Saturday Scrying 22-02-25
Would you look at that?
Hello everyone!
This week has been one of nervous anticipation, for I have joined a new D&D campaign on Friday, I am playtesting No Rest for the Wicked today, and also I’ve got a new job and stuff on Monday!
To the Orb!
Some day I must make my own bit of artwork for this!
Where We’ve Been
This week was one of the shorter ones, with Training Tuesday and Third-Party Thursday! For Tuesday, I wrote a slightly rambling article on the basids of writing adventures, in which Lassie becomes a god of the Gnolls, or something like that. On Thursday, I presented you with the Promethean Scientist subclass for the Artificer, which is one of my favourite subclasses that I’ve written!
Regarding how bloody awesome1 you lot are, this substack is rapidly approaching 100 subscribers! And what’s more I’m pretty confident that all of you are real people, who subscribed not because I begged you, nor so I would subscribe back, but because you actually like what I write - and you read it, too! The 30-day views are up to over 1250, which is staggering considering I remember celebrating 100!
So please accept my thanks, gratitude, and welcome2, all of you!
Where We’re Going
This week is going to be a good one3, with Monster Monday, Worldbuilding Wednesday, and Folklore Friday!
On Monday I will be presenting you with the statblock and some background story for the Mimic Bladderpus, which was found in the campaign a few weeks ago4 when it surprised the group on their way through the Hylemoor. Since then, nobody has asked about it at all, so I’m giving everybody what they want and writing about it!
On Wednesday I will be answering more questions about my world, because if I don’t get through them, then they will build up until I am buried under tabs on my browser! The original post is here, and I am always accepting questions, because I like to answer them - so please, ask away!
On Friday, I will be giving you a short verse and backstory of one of the more dangerous areas in Arenstar, called the Forest of Green, which is home to a dark evil entity! And then I will have to start writing more folklore, as I am starting to run low on my existing stock!
For now, to tide you over, here is the Cheese Chase!
All my Ko-Fi proceeds go to hiring real artists for my work, to fight against AI!
The Cheese Chase part 11
Last week, the Cheese Chasers successfully brought down Kerlenthraz the Blue, de-cursed the herd of giant (formerly immortal) cows, and saved the day with only minor catastrophic property damage.
In short, they levelled up to level 9, and earnt a little bit of downtime to boot5!
They opened with the next day, having rested up in the Fallen Demon tavern and gathered to decide what to do next. They all agreed that they wanted to get back to the Hylemoor as quickly as possible, to claim the dragons treasure for their own. They checked in on Enzo and Skye, making sure that they were alright, and they also checked in on the Librarians and asked for help translating the giant note they found6, and discovered it to be a letter from Balthaz the Eternal, the frost-giant ruler of the north who had deposed the Dwarves from their mountain kingdom of Ormnir. The letter assked Kerlenthraz for friendship, and offered the cart of gold coins as tribute. The note also asked for a gift in return, but sought only that made of wood, saying that Balthaz knew that dragons covet precious metals and would not ask for such things.
This discovered, they hitched up their new landship to their mounts (forming the stone rhino from the already-destroyed cobblestones whilst the paver, who also owned the china shop destroyed by the cows, looked on, distraught), and headed off back out of town and toward the Hylemoor.
On the way across the hills to the Northwest of Steepfield, they encountered a gnome named Gilmora, being pulled on a wagon overloaded with herbs and nick-nacks by a morbidly obese bear named Weelum7. The were-bear barbarian, Grizz, was immediately concerned that Weelum might be in trouble, and cast Speak with Animals to talk to him, asking if he was in trouble8. Weelum replied with a big, slow, contented voice: “nooo…. I’m happeeee….”9, which made the party extremely happy as well.
All feeling happy10, they continued into the woods, travelling for several hours which were moderately quiet, and then out onto the plains, where the mood was slightly dampened by three angry Hill Giants suddenly descending on them from the hills above, weapons swinging and shouting angrily11. With the basic knowledge of Giant that Charles had picked up from the library, he understood them shouting “Vengeance for Grub12!” as they charged at them. The battle is fought, and the party emerge victorious, and Grizz considers how best to cook Giant, much to the rest of the party’s disgust.
