Aerois - Episode 172: Festival of New Stars

Kim Richards as Nova V'ger

Mark Hulmes as Lucius Virion-Elluin Elenasto

 Rhiannon Frost as Sentry

 Tom Hazell as Qillek Ad Khollar

**Festival of New Stars** is the 172nd episode of the Aerois Campaign. It was broadcast live on both the Yogscast Twitch channel and highrollersdnd Twitch channel on 29th January 2023 from 5PM to 8PM GMT.

*It's time to beat the beasts as the team arrive in Aelseraph just in time for the Festival of New Stars!*

## **Summary**

### **Announcements**

* Mark welcomes everyone and introduces the players. Trott is away this week because he is looking after his partner, who is unwell.
* Mark apologised for the lack of stream last week (he was unwell) but he wished everyone a happy Lunar New Year.
* It was announced that Rhiannon is pregnant (announcement here). Congratulations to Craig and Rhi. Mark plans to give the baby its first d20 (Kim recommended one that they would not choke on, and Mark thought a large plush might be appropriate).
* This week is the first stream since the High Rollers’ 7th anniversary (which fell on 17th January 2023). Mark, Kim, Katie, and Trott have been with HR for all 7 of those years, Tom for 5.5 (first appearance was in Lightfall episode 41 on 19th March 2017 as a guest but he joined HR permanently from Lightfall episode 56 on 20th August 2017), and Rhi for 5 (joined as a permanent member in Aerois episode 1 on 1 July 2018). Matt was with them for a year and 2 months at the start of the Lightfall campaign. Mark thanked everyone for their support over the last 7 years, for sticking with the stream during lockdown when things moved to digital, for all the support that people gave to help them get the studio. HR has been in the studio for just over a year.
* Rhiannon put together a video to celebrate HR’s 7 years – it can be seen here.
* HR has started to add YouTube shorts to their channel.
* HR has activated YouTube membership which is currently an additional way to support High Rollers but there are also current perks like extra emotes.
* There will be extra content for Patreon supporters and YouTube members in future – the content will be extra material to thank supporters, but all the usual streams and podcasts will still be freely available to everyone.
* People have asked questions about what the Open Gaming License (OGL) issues would mean to High Rollers – Mark has put some videos up on his YouTube channel to explain it (Video 1 and Video 2) and what it will mean for High Rollers (not a great deal, as it turns out). He is pleased to see that people are trying different TTRPGs and different systems.
* Starting in February (exact date to be determined), HR will start doing several mini campaigns (3-6 episodes) to check out different TTRPGs. These will be bonus streams, probably on a Wednesday, and they will be uploaded to YouTube (but are unlikely to be podcasts). You Tube members and Patreon subscribers will see character creation and other additional content but the games themselves will be streamed as usual. The first game that will be played is the Warhammer Fantasy game (a fantasy RPG with Elves and Dwarves set in the Warhammer fantasy universe). Shoutout to Cubicle 7 which is sending a copy of The Enemy Within adventure module to Mark so that they can play it. More information will come later on Twitter and Discord. Mark has a shelf full of games that he wants to play and Kim has a lot that she wants to play, too.
* Mark has started DMing a Star Wars: Age of Rebellion game on his personal Twitch channel called Voltann Shift. The players are Matthew Colville, James Introcaso, Hannah Rose, and Matt "OD" O'Driscoll. There are two episodes available on Twitch and Mark hopes to make it available on YouTube soon.

### **Recap**

*"Inside the Hornsilver Vault, the party searched for the Star of Siaska, a rare and valuable diamond needed for the ritual to bring back their friend, Nova V’ger. The vault itself involved riddles and traps, and eventually a battle against an unending horde of vengeful spirits. Whist protecting the Halfling descendent of the Hornsilver family and their ship’s cook, Howard, the party opened the vault and obtained the Star of Siaska.

A moving ritual was performed. Quill travelled to the Astral Sea and found Nova’s soul. An intense conversation followed, and Quill tried to convince Nova to return for the benefit of Aerois. The energy of the spell was quickly unravelling and at the last minute, Nova took his hand (wing?) and she returned to Aerois. Happy tears and joy from the party welcoming her back, but Nova, once the initial rush of the return had faded, realised that for the first time in a while, she was alone – no longer able to feel Tiangong’s presence within her."*
### **Part 1**

*A new Nova appears and they desperately need a new set of gear... It's time to visit Azaria and friends in Horizon!*

It is a few days after Nova has been brought back to them. Horizon and the Astoria are on the move towards Aelseraph – with the Astoria not being fully powered, however, it is slow going with Horizon acting as the ship’s protector. On contacting Reyn, they work out where to meet up with the floating city and travel back so that Nova has a chance to meet up with her parents and Thalia. Quill tries to find Zim Zam Zambalor (or was it something else?) who was meant to make Howard his food storage and preservation chest, but the man is nowhere to be found and *Locate Creature* does not work on him.

