold. OK. And maybe like a... You know, you've got this lovely scarf. Your fashion's pretty good, you know, it's pretty good. Just make sure you get it cleaned, you know, I've not seen you clean it since you've been here. Get it cleaned and make sure there's no bad threads

and rips and tears, but no, it's good. I will accessorise, thank you. She just nods her head and lets you go. And I'll head towards the... Janya Sterling is what she said, and she points in the direction of this big main shopping town. I'm going to buy everyone a little gemstone as well. Okay, sure.

I'm going to feel out the ones that resonate with the individuals. Okay. Aw. Here, well they did have the mine. You would probably find that there's a couple of soldiers talking to, Vakaro soldiers, talking to a little seller who's got like a stand with cut gemstones. And they're interviewing them,

talking about marrying the the foreman, asking questions about what happened, and if they have any connections. But the gem seller- We'll listen in on that if there's any- It's mainly like, you know, how long did you know, did you know that Marion was dealing with these criminals?

Like, have you ever seen them before? You know, how long has she been like, you know, acting suspiciously? Those kind of things that you come across. And the seller is... I have a random table to see what they are. Oh, they are a... ..a Tiefling as well, a Tiefling.

And they're just saying, I can't say I ever noticed anything. Marion's always been very good to us. She's been stressed lately, been working really hard. Something was clearly on her mind, but she's never... I never would have imagined her associating with criminals. And he sort of is just like, no, I'm sorry, I can't help you. Please excuse me, I think I have a customer.

And he kind of turns, he's like, hello, can I help you? I wasn't listening. The soldier's like kind of looking at you when you say that. He's like, no, no, I'm sure. Is there something I can help you with? Do you mind if I feel your gemstones? As long as you're not going to take them off with you, no. I'll close my eyes and just use an index finger to feel each one.

Sure. And just one finger? Yeah. We are talking very small cut gemstones. These are, like, very rough. Like, this is a very small, this is not, like, a fancy jeweller's or anything like that. If you could, like, super zoom in to the tip of roman's

finger the faintest tiniest touch on each tiny gemstone sure um there's and these are like a lower quality kind of gemstones we're talking like uh not like rubies and sapphires we're talking more like minerals like um you know like citrines and things like that quartz that kind of stuff and i think that you would probably be able to find like a lot of it's like different colored like crystals like quartz and and similar minerals um and yeah i think like if you spend what was it like uh yeah you would probably spend about 20 gold and we're talking like very small like kind of little stones really raw stones as well not worked or anything um you can spend about 20 gold and you can find one that seems to resonate with a similar energy

or has like a familiar feel to each of the party. There's one which has almost like a cold but like a refreshing spring feeling you almost get from like one. You find one which has a bit more of a, something almost a little bit darker, a bit like nighttime, kind of has this feeling of like ominous

and it kind of reminds you feeling of like ominous and it kind of reminds you of ophelia um there's one which has a glittering it's a piece of quartz which almost seems to have like a vein of gold in the middle of it um it reminds you of xanthius um and then one which has like a bright sunny feeling uh it very very kind of reminds you of daisy it also has daisy's face on it um as she is stood behind you, really reflected into it. But yeah, you can find one. Yeah, 20 gold and you can get a little gemstone for everyone. Nice.

Thank you. All right. Very lovely gemstone collection. Oh, thank you very much. Yes, it's very simple stuff, but just what we could find in the mine on occasion. And I know how to polish and cut them from the stone. Wonderful.

Yeah, thank you. I've got to go. Okay. I've got to get a full set of cooking utensils. Right, I'll leave you to it then, sir. Gruff, very quickly, I wanna make sure everyone kinda gets a shout in. I guess I'll go, because I wanna look for,

because I think Gruff has probably processed looking around the group at the breakfast table. They don't strike him as an outdoorsy bunch so he's gonna go try and find some kind of tan or like some kind of covering so I guess he's gonna go to the main store when he walks into the main store is there any kind of like doorbell or chime or anything on the door no that wouldn't be not in this world no does it say bing bong banger no no oh fuck Not in this world, no. Does it say Bing Bong by any chance? No, no. Oh, fuck. When did you get that?

I've had this for like three weeks, but we weren't live. I just didn't know. I was just like, why are you bringing this up now? This is weird. I've been staring at that for the whole time. It's canon! Podcast listeners, Katie's wearing a Bing Bong shirt. Welcome to the joke.

I messaged Aliona like weeks ago and I was like, where'd you get your ring-bong dress? I love it. That's amazing. That really took me by surprise. She unveiled it like, what, 10 minutes ago? Just because I've been dealing with this so I've been looking this way.

Anyway. No, so you're going to make your way to the general store. In that case, you and Rowan will probably make their way. It sounded like Xanthius might be heading that direction as well, Tom. Yes, I just want to... Put your fucking phone down.

Jesus Christ. Daddy, they're angry. Podcast listeners, I picked up my phone for like half a second. He was like, for just the briefest second. I may as well have been moving it. Yeah, no, I know. I'm joking, I'm joking. You made Daddy mad.

No, no, I was joking. Daddy's not mad at his special boy. Of course, of course. I love you, Daddy. I want to just refill travel supplies. Sure. I want to pick up some, also just some travelling outfit, I suppose.

Like, if it's raining, I want, like... Full jester. What? Full jester. A jester hat. With the bells. Yeah, I want to dress like a jester. So you're really not, like, stealth situations.

No, no, jingly bells. When you said jester, my immediate medley went to Zan dressed up as Jester from Critical Role, which would also be very funny. But no. But yeah, like a... I don't know if there's a waterproof... Well, there'll be traveling cloaks. They wouldn't be waterproof, but they would be made from wool,

so it's a little bit better for you hanging out to dry. It's more water-resistant and things like that. You can definitely buy a traveler's cloak. Gloves? Booties? You can definitely get gloves, definitely get booties. Yeah, absolutely. The clothes you can get in the market, the things like the boots and the gloves

you'd probably get from the general store as well. Okay. Because they'd be like leather, like you'd be looking at like waxed leather boots, waxed leather gloves, that kind of stuff. Can I do that too? Yeah, I mean, it sounds like everybody's going to be going to the general store.

Yeah, well, via the bakery. Okay. Probably. I feel like Daisy, well, actually, I'd probably go to the general store first and then. Sure. I think Daisy's on a blanket buying mission. Sure. First and foremost. Probably. I feel like Daisy... Well, actually, I'd probably go to the general store first, and then... Sure. I think Daisy's on a blanket buying mission. Sure.

