Episode 148 - An Unlikely Grouping

## Intro

**Episode Description:** Every season starts with its inner turmoil but typically less dick punching.

**Catch Phrase:** *"Break a leg, have a good show and, uh, obviously one of these days I may be listening to one."* - Unknown

**Greetings:**

Sean, *"Hello and welcome to another episode of the Tabletop Champions podcast, I'm Sean your dungeon master and with me tonight we have Matt, who plays Cyrus."*

Matt, *"Look into my eye."*

Sean, *"Kyle, who plays Cam."*

Kyle, *"Howdy!"*

Sean, *"Ben, who plays Kallas."*

Ben, *"Hello there."*

Sean, *"Stephanie, who plays Boone."*

Stephanie, *"Ahoy-hoy."*

Sean, *"And Lauren, who plays Brenna."*

Lauren, *"What do you call a D&D party made up entirely of Orc bards? An Orc-hestra!"*

Sean, *"We were all very professional and then Lauren happened."*

## Episode Summary

Behind the temple to Sehanine in **Orlane**, the group is getting into a fight with two cultists who have turned out to be the temple priest and a local inkeep. They refuse to be intimidated, and the priest speaks with an eerie voice other than his own, warning them that the cultists will fight to the death. However, disposing of them is no trouble for the party. The innkeep is killed, and the priest is knocked out and manacled. Afterward, they free the cultist's captive, whom they discover is **Bangle Marrigold**, of the Cin Amon Marrigolds. She is a Dwarven girl, looking to be about 17 years. Bangle announces that she will flee Orlane that same night.

Searching the priest, **Cyrus** discovers another kris dagger. **Boone** urges him to leave it, but he is suddenly very defensive about keeping it. This might be related to the priest speaking with a foreign voice earlier. **Kallas** and Boone fail to take it from him by force. **Brenna** and Boone secretly resolve to take Cyrus out if dispatching the cult won't solve the dagger problem.

The party follows the path from the temple out into the swampland. After a thirty minute walk, they find a small, old, rackety abode with very little light inside. It turns out to be empty, but they discover signs of recent use. Hidden under floorboards, they find a staircase downward. **Cam** leads the way down, where they find a large cistern, filled with oddly dark water. It seems unusually deep.

Cyrus spots another dagger in pristine condition. Kallas notices that it is of Elven make. When Boone consults her *Divine Sense* about it, she feels that a great Fiendish evil is closely nearby, below them. Brenna provokes Cyrus until she has a reason to push him into the cistern. He splashes around, swallows water, and then magically turns into a water snake before the eyes of his companions. He feels compelled to swim down into the cistern.

With no other options, the others drink from the water one by one, turn into water snakes, and follow Cyrus. Boone turns into a white snake with wings, and seems to be protected by a higher presence. She still swims downward into the dark.

## Memorable Quotes

**Kyle,** *"Can I canonically say that I have popcorn, and I‘ve pulled it out, and I‘m eating it, and watching this?"*

**Brenna,** *"I'm gonna non-lethally cut off your arm, hang on."*