Nova has managed to find a spare uniform but is without weapons, shield, or armour, and has been moping about in her cabin. Aila bursts in with the loot that they took from the vault and forces it into her arms, telling Nova to gear up. The scale armour, having been built for a Dwarf, will need to be re-sized, but being Adamanine armour, will need a master blacksmith to work with it. They know that Maximillion Taldros possesses the skills, as would Rethra (the Wild Elf that they saved from Azzagrat), or a talented Dwarven smith that they believe they would find on Horizon.

When she is offered the longsword that they took from the vault, Nova is reluctant to take it, saying that she does not know if she can fight any more – she believes that Tiangong taught her and guided her in battle, and without them, she is a bit lost. Aila offers to throw rocks at Nova and Lucius asks if Nova believes that she has lost her magic. Nova is too scared to try, believing that there will be no response, and this is the first time since she left Vortinssar the first time that she has not had that comforting and guiding presence with her. When she thinks on this, however, while she feels the absence of Tiangong, she does feel *something* although it is definitely not the same, and she agrees to try to conjure some magic.

Aila throws one of her training rocks(see Trivia) off the side of the ship and Nova attempts to *Eldritch Blast* it. For a second she thinks that she will not be able to produce any magic, but while the presence of Tiangong is gone (they, as a being, were destroyed along with Shansara and Harmony), but there is some sort of vestige or echo that is present. When she tried to summon her echo after Tiangong had gone, where it was a less substantial version, or a memory that appeared. Her *Eldritch Blast* appears to be affected in a similar way: she knows that there is no magic because Tiangong was the source of that for Nova, but she seems to be able to call on the memory of the magic that she once borrowed, and that makes it real, almost as if the magic remembers that she once had the ability to use it. The party does notice, however, that Nova really needs to work hard to produce her magic. Lucius is delighted and suggests that he and Nova also do some sparring with their swords in order to keep up their skills. Quill notices that every member of the wolf pack had flinched when Aila was prepared to throw this rock – all but Bone Eater, who was staring menacingly and hungrily at Quill, licking his chops.

Quill, standing off to the side, noticed something that the others did not when Nova cast her spell – a single tiny butterfly-like puff of green that had some aspect of the feywild about it – almost like he remembers seeing them when he was there.

Quill casts *Identify* on the longsword that they took from the vault. It has been crafted with fine Dwarven steel inlaid with intricate runes dedicated to Siaska and the Astral Sea. It features a sapphire pommel and delicate silver decoration around the hilt and guard. Its name is Farseeker the Starlight Blade. The runes on the blade are Dwarven and are a prayer to Siaska – they have been formed to be shaped like stars and form a river along the edge of the blade. Once Nova discovers the blade’s name, somehow it feels right in her hands – she considers that she has gone from stardust and turned to starlight.

The other magic items that the party picked up in the vault were Bracers of Archery and a Staff of Frost(see Trivia).

When Nova is away from the rest of the party, Quill asks the rest of them whether anyone saw the small green butterfly-like image that had elements of the Feywild about it and came out from Nova’s body when she cast *Eldritch Blast* earlier. Sentry wonders if it might be Nova’s connection to Thalia. Aila wants to see if this same thing happens again when Nova casts a spell so warns her before throwing another rock at her: Nova casually leans to the side and avoids being hit. Aila tells her to hit the rock with a spell and throws another rock – Nova, no longer using Tiangong’s instincts to decide where to aim her spell, must concentrate and work this out herself. She just manages to hit the rock with another *Eldritch Blast.* This time it is Aila who catches something odd – she notices a brief gust of wind pass by her and knows instinctively that it has come from Nova when she cast her spell. She takes Quill aside and mentions it to him – he now realises that he experienced the same thing. They discuss their findings with Sentry who thinks that it may have something to do with the Valley of Storms.