First and foremost. Nice. Yeah, so, well, you all arrive. So, Sterling and Sons supplies. There is a symbol outside which shows, like, a silver coin, the coin of Ulfheir the Empire, a silver Empire coin with a dragon's head on it. And it seems to be just that, with a framed by a sort of accent around the sides, basically.

No specific image, just kind of like a cursive accent. Very neat handwriting on the board. Little leaded window out the front looking out. And you can see inside that there are rows of like shelves, wooden and stone, filled with things. And when you enter, there is a dwarven woman. She looks to be not elderly, but certainly like older, like a kind of more mature woman,

kind of very buxom, but kind of broad, kind of like, you know, body and frame. Her black hair kind of has like streaks of gray. It's all like piled up into like braids that are tightly wrapped around her head. and you can see that she has uh no there doesn't appear to be any sort of like of the metal skin the earth skin on her face but on her hands you see these kind of delicate swirling patterns around her like fingers and around her palms around the backs of her hands and they've been chiseled into almost these delicate spirals, almost.

And she looks over, and you can see that when you enter, there are actually two boys in the store. They're, like, stocking the shelves and, like, cleaning and sweeping and things like that. But there is... She pities them. It's immediate pitying from Ophelia. But the boys have a mixture of dwarven and human ancestry. They don't appear to be pure dwarven.

They're a little bit taller than a dwarf, and they don't appear to be pure dwarven. They're a little bit taller than a dwarf, and they don't appear to have any visible earth skin or metal skin. You know, their beards aren't quite as thick and full as, like, a full dwarf's. They have that sort of, you know, mixed ancestry. They do still have beards. Yeah, they do. Like, they're very short, but, yeah, they're coming through. But they're probably, like, teenagers for dwarves, dwarven humans.

And when you enter, there is no little bing-bong. There is no little jingle of bells. So they don't turn around. They've got no idea we're here. Well, Janya, the woman, is looking straight at you from behind the counter when you enter. It would be easier if there was a little bing-bong, you know? It would be.

But you walk in and you hear a kind of like, oh, what? Hello, hello, come in, come in. Welcome to Sterling and Sons. How can I help you? Oh, very good morning to you. Good morning. I'm looking for some travel supplies.

We're going to be joining the soldiers on the ways to Ashen Rest. Well, I must say, it's good news to hear that the roads have been finally opened. I was worrying that we weren't getting much business in the next few days. But we can certainly help with that, can't we, boys? And you see the boys kind of like, yeah, ma, yes, ma, kind of like turn around, like, and she kind of shuffles them. Well, what are you looking for? Me and the boys can help you with.

Is there anything in particular? Yes, hi there. A really cozy blanket. We can do cozy blankets? Yeah, sure. We got some there. A really cosy blanket. We can do cosy blankets, yeah, sure. We got some various blankets we can do, yeah. Ragnar, why don't you go, I think we got some out the back. You go fetch them for the young miss. He's like, okay, Ma.

He kind of shuffles around the back, and you hear him kind of shuffling around the back. Blankets, anything else people are looking for? Appropriate spring wear attire, I believe, would be sufficient. Oh, well, I mean, wear attire, I believe, would be sufficient. Oh, well, I mean, we've got,

clothing-wise, I mean, I've got some simple things, but, and she kind of goes over and you can see that one of the shelves has been made like a bit deeper

and a bit wider and there is like racks of clothing, but Ophelia, immediately, this is simple. Like, this is like

very simple kind of cotton work dresses, kind of cotton tunics and trousers that kind of stuff this is not your cup of tea cup yeah it's the it's it's you know you have a certain standard of how you're used to living and it's it's a little bit beyond that anything more bespoke i'm afraid and she looks and like, my dear, I can tell that you are a woman of fine taste, but I'm afraid that we just aren't used to dealing with that kind of clientele here. You'd be better off in places like the town up in Ashen Rest or even in Ferris, the big city.

But around here, I mean, I mainly, it's, you know, supply and demand. Ain't a lot of demand for fancy laces and fabrics in Burnell, I'm afraid. I need something in the interim, though. I suppose it might have to do, I suppose. I mean, what exactly is the word? Is it heat? Is it, you know, wet and rain? I mean, we've got boots and cloaks and things like that that I can help you with.

I just don't know what to expect. Around this time of year, rain. You know, we get a bit of mist now and then, wind, but the heat's not too bad. It doesn't get much warmer than this. It doesn't get much colder. Do you have eyeglasses? For the sun? Well, I think

we might have something around here like that. And she kind of like shuffles around and she's like, okay, well, uh, okay, well, Mital, why don't you deal with the rest of these fine folks while I go and search for this lady's eye? I had a trader come by. He had something like that I bought off of him. Give me a moment.

Thank you. And you see this dwarf, this kind of surly human dwarven teenager. He's like, can I help you with anything? Yeah, I'm also looking for some travelling

clothes. I'd take some of the gloves, maybe a cloak or... Yeah, we've got clothes, we've got boots, we've got gloves. Wonderful, I'll take some of those gloves. Sorry, I don't speak too good. What about rations?

Some sort of... We got trail rations. We got a hard tack, and we got biscuits, and we got jerky. Roman's at his point with five fish. Oh, he's a big man. Hey, how you doing? What's happening? It's just a discussion.

But yeah, he goes over, he finds a... There's some mannequins with thick waterproof cloaks, like woolen cloaks. He pulls off one of those. He finds you a pair of thick leather gloves with straps waxed. And he finds you a pair of boots. He looks at the boots and he's like, how big's your feet?

What size are you measuring in there? Like two hands, three hands. Put it on your foot, just hold up your foot. Give me the boot, put it on the floor. Thank you, put my foot next to it. This one maybe not so much, but you can see that the other one he's holding probably looks more about your size.

That one, please. No, this one's far too small. He hands it to you. It fits, maybe it's a bit too big, but he's like, I can put some padding in it, that might help. If anything, I need it adjusted to be a little bit, tiny bit bigger. Is that possible? What, bigger? Slightly, slightly. I can feel it rubbing in my... What is this, role play? I didn't start it.

You started it. Sprinkle a little something. A little measure. It can be adjusted to fit. Thank you, thank you. Foot role play. Dragonborn's first series of movies. Listen, people love this shit.

