The Adventure Zone - The Adventure Zone Royale: Episode 15

Episode Date: December 18, 2025

The Trial of Transmutation, Part IIIt’s sink or swim as the wizards must use their new skills cleverly — or drown. Rictus, Helgrammite, and Loraveth try to survive while still remembering their promises and alliances.Royale Theme: “Wizard Disco” by Louie Zong: https://louiezong.bandcamp.com/album/wizard-discoOriginal Music by Griffin McElroyAdditional Music in this Episode:"tribute to eddy" by Jean Toba: https://jeantoba.blogspot.com/; and “The Redemption in Her Amrs” by Schemawound: http://schemawound.com/.Harmony House: https://harmonyhousewv.com/ Happy MaxFunDrive! Right now is the best time to start a membership to support your favorite shows. Learn more and join at https://maximumfun.org/jointaz

Previously, on Taz Royale, I will be administering the trial of transmutation. The trial shall end when four of you have been eliminated. Now, you may not make armed attacks against one another, nor may you directly target each other with your suite of spells. You must find more inventive methods of defeat. defeating your rivals. I assure you no harm is coming to do besweetly. Defeat the Goliath.

I will happily give you whatever prize we may earn. Oh. Like, who's the target for you? Hell Gramut cannot win the conclave. Welcome back, everybody, to Taswuryal. We're neck deep in the trial of transmutation, where our brave, aspirant wizards are trying to climb. an infinitely descending spiral staircase

and an attempt to not go into eel-infested waters. The trial will end when four wizards have fallen. So far, only one has gone down. Everyone's favorite, build a bare factory reject, Snoghaw was murdered in cold blood. I think by just, I think by Loravith? I think Loraith did that one. Yeah, that sounds right to me.

Claxon, the sort of automaton was gravely injured in the last episode, but so far, that is the results of the trial so far. We are at the top of the order to Rictus Ravenwood. Rictus, sitting pretty, step number 15, halfway up the tower. Classic step. Classic step. We love step 15. To remind you, there are these glyphs in alcoves all around the central pillar where these spiral stairs are. are descending around.

And that's the business. Rickness with your move action, you can move up six steps or do whatever the hell you want, man. It's your game. I'm gonna run up to step 20. Okay. Boop, boop, boop.

And a cast unseen servant. When you said, bo bo bo bo, was that you moving your character? Because I didn't actually see it. In my mind. I was moving at my mind. I thought you would do it for me. Okay. I made the noise.

Okay, you are casting unseen servant. That's a new one for you. What is, what does that do? Well, Griven, it makes a servant. Okay. That is invisible. Great. It creates an invisible, mindless, shapeless, medium force that performs simple task at my command

until the spell ends. I can, on my turn, as a bonus action, mentally command the servant to move up to 15, and interact with an object. It can perform simple tasks that a human servant could do. Okay. Is this a sort of delayed action that you're waiting to deploy,

or do you want to go ahead and tell me sort of what your intention is? No, he's just hanging out with me. Okay, on step 20. Because that's my action to make him. Okay, let me make a little, I'll put a little token down for an unseen servant.

Beauregard. Beauregard is his name? Yes. Okay, cool. B. E. Hey, you. Too late.

I already did it fast. So, you have created an unscised servant. That is your action. Is that it for your turn? I believe you have one more step if you want to go up to 21. No. But I'm not going to tell you your business. No, I want to stay here where I can, like, see everybody.

And I guess I could see them from 21 just clearly. Okay. Great. Yeah, I'm going to stay at 20. Is it possible to kind of squeeze against the wall, the inner wall? wall? Sure. Step 20 has an alcove on it.

You can sort of press up against it. Just to make it a little tougher for somebody to shove me. Yeah, absolutely. I mean, there's nobody else on this step except Beauregard, so you can trade places with him. And I trust him with my life. Absolutely. It would be crazy if you're unseen servant tried to kill you. Next in the order is Scorpo.

Scorpo is going to move up to step 12 where the spider is clinging to the wall. He is going to try and pull him. down, but he is unsuccessful. He tries pulling down the spider, but the spider is too sticky. He says, hey, stop it, man. Scorpo is going to then move up two more steps. Next to the order is Claxon. Claxon is going to climb.

He is at half speed because his legs were more or less destroyed. Because he's a remnant. He is sort of a, he is a remnant. He's going to climb up three steps here. he is going to try and grapple with Rime, the icy wizard. Has the trap already been sprung on that step? The trap that was set was on 10. Loravith very nimbly evaded that trap.

So that has been activated. You see step 10 has reformed. Oh, okay. I was wondering about the red exclamation point on there. The red exclamation point is like the glyph where you use to activate the traps and set it where you want to set it. Claxon is also unable to tangle up rhyme. Yeah, Rhyme's going to move up two steps.

Claxon's going to take an opportunity on our melee attack here against him. Another unsuccessful role. Okay, so he reaches the same step as the two of you, Hellgrammett and Loravith. And Loravith, since you are standing on the sort of edge of the step, He is going to put all of his might into trying to shove you off the steps. As he comes near you, you hear a piercing wail. What is the sound of the alarm again, Hill, Grandma? You said it.