Nova, meanwhile, has spent some time catching up with Tornado, who has elected to travel with them to visit his parents and spend some time with Nova. Nova notices that the relationship between them is different – where Tornado had always been goofy but caring towards Nova, now he is protective and has a more serious side that was rarely shown before. Nova believes this to be his reaction to being scared because she died, and he could do nothing about it. During some deep conversations, Tornado comes to the realisation of what Nova is involved in: she is going off and fighting gods and getting prepared to fight in a war that is going to come to their planet. They share information that he does not want their parents to know and finds out what Nova, his “Bro”, would want if she was to die again. They discuss the aftermath in Vortinssar and what happened to its people – Nova is aware (and Tornado confirms it) that the Genasi people in Vortinssar hate the Stormchasers and the Seekers and blame them for Harmony and Shansara’s deaths, for almost destroying the city, and for ruining their chances of getting home. He tells Nova that Fuego did not make it – when it was clear that they were losing the fight, he deliberately pulled too much energy into the mech and caused it to blow up. Tornado says that they all knew that death was a possibility but that he did not realise that it could happen to Nova. The Seekers and the citizens, however, are mostly alive and the Seekers are starting to leave Vortinssar to live elsewhere on Aerois. There is a brief discussion over whether Nova or Tornado is the biggest moron (Nova died after having jumped into an energy pit but Tornado would have done the same) before Nova asks if she can borrow the family scarf that she gave Tornado previously – the one her mother knitted for him. Nova had lost everything in the energy blast. Tornado does not even think but wraps it around Nova before exclaiming that he lost his scarf before leaving Vortinssar and that his mother is going to kill him. He knows that he will get away with it and be forgiven ‘because he is a moron’. Tornado finishes this deep moment by picking Nova up, brandishing her above his head, and running around the ship proclaiming himself the champion.

It takes them two more days of travel to reach Horizon and the Astoria. They spend a couple of days to settle back in and receive a message from Dannica saying that she and Reyn wish to meet with them all to discuss their next moves – they have received word about Aelseraph, which is why they are heading in that direction, and they have a plan.

There is another message from Azaria Perel reminding them that she has their down payment and that she is working aboard the Astoria. This message is delivered by a nicely dressed skeleton, Steven, outfitted like a butler, who delivers the message on a silver plate. Azaria asks them to come and see her if they need anything and says that she has found a way to obtain an energy source herself – two opposed elementals –while they will not be tremendously powerful, they will do in a pinch. If they want this, it will cost the 10,000 gold that they left with her.

Lucius is not too keen to see Azaria after throwing the capture ball into the magical vortex in Vortinssar, he is worried that Azaria may turn him into a zombie and suggests that they tell her that they lost it. Nova recommends that they say that she was carrying it when she died.

Nova asks Azaria to make her a shield to replace the one she has lost with the departure of Tiangong. Max says that he will be happy to re-shape the adamantine armour to fit Nova but it will cost 1,000 gold to do so – he must rent a forge that will be able to make the adamantine exceedingly hot so that it can be re-forged and he will have to redo the leatherwork.

Azaria is still working in her makeshift lab on the Astoria – she is curled up in a large bone throne, meditating. They call her name, and she comes to with an alarming gasp. She tells them that even though she does not fully understand all the systems, they are making great progress and that most of the ship’s systems seem to be functional. Quill tells her that they will take her up on her offer to capture the elementals to power the Stormchaser (which Azaria tells him will take most of the 10,000 gold that they left with her earlier). She says that she will also work on some of the other systems that they had previously discussed as well.

Nova reveals suddenly to Azaria that she died – Azaria seems nonplussed and asks Nova if she found the experience to be an enjoyable one. Nova tells her that it was peaceful and reveals that all of her possessions have been destroyed so she would like her new shield enchanted with the ability to cast *Dimension Door* or *Arcane Gate.* While Azaria tells Nova that she cannot guarantee certain effects, she can do something, and she agrees to make Nova’s shield in the same design as the original Tiangong shield fragment (Azaria has a perfect memory for around a month prior). The shield change and enchantment will cost them 5,000 gold to produce. The shield will not give Nova defensive magic, Azaria tells her, but will give her the ability to cast a spell a number of times.