I'm into it shit I'm into it I'm into it people love feet but the gloves the gloves fit perfect thank you very much don't say it if you say it

you manifest it rations they basically do these like ration packs where it's like three days worth of like

hardtack dried fruits jerky they sell them in these packs of three day equivalent of about three days worth of of hardtack, dried fruits, jerky. They sell them in these packs of three days, equivalent of about three days' worth of stuff. A meal, a snack, and a water skin. You get that for three gold. No.

It's the ration pack is three days' worth of food in one pack. Water skins and that are all separate. You've got to buy those. Okay. Just two of those little baggies of food, then, please. All right, and he starts putting that little package together for you. Gruff, was there anything you wanted to buy?. Okay. Just two of those little baggies. Alright, and he starts putting that little package together for you. Gruff, was there anything you wanted to buy? Big tent. Big tent,

yeah. Or just some kind of like, I don't know, like a, not a water skin, but you know what I mean, like a canvas. Canvas, tarp. Yeah, like a big tarp. Yeah, a tarp would be a lot cheaper than a tent. A tent has got the poles and everything. I've got a tent. Yeah, so have you got one already or do you want to buy one? I've got a tent, which is a one-rowing tent. It's a one- and everything. I've got a tent. Yeah, so have you got one already or do you want to buy one? I've got a one-row and ten, which is a one-row and ten.

It's a one-row and ten, yeah. So a tarp would be a little bit different. It would give you some shelter, but a tent would be better, but it's more expensive and it's more to carry as well. So what do you want? Do you want a tarp or a tent? Very important decisions to be made. This is some real D&D shit.

How much do I like these people so far? Not enough tarp. All right, tarp. All right. All right. Very good. I'll do pricing and stuff when we've got everyone's items. What did you want to write?

I think Gruff would be more familiar with how to use tarp, right? Yeah. Absolutely. I mean, they just know get sheet,

make sheet, go overhead to protect. To protect. Gruff is also from a land where he can make a shelter out of the snow itself.

Like, you can make an igloo and be like, I'm cool, like, I've got this covered. I'm fine, I don't know what the rest of you do. You don't have to really worry about rain, it's more like snowstorms and things like that. Yeah, landslides. I don't know if I'm in the right shop, but Marion told me to go to somewhere that sells cooking utensils.

I thought Marion got arrested. Not Marion, sorry. Ro doesn't say it wrong. No, I know, I know. I like just tormenting. Yeah, so he's like, Mittal is just like, yeah, we got like pots and pans, we got a spatula, we got skillet.

Are you Janesh's... What? What store is this this is this is Sterling and Sons supplies I think I'm in the right place yeah

my I'm I'm I'm I'm I'm I'm I'm

I'm I'm I'm I'm Sterling my brother is Ragnar Sterling my ma is

Jania Sterling she owns the shop okay so cooking yep starts gathering stuff that was less than Mars, Janya, Sterling, she owns the shop. Okay, so cooking. Yep. Starts gathering stuff up. That was less than one syllable.

Half a syllable. Yep. I like cooking pot. They start assembling all this stuff. Ragnar comes back with a blanket, starts helping out. Janya returns, and she can see that she has, she brings back this kind of little wooden box and she's just like, well I did find this, I did have the thing that I remember,

you said eyeglasses? This gentleman, this was designed in the, up in Iceheart they sometimes have to wear things to block out the light, because there's something up there. This is kind of, she doesn't know. But this gentleman creates something. It's kind of inspired by that, I guess. Somebody who was there.

She opens it up, and it's, you know, like, those rounded sunglasses that kind of have, like, the extended sides? Yeah. That, like, really block the light, basically. It's a pair of those, very finely made, silver kind of, like, bands that wrap around the kind of, like, blinkered section. It's, like, leather, like, very finely made, silver kind of like bands that wrap around the kind of like blanket section. It's like leather, like pegged on, like kind of goes back.

And then these black round frames, basically. Now, these are quite fancy. There's a beautiful little piece here. They are. I couldn't let these go for, I probably couldn't let these go for less than 100 gold. I probably couldn't let these go for less than 100 gold. And I'm gonna tell you now Rhiannon, they have no benefit whatsoever. This is just, you want a cool pair of chains.

Excuse me Mark, the benefit is vile. No, I'm down. Go back to the team in the post and ask for a fashion check on those, because damn girl. They are quite spectacular. I certainly think so. I mean, I've never seen anything like these.

These are a real, you know, rare piece of my little collection that I have here. You know, it'd be hard to part with them. Throw in maybe a tarp or a cloak, and I will give you a hundred for the both. She kind of thinks about it. You pressed me a hard bargain, miss, but sure, that sounds about right. We can do a waterproof cloak in with that, if that's to your fancy. Perfect. Perfect, alright.

You get the sense that she's definitely overpriced the thing, so it works out for her. She goes and fetches like a, there's a selection of different colours. Xanthius, you've already picked up a cloak. What colour would you like your cloak to be? I'd probably like a yellowy.

Like a yellowy kind of like brownish. It'd be more of like a kind of like yellowy brown kind of like colour, kind of a very faded kind of. Deadly. Tan. Yeah, tan. Yep, you can usually find one of those. They have black, dark green and dark blue left. Black, please. Yeah, they find one of those. They have black, dark green, and dark blue left.

Black please. Yeah, I figured. They patch that all up for you. So for you that would be 100 gold for Ophelia. Rowan you wanted the... Oh, the chains. Oh yeah. Yeah, of course.

Yeah. The cook's utensils will set you back 10 gold. Okay. Rowan. It's not too much. They're pretty simple. It's like an iron skillet, like a copper pan, that sort of stuff. And a wooden spoon. They throw in the wooden spoon, yeah, absolutely.

A big wooden spoon, though, big one. Because these in my hands are boiling. It's got tools like knives and things like that, chopping knives and stuff as well. It is the full package of cook's utensils. Great. Perfect. A tarp

was what we wanted. That'll probably just set you back like three gold for a tarp. Sweet. Xanthius, my boy. Gloves, boots and a cloak.

Yep. And two and then two days worth of like three day packs of rations. That is going to set you back to the top of the top

of the top of the top of the top of the top of the top of the top of the top of the top of the top of the top of the top of the top of the top of the top of the top of the top of the top of the top of the top of the top of the top of the top of the top of the top of the top of the top of the top of the top of the top of the top of the top of the top of the top of the top of the top of the top of the top of the top of uh so that would be i would say for the whole package we are looking at i'm gonna find the thing the thing let's call it 10. that would be 15. that was 20 sound it's not no... 25 gold for the whole package.