Great, great, great. Excellent, excellent. So I'll give you advantage on this check, since you definitely saw him coming. you are going to contest his athletics check with either your athletics or acrobatics check. I better go with acrobatics. He's pushing Loravith, not you. Oh, right, gotcha.

Okay. Athletics. That's a 13 that he got total. Son of a gun. I got 7 plus 3.10. You have advantage because of the alarm that was set on your back. One more time. Come on.

19 plus 322. Yeah. It's genuinely you know, Batman punching Superman and there being absolutely no reaction to it whatsoever. Ryan puts their hands on you

and tries to push and just absolutely no purchase is found whatsoever. God saved your life, Justin. Thanks. No, well, no. Yeah, you've got advantage. Well, hellgrammit.

Yeah, that's true. We've got to keep it separate. Are we going to be amazing as a monster's territory? True. With that, Ryan is going to try and use the rest of their move. You can make an opportunity attack if you would like. I guess both of you could, since you're in the same space,

if that is how you want to use your reaction. Or you can just let Rhyme go. Up to you. I don't think such action should go unpunished. But it's not my turn. No, but this is your reaction. It's an opportunity attack. So either one of you can make an attack as your reaction,

not as an action on your turn. I think it would make more sense for him to act first If you wanted to react, like if we both have an option here, I think I'm kind of caught off guard. So if Dad wanted to do something, I think he's been waiting for whatever this is. Yeah. Opportunity attack. Mm-hmm. Shocking grasp. I'm going to hit him with shocking grasp. Well, can you do that with your... Do you have like a thing that lets you do spell attacks as your opportunity attack? I'm asking dad to be the arbiter of this script.

True, true, true. Yeah, good point. I think it's just a, you know, a melee, unarmed melee attack. If he was... It says action. Okay, yeah. Okay. Okay. Okay. I will... you know what? No, I don't have anything like that. Okay, I'm going to just grapple with him. Okay.

Yeah, I'm going to grapple with him. Great. So, grappling. Target must succeed on a strength dexterity. It chooses which. Saving throw. Okay, and you roll your melee attack,

and that is the number that Rhyme is trying to beat here. It's plus two. So 14. 10. Doesn't do it. Plus? Just plus one.

Oh, okay. Not quite enough. Rhyme is able to slip through your grasp and continue their march up the stairs. But Hell Grammett gives him such a look. I bet. Yeah, I'll kick him in the stomach. Oh, Lorbith. You're just making a melee attack?

Yeah. Yeah, yeah, there's one quick, quick old stomach yet. Okay. That is a 15. That is exactly what you need, yeah. Go ahead and roll damage on your unarmed strike. Four. Okay.

Yes, Rime is not the sturdiest of foes, and so Rhyme doubles over in pain, takes a step backwards. Right in the spleen. You hear Rhyme say, oh, my spleen. Rhyme looks at you, hell, Grammet. pretty furious because Rhyme thought that you were going to help them with their goal of killing Lora Vith, seeing that that's not the case. Rime is going to run up, already used their action up to step number 11. Next in the order. I'm going to move quick through Tommy Falcon.

He's got sort of one objective here, and it's just getting as high up as he can. So he's going to move up 12 steps using a dash action to step 27. I wave at him as he goes by He waves at you too Tommy Falcon has no beef with you That I can remember Oh he's poultry That's good stuff man

That's really good stuff Randolph is going to pick up Sweet Little Duber Sweet Leaf And carry him Moving half distance But bringing his sweet little boy Ward Up three steps further from the edge Hippocrates is up next.

Okay, Hippocrates moves up two steps. You, does anyone have eyes on him? Rictus, you can kind of see Hippocrates as he stops in. Places his hands on one of those trap glyphs. And places down, places a trap down. You obviously can't see where it is, but you know enough to know that there is a trap on the board. at this point. And then he stops his move there? Yes, he does.

Duber Sweetleaf runs up. He stops by you, Loravith, and Hell Gramet, and says, excuse me, would you mind helping out Grandpa behind me? He's he helped me out, but he's his knees, his sweet knees. Dober, you don't

know me very well, but your grandpa is my grandpa. Not literally, of course, but I'll care for him as though I was caring for you to a lesser extent that I mean because if you are in danger I will abandon your your papa I thought this was the reverse of the Taz classic I'm your dad lying you know it's like no actually that's my grandpa it's like but Trab it's like the transit and

conversation with that right yeah like you know what I mean it's like it's aware of that device and it's like in conversation with it oh my god Justin thank you for making space for that. He gives your big thick, like, ankle, a big hug. And then he is going to... Nice, dude. He only comes up to his ankle? He's a little tiny guy.