Approaching the Hylemoor, the party comes to realise that the weather has improved - it is still raining, but the clouds are a lighter grey, and the visibility has improved, to the point that they can see the whole crescent of the lake ahead of them. They reach the edge of the Hylemoor and they leave their ship again, and then they set off with a couple of wagons they had procured for the task of hauling the dragon hoard back to Steepfield.
They navigate to the entrance to the lair, and they swim down to the cave system, as they did before. They emerge once again in the old silver mine, and they start walking down toward the treasury. The lair is quiet - after all, they did kill pretty much everything down here just a few days ago - and they get to the vertical shaft that they climbed up last time, where they triggered a pressure plate and were flushed back down.
They climb up the shaft, using a variety of methods - Grizz carrying Zav, Marva taking on her Tasha’s Otherworldly Guise to fly up, Charles using his impressive athletics to climb, and Miradan running up the wall, being a Monk and all!
They get to the top, and they see the doorway, flanked by statues of dragons. Grizz takes a step forward, and there is an all-too familiar click as he steps on the exact same pressure pad as he stepped on last time.
Water rushes down on them, and some excellent checks were made - Miradan managed to dodge onto the wall, whilst Grizz and Charles manage to find purchase and cling on against the current. Marve is still flying, but that leaves one roll which was notably poorer than the rest.
Zav is thrown back off the edge of the ledge and falls around 200 feet to the floor below. Using my set of custom falling rules13, he rolled high on his constitution save and managed to reduce some of his fall damage, but was left feeling rather hurt. The water trickles off, leaving him on his back at the bottom of the shaft.
Zav tries to use his divine intervention to ask, in his words, for “Uppies”, but it fails. He instead opts to climb up, getting help with a rope from above when he gets partway up.
Reunited at the top, Zav casts Heal Wounds on himself, and they approach the doors. They are huge and ornate, and on closer inspection, unlocked. Readying themselves, the party push it open to reveal a long corridor, with alcoves in the walls. They are strangely bare, and as they sneak carefully along, keeping an eye out for traps, they start to hear something from ahead - deep, guttural voices speaking, their words distorted by the echoing space.
Approaching the end of the corridor, which is lit with flickering yellow light, they hear a crunching tinkle of what could be coins. They approach the doors, and Charles, who had been studying in Steepfield, recognises the voices as those of Giants.
And that’s where we’ll leave it this time!
If you enjoy reading my articles, and want to see more, then hit subscribe!
If you’ve got ideas for monsters or articles, then let me know in the comments!
And if you’ve something for me to review for Third-Party Thursdays, then definitely message me!
And if you like what you’re reading and want to help me afford professional artists to illustrate my work for publication (and fight against the terror of AI Artwork), consider buying me a Ko-Fi!
Finally, if you love TTRPG content, then head over to DrivethruRPG - it’s packed with thrid party D&D content, unique TTRPGs, Pathfinder supplements - pretty much anything you could want for TTRPGs!
Until next time, happy Slaying!
Technical term, that.
You may want to grab a box so that you can get it all home.
I know I say that about every week, but then consider that every week thus far has been a good one, therefore I’m usually right on this!
That’s a few weeks of your reading, not a few weeks of the campaign - it was more 2 years ago, in real time, which is 32.7 octopus years, according to Google!
“To Boot” is a halfling expression, which is to say that something is in excess of requirements or need. The full phrase is “to boot a foot”, which is testament to the hardiness of halfling feet.
That is, a note written in giant - though it is also giant, which could make it a “Giant Giant Note”, but when you consider the size relative to a giant, it’s actually fairly average, so that doesn’t make sufficient sense to worry over.
Fans of the Edge Chronicles will know exactly where these names came from - I unashamedly procured them, never anticipating making the campaign in any way public!
This he asked because he thought Weelum might be in trouble.
This phrase has become a verbal meme of the group, and still appears every couple of sessions or so!
Filled with happiness, is what they was.
With Anger!
It is worth noting two things - First, that Grub was the previous owner of the landship that they are driving. Second, that they have adorned the front of said landship with Grub’s Skull.
These can be found on dmsguild, and cover the difference between dropping and tumbling (controlled and uncontrolled falling) and has rules for creatures falling on each other, with examples! It was one of my earlier works, and it’s still popular today!
E,cited for the week to come! Especially interested in your insights on worldbuilding, the description of your party's adventure sounds so fun and expansive!