25. Deal. For cloak and boots, gloves... He's a trader, you could tell. You just wanted blankets, right? Like big, thick blankets, and then a tarp, sort of? Basically, I want a cosy blanket and a tarp and maybe some rations, please. Okay.

So that would be three. You would be looking at about eight gold. Okay. Do they have any other cloaks? I don't think... Do they have an orange cloak? The orangey one was taken by Xanthius already. Bitch!

It's dark green and dark blue left. Bit of a clash of colours. It's only a small store. They've only got what they've got. The chocolate graph ball, is it enough for... Is that enough for... No. No, it's just a one person.

But you could get two people under it. I'll get another one. It's not bad to have. Daisy would have just gone. Yeah, that's enough then. That'll be enough then. Stay stay warm get something to cover you and gone yeah i'm gonna buy that did you ruin that two-person tent carrying the body oh i wrapped up a body in it you did right it's you can wash it out bloody it's bloody

but really we'll clean it my dog against the glass door Oh boy. I can see that. It's the dog, it's the meme, the Thun dog. Thun. Nose pressed up against tongue. I will test the blanket and get one of them to hold it up and then cocoon myself.

It's cocoonable. Okay, good. It's going to hold it up for you and then just walk into it. And then just smell yourself. Yeah. And then just a little hand will come out with eight gold. Nice. And then you just sort of mummy yourself away.

Oh, yeah, she's staying in the back there. So we're going to walk out of the store. I'm wearing, like wearing like protective clothing you've got kick-ass sunglasses you're a metapod and like you're covered in fish and clanging uh you've got the full samwise gamgee thing now like hanging off your backpack like the pots and pans don't know how to use them he's never cooked a day in his life but he's got them we all walk out the store like a runway. Because I'm guessing my aesthetic hides and all that probably aren't enough for like, I don't know, protective.

Well, you're also a wild heart, so you have a layer of fur, which is going to help as well. Like from cold weather. Yeah. You're used to ice heart. Cold is not going to trouble you as much as anything else. Whether or not to get

one of the cloaks. I mean, for traveling, if you're sleeping, it's more like the cloaks are going to be good for keeping the rain off you and stuff like that. You don't really need

to worry about that as much being a wild heart. Yeah, I'll probably leave it for now and then regret it later. Sure. It's up to you. You can, yeah, it's fine. But yeah, you guys finished

this little kind of shopping spree. You get all the supplies that you need. Janice, Sterling, and her sons happily package everything up for you, take your money, and then, yeah, you make your way out. It's been like a couple of hours, like maybe an hour or so, just like wandering, buying your various supplies. You can see that the Authority, Techus, and Cade, and the rest of the soldiers are all basically ready.

They're waiting by the southern gate out of Burnell that leads out onto the road. Yes. Can I go to the bakery before you go? Sure. It's like a little market stand selling fresh breads and things like that. I just want to buy the best bread. Yeah. Is this just because you want to have some bread,

or is this like a cooking later kind of bread? Oh, she wants to have enough so that she can have a little snack now, but then to take it with her. Okay, sure. Yeah. You can spend one gold and you get some a lovely amount of fresh fresh bread and rolls and things like that an aesthetic bread yeah like a bread this is a bread that you're munching on the road that you know she's she's got money for the first time in a little while and she's like i'm gonna buy some good bread yeah It's getting a nice focaccia with rosemary and salt. Are you not? Right now?

I'm so hungry. Oh, God. So anyway, with all your supplies done, you guys make your way to the southern gate. And, Mike, yeah, is your business here done? I don't want to... I think so. I think just on the way out of the store,

like, Groff's probably the last one out. He'll turn to Janja. Janja? Yeah, Janja. Janja Sterling of the store, like, Groff's probably the last one out. He'll turn to Janya. Janya? Yeah, Janya. Janya's selling. And just be like, your sons, they're very considered boys. Oh, yeah, well, you know, I want to raise them that way, and they're going to inherit the store one day like I did, so I'm going to make sure that they know how to do business and how to interact with folks.

That's very kind of you to say, sir. Thank you very much. Say, thank the nice man. Thank you, sir. Thank you, sir. If anyone's, Groff just kind of blushes, I don't know how you can tell. Whiskers. Yeah, whiskers curl a little bit, and he just like mumbles. Tail flips.

Safe journey now, take care. And they kind of wave goodbye. They just, you head out. So is everybody ready to start travelling to... I'm still in the blanket. Okay. Have everyone got... Just move the blanket down a bit to have a little tiny piece of bread.

Put it back on. I am ready for adventure. Adventure? This is so exciting. Now, let's... I am ready for adventure. Adventure. This is so exciting. Now, let's... Hopefully the journey will be entertaining, yes, but adventure, not so much. I just want to make it to Ashenrest and see the Duke.

Yes. With the Duke's favour. But it's all part of the journey. Sure, yes. The great outdoors. Yep. The wind in our hair. There's new songs. You could compose some new songs.

Yes. See what songs come to me. Have you been outdoors much, Lord Xanthias? Oh yes, I have in fact. Not travelling so much, as you can probably tell from my journey from Kelsgaris, but I've been outside plenty, yes. I can fare. Not so meek and firm and vulnerable.

Sorry, I stumbled over the words there, but I'll get used to it. Ophelia, Daisy. Daisy. Hi. You're in that, good. That is Daisy. I'm ready for this.

Walking? Yes. Would you prefer we take a wagon or? Don't usually walk very far. I could do very good piggybacks. Oh, that would be lovely. I'll let you know when I get tired. Great. I'm tired.

Are you me? You're me. Well, you find, because Ophelia has an ability, right? Do you actually get up on Rowan's back when he offers, or are you going to save it? For podcast listeners, Rhiannon is making a very thinking face.

I'll save it. I don't know why. Let's save it, okay. Can't be anything good. Whilst you guys are kind of having this conversation, the older-looking human in the soldiers approaches with the three other soldiers and the authority with them, and he kind of scratches his bald...