He... Dubeer runs up to step number 13. There is a glyph on the wall there. He sees it in the shape of a water droplet. He says, Uh, grandpa, I can drain some of the water for you. He puts his hands on it, and with his action, uh, channels some of his, channel some of his magic into it and then seconds later you all hear the sound of rushing water as step number three

is overtaken suddenly. Duber says, shit! As he increases the height of the water, spider is going to climb up six around the edge of the room. Rick does, I mean, he's going to climb kind of past you. if you wanted to take a swing at the spider with your opportunity attack, you can do so, or you could... Nah, I'll wait for him.

Okay, cool. He continues on up the spire of two, step 23. And now we are back to Loravith. You and Hellgrimut on step number eight, waters at three, and you're going to go down three steps. You are... Messy, can you show me... No, I have to move it myself, so I...

You're not in control this. Yeah. Right. Uh... Uh... Do do do do do, do, do. See, I'm currently on eight, which will bring me up to 15. But what about your step, grandpa, on the step?

Yeah, man. All right, Randolph, come along. I'll throw Randolph over my shoulder and go up as many as I can carrying his old ass. Okay, you use one step dropping back to... Oh, I can reach him. Don't be ridiculous. Well, don't be a child. You use one step.

Don't be a child. I'm on step eight. He's on step seven. I can grab him without using any moves, Griffin. Okay, so you do not. No, you are going to move to step seven if you want to grab Randolph. Griffin, this is the such a child. That sounds so stupid.

You're being such a child about this. Why would you, so can you not attack? You know what I'm saying? He's within reach. Give me a, okay, I'll tell you what. If you want to make a long-ass reach with your long, arms and he'll stretch his long, long grandpa arms towards you. Give me an athletics check. Here's what I'll say, Griffin. Yeah. Give me, give me an athletics check. If I succeed,

no steps. If I fail, it takes two. Yeah, I'll grant you that. So we are looking for to 11. Okay, I'll meet you in the middle. It does take one step. You are able to grab it all. I just want to fairness. He is sloth. He is sling. Light is extremely slight and you are enormous. I don't think you have any. I don't think this is going to affect your speed. With an 11, I do think there's some light bruising from my grip. Yeah, you touch it.

You have to touch his old butt through his robe in order to get a good graph line. Okay, so this leaves you with six steps to go up if you move your full speed. Yes, I will head. So that takes us to what, 13? Up to 13 with Randolph. Are you setting him down here? Yes, right next to Doober. Okay.

As promised, little man. Doober is teary-cheeked. He thought he had just definitely killed his grandpa by increasing the water level here. And they have a nice, a sweet embrace. Now, listen, Duba. In exchange, you have to take care of my good cousin-in-law, Scorpo. I've pat Scorpo on the shoulder. Scorpo looks at you.

Sort of surprised that you feel that way about him. I'm just kidding, dude, but I don't care about it. Scorpo looks kind of disappointed. Okay, that is your turn, Hell Grammet. You are up. Fire and ice, Scorpon. Fire an ice. That's me.

Hell Gramut is going to move his whole six. Okay. That is going to get you up to 14 next to Scorpo. Right next to Scorpo. And leans in close to Scorpo. And kind of in a very low tone says, Hey, watch out for the old man. I think he's got it in for you.

I remember seeing in his room, he has a bug collection. All of our little brothers and sisters on pins. Watch out for him. Give me a deception check, please. You are trying to beat a 12 here is the insight role that Scorpo got. Four didn't do it. Four does not. As hell grammats, wonderful roles continue.

You give me an insight check now, please. An insight check? Yes, sir. Four again. Back to back. Consistent, but not accurate. Scorpo gives you a look. A look, man.

He gives you a look, dude. That is that round. And we are going to advance the water level to four. And everyone's going to move down three steps. So except for the spider, who is, and Tommy Falcon, who is flying. So those two are good. Travis, I'll grant this to you. Is Beauregard floating?

Is he? He moves with me. He moves with you. Okay. So. Because in order to command him, it's limited. Like, he can, I can command him to do things 15 feet away for me. Yes.

So I don't think it would make sense for him to not move with me because then I would be limited with what I could command him. For sure, I got you. Okay, so scooting everyone down here. Randolph, Dober, Loravith on 10. Rhyme is going to move down to seven. And Claxon, poor Claxon did not manage to get safe.

And he is pulled into the raised water level. I think because of Duber's actions, Claxon is pulled under the elevated water level. And yes, no, you see him reach up and give like the T2 thumbs up as his mechanical components are torn bit by bit, by these blood-red eels, and then there is nothing but floating machinery in the water that moments later sinks down out of sight. And with that, a loud horn sounds from way, way,

way above the surface of the lake where you all are submerged right now, and the second aspirant in this trial is defeated. Two more, and you guys have survived it. Next in the order is Rick Dis Ravenwood. Excellent. I mentally command Beauregard to go crouch down on all fours behind Hippocrates. Okay. So, read me the description one more time of Unseen Servant. The spell creates an invisible, mindless, shapeless, medium force that performs simple tasks at your command until the scale ends.

I need you to roll a dexterity saving throw for me. please. Four Beauregard. Not 20. Holy shit. Okay. He, you watch, can you see Beauregard?

