Downtime Episode

## Description

With Banknote gone, and having been banished from the Sword Coast by the Lord's Alliance thanks to Strahd's influence, the remaining Dragon Friends board the *Jack Medley* and seek their fortunes elsewhere...

This episode, streamed live on Twitch and available in the Patreon podcast feed, covers the three years between the end of season five and the beginning of season six.

## Synopsis

Bobby, Baston and Philge are taken to Waterdeep by armed guards, who leave them on the docks and tell them if they're spotted in the city - or anywhere on the Sword Coast - "their lives are forfeit". The Dragon Friends realise that they have not travelled through much of Faerun, aside from their visit to Barovia and a virtual trip to Chult. They find just one ship docked in the harbour, the *Jack Medley*. After a brief depressed game of "can soccer", they board the ship and meet Captain Eliza Stern, who has agreed as a "favour to an old friend" to let Bobby travel with her if he wishes. Her ship is heading via the southern cities of Athkatla (in Amn) and Kalimport to Port Nyanzaru in Chult to buy silks and back - a four month round trip. She is expecting four of them, but the berths are rough - hammocks slung between cannons - and they have to bring their own food. They head off to shop for supplies, agreeing to bring Captain Stern a Sunnyboy.

Baston wonders if they should just lay low until the head is off, but Bobby thinks there's nothing left for them here. Philge wonders if the people of Daggerford will build statues of them, but the others think this is unlikely. Baston briefly considers returning to Barovia, which is now open to the world since killing Strahd broke the curse on the place, but he instead decides he wants to leave behind the horrible memories of his injury and go on a soul-searching journey on the high seas. He shops for a month's food and new clothes, going "normcore" with a standard naval outfit.

Bobby does the same, but Philge asks the others to shop for her as she heads back to the remains of the House of the Artificers to look for the remains of her brother Dilge and retrieve his skull to return to her Mum. She heads into the catacombs underneath, and finds the small cairn left to mark where he died - but his body is missing. She digs into the ground, but instead of finding Dilge's remains, she finds a short iron chain with a small iron disc featuring a "W" glyph - an amulet he used to wear, but which she knows nothing about.

The Dragon Friends set sail, but shortly after leaving port, Bobby dives off the ship, swimming back toward the port and biding his time.

A month later the ship docks in Athkatla, and Baston - feeling he cannot return home, and that he has lost too many friends - sinks into a deep depression. Philge has entered deep denial, believing Bobby has been swimming alongside the ship like a dolphin and talking to him each night, waiting for the Dragon Friends to reunite. They both decide to continue on to Kalimport.

Meanwhile Lionshield has gone back home to the Flotian Estates and reunited with his family, including his older brothers Walrussword and Wolfaxe and younger sister Aardvarkfist. He spends the Summer in an internship in a startup, and trying to start his own cryptocurrency, neither with any great success. Called into the study by his father while his siblings are away, he is told he will come into money when he turns 24 in six months. His father is worried that if his son does not find his own direction, he will waste the money and become depressed; Lionshield insists his calling is be a hero of the people and take on the family name, which is Greatheart's calling. But Lionshield is adamant that he wants to take over the family distillery, so his father tells him he must apply himself and apprentice himself to its current steward, Mendlecore, and they will revisit the situation in six months.

During those months, Lionshield makes an effort, taking on the introduction of a new spirit as an executive project. Mendlecore gives Banknote a week to come up with a plan; he presents a plan to create a premium vodka alongside their existing fine gin and mediocre vermouth, which he calls "Untitled Goose Vodka". He gets pushback from rival Jebediah Bindlesnatch, who points out that the vodka industry is dominated by their ancient rivals the Lormingtons, who make Dark Duck vodka. But their distillery has suffered an "accident" and been burned down...by Bushu Deetoo. Lionshield manages to fill this temporary gap in the market with his Untitled Goose Vodka, which is a huge success - and a humiliation to Jebediah, whose plans of making alcoholic kombucha are thwarted.

Bobby meanwhile returns to Barovia to learn to control the werewolf within him, something he never managed on his first visit there. But this is really a distraction; he's really still trying to deal with having died in space only a couple of weeks earlier, and feeling responsible for whatever Freezo did while he was dead. When he's the wolf, he can ignore those feelings. He heads down the Old Svarlich Road into Barovia, finding that the curse is lessened, but Castle Ravenloft still dominates the landscape.

Bobby lodges at the Blood of the Vine tavern and pays Lady Esme, a Vistani fortune-teller, to arrange a meeting with the "wolfen", but it will take time and more money. Bobby makes a living during the Summer becoming a piano player in the bar and writing jingles for the growing businesses of Barovia now it has opened up to travellers. His tune for Garond the Blacksmith becomes a viral sensation, and popularises the phrase "I died in space". He is sought out by Jebediah Bindlesnatch, who pays him to write a tune to promote "Buch Hooch", but it doesn't catch on in the same way.