He's kind of got, like, that peach fuzz bald head. Like, he's not bald by, like, you know... He shaves it, clearly, like, shaves it really close down. He's kind of got, like, stubble around his face. He approaches. I was going to give him the shepherd voice, but I'm not going to do it. But he just approaches, and he's just like,

Oh, hello there. My name is... I'm Sergeant Yaro. I'm here to act as your escort to Ash and Rest on behalf of the Captain. Sergeant Yaro is technically my full title. These guys have to call me Sarge. But your travellers call me Guy. And he just offers a hand. He goes around, he's like, hello.

Shake it very daintily. Oh, yes. Sorry. Pleasure to meet you, I'm Rowan. He's like, hello, sir. Hello, big lady. He kind of shakes your hand. Comes up to Graff, shakes your paw.

Well met. And he kind of goes around, Xanthius and Daisy and everything else. Little hand out of the blanket. He kind of laughs a little bit. He's like, oh, I didn't realise it was... I thought it was five people were transported, not four in a walking blanket, but... LAUGHTER I know it's Chris Trott being sarcastic,

but Rowan is being very genuine. I love that one. Yeah. That was so loud. And Sergeant Yarrow is just like, ah, he's a good one, he's a good one. Anyway, jokes aside, let me introduce, I think you've already met young Cade,

but accompanying with us as well, I've got Private Bliss, and he points at the tiefade, but accompanying with us as well, I've got Private Bliss, and he points at the tiefling, and Private Daeron as well, and that's the wild heart, the wolf wild heart. They'll be accompanying us back to Ashenrest as well.

Shouldn't be too much trouble. We're going to follow the Imperial Highway. You know, it's well protected, and we didn't encounter any trouble on the way up here, so it shouldn't be a problem. Nervously, you see Sergeant Yarrow guy, he kind of glances towards the authoritor

and isn't quite sure what to say about it. He's just like, oh, and I think the authoritor is joining us as well. And you see the orc, Zaron Tekis. Your best friend. He just looks over, he's like, yes, I need to report of what happened to my superiors in the city.

What was the Lordheart's name again? Daeron. Daeron, thank you. Ron, Ronnie, Ronald. I have no doubt we'll be in good hands on this journey. Oh, thank you very much. Like I said, it shouldn't be too much of a problem. These are all a bit, you're all a bit green,

but they mean well and it'll be good if we get some distance in and everything else. Can't hurt having fresh blood on this escort mission. Indeed, indeed. Always good to train the fresh blood. I can't help myself. The sergeant will say it's about,

it's normally about five days journey to Ashen Rest. We'll be on the road, but it's along the Imperial Highway, so there's little rest spots. We'll camp overnight at the kind of established spots. There's usually other travellers and things there, so it's usually safe. And we'll make our way there. But if everyone's ready, we're all ready to go.

If you all are... Ready. I believe so, yes. Wonderful. All right, well, let's get going. All right, and then you guys are going to make your way. Everyone say bye, Burnell. Yeah. Bye, Burnell.

Bye, Burnell. See. Is this custom down here? No, just bye, Burnell. Farewell. Burnell's treated us very well. Yes. Well, somewhat well.

They gave us free food. Forced us into a mine, bought a load of loose things. They didn't technically force us into the mine. We just wanted to get back. Kind of, we wanted to leave. I'd say actually looking back, treated us okay at best. Peony post? Great.

That shop? Great. I got free breakfast, so I'm quite content with it. An entire night of terror and anguish in a mine? Not so great. Points down for that one. I met my best friends in Burnell. You all.

Bring it in. Awkward dad. Yeah. I can say so, Rowan. He's got some BO building up now. Oh, and the fish. Hasn't bathed in several days, and there's the strong smell of fish that comes from Rowan's pack.

If he just starts gagging. Over his shoulder. Did you still want that piggyback? With that wonderful image, we see Burnell in the distance as you begin to make your way. Just think of all the epic journeys that begin with a single step. And the beautiful cinematography of Lord of the Rings and them passing over Eredar Eddress and stuff

and then in this it's like a big hug with just this vampire lady going in sunglasses now this big awkward leaning just like

oh my god awkward dad sort of like pat pat pat a living blanket like a metapod Daisy's quite pleased for the hug though

she likes it she enjoys she enjoys the fact that yeah she's probably the only one that goes, oh, friends! Yay! And then we have wretches. I believe I mentioned it because when we were doing the mine,

we talked about journey rules, when you are exploring a vast and unexplored land. Now, when you are travelling the overland, so we are talking about, like, travelling in the places, we're going to use the same rules. And normally if you're traveling to a place like um uh trying to reach like a dungeon or a lair or something like you're going to an unusual place we're going to use the normal journey rules that i think i introduced last time but this time you are following the imperial highway this is a well-traveled paved road we are talking like ancient roman road right this is

actually paved with stone stretches stretches on for miles. And so you don't really have any risk of getting lost. You are traveling with people who know this land pretty well. So we're going to use a simplified version of the rules because things can still happen. We can still have events, and we still need to see how exerting the journey is for you guys to make saving throws and stuff like that.

So I would still like you guys to select the roles that we did last time so as a reminder you have the guide the scout the lookout and the quartermaster um so i'm still going to need you guys to pick uh those roles i can do scout if you want which one's survival based uh so the guide is normally the one who makes the survival checks i will tell you that when you're following a road the guide will automatically succeed on these checks so the guide is actually like just responsible if an event comes up that requires them um so in this case because you've got a road to follow there's no risk of you getting lost or anything like that you don't need to make the check you're going to automatically succeed it but in case an event comes up i need to know who's

what roles to see who might have to deal with it or what might encounter everyone else like to be i i helped last time because uh no uh i got quite high perception and survival equal in both so i got quite high perception and survival. Equal in both, so... I got really good perception. So what? It's kind of burgeoning. Deception, whatever. It's right up there.

Who needs it? I can see everything. No, you can't. You fucking can't. I mean, despite the road being there, I could still be the guide in principle. Yeah. Just because, remember, when an event comes up...

We're on the grass a little bit. Depending on what event I roll... I'm listening more. Yeah, depending on what event I roll, that might be a responsibility of a certain role. So if an event concerns the supplies, then the Quartermaster is responsible for it. There are some events which are universal,

like a monster attack. That's going to be an event that everybody has to deal with. It's not a certain role's responsibility um but the lookout might get a chance to know of an upcoming attack before it happens that kind of stuff um so it's still important but in this case you don't the guide does not need to make the base survival check um so what are we thinking i'll take lookout all right so we're gonna have uh gruff on lookout. I'll do Scout. Daisy on Scout. Quartermaster left. Quartermaster and Guide left, yeah.