Yeah. Okay. I mean, I know where he is in my mind. You know what I mean? Well, then you see as he takes a step down to 16, and then when he puts a foot on 15, that step suddenly disintegrates into sand. And it does not seem to affect him at all.

He walks right past and crouches down behind Hippocrates. Like, behind, like, you're putting Beauregard between Hippocrates in the edge of the step down. Yes, I am, Griffin. Okay. Moments later, after activating the trap, step 15 reforms, transmutes back into regular stone. So it's safe now, right? It is safe now, yes. Is that your action?

That is a bonus action. Okay, great. So now I'm going to hop down there. and push Hippocrates over Beauregard. Okay, I love it. Classic schoolyard bullying. Yeah, man, hell yeah. So I'll give you an advantage here on the shove.

It's also so important to know that Hippocrates does not know the Beauregard is, though. Yeah, absolutely. I think this is a great maneuver. Hippocrates looks surprised. He is wearing this, like, you know, plague doctor mask. It's hard to tell his facial reaction as you sort of, retreat back down to his step. I think he realizes very quickly that you are about to move on him. So he is going to roll a acrobatics check to avoid your push here. He gets an 11 total. So you need to

beat an 11 with your athletics check. You have advantage on the roll. Okay. Oh, unfortunately, neither of those roles are going to do it. Uh, Beauregard is still there. You see Hi, as he kind of like takes a step back as you push him, he bumps into something. But it actually like stops his, his motion, prevents him from falling over the edge. So that is your bonus, your action. Well, damn it. Griffin? You still have, let me think, you still have three steps of movement. If you wanted to try and put some space, Hippocrates is definitely going to take a swing at you.

Well, yeah, he's mad at me now. Hell yeah, he is, dude. Yeah, I'm going to move back up to 17, I guess. Okay, he is going to take an opportunity attack on you. Critical failure. He trips over Beauregard. And you are back. Yeah, Beauregard grabs his hand as he takes a swing towards you and fails to make contact.

And you are back to Step 17, where you started. Well, that was so pointless. We did it, Beauregard. Okay, go on. Next in the order is Scorpo. and Scorpo looks at you Hell Gramet

and says I'm sorry Helgrammit but what you want I've seen what you'll do with the powers of the octave we we are bugs we came from bugs

I will not allow you to control us like bugs and he is going to try and of you over the edge of step number 11. That is a 14 that you need to beat on either an athletics or acrobatic save. Okay. I'm standing still, correct? You are?

So with communion carapace, shouldn't I have advantage on dexterity checks? No, sir. No, that's for, that's a specific thing. That's like for hiding when nobody is looking at you and you are, You are standing still. This is not a stealth situation. This is a resisting being pushed. Okay.

So what kind of check do I need to make? This is an acrobatics check trying to beat a 14. Okay. I'm doomed. Here we go. Oh, it's an 18. Whoa, man. Okay.

Hell yes. All right. Scorpo puts his arms on your shoulders. You come at him with your arms and your bonus vestigial arms. And the two of you are kind of grappling on this step. Gravel from the stair beneath you is kind of pushing out over the edge, but you plant the sort of claws on your insectoid feet and manage to hang on and push him off of you. However, Scorpo is going to disengage and he is going to use his move.

You are able to take a, let me think, yeah, we're at a new round. So you can use your reaction again if you would like to take a, take an action against him, an unarmed melee attack action. Well, I mean, since my rolls have obviously turned around. Yeah, man. Yeah. Right? Yes. What can go wrong? What could possibly go wrong?

Like a 16. Yeah, a 16 absolutely hits. Go ahead and roll damage. That's two. Okay. Yeah, you're not able to get like a. a huge blow on Scorpo. He has, you know, this thick scorpion kind of armor,

but you slash at his back with your claws as he takes off. He takes two points of damage here, and he is going to run up the stairs. One, two, one, two, three, four, five, six. Next to you, Rictus. How to go down there? I couldn't see. Is everything cool?

He looks at you and says, I failed. and move on hell, Cremant. It's... What? It's... I think it's over for me. Okay.

Rime is up next. This was discussed previously. Can I have your stuff if you die? It needs to be explicitly said or they won't let me do it. He ignores you as he's not concerned right now. Okay, Rime is up next. Rime is going to move up. Now, there's only enough space on a step for...

for three people. And right now, in order to keep moving up the steps, he would have to get past the step that has Duber, Randolph, and Loroavith on it. So everyone here, I think, is able to get an attack on him for him to get through this space. And so instead he's going to cast a spell. You see Rhyme's eyes glow bright blue,

and they channel some sort of energy down into their fist and reaches out and punches the central pillar. As that happens, a tremor shakes the ground in a 10-foot radius. I'm going to need Loravith to make a dexterity saving throw, same with Duber and Randolph. Alarm is still in effect. I don't know if that gives Loravith advantage. So you put it on his back.

I don't think for this, it's good. Wow, it doesn't matter. You got a Nat 20. Wow. And so did Duber Sweet Leaf. Oh, I'm the dream team. Come on, Randolph. Win beneath my wings.

