Campaign 3, Episode 32: The Ones We Couldn't Save (Legends of Irondeep)

**The Ones We Couldn't Save** is the thirty-second episode of Campaign 3, and the third episode of Legends of Irondeep.

Duck Team is down another member after Callie is possessed by a strange clockwork leech! Sol struggles to keep the party together, Callie embraces Winter, and Hardwon reveals the truth about his past.

## Plot Synopsis

Hardwon remembers the day on the Astral Plane three years ago when he met with Alanis so she could send him back to the Material Plane. Alanis tries to convince him to stay, but he is adamant that he can no longer serve his function in Gladeholm. He wakes up from this memory when Leomund's Tiny Duck disappears because Callie - charmed by the automaton leech that has attached to her - has walked off far enough to automatically dispel it.

Sol, also awoken by the Duck's disappearance, and Hardwon start running after Callie, only to discover her in the company of a pack of gnolls and an automaton. When they try to retrieve her, Callie turns on them as she's controlled by the automaton who commands her to attack. After a brief scuffle, Hardwon manages to remove the leech, but not without taking significant damage from Callie first.

After they take out the automaton, the gnolls turn and just wander away. Callie, feeling awful about hurting her friends, apologizes to Hardwon and promises that going forward she'll be detached and all business. She then conjures up an austere version of Leomund's Tiny Hut for the Crow Crew to rest in. Sol goes to bed, but Hardwon sits down next to Callie and tells her he does not think she's a liability but that he's afraid of Callie and Sol getting hurt. Callie asks Hardwon to train her in order to prepare her for the confrontation with Ultrus and then asks about the last battle that made Hardwon retire. He tells her that since Thiala killed Pelor, other gods have gotten inspired and are trying to kill other gods to attain their divine hearts so that they accumulate enough power to be able to invade the Material Plane. When the war god Gruumsh tried to invade Ysgard, Hardwon tried to fight him off but didn't succeed in time to save his best friend, Ol' Cobb.

The next day, Crow Crew has a largely uneventful hike until a pack of gnolls catches up to them in the evening, lying in wait outside their hut. They decide to confront the problem head on and fight off the pack, though Hardwon knows that more packs are in pursuit of them and will now be quicker to catch up with them.

The day after, the gang is confronted with a cliff they must climb. Once they reach the halfway point a rift opens up in the mountain and three fire giants can be seen returning from an expedition, carrying automaton parts. The crew debates jumping in after them, but Hardwon objects to the idea. As the rift closes, Callie and Sol feel the heat of the fire giants, but then catch a waft of familiar icy cold, too.

## Quotes

* "It's like... I'm always just daydreaming, stargazing, making up stupid little games. And who foots the bill for all my little flights of fancy? Well, everyone around me." - *Callie to Sol and Hardwon*
* "I'm afraid that I'll get you hurt." - *Hardwon to Callie*

## Trivia

* Hardwon uses a feature of his Luck Feat that he does not usually use: he makes Callie re-roll two attack rolls against him.
* Emily rolls five Natural 20s in this episode.

## Music and Sound Effects

* "A Wizard Tournament" by Emily Axford.
* "Tundra Trudge" by Emily Axford.
* "Balnor the Brave" by Emily Axford.
* "A Memory" by Emily Axford.
* "Angels & Devils" by Emily Axford.
* "Mee Maw's Burden" by Emily Axford.
* "Melora's Boon" by Emily Axford.
* "The Gunslinger's Girl" by Emily Axford.
* "Soul Coins" by Emily Axford.
* "Solving Puzzles" by Emily Axford.
* "Forsaken" by Emily Axford.

## External Links

* Headgum
* NADDPod Subreddit Thread

## References

1. ↑ C3 Ep. 32: The Ones We Couldn't Save, 00:25:21 & 00:27:18