If Rowan's going to be Guide, okay? So Rowan is going to be Guide with the cool shades. I don't know the land. Yeah, but you look cool. I do look cool. Yeah, Quartermaster is less about the land, and it's more like intelligence and sort of like wisdom based on managing supplies

and kind of being the sort of like wisdom based on like managing supplies and kind of being the sort of overseer of the journey basically. Everyone's on a blood diet. Overseer of the journey. If at any point I look over at Ophelia, what's your current face like at the prospect of walking right now and this journey?

Grumpy teenager. I'll be the quartermaster so i'll help who would you like to help can i help with disadvantage you are like actively sabotaged please i'm i'm just trying to keep track you just don't you just don't help you can just be like i do nothing that is an option by the way you can just say that like i do not help. I am not a role. I am just present.

I should probably help. Ophelia will probably. You should, yes. But what would Ophelia do? Rhiannon, you should help. Ophelia! I'll help. Who would you like to help? Court of Master.

Okay. I don't think she'd be good at Guide or Lookout. She doesn't know the land very well. Sure. Yep, makes sense. I think that makes perfect sense. Yeah, so you guys begin the journey. Because it has an automatic success,

the first day you travel without too much incident. You begin making your way south through Northvale. As a reminder, Caldra, most of Caldra is an enormous valley in itself, and then there are kind of smaller valleys within it. But imagine that the sides, off in the distance on the horizon, you can see these sloping mountains. To one side of you are the Obsidian Mountains, these jet black, jagged peaks. And to the other are the blades of the fangs of the empress which are these kind of brown still rag but snow-tipped kind of mountains up on the side as

well um xanthius you would know that the fangs of the empress are somewhat of a natural border between gildai and caldra along with the crimson peaks further to the south and they kind of create like a natural border between gildai and caldra whereas the obsidian mountains are a border between the black dragons province udaskia and caldra and they create these natural borders the slopes of the valley are lush fertile green hills forests mostly forested hills here in the valley with the occasional river drifting through and sometimes in the distance forming lakes and things like that you see vineyards and farms scattered all about the place and as you travel along the imperial highway you might in the very faint distance see other travelers and big pack lizards and things like that mounts making their way about

and in the air above you, you might even occasionally spy the very distant shape of what could very well be a dragon flying past on some important business going somewhere. But the first day of travel goes without too much incident. The day is clear and bright. A few hours into your journey, it does turn a bit gusty and breezy as a wind kind of settles in and those of you who bought like cloaks um are very very welcome for the protection against the wind um as it begins to blow against you and then it kind of the wind remains for most of the day

but it settles down by the night time um when we reach night you uh the the Sergeant Yarrow pulls you to the side. You find a little campsite, a kind of empty space to the side of the road. A little dirt track leads away from the Imperial Highway into a kind of secluded, on one side of a hill. And you can see that part of the hill has been dug out to create like a wind bluff, basically. And there's like a very simple wooden fencing. Barely, wouldn't really protect you from anything but kind of keeps wild animals out um and it's uh like a traveler's point basically like where you would set up a camp and you would camp for the night you can see

old stones and old sticks where a campfire once burnt maybe several days ago probably as the army was traveling north in pursuit of the criminals that you apprehended um and yeah what does it look like how do you guys set up camp what does this look like you know imagine those of you have played boulders gate this is like you know you've you've got tents and things like that this is your opportunity to create like a little campsite um i will tell you that uh techis the authorita and the the soldiers the soldiers will set up like little simple posts uh they have like simple tents that they begin to erect and start setting up their own little campfire and things like that.

But they're kind of keeping to themselves, along with the authorita, giving you guys room to do the same. Oh, tell me, Sarge. You can call me Sarge if you like, my lord. But Guy is totally acceptable as well. That's why my friends call me Guy. Would you prefer we rest up near to you guys, or would you like us to...?

Yeah, so you can do whatever you feel is comfortable. I mean, I'm going to have... Normally what we do is we rotate in pairs, so one pair of us will watch, and then another pair will watch for the other half of the shift. But, yeah, I mean, you can camp close to us if that's going to make you feel better, but the space is big enough.

If you want some privacy, you're more than welcome to as well. Would you require any of us to keep watch as well? No, no. I mean, well, you can do if you like. If you want to keep your own watch, by all means, you know, more eyes the better, but no, me and my, well,

we'll be doing our own watch anyway, and obviously if we see any sign of trouble, we'll let you know. Okay, wonderful. Oh, and if you're in need of any food, the big guy over there, Rowan, he's bought plenty of supplies. I'm sure he might have some.

Oh, lovely. Well, I mean, yeah, we brought a few things. Bliss does a bit of cooking, don't you, Bliss? And she's like, yeah, you know, Mum taught me a few things. I don't know too much, but I can give it a go. Maybe we could do a big pot of, like, a stew or something like that.

And she kind of looks over at you, Rowan. Like, I don't know, do you know what you're going to... I'd plop out all my fish onto the ground. That's a lot of fish. And start clanging all the pots and stuff. Oh, God. Okay. And a wooden spoon.

It's like holding it upside down, figuring it out. Yes. Yes. Very stressed. Right. Okay. We'll do a big group meal, I think, Sarge. And he's like, yeah, sounds good to me.

And she'll come up to you and be like, hello, I'm Bliss. And she kind of offers a hand. She's very pink. Like, she's very pink. Like, almost Barbie pink skin tone. And she has, like, white hair with streaks of blue in it. Kind of long, kind of curly, almost. Her horns are quite short.

She has, like, really little short devil horns. But she seems friendly enough, and she's kind of dressed in the soldier's garb. She's got like a bow slung on her back, and she's just like, yeah, name's Bliss. Right, have you done this before? Uh-huh. No. That's all right.

I can teach you what my mum taught me. I'm not a cook, but I know a few basic things. We can do like a fish stew, like a fish stew. Have you got, let's see, have you got there, oh, potatoes, yeah, we can put those in. We'll probably, maybe just the carrots we'll use. We've got a bit of broth here. She's like, have you got, what's that?

Is that spices? Have you got like a, oh, let's have a look at these. And she starts rummaging through. This fish needs using first. Oh, good, thank you. Yeah, that's great to know. Yeah, oh, it's looking a bit cloudy as I, isn't it? Try to tell me it was fresh. Yeah, no, they always try and scrape you. Yeah, that's great to know. Yeah, it's looking a bit cloudy as I, isn't it? Tried to tell me it was fresh.