Okay, Randolph got a nine. So, uh, what happens is, uh, Randolph is going to take, uh, five points of damage here as, uh, the tremor sort of shakes him and he falls down and cracks his head, uh, on the step. You're embarrassing Dubour and I, Randolph. Randolph falls prone and... Carried you all the way up here, you fall on your ass. In addition, the steps eight, nine, and ten all become difficult to rain. So they are going to take double movement in order to get through. I think doing that rhyme is just going to stay put where they are.

And that is rhyme's turn. You know you are wasting your time with him, Duba. You see this now? But he's my... He's sort of my grandpa. Not exactly. I could use a ward. I could use a dupor around to make me look taller.

Randolph looks up at you, Loravith, from the ground, and says, Just keep him, keep him safe. Keep him secret. Keep him safe. Sorry, are you telling me where your medicine is, old man? I can't hear very well from all the way up here. You see, I'm up here standing. Okay, next up Tommy Falcon is going to make his way to the top of the stairs, and he is going to place his hands on the glyph.

No one is up there close enough to see what happens when he does so. But he channels energy into this glyph on the very top step, step number 30. Next in the order is Randolph, who is going to stand. and he is going to then spend his action, I guess, to dash losing one step for the difficult terrain here and make his way up very slowly to step number 14. Hippocrates is up next. Hippocrates. He's probably forgiven me by now, right?

Absolutely not. Hippocrates is going to take a couple steps up to step number, yeah, he is just going to move up to step number 16, and he holds up his arms inside of his feathery black cloak, and he is going to give up. Oh, well, that target's a creature. Dang, okay. He then brings his hands together and from his cloak a line of strong wind, 10 feet wide, blasts forward, and you and Scorpo are going to need to make a

Strength saving throw. Oh, not my strong suit. Okay, you are trying to beat an 11. That's a two. That is a two, Griffin. Okay. So, Scorpo hangs tight. He buries his scorpion tail down in the ground, and he hangs on for dear life.

You are pushed away from Hippocrates over step 18. and you are going to plummet down to step number eight, right behind Rhyme and Duber Sweet Leaf and Loraveth. You are going to take 1D10 points of bludgeoning damage as you fall 10 feet. You take six points of bludgeoning damage, and you land prone on the crumbling steps of Stone 8. Duber Sweetleaf is up next. Doobers Sweetleaf is going to run.

One, two, three, four, five, six. And it's going to place his hands on the aeroglyph that no one has quite touched yet. You see him channel energy into it. And with that, you hear, fom, fom, come from above you. both Tommy Falcon and the spider succeed on dexterity saving throws but you hear Tommy Falcon say my board

Tommy Falcon and the spider have both been pulled down to the ground by a strong gravitational force negating their flying and climbing powers respectively so the spider is going to move up a step and place a invisible trap with his action okay that brings us to Lorae You are now up.

Yes. You are on step number 10. You have just seen Rictus fall over the edge and land on step 8 prone. You have Rime right behind you on step 9. He just tried to take you out with a trimmer. Rectus, do you need me? Ow. I think I'm okay.

Um, yeah. Oh, fuck. Ow. And rhyme. What? And then I hit rhyme. And I can't, no. Dang it.

I can't, can I use physical attacks? Yeah, you can use melee attacks. You just can't use a weapon. Yeah, okay. I will edit it. And rhyme. And when he looks to me, I punch him in his nose. Okay.

With my fist. Okay, great. Make an unarmed melee attack, please. A 15 plus 5.20. Fucking, yeah, absolutely. Roll damage. It's always four Oh it's always four

The unarm strike Okay With that You punch the mask off of Rime And now you can see That you have broken Rhyme's nose Absolutely blood dripping down Their chin

That's how you fight someone Rime looks like They are on death's door I will Well go ahead Go ahead and Oh, good, Griffin. Yeah.

I can finally use this. When I hit a larger, smaller creature with an attack roll and deal damage to it, you can give it the prone condition. Oh, wow. Okay. That's a good time for that. That is a great time for that. Okay, Rhyme is knocked prone.

So is Rictus. I have to remember who all is prone here. Okay. Awesome. Cool. Rime is now laying on this sort of crumbled step that they kind of messed up here and they are lying on the ground.

Unable to retaliate if you move away. I will go two steps down to eight to help brick this up. Okay, so you did use your attack action. You did use your action already to attack RIME. So an aid action here would be an action that you do not have. Um,

remind them. Okay. Screw them. I guess. Fair know. I just think helping should be a free action. That should be a motto of mine. That's cool.

Helping. That's cool. That's like, and it's like an important, it's like a beautiful message for now. It's like a beautiful house rule that we've recently developed is that helping is always a free action. Yeah.

You know? Because that's beautiful. Yeah. That's cool, man. I like that a lot. Are we going to that? Remember. Like, are we sticking with that,

or how are we feeling about that? Oh, no, I mean, absolutely, it can't be the rule of the game, but, like, as like a motto or like something we could put on a shirt, like, fuck yeah, dude. Okay, so I'm on step 10. I'm gonna go up to step, what, 17? Is that sound about right?