Azaria also offers to take a look at Aila’s hammer to see whether she can improve it – it will be costly, she says, and while she cannot increase its ability to harm, she has had an idea that she might be able to make the hammer strike a more potent blow if it hits in a critical manner. Because the hammer is already extremely powerful, taking it further would require a potent enchantment and this would cost approximately 10,000 gold. With the assistance of the Handmaidens (who have shown her how to speed up the process), Azaria believes that she would be able to make the adjustments to both Nova’s shield and Aila’s hammer within a few days.

A day later, Dannica, Reyn, and the Grand Strategist call them to a meeting on Horizon. While Dannica is aware that much has happened in Vortinssar, and is keen to catch up on that, she wishes to go over their plans to fight against the great beasts that are threatening Aelseraph. Before they set out for Vortinssar, the Dragons of Korsadi had agreed to attempt to delay the beasts as much as possible in an attempt to keep them from moving beyond the borders of Aelseraph. While they have been largely successful to now, they are reaching the end of their ability to do so. With the help of Reyn, she tells them about one of the Wild Elf Hunters they had met previously, Varnier, who had spoken about the beasts’ ability to adapt to and mutate to defend against the tactics used against them. Currently, mundane weapons no longer harm them and they regenerate at a rapid rate. The beasts have now adapted to the dragons’ assault abilities, both physical and breath weapons – the dragons had cycled between the different beasts to delay their adaptation for as long as possible. Valla has told Dannica that they plan to track down Atelicus and defeat the beasts, but that the beasts are masking where Atelicus is, and she suspects that they will have to beat the beasts before she will be able to find him.

There are beasts of land, sea, and air. Stonemaw, the Earth Tyrant is being monitored by the Wild Elves of Aelseraph and the Burrowfolk along with the Blue and Silver Dragons. Stormwing, the Thundering Ruin (a giant eagle-like creature with the powers of storm and lightning) is being occupied by the Red, Bronze, and Brass Dragons, along with a team of Duke Sovrano’s airship fleets and Dannica. The last animal, Surgescale, the Tidal Doom (previously called Tidehunter), is being tracked by the Tritons, an armada of Orc free captains, a unit of trained and modified Guardians (able to fight underwater), and the White and Green Dragons.

They know that all three beasts must be defeated at the same time because even if two are downed but one is still up, the two injured beasts will go into a protected regenerative state. The Grand Strategist has come up with a plan: he has come up with a device along with Azaria Perel, a device that will scan the beasts and give an estimation of their remaining life force. Using this and a sending stone, three teams equipped with powerful individuals and supporting forces, they should be able to coordinate their attacks to be able to down all three simultaneously. Only Stonemaw is still vulnerable to cold and lightning magic, so the party considers going up against it as a team rather than splitting up.

They are instructed to speak to Morgaen Frostblessed and Hunter Varnier who believe that smaller foes might still be able to do some temporary damage with normal weapons. Their thought is that they adapted to the dragons quickly because they are much larger predators.

Nova reminds them that Starbane had offered his assistance with Atelicus (although she did not know what this assistance would entail) because he deemed Atelicus to be the most difficult of Siaska’s children to defeat. Aila is concerned that Kalus’ intent is to “help” them with Atelicus to make the Cradle disappear, then to invade Aerois with his full forces. Nova wonders if Kalus has located Project Vanguard which Quill last saw disappearing through a portal somewhere in the Astral Sea. Dannica reminds them that Valla is the only one who can reach into Atelicus’ demiplane and says that if they want Kalu’ help, they may have to invite him to join their party. She advises them that, if they are undecided as to whether they can trust him, they should plan as if they do not have his aid, and she advises against calling on him when they are desperate as it will make them vulnerable. Nova is not even sure that she can contact Kalus any more since their connection was through Tiangong, but Aila reminds her that he is likely still scrying on them (he still has Lucius’ dagger) and would probably contact Nova if he wanted to speak to them.

Nova has been thinking about Kalus’ version of Tiangong – she knows that it is different and that reunification of the two blades was generally impossible (or at least highly improbable) – she wonders if there is anything of her Tiangong left in it.

Dannica tells them that they have some time to decide their strategy since it will take their forces time to assemble at Aelseraph and that there is a Burrowfolk clan, the Brighttails, whose settlement (called Starwatch Rise) is on the southern side of the central mountains that divide Aesleraph (the Spearfall Mountains). The Brighttails have welcomed the alliance and offered the alliance the use of Starwatch Rise as a staging ground. She notes that there is currently a traditional annual festival being held in Starwatch Rise.