Yeah, no, they always try and scrape you. That's a cauldron special fish. You are having me on. That's a cloudy-eyed kipper. It's a cloudy-eyed kipper, yeah. How did you manage to catch a cloudy kipper? That's so rare. Iridium level.

But no, she pulls out your pan, and what this is going to be is you're not going to gain proficiency in cooking tools but you are you can learn the recipe of fish too uh which means you can make this one um so she's going to loan you her proficiency for this recipe so you add an extra plus two to it when you make it for any future cooking yeah it's just fish all the time what role i'm happy uh so this is So cooking will be either wisdom or intelligence. So what's your highest there? Well, intelligence is minus one.

Right. And wisdom's plus one. Right, so probably wisdom. So you're going to add one from your wisdom, and then Bliss is going to loan you her plus two proficiency. So it's a plus three. Eleven. Eleven? So eleven total?

Total. Okay. It's perfectly normal. Like, it's a plus three three eleven eleven so eleven total so okay it's perfectly normal like it's not bad it's not gonna convey any benefits but it is a pleasant meal i don't think i removed the eye bliss oh i i will i'll push you down no no no don't put your hands in it it's all like dirt like your hands are your hands in there yeah we eat the whole thing I'll eat it so the two of you Bliss and and Rowan

cook this meal the smell a very strong fishy smell kind of fills the camp but you create a nice hearty

kind of a bit flavourless I feel you made a face we'll see we'll see what happens Rowan very much enjoys the company and asks lots of questions about Bliss. Asks for a story, that sort of thing.

Not that you have to do one. She will tell you, she's like, I'm not really much of a storyteller, but, I mean, do you know the story of St. Typhine? I mean, I guess you probably do. Oh, okay. I guess us Typhine? I mean, I guess you probably do. Oh, okay. I guess us Typhlings know it more than other folks. But she tells you the story of Saint Typhine,

one of the ascended saints of the Church of the Scions. I'll try and tell it in character. She's like, well, long ago there was... I'm not a storyteller, but yeah. Long ago, there was a temple and there were these priests and they were going about their ceremonies they were they were praying to to the the scions up above and then suddenly there was this flash of light and appeared appearing before them was the most beautiful woman they'd ever seen but she bore the wings of a devil and horns and a tail and they said

that she had the fire of the Helian throne in her eyes and she was a devil and at first these men, the priests and women, reached for their weapons ready to strike down this force of the plains that had invaded Althea but the woman cried out and pleaded for them to show her mercy because she had come here to repent, that she had seen the wickedness of her ways and that she wanted to return the love that she had stolen across the centuries. And whilst they didn't believe her at first, and then when they gazed into her eyes and when she pleaded with them and touched their hands, it is said that they saw the truth of this woman's request. And her name was Typhine and she went on journeys she traveled around Ulthea and she is said to have taken and brought love wherever she went those especially to those

who are unloved by anyone else the sick the poor the infirm she took them into her arms and cradled them in an embrace and to some she took to her chambers men and women and she had many children across all of Ulthea everywhere she went she would sire children and raise them and then when she would find families that couldn't have children of their own she would give one of her own and they would raise them as as theirs and these children came to be the Tiflings like me that's where we come come from. That's how we came to be in Althea. And now, when a Typhling has children, there's a chance that one of us is a fellow Typhling.

And that's where we came from. And then one day, Typhine, she had traveled for hundreds of years, being a devil or a demon. She didn't age. And then one day, she was beloved by the people. They sung songs and praises of this woman that brought nothing but love and joy to the people that she met. And then one day from her chambers, her assistants went to wake her and to bring her on a new journey.

And they found that she was missing and they saw just the remnants of the light of the moon. And it was then that Melia is believed that she ascended. She became an ascended saint Maelir took her into her realms and now there are clerics and priests who pray to the saint Saint Typhine the saint of love

the saint of adult things and yeah they receive her blessing and her powers and that's her story and that's where I come from I guess that's well not I come from but my people from, I guess. Well, not I come from, but my people, my lineage, I guess. It's all right. It's okay, big guy.

It's just a beautiful story. It is, yeah. She's seen as an icon of redemption and love and everything else. Anytime I picture that goddess, I'll think of your face. Oh, and she blushes. She's like, no, you can, everything else. Anytime I picture that goddess, I'll think of your face. Oh, and she, like, blushes. She's like, no, you can't do that. No, she's supposed to be the most beautiful being, like, that's ever graced the world.

Yes. Don't. And she's like, you know, really kind of blushes quite hard. I'll stop you, and she, like, punches your arm. But yeah, she tells you that story as you're cooking, basically. Lovely. And also, because you cooked a hearty meal, that is a mark towards your camp comfort level.

Oh. So the more comfortable you make your camp, then the easier your constitution saving throw for your exhaustion stuff is going to be at the end. Oh. Yep. Ew. Cloudy eye, anyone?

Does anybody else want to do anything? You don't have to, by the way. This is a purely, like, optional thing. We can just be like, you guys rest. It's not a big deal. The weather is currently fair. You don't know. It might change throughout the night,

but it seems to be fair and clear right now. I'd probably put up the tarp and, like, try and just set that up and get a little, like, sleeping area. Can you give me a survival check if you're going to put the tarp up, please? I could. Just to see how well you can construct it and stuff 20 20 yeah really sorry you find like uh some you go and gather some wood you find some like long enough things to like create poles you find a part of the hill which is really sheltered some nice heavy rocks to kind of weight the top down and you create like a little lean to basically just enough for you to get under it and

if it rains uh the wind's probably not going to knock this down and if it rains it will keep you dry um and everything else can i try and do the same so i will check as well please watching what gruff is doing well gruff would probably be very awkwardly trying to instruct you on how to do it she's probably probably, the tarp's bigger than she realized and she's gotten herself a bit tangled up in trying to unfurl it all, you know? Gruff would be helping, like, oh no. Well, just because you've set your own up,

you're not gonna be able to give the help out. Role play wise, yes. Role play wise, like just trying to untangle her from the tarp and like just give and start, no, no, if you go like, no, this this, no, it's upside down. Like this? It's probably like you're making your own and you're looking over it and Daisy's doing her own.