Yes, is there anyone that would wanna hit you? No, man, you're, Loravith is somehow the sweetheart of this trial so far. Okay, yeah, you can move up to step 17. No one's gonna take a swing at you. and you post up right next to Scorpo. Okay, and then Hellgrave it, you're up next. How far would I get if I dashed?

Dashing would use your action, right? So you would be able to cover 12 steps total. Okay. Assuming no one took a swing at you or tried to grab you or anything. There's quite a few dudes in front of you. Randolph, Doobar, Hippocrates, Scorpo, Loravith, Beauregard, the Invisible Assistant. So it's up to you. should have been hitting all of them as they ran past me just now. So you get one reaction, right? You can take one

opportunity attack per round. So you couldn't attack all of them as they ran past, but if you wanted to be like super duper nasty, I guess so. Okay. I'm going to use dash and move 12 steps. Okay. One, two, three, four, five, six. At step 17, Scorpo is going to try and grab you. He is going to use his reaction attack here to try and grapple you to stop you in your tracks. Okay, so you can try and contest this with acrobatics or athletics. I'll try acrobatics. Okay. He rolled. He rolled. a 15. Matt 20. Oh shit, dude.

Okay, yeah. You are able to slip through Scorpo's grasp. Loravith, you clock this. Your former teammate, Scorpo, definitely just tried to make a move on Hell Gramet. You are engaging in hostilities at this point. So you're going to continue. And Hell Grammet is one of the... He's one of the people I know.

And lie, you're one of your best buddies. Okay, you're going to keep moving up. How much farther do I get? I mean, you've only used one move. You have not taken your action. Yeah, but I dashed, right? So, yes, I'm asking you if you want to, if you want to keep moving, you are going to dash. If you want to take another action here, you know, this can be where you stop.

No, no, I want to keep dashing up to 23, right? Okay, well, you're going to need to make a dexterity saving throw on 20 for me, please. You can do this, Dad. Or you can't. I don't know. Dexterity saving? Yes, dexterity saving three. for me, please.

Ten. That is not going to cut it. As you take a step on 20, you gasp as suddenly the stair, the hard stone stare beneath your feet turns into sand and you fall completely through it, falling to the ground

and plummeting to plop down prone on step number 10. Oh, give me a freaking break. Yeah, man, it sucks. You are going to take five points of bludgeoning damage, and you are prone. It is a bad scene down here on steps eight, nine, and ten where we have Richtus, Rhyman, Hell, Grammet,

all laying prone on these crumbled steps. All groaning in a chorus. All groaning, writhing, just sort of side by side by side. Ow, ow, ow. That is going to be... No, it's not. No, I don't think it is. I have a bonus action.

Okay. I'm going to use Misty Step. Oh, awesome. Okay, cool. And I'll let you interpret it as best you can. Misty Step, briefly surrounded by Silvery Mist. You teleport up to 30 feet to an unoccupied space you can see. So how far will that get me? Okay.

Okay, yes, you can Misty Step. So let me think. You're on a spiral staircase, right? So, uh, I mean, using line of sight where you landed on 10, I think that could get you up to step number 14, which is where Randolph is, just kind of drawing a line. Okay, I'll take it. Of where you could go seeing through the central pillar, but yeah. Okay, cool. You are still going to be prone when you arrive, but you are able to move yourself up of several steps. It is great.

So in other words, if I had had my head out of my ass, I would have stopped at 9. Yeah, but the trap was hidden. There was no way of knowing. Right now there are no traps on the board. Yes, that's true. That is what I would say. The traps are only placed by the other players. They are not just secret bonus ones.

Dude, you're all of them. We know that. You got to stop. Here's what happens next. We are going to advance the water level. That's a square. That's not a cone. Get the fuck out of there.

Stinker. Okay. The water has risen up to overtake step number five. Then everyone is going to move back only. As you are moving back, you realize that the stairs are descending in double time. Because of the act taken by Tommy Falcon. So everyone is going to move back six spaces. That means rictus.

You are pulled down. I think once you hit step number four, you are floating in the water so that it is not going to continue to pull you back. But Beauregard is down to eight. Hell, grammat, prone on eight. The crumbled stairs are gone. They've submerged under the water. Randolph,

I pocketed it down. Scorpo and Loravith down to 11. And the spider and Tommy Falcon have been pulled down from their perches. They are going to also be pulled down six steps. Now, we need to resolve this. You are floating in the eel-infested waters with Rhyme, Rictus, and suddenly you look over and see Rime is assaulted by... these blood-red eels.