Quill asks how long it will take to complete the outfitting of the Astoria for battle and while Dannica says it is nearly complete, it is an ongoing process, and it will not be ready to assist with the fight against the beasts. They are trying to balance keeping the Astoria moving so that no one knows where it is and repairing systems (one or other of which keep breaking). The Maidens have found a way to tether the nearby Astoria to Horizon – this allows Horizon to keep moving, even if Dannica has to leave it for a short time (although they cannot use any of the defences while she is away). Dannica has been requested to assist with Stormwing which is still vulnerable to fire. Dannica reassures the party that they will have a few days to decide on their plan since the Stormchaser is so much faster than Horizon and the Astoria – Morgaen Frosblessed is waiting for them to discuss strategy.

Dannica tells them that Stonemaw was the beast about which they were most worried because the Burrowfolk and the Wild Elves do not have the numbers that the other forces have. They agree that the party will assist with taking down Stonemaw, leaving the other beasts to their allies.

### **Part 2**

*The Stormchasers embark for Aelseraph to take down the beasts of Land, Sea and Air but they're just in time for the Festival of New Stars!*

After a few days, the party arrives at the continent of Aelseraph aboard the Stormchaser. Aelseraph is a continent that is afflicted by powerful magic causing it to have extreme biomes that do not obey the natural order. The presence of powerful, primordial magic, like the clear connection to Atelicus, means that the land itself has somewhat of a will of its own. Nature spirits are extremely common, so common items like a tree, rock, or river may manifest a spirit and the people live alongside them and may live with extreme weather conditions. There is a long mountain range that runs from the northeast tip to the southwest with a central line of mountains dividing the continent almost in half – the mountains are called the Spearfall Mountains (because they look like a number of stony spears that Atelicus threw down into the ground). The southern side of Aelseraph is warm with a dense, hilly forest environment, while the northern side of the mountains is an arctic environment with scattered alpine woodlands, craggy hills and snow-covered plains. The northeastern tip is almost entirely mountainous and inhospitable with no flat land, while the southwestern area is barren and desert-like. Whilst these extreme differences in biomes would not normally sit adjacent to each other, they are supported by the powerful primordial magic within the land.

Very few people live in Aelseraph – there are no governments or nations. The people who live on the continent do so in isolated communities, usually rural, self-sustaining, and self-policed. They are pockets of populace surviving in the wilderness.

The Stormchaser, having received directions, makes its way towards the central part of the long continent called Starwatch Rise. No one, even Quill, is particularly familiar with the area because most places in Aelseraph change quite easily and people (including the Messenger Guild) do not really travel there. They fly over thick woodland made up of pine tree forests and note that at the base of the mountains are steep grassy hill lands. The settlement of Starwatch Rise is built into three large hills – there are windows set into the hills and tunnels and dirt paths that connect the three hills together. There are also connecting bridges between the hills, buildings built on top of the hills, and stairs that lead down the hills to flatter ground where there is spreading farmland. The settlement is entirely populated by Burrowfolk – humanoids with bunny ears and tails. Their legs are not fully digitigrade, but the people have longer feet and a rabbit-like look about them. Some are more rabbit-like than others, with a rabbit-like nose and snout, others are more humanoid.

The Burrowfolk see the Stormchaser and wave. There are blue and gold coloured banners scattered around the town and a number of paper lanterns placed outside and strung up near the homes and settlements. The town appears to be in a celebratory mood. There are a few Wild Elves in the settlement, but they are clearly visitors or travellers. Oriya, Lucius, and Quill determine the best place to dock the Stormchaser – a plateu near a mountain trail that leads down to the settlement, and they notice some Burrowfolk guides making their way from the village to meet them.

There is a conspicuous absence of cattle, pigs, and other animals on the farms – it appears to be all vegetables and other crops including some *very large pumpkins* some of which they think must be ten-feet tall. Although they have yet to catch sight of the beasts that are terrorising the continent, they do spy damage as they fly over the southern tip – forests that appear to have collapsed in the distance, and shipwrecks on the coast of large Orc galleons that have been torn apart. On one day, they had seen thick clouds all over Aelseraph, and although the weather had been inclement, it looked like the cloud was moving before they saw lightning strikes and green acid spray, then many things battling in the clouds before they dissipated as they drew closer.

