Episode 165

## Summary

Despite their best intentions, every plan falls short of the mountain-sized, ancient red dragon -- Daggerspine. Faced with no other option, the Arsonists confront her in the fiery lair. An old friend also appears just in time...

## Recap

* Lucius attempts to plan opening the door without killing the dragon by using a creative Wall of Force, but Vahlka is opposed. There's a brief discussion how to draw the dragon away from her lair, as they don't want to fight her within it. Barkley willingly assumes the role of bait.

* The Arsonists try to get out the way they came. Daggerspine turns her massive body, chewing on rocks, and everyone stays still as she does so. Good news, no one gets heat stroke. Bad news, Daggerspine knows that there's someone hiding in her lair.
* Barkley quietly tries to walk away to the lair's opening, leaving the blanket and party behind. She uses Minor Illusion to keep the dragon's attention elsewhere, but this plan fails miserably and Barkley is bit by the massive beast before she submerges herself beneath the surrounding lava.
* Without any means of stealth, the fight is on. As she's much too large to fight all at once, parts of the dragon emerge to attack the party. First to arrive is one claw, which Boulder attacks but finds Daggerspine's armor plating difficult to cut through.
* Second arrives a tail, cutting off any means of escape (even if they wanted to). Once the first claw falls back, Daggerspine's head emerges and mouth opens to draw in a massive amount of rock leading up to a massive attack.
* Suddenly, something rumbles in the center of the chamber like the sound of moving rock. Nothing appears yet, though.
* Everyone panics to get away from the inevitable, massive attack and... fortunately, they do. No sooner has the party fled out of the way when Daggerspine summons forth a blast of molten rock, leveling almost everything before her except the door into the Dwarven city.
* In the brief lull of dragon attacks, the grinding sound returns. Suddenly, the door opens to reveal two figures, one being familiar... it's Godfrey! Well, with some differences. For one, he's about twenty years younger than when they'd left him in the Abyss. He also has a crown of antlers and is shorter, somehow. But that's a story for another day... For the time being, everyone's just happy to have some more firepower. The other figure is presumably a paladin, who's a wood elf.
* Barkley casts Water Walk on everyone but the most distant of the party which allows them to walk in lava... just in case. Daggerspine repositions her head so that she can breath weapon Barkley, Boulder, and Vahlka, although the damage is shared between all three of them. Barkley falls unconscious.
* Godfrey now has access to WILD TIME MAGIC because of course he does. He slows himself.
* Adamant proceeds to walk over and strike Daggerspine's skull for *four* critical hits and a massive amount of damage, splintering her armor.
* Lucius, stuck between Daggerspine's tail and the rest of the party, calls upon the necklace given him by Bahamut. This transforms him into an adult copper dragon, capable of flying much more efficiently than his half-dragon self could walk. He gets out of the tail's range for now.
* Daggerspine sets up for another breath attack, while Boulder continues to do backflips around everyone. Godfrey gets slowed AGAIN. Lucius hastes Vahlka, because buffing the paladin is always a great plan. Boulder flies into the lava. Adamant gets battered by Daggerspine's tail.
* Lucius attempts to Disintegrate the dragon's eye, but fails to find purchase and she moves just in time to avoid the blast.
* Daggerspine charges her massive breath weapon again, potentially catching everyone in the blast. Some individuals are able to move to safety, but the session ends with several still in danger of being obliterated.

## Recording

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