You see a look on Rhyme's unmasked face of pure panic, and it is very quick as they are pulled under, and you see the waters, which are already sort of red from the eels floating around. Just a plume of red blood floats to the surface, and a horn sounds from high above. Snakes that won't drown. moments later these snakes that won't drown are going to attack you because I said that

no because he's in the water with all of the eels and he is prone uh okay I have resistance to eels oh that's incredible yeah because of what amazing lose I grew up I grew up sleeping on a bed of eels so okay they rolled terrible damage yeah two ones and a five so seven points of of damage as you are attacked by the eels. Looking at your HP here, it does seem like you are bloodied, but not dead, which is an important distinction.

You are no longer prone because you are floating on the surface of the water, but you are in water, which is going to take double movement for you to move through. But the action is actually yours, Rick says, We're back to the top of the order. Three aspirants are down. Only one more needs to fall before this trial will be concluded.

So this means that I'd be looking at to get to five would be two. Correct. And so then I could get to nine. You could get up to nine with your action. Okay. Is anybody injured? Is anybody injured? Yeah.

Hell Grame it is mildly injured. Randolph has taken some damage here. Um, that is about it. I will tell you that if you're thinking of using a healing spell, that is a directly targeted spell and would not. No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. Oh, you're thinking of the other thing, who to, who you could murder. Yes, correct. Sure, sure, sure, sure.

So I can get up to, I just said it, nine, right? Okay, well, I definitely do that. Okay. And then, I'm going to cast. Wither and Bloom. Okay. Which is an area of a fact attack. Yes, you're right.

Centering it on Hippocrates. Okay. Which I keep wanting to call hypocrites. I know that's not it. So, Wither and Bloom is a 10-foot radius sphere. I don't think there's a version of this where you only hit Hippocrates right 10 feet is going to encompass two stairs um actually you know what then I'm gonna just keep dashing up okay uh Hippocrates is going to take a swing at you as you move past him uh just an unarmed attack roll here uh 12 plus one does 13 be Tracy no thanks to my major armor oh very good very good okay so

You're going to move up to 15? Yeah, if that's as far as I can go. That is as far as you can go with your action. Okay, great. What a comeback. You have managed to get yourself well. Just happy to be alive, Griffin. Yeah, for sure.

Okay. Next in the order is... Oh, and as my bonus action, I'm going to have Beauregard come back up to me. Okay. We've been separated too long. You got it. All right, Beauregard, your invisible servant,

has moved back up to step 15 with you. He gives me a back rub. It doesn't heal me at all, but it just feels nice. All right. Next in the order is Scorpo, who's going to move his six steps. And he is going to Rickus. You can see him very clearly as he stops at one of these trap glyphs and puts down. Which stair?

Hey, which stair are you going to put it on? I won't tell anybody He says I'm not after I've opened hostilities against him But I can't put a trap down without Catching up Loravith or someone else And I don't He is he is having a crisis of conscience at this moment

Because I think he's realizing There's no way for him to do this trap And guarantee that it is going to be hellgramut Who falls into it Can you put it on nine Um He couldn't do that because there is a person standing on nine. And that would be too bad.

Yeah, I don't think he's actually going to do it. I think he is going to stop here on 17, second guessing his decision here to move, to place the trap down. Next in the order is Tommy Falcon, who has no such reservations. He is going to stop at 25 and put a trap down. but where it is no one knows I do actually know yeah for sure okay

Randolph is up next Randolph is going to he is going to use a help action to help you up hell grandma He is? He is He looks down at you and he says Some aid for you my friend

Please join Loravith Helping to protect Duba Sweetleaf He is a very special young lad Oh, I understand Yes And he blinks with his compact eye Okay

Everything you say has a sort of sinister undertone I understand completely Okay With that, Randolph Walks past Duber Up past Hippocrates 11, 12, and he is going to stop on 13.

Next in the order is Hippocrates. Hippocrates is going to move up to Step 15 with you, Rictus, and Beauregard. And he is going to

place himself between the two of you and try and push you backwards over the step. Hey, don't be a wiener. Like, we, each got a shove, you won Ow, right? We're cool. From behind his mask, you hear our voice say,

We are absolutely not cool. Yeah, tell me about it, man. You're being real not cool. That is a three that he rolled on his Athletics check. Well, you need to roll either a... No, Griffin? That's not going to do it. You need to roll either in athletics or acrobatics

check here. Okay. Okay, acrobatics. So I have a plus two. Yeah, that's a A plus 2.10. Okay. Once again, as he goes to push you, he is restrained reflexively by Beauregard, who holds him back. And he says, you're cheating. You have like a ghost friend.

You mean Bo Reguard? He's cool. Okay, next step is duber sweet leaf. Doobers Sweetleaf is going to move up to step 15. and he sort of waves at you, Loravith, waves at Randolph as he runs through, and he makes it to step number 16, where he is going to make a dexterity saving throw.

Insufficient, the step number 16 crumbles beneath his feet, and Duber Sweet Leaf falls through the trapped step, landing on step number six, where he is going to take. one point of legending damage, not too bad. Christ! No! Look at him!

He, however... No, Duba! He's bleeding everywhere! He has landed... Do something, Buc man! He has landed prone on step number six, one step ahead of the waters and the eels. And that is the end of his turn. Next up is the spider.