As they dock and disembark, they are met by a party of young, fit and healthy Burrowfolk, the leader of whom is a large-chested, muscle-bound young man with a chiseled jaw and broad shoulders. He is about six-foot tall, and more humanoid in appearance with a pressed-in button nose but also large ears. The man wears a large hatchet on belt and a woodsman’s shirt. Accompanying him are a number of accomplished looking hikers who are nowhere near as tall as the man.

The leader says that he has heard of the party and that the people of the village keep mostly to themselves, although they occasionally receive news from visitors. He introduces himself as Jack Brighttail (and says that he is also known as “Big Jack” or “Woody Jack”). When asked about visitors to his village, Jack tells them that they occasionally see Humans and others from around the ridge, but they more often see Wild Elves who travel around the place and trade for food and other supplies. In fact, he says, there are some Wild Elves in the village who are waiting for the party to go on the hunt.

Today, Jack tells them, is the last day of their festival, a very important day, and he welcomes them to take part in it with them. They are celebrating the Festival of New Stars – this goes back to the days that the gods walked Aerois, before the Dark War. He tells them of ancient times, before everything changed, when there were many different types of beastfolk – it was a beautiful land and the domain of Atelicus. The festival was a celebration of Atelicus and Siaska as well as many of the other gods. Although most of the other families have moved away, the Brighttails have kept old traditions alive with the celebration that involves fun, games, and food. Jack tells them that he has an important job to do for which he needs to go and get ready, but he will take them to introduce them to the Matriarch first. They make their way down the mountain with Aila carrying Nova and Sentry carrying Lucius. It takes them an hour to make their way down the mountain trail to Starwatch, and they realise that the three hills contain the entire warren with a whole town inside the connected hills. There are wooden buildings outside for visitors and so that they can enjoy the countryside. It is clear that they are at home with nature.

Quill talks to Big Jack on the way down – Jack tells Quill that he will be joining the hunt against the beasts, as will Sanna Longears and another couple of Burrowfolk. While they do not like killing animals, the Burrowfolk will hunt with the Wild Elves when something like an Owlbear or Wolflion threaten their people. Jack also tells Quill that the spirits are mostly harmless and that the spirits avoid the beasts – they have been using the spirits to know when the beasts are coming and to hide from them. The Burrowfolk have observed the beasts and learned how to lure them away when necessary. Quill comments on the huge pumpkins and Jack says that they are not normally that large – in anticipation of the New Star Festival, a couple of the farmers got very competitive over who could grow the biggest pumpkin. Jack tells them that they may be asked to help with harvesting food, transporting pumpkins, and so on if they are going to eat with them, but he makes allowances for Nova, whom he thinks is a weak and sickly nerd.

Jack leads them into the largest hill containing the warren and they pass by Burrowfolk making and decorating paper lanterns, noting many starry motifs. They notice that there is a degree of sombreness, there are hushed conversations and tears as people kiss the lanterns they are making, but there is also great joy as food is brought in. There are many Burrowfolk children running around apparently searching for something and looking worried, asking questions of the adults who either shrug or give the children an item – one gives a child a small bell and the child grabs it, scared. Jack leads the onwards into a large open parlour filled with thick rugs and cushions, straw and hay, and pretty feathers (there are no chairs). Sitting on the floor, in the middle of a story to a group of children, is an old Burrowfolk woman who looks more rabbit-like (her old lady beard is more like long whiskers, and she has a pushed in rabbit nose). The woman wears a large knitted vest with patches on it with twigs and acorns in her pockets, and she is telling the children that they must find things to make noise and light otherwise they “know what will happen”. Her children beg her to give them something, but she fobs them off telling them that she is too scared to go outside and that they need to go and get what they need. The children run off and she sees Jack and the visitors.

Jack asks his “Mamma” to tell their visitors about the festival while he goes to get ready. The woman thanks them for coming and introduces herself as Matriarch Vindra Brighttail, the elder or leader of the village because she is considered to be old and wise. Vindra tells them that at first they believed that the beasts were protectors from Atelicus but that it quickly became clear that they were not. She has been in touch with the visiting Wild Elves and has heard much about what is going on in the world, and she thanks the heroes for coming to help them with their problem. Because they do not have an inn, the party will be split up and housed with some of the local families while they wait for their reinforcements.