Garond is so successful as a result of his jingle, he makes Bobby a custom masterpiece - a gold-burnished helmet in the shape of a wolf's head which can adjust to fit him when he transforms into a werewolf. But while Bobby makes his money, and befriends Bitsy, who reintroduces him to Brasley, the cleric of Pelor, for an awkward reunion. Brasley knows the darkness hasn't totally left, and that because of the Dragon Friends - who killed the old priest and allowed the Relic of Pelor to be destroyed - Strahd could return and take revenge. The people need a new relic to protect them, and Brasley sees this as an opportunity for Bobby to redeem himself. Bobby, though, is reluctant to get involved, and suggests instead that Brasley just uses something to make the people *feel* safe - essentially conning his flock. But Brasley asks him to swear on something important that he and the other Dragon Friends will make an attempt to make amends by questing for a new relic. But Bobby refuses, and no longer welcome in the town, he goes to live in the woods for the rest of the Summer.

Back on the *Jack Medley*, Philge is starting to lose faith and Baston has started drinking. They arrive in Kalimport, and Philge, feeling let down by the Dragon Friends and regretting the things they've done, decides to leave the ship to search for her roots. She bids farewell to a drunken and unconscious Baston, leaving a note in his eyehole.

In Kalimport Philge returns to blacksmithing, hiring space from a Barovian franchise and making rusty novelty letterboxes she successfully promotes by astroturfing good word of mouth reviews and writing her own jingle. She also looks to understand magic better and find out more about Dilge's amulet. She befriends a local illusionist, the Great Dimante, who has a talking dog familiar named Paws and a pet dolphin named Flippers, who is forced to live in a barrel. He is amazed that Philge has been able to do any magic at all, but recognises the amulet is upside-down - it's actually an "M" for "Monty", the illusionist's real name. They all knew Dilge, as he studied magic with Monty until a disagreement in which he told Monty he couldn't go on Dilge's magical bouncy castle without taking off his shoes led to his exile. Philge takes on a half-orc apprentice blacksmith named Samantha who eventually takes on more of the business, allowing Philge the time and money to study with Monty and become a better wizard.

Baston arrives in Chult, hits rock bottom waking up penniless and naked in a gutter, and wanders off into the jungle, which he vaguely remembers from the *Tomb of Annihilation* videogame. During his wandering he is attacked by goblins and suffers "severe damage to the nether regions" as he is stabbed in the gooch. He escapes but passes out, his last thoughts are of his lost friends...before waking up on a straw mat in the Kir Sabal monastery. Only one of them, Ashara, recognises him, thinking they may have met in another world. Baston cleans up and stops drinking and stays with the monastery, finding a measure of peace as he trains with them and adopts their ascetic, vegan lifestyle. After two years have passed, Ashara asks about the note under Baston's eyepatch, which he finally discovers:

If you you wish to see me again, meet me in exactly three years at what remains of the Dragonback Inn. Me hope to see you again, friend.
PS - Bye.

Baston bids farewell to the monks and heads off back towards Daggerford.

Meanwhile Banknote returns to Rutherglen House for his six-monthly meeting with this father, but the family mansion is abandoned. All that's left is a box of Lionshield's stuff, including an heirloom crystal doorknob/butt plug (unused). On his father's desk are two pieces of paper and an ornate carved wooden box containing five thousand gold coins. One of papers is a letter addressed to Lionshield in his father's hand, warning him that "they" are coming for the house and that it'd be best not to try and find him - "there will be a time for resistance, but not today" - and exhorts him to try and remember he's a Banknote. Four of Lacroix's guards arrive with Commissioner Leary, who reads an official letter claiming the estate as part of the expansion of Daggerford, paying the paltry sum of 450 gold pieces.

Philge has learned to read from Paws (who learned from Flippers, who learned from Monty) as part of a book club, and finished her apprenticeship with Monty. She farewells Samantha, and prepares to head back to Daggerford aboard Stern's ship to meet Baston. She tells Samantha of her past as an adventurer and tells gives her some way to contact her if she is ever in trouble. Before she goes Monty asks her to make sure Dilge is okay; it turns out he and his previous apprentice had retrieved Dilge's body and buried him under a twisted tree on a rocky outbluff overlooking the sea, a day's ride out of Waterdeep, and he gives Philge a map of where to find it.

Inside the Svalich Woods, Bobby's Summer has stretched into years. He lives in a cave, and learns how to survive in the wilderness. He is still plagued by dreams of Carcosa, but learns more or less to live with them; and also he uses his Moonblade more and more often, his werewolf form becoming more powerful and normal to him. The wolfen prove more difficult to contact than expected, but eventually Esme sends her to the Maiden Stones, where he waits in his now-uncomfortable halfling form for a meeting that will affect all the Dragon Friends - including Freezo...

## Cast

### Dragon Friends

* Bobby Pancakes
* Baston
* Philge
* Lionshield Banknote

### NPCs

* Captain Eliza Stern
* Greatheart Banknote
* Mendlecore
* Jebediah Bindlesnatch
* Bitsy
* Lady Esme
* Garond the Blacksmith
* Brasley
* The Great Diamante (aka Monty)
* Paws
* Flippers
* Ashra

## Themes, Tropes and Running Jokes

* Baffling Reference for our International Listeners: The "Sunnyboy" was an orange-flavoured ice-block that came in a tetrahedral packet, making it roughly a d4 shape.
* A Dip In The Bag: mentioned several times by Hing.

## Trivia

* Ben Jenkins does not appear in this episode, with all NPCs played by Dave and the main cast.

## Table Talk

* After Alex wonders as Philge if the Dragon Friends will get statues, Hing prompts a discussion about whether the players would agree to a statue of themselves in Sydney, and they talk about statues that had gone wrong.