The spider is going to... take a step up to 20 and he is going to save Duber's life because he's Spider-Man, Griffin, he's going to realize he's going to do the right thing. A beautiful story out of Adventure Zone today. With great power comes great responsibility, Griffin. This is his moment. A group of adversaries put all their differences aside

to rescue one small boy who would fall in down a well or something like that. Spider, this is bigger than us. The spider says, I don't know what you're talking about because I can't see it. He is going to channel his energy into the vines, turning steps 19 and 18 into difficult viny terrain here, which brings us to Loravith. Loravith, you are on step number 11, and it is your turn to act. How does everyone else look? Who looks the worst? me some up. Who looks the worst? Rictus looks the worst. When last you saw Rictus sprinting path.

Oh, no, you can see Rictus from where you are. He is extremely bloodied. Randolph looks pretty bad as well. And then, I mean, Dupersweetly. Talking is a free action, right? Yeah. Randolph. Yes. How badly do you want Duba to survive? It is of the utmost importance to me. Randolph, there needs to be but. one more death before the trial can cease. I'm not sure I can get down to the child and retrieve him before he perishes. Do you understand what I'm asking you, Randolph? You're going to sacrifice yourself.

Oh, Randolph, weren't that easy. Oh, Randolph, no. Oh, crime, yes. Randolph, you've missed it to me down. No, no, no. I don't think I could be killed, honestly. But you, Randolph, if you do the right thing,

you'd step up for Duba. This could all be over. It seems like, but it's your idea, so wouldn't you rather do the noble sacrifice? You're so sick, Randolph. And you live so much more than me. Look at how much vigor you'd be wasting if I were to perish. I flex.

What about, let's do rock, paper, scissors, maybe. Okay. I suspect, though, Randolph, at the end of that contest, I'll still be much bigger than you. Here's a deal I understand what you are trying to get Randolph to do It is not Randolph's turn to act

So Yeah but I can I can make it Yeah sure I probably went some If you want to I mean Randolph is two steps away from you He is within your movement

And if this is I guess I just can't Oh man He just trying to figure out Dude, I, okay, give me and get, I'm not going to make you persuade Randolph, right? Randolph has told you time and time again and has exhibited that he, this is important to him, the protection of duber sweet leave. So I'm not going to make you roll like a persuasion check. I think, give me, give me an insight. Give me an insight check to tell if this is effective. Okay. Okay. Ten. He does not seem afraid. that that is what you were able to. There's a resignation in his, in his eyes that you are able to clock. And it's not so kind of like apparent that he is actively agreeing saying, you know, go ahead and go ahead and kill me.

That's why this is it. I don't want to. Well, listen, Randolph, I'd like to think where our place is reversed, I would have. your bravery and, if I may say, class in the face of such a big man as myself. But here we are. And I am going to attempt to chuck Randolph into the water. Okay. He, as you put your hands on him, you can tell he is not really fighting back. He's going to roll with disadvantage here. Okay. And I would do, is this just a This is your strength.

This is an athletics check, yes. Oh, wow, man. I rolled a, um, see. It doesn't matter, man. Did you see what I rolled? What did you roll? I rolled a one and a four. Oh, no.

Oh, man. I roll, hey, can I tell you something, Griffin? Yeah. I rolled a two. Yeah. A two plus three. Nobody's heart was in it. His heart wasn't in it either.

Yeah. You barely. You don't, you, there's a lot of between. the two of you, a lot of hesitance to do this. It's almost intimate, boy. It is almost intimate, and Randolph, I think, just doesn't push back at all. It really doesn't take a whole lot for him to... I just want you to know, Randolph.

I wish this was the bug man. And then I'll throw, I throw him in. In the arms. With that. Randolph Wait, no, I got a different one And they say that a hero can save us Not gonna stand here and wait

Randolph Takes a step back Much like another brave Andolf Yeah Sacrifices himself I shall not pass He goes tumbling Ass over tea kettle

off of the edge of step 13, and he falls downward splashing onto step number three, and you look over the edge as you watch him plummet, and you see Dubersweetleaf inches away from a disaster here on the next step above the water line. Look over at Randolph. as he proudly stands at his full height on the submerged step number three. And with a flash of light, as Randolph's last act, he hides his demise from Duber Sweet Leaf and everyone else around the chamber is filled with a brilliant flash of light. And me, I don't even see it. So I don't even feel that about it.

Wow, beautiful. Thank you. As the eels dispatch Randolph, and when the light clears, the steps grind to a halt, the water descends, the eels return to their sort of crushed red kelp form. a horn sounds from above the surface of the lake and set the octave of transmutation flies down and lands on the ground next to the tower and says, it is time now for you victorious aspirants to receive your

you're just reward and with that the entire tower begins to shake and through the sort of of porthole windows on the exterior wall of the tower you see those bioluminescent fish begin to sink as the tower rises it rises upward like a rocket shooting out of the surface of the lake, upwards and upwards into the sky, high above the octave cigarette. Maximum Fun. A Worker-Oad Network of Artist-owned shows.

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