Vindra tells them the story of how Atelicus used to test the Beastfolk for the their strength and cunning. One year, when they thought that they were all being tested, a dark spirit corrupted a creature called a Wolflion, a creature that normally prowls the woods. This made the Wolflion particularly aggressive. Two young Burrowfolk, a boy and a girl, had gone into the forest to gather supplies for the lantern festival that they hold annually to honour those who had died in the past year. As they were gathering supplies, they saw the dark beast and, being cunning, they did not run but gathered what they could from around them that would cause a loud noise: sticks, instruments, toys, and so on. They managed to drive the creature away with loud noise and bright fire. The children were celebrated for their bravery. Ever since, this tradition has continued at the Festival of New Stars – the young are told that the spirit was never defeated and will return, stealing away the naughty children - they are encouraged to be brave with the story and the adults feign fear so that the children will bravely protect the village and chase the spirit away. The party is asked to play along while Jack plays the part of the dark spirit.

The party is then asked if they have lost anyone in the past year – part of the festival involves making paper lanterns, decorating them to represent the lost person, then floating them up to the stars so that the lost person’s soul can join Siaska and become new stars. Nova coughs uncomfortably.

Another part of the festival involves clearing out old mess and dirt as a way of clearing out bad luck that has accumulated on their persons and in their homes, this makes room for new luck and new spirits to come and live with them. Sometimes, when dirt is being cleared, mischievous sprites may appear due to the magic in the world and the party may be asked to assist with getting rid of those. Shadow puppetry is also common and popular around this time of the year. Quill wonders whether the Wolfpack are in any danger from the children or vice versa but Vindra says that it might be best to warn them that they may have a bell rung in their ears or a firecracker set off in their faces.

As they walk outside again, they are met by a long-haired, curvaceous Burrowfolk woman who asks if they are the brave adventurers she has heard of. She introduces herself as Talia and tells them that she needs someone to assist her with removing some dust spirits from her elderly parents’ home – Nova is happy to assist. They are led to a small home built into a hillside that is cluttered, and covered in cobwebs, and dust and introduced to Talia’s elderly parents who beg them not to destroy their home while they battle with the sprites. Lucius, realising that he has been asked to clean a house, decides to go and look for Jack instead.

As they start cleaning the house, they realise that various bits of junk are being gathered together into balls and rolling elsewhere in the house. Quill sees what he thinks is a large dirt smudge on the wall then sees two red eyes within it and watches it move quickly to a cobweb in the corner. They soon realise that they are up against four Dust Spirit and four Clutter Spirit. The party cleaning the house is making them agitated, and they are ready to fight!

Aila grabs a Dust Spirit and squeezes it, getting dust all over her hand. Sentry moves to the kitchen, drinks a Potion of Psychic Resistance, grabs a Dust Spirit and his ball of junk that comes with him – she then shoves the spirit in the potion bottle and corks it while his ball of junk hovers just outside. The Spirit hammers harmlessly on the glass.

After an epic battle where some of the spirits are stabbed, blown apart with gusts of wind, thrown outside where they immediately dissipate, and just downright murdered, the crew is covered in dust and shrapnel, but the room is cleared (along with some minor damage). Sentry manages to put her bottled sprite into a cage before convincing it to join her – it crawls up into her vine hair and takes up residence. The spirit is made of green light and Sentry decides to call him Briar.

## **YouTube Timestamps**

0:00:00 - Intro
0:11:15 - Dun Duns
0:12:11 - Part 1
1:24:25 - Part 2

## **Featured Characters**

#### **The Stormchasers (Player Characters)**

* Aila
* Lucius Virion-Elluin Elenasto
* Qillek Ad Khollar
* Sentry
* Nova V'ger

#### **New NPCs**

* “Big Jack” Brighttail
* Matriarch Vindra Brighttail
* Talia Brighttail

#### **Returning NPCs**

* Tornado
* Dannica
* Reyn Talevir
* Azaria Perel
* Grand Strategist

#### **Mentioned NPCs**

* Breeze V'ger
* Wade V'ger
* Thalia Whisperwind
* Maximillion Taldros
* Rethra
* Harmony
* Shansara
* Fuego
* Valla
* Morgaen Frostblessed
* Hunter Varnier