Upside down, yeah. Yeah, exactly, yeah. But yeah, survival check from Daisy then, please. Natural one. Perfect. You've constructed a lean-to. It is not going to last the night. It is absolutely going to fall on you

throughout the night. But if there's no bad weather, it's not a problem. If there's bad weather, it's a problem. I have a blanket. It's fine. I'm just going to cocoon myself. I'm cocooning myself under the tarp anyway. Two layers.

See, this is why I got the big blanket. Cocoon. It's just two layers. It's just like having two duvets now ophelia uh where are you planning on sleeping tonight do you have um a camp oh i've got that sorted percival no time do you do you have in your equipment like a tent or anything like that bedroll okay so just the bedroll yeah i just imagine percival will just well so i imagine that what Percival will do...

No, Percival is carrying all your equipment. All your bedroll, things like that, Percival carries. So he puts this backpack down and he starts pulling out a bedroll. And it is like a quilted, red, dark red, kind of plush-looking sleeping bag almost. And it's kind of cushioned and everything else. And he's pumping it up. There's a pillow. He pulls that out, sleeping bag almost. And it's kind of, like, you know, cushioned and everything else. And he's, like, pumping it up. And there's a pillow. He pulls that out, puts that down.

There's these gorgeous, like, satin silk sheets that are being folded neatly. But he's kind of looking at the dirty ground. He starts sweeping up and, like, pushing the dirt away to create, like, a nice clean space. And then when he finishes, he basically, like like takes off his monk robes and holds them up

like over it. I was thinking exactly the same thing. He like holds these ginormous monk robes out revealing a skeleton completely there. And he's naked! Oh no. A lot of rolling happening.

Has Rowan seen that yet? I haven't seen it. Rowan and Daisy haven't seen it yet. We have described it to you. Neither have... You told us, but we haven't seen it. We have. You have, yes. Okay.

Should we start dancing? The Orthorator and the four soldiers have not seen this scene. And immediately, Zaron is just like, what by the scions is that? And it's like, you see magic charging in his hands. The soldiers are like, bloody hell, by the scions! Scions and saints! Everyone, hold!

Put down your weapons, do not worry. What is this abomination? This is Ophelia's assistant. This is Percival, my most beloved and trusted friend. Please, please calm down. You see Zaron is like, robs his head, because he knows, he's spoken to you, he's like, I should have expected this.

Stand down, sergeant. And the sergeant looks over and he's like, bloody hell, it's the walking dead, authorita. I thought the same. You get used to it. I'm still not used to it but you i hope i will one day uh he like looks over he's like bloody hell i hope i don't it's walking bones um the authorita will say sergeant this woman has immunity on these matters she is allowed to conduct necromancy by the writ of her diploma diplomatic mission here.

And you see that the soldiers are like, what is happening? But you do, the authoritar will come up to Ophelia and be like, My Lady Della Rosa, if I may request, you should be very cautious. It is fine out here and with these soldiers, but in the cities and places like that, It is fine out here and with these soldiers, but in the cities and places like that, your servant will attract considerable attention in this way. We are not used to the dead in this manner. Okay, so is this wrong? It is not normal for the Empire. We do not have our dead walking around. This is going to upset and frighten others.

But they have nothing to be frightened of. Percival means no harm to anybody. No. The only instances of necromancy that we are used to here in the Empire are when creatures from the vaults, the proto-magic vaults, escape. Sometimes the errant magics of those places awaken the dead, and they are very aggressive, and they attack and kill anyone they come across. We are likely to respond in that way to any sort of undead. respond in that way to any sort of undead. I think in the robes, your servant is not so likely to draw attention, but you should be cautious not to have them so flagrantly appear.

I understand. But you must understand that onosius necromancy is a gift. I do. I understand that. I understand that you have your beliefs and that it is quite common for the undead to help perform duties in your land, yes? Yes.

That is not the case here. So just be aware that some may react differently to what you expect. Should I announce that he is... I would keep him clothed and robed as much as you can. And if you do intend on revealing him, do let others know. Okay, I shall. Thank you for your wise words.

I just... I do not want... I do not want this to cause a diplomatic incident. I do not want your servant to be attacked. Oh, no, no, no. Good heavens, no. Well, some may attack your servant, and then you may wish to retaliate, and then it would become an incident.

Yeah, I see. But yes, do we should perhaps another outfit underneath the robes to help disguise them or some such. Percival, would you mind putting your robes back on for me, darling, and maybe borrowing my cloak instead? Maybe hold that over. Starts putting the robes back on, comes over, takes the cloak, bows, and then goes back into his position of creating the shelter. Thank you. We'll keep you safe.

And just nods. Daisy has, in the meantime, cast... She probably cast light on her dagger when it got a little bit dark anyway and is sitting wrapped in the blanket, shaking. The dagger's just shaking. The light you can just see is shaking slightly because she's just staring at Percival.

Just like. Yeah, you see the head kind of just turns in your direction, Lazy, but it turns like almost 360 degrees around. The hollow kind of skull face just looking at you. Ophelia, can you tell him? Can you tell him not to look at me? Oh, sorry, sorry, but Percival, to me, darling, look at me.

Thank you. Thank you. It's okay. And he is okay, don't worry. He won't, he won't, he doesn't mean you any harm. I've just never seen a skeleton before, ever. Okay, well, skeleton. Thank you.

She's just shaking. She's just gonna shake in her little blanket and be like I'll just go over and just gently just hold her hand just It'll be okay It'll be okay It'll be okay

Can you roll a d20 for me please? Thirteen Thirteen You feel as you kind of touch Daisy's hand you can feel that heartbeat, the risen heartbeat from her fear, the thump, the thump, the thump, like in her hand.

It's so warm. But you're like, no, you keep it under control. He would just quickly just drop a hand and go back to her, go back to Percival and just sit on her bedroll. Yeah, perfectly sheltered now with a big cloak over you. A little statue of the great father just on the side and she'll just

kneel in front of it and just quietly just pray in front of perfect alright well with that unless there's any other business we can take

our long rest yeah that is I believe break time yeah break time alright with that we're going to take

a little break here everybody I believe we've got a new oh we're going to we'll see you in part two I I believe we've got a new fan. Oh, we're going to... We'll see you in part two. I've got to do the podcast thing. Thank you. Thank you. Well done.

We'll see you in part two, everybody. Bye. Bye. See you in a bit. Bye.