## **Featured Locations**

* The Stormchaser
* Horizon
* Aelseraph
	+ Starwatch Rise

## **Trivia**

* Coming out of the Dun Duns and just prior to Mark starting the recap, Kim is heard to say, “I’m nekkid” (indicating Nova’s state of undress after being resurrected – we hope!)
* The magic fridge-maker (who gave the name Zam Zim Zimbalim in episode 161) was always going to be a conman. Tom did not remember how much gold he gave the man to make the fridge (50 gold plus a lovely dark, stained wooden chest with beautiful fittings worth 25 gold), and Mark says that he never recorded the amount because he knew that the man would never be seen again. *Locate Creature* did not work to find him – Mark suggested that he is a plainswalker – and Tom retorted that his character in campaign 3 is going to kill that man. Mark then suggested that they should play a Jingle Jam one shot where Quill has to find him: The Hunt for Zim Zam Zimbalor (get the name right!).
* Mark insists that Nova had a spare uniform (*exactly* the same as her old character art) in her cabin on the Stormchaser. Of course she did Mark – I would hope that she had several. I would hope that all of them would. Otherwise… phew! Can you imagine the stench???
* Aila has a collection of training rocks that she keeps in a dedicated compartment in her Heward's Handy Haversack. You know, just in case she needs them…
* Farseeker the Starlight Blade is a +2 magic weapon (+2 to attack and damage rolls). As a bonus action, Nova can speak the command word (something in Celestial that Mark is happy for Kim to decide upon), and this causes the weapon to create a trail of glittering starlight from the blade for 1 minute – while this is active, the weapon does an additional 1d8 radiant damage to any target it hits, and the wielder can cast the spell *Misty Step* as a bonus action on each subsequent turn. The effect ends immediately if the wielder stops holding the weapon or is incapacitated. Once this feature is activated, it cannot be used again until the wielder has had a long rest. The command word must be spoken out loud to activate the sword, so it will not be activated if the wielder is silenced.
* The runes on the longsword are Dwarven and make up a prayer to Siaska. When asked to make up a prayer on the spot, Mark came up with, “Seeking out the mysteries of Siaska’s blessings”.
* When asked to suggest the command word for the longsword, Kim’s first answer was, “Butts”. Of course it was.
* The Staff of Frost has 10 charges. There are a number of ice-related spells that can be cast (for different costs in terms of charges – Cone of Cold (5 charges), Ice Storm (4 charges), Ice Wall (3 or 4 charges)).
* Bracers of Archery - +2 to damage rolls with ranged weapons. These require attunement and it was agreed that The Howling Tempest (when thrown) would not count as a ranged weapon. Aila has better items attuned.
* On making a perception check, Aila beat Quill with a 27. Quill only managed a 23.
* It was discussed at the table that with the adamantine scale armour, Nova would not be able to have a crit rolled against her on a weapon attack (melee or ranged, e.g., a bow or a sword), but that spells could still crit against her. Vorpal weapons on a crit do lots of extra damage but would not be able to decapitate her. The scale mail is not as form-fitting and comfortable as Nova’s breastplate, and will give her disadvantage on stealth rolls.
* Azaria’s butler, Steven, was named by her. She does not know his original name. She has a number of skeletons who perform a similar role, all named differently.
* Nova’s new shield is called a Gateway Shield. It allows her to cast *Arcane Gate*.
* As Mark is trying to introduce the continent of Aelseraph, Tom takes over and describes it as looking “like the Windows XP background” – in character. Mark says that it is not.
* The stories from Starwatch are based on tales that are told around Lunar New Year. Tom did not get the references because he was not listening last year. There is a free one-shot on Kim's website, Jade Emperor's Invitation, that tells more of the story of the Nian, the creature that must be scared off.
* Mark recommends that next week, Tom and Rhi should "help with the vegetables". He thinks that they will enjoy this.

## **Quotes**

* Tom (as Quill): I was making Howard a fridge.
* Kim (as Nova): Ok.
* T: Everyone was on a… Remember when you had a spa day?
* K: Yes
* T: I wasn’t there.
* K: Uh huh.
* T: It was awful. Probably the worst day of my life.

*(Wow, Quill. You’re saying this to your friend who JUST DIED, near your other friend WHO DIED. Also, YOU DIED. Losing the con man who was meant to make you a magical fridge and ran off with 75g is the worst day of your life?? Really??? ~Crispi)*

* Kim (after getting the Gateway Shield): You treat me so well, Mark.
* Mark: Fuckin’ you’d better not forget it, either.
* Kim: You did ban me from the Amethyst Lodestone, though.
* Mark: I did not ban you. I gave it to you and you jumped into a pit and got all of your shit blown up.
* Kim (screeching): *I was saving the…*
* Mark: Yeah